Perception is everything

From my devotional the other day....

"It's a matter of perception. Though God is big, our expectations of Him are not...He wants us to see Him as able and willing before we pray. Then we will see mountains move---according to His wisdom.

He will let us come to the end of our own abilities in order to accomplish His desire. What is this desire? For us to see Him as so large that everything else becomes small. But the mountains will usually remain until we see Him this way."

Why is my perception of God off? After asking God to answer this for me, He led me to a verse in Nehemiah. "For they [I] have not served You in their [my] kingdom..." - Nehemiah 9:35

At first I thought "my kingdom" meant the "places" in my life such as work, family, finances, church, etc. But after allowing God to show me what it truly meant, I came to realize that my kingdom is where I have influence, where my choices directly affect others. This is very much like a royal kingdom as we normally think of one. Every decision a king/queen makes affects their subjects.

My "rule" or influence/decisions are affected by what rules and influences me. Rule means to "act as umpire" or "to arbitrate". According to Scripture, what should rule me and influence my decisions? "Let the peace of God rule your heart." (Colossians 3:15)
"The peace of God should act as our umpire when anger, envy, and other passions arise in our hearts."

God has opened my eyes to a lot more on this. I'll share more later.