Fighting Apathy With Awe

O to grace how great a debtor
Daily I’m constrained to be!
Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee.
Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,
Prone to leave the God I love;
Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,
Seal it for Thy courts above.

“Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” - Robert Robinson

Because my heart is frail and weak, still suffering from the effects of life in the flesh, I cannot help but stand amazed at Robinson's profound insight within this verse. Its raw honesty is beautiful, yet unsettling.

Unsettling, because I know it to be true.

I am prone to wander. I feel it every day.

Like the unrelenting influence of gravity, the flesh tears at my heart, calling me to abandon the God I love.

I need a fetter. Something to bind me, chain me, restrain me to the God who rescued me from darkness and despair.

How should I continue to abide in the Vine when the hurricane of my flesh rails against me?

Robinson gives us a clue.

"Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,
Bind my wandering heart to Thee."

I have found that in my moments of deepest apathy, the only truth that binds me to God's presence, is the foundation shaking truth of his absolute goodness.

I must fight apathy in my life with awe.

Awe of God's goodness, awe of his character, awe of his works, awe of his mercy and grace.

Apathy is a path that leads to destruction; wage war against it.

Our churches need men and women who actively fight apathy with awe.

See afresh the wonder of your God; be lost in it. Then, as your life celebrates the majesty of your King, draw others into this Spiritual worship. Call others to fight apathy with awe.

May we see a new generation, people of the cross, caught up in the awe of God.