My Mum says she spent 16 years of her life, as she puts it, ‘picking things up off the floor.’ When those years were at an end and us four children were all at school, a friend asked her what she was going to do with her time. My mum gawped at her wordlessly. She was at a total loss. She had completely forgotten what her dreams were.

What have you ‘set your heart’ on? What are you longing for, hoping toward and praying into?
Perhaps, if pushed, you would not actually know the answer to this question at all.

Of course, our Mum did a great deal more than just tidy up after us. In that time, God was silently investing great wisdom and skill in her. We owe a huge debt to her for her many years of faithful and sacrificial mothering, especially at times when she felt unappreciated or undervalued. God rewarded her with a wonderful career as a teacher and Headteacher where she was able to influence and encourage many lives. But it was a real journey for her and not something she found easy or arrived at quickly.

And so I come back to my earlier question. What about you? What is YOUR heart set on? I read a beautiful verse in my prayer time this morning. The passage, from Psalm 84, is one of my favourites and was given to me as a precious ‘word in season’ last year by someone I love dearly.

But as I read it again today, I felt drawn to the few words in verse 5, ‘Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their heart on pilgrimage.’ To be a pilgrim is to be in a constant state of not having yet arrived. This in itself is hard, especially for those of us who like to tick boxes, complete tasks, finish and arrive somewhere.

Why people embark on pilgrimage at all is telling. What is it they are looking for? As I dwelt on this today, I felt that Father drew me to two words:
‘Intimacy’ and ‘Inspiration.’

God is not interested in pilgrimage undertaken from a sense of obligation or duty. He’s not asking us for a Mecca-type sojourn to Bethlehem, or to the Mount of Olives – amazing though those places are – to meet with Him. No, God is concerned primarily about what is happening in our hearts. Notice the verse does not say ‘Those who have their mind set, or those who set their feet toward…’ God wants our response to Him to be about our feelings as well as our faith.

Who, on being offered the chance to have a meal out with their husband or wife would like to hear the words: ‘I guess I ought to…?’ We would find that hurtful and demeaning. God does not want us to embark on any journey toward Him from a sense of ‘I suppose this would be good for me…or for You, so GO ON THEN, I’ll have a quick pray…’

Our God is VERY interested in intimacy with us. He loves to be close to us. What is your level of intimacy with your Father at the moment? Is it at an all-time-low? Be honest with yourself!
God is also deeply passionate about our inspiration and ‘dream levels.’ Some of the people I hang out with used to be really ‘out there’ in their kingdom desires. But, over the years they have become sullied by the world, sluggish in their levels of prayer, biblical study and just seem to have slid away from their ‘first love.’ I’m a bit scared they might say the same of me.

I went to a Revival prayer meeting last night and began to cry out, not just for the lost, but for the lethargic, for those who need to be revived. As I prayed, I sensed the Spirit showing me places in my own life where my heart had gone cold, where lack of self-control and domestic distractions had led me away.
I have set my heart on continual pilgrimage today. You?