Have you ever learned a spiritual truth in a new and deeper way that you had once learned a long time ago? Such has been the case for me.
Many years ago, the Lord showed me something very powerful in Psalm 84. I had experienced a big disappointment and I didn't know how I could recover. And then the Lord took me to Psalm 84:5 —
Blessed are those whose strength is in you, whose hearts are set on pilgrimage.
Psalm 84:5
In those words, the Lord taught me that life is a pilgrimage of the heart and that I can never set my roots down deeply in anything but Him.
Christ and Christ alone. He is my security and He is my very life.
I learned such a powerful truth about pilgrimage then, and I have learned it again now.
We need to set our hearts on pilgrimage and we need to keep them set on pilgrimage.
This is what I call the "heartset" of a Christian.
In my book, Pilgrimage of the Heart, I describe what it means to set our hearts on pilgrimage —
God's call to pilgrimage is the call to find your home in God and live life here as one who journeys in a foreign land until you reach your grand destination: heaven…God's pilgrims "set their hearts on pilgrimage" (Psalm 84:5). This is what I call the "heartset" of a Christian. You've heard of a mindset. A heartset is a deep determination and resolve that flows as a passion from the heart. It is your response to God's call to pilgrimage. It is the determination and resolve to find life where life is really found: in Christ alone.
Catherine Martin in Pilgrimage of the Heart
When we experience losses and have no answers in the circumstances of our life, it helps to remember that this world is not our home. We are pilgrims on a pilgrimage. And on this side of heaven, closed doors always mean an open door somewhere else. And as difficult as it is to be in the waiting rooms of life, knowing it is all temporary and that our Lord Jesus is absolutely trustworthy and faithful, brings hope to your heart when you are weary and downcast.
I was out walking with the Lord in the early morning and I was talking with Him about these very things. And as I was walking, I was suddenly led to declare every name of the Lord I could think of and every truth in Scripture about the Lord that came to my mind. I spent the next twenty minutes completely focused on Christ. And in that time I was reminded of His greatness and glory. I realized anew that this world is temporal, that I am on a pilgrimage of the heart, and that one day I will step from earth to heaven where I will live with the Lord in my eternal home.
I like looking out at the Southern California desert mountains, especially at sunrise. It reminds me of this heartset perspective of pilgrimage, the nature and landscape of our journey, and my need to keep my eyes fixed on my Lord.
So today, dear friend, set your heart on pilgrimage and grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (2 Peter 3:19).
Lord, today we set our hearts on pilgrimage once again and look forward to continuing to grow in grace and in the knowledge of You. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Blessings ♡ Grace
