Pulsebeat

Pulse…The rhythmical throbbing of arteries produced by the regular contractions of the heart, especially as palpated at the wrist or in the neck.
So says the dictionary.

We all know how to check our pulse.
Runners are very adept at checking their pulse rate.
Anyone who works out regularly knows their resting heart rate.
They can measure their cardiovascular fitness by the beat of their heart.

We also talk about pulse in an idiomatic way.
Pulse: The perceptible emotions or sentiments of a group of people.
We take the pulse of the nation on certain issues.

We had a communion service last week at church.
The communion service was a bit different that evening.
We were served by our deacons, but instead of taking the bread and the cup all together as a congregation, we took our time.
We sat in the stillness of the dimly lit church and just enjoyed being with the Lord.

It was a very precious time.

The bread was served first, representing His body.
The cup was served next, representing His blood.

For some reason, I just sat there holding both in my hands for quite a long time.
I was thinking and praying…and then…stillness.
I can’t explain the complete quiet that came over me.

This is My body given for you; do this in remembrance of Me. (Luke 22:19)

I sat there with the elements in my hands…one in my left…the other in my right.
My hands were touching as I looked down at what I was holding.
I looked down at the bread and the cup…and remembered what it all means.

Suddenly I felt it…as my hands touched.
The pulse in my fingertip.
The beat of my heart.

In those quiet moments, it was just me and my Lord.
My pulse beating with His.

Tears came to my eyes.
I imagined His heart and my heart beating together…rhythmic…steady.

He tends His flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart; He gently leads those who have young. (Isaiah 40:11)

He carries me close to His heart.
I experienced a palpable oneness with my Lord.

I am grateful for the simple profundity.
My pulse beat and His…as I held the bread and the cup in my hand.

The Lord Jesus, on the night He was betrayed, took bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “This is My body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same way, after supper He took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)

The world would dismiss what I experienced that night.
Of course…when you hold something tightly in your hand you feel your pulse.

Of course.
Yet that worldly logic can be turned on its head.
Hold something tightly in your hand…feel your pulse.
That is exactly what I want to do…hold onto Him tightly!

Hold so tightly that my pulse is indistinguishable from His!
Hold so tightly that the noise around me grows fainter.
I want to feel the beat of my own heart…as it beats with His.

Refresh my heart in Christ. (Philemon 1:20)

Nothing refreshes our heart like the Lord Jesus.
Augustine, at the start of his Confessions, wrote “God, you have made us for Yourself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in You.”

The world will not satisfy.
Another person will not satisfy.
Our work will not satisfy.
All of these things, no matter how wonderful they are, will fall short.

Resting in Christ FIRST puts everything else in perspective.
Being in right relationship with the Lord Jesus FIRST, helps us to be a better wife, a better husband, a better mother, a better father…a better son, daughter, sister, brother, friend, co-worker.

Christ first.
Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts. (Colossians 3:15)

Rhythmic beating of your heart and HIS.
Indistinguishable.
Palpable.
Oneness with the Lord Jesus.