The Pleasures Of Loving God Quotes

“In today’s church our primary focus has been on kingly duties such as winning our neighborhoods to the Lord and bringing the nations into the harvest. This is fantastic and worth giving our best to. Nevertheless, we cannot overlook the priestly dimension as emphasized in the tabernacle of David.This is extremely important because I believe that God will restore the priestly function of the tabernacle of David before the fullness of kingly power comes into manifestation.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“I SPEAK OF intercessory worship because there is an interaction between worship and the speaking of the prayers. Something wonderful happens during the singing of prayers and the speaking of the prayers when the Spirit of God is upon the music. Prayer is easy. And because prayer is easy, people can pray much longer and more often than they could in the past. Prayer becomes refreshing and enjoyable! Intercession without anointed music can sometimes be like working in a rock pile. I have done it for years. Just three people praying in a room for hours without the refreshing of anointed worship teams can sometimes truly feel like the hard labor of a rock pile—at least that has been my experience. That rock pile may bring a few moments of inspiration here and there, but this kind of prayer without music can also feel like a difficult and heavy calling. But when you add the anointed harp, God’s music—now that’s a different story!”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“A look at Simeon and Anna also shows how God significantly uses older people in serving the Lord through continual prayer and fasting. In our day, God is going to use people who are retired. If you are nearing retirement, your strength has been given to you for this hour, and God has freed you from many things. There’s not a more powerful force in the earth than that of senior saints who have time and passion for Jesus.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“Areas in which we are compromising will begin to decrease because fasting releases grace that insulates us from discontentment, complaining and griping that is so prevalent throughout the world. Fasting literally begins to unlock and release those negative feelings that have been ruling our hearts and ruling us. This powerful spiritual tool strengthens our spiritual identity in God and weakens our fleshly identity. The presence of God released through fasting also helps to break the bondages of self-absorption so common in today’s world.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“The only thing that will ultimately break the power of sin is passion for Jesus. The only thing that will guard me from being entrapped by sin is being entranced by Jesus.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“WHY DO WE sin? We sin because we enjoy the pleasure it brings. John Piper says, “Sin is what we do when our hearts are not satisfied with God.”2 This statement helps us understand why the struggle for holiness must actually be the pursuit to stay satisfied with God.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“One of the greatest problems with the church in America is the lack of wholeheartedness. Counseling ministries attempt to bring people to emotional wholeness, but if believers aren’t called to wholeheartedness, they will never enjoy emotional health. Loving and serving with a whole heart pleases the Lord, but there is more to it than that. Many believers attempt to live in the grace of God without abandonment to God. They look for a way to understand grace that reinforces their carnal lifestyles. We need to experience grace that leads us to the joy of wholehearted living and loving. A wholehearted God designed me to need and to long to be wholehearted!”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“Our spiritual health and maturity depend upon knowing that God enjoys us, for it addresses the fear of rejection within our hearts. The fear of rejection and the trauma of shame are the most powerful emotions in the human spirit.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“This longing to be enjoyed by God is also the seedbed for all the false religions of the world, for the devil exploits this human longing and brings many evil and false religions into existence.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“We must repent when we seek to fulfill this longing in an incorrect way, but we can never repent for having the longing. This longing will never go away, but it is satisfied by the revelation of God’s extravagant passion for us and the revelation of the Father and the Bridegroom.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“We must not confuse His correction with rejection. When He does correct me, it is because He loves me. If I feel enjoyed by God while I grow spiritually, still I know He will discipline various areas of my life. He does this in the overflow of His passion for me.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“The idea of being enjoyed by God is difficult for some to receive. Some say, “Maybe God will enjoy me in heaven, but never while I am on earth.” Others admit that God may enjoy them on earth, but only if they are as spiritually mature as the apostle Paul. But the truth is that God will enjoy us while we mature. The knowledge of this is a vital key to turning sincere desire into spiritual maturity. We must not confuse God’s enjoyment of us while we are maturing with His approval of every desire of our lives. Jesus enjoys me, while at the same time He disapproves of a single area of struggle in my life. It is not an all-or-nothing relationship. Some think that God either approves of all we do or disapproves of us entirely. This is simply not correct.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“Others admit that God may enjoy them on earth, but only if they are as spiritually mature as the apostle Paul. But the truth is that God will enjoy us while we mature. The knowledge of this is a vital key to turning sincere desire into spiritual maturity.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“THE FIRST LONGING of the human heart is to have the assurance that we are enjoyed by God while still spiritually immature. To be enjoyed by God is a necessary part of living right. God enjoys us even when we are in the midst of our immaturity and weakness.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“Proverbs 2:4–5 challenges the body of Christ to seek the Lord as silver. We must gain the knowledge of Him, for there are hidden things that God will only give to the hungry.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“He also sees the good qualities in your life and the willingness in your spirit—even more than you can see them yourself. We try to obey God but stumble outwardly. By doing this, we mirror what Samuel did when he was anointing David; we look at the outward appearance. When we stumble, we feel as if we are total hypocrites, and then we want to quit. God sees us fall, but He also sees the cry in our hearts to obey Him and succeed. Many times this truth has given me the courage to go on.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“Negativity can flow out of our spirits during these times of testing. The goal, however, is that in the midst of trials we open our spirits with affection, trusting His leadership without beginning to guard our hearts in fear of more hurt. When this happens, our woundedness affects our relationship with God, and our intimacy with Jesus can be hindered. Harboring offense in our hearts toward God wounds our love for Him, and the devil knows this very well.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“I like the phrase my beloved because it shows that she maintains her affection for Jesus through her present season of testing. She harbors no resentment in her heart toward Jesus. She is not offended by her trial and does not stumble. He is still her beloved.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“But He likes when we choose Him—He really likes it. Our decision to see His worth simply delights His heart. Jesus cries out to us: Set me as a seal upon your heart, As a seal upon your arm; For love is as strong as death, Jealousy as cruel as the grave; Its flames are flames of fire, A most vehement flame. Many waters cannot quench love, Nor can the floods drown it. If a man would give for love all the wealth of his house, It would be utterly despised. —SONG OF SOLOMON 8:6–7”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“I really like the heart of Mary of Bethany. She was not an apostle. She was never famous, never wrote a book, never did a conference and never said much. Her passionate love was in secret—she just loved the Lord ferociously in secret.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“When I met the Lord, I was so excited. In fact, I think I was probably more excited about me than I was about the Lord. I thought the Lord had gotten the deal of the century—me! I was just like Peter. My attitude was, “I won’t stumble. Lord, don’t worry about me. Go take care of those other guys. I’ll be there for You all the time!”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You

“He longs for. We are what He waits for as His inheritance. Knowing this, it is inconceivable that we would languish in the despair of insignificance. If only we could see who we are because of Him! We can confidently say, “I may never have a big ministry, I may never have a big business and I may never be well recognized in the arenas of man, but I will never be insignificant. I am the one He loves. I am the one He died for. I am the one He longs for. I am the one He waits for.”
― Mike Bickle, The Pleasure of Loving God: A Call to Accept God's All-Encompassing Love for You