What is your Sacred Obsession?

I saw the book Sacred Obsession by Becky Tirabassi and the title draws me like a magnet and I wondered, what on earth is a Sacred Obsession? An obsession to me isnt always good for it can consumes you especially when it it wrong...
When I started reading the book I couldnt put it down for it touched my heart.
I would like to share with you small bits out of the book (with the consent of Becky)
But this book leads to a question:

What is your obsession or is the Sacred Obsession already part of your life?


What you chase after, you become…. Whether it is holy or unholy…
If you have little desire to be alone with God….
If you crave those things that are forbidden by God s Word more that you crave the things for God
If you are prayerless…
If you are powerless…
If you hide or run from truth…
If, over time, you have not experienced increasingly levels of positive,
moral change in your life…
If you regularly feel more shame and guilt than joy and peace…
If you read the Bible as a record of God’s voice in the past ,
rather than His voice speaking to you now….
If your affection for God has decreased with spiritual maturity…
If you resist sharing the gospel with others…
If your heart is hard…
If you are rarely happy…

If your experience with God is not personal or relational…
If you continually struggle with doubt and unbelief…
If you have no desire to help the poor, oppressed, hungry or hurting.
If you cannot feel God’s presence, His touch…
If you fear people more than God…
You are missing the Sacred Obsession!!

Are you feeling….?
Broken and confused,
Hiding their true selves,
Addicted to a substance,
Involved in emotional affairs
Extremely overweight and battling with food everyday
Defiantly bitter about something
Angry and easily able to wound with their words
Abused, trapped and desperate
Obsessed with the illicit
Habitual liars
Too self- centered to love those who need them and consumed with the chasing after the unholy
They believe the lie that the sacred is not enough
Instead of being obsessed with the scared…
Instead of loving God and others with intimacy and intention
Instead of being free to dance on the inside or outside
Instead of being able to laugh with pure joy and lift their hands with extreme freedom
Instead of caring for the needs of others with selfless abandon
Instead of being aware of God’s presence when His blanket of comfort or power comes over them
They are numb.!!!

All unholy passions can drive you nuts, manipulate you, hiding the truth, even lie..
Pornography, illicit sexual relationships, greed – can actually steal from you
They steal your joy, peace, your money , they use you, they take from you, they ruin your reputation, sooner or later, they smother your relationship with God and ultimately destroy your purpose of living!

When you are running, chasing after the unholy, stop and make a turn.

It doesn’t care who you are, how old, rich, poor, how smart you are, students, parents, addict, pastor…. If the unholy is being safely harbored in your life, you must instantly, immediately turn form it, then determine to hate it forever if you want to life free from it.

Sins of the flesh are those things we do outwardly, sexual immorality, adultery, drunkenness, lying, cheating, stealing rage etc
Sins of the spirit are those characteristics that we inwardly harbor and hide – pride, unbelief, jealousy, selfishness, hatred, envy etc
These things will consume us.

If you are broken and beaten up if you are stuck or stained, if you have a dead or dim heart…
Make it a moment to surrender…. Make a conscious decision to turn – physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually and turn to Jesus

1 John 2:15-17 – Do not love this world nor things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have that love of the Father in you.
For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.

Don’t believe the lie of the unholy passion that pursues you
Don’t live a life without pure passion
Don’t chase after what will never satisfy!
Chase after the sacred!

There are 3 kinds of hearts:
1. Dead hearts – dark – never even lit
2. Dim hearts – their passion for God has faded; something is smothering their fire and
3. Burning hearts – sold out, set apart, and sent out for God
Which one are you?

If a person’s life is consumed with hidden and unconfessed sins or the darkness of soul that begins with believing lies and often leads to depression, emotional unrest, physical pain, even unto desperation…breakthrough often comes with a dramatic, personal touch from God.

Run to the living God, relinquish the unholy in your life!
Get a burning desire to know God, accept Jesus Christ as your Saviour and repent of your sins and start a new life in Christ
1. Spend no less than one hour in prayer and Bible reading
2. Complete sobriety
3. Chastity (sexual purity)
4. Sharing Christ with at least one person each year (or week or day)

God has called us and we need to be sold out to prayer – to reserve time for Him alone everyday
We must be set apart in purity – willing to live holy to reflect a holy God
To be send out with purpose – serve Him with our talents, gifts and possessions now and forever

Ps 34:11-22 says:
Come, my children, and listen to me, and I will teach you to fear the Lord. Does anyone want to live a life that is long and prosperous? Then keep your tongue from speaking evil and your lips from telling lies! Turn away from evil and do good. Search for peace, and work to maintain it. The eyes of the Lord watch over those who do right; his ears are open to their cries for help… The Lord hears his people when they call to him for help. He rescues then from all their troubles…. The righteous person faces many troubles, but the Lord comes to the rescue each time. For the Lord protects the bones of the righteous; not one of them is broken. The Lord will redeem those who serve Him. No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

Revival has a cost. The cost is holiness!!!!

How does revival look like?
People will humbly asks for forgiveness, they will make restitution and amends.
Revival is when you and I are consumed with talking about, living for, praying to, worshipping joyfully and greatly loving Jesus every day! It is contagious, it is fun and it leaves you fired up!!!

Chase after the sacred with all your heart, body, mind and soul today, now and forever…!!
Stay connected to Him with your emotions
Sense His presence during both joys and trials
Hear His voice as you read the inspired Word
Experience happiness of knowing and being known by Him
Be empowered to temptation of your flesh or the attacks by the enemy on your soul

Have a burning heart and:
1. Be sold out to prayer – reserve time for Him alone everyday when we might pour out your heart to Him and listen to Him through your Bible,, when we might allow Him to search us, convict us, empower us, and speak to us.
2. To be set in purity – willing to be holy, live holy, and reflect a holy God. turn away from anything that is unholy
3. To be set out with a purpose – not only to understand that He created us with a purpose, but to joyfully serve him with our lives

Spending time with God is not a duty but rather time spend with someone you love, admire, and want to know better
When you want to spend time with a loved one you know you are loved by this person who knows the whole truth about you, that person is waiting for you , you know that something wonderful or meaningful will happen every time you are alone with each other, you don’t need to be reminded, you are not shamed meeting this person, you rush. You run, you can’t wait to meet you even began to plan the meetings….That is how it should be meeting the Father everyday for your alone time with Him

Plan your appointment with Jesus one day in advance
Set your alarm clock for your appointment
Record – journal= make commitments in writing
Have a system for Bible reading


What is the Sacred Obsession

The life-changing power of God
The indwelling presence of God
The passion for Christ
The consuming purifying fire of God
The voice of God
The Sacred Obsession is the Holy Person, the Holy Spirit of the living God!

Work on your prayer life with God
Start with praise – God is all we need –By paraphrasing the Psalms 1 -150 you tell God He is all you need
Admit – confessing your sins Ps 139:23 – 24 – have a heart to heart discussion with God, confessing your sins, clean your cup – no pretending ,no hiding, blaming others, excusing yourself.
Request – Pray for people, countries, family the sick and needy.
Thanks – Give God thanks for everything
Listen – God needs to speak to you , quiet and listen
Message – writing down scriptures God gives you
To Do - what you need to do


Father show us how to keep You this near to us, let the Holy Spirit guides us and be part of our lives. Amen