Quickening
I will be the first to admit that my vocabulary is somewhat limited, so when I heard the word quickening the other day, I had no idea what it actually meant. You can’t teach quick, you either have it or you don’t, so what is quickening?
As a basketball coach, most everything I process goes through my basketball terminology first. Basketball is a definitely a game of quickness. John Wooden, considered by many the greatest basketball coach of all-time, often said, “Be quick, but don’t hurry.” Quickness is both physical and mental, while anticipation can be just as important as physical quickness. What I am seeking in today’s post is to find out why God chose to place the word ‘quickening’ in the Bible 17 times?
Let’s first take a look at the definition of quickening:
a. To make alive : revive. b : to stimulate. The action of bringing someone or something to life.
With the future of Roe vs Wade being debated right now in the Supreme Court, what I found next is the most powerful gem I found regarding the word ‘quickening’.
The first motion of a fetus in the uterus felt by the mother!
For centuries quickening also marked the legal and moral dividing line for when an abortion could be performed. I found that interesting. After hearing this definition, the word quickening seemed so much more important than what I had known. I can only imagine the feeling of a human life moving inside you. I remember how excited Sheri was the first time she felt each one of our children move for the first time.
As a Christian, I can speak to the feeling someone experiences when they accept Christ Jesus as their Lord and Savior. Welcoming the person of the Holy Spirit in my body and feeling His presence alive inside me for the first time, is a quickening that I have experience. It is an encounter like no other and something that we were designed to experience daily. When Adam sinned, the Holy Spirit returned to heaven, but Jesus changed all of that when He died on the cross. Our Savior willingly was crucified so that the Holy Spirit could return back inside us. All we have to do is receive His Gift! The Holy Spirit was designed to help, guide, and empower us daily in our Christian walk and to help us fulfill the great commission.
I remember an experience of former player of mine, who was open to the gospel, but had not committed his life to Christ yet. He met a young lady whom he loved, she invited him on a mission trip to the jungle of South America with here church. There in the jungle, while serving the poor, Mike found Jesus and encountered His love like never before. I will never forget Mike’s words after he returned. “Coach”, Mike said, “Everything has come to life. The words in the Bible used to put me to sleep, now the jump off the page.” He got a parasite while there and didn’t even care. What he had found was so much worth it, Jesus!
Join me in prayer tonight for the Supreme Court. I am praying they vote favorably in favor of life over abortion. Forgive our nation Father and quicken our hearts to be a nation after your heart.
Check out a few verses with quickening:
Job 33:4 “The Spirit of God hath made me, And the breath of the Mighty doth quicken me.”
in the Amplified! “The Spirit of God has made me, And the breath of the Almighty gives me life [which inspires me].”
KJV – Psalm 85:6 “Wilt thou not quicken us again, That thy people may rejoice in thee?”
Check out the Good News Translation “Make us strong again, and we, your people, will praise you.”
Romans 8:11 “But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.”
Photo by Tessa Rampersad on Unsplash