Growing and staying close to God is a lot like breathing. You have to do it regularly, and it is rhythmic. You intake God's message of love to you and then exhale it through your words and actions. Breathe in; breathe out. Grace and peace. Learn and do. Feel love; give love. So keep breathing!
We're inhaling God's word to us from Philippians 2:19-3:1 on this Tuesday. Don't rush through it too fast, you might hyperventilate. Take slow, deep breaths. Let it be a time that God's peace can fall upon you. Enjoy it! This isn't work! This is pleasure! After reading it through a few times, this is what caught my attention:
I hope in the Lord.... And I am confident in the Lord.... Welcome him in the Lord.... Further, my brothers and sisters, rejoice in the Lord! (v. 19, 24, 29; 3:1)
In just a couple of paragraphs, it struck me how many times the phrase "in the Lord" is used. In the Lord. When I'm hungry I look in the refrigerator. When I'm needing something to wear I look in the closet. Sometimes I leave my cds or sunglasses in the car. I have some important papers in the office. But hope, confidence, fulfilling relationships, deep-seated joy...the really important stuff is all found in the Lord! And even more than that, I hear God saying that everything in my life as a disciple should flow from my relationship with Jesus. It is not just one compartment of my life, but the source or hub out of which everything else flows.
My hopes for good things ahead, my aspirations about what I would like to accomplish, my interactions and relationships with people in my life, the attitude that I bring to my circumstances are either sourced in my own fallen nature or they're shaped by my constant awareness of Jesus' personal presence and leadership. This is what it means to follow him.
Practically speaking, today I will parent my kids in the Lord. I will dream about my future in the Lord. I will respond to the people around me in the Lord. I will conduct my upcoming meeting in the Lord. I will find my confidence and significance in the Lord. Any offenses or problems that come my way I will deal with in the Lord. And come good or bad I will most definitely rejoice in the Lord! Because, Jesus, you are always the center of my life and you are always good! Lead me today and I will follow you. I've breathed in; now I'm ready to breathe out.
Your reflections on God's word to you in this text are just as important as mine. Please feel welcome to share them in the comments box below. Sign in using the link on the top right corner of the page (you must have a Google account) or you can bypass that and simply choose Anonymous in the "Comment as" field.
In the Lord!! That would mean that I have to turn all things, thoughts, desires, motives, and my will over to Him. That is really hard to do sometimes!
ReplyDeleteMy hope, my security, my peace, the answers to all of life's perplexing questions, my strength, my wisdom.......all of these are found in the Lord. Without the Lord, I would be very lost and aimlessly looking for answers from other people. Not from the real source of truth!
When it is all said and done, can I look back and say that I consulted my God before I chose to breathe out? Did I truly take the time to breathe in what he wanted me to know in any given situation?
Lord, help me to breathe in your Word so that it saturates every part of me and has no choice but to flow from me like a refreshing spring into the lives of others. Especially those who I have significant impact on. Lord, draw me closer so that I can hear your still, small voice. Please speak wisdom into my life and help me to breathe that out to others.....day after day.
Michele
Very heart-felt comment, Michele! And you're right, nobody ever said it was easy. Life with God is a quest that requires everything of us! And would we really want it otherwise? The challenges are real but the end reward of fulfilling that quest is beyond words!
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