All in Faith, Prayer, Work
Are there clouds in your life, and if so what do they look like? Are they the big billowy white ones of a bright summer day? How about the thin wispy ones that stretch out as if forever? Or, are they the dark churning clouds that tower into the sky filled with lightning and ominous rolls of thunder? God is in the clouds... how does He come to you today?
My goal is to live in my faith for this particular moment. Looking into the future distracts me from the here and now, and what God has for me to do right this minute. Do you have long term spiritual plans that take up most of your time and prayer? Well, drop your sail and look at what God has surrounded you with at this particular point in time!
Are you a slave to instinctive reflexes... this is a recipe for instant sin, and an avenue for our inner person, the fallen man, to bypass our faith and intellect as it erupts from our mouths. Conquering this ancient creature within each of us requires chains that only the Holy Spirit can bind with.
Am I blessed as Jesus said I would be when He taught the Beatitudes? Do I see them as simple precepts for life, or does their spiritual undercurrent shake me? These very easily followed rules for living can improve the life of an unbeliever, or elevate a person of faith to a dramatically higher spiritual plane.
Do we follow Jesus for the reward of eternal life? Do we serve Him for the blessings He bestows on us? Is our fear of God because we might be judged and thrown in a pit of fire? If our answer to any of these questions is yes, then our faith is an illusion, and His love for us far less than undeserved.
Where do we look for wisdom? How about righteousness, sanctification, and redemption? Do we find them in church or bible study? Do we seek them out while plodding along a pilgrimage path in some far off country? The answer is that we find them in one place only... Jesus Christ.
Am I prepared to walk in the desert? Can I tolerate the loneliness that will test me there? When there is nothing left but myself and God, will I find I am prepared for death and to join Him? Will I accept sanctification in Christ just as His apostles did? These are questions to consider regarding our being alone and the sanctity that results from it.
Have I placed Jesus first and foremost as my teacher? What is the danger in this? Why is it more important that we put Jesus the redeemer before Jesus the teacher?
Are we seeking God? Do we search day and night for Him? Praying? Reading scripture? Well stop for a moment and be still. You don't need to search for Him... He is all around you! When we realize this truth, then all that is left is to get to know Him. To understand and establish a relationship with the almighty, and His Son Jesus.
When I came to Jesus it was in full submission to Him, but have I served Him over all else in my life? Have I been the servant He expected me to be, or has my commitment to Him become a convenience on my part? These are my thoughts this morning, and they convict me.
This morning I read of God's provision and gifts to us. I am strengthening myself in the understanding that He is always there, always good, and always hears and answers my prayers. My confidence in these facts forms the basis for my expectation in Him and relieves me of worry.
How far would I walk to hear the the gospel, or to see the grave of a disciple whose hand held the cloak of Jesus? How long would I travel to save the soul of one man or woman who had never heard of my Lord Jesus Christ? Would I walk on Pilgrimage over the Pyrenees and across Spain to Santiago de Compostela? Would I sail across raging seas in a wooden boat to reach one centurion?
I am thinking about what it means to turn the other cheek this morning. Is it a sign of cowardice, bravery, or something else entirely? I think it might be the latter. Although it could be construed as a sign of weakness, or that it takes courage to stand and not retreat, it also demonstrates great faith to resist being provoked, or enticed to sin.
How mature am I as a Christian? Have I moved from that stage in my faith where the focus has shifted from learning who Jesus was, and how to live the life of Christ, to that of actually knowing Him and living alongside Him? Am I fully engaged and surrounded by the will of God and in close relationship with Jesus, or still battling within myself to wrest control from the sinful man that resides there?
Everything in our lives points to Jesus. The greatest and the least of our experiences lead us to Him. Saints haven't achieved some higher plane of self realization... they have simply come to the understanding that everything in life reveals God , and Jesus Christ. Then, in all of this, nothing trumps the embodiment of God's will and grace in The Son! In this realization comes a relationship of incredible closeness.