When we first believe we are on spiritual fire, with our faith roaring like a blazing inferno, but if we do not continue to feed the flame then ever so slowly the fire dies down until at last it is only cold ash; blown here and there by the wind, and driven once more into the earth by the rain. Where in this description are we in our faith? Are we lighting up the night, smoldering, or reduced to a pile of cold white ash?
We are beginning a new year, and in so doing there is much hope for the future. This is a perfect time to leave old failures, and anxieties behind, and grasp new goals, but more than that it is an opportunity to vanquish our own efforts to defeat the sins that have controlled us for so long, and let God stand against them. Against all our enemies God is strong, and able to conquer. In all our needs and shortcomings He is our provider... In this first day of the new year hand all to Him.
On this the last day of the year we should present the invitation to receive the living water of Jesus Christ with a renewed heart. In many places this is a night of great merry making, filled with excessive drink and lust, but where are the pastors, prophets, and saints? Why are they quiet regarding the gospel while sinners revel? Where are we the believers? Are we at the celebration too? Are our eyes closed for a night?
Are you humble, and patient in your spirituality, or do you proudly flaunt your faith before others; quoting scripture as though you were in full command of it? This is a question we should each ask ourselves as we journey along the way of our belief, and while attempting to be truly transformed into a crowning possession of holy righteousness worthy of God.
As you look behind you can you see that God has had His hand upon you, and has been helping you? Have you praised Him for His help, and perhaps even honored Him by raising a monument of some type to Him... a stone of help, or Ebenezer as it is called? Perhaps it was a sapling, if you are wealthy it was an inscription on a building, or if you are poor a pile of rocks. Whatever it is do you think His helping you has ended? No, His help continues, despite what has happened in our lives His help never ceases.
We are justified, and made righteous through Jesus Christ. He told us to pick up our cross and follow Him, so in this way we are crucified with Him, and in this way we also live anew in Him by His resurrection. Where He goes we, as believers, go also. Are we ready to make the journey? Do we believe Him when He says He will come for us? If we believe, then death holds no victory, and no sting.
Are we true and resilient Christians, or does our faith require great care, and a very specific set of conditions in which to flourish? Are we like a reed that must have constant water for it to survive, or a barrel cactus that stores the water of infrequent rains within itself, and endures long periods of drought? There are many who are fragile, and whimsical, in their faith, but those who are hearty serve God faithfully, even in the worst of times.
It’s now the day after Christmas, and today we celebrate Jesus, the Christ, living here among us. He has been born, and is growing physically towards the time when He will achieve His mission; God’s plan, and God’s will for Him. This is the same mission He will ultimately give His disciples... take up your cross, and follow me. This is how He sent them, and also how He sends us when he says... go into all the world.
Is there a place for Jesus in our heart? Have we called a feast today, killed the fatted Lamb, and made our own bed available to the Dove of Peace, or have we assigned Him a spiritual stable within our own soul’s Bed and Breakfast? Is Jesus the Lord of our heart, and life, or have we marginalized Him, and only call out to Him when it is convenient for us to do so... like at Christmas? Are we the innkeeper that found no room for Mary and Joseph, or would we yield the master bedroom to them... to the Christ Child?
Are you a child that was conceived out of wedlock, perhaps while your parents were engaged... or betrothed? Have you thus carried a burden through life regarding this socially unacceptable occurrence, and felt less than other children who were born “legitimately”? Well, perhaps you should consider yourself fortunate because Jesus faced this same stigma throughout His life, and was looked on in the same manner.
When we awaken each morning and we enter consciously into the presence of God do we do so humbly, or thinking that we deserve to be there with Him? When we come to his table in our morning prayer where do we take a seat; do we sit immediately at the right hand of His chair, or in a lesser seat? Our view of our faith is not nearly as important as His perception of it, so where we sit relative to Him is vitally important.
Christmas Day is just three mornings away, and for most people, the thought of its coming is joyous, and exhilarating, but for others a dark mystery is unfolding. For some a sense of depression sets in during the Christmas season, and for a few of these, it will be so intense that they will be inclined to take their own lives. Depression is a disease, but like all illnesses God can heal it... His strength can bring us through this dirge, and restore our joy. Do you need God’s healing strength this year?
Are you just beginning your search for God? Maybe you are already somewhere along the way? Well, whether you are just beginning, or in the midst of your pilgrimage, there will be dark nights of the soul. These are times when You will collapse in the silence of God, and ask in loud voice “why have you forsaken me?” but rest assured that you are not alone, and He will never abandon you.
Are you afraid of disappointing Jesus? At the end of the day, as you prepare to pray, do you find yourself asking if you have done, said, or acted in any way that would disappoint our Heavenly Father? Perhaps you have become so confident in your righteousness that this thought doesn’t cross your mind... but it should.
On occasion, I have attempt to take God’s decisions from my lap, and determine the outcome of my life by my own determination, have you ever been inclined to do this? Leaning on God for provision in all things is a very difficult accomplishment when every worldly lesson taught us throughout our lives has been directed at making us self-sufficient, but learning to pray in every circumstance, and to always trust in Him to provide, should be the first lesson we master. Have you mastered this? Do you even understand it’s importance?