Greetings to you in the name of God’s indescribable gift (2 Corinthians 9:15), Jesus Christ – THE Risen Saviour! Here we are on “Super Tuesday” and the first day of a month–and it is rather dreary looking outside, but how is the weather inside of you? I trust you had a grand weekend and Monday…with much to thank God for and with a deep awareness that you are loved by God. This morning I will be praying for you, asking Father to touch you – body, mind, and spirit – with His transforming power! I want to share a portion of God’s Word with you: Passionately I love You! I want to embrace You, Lord, for look how You made me strong! You are to me like bedrock beneath my feet, like a castle on a cliff, my forever-firm fortress, my mountain of hiding, my pathway of escape, my tower of rescue where none can reach me, my secret strength and shield around me, You are salvation’s ray of brightness shining on the hillside, always the champion of my cause. So all I need to de is to call out to You, singing to You, the praise-worthy God. And every time I do, I’m safe and sound in You. Psalm 18:1-3 TPT.
I began my devotion time today with this comment – “…God is so excited about Jesus that He wants to make everyone like Him”… – Selwyn Hughes, ‘Every Day With Jesus’. I suppose that when God sees you and I becoming more like Jesus, He gets excited about us too! Now I know that for some folk the idea of becoming like Jesus seems like an impossible dream but – you and I are the one whom God walks with and lives inside of – is anything impossible to God. It is a ‘process of spiritual growth and transformation. As I said last week, it begins with “repentance” – knowing and believing that God’s purposes are far better than anything we could manufacture. Remember – you and I are created in the image of God…He has planted eternity in our hearts and we instinctively know when we are not living up to our potential.
Part of repentance is – surrender, a letting go of yesterday’s and today’s hurts in order to hold on to tomorrow’s hopes. One of the teachings ( and I am grateful for the teaching of Pete & Geri Scazzero in this area) surrounding surrender is learning to “die” to self so that we can come alive in Christ…becoming more like Jesus. I know – it sounds rather frightening, but it is really important to learn what are the things in my life that I need to “die” to. In a moment of quietness, two questions need to be answered: “When did I feel most alive this past week? When did I feel the most life draining out of me?” This I believe God never asks us to die to the parts of ourselves that bring life to our souls.
What are the things that drain life out our souls…what do I need to die to so that I might find life? Here are a few parts of ourselves to think about: defensiveness, arrogance, hypocrisy, a judgmental spirit, finding our worth and value without God, gossip, lying, stealing, coveting, critical spirit, selfishness, double-mindedness… What are things that make us feel alive: enjoying nature and God’s creation, spending quality time with God, taking time for family and friends, nurturing our marriage, working on personal growth, using the gifts and talents God gave… Becoming like Jesus is learning to die to the right things and it is not done in a vacuum but with the knowledge of God’s love as our safety net. As you ponder these things – read once again the above Scripture from Psalm 18 and let the words and the emotion the words generate, sink deep into your being. God is excited about you becoming like Jesus…fully alive in His presence.
Be blessed!