Living
in this world apart from Christ is wearisome at best. Even as Believers we
embrace the false doctrine that we have to try harder and strive more to please
God and to grow spiritually.
We
struggle from day to day and almost never awaken without some trepidation over
what will happen to us next. Trouble seems to happen in "threes," and
we are always waiting for the next shoe to drop.
We
think of these trials as building character in us and transforming us into the
image of Christ; so we patiently continue to prod along making the best of
every negative circumstance.
Most of us need a breaking point
in our life in order to step over the line from self-effort to Christ-reliance.
Therefore, trials are actually like the Law - designed to bring us to the end
of our self and to lead us to Christ (Galatians 3:24-26).
God encourages us to take
our focus off our competent human abilities or our mortal frailty, and to
concentrate on the reality of Christ in us instead (Colossians 1:27; Colossians
3:3-4; Galatians 2:20).
As we do, we start to live a
victorious life apart from human effort and understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6). We enter into rest in God's presence,
which provides us with deep inner peace and fulfillment regardless of our
circumstances (Hebrews 4:10).
Jesus delivers us from the
bondage of every negative emotion, wound and issue we experience, and brings us
astounding joy which defies description and is full of His glory (1 Peter 1:8; James
1:2-18).
God's Spirit helps us to see our problems as adventures rather than as challenges. Our supply for each circumstance, and the wisdom to deal with it come from Christ in us, our only hope for success (Colossians 1:27).
God orchestrates every
nuance of our life. His abundant light overcomes the densest gloom. His power
and majesty slay every demon in spiritual darkness, which comes against us (1
Timothy 3:16; Hebrews 1:3; Daniel Chapters 9 and 10).
As we decrease, He
increases (John 3:30). We exhibit more and more of Christ’s divine nature and
we never, ever leave His presence (2 Peter 1:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17).
His Spirit leads us moment
by moment in the center of His will for our life, transforms our character with
the nature of Christ, and replaces our carnality with the fruit of His Spirit
(2 Peter 1:4; Galatians 5:22-23).
Prayer:
Father God, nothing this
world has to offer can take the place of Your goodness and grace. When the
issues of life become more than we can bear, we sit on Your lap and snuggle in
the safety of Your arms. This provides us with a ring-side seat to view the seed
for a miracle, which You place within every trial, as it sprouts into fruition.
You designed salvation so
that abiding in Christ is accomplished by one swift act of total surrender. It
may take a deep trial, a layoff from work, rejection from a mate or a week-end
retreat; but when our soul finally yearns for You alone, we readily relinquish
our will to Yours.
Thought for the Day:
We no longer work out our own
issues in life using God's strength to fuel our human effort, because we come
to the realization that we can live life only as His Spirit leads each moment
of our day and provides us with the desire, wisdom and strength to walk in the
center of His will.
- Philippians 2:12-13
