Split Personality

When we come to Christ, our spirit which was dead in sin, comes alive (Ephesians 2:5). We are Born Again and everything in us is made new (John 3:1-21; 2 Corinthians 5:17). The manifestation of this change takes years.

God convicts us in areas which are negatively affecting our witness for Him. We cannot judge others. We may think someone smokes too much; but God is more interested in deeper issues, which we cannot see.

In the beginning, we are partially surrendered to Christ. We hold back whole rooms in our soul, where we do not want God to go. We slam the doors shut and sometimes even lock them.

This is why we appear to our self and other people as a split personality. Part of us is sanctified and part of us is carnal and still caught in the web of sin.

The longer we walk with the Lord, the more willing we are to surrender more of our secret self to Him. We unlock some doors, but we protectively keep some of them closed or partially open.

We are not willing to live in total transparency before the Lord and our fellow Christians. However, with time, we learn to trust God's kindness and mercy. We depend upon His grace above all else.

We come to live a surrendered life when we understand that it is not I, but Christ living in and through us (Galatians 2:20). Christ is our whole life and we want nothing else (Colossians 3:4).

Total surrender to Christ produces fruit in us from the Vine (John 15:5). We develop the habit of walking in stride with God's Spirit (Galatians 5:15-25). We learn to think and speak by the Spirit too, reaping God's rewards (1 Corinthians 2:13).

Prayer:

Father God, Your Spirit transforms us from a split personality into a totally new creation. We no longer desire carnality, but want only that which is spiritual in our life. We come to know Christ intimately and the power, strength and truth of His resurrection (Philippians 3:10). We grasp all that Christ provides for us (Philippians 3:12).

Thank You for transforming us into the likeness of Christ (2 Corinthians 3:18). Help us to live a life of whole-hearted devotion and worship to You in holiness and with eternal goals, priorities and values. We rely on You to walk with us through the perils of this life and to make us victors in all things (Romans 8:37).

Thought for the Day:

We bring glory to Jesus when we live in the fullness of His atonement and the redemption of His sacrifice, which He shared with us by His resurrection from the dead and ascension into Heaven. - 1 Peter 1:3-4

God's Fullness - His Love

God has a rich storehouse of glory, which He provides to strengthen and protect us with His mighty power (Philippians 4:19). He does this in our soul and spirit, by the Holy Spirit and Christ who dwell in us.

God helps us to plant our roots firmly in His love by His dealings in our life. He teaches us to comprehend the firm foundation, which He gives us for our faith in the fullness of His love (2 Timothy 2:19).

The richness of God's love is actually multi-dimensional. It is so grand that it has width, length, height and depth. He surrounds us in His love and allows us to experience its riches practically.

God's love exceeds our human understanding and fills us through every part of our being with His whole Being (Ephesians 2:16-20, Amplified Bible). The more submitted we are to His Spirit, the more we feel God's love cascading like a waterfall over our body, soul and spirit.

Our hope in God is never disappointed, and we never feel shame for our faith in His faithfulness, because He pours out His love into our heart and life (Romans 5:5).

As we wait for the manifestation of Christ, His mercy, His perseverance and endurance in our life, God's love keeps us (Jude 1:21; 2 Thessalonians 3:5). God's love is perfected in us as His Spirit enables us to keep His commandments (Philippians 2:12-13; 1 John 2:5).

The love of God empowers us with mercy and compassion for God's Body and for the whole world around us (1 John 3:17). The steadfast love and faithfulness of the Lord never fail to watch over us (Psalm 61:7).

Prayer:

Father God, we miss out on the riches You already provided for us, because we are too busy with our own plans for our life to concern our self with Your will for us. Remind us that You created us for Your pleasure, not for our own (Ephesians 2:10).

Help us to experience the fullness of Your love, so that we can share it with the world around us, which is full of desperate people who are dying for a lack of Your presence in their life (Psalm 52:8).

Thought for the Day:

God proved His love for us by coming as a man and dying in our place; and there is nothing in this earthly world or in the spiritual world, which shall ever separate His Saints from His love. - Romans 8:31-39

Centered Life

As Born Again Christians, Christ dwells within our spirit by the presence of His Spirit. Our identity is totally centered in Him and absorbed by Him. As we surrender our day to Him, He puts us in the right place at the right time so that He can affect other lives for His glory. He uses our situation in life to reach out to those whom He is drawing to His heart and calling into His service. At times, we are not even aware that our simple smile, kind word or interested comment will touch a heart with the love of God from within us.

A life centered in Christ resembles the tire on a bicycle. The many spokes of our service all centered in the hub of Christ within us. The spokes provide perfect tension between the hub and the rim of the tire, which is the sum of our existence. We cease from our labor and enter God’s rest (Hebrews 4:10). Then, Christ uses our body and soul – our thoughts, will and emotions – to perform His work in the earth. He keeps us in perfect balance as the Spirit propels us forward throughout our day.

Life is not about what we do, but about what Christ does in and through us (Jeremiah 18:6). Led by God’s Spirit, we watch in amazement as Christ reaches out in various ways, which we least expect throughout the day. We are the branches; He is the vine (John 15:4). We are the wires, but He is the current of electricity. We are the pipes, but He is the living water flowing through us. We are the gloves, but He is the hand, which fills the glove and mobilizes it according to His will.

We walk in Him, established in our faith (Colossians 2:6-7). God works through Jesus in us to produce that which is pleasing in His sight (Hebrews 13:21). We are not able to do anything for God apart from Christ, but Christ in us does all things well (Philippians 4:13). We continually respond to the leading of God’s Spirit and Jesus ministers through us for our Father’s glory (James 2:17, 20,26). We live to manifest His character and nature to the world around us.

Sometimes God may even put us on a shelf. We have no special service for which He is calling us. At times like these, He is calling us to pray for whomever He puts on our heart. At other times, we have more ministry opportunities than we can possibly handle. That is because God wants us to delegate some of our ministry to others, so they will have meaningful service for Him as well.

Prayer:

Father God, You restore mankind to Yourself by the manifestation of the presence of Your Son in the life of every Believer. We enjoy the benefits of Your Kingdom now as well as in eternity (Luke 17:21). We reign over sin and death through Christ in us (Romans 5:16-17). We have no need to build up our self-actualization, self-efficacy or self-sufficiency, because we totally rest in the all-sufficiency of Your Son within us (2 Corinthians 3:5).

Thought for the Day:

We are not only connected to the Lord by our constant communication with Him, but also by our union with Him.

His Hand in the Glove

Read: Colossians 1: 26-28

“I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” - Galatians 2: 20

While cleaning out a hall closet, I found an old, rectangular floral box full of mementos. One item in the box was a pair of white, Victorian lace gloves, yellowed with age. I slipped my hand into one of the gloves and immediately thought of how it resembled Christ in me, my hope of glory.

We are the glove and Christ is the Hand. The glove lies lifelessly in the dresser drawer or on the end table or hidden away in a coat pocket until the Hand has need of it. Then, the glove completely conforms to the Hand. The bit of lace has no power or animation apart from the Hand. In fact, it is actually useless in and of itself. The glove moves only as the Hand directs it. It is the exact image of the Hand.

I love this illustration. It takes all of the striving out of the Christian life for me, and gives me a clear image of Christ IN ME, my hope of the manifestation of God in my life. As I continue to conform to His image, God is in absolute control. This idea also clearly personifies Galatians 2:20 for me - I no longer live, but Christ lives in and through me.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, thank You for reminding me that without You, I can do nothing; yet with You in me, all things are possible if I only believe.

Thought for the Day:

Conforming to the image of Christ is as easy as a glove fitting onto a hand.