A day late this week, but jumping onboard with Five Minute Friday. This week's word is fill.
Running on empty. Sometimes this is how it feels like life is being lived. We've gotten to the point where we're just going through the motions - doing what we know we should be doing, but with no heart in them.
It's easy to end up here in our spiritual lives. That place where we got to church, read our Bibles, pray because we should. But they've just become things we do.
The good news is that we don't have to stay in that place. We can ask God and He will fill us. He will fill us with His love again and with a desire for that deeper relationship with Him.
And when God does that, we're no longer left feeling like we're running on empty. We're filled with what brings us real life.
Saturday, August 9, 2014
Wednesday, August 6, 2014
In His Strength, Not Ours
Have you ever read something in Scripture that seemed like it would be impossible to actually live?
Have you ever walked away from reading something Jesus said and felt like there was no way you could ever actually live that way?
Much of how Jesus calls us to live as His followers is something that sounds impossible when we read it. It's a life we can't live by just trying harder.
We can't love people the way we're called to love them in our own strength.
We can't turn from sin and live a righteous life in our own strength.
We can't live in the freedom Jesus purchased for us on the cross in our own strength.
Thankfully, we don't have to do these things in our own strength. As followers of Christ, as have the Holy Spirit living in us. And He is our strength to live the way Jesus talks about His followers living. When we are surrendered to and dependent on the Holy Spirit living in us, we can begin to live the life that Christ calls His followers to.
The hard part is surrender. And that's part we have to do. We have to choose to surrender our own will, our own plans to God. We have to choose to let go of control.
Living those things that we read in Scripture that seem impossible becomes possible when we surrender to Christ.
Often this surrender and dependence on the Holy Spirit is a daily thing. It's not a one time decision to be dependent on the Holy Spirit for strength to live each day. We have to choose.
Have you ever walked away from reading something Jesus said and felt like there was no way you could ever actually live that way?
Much of how Jesus calls us to live as His followers is something that sounds impossible when we read it. It's a life we can't live by just trying harder.
We can't love people the way we're called to love them in our own strength.
We can't turn from sin and live a righteous life in our own strength.
We can't live in the freedom Jesus purchased for us on the cross in our own strength.
Thankfully, we don't have to do these things in our own strength. As followers of Christ, as have the Holy Spirit living in us. And He is our strength to live the way Jesus talks about His followers living. When we are surrendered to and dependent on the Holy Spirit living in us, we can begin to live the life that Christ calls His followers to.
The hard part is surrender. And that's part we have to do. We have to choose to surrender our own will, our own plans to God. We have to choose to let go of control.
Living those things that we read in Scripture that seem impossible becomes possible when we surrender to Christ.
Often this surrender and dependence on the Holy Spirit is a daily thing. It's not a one time decision to be dependent on the Holy Spirit for strength to live each day. We have to choose.
Monday, August 4, 2014
Writing Something Worth Fighting For
I've been wondering a lot lately about why I feel the need to keep on writing. I've written before that I write because I can't not write. There's something in me that makes me want to write. But, I've often wondered why I feel that way.
The truth is that, even though I know the reasons why I write, it isn't always easy to write. Sometimes it's a battle to get the words on the screen in a way that makes sense to anyone who would read it.
I stumbled across a quote a few weeks ago that helped me understand why I write anyways.
"Some days writing feels like fighting but those are always the days the pages are finally full of something worth fighting for." (Jon Acuff)
When I read those words I realized something . . . writing, for me, is about making sense of what I stand for and what I will fight for with my life. And the times when it is hardest to write are the times when what I've written matters most.
For me, what matters most is living a life that is about following God completely. About seeking to live all of life the way He would have those who claim to be His followers live. It's a high calling for how to live, but one I believe is worth it.
The truth is that, even though I know the reasons why I write, it isn't always easy to write. Sometimes it's a battle to get the words on the screen in a way that makes sense to anyone who would read it.
I stumbled across a quote a few weeks ago that helped me understand why I write anyways.
"Some days writing feels like fighting but those are always the days the pages are finally full of something worth fighting for." (Jon Acuff)
When I read those words I realized something . . . writing, for me, is about making sense of what I stand for and what I will fight for with my life. And the times when it is hardest to write are the times when what I've written matters most.
For me, what matters most is living a life that is about following God completely. About seeking to live all of life the way He would have those who claim to be His followers live. It's a high calling for how to live, but one I believe is worth it.
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