So, I’ve recently had some incredible alone times with the Lord. I have taken a break from the otherwise chaotic business of this world, and have allowed myself to sit in silence, and study His word.
This week, I desire to focus on what it means to be wholly His. (I apologize in advance, if this turns into word vomit.)
This week, I attended a Women’s Bible Study. They’ve been covering the Psalms of Asaph. Last night, we were reminded of how we are the Lord’s. And he doesn’t just want part of us, he want’s ALL of us. That made me really think. Have I truly given my whole self to Him? I think of all the uncertainty I had with even deciding whether or not to commit to World Race. I think of the uncertainty of how I will raise funds for this. I think of the uncertainty of what life will be like when I return: Will I have work? Will I have a house? All of these things easily turn into worry. This morning I found myself reading Oswald Chambers’ “My Utmost for His Highest”. Today’s lesson was ‘The Graciousness of Uncertainty’, and how that is the mark of spiritual life. He states, “We are not uncertain of God, but uncertain of what He is going to do next”. He references 1 John 3:2, “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared” (ESV). So in the mean time, I must abide in him.
So what does it mean to abide? Thank the Lord for Bibles, who encourage study bibles! In my ESV translation when you turn to John 15:4, the notes tell you. It means I must continue my daily, personal relationship with Christ through trust, prayer, obedience, and joy. So how can I have certainty in my uncertainty with this ministry I’m about to tackle?
TRUST: I can trust and know that, He knows the plans for me, but I must seek him with my whole heart (Jeremiah 29:11-12). I must abide in Him.
PRAYER: I must come to Him with my anxieties. “Do not be anxious about ANYTHING. But in everything, in prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God”. (Philippians 4:6, NIV)
OBEDIENCE: I must obey His commands. It may include having patience when I don’t want to wait on Him. It may include fully surrendering to Him at the foot of the cross, and admitting without Him, I am nothing. It may include casting my cares upon him (1 Peter 5:7), because worry will not to a single hour of my life (Matthew 6:27).
JOY: And finally, I must have joy through all of this, whether the good or the bad, because once again He is in control, and I am His. Something, that I feel is highly misinterpreted is, is that once you’ve chosen to follow Christ, life is so much easier. FALSE! If anything, Satan is working 10 times harder, trying to pry me from the arms of God. But I have something that not everyone has: hope. In Romans 12, we are told to be joyful in hope, be patient in tribulation, and constant in prayer.
This is my prayerthis week: To abide more fully in Him.
