Breathing

Colossians 2:8-23

I come to the page this morning feeling guilty. I’ve spent no time in the word this week. Zero. Travel troubles, family issues, deadlines, company coming, grandchild care, mother care, laundry, shopping, cleaning, worrying—I’ve let it all get in the way of time with the Lord.

And then this morning, at 5:18, the thought woke me: Post time! My turn!

To post what? Something profound. Something insightful. Something fabulous.

Ha.

Here’s the thing: I have been running and doing and going so fast, I haven’t had a moment to think about anything other than where I need to be next. My prayers have been cries of the heart, shot out to God on the fly.

And God loves me. Today’s reading reassures me. I am complete in Christ. I am alive in Christ. I am free in Christ. All the guilt, those “musts” and “shoulds” I hear—in my own voice—are nonsense.

I am free. I am alive. I am complete. I am loved.

He has so much more to say, I know. Another time. For today, this is just what I needed to hear.

Lord, help me to hold on to You today. Help me to breathe…just breathe.

Homecoming

Colossians 1:19-2:7

For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross. This includes you who were once far away from God.

I just read Henri Nouwen’s The Return of the Prodigal Son: A Story of Homecoming. The entire book is written about his experience with the Rembrandt’s painting of the prodigal’s return, and how this painting has captivated him and helped the parable from Luke 15 come alive for him.

I, too, have come to see myself as this wayward son, broken and hopeless, apart from the kindness and mercy of my Father. I find that the richest times in worship, for me, are the times when I recognize myself as this wayward son in the embrace of his welcoming Father, who was not content to wait for me to return, but ran out to meet me and bring me home.

God has reconciled us to himself in Jesus’ blood, shed on the cross for us. While we were in distant countries, looking for love in all the wrong places, living in rebellion, arrogance, and/or ignorance, He came to us, offering us peace and forgiveness.

Let God’s mercy wash you clean today, as feel your Father’s warm embrace at the cross of Jesus.

Always Please the Lord

Colossians 1:1-18

Here, where Paul tells the believers in Colosse how he is praying for
them, we discover rich insight into the Christian life. Let's consider
this to be a prayer for each of us -

Paul prays that God will give us spiritual wisdom and understanding.
But note that such wisdom is not an end in itself. Rather it is given
to us in order that we may live in a way which will always honor and
please the Lord.

"Always please the Lord" is not an injunction to do better in order to
earn our salvation. Jesus has already purchased our freedom from sin
and death. Through faith in him, we have become citizens of the kingdom
of light.

On the other hand, let us not despair when we desire to please God and
then feel we have somehow fallen short. He is the God of second
chances. He offers hope of transformation -

In Romans 12, Paul wrote, "I plead with you, in view of God's mercy, to
offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God ... be
transformed by the renewing of your mind." Again, "Let the Spirit renew
your thoughts and attitudes" (Ephesians 4:23). Seems pretty clear. The
Holy Spirit living in me desires to change my thinking. Change it from
"what do I want?" to "what do You want?"

Back to Paul's prayer. He asks God to give us complete knowledge of His
will. Then, as the Lord reveals His will and we choose to submit to it,
our lives will "produce every kind of good fruit" (v. 10).

And, because of our expectation of - our confidence in - the
inheritance awaiting us in heaven, the fruit we bear will include "love
for all of God's people" (v. 4). (Ouch!) Surely this pleases the Lord.
"Whoever loves God must also love his brother" (1 John 4:21).
Impossible?

Ah, but there is more to Paul's prayer. We will grow as we learn to
know God better and better. And Paul's request for us is that we will
be strengthened with power from the Mighty One, the Captain of Heaven's
Armies. He's the Provider of all the endurance and patience we need.
And love. Hallelujah! Oh, let me remember to call on Him.

And may we be filled with joy and gratitude as we keep in mind our
amazing Christ - our Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer, and Sanctifier. The
One in whom all things in heaven and on earth, all things visible and
invisible, hold together.

Deetje Wildes

A Life of Praise

Notice the concern about disagreements among Christians expressed by Paul.  Our names (as Christians) are written in the Book of Life!  In the hymn, “Is My Name Written There?” – the last verse reads, “Yes! My name’s written there!”  Can you say that with confidence right now?  You can…by faith in the Lord Jesus.  V. 4 – Joy – Rejoice – Thanks – Peace – Praise.  Notice how often in Paul’s letters we find these words…and they should be a central part of our vocabulary too!  V. 6 – Don’t worry.  Am I expected to pray about everything?  Really?  Thank the Lord for all He has done for you.  Ask yourself, do I do that often?  V. 7 – The experience of God’s peace.  What does that mean to me…now?  V. 8 – The emphasis is on positive thinking.  Is that my way of thinking?  V. 11 – Being content in whatever situation you find yourself in is a challenge isn’t it?  Am I willing to really try to live that way?  V. 13 – A key verse.  Maybe you’ll want to commit it to memory.  It comes in handy.  V. 15 – Paul’s appreciation for all the folks have done for him.  Do I express thanks to others who help me so much in various ways?  Finally, does this letter really sound like a letter written from a prison cell by a person not even guilty of anything…other than telling folks about Jesus?  Can we not live more fully the life of praise?  That would be a worthy goal, wouldn’t it?

 

Donald E. Pardun

 

Do We Care Enough to Send the Very Best?

Philippians 2:19 - 3:3a

The old ad slogan from Hallmark Greeting Cards jumped into my mind while I was reading today's passage. "When you care enough to send the very best." It seems a bit cheesy to apply it here, but given how often the words "care" and "send" appear in this section of scripture, it just seemed to fit.

Paul himself planted this church at Philippi, and this letter is overflowing with his love for this young church and its people. In the same manner, the Philippians seem to have a deep love for Paul, assisting him in some manner, and sending Epaphroditus to him, as Paul says to "do for me what you couldn't do from far away." And Paul is anxious to send both Timothy and Epaphroditus back to the Philippians -- and to hopefully travel there himself.

This passage gives us an excellent picture of a relationship between a church and those it sends into the mission field.

I must confess with some shame that my mind is not often on those Bethesda sends into the mission field. It is far too easy to let my mind focus on the here and now. There are bills to pay, jobs to do, children to tend to . . . all sorts of things that seem so present and pressing, it's easy to forget that half a world away there are families who we know personally -- who we count as friends -- who appreciate our support.

We always keep the latest letter from the Venbergs on our refrigerator. This is a great reminder. In fact, I should probably make a habit to pray for them every time I open the refrigerator door.

And last week my wife said "I think it's time to send a package to Dan and Rachel." And I thought this was a great idea. But so many good intentions are done in by the tyranny of the present and its urgent needs.

Paul, Epaphroditus, Timothy, the Philippians . . . here were people who cared deeply about each other, sending letters -- and themselves -- across great distances to lend support.

In this age of modern communication, how much easier it is to "send the very best." How is it that we routinely do so much less?

-- Drew Clausen