Scripture:
“Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.” (Philippians 3:20-21)
Thought for the day:
I remember the first bluetooth device I ever had for my cellphone. It was really cool, because with it, I had a hands free communication device that I could use to talk while driving, I no longer had to wrestle with the decision of whether to pull off the road when the cellphone rings. The problem was that I could never get it work to its full capacity. I should have been able to use full voice recognition so that with a word I would have been able to browse my contact list, automatically dial any number I named, and connect or disconnect with any caller in a single breath. Unfortunately, that never happened.
As I thought back upon that experience, i sensed “deja vu.” God placed this wonderful call upon my life and gave me faith enough to get excited about serving his Kingdom and communicating his word, but often when God calls, I find myself in a situation where I have to decide how best to listen. Do I pull off the highway of life to hear God or am I on the right road? The problem is... I have yet to configure my life properly with scripture, and so for as much as I may do for God, I remain at a level far below my God-given capacity. In essence, instead of configuring my life to get the most (and offer the most) that I possibly can out of the gifts God has given me to further his kingdom... too often I settle for less.
My struggle is not unique! If we stop long enough to look and listen, we all realize that there are areas in our lives that are yet to be configured to God’s desire. The question becomes “Why?” Why do we allow ourselves to remain under-utilized in service to the divine Kingdom? Why do we allow our lives to go un-configured to the Word God has spoken?
Paul says in Romans 7:22-25: “For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.”
It is by faith, not works, that we allow our lives to be configured to the Word of God. Our striving to serve the divine Kingdom, our role in the Kingdom itself is dependent upon our willingness to present our bodies “as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God...” (Romans 12:1b)
If we have areas in our lives that are not yet transformed to that which “is good and acceptable and perfect,” if we are under-utilized in service to God, then let us renew our minds so that we may discern what is the will of God as we offer Christ praise.
Prayer for the day:
Merciful God, I have not yet fully configured my life to allow You full access into the recesses of my heart. Forgive me, renew me, transform me. In the name of the Father, Son, & Holy Spirit. Amen.