Colossians 3:1-17
New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)
3 Since, then, you have been raised with
Christ, set your hearts on things above, where
Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds
on things above, not on earthly things. 3 For you
died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in
God. 4 When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in
glory.
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your
earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because
of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now
you must rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not
lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have
put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. 11 Here
there is no Greek or Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave or free, but Christ is all, and is in all.
12 Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved,
clothe yourselves with
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness
and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may
have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over
all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
15 Let the peace
of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of
Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and
admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude
in your hearts to God. 17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the
name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Philippians 3:12
New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)
12 Not that I have already obtained all this, or
have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that
for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.
(http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Philippians%203:12&version=NIV1984)
Philippians 4:4-8
New International Version 1984 (NIV1984)
4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! 5 Let your
gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. 6 Do not be
anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with
thanksgiving, present your requests to God. 7 And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in
Christ Jesus.
8 Finally,
brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is
pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or
praiseworthy—think about such things.
I am having one of those times
when I am questioning and wondering why life has given me a few little
punches. I struggle inside of me as to
whether I truly want to live a life for the Lord or is it more that I want to
live a life to please myself. When I get
frustrated with the situations that I find myself in I seem to forget that God
has placed me in those situations and if I am really wanting to live a life
that is pleasing to Him, I need to be satisfied and content but not complacent
in the positions in which I find myself.
A battle goes on inside of me and
I know that battle is because of the worldly influences in life. The world
tells us that we need to do things that are pleasing to us. If we don’t like it we can change it, if we
believe in ourselves that we can do anything.
There was a saying on a school here in Ulysses that read, “If you think
you can succeed you will succeed” (side note, in the original sign the word “succeed”
was misspelled, it read “succedd”, in both spellings of the word). It wasn’t just the spelling that was wrong in
that sign but the message was as well.
Take for example, the person who put that sign up, they probably really
thought they knew how to spell the word “succeed” but in actuality they did not
know! As well, the sign did not take
into consideration that sometimes, even though we think we can succeed and
maybe even have the ability to succeed, obstacles come into our lives that stop
that forwarding motions of success.
Those obstacles can be placed into our lives to help us realize that our
success is not dependent upon what we do but what the Savior has done for
us. Those obstacles may be there because
we have lost sight of why we are in this world or because we are living more
for the world than we are for God.
Thinking we can succeed only allows us to put our trust in ourselves
rather than our creator.
As I get frustrated with where I
am in this world, I need to stop and realize why I am in the world. Years ago, as a six year old, my life was
spared for a reason. I have lived my
life wondering why the Lord would leave me here and take my sister. It could have been either one of us that was
killed and He chose to keep me in the world, the shy one, and He chose to take the
vibrant, lively one, full of energy, away to be with Him. I have never understood that and have tried
to live a life pleasing to Him. I have
tried to live life with a purpose. When
things end up going south, I begin to question over and over, why am I here. But what God is telling me in these
scriptures today is this, HE IS IN CONTROL.
When I look at my life in the
eyes of the world, I may see failure, missed opportunities, discouragement,
resentment, and the list goes on. But
when I set my eyes on things above, I can see that I have not yet obtained all
that is in store for me. The story did
not begin with me and it does not end with my successes or failures. Anything that I have obtained is from the
Lord. I need to forget the past and move
on towards the goal for which God has called me. I need to do that with love, compassions,
forgiveness, and I need to do so with thanksgiving. I need to be thankful for the life that God
has chosen to give me, I need to be thankful for the opportunities that have
come my way but I need to always remember that whether I am living in a time of
great contentment or whether my life is turned upside down, GOD IS IN
CONTROL. I need to remember that I need
to press on towards the mark in which He has called me in Christ Jesus. It is not the things of this world that win
the prize, it is how I respond to the love that Christ has bestowed upon
me. I need not be anxious about anything
but rather Rejoice in the Lord, Pray continually that Christ will guard my
heart, and I need to think only about those things that are praiseworthy.
As you seek Him today, may you
realize that you are nothing without Him.
May you give Him glory and honor and praise for the life that He has
given you.
Seeking Him with all my heart,
Sheila
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