Never Alone - Never Separated

Romans 8:35-39

I think one of the greatest revelations for Christians is recognizing that you’re not alone.  Despite the craziness of this world, God is always with you and He’s always got your back.  Knowing you’ve got someone in your corner can be life-changing.

Now that doesn’t mean once we say “Yes” to God that we’ll never go through hardship or pain again, but we can stand firm in the knowledge that nothing will be able to separate us from His love.  Will our life feel crappy sometimes – no doubt!  Will the Enemy try to convince us we’ve been abandoned – no doubt!  Will God be with us through it all – no doubt!

But here’s where it gets tricky… when we make it through the tough times, we tend to think it’s because we’re tough.  That our strength is our doing and our perseverance is what made the difference.  That because we tried hard enough or had enough willpower, our enemies never stood a chance.

Verse 37 states, “we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” The key is – THROUGH HIM who loved us.  It’s because of Him we made it through.  It’s HIS strength we rely on.  Acknowledging this means surrendering control and sinful humans don’t like to do that.  But when we do, whether we’ve been a follower for 60 seconds or 60 years, it brings a freedom like no other.

So, when you feel like you’re fighting for your life, remember - you’re not alone.  God is stuck to you like superglue and nothing can separate you from His love.  May you rest in this freedom today and every day forward.

A Million Pieces

Romans 8:22-27

Waiting is never easy.  It’s tough when you’re five and it’s just as difficult at 45, even when you know something’s “worth the wait.”

Today’s passage talks about waiting eagerly and patiently.  Ah, what a virtue it is to wait eagerly and patiently.  But what if we’re annoyed and irritable?  That feels more like it.

Well, that’s where the Spirit comes in.  “The Spirit helps us in our weakness… the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” (v. 26-27).  He really does know best, yet it can be hard to hand over control especially when we want something NOW!

When we try to steal control from the Spirit, we end up feeling like we’re broken in a million little pieces.  The Spirit brings wholeness.

It’s like a spoon and egg race – when we run too quickly, the egg falls and breaks, but when we’re patient and let the spoon do the work (as slow as it may seem), the egg will arrive at its destination intact – and I’d really like to finish this (human) race in one piece.

But guess what?  Even if we fall and break into a million pieces, God is right there to put us back together.  He picks up the pieces, and like only He can, makes us whole again.  Don’t you love worshiping a God who does that?!

Open to the Possibilities

Romans 8:5-8

Sometimes I catch myself clenching my fists, not out of anger, but anxiety.  My mom says that even as a toddler she’d find me stiffening my arms and legs.  Apparently, “tensing up” has always been my physical reaction to stress.

Over the years, I’ve searched for ways to deal with it constructively – yoga, meditation, breathing – but it wasn’t until I turned to prayer that I started finding some relief.  Life is still a daily struggle against my biological instincts, but it’s more manageable with “open hands.”

The world can be a scary, unforgiving place, but that’s where the Holy Spirit comes in.  “The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace” (v. 6).

The flesh brings about heartache, but the Holy Spirit brings joy.  If you want life and not death, peace and not sorrow, then you need to create space for the Holy Spirit.  Make a place for Him and He’ll open your hands and your heart.  Give him room to do his thing, because with the Spirit we can’t help but be open-handed.

And as we unclench our fists, a peace that passing all understanding will come over us.  As a person who struggles with anxiety, Philippians 4:6-7 has become my “go-to”… Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. AMEN

Leaning on the Learning Tree

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.

Romans 8:5-8

When I was in school, I didn’t read the same book twice. I learned addition and moved on to multiplication. I learned spelling and moved on to grammar. One thing built upon another, and all was forever absorbed into my sponge-like mind. Though I’ve gone decades without seeing my teachers or reading their books, I can still multiply (even without my smartphone) and i donut right lik thes. 

I wish my battle with sin could be like my education. But it’s not.

The Bible teaches me what is right and good. I understand and agree. I want to live like that. Yet somehow I still sin. I do what I know is wrong even though I want to do what is right. As the Bible says, “Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me.” (Romans 7:21-23)

If I then cannot be free of sin by gaining knowledge or setting my will to the purpose, how can I be set free?

The answer lies in relationship with God (very different from knowledge of God). Through regular time reading the Bible, reflecting upon the Scriptures, praying, worshipping, and sharing in the fellowship of Christian community, we can be trained to recognize the voice of the Spirit and obey that voice as the governor of our mind. Without this regular contact, our knowledge of God will bend to our selfish will and sin will govern our lives.

As Jesus puts it, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” (John 15:5)

"Yes, Lord!"

Romans 8:5-9

DEATH & CHAOS

Sound good?  No!

How about… LIFE & PEACE

Yes, much better!

The first set characterizes life without the Spirit, which isn’t very pleasant, but the second set is what you receive when you allow the Spirit to dwell in you.

It seems an easy choice when presented this way, so why can it be such a struggle?

Because we live with sin.  If only, Adam and Eve had listened, right?!  Now we’re stuck with this battle, but guess what?  The battle has been won and victory is ours, when we believe.

Verse 9 states, You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you.  The Spirit must LIVE in us, which is a verb, an action word.  When the Spirit lives in us, then we are truly alive.  Life without Christ is death – a death without the promise of resurrection.

In John 11:25-26, Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?"

My prayer is that your answer, like Martha’s, is “Yes, Lord” and that the Spirit dwells in the deepest parts of your soul.  And, May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all (2 Corinthians 13:14).  Amen

Jesus Unites

“Why do you do this? Are you paid to come here?” an inmate finally summoned the courage to ask me during a few quiet moments on the Kairos Prison Ministry weekend. It wasn’t the first time an outside volunteer had been queried this way, and it certainly hasn’t been the last, for as incarceration serves its social purposes of justice and protection, the loneliness of isolation and the sense of worthlessness may well be the most difficult aspects of doing time. “We aren’t paid anything,” I replied, “We are here because we have experienced the love and mercy of Christ in our own lives, and we want to share it with you.”

Do we need to hear the percussion of slamming steel doors behind us or to behold the glare of gleaming razor wire above us to understand the reality of separation? No, “alone” may be more acute for the condemned, but we’re all acquainted with its pain. We know relational severance at a human level—whether we suffer it through the sting of death or the shock of rejection, or we be the ones who drive the splintering wedge of division—and we also experience it from in the spiritual sense, because deep inside we know sin separates us from a holy God who will not tolerate evil as we do.

Yet in pure love for us, God sent Jesus to close the gap between us. No one can bring charges against us anymore, for it is God himself who declares our right standing before Him in Christ. No evil power can condemn us, for Jesus intercedes for us before the Father. No society or any of its members can marginalize us as losers, for we are “more than conquerors” through Him who gave His life so we may gain ours. And nothing can separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I think my newfound friend dared to believe me, for, no longer isolated from care, he began to open up about his dreams, his aspirations after release, and his possibilities in a new life of freedom. Hope was stirring.

Father, thank you for uniting me with you through Jesus, who died for my sins and who raises me to new and forever life in Himself. Send your Spirit to live in me, that I would flourish in the truth of your love; then send me to others with the liberating message of unity with you through Christ. In His name, I pray. Amen.

Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? . . . No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:33-39

Christ in me is salvation.