More and More

"As for other matters,

brothers and sisters,

we instructed you how to live in order to please God,

as in fact you are living.

Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus

to do this more and more.

For you know what instructions

we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus."

1 Thessalonians 4:1-2

In the 2004 comedy Napoleon Dynamite, the awkward and quirky main character endures the care-taking of his middle-aged uncle while his grandmother recovers from a freak injury.  Uncle Rico is stuck in the past, constantly reliving his glory days when he was quarterback of his high school football team.  It seems adolescence was the pinnacle of his life since he's done nothing of merit since graduating.

While Uncle Rico did have some success as a teenager, he seemed to have lost all his drive once he entered the adult world.  It is also easy for me to get caught up in what I've done in the past and forget that life goes on, just like Uncle Rico does.  God, however, doesn't want me to rest on my laurels, but to continue living for Him.  There is always improvements to be made, pride to chisel away, and lessons to be learned.  

Living to please God happens in the present, not in the past.

Pure Life

Water purification systems are growing in popularity as people become increasingly concerned with contaminants in their water supply.  Bacteria, pesticides, chemicals, lead and other toxins are common impurities found in tap and well water driving concerned citizens to take steps to increase the purity of their own drinking water.  Water filtration, distillation, deionization, and reverse osmosis are some of the methods used to remove harmful contaminants from water.

While it is important to my overall health to have a source of pure drinking water available to me, it is even more important to my spiritual health for me to pay attention to the purity of my heart.  Sin corrupts my heart and leads me on a path away from God where I am driven by my passions, lusts and fleshly desires.  

God's grace gives me the power to withstand my natural tendency to sin and to prefer doing things His way.  He is constantly taking me through tailor-made situations, difficulties and trials that serve to purify me from these fleshly desires, leaving behind a more godly focus.

Oswald Chambers helps me understand this concept by asking, "Are we prepared to let God do as He likes with us--prepared to be separated from conscious blessings?  Until Jesus Christ is Lord, we all have ends of our own to serve; our faith is real, but it is not permanent yet.  God is never in a hurry; if we wait, we shall see that God is pointing out that we have not been interested in Himself but only in His blessings."

Cultivating a desire for Christ and Christ alone is the purpose of sanctification and results in the attitude of a pure heart.

Life of Love

Love sent the Creator to live among those He created.   Love then drove Him to the cross where He suffered at the hands of those who were to benefit from His sacrifice. (Romans 5:8) Love precipitated a plan of salvation before the beneficiaries even knew we needed saving.  

There is no doubt God is love.  His love is what defines Him and everything He does is filtered through love.  Furthermore, without His love, I have no hope of ever loving anyone the way He loves me. (1 John 16:19)

I learn how to recognize His love in myself and others by reading 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 .  What I don't always realize, though, is that I can't love too much.  God's love rules my life when I truly make an effort to grasp hold of it.  As Joe Stowell, president of Cornerstone University pointed out, "Once you embrace how wonderfully loved you are by God, it will be much easier to be the loving person God calls you to be--even toward those who don't show you love."

When I realize how much I am loved, I will strive to live a life of love.

Quiet Life

Reading the headlines as I wait in line at the supermarket, I see all sorts of bizarre behavior.  Plastic surgery, torrid affairs, marital problems, financial ruin; all are displayed for the world to see.  Many celebrities live life in a bubble, as if their entire existence is meant for the entertainment of the public.

While I could not imagine the strain of living under such scrutiny, I do have to admit a certain desire to show off at times.  Maybe it's the new car, the success of a career or a project of which I want people to see, but there is just something about getting a little attention that brings me satisfaction.

Other times I tend to be nosy, spending too much time concerned with the lives of others when I have plenty of problems of my own.  Instead of seeking attention for myself or turning my focus on others, though, I am called to live a quiet life where I mind my own business.  This is not to say that I keep to myself, but that I stay in my lane, taking care of the affairs God has placed in front of me and desiring to please Him and Him alone in the work I do.

Each day I can strive to live a quiet life where I am paying attention to the work God has given to me.

My walk with Christ is dynamic and exists in the now.  Even if things were great between us in the past, I must continue to strive to do more and more.  He desires in me a pure life that is identified by His love and brings praise to Him.  When it comes to faith, I can always do more; not because my efforts save me for I know that I'm saved by grace.  Instead, I'm driven on because this desire to grow in my faith pleases Him!

As I begin this day it is my prayer that, when it comes to Jesus, I will always strive for more!

How do I sit back and let my past steps of faith keep me in a rut?

When am I tempted to desire attention for the work I do?