When it comes to being saved, salvation is God’s possession
not ours. We do not own it, contribute toward it, add to it or take away from
it. It is His gift, complete and lacking nothing. If I ever think of it as
mine, I will minimize its significance in my life like I do with any possession
over which I assume control. It will only have value as long as it is new,
fresh and exciting—as long as I consider it a gift.
But as a gift, salvation isn’t a package I open once and
enjoy forever, it is a progressive gift that is new every morning and continues
its life-change throughout my life.
The Bible writers used specific tenses to make their point when
describing salvation. From the tense they used they actually say: we were saved in the past, are being saved in the present and will be saved in the future. It is a
complete work at any point but yet there is always more God’s salvation intends
to accomplish in me.
A tree is a tree whether it is a sapling or a towering oak. The sapling is still by definition a tree but has far to go before its anticipated growth is reached. And, in fact, it never stops growing.
To keep our gift fresh, God continually weaves it into the
tapestry of our lives. One thread He always includes is the Joy fiber.
Tapestries are complex with thousands of threads working together to create the
details of incredible beauty. So are our lives. They are a composite of moments
through which He brings the color and details that best help Him express His goodness
in that moment.
Those threads tell the story of everything that happens to
us. The Joy fibers make sure our circumstances hold greater value than just the
happenstance of life.
- Fibers of joy that remind me I’m not alone in the darkness
- Fibers of joy that provide hope when I feel helpless
- Fibers of joy that comfort me when something precious is taken away
- Fibers of joy that make me anticipate all God has a future God has planned for me
When David prayed God would return to him the joy of His
salvation, he didn’t need to get saved again, only to be restored to the
freshness of what the gift was there to do in his life in that moment.
Question: When have you found the freshness of God’s gift
hidden within a moment of your life? Comment?
Here's something I've been made to be aware of. The choice of the joy-finder isn't, strictly speaking, a choice to be joyful. It is instead a choice to yield myself to the Holy Spirit. Joy is not the product of human effort. It is one of the graces that make up the fruit of the Spirit. The joy He provides is present even when I am forced to do things that are not enjoyable. That's why regardless of how bad things are I can rejoice in the Lord. Circumstances might be terrible, but Christ is always the same--wonderful.
ReplyDeleteThanks for you blog and this series topic Bro. Cary.