Every year we pack up loads of food after Thanksgiving and Christmas and place it in the refrigerator. Sometimes we eat it for lunch the next day or so, but sometimes (honestly most of the time) it gets pushed to the back of the refrigerator, lost in the abyss until I rediscover it – a week later growing fuzz.
It reminds me of how we sometimes treat God. Our intentions may be to spend time with Him daily, but then life gets in the way. Someone has a boo-boo, needs something at that exact moment, or makes a big mess that needs tended to in our home. Or, sometimes I’ll sit down to read some Scripture, and I’ll get a phone call or my 5-minute “scroll-time” turns into 20-minutes, and I get distracted. Or sometimes, the dishes and the laundry catch my attention more than my Bible sitting on the table. My point here: We choose to use our free time investing in other things, pushing our Bibles aside and saying, “I just didn’t have time to get to it today.”
Sure, grace covers those failures, but the reality is God wants more of us. And truth be told: I want more of Him.
More of Him and less of the world.
More of Him and less distraction and noise around me.
Paul wrote in Philippians 4:7 about the peace that God can give us through connection with Him. He said, “And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” From firsthand experience, I can say that there is no peace like the peace God can give us in ALL circumstances. But the only way we can truly receive His peace that surpasses everything is through connection.
We must choose to connect with Him. We must choose to utilize His Word, which is “... living and effective and sharper than any double-edged sword…” (Hebrews 4:12). And we must choose to engage with His Spirit, who can lead us on level ground (Psalm 143:10). We must prioritize our time with God and offer Him more than our leftovers. In that, I think we will discover that the peace He gives us is not the same the world gives (John 14:27).
Join me as we prepare our hearts for Christmas in giving God more than just our leftovers this week. Happy belated Thanksgiving, friends! Grateful for each of you!
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