Were You Challenged?
What are you willing to give up to chase after Jesus?
Our walk this week with Jesus in the wilderness started with a reminder to have His perspective. We cannot have a thought in our minds He does not have. When you think of that statement it can feel overwhelming because we often let our minds run like trains off the rails. Our thoughts can get so far away from the presence of Jesus and His peace in a matter of seconds. One of my favorite aspects of His grace is when these moments happen, He gently and lovingly whispers to guide us back to how He thinks. We do have a responsibility in this moment. We have to stop our runaway train of thoughts and respond to His whisper. The more we discipline ourselves to hear His whisper the more our thoughts become His. It takes time and intentionality.
As we begin to have His perspective we understand more and more who Jesus really is to us. He is more than the sacrificial lamb that gave His life so we can spend eternity in heaven. OH! There are really no words to describe who He is to us. He has many names: Messiah, Lord, Son of God, Son of Man, Immanuel, Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace, Lamb of God, Light of the World, Good Shepard, Redeemer, King of Kings and the list goes on but WHO is HE to YOU?
He is the lover of my soul, deeply caring and steadfast. When you begin to truly understand and embrace this beautiful aspect of Him, the relationship naturally becomes more intimate and meaningful. You come to be fully known by Him, and in turn, He becomes fully known to you in a profound way. As you continue to walk closely with Him, every part of who He is gradually becomes deeply real and significant to you.
As you have walked closely with Him this week, what questions has He asked? Sometimes His questions can be hard to answer. They can be very provoking, and not always in a direction we really want to go, but as you get closer and closer to Jesus you understand these questions bring you to the place He has always designed for you.
Yesterday we talked about surrender. What part of your life have you not fully surrendered? This could be your opinions, a relationship, a job, your future, your finances, your children, your marriage, your thoughts about yourself. One thing we do know about walking with Jesus is the outcome is always better than we could have ever imagined. This week has been challenging but His love helps us to conquer the challenges that lie before us.
You are predestined to look just like Jesus. How long this takes depends on your surrender to His love. You can trust Him with every aspect of your life.
