A Life Worthy

That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come (Ephesians 1:19-21).

That power

the power that raised Christ

and destroyed death

forever

is the same power

that is at work

in you

today.  

Now…that oughta kick start your week.

Happy Monday, Beloved

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe(Ephesians 1:19).

You really can’t imagine how much power God has.

You wanna try? Fine.

Ready….go!

Yeah, well, he’s got more than that.

Which is a really good thing, because you’re weak.

It’s OK, Beloved.  I’m weak, too.  As a matter of fact, when it comes to spiritual matters I’m kind of pathetic.  I try to be strong, and on occasion I pull off a good imitation of strength, but in my heart I know the truth.  I just don’t have the power to be the man I know God has called me to be.

Sound familiar?  No?  You’ve got life perfectly well handled on your own?

Oh, well…then I just feel silly.

Fortunately for me, God does not require me to supply the go-juice for my spiritual walk, any more than I had to redeem myself or find God on my own.  His is the power to get me where he wants me to go.  

He has made us many promises, Beloved.

And he has the power to back them up.

Happy Thursday

I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you…(Ephesians 1:18)

There’s the Someday hope, of course.

That’s the hope of eternity, when we stand before Him, sin and sorrow and shame completely behind us, finally and forever whole and holy as we take our place in his kingdom.

That there’s a good hope, the Someday hope.

But he’s also called us to the Today hope. That’s the hope that comes from knowing that he is ours and we are his and he is working in us and we are hidden in him and somehow this whole messy Tuesday will work for good because we love him and are called…

Yeah, the Today hope is pretty awesome, too.

Walk in hope today, Beloved. He’s given you a lot to walk in.

Happy Tuesday.

I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better (Ephesians 1:17).

That they would know God better

That’s the reason Paul prayed.

So often, we get caught up in trying to solve people’s problems in prayer. We want to “pray specifically,” which kinda means we solve their problem, then give God the plan.

God doesn’t, as a general rule, need our plan.

Paul keeps it simple. He prays that God would be at work in his friends, and that they would know God better. If those two things are happening, all kinds of good will result.

I think I’m going to swipe Paul’s prayer here and use it as my own.

I don’t think he’ll mind.

Happy Friday, Beloved

I keep asking…(Ephesians 1:17)

That word “Keep” caught my eye this morning.

I was all set to talk about the What Paul prayed, and the Why Paul prayed.

I almost missed the How.

Paul kept praying. He didn’t throw the occasional “Hey, God, please take care of my friends” up to the sky. He was persistent, because these people mattered to him.

I ask myself, “Am I that consistent?”

And, well, you probably know the answer.

Now, for those of you among the Beloved who are OCDish–and you know who you are–be careful here. This is not a call to 24/7/365 intense, ignore-everything–and–pray-till-your-brain-explodes-then-feel-guilty-because-you-stopped-praying-to-clean-up-the-mess kind of prayer. You may wanna just close your eyes, take a deep breath, and remember that God adores you. This is a reminder for the rest of us–those who are more ADD than OCD–to keep asking. Be like the widow of Luke 18, who kept asking until she received what she asked for. Be like Dory, only with prayer, and without the amnesia.

Yeah, no–just be like the widow.

Happy Wednesday, Beloved.