And mine is His. This is the real circle of Life. The kind of completeness that makes our existence come alive. Some of my previous posts, may not always sound like it because I’m opening up about my struggles, but I don’t regularly crawl through life. He does Glorify Himself to me and around me. I would not want to minimize His Love and Life by only writing about the difficult times. This is why I wanted to highlight this passage. He said,””If you love me, keep my commands. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate to help you and be with you forever the Spirit of Truth…He lives with you and will be in you. I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you… Because I live, you also will live.”
John: 14-15-19
I am going to claim that Promise because Jesus said it in Loving Comfort. He completely understands the struggle here on earth. If He had only surrendered His Life to ensure my salvation, that alone would have been more than I could ask for. But, His Plan is intricately orchestrated. He wants to ensure that I will be joined with Him forever. So, He covered all the bases. What He is saying is: My Father and I have paid for your passage to Heaven because we’re in love with you. But, we aren’t taking any chances, so here is our Spirit. Why? Because His Love = Life. His Spirit is Love and it fulfills us. True Life not just in the future, but today. Right now. I know. I was spiritually useless before He came and got me. A pile of broken pieces that He salvaged. I’ve shared some of my history here. I rarely share about my current life but I will tell you today, that I am a mom. I have 3 sons. One is 15. I am trying to insert myself in his life for his spiritual benefit, so I go to his church youth group on Wed. The idea to involve myself this way came from a study of Agape Love that I did with a valuable friend. They challenged me to live it out. I thought I could help somehow but I never had a plan. I just showed up. That first night, the Youth Minister asked me to fill in as a discussion group facilitator. That was 2 mo ago. Immediately, those kids owned me. They have opened up to me and to each other. I don’t know why it was so seamless and so easy for them and for me. I just am who I am and they accept and love me and I love those kids. Last night, I saw the Glory of God in that. When they shared their lives, I was transported to that time when we are helpless and subject to the direction and power of our parents. Trying to navigate as a teen and dealing with difficulty at home. Even if your parents are followers. Family is hard. I felt a great amount of empathy. So, I shared my history and as awkward as it was initially, it opened up the discussion to the deep places we all want to go. The heart issues that need to be voiced and that need compassion and understanding. That was exactly what they demonstrated to each other. In that space, we all were alive. So, yes, He repurposed me and -all Praise is His- because in spite of Me, I now Live because He Lives.
Love Always???