Newness of Life in Maturity.

  I was recently at a car show after church service.  In amongst the '65 Mustangs, '55 Chevies, a '50 Pontiac Cheftain, Studebakers, '40 Chevy Trucks and numerous Chevelles, I was intrigued how these classic cars still shined so brightly and held their beauty.  It made me think about the fact is simply that it takes spending great amounts of time with their renewers and restorers, those owners who pay no mind to the effort of it all.  I thought about how those machines could never shine on their own.  They are much like us in that respect.  Just as the noonday sun shines and also lends its light to the moon for reflection alone, we are "moon people." We who have trusted in God's Son reflect His light in our lives and all the more as we spend more time with Him.  It makes no matter how old we are, what work we do, where we are on life's grand scale, we can mature by drawing closer to Him and reflect His glory.

"This is what the LORD says: 'Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me,  that I am the LORD who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these things I delight,' declares the LORD." - Jeremiah 9:23-24

  God is the One who, in His majesty and awesomeness, shines.  He is our Restorer.  As we depend more fully on Him, He takes us and makes us to shine wherever we find ourselves settling in. Where is the place to serve God?  Wherever He has set you down becomes your greatest place of opportunities to make Him known.
  He is our Renewer.  Whatever season, whatever storm, whatever river we are crossing, whatever bridges burned, whatever years behind or straight ahead, we have to remember that as we grow in maturity and walking in newness of life, our Renewer is ready to refresh and replenish and show us His endless lovingkindness.
  "We may be successful in putting our personal affairs in place, but if we do it at the sacrifice of the more important-putting our spiritual affairs in order-we miss the joy and purpose of life.  Strength is found in the wisdom of God, and that is at our disposal whether young or old." - Billy Graham

  In our current season of life we can plan to fearlessly charge ahead by:
Choosing to look at the future with hope.
Discover and develop old and new things you like to do.
Enjoy our freedoms.
Recognize and realize that everything passes.
Show our enthusiasm and joy in whatever we put our hand to.
As we walk in newness of life, we can commit to spend time in the Word of God and growing in grace and knowledge, with maturity and confidence.

A prayer:
Dear Father, I trust that what you have in mind is what is best for me.  Please bring glory to your name through my life both today and always.  In Jesus's name, Amen.

Newness of Life Enjoying God's Word.

So, I sort got a new phone recently.  It is not actually new to me but it seems like it because I had to get a software update (called a Jelly Bean update, which I have no idea what that means) that erased most of all the files and such that I had on it.  But it reminds me of how I like getting something new, especially if I research and compare and take time to decide before I purchase it.  Then I own it, and then proceed to learn about it in order to make the best and most use out it, and finally I get to the place that I can enjoy the thing.
   As I think about walking in newness of life I cannot help but to keep remembering that any true success comes as I look to the treasure of God's Word.
  "If you seek God through His Word with an open, receptive heart, you cannot miss Him.  He will not let you miss Him.  He will meet you and touch you.  He will rekindle your spiritual fire through the power of the Gospel."- Ray Ortlund
  I like to first think about the privilege of owning a Bible.  I am gratefully aware that God has given me so much, including the means to buy a Bible (and actually several different copies for reading and study).   But I am also thankful to live in a great country where I still have the freedom to. Owning the Bible is not enough, though. 
  Learning the Truth of God's Word is essential in being able to walk in newness of life.  It takes time.   It takes effort.  It takes trading other seemingly valuable time and events to search and study and read the Word so I may grow and be healthy in the adventure of life.    Well, health comes first, then the growth.  I have learned the hard way sometimes and wondered why I saw no progress, no transformation in me.  It was because I thought I could skip the intimacy with God, while I sped past Him with my busyness of trying to get a morning devotion done to get on my way to work or prepare a lesson without putting into practice what I was clearly seeing in the Scripture passages.
"Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart."- Psalm 37:4
We can own our Bibles, and learn from the Word as we spend time searching and studying diligently, but real transformation can come as we enjoy His precious Word.  As we become more and more acquainted with Him as we meet Him in the passages, we really want to be not just hearers, but doers of what He says. Obedience actually becomes delight.  Promises actually come to life.  Hardships in life actually can be seen as they really are- gifts to draw us closer to God.  We truly begin to delight in Him as we delight in reading His Truth and begin to really see His majesty.  This brings enthusiasm to mundane life, a spring in our step, a knowing heart that can bring a smile to our face even in the most stressful days of work and caring for others and resolving conflicts and truly loving those around us.  Get into His Word and get a glimpse of His glory and go back again and again, because God's grace is measureless and amazing.
"Thy word is like a deep, deep mine; 
and jewels rich and rare
Are hidden in its mighty depths
For every searcher there." - Edwin Hodder

A prayer:
Lord, I want to know you so that I may delight in You.  You tell me that if I search for You, that I will find You.  Please help me to love your Word more than I have ever before.  In the name of Jesus I pray, Amen.

Newness Of Life With People and the Word.

  Two things that will last forever are people and God's Word.  As we think about those who surround us- our family, our friends, our coworkers, our acquaintances- we realize that they shape us.  People do that. They also have the tendency to sharpen us.  People can shelter us, and they will occasionally even shake us.
The people we spend time with shape us. They help us become who we are and who we aren't.  I think about how my parents helped shape me- teaching me how to be a good and hard worker, how to do the right things, how to manage time and money. Think about the teachers and coaches who may have helped shape you for better.  Actually, there is even a physical aspect of the idea of people shaping us, like how they say that you start to look like the ones you spend countless hours with in life.
  People sharpen us. They grow from interaction with one another. "As iron sharpens iron, so a man sharpens the countenance of his friend"- Proverbs 27:17  This is why it is vital as believers to spend time with other believers when we can and especially in a local church. It is essential to sharpen each other as the world only tries to do the opposite-to dull us and attempt to make us powerless in our walk of life.
  People, they shelter us when we need comfort and protection. When you think about those you love most, a reflection of it always will display an intent to shelter them.
  Sometimes, people can shake us, helping us see an error in our behavior or thinking or a wrong direction.  There are occasions when it is necessary to awaken from our comfort zones.
  God's Word also shapes us.   As we faithfully turn to His Truth, we see what is right, what isn't right, how to be right, and how to stay that way.  We are changed in His presence as we look into the "perfect law of liberty", which sets us free.
  "All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness," - 2 Timothy 3:16
  His Word sharpens us because it is sharper than any two-edged sword.  We will gradually become who He destined us to become, more like the Son, as we are sharpened by the Truth.   Dive into His Word, deeply mining the treasures that await.
  The promises of God simply do not change, therefore we can know the shelter of He who is our Mighty Fortress as we love and obey His words.
  And yes, at times we will read the Scriptures and be shaken.  He can shake us from a slumber of a sin that we like to hold on to.  Or His Word can shake us from our comfort zones of not sharing the Good News of the gospel.  After all, what are we here for?  I believe it is to know God and make Him known.    Though sometimes we can feel discomfort for sharing about Jesus and the cross, we must remember that ultimately at the end of the day or life, it is all about what Jesus has done, and our response to Him in our heart of hearts.
"Praising and loving God with all your being, adoring and obeying Christ, pursuing holiness, cherishing fellowship with other saints-those are the elements of heavenly life we can begin to taste in this world.  Those same pursuits and privileges will occupy us forever, but we can begin to practice them even now."- John MacArthur
Newness of life is lived knowing what matters most, and people and the Word of God stand high atop the list.

A prayer:  Father in Heaven, thank you so much for the people You let me share life with.  Please help me to know when it is time to be sharpened, shaken, and seek shelter.  Help me also to spend my time, more time in reading and studying Your words of life.  In the name of Jesus, Amen.

Newness of Life Standing in Grace.

  Do you have a favorite color?  Mine is undeniably green, and for a myriad of reasons.  One of them is that it is the color of life, new life (think spring), and even more significant, as a child of the Maker of Heaven and earth, it is the color of eternal life I have because of the life, death, and rising again of His Son, Jesus (think Easter).
   Living in the desert for a few years now, I miss the lush green grass commonplace in the Southeast. I even miss the simplicity of standing in it. In a land where colored gravel covers the yards mostly, grass is a welcome sight in Phoenix. The richness of the color and the scent of the fresh cut is something to be savored. I even miss mowing the grass, enjoying that satisfaction of a job well done, even if it seemed to take a little effort to complete. It all leads me into thinking of God's grace (His unmerited favor toward us).  I like the acrostic - God's Riches At Christ's Expense.      
  Interestingly, we need not ask for grace when we pray.  If we have trusted in Jesus, we actually are standing in grace. Though, at times it seems like it requires effort, we can know that it is ultimately and astonishingly His effort alone that gifts us with the beauty of grace.
"Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God." - Romans 5:1-2
  Grace is also something to be savored, leading us to thankfulness to God in relating with Him in prayer and praise.
  And what of satisfaction?  God's amazing grace enables us to live a grateful and contented life whatever circumstances or dreams may come.   
  Chuck Swindoll has succinctly captured the truth - "God's grace says, 'I've picked up the tab.  I'll take care of everything inside and out.  Accept it.   Believe it.  It's a declared fact. '"
   So, first we have our standing in grace and then grow in lavish greenness of newness of life in His care.
A prayer:
  Father, Your amazing grace is more than we could ever imagine, but please help us to see more and more how great You really are and live to bring glory to You and tell others Your Truth. In Jesus' name I ask. Amen.