Read. Pray. Love.

Posted On January 3, 2021

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.
The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

2 Corinthians 5:17 ESV

“Come to Me with a teachable spirit, eager to be changed. A close walk with Me is a life of continual newness. Do not cling to old ways as you step into the new year.
Instead, seek My Face with an open mind, knowing that your journey with Me involves being transformed . . . .”

Sarah Young, Jesus Calling

It’s a new year and time for those New Year’s resolutions. I’ve already got a list of books I want to read and plans for eating better and exercising more. I’ve got new calendars set up with schedules for how I want to accomplish all of this, but I know how it goes . . . about halfway through February (if I even make it that far) I will probably get behind on my reading, careless with my nutrition, and lazy with my exercise. At that point I may have to revamp my plans or give up altogether. I know how I am. I tend to have very lofty goals that I think I can accomplish, but then my willpower gives out and I don’t get them all done. I’m still optimistic and I won’t give up trying, but realistically I know there’s only so much I can do on my own. Now, if I don’t get all my books read, or if I eat too much or skip a workout once in a while, it won’t be a huge tragedy . . . but what about my spiritual goals? Of all my New Year’s resolutions, the most important one is that I want my faith to grow stronger. But how do I do that? How do I even know if I’m on the right track? If you’ll indulge me for a minute, I’d like to share some of the thoughts that went through my head as I tried to figure out where to start:

Galatians 5:22-23 says that the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. So maybe that’s a good place to start. Maybe I’ll try to make sure I’m exhibiting all of those characteristics each day. And I need to worship and glorify God, so I’ll be sure to do that every day. And we are supposed to give thanks in all circumstances and pray without ceasing, so I’ll make sure I’m always doing both of those things. He wants us to sing praise to Him, so I’ll set aside time to do that. We are called to take care of the poor, so I need to rework my budget and find more time for volunteer work. I need to be more active in my church. Maybe I should also go on a mission trip. I need to shine His light to the world, spread His love to everyone, and share the gospel . . . okay . . . um . . . I can’t even keep up with my diet plan. How am I going to do all of this? I guess I could cut some of these things . . . but which ones? Actually, you know what, maybe I’m doing okay. I’m not a bad person. I’m sure God understands I can’t possibly do all of this. Maybe He’s okay with me as I am. I mean, I’m not perfect, but He doesn’t expect that, does He?

“Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

Matthew 5:48 NIV

Yes, He does. This verse makes it clear that I absolutely cannot do this on my own. The good news is that God doesn’t expect me to. He will do it for me. I just have to let Him. That doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easy, as C. S. Lewis points out:

“I find a good many people have been bothered by what I said in the last chapter about Our Lord’s words, ‘Be ye perfect.’ Some people seem to think this means ‘Unless you are perfect, I will not help you’; and as we cannot be perfect, then, if He meant that, our position is hopeless. But I do not think He did mean that. I think He meant ‘The only help I will give is help to become perfect. You may want something less: but I will give you nothing less.’ . . . The moment you put yourself in My hands, that is what you are in for. . . . Whatever suffering it may cost you in your earthly life, whatever inconceivable purification it may cost you after death, whatever it costs Me, I will never rest, nor let you rest, until you are literally perfect — until my Father can say without reservation that He is well pleased with you, as He said He was well pleased with me. This I can do and will do. But I will not do anything less.”

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

The key is that I have to submit my life to Him — every aspect of my life. That’s a little scary. What if He wants me to give up something I really want or He tells me to do something I’m not comfortable doing? That’s a risk I have to be willing to take. I have to be willing to let go of everything in my life and give Him complete control. It’s hard, but once I make that decision — once I turn over every aspect of my life to Him — it becomes easier because He will take care of everything else.

“The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says ‘Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work: I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down. I don’t want to drill the tooth, or crown it, or stop it, but to have it out. Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked — the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself: my own will shall become yours.'”

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

So how exactly do we submit ourselves to God? Do we just sit back and do nothing and let Him do all the work? No. We still have to do our part, while trusting God to do His part. So what exactly is our part? Basically, we need to stay connected to Him and do what He tells us to do. I had to boil this down for myself into some practical and manageable steps. As I’m sure you’ve guessed by the title of this post, here is what I came up with . . . Read. Pray. Love.

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Galatians 2:20 NIV

Read

“All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right. God uses it to prepare and equip his people to do every good work.”

2 Timothy 3:16-17 NLT

In order to know what God wants me to do, I have to know what He is saying to me. The best way to know what He is saying is to read His Word. The Bible isn’t just a history book. As we read it, the Holy Spirit uses it to speak to us today. When we ask God for guidance, He provides it through His Word in a very personal way. But we need to be consistent and make reading God’s Word a daily habit. I have found that the more disciplined I am, the easier it is for me to be aware of the Holy Spirit’s leading. Certain verses seem to jump out at me and answer a concern or question I have on my mind. It always blows my mind when this happens, but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. Hebrews 4:12 tells us that God’s Word is “alive and active” (NIV). Still, experiencing God speaking to me personally is pretty amazing!

“God has led. This is history’s testimony. Looking back over our lives, we can see how beautifully, wonderfully, lovingly God has led. . . . God will lead. This is the testimony of doctrine. The Scriptures teach it by precept and example throughout Old and New Testaments. The word of God declares it to be so. Looking ahead — before the need, before the crunch — we can testify that God will lead. God is leading! This is the testimony of faith, where the rubber meets the road. God has promised to lead, and I seek to be led — an unbeatable combination. God’s promise, my submission. God has led, for which I am grateful. I know God will lead, and for this I praise and thank Him. God is leading! This is my confidence and joy . . . my rest.”

Richard Halverson, My Time with God

Pray

“Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.”

Jeremiah 33:3 NIV

Of all the aspects of the Christian faith, I think prayer is the most comforting and the most exciting. We can connect to our Creator in a profound and mysterious way. God commands us to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NIV). He invites us to lay all our burdens on Him and reminds us to present our requests with thanksgiving (Philippians 4:6). He instructs us to pray for each other and tells us that prayer is “powerful and effective” (James 5:16 NIV). He even promises, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you” (John 15:7 NIV). I have often wondered about this last verse. Ask whatever I wish and it will be done for me? Really? But notice the first part: “If you remain in me and my words remain in you . . .” I think what Jesus means by this is that as we “remain” in Him, the Holy Spirit begins to transform us into His image so that His desires become our desires and His will becomes our will. I have noticed this to be true in my own life. The prayers I pray now are a lot less selfish than the ones I prayed a few years ago. Instead of praying God, please give me what I want I have begun praying God, please show me what You want. In fact, Romans 8:26 tells us that the Holy Spirit intercedes for us when we “do not know what we ought to pray for” (NIV). So I think part of the transformation process is learning what we “ought” to pray for. But to me the most amazing thing about prayer is the fact that God listens to us. He wants us to be a part of His work, so what we pray matters to Him. We can actually change the world through our prayers.

“You can talk to God because God listens. Your voice matters in heaven. He takes you very seriously. When you enter his presence, he turns to you to hear your voice. No need to fear that you will be ignored. Even if you stammer or stumble, even if what you have to say impresses no one, it impresses God, and he listens. . . . Intently. Carefully.”

Max Lucado, Grace for the Moment

Love

“By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”

John 13:35 NIV

So far we’ve discussed how to stay connected to God through His Word and through prayer. When we do this He will give us specific instructions about His will for our lives. He will guide us and let us know what He wants us to do. But a good general rule to follow was given to us by Jesus Himself:

“Jesus replied:  ‘”Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.'”

Matthew 22:37-40

Love God and love people. No matter what else He tells us to do, He will always tell us to do it in love. God is love. There isn’t another way He works. In fact, that’s how Christians should be defined. Jesus said that loving one another is how we will show the world that we are His disciples (John 13:35). When we become Christians, we are given the Holy Spirit to live in us and transform us into the image of Christ. As His image bearers we are called to love others. What does this mean exactly? I think it starts by realizing what Christ has done for us. He saved us and gave us the gift of eternal life in paradise, so I think we can focus on that instead of dwelling on any negative thoughts that may cross our minds. He forgave us for our sins, so we can forgive others who have wronged us. We can work on finding our joy in Christ instead of looking to others to make us happy. Basically, we can make a habit of filling ourselves with the love and joy of Christ every day and let that spill out to everyone we meet. Then others will notice that there is something different about us. As we are made new, we begin to shine the light of Christ to the world.

“Already the new men are dotted here and there all over the earth. Some, as I have admitted, are still hardly recognisable: but others can be recognised. Every now and then one meets them. Their very voices and faces are different from ours; stronger, quieter, happier, more radiant. They begin where most of us leave off. They are, I say, recognisable; but you must know what to look for. They will not be very like the idea of ‘religious people’ which you have formed from your general reading. They do not draw attention to themselves. You tend to think that you are being kind to them when they are really being kind to you. They love you more than other men do, but they need you less.”

C. S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Read. Pray. Love. These are three things I can remember to do every day that will allow God to do everything else He wants to do in my life. Once I let go and trust my life to Him, He will transform me in ways I cannot even imagine. I couldn’t help but be reminded of the movie title Eat Pray Love as I was working on this post. I admit I have not seen this movie. (I am more of a sci-fi fan.) But I searched for clips of it on YouTube just in case anything would fit our discussion. The following clip is the first one I watched and it fits perfectly. The main character, overcoming a bitter divorce, has gone on a trip to clear her head and try to figure out how to move on. Here is one of the lessons she learned . . .

“We all want things to stay the same . . . settle for living in misery because we’re afraid of change, of things crumbling to ruins. . . . Maybe my life hasn’t been so chaotic. It’s just the world that is and the only real trap is getting attached to any of it. Ruin is a gift. Ruin is the road to transformation.”

Eat Pray Love

Sometimes we are too afraid to let go of our old lives and we settle for living in misery because we’re afraid of change. We get attached to things in the world instead of getting attached to God, and we just get stuck. God calls us to turn over everything to Him and trust Him to give us a better life, the life He has planned for us. This may mean some things in our old life will need to get smashed to bits to make room for our new life. It’s scary, but it’s the only way to grow. When this happens and we don’t understand what God is doing, it helps to remember that this is actually a gift . . . “Ruin is the road to transformation.”

“God has a plan for your life that does not change even though your life may take turns that you’ve never expected. Take that to heart today. The New Year is a time when people review the past and embrace a fresh start. For you, that may carry with it some pain over losses but also hopefulness for what’s to come. Be confident in the fact that no matter what the days ahead may bring, God’s loving, perfect purposes for your life remain. They do not change. Nothing is a surprise to Him. The same God who breathed life into you and formed you in your mother’s womb loves you enough to plan for your future and be actively involved in all that concerns you. He has promised that if you’ll seek Him, you’ll find Him, and you will discover His awesome will for your life. And the course Jesus has orchestrated for you is never for your harm, but for your edification, establishment, and encouragement. So begin this New Year by resolving to be focused on Him and trust Him for the path ahead.”

Charles F. Stanley, God’s Purpose for Your Life

This week’s Scripture passages focus on renewal, God’s Word, prayer, and love. There is a printer-friendly pdf version below the image. As we begin our spiritual journey for the new year, may we learn to keep our eyes fixed on God. We’ll be amazed by what we see!

“You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

Jeremiah 29:13 NIV

References:

• Eat Pray Love. Dir. Ryan Murphy. Columbia Pictures, 2010.
• “Eat Pray Love (2010) – Ruin is a Gift Scene (3/10) | Movieclips.” YouTube, uploaded by Movieclips, 21 April 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vb6cuUI7B3E.
• Lewis, C. S. “Mere Christianity.” The Complete C. S. Lewis Signature Classics, Harper San Francisco, 2002, pp. 1-177.
• Lucado, Max. Grace for the Moment: Inspirational Thoughts for Each Day of the Year. J. Countryman, 2000.
• Sorenson, Amanda, and Stephen Sorenson, editors. My Time with God: 15 Minute Devotions for the Entire Year, New Century Version. Thomas Nelson Bibles, 1991.
• Stanley, Charles F. God’s Purpose for Your Life: 365 Devotions. Thomas Nelson, 2020.
• Young, Sarah. Jesus Calling: 365 Devotions with Real-Life Stories. Thomas Nelson, 2019.

Images:

• Sparkler featured image by Barbara A Lane from Pixabay
• Monarch Butterfly image by stanbalik from Pixabay
• Bible image by StockSnap from Pixabay
• Praying Hands image by Tep Ro from Pixabay
• Heart Tree image by Tumisu from Pixabay
• Butterfly in the Sun image by 🎄Merry Christmas 🎄 from Pixabay