LENT 3.27

any room left for god?

Time is a valuable thing, especially in our culture. With endless options of activities to fill our time with, it is no wonder that we have to be reminded to intentionally make time to be with God. Business is one of the easiest traps to be lured into, and oftentimes the enemy can use this trap to blind us to our empty spaces that only God can fill.

Our scripture today is a good reminder of who our focus should be on. Hebrews 12:1-3 "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart."

There is a lot to unpack with this verse, but we are going to zero in on "fixing our eyes on Jesus". There are many way that we can do this, but today I want to point out that doing things FOR Jesus is not the same as being WITH Jesus. In my opinion it is impossible to truly fix your eyes on Jesus without being with Jesus. There is no way to know his teachings, his direction, his joy and peace without being with him. One of the best examples to me of this is sisters Mary and Martha. We find them in Luke 10:38-42, in a relatable situation, at least to me.

"As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!”

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Martha gets a bad rap, but the truth is, there are plenty of us women who would feel like our house has to be in order and the meal perfect when the Savior is visiting...or even just the neighbors for that matter. The presentation of our house and our hostess abilities seem to define us, give us meaning and purpose, and fill up A LOT of time. But in Luke 10:38-41, Jesus reminds us that doing things for him are not the same, or nearly as important as, doing things WITH him. The most important thing is being with Jesus, he is where our true identity lies, and it is with him that we are truly filled with joy, peace, and strength enough to take on the troubles that the day will lay before us.

Life is filled with "things" that have to be done, mouths that need fed, and jobs that need completed. But, let us remember that Jesus will reward our intentional time with him. As we are with him, he will fill us, and as we are filled, we will be sustained. Our problems lie when we do the "To Do" list with intentions of fitting Jesus in later. Often later never comes, or if it does, it is halfhearted because we have been drained already...which is exactly where the enemy wants us, too tired and overwhelmed to lift our eyes to our Savior, the "pioneer and perfecter of faith."

If anyone knew tired, it was Jesus. Roaming from city to city with so many followers depending on him for their livelihoods. If anyone knew busy, it was Jesus. He was sought after constantly, being pulled in all directions to heal people and preach God's word. But if anyone knows how to be WITH God before he does things For God, it was Jesus. He sees him frequently going away to a solitary place to pray, to be with God, to be filled and sustained so that he could continue running the race marked out for him. As we run our race, let us look to Jesus as our example. Let us fix our eyes on him, intentionally make quality time with him before we go out and live our lives for him.

Daily Reading: any room left for god

Hebrews 12:1-3