Not All At Once

“Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land.”  Exodus 23:30

Ever wonder why God doesn’t do something all at once? That’s the way we think things should occur—quickly, completely, and, preferably, right now.  

Since our salvation was an all-at-once accomplishment—an entire and absolute work done on the cross and defined by the triumphant declaration, ”It is finished,”— it seems like God would follow the same pattern when it comes to our sanctification.  But He does not.  Though our position of being completely His happened in an instant; our practice of living like it is a process. And God is good with that.  In fact, He often prefers the progressive to the immediate.  

Back in the day when the Israelites were heading from the land of bondage to the land of blessing, God gave them this promise—“I will send the hornet ahead of you to drive the Hivites, Canaanites, and Hittites out of your way. But I will not drive them out in single year”(Ex 23:28-29).  Why not?  Why not get rid of all the enemies all at once?  Because that wouldn’t have been best. “I will not drive them out in a single year, because the land would become desolate and the wild animals too numerous for you”(Ex 23:29).

 

Too much empty space too fast would have produced different dangers and difficult challenges, so God moved gradually to give His people room to grow.  ^“Little by little I will drive them out before you, until you have increased enough to take possession of the land”(Ex 23:30).

Maybe that’s why God is “moving slow” in your life.  Perhaps He’s growing your faith, increasing your love, or developing your self-control.  Sure, He could cause immediate change in your situation or circumstance, but His plan is to work in you, through you, and for you, and only He knows what pace is perfect. “Little by little” God will remove and refine until you can handle what He’s handing you.  

Make progress in the process and trust God’s timing.

Not all at once doesn’t mean not at all.

Savor The Season

“Make the most of every opportunity.”  Colossians 4:5

Summer has come to a shrieking halt.  Today's early morning alarm jolted me awake and bolted me into action.  Responsibilities and opportunities demanded I get busy and stay that way. Though, as usual, the lazy days passed too quickly, this summer was a bit different than others because for the first time in a long time, a for-sure full-time job meant my freedom was finite.

It’s amazing how the moments became more precious when I knew they were limited, and this summer, time was of the essence.  Whether I was sleeping in or cleaning out, laughing with friends or loving my family, relaxing at home or running the road, the realization I only had a few unscheduled weeks prompted me to make the most of each minute and savor every second.  All were more fully appreciated, more intensely enjoyed, and more richly treasured. 

The obvious question now courses through my mind—“Shouldn’t I live all the seasons like I lived this summer?”  And the only right answer is, “Yes!”

All of our moments are limited, and life as we know it will not last.  Such certainty sobers and excites.  We know a fantastic forever awaits when the eternal alarm sounds, but we’re also aware that our focus on the future should enhance and not detract from today.  Keeping our eyes on the prize increases delight in the daily because we’re here on earth to enjoy our Creator and His creation.  We exist to shine His light and to flavor lives with grace and truth.  We should make the most of every opportunity to love, to laugh, to see, to do, to share, to hug, to listen, to sing, to smile, to cry, to witness, to worship, to serve, to praise, to give, and to live. 

Knowing that God has numbered the days we have on earth to bring Him glory should make all our moments more fully appreciated, more intensely enjoyed, and more richly treasured.  Don’t let the routine of life lull you into lethargy. Live every season like it’s summer!

The day is short.
Seize it.  Savor it.  And show God’s glory.

The Most

“Make every effort to confirm your calling and election.” 2 Peter 1:10

“Everything Christian—For Less.” 

Boldly emblazoned on both sides of a freshly delivered box, the words caught my eye and made me think.  Paying half of retail was definitely a bargain, and I was glad to get good stuff at a great price, but I started to wonder if our zeal for a deal in commerce doesn’t sometimes carry over to our Christianity.

God has given us so much—“more than we could ask or imagine”—in a relationship with the Father through the Son by the Spirit, and we are graced with indescribable, eternal life, but to get the most out of what it means to know God, we must “make every effort” to “live up to what we have already attained”(2 Pet 1:5, Phil 3:16).  And there’s the rub.  We want the “Everything Christian” that comes with life in Christ, but we want it “For Less”—less effort, less energy, and less gratitude than such a gift deserves. 

We want the blessings that come from obedience but don’t want to comply with commands that are inconvenient.  We want the intimacy of a close walk with God but want to spend less time in His Word.  We want the peace of God to rule in our hearts but prefer worry over prayer.  We want guidance and direction in decisions but want to consider less of God’s glory and more of our good.  We want the faith, hope, and love without the blood, sweat, and tears—at least not our own.

I’m not pointing fingers; I’m looking in the mirror and talking to the one I see.  The death of two friends within the past five days has made me realize again the incredible present of God’s presence and promise and has caused to me consider how much I take His grace for granted and how I fail to give all of me to all of Him all the time.

The price Jesus paid to defeat death, atone for sin, and redeem His own was much too high for us to try and get by with the least possible input on our part.  Truly we can do nothing to earn our salvation—it is a free gift of grace—but once we’ve believed and received, our response should mirror His sacrifice—absolute and complete.  We should “work out our salvation” with intense determination, loyal diligence, and grateful perseverance (Phil 2:12).

“Everything Christian—For Less.”

It’s a clever motto for a company, but a lousy slogan for real life.  Give God your best—not your less—and live each moment to the most.

"As Is" Condition

^“If you make an altar of stones for me, do not build it with dressed stones, for you will defile it if you use a tool on it.” Exodus 20:21

Cut stones can be beautiful.  Just ask any girl with a sparkle on her left hand.  But when it comes to altars, God likes rocks in the rough.  ^“If you make an altar of stones for me, do not build it with dressed stones, for you will defile it if you use a tool on it”(Ex 20:21).  This instruction followed up the Ten Commandments and explained how the Israelites were to worship the One who was to be first and only.

But why did God not want tools used on the stones?  The rocks would have stacked better and looked nicer if the rough edges were hewn off, but God demanded that they be brought unrefined.  Profound theological explanations for this command most likely abound in commentaries, but here are my common sense reasons:

Perhaps God knew if He let His people chip away they might focus on the beauty of the altar or on the craftsman who had the most balanced stack of stones instead of on the One for whom the altar was built.  

Possibly He felt that His people would be easily distracted by trying to be the best sculptor or build the best structure and that they would get caught up in comparison instead of adoration.   

Or maybe God didn’t want His people trying to fix up what only He could make right.  Cutting and chiseling might make the altar more presentable, but only God’s presence would make it perfect.  Nothing they could do would make anything more worthy of the One whose value is beyond measure, and nothing they built could ever be good enough for a perfect, holy God.  So He said to bring the stones as they were.

He wants us to come the same way too.  It’s the only way, really.  Oh, we try to dress up, cover up, fix up, and straighten up our own offenses, but none of us will ever make ourselves good enough for the perfect God.  I’m not suggesting we shouldn’t bring the best of our time, talents, and treasure to the Lord, and I’m not stating we shouldn’t repent of our wrong and confess our sin.  I’m simply saying that forgiveness and “fixing” is only found in Him, and any attempts at self-improvement will only divert our faith and distract our focus.

I’m saying that we shouldn’t try to fix the mess we’ve made ourselves or made of ourselves, but, instead, we should bring our failures, faults, and fiascos to our compassionate, gracious God and let Him do the work.  His presence, given through the Spirit by the sacrifice of Jesus, is what makes us holy—nothing else will help, no matter how hard we try.

“As Is” condition is the only way to approach.   

S0 come as you are and let God make you holy.