Isaiah 55:2-3
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,
and delight yourselves in rich food.
Incline your ear, and come to me;
hear, that your soul may live;
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,
my steadfast, sure love for David.
How often do I labour for that which does not satisfy? Too often. I get so busy being productive and crossing things off my never-ending "To Do" list that I often fail to come to God during the day, to delight myself in rich food - in Jesus Himself, who is the Bread of life (John 6:35).
I want my work to endure! I want to live for God and bear fruit that lasts. Even as I go about my mundane tasks. I want it all to be labour for the Lord - that's the only way it's not all meaningless and a chasing after the wind, like Ecclesiastes says.
In John 6:27, Jesus says: Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. And then in John 6:29, He says that to work for the food that endures forever means simply to believe. So recently I've been reflecting on this "work" of believing that I need to be doing.
The following are some things I wrote in my journal that I need to believe:
- That Jesus came to live the perfect life I couldn't live and to die in my place
- That He rose from the grave, breaking the power of sin and death
- That I am loved an accepted on the basis of His finished work alone
- That to live for me now is Christ, and to die is gain
- That the Holy Spirit is working in me, helping me to die to sin and obey all of God's will, commands and law
- That Jesus is the Bread of life and He is enough
- That I am labouring for something greater than food that perishes, and so in everything God can be glorified
May God help me BELIEVE and then live from that place of belief! It's so simple, but it's not easy. I want to be a woman who communes with God in the moments of my days.
Life is comprised of moments.
And I want to see Him in all of it.... to hear his whispers, that my soul may live, as Isaiah 55 says. As I drive to work and clean the kitchen and cook and do laundry and cross things off my to do list and balance our bank account and babysit, I long for my belief in God - who He is and all He's done - to be underneath as the driving force of all I think, say and do. I want to keep my eyes wide open and work for food that endures to eternal life.
Today is the beginning of Lent, and I have given up Facebook again, like I did last year. I find that to be a good thing for me to step back from during this season, to intentionally focus more on this season of preparation and repentance, during which Christians anticipate the the death (Good Friday) and resurrection (Easter Sunday) of Jesus. But, after a conversation with a good friend who told me that she sensed God calling her to give up complaining for Lent, I have been trying to think about what else He may be calling me to give up... and I kept coming back to these verses in my heart and mind. I'm almost afraid to say that I'm committing to "giving up labouring for that which does not satisfy", because it's such a big thing! I struggle with it so much that I feel like I'm a failure before I even start! But even as I say that, I am reminded that this is what the Christian life is! We are not what we should be, but we press on (Phil 3:12)! And there is grace for every failure because of Jesus. I feel somewhat silly to say I'm committing to focusing my effort on "working for the food that endures" over Lent, because I already know I'm going to mess up! But, as this devotional I'm going through says (click here if you want to download it!), "Lent is a journey to the cross: meditating on our sin and weakness, looking to Jesus as our perfect example and substitute, and being heightened in our worship of his victory over Satan, sin, and death."
So, in the end, I decided that I am going to make an extra concerted effort, starting today, to stop spending my money for that which is not bread and my labour for that which does not satisfy, and instead incline my ear to my God, that my soul may live!
I read this blog by Sara Hagerty this morning called Messy Prayers and it totally pushed me over the edge in this decision! :) A practical way for me to begin this Ash Wednesday is to pray messy-in-the-moment prayers, because:
Life is comprised of moments.
And I want to see Him in all of it.... to hear his whispers, that my soul may live, as Isaiah 55 says. As I drive to work and clean the kitchen and cook and do laundry and cross things off my to do list and balance our bank account and babysit, I long for my belief in God - who He is and all He's done - to be underneath as the driving force of all I think, say and do. I want to keep my eyes wide open and work for food that endures to eternal life.
Today is the beginning of Lent, and I have given up Facebook again, like I did last year. I find that to be a good thing for me to step back from during this season, to intentionally focus more on this season of preparation and repentance, during which Christians anticipate the the death (Good Friday) and resurrection (Easter Sunday) of Jesus. But, after a conversation with a good friend who told me that she sensed God calling her to give up complaining for Lent, I have been trying to think about what else He may be calling me to give up... and I kept coming back to these verses in my heart and mind. I'm almost afraid to say that I'm committing to "giving up labouring for that which does not satisfy", because it's such a big thing! I struggle with it so much that I feel like I'm a failure before I even start! But even as I say that, I am reminded that this is what the Christian life is! We are not what we should be, but we press on (Phil 3:12)! And there is grace for every failure because of Jesus. I feel somewhat silly to say I'm committing to focusing my effort on "working for the food that endures" over Lent, because I already know I'm going to mess up! But, as this devotional I'm going through says (click here if you want to download it!), "Lent is a journey to the cross: meditating on our sin and weakness, looking to Jesus as our perfect example and substitute, and being heightened in our worship of his victory over Satan, sin, and death."
So, in the end, I decided that I am going to make an extra concerted effort, starting today, to stop spending my money for that which is not bread and my labour for that which does not satisfy, and instead incline my ear to my God, that my soul may live!
I read this blog by Sara Hagerty this morning called Messy Prayers and it totally pushed me over the edge in this decision! :) A practical way for me to begin this Ash Wednesday is to pray messy-in-the-moment prayers, because:
Pumped for the next 40 days!
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