Living in the Spirit
July 20, 2017
Scripture Reading: Psalm 139:1-12, 23-24
Where can I go from your spirit?
Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I ascend to heaven, you are there;
if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.
If I take the wings of the morning
and settle at the farthest limits of the sea,
even there your hand shall lead me,
and your right hand shall hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall cover me,
and the light around me become night’,
even the darkness is not dark to you;
the night is as bright as the day,
for darkness is as light to you. –Psalm 139:7-12
We should each take great comfort in this scripture. The Spirit of God is with us even when our attention may be elsewhere. Why then is everyone so afraid? If people are not afraid then why is there so much discontent around, even violence? Are we, the people of God, not doing enough in sharing the good news of God’s abiding love with those who either were never introduced to God or are disengaged from God, perhaps because their introduction missed the mark? Do we live lives of substance exemplifying God’s love in all that we do and say? Are we doing more harm than good for God when what people see of us in not love in focus?
We are human; we each make mistakes which we must rectify in the best way possible. We need to be very sure that how we live and what we say is of God. Does what we do and say align with what Jesus would do or say. God forgives when we seek God’s forgiveness. We also need to forgive. With all the vitriol in our world today, it is easy to get caught in the crossfires. As children of God, we must put our trust in God and not in the principalities and powers of the world. Evaluating what we read and hear by whether Jesus would author or say it also might be a good practice to adopt.
We must accept the world just as it is and do all we can as the Body of Christ to make this fragmented world whole through the Love of God, the power of the Living Christ, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer: Calm our fears, O God, let your peace be in us and radiate from us to others. Amen.