choosing

Thursday, October 7, 2010 (7:01 a.m.)

I’m choosing You Lord,

Just for this very moment of this very day I am choosing to turn to You in my shakiness. I always have the choice to fear or have faith. I get to judge or show grace. I can hurt or heal. Most dear and blessed Lord, thank You that my deepest desire just now was to readily turn to Galatians 5:22 in The Bible Handbook asking You to teach me more about the Fruit of Your Spirit.

Thank You that upon arriving there I found the word “Freedom” in bold print. Reading all the way through the brief theological overview of what Christ’s life, death and resurrection did for us I come to the last sentence. “We are freed to concentrate on loving Jesus and so experience the changes God is working within.”

You set us free. Completely free! I am so used to the rules and expectations of others Lord, that I confess to not knowing exactly what freedom in You is like. I get glimpses of it. There are moments when I take the opportunity to run free and experience the pure joy that comes from such freedom.

Lord, I long to live my life ~ each moment of every day completely in and through You. Here I am asking that You would please teach me not only what that looks like, but how to do it as well.

And You do. I ask. You answer. “Christ Gives Freedom”. Paul reminded the Galatians (5:1-15) that You have set us free! Thank You Lord. Verse 13 tells us that he said, “My friends, you were chosen to be free. So don’t use your freedom to do anything you want. Use it as an opportunity to serve each other with love.” Oh Your goodness Lord. Oh Your sweet and glorious goodness!

Paul reminded that “All the Law says can be summed up in the command to love others as much as you love yourself. But if you keep attacking each other like wild animals, you had better watch out or you will destroy yourselves” (14-15).

Mm, Lord. I thought for sure I was choosing to learn more about the fruit of Your Spirit this morning Lord. Little did I know that You had a bigger lesson for me first. The Learning Bible has this to say about Your Holy Spirit, “For Paul, it is the Spirit who sets free God’s new people and who changes their lives so that they can have peace and be obedient to God (Romans 8:1-17). The Spirit gives them the ability to understand God’s will, to live together in love, to see what the future will bring, and to carry out the different kinds of work that need to be done in the churches (1Corinthians 12-14). The Spirit produces within them the love and the lifestyle God wants for His people (Romans 4:9-13; Galatians 5:22-23).

Lord, how I ask You to keep working in me that I will continue choosing Your freedom over the snares and trappings of this world. I love You Lord. Thank You for the honor, the privilege and the desire of choosing You! Amen.

(534 words ~ 8:03 a.m.)