Dwell

                                                                                                           

Aloha Dearest Family,

                Someone recently sent me a phrase that said:

                 “You can either wake up saying, “Good morning, God” or wake up saying, “Good God, it’s morning.” Pretty funny.

 I pretty much wake up each morning praying and thanking God for another day. I am grateful that I get to spend time with the Father. This led me to this next thought.

                 One of the joys in life is found in the next verse.

                 “And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit.” (Ephesians 2:22 NIV)

 We as born-again believers have the spirit living in us. Because of this, God has His dwelling place in us. This seems impossible; that the Creator of the heavens and the earth, the Maker of all that is, has chosen to dwell within us, his sons and daughters. WOW!

 Philippians has a similar thought.

                 “For it is God who works in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:13)

 God is at work within us. Most Christians do not give this a second thought, sadly, but it is vital if we want to live a life of joy. Now that we know that God dwells in us, we should ask ourselves, “where are WE dwelling?”

                For eons of time, God has desired a family to have intimate fellowship with. He longed for sons and daughters to call His own. Finally, because of the work of His only begotten son Jesus Christ, He now can enjoy our company on a day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute basis. This is why man was created.

                The Bible gives us endless examples of how God blesses His own. But that’s only if we choose to dwell in His presence. He wants to spend time with us. But how much time do we spend with Him?

                Jesus told his disciples that they would prosper and bring forth fruit in their lives if they chose to dwell in him and obey his words.

                 “Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abides in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing... ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” (John 15:4, 5 and 7)

                 If we dwell in Christ, our lives will be fruitful. How do we dwell in Christ? By dwelling in his words and the words of God his Father. Just like the olive tree, if we as branches abide in the vine, we will flourish. But we must choose to abide there. If we don’t, we miss the connection to abundance. So, our answer to living life fully is always to make the right choice.

            Dwelling where God is has endless benefits. As Psalm 91 shows us:

             “Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (verse 1)

 When we choose to dwell where God dwells, we will abide under His hand of protection. The following verses give us a taste of how much will protect us from.

             “Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; His faithfulness will be our shield and rampart. You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.”

 This is available to all those who choose to dwell under His unfailing shelter from life’s storms.

                     We have to stop thinking that when God looks at us, that He sees our shortcomings and imperfections. He doesn’t. He sees us as someone that has been forgiven of all sins. He’s sees us as justified. We now have PEACE with God.

             “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we a have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1) 

 God also tells us that He has chosen us “from before the foundation of the world.” (Ephesians 1:4) He knew even way back then that we would one day be His. After thousands of generations that have come before us, God couldn’t wait until we were born so that He could enjoy fellowship with us. This is what God wanted from the beginning. So, let’s choose to spend every minute walking and talking with our Heavenly Father.

             “But if we walk in the light, as He is light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, His son, purifies us from all sin.” (I John 1:7)

                                     Love Always, Ray