Paul shares one simple rule for all the churches: Let each person lead the life to which God has called him. I Cor. 7:17. Sometimes I think I am trying to lead the life that the Christian community wants me to lead. I so long to leave a legacy that I think I try too hard to make something happen. Love is not about trying hard but about: Surrender. Dependence. Life is oh-so-short! There is so little time to miss our calling. May the God Who counts us worthy to be called, fill us with this High Calling. Speak, LORD, for your servants listen. In quietness and in confidence, may our Strength be in You. Isa 30:15.
"Our comfort and happiness depend on what we are to Christ, not what we are to the world." Matthew Henry
I love that he says, "I tell all the churches this." It kind of prefaces how important what he is about to say is.
ReplyDeleteThen, he nails me. Be authentic. You are unique. Don't try to be like anyone else. Each of us is given a gift unlike any other.
We all imitate. Right from the beginning, babies emulate their mother's expressions. In many ways, it's how we learn. So, Paul tells us later to be imitators of Christ. When we model our lives after Christ, we find our true calling, our authenticity. He shows us who we are in the bigger context of Who He is.
And then Bev nails it again. Love, our authentic calling, is not about trying hard but about surrender.
Oh, I have so much to learn. People can entirely miss their calling. Don't let it happen to us, Lord. Direct us, and manifest us into Your Likeness, Your Image. Show us where we need to surrender and help us to do so, and in so doing, reveal whom we were meant to be.