Jesus, your name is light and life. There are so many things I love about you and things I am grateful for in you. It’s a never ending adventure – discovering new facets of who you are.
One of the facets I’ve been sitting with and admiring this
year is the family of God. Remembering
that you, God, in the gift of Jesus, did everything so that we can not only be
free of sin, free of death and forever alive (all of those things in and of
themselves is outrageous, generous, and beyond words to thank you for). But you, God, did not stop there. Ever the abundant, life giving, love incarnate,
brilliant one – you, incredibly bring us to, in Jesus, the family of God. We cannot begin to understand this. Save us – we start to fathom your mercy and
pity on us, free us - we can begin to understand your gracious kindness in this,
but make us your family? We are at odds
with this. Why? What would make you open your very self, your
heart, your perfectly peaceful, loving and joyful family life and household to a
rebellious, wrecked and ruinous heap of humanity? This is the unbelievable truth of
you. You already saw, beyond the
wreckage – who you made each of us and all of us as a whole to be in you. Our wretched state never changed your vision
of who we are in you or your ability to bring about what you have always intended.
Your family, brilliant, amazing, glorious – it could only
ever be that! You, in what has yet be
fully unveiled, established us in your very self. In you, we could not be other than family to
you. We become the glory of your heart,
not by our efforts, or anything within us – but by YOU! And, it’s not enough that you overcame the
enemy of our souls and saved us, but you made us overcomers in you as well. Children not just in name but transformed in our very DNA . We are unpacking all along our
lives what it means to come more and more into alignment with you and live your
life out, expanding your Kingdom.
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