hey guys,
as a personal prayer request, my devotional life has been lacking recently and this is in part to blame for recent gaps in wednesday emails. Im in desperate need of that renewal of mind thru the work of hte Spirit that Paul talks about, not so much for these emails' sake, but my own.
Having said that, A.W. Tozer's short book, The Pursuit of God is an awesome book and i'd highly recommend it (poke me if u want me to send u the word doc or mp3) and it was out of one of his chapters that I took this today's title and good chunk of content.
I've made the point awhile back that christian virtues are all connected, yet today i wanted to focus on the meekness Jesus talked about in his sermon on the mount - mostly because i wasn't sure what the word literally meant. In a rough sense, it is humility; and it stands in stark contrast to the human condition. Afterall, how truthful am i when i say to God "i am nothing, You are everything?" do i really believe that? does that show in how i respond to perceived insults? In Tozer's words, "the sons of earth are carrying this burden [of pride] continually, challenging every word spoken against them, cringing under every criticism, smarting under each fancied slight, tossing sleepless if another is preferred before them." This is ME, and it is precisely THIS burden that Jesus asks us to pass onto him when he proposed an exchange of yokes several chapters later. We're meant to be freed from this burden of pride and enter into the rest of meekness. Pride is a tiresome burden. In that grace-given rest of meekness, we no longer need prove our worth to the world, rather we rest our value on God.
This meekness does not imply weakness or poor self image, rather it comes with the security of knowing one's identity in Christ. Out of that knowledge comes confidence that does not hinge precariously upon being better than others, but on being a child of God.
Encouragement for the week: do not seek to compare or boast, stop this endless quest to become the best for our own sake. Take up Christ's yoke of meekness and learn this art of humility.
have a happy wednesday!
Edward
"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth." - Matthew 5:5
"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am meek and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light." - Matthew 11:28-30
"[The meek man] knows well that the world will never see him as God sees him and he has stopped caring. He rests perfectly content to allow God to place His own values...as he walks on in meekness he will be happy to let God defend him. The old struggle to defend himself is over. He has found the peace which meekness brings." - A.W. Tozer
Save Scooter! (this one goes out to all the teachers)
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