A call to "Daily Dwell" 🙂

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Colossians 3:16 NIV

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly 

as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God. 

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A while ago, the following question was asked at church: What is dwelling richly in you? Is it: 

A. The Word, or 

B. The things of the world?

We've made it look like we can have both options, yet the two cannot "live" together. The Word unapologetically repels what is of this world (Ref. 1John 1:15-17)...so what makes us think that we can have a little bit of both? It's meant to be either one or the other, and that's just what it is 🤧.

Christ calls us to "Abide" in Him, and He in us. This means that we're to literally live in Him, and to allow His person (the Word) to live in us.

Realize that most of what we do is pay random visits either routinely or every time need arises. For some, we do so early in the morning before we start our day, and probably at night before we sleep, and a few times in between our busy schedules. Much as it's a good thing we're doing - setting apart some time to be with Him - Scripture bids us higher still.

We're meant to actively interact with the Word of God in our hearts literally all the time. Whether we're sitting at home or walking along the road; whether we're lying down or getting up; these Words are to ever be before us. 

The Israelites were asked to tie them as symbols on their hands and bind them upon their foreheads (Proverbs includes, "fasten them round your neck"). They were to write them even on the doorframes of their houses and on their gates.

These Words were meant to guide them, speak to them and watch over them. These weren't ordinary words - they carried the life of God, the breath of His Spirit. In them was everything they needed to enable them walk in obedience to God's commands and have Him "dwell" among them. 

Now all that was back then in the Old Testament, but realize that the call to treasure God's Word in our hearts is amplified in the New Testament. In any case it has been made so much easier because Jesus Christ (the Word incarnate) is right in our hearts (when we receive Him), and He is willing to make our hearts His special dwelling place just as long as we make Him our special dwelling place too. 

All He wants us is for us to allow Him to clear all the junk from the world that we've stuffed our lives with, thinking that they would give us the joy and the satisfaction we so desperately need. After Jesus reveals Himself as the Vine (John 15:1-11), He says:

 I have told you this

 so that my joy may be in you

 and that your joy may be complete.

This is literally what we're all looking for in all these vain things the world is offering us. Why not turn to Him and allow Him to permeate every iota of our lives, and allow His Word to saturate our hearts, that we may continually experience this fullness of joy? 

I know this isn't something that happens in a span of a second - there's no magic to it. It's a call for us to be intentional about filling our lives with His Word, and allowing it to kick out every other vain thing in our lives. The more we allow His Words to abide in us, the more we are changed from the inside out, and begin to experience the fullness of eternal life while we're still here. He desires to offer that, we just have to make His Word our home, and our hearts His home. O that He may look at our hearts and say, "What a beautiful home!" 🥺🤲🏼

You may be wondering, "What does this look like for me?"

Well, it could look like a lot of things. First, evaluate what preoccupies your mind the most. It doesn't have to be anything wrong or sinful. It could be your job, your academics, your little fantasies about that perfect life you'd want to have in future, your current needs (financial, emotional, physical...), your "mpermanent", spouse or kids...the list is endless really. It could even be church related (for those of us who serve in various capacities).

For the entertainment lovers (I hope the Gen Z's are still with me 🙂), it could be that new series coming up, that new trend you want to jump on, that TikTok challenge everyone is doing, that influencer you really want to be like, the memes, the reels...it goes on and on.

These things (no matter how innocent 👀) have a way of preoccupying our minds in such a way that our focus is entirely on "earthly things" (as Paul rightly calls them), when we're meant to seek first His kingdom and His righteousness. 

Also, there should be limits that we can put in place to ensure that we're not carried away by all these vain things. It's why Paul says, 

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 1 Corinthians 6:12 AMP

Everything is permissible (allowable and lawful) for me; but not all things are helpful (good for me to do, expedient and profitable when considered with other things). Everything is lawful for me, but I will not become the slave of anything or be brought under its power.

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It may not be wrong to engage in all these things, but giving too much of ourselves to what is not spiritually edifying is not a very wise thing to do. These seemingly harmless things may eventually have a hold on us and enslave us. We don't want that now, do we?

Here's what Scripture admonishes us to do 😊:

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Colossians 3:1-4 NIV

Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.

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In case you're wondering, "How do I do this?", it's quite simple. Fellowship with God shouldn't end when we say that 'Amen' after our morning prayer or after we close our Bibles...it's something that can be done literally every second of our day. 

Meditating on God's Word is a good place to start because God's Word is alive, literally. Scripture says (Proverbs 6:22 RSV):

When you walk, they will lead you; 

when you lie down, they will watch over you;

and when you awake, they will talk with you.

That aside, moment by moment fellowship with God could also mean carrying Him along with us. Again, we're not to leave Him just as soon as we say 'Amen'. We're meant to engage Him throughout our day. Whether we're walking, driving, working, attending that lesson, going for that practical, the ward rounds, conversing with that friend...we can always whisper to Him in our hearts about the details of our day as we progress. We can rant about that not-so-friendly colleague, let Him know our frustrations, the fluctuations of our mood, how the meal was, a funny incident that happened - there's no limitation really.

The more we do this - engaging Him in every aspect of our lives - the more we give Him room to speak to us about those very things, and guide us as He wills. Even more beautiful is that it causes us to be so in tune with Him that we hear Him with much more clarity when He speaks. Such close fellowship keeps us in check because we're in a position to feel the nudges of the Holy Spirit as He asks us to put that phone away, to apologize to that colleague, to withdraw from that group of people and spend time with Him, to tell a stranger about the love of God, to check up on that one person that always keeps to themselves, to give that street child a coin, or even to smile and wave at a random person walking towards you. It doesn't have to be "big". 

Truth is, He longs to have such deep intimacy with us. Question is, how often do we turn to Him? 

Have we become so engrossed in the busyness of our lives that we forget to make room for Him? Have we become so addicted to the temporary pleasure the world gives that we have laid aside what is able to give us true and meaningful joy? Have we made the world our home and the Word some random place we visit only temporarily?

It would be wise of us to chew on these words, and pray that God gives us the grace to abide in Him, and to have His Word abiding in us. 

May His Word come alive in our hearts 🥺🤲🏼.

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1 John 2:14b-17 NIV

I write to you, young men, 

because you are strong, 

and the word of God lives in you,

and you have overcome the evil one.

Do not love the world or anything in the world. 

If anyone loves the world, 

the love of the Father is not in him.

For everything in the world--

the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes 

and the boasting of what he has and does--

comes not from the Father but from the world.

The world and its desires pass away,

but the man who does the will of God lives forever.

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Here's part of a song I love to wrap it up 😊:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace.