The Choice Is Yours

His Word:  Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 2 Corinthians 3:17 (ESV)

Observation and Obedience: Paul, in this letter, compares the glory and freedom of life for those who choose Christ as compared to the life of the old testament people. I love how the Message version describes the difference and the privilege that is ours if we choose.

Lifting the Veil

7-8 The Government of Death, its constitution chiseled on stone tablets, had a dazzling inaugural. Moses’ face as he delivered the tablets was so bright that day (even though it would fade soon enough) that the people of Israel could no more look right at him than stare into the sun. How much more dazzling, then, the Government of Living Spirit?

9-11 If the Government of Condemnation was impressive, how about this Government of Affirmation? Bright as that old government was, it would look downright dull alongside this new one. If that makeshift arrangement impressed us, how much more this brightly shining government installed for eternity?

12-15 With that kind of hope to excite us, nothing holds us back. Unlike Moses, we have nothing to hide. Everything is out in the open with us. He wore a veil so the children of Israel wouldn’t notice that the glory was fading away—and they didn’t notice. They didn’t notice it then and they don’t notice it now, don’t notice that there’s nothing left behind that veil. Even today when the proclamations of that old, bankrupt government are read out, they can’t see through it. Only Christ can get rid of the veil so they can see for themselves that there’s nothing there.

16-18 Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him. (MSG)

As I sit here and think about the biggest road block that keeps us from living our lives “gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful”, it has to be FEAR! 

Our lack of FAITH……..FEAR, it robs us of so much. It robs us of our joy, our confidence and our freedom to live our lives with the veil removed. Recognizing that God is a living, personal presence who delivered us ALREADY!

It’s true, horrible things happen to people. Paul, early on in this letter, explains that Christians will suffer. “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed“. Paul wanted us to know that compared to eternity with Christ the sufferings of this world are temporary and have a purpose for us: “For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

So WHY is it that we allow these temporal experiences to reinforce our fear rather than increase our faith?  That was never the plan.

We are fearful of being injured, we are afraid of getting sick, we fear being lied to, and cheated on, we are afraid of loosing our jobs, our spouses, our children, our homes. The list goes on and on and on. And if we aren’t afraid of all these things for ourselves, we’re afraid of them happening to our children and grandchildren. Honestly, it’s a wonder we push back the covers and get out of bed in the morning. And we were meant to SHINE!!!

So how do we make the choice EVERY DAY to live free of fear and shine His light? WE MAKE THE CHOICE!

First, we have to recognize that FEAR is of the ENEMY! ALWAYS!!! His not so marvelous plan is to rob us of our talents, joy and freedom, bringing death to our relationship with God and the ones we love most. It’s Darkness all the time! He wants to snuff out our light and our lives. 

Let’s look at what fear leads to…..fear leads to stress, leads to sleepless nights, leads to fatigue, leads to irritability, leads to discontent, leads to disagreements, leads to never stepping into who you were created to be, leads to a miserable existence. Why would anyone choose that?

When you choose to allow your FAITH to be bigger than your fear what will your life look like? You will live knowing that whatever is ahead of you God is already there and has prepared the way if we will just stay face-to-face with Him. At the end of the day you will lie down in peace, while God restores your rest. You will arise each morning rested and excited to be a part of this new day that the Lord has made. Rejoice! He has chosen to have you be a part of it!! You will look for the good, the encouragements, the gifts in each day and each person you share life with. Your attitude will be pleasant and attractive. You will be able to shine His light for others to see and recognize.

So today, pay attention to every thought, word or action you take and see if it’s based in fear or in faith. When you recognize it as fear, make the choice to remove the veil and stand face-to-face with your “Abba, Father”. Say to Him, “because I am your child, I have the Spirit of your Son in me and with me, NOTHING CAN HOLD ME BACK! I am free, not fearful!” Thank You Jesus!

Prayer: Thank You Jesus for sending me your Spirit so that I may live victorious and free. Remove the veil of fear and anxiety that clouds your glory shining through. Help me to stand firm with You and not allow fear to hold me captive in my thoughts, feelings or actions. God, I know and believe that your provision for me is right where I am and I need only to hold on to You. 

Encouragement: “Every day you can get up and get scared~ or ~you can get up and get ready!” Ann Voskamp