An Empty Self

To be truly free of insecurity and pressures that draw our hearts and attention to the empty lure of this world, Christ must live in us. In order for Christ to live in us, we must be crucified with Him. Raised to new life in Him. Then, and only then, can we live a crucified life. To live – to be free – we must die. Not literally, of course. It’s the death of our old self, the one that didn’t know Jesus as Savior. It’s the death of our will and our flesh, along with old ways and thoughts, lies we’ve been told, misconceptions we’ve believed, ways we’ve always done things.

 

It is Philippians 2:1-8:

 

Therefore if there is any consolation in Christ, if any comfort of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any affection and mercy, fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

 

The key to it all is having the same mind that was in Christ Jesus, which begs the question: WHAT IS THE MIND OF CHRIST? We have only to look to this same passage: He made Himself of no reputation. In the Greek, it means He emptied Himself. He did only what the Father told Him to do, and He served, always putting others first.

 

Having the mind of Christ is to sacrifice. To set aside what we want for what others need, like Jesus did in Matthew 14:10-14. He had just learned of the beheading of John the Baptist, and verse thirteen tells us Jesus departed to a deserted place by Himself. Don’t you know He just wanted a moment to Himself? And yet, the multitudes followed Him, and when Jesus saw them, He didn’t respond with exasperation, as I would have. No, verse fourteen tell us, “He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.”

 

Do I do that? When I sneak off to the restroom or my bedroom for a moment of peace and quiet and my kids follow, how do I respond? With compassion and ready to minister to them? Or with frustration and anger, thinking only of myself?

 

Jesus set aside offense, as we see in Matthew 26:34-49. Jesus has just explained to Peter that he would deny Him three times when He goes with the disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray. He says to them in verse thirty-eight, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, even to death. Stay here and watch with me.” He leaves to pray, and when He comes back, He finds His disciples sleeping. This happens THREE TIMES, and then Judas betrays Him.

Don’t you know Jesus had plenty of justifiable opportunities to be offended? Peter, then the disciples, then Judas. What do I do when people disappoint me, when they don’t do what seems like the simplest, most considerate thing to do? Do I respond like Jesus, with yet another characteristic of the crucified life: forgiveness?

 

In Luke 23:32-34, Jesus is led to the cross with two other criminals. He lived the perfect life. Never sinned. And as they are crucifying Him, He says: “Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do.” Has anyone done anything worse to me than what Jesus endured? To live the crucified life, I must forgive as He forgave!

 

And become obedient to death. Thy will not mine be done.

 

Again in the Garden of Gethsemane, knowing the road to the cross that lay before Him, in verse thirty-nine, Jesus prays: “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.”

 

THAT’S SEEKING JESUS AND HIM CRUCIFIED!

 

When I’m suffering or face certain suffering, am I searching for a way to get myself out of it or am I surrendered to the Father and to His will no matter what?

So we determine not to know anything except Jesus and Him crucified. We do this by living the crucified life. And we live the crucified life by having the same mind that was in Jesus Christ. We seek the Father’s will and obey unto death, death of self, and perhaps one day, literal death. As we do, the chaos in our minds and lives and the things that don’t belong begin to fall away. The slates of our minds and hearts remain clean for the Father’s will.

 

I challenge you to take a blank note card sometime today. On one side write out 1 Corinthians 2:2, and on the other, using just one or two words for each item, write down everything that’s cluttering your mind. Ask the Holy Spirit to show you the source of any mental and emotional chaos, and write it down. When you’re done, take a black permanent marker, and as fat and large as you can, write “JUST JESUS” across your list. Now, tape your card your mirror or keep it somewhere you’ll see it all the time. Memorize the verse, and when things start getting stirred up in your head and your emotions, ask yourself: Am I seeking only Jesus and Him crucified in this?

 

In 1 Corinthians 2:4-6, Paul goes on to say:

 

My speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. However, we speak wisdom among those who are mature, yet not the wisdom of this age, nor of the rulers of this age, who are coming to nothing.

 

As we determine to know nothing but Jesus and Him crucified, what we say and do will be in demonstration of the Spirit and of power! Our faith won’t be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God! We won’t speak the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age! We won’t live by the wisdom of this age or of the rulers of this age WHICH IS COMING TO NOTHING!

Lord, transform us into woman who are secure, who know to whom we belong, who desire to belong in the right places for the right reasons, who see through the world’s temptations in order to remain dedicated to heavenly objectives. Let our days be lived full throttle just for You, Jesus, as we become more wholly Yours each day.

 

Shauna Wallace

Holy His

Fight Fire with Love

As we apply the antidotes for Loose Tongue Syndrome, what do we do when we’re genuinely struggling in a circumstance or a relationship? What do we do when we’re not sure what to do or what to say, yet we genuinely desire to handle things God’s way? Is it okay to seek counsel from a godly friend? Is there any room to talk about it with others who can help us work it out? When is it okay? When does it cross the line?

As we saw Thursday, the second half of Proverbs 11:2 tells us: “But with the humble is wisdom.” When we are modest, reserved, and unassuming – submitted to God, His will, and His ways – we will have the discretion we need to cautiously handle the practical matters of life and relationships.

“That’s all fine and good, Shauna,” you might say. “But what do we DO?!?!?!” Pain is a motivator, and in the weeks following the incident with my family, I talked with God… a lot. I prayed…a lot. I asked God for answers. For specific scriptures. Jotting His answers down, I ended up with “Ten Steps to a Tame Tongue.” It’s sort of like a self-improvement program for the tongue. It’s truth He is instilling in my heart so it will affect my lips. I pray it is a help to you as well.

Here are the first five.

1.       Go to God first.

So many times, when we’re hurt, angry, or perplexed, or even just opinionated about something we’ve heard or learned about another person, the first thing we grab is the phone. If you’re like me, you call the person who will tell you what you want to hear at the moment. We might call any number of people before the thought occurs to talk to God about it, yet He’s the FIRST person we should contact! If we feel the need to gossip, let’s take it to the Lord first, and ask Him about it, following His wisdom in Proverbs 11:13: “A talebearer reveals secrets, but he who is of a faithful spirit conceals a matter.” My first response needs to be to conceal not reveal. When I need to talk, I need to talk to God. If I need to vent, I need to vent to Him first.

2.       Grab the word, instead of the phone.

Find out what scripture says about what troubles you. Psalm 119:105 says, “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” He will light the way as we hold up His word to the things with which we struggle. Use your Bible’s concordance or an online resources like www.blueletterbible.com or www.biblegateway.com to search for verses that can give you the direction you seek. Ask others which scriptures help them in similar relationships and circumstances (see No. 8 and 9 first; coming Thursday).

3.       Get to the heart of the matter.

Ask yourself: Why am I so upset? Why am I feeling compelled to talk? Taking my eyes off everyone else involved, what is it in me that is reacting so strongly to what’s happened, is happening, or has been reported to me? Is pride rearing its ugly head? Am I afraid? Fear is a terrible distorter. So is pride. Am I hurt? Am I offended? If yes, why? Do I have a right to be hurt or offended? Do I need to reexamine for pride? Am I judging someone? I find writing things out really helps me process and see inside. I like to write in my journal as if it’s a letter to God. Talking directly to Him. Physically seeing my words expose my heart. Pray before you do, and ask the Lord to search your heart, to test it, and to reveal any wicked ways that He may also lead you in the way everlasting. Proverbs 20:27 tells us, “The spirit of a man is the lamp of the LORD, searching all the inner depths of his heart.” He sees, and He will answer the sincere cry of your heart for His truth. His help. His deliverance.

4.       Consider the hidden.

John 7:24 tells us,  “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” Is there something more than meets the eye? If we look beneath behavior with a heart of compassion, we might find a compelling reason for offense. I hate it when I criticize someone else, what they’ve said or done, only to find out they’ve been through something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy, and their behavior is simply an expression of deep, tragic hurt.  Not to excuse wrong behavior. But that we can have compassion for others. That we might be slow to anger and abounding in love, just like our heavenly Father is with us. Full of grace.

5.       Get the whole story.

Proverbs 18:17 cautions, “The first one to plead his cause seems right, until his neighbor comes and examines him.” When someone shares information about another person or situation, remember, there’s always more than one side. As a mom, we face this reality every day, and most days, many times over! If we react without due diligence, we are likely to be the ones shouldering regret. Go to the source (see No. 7 Thursday). Get the whole story. Be sure that if you do take action, it is based on the facts and not on one skewed version, no matter how convincing it might be.

In the interest of keeping things short, I’ll share the remaining five steps Thursday. In the meantime, I pray the Lord will take the time in between to let His word sink deep in our hearts. To the place where it changes how we think and what we do.

Lord, as You promised Your people in Ezekiel 36:26-27, give us new hearts and put Your spirit within us. Take our hearts of stone and give us hearts of flesh. May Your Spirit move in us to walk in Your ways and obey You as we become more wholly Yours today.

Shauna Wallace

Holy His