3.25.2011

Can All This Life Be Sacred?

I've been recently guilty of unsuccessfully trying to pull my husband into a pigeon hole with me. I egged him to pray for a plan: how together we could meet with God the way I had been doing; planning, scheduling, carving out intentional time to spend in the Presence. 

It sounds funny, now... trying to plan God.

But I was wrapped in an old lie that was dry rotting and damming the free flow of God's Kingdom on earth in my life.

I believed that being born into skin/sin temporarily kept me from God in certain ways. 
I felt that any pleasing thing I could offer him on earth was only garbage compared to what I could do in sprit, alone. 
I thought that it was necessary for me have a ritual of setting aside my flesh -like an offering- in order to approach God.

Of course, I knew in my head from scripture that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, that my body is a member of Christ Himself, that I am united with the Lord therefore one with Him in Spirit... that I was bought and paid for in full (1Corinthians 6:15-20)

But mind-knowledge is trumped again by heart-filled, as God introduces the bodied life saturated in Truth.

I've been devouring the book, The Pursuit of God, by Aiden Tozer. 
In the same day a friend of mine walked me to the awakening of my subconscious separation between regular daily life and my set aside time for God, I read these words of Aiden's: 
"Let us think of a Christian believer in whose life the twin wonders of repentance and new birth have been wrought...
Of such a one it may be said that every act of his life is or can be as truly sacred as prayer, or baptism, or the Lord's Supper. 
To say this... is to bring every act up into a living kingdom and turn the whole life into a sacrament." 

In that moment I willingly considered such a thing for the first time ever. No longer just working toward making choices that would be pleasing to the Lord through my life, but considering every act of my life to be sacred. 
In place of my disciplined scheduled times of offerings bowed low?

Was I worthy?

Could faith in "my body is a temple" carry me so far as this? 

In the same breath through the same book I read on, and God continued to teach. 
This time He brilliantly drew me to compare myself with the colt that Jesus rode into Jerusalem. Establishing in my heart that I am more valuable to Him than any animal (Matt 6:26), He then shows me that this creature was appointed, accepted, and accounted useful as Jesus' means for arrival. 

Then Tozer references the end of the relevant scripture; Luke 19:31, after which Jesus has sent two of his disciples to the village to bring the colt for Him, 
He tells the disciples, "If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ say, ‘The Lord needs it.’”


I stopped dead in my tracks.
The Lord needs it???

I was undone,
and with another long time lie staring me in the face strangling, "God doesn't need you!"

But... He needs the colt?

I had to look in the Bible myself, it was so hard to believe it from where I was standing. 
And sure enough, 


Did I read that right? I scan back up to take the whole passage in perspective. 
It is said by Jesus Himself,

"THE LORD HATH NEED OF HIM."


And my whole world turned a little on it's axis.
This Truth was all warmed and ready in a bowl with a spoon for me when Tozer went on assuring,
"We need no more be ashamed of our body -the fleshly servant that carries us through life- than Jesus was of the humble beast upon which He rode into Jerusalem...
If Christ dwells in us we may bear about the Lord of glory as the little beast did of old and give occasion to the multitudes to cry, 'Hosanna in the highest'."

Delicious relief! 
Thank You, God.


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3 comments:

  1. I just love A.W. Tozer, and I love the quote you shared.

    Sometimes my life seems so boring and I feel as though I have nothing to offer God. Then I remind myself that I am to do "all things as unto the Lord", so when I submit to my husband, I am doing it for the Lord. When I clean my home, I am doing it for the Lord. When I change that dirty diaper, I am doing it for the Lord. It is my longing to selflessly, humbly pour out my life for others, as unto the Lord. (However, I'm pretty good at being selfish, so I often get in my way.)

    :) Thanks for your note! I am going to add this blog to my blog links. :)

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  2. much enjoyed being here today! there are many books i would like to read--C.S. Lewis, Piper, maybe some A.W tozier as well.:) thanks for this inspiring blog. i feel God leading me to drink more deeply of Him, and less of the world. less of me, and more of Him, as you said in one of these blogs ( i read a few, and they were great!) thank you much! blessings to you! how God is speaking through you! glory to His name.

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  3. Ok, this post made me tear a little. I am in this place right now.
    and I get it.
    I can't say ant more beyond that at the moment.
    thank u.

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Your kind words are a blessing to me. Thank you for taking the time to share your heart.