dailywordofdestiny

And behold, an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were greatly afraid. Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David, a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify Your Son, that Your Son may also glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do. And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was….I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one.” (Luke 2: 9-11; John 1: 14; John 17: 1-5, 20-22).

In September, 2009 my mother was eighty years old. My five sisters and two sisters-in-law were able to enjoy a weekend with mom. I had asked her a few months before then if she would speak a blessing over each of our lives (as Jacob did; Genesis 49) she did; it was a very special. One of the things she said in her words to me was to “guard against ‘complacency’.” That has stayed with me over the years and the word “complacent” has come to me from several venues through the years. I have seen it in readings, heard it from leaders, and heard it in sermons. I am quite certain that God WAS/IS TRYING to get my attention, for every time I read or hear the word, I think back to my mother’s words. “Am I complacent, or is He telling me I need to be watchful of becoming this way?”

Complacency: What is complacent? It means to be self-secure, content, self-satisfied, untroubled, unbothered, at ease. Basically, I’d say it is an issue of PRIDE, or the hardening of our heart. I asked my husband if he could give me a more workable definition and he related it to APATHY. Apathy is lack of interest, indifference, or insensibility to something … you just don’t care about it; complacency is caring about something, but not acting on it. I have thought about how this definition reflects on me personally and especially in relationship to my spiritual life. I think we often get “comfortable” with where we are; believing we have reached our destiny in Christ … therefore, we can now just kick back and wait for His glorious return. I refer you to Proverbs 28: 14, “Blessed is the man who always fears the LORD (doesn’t get comfortable, or take Him for granted), but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble” (see also Ephesians 4: 17; Hebrews 3: 7-15).

I have to confess that a couple years ago I had become more complacent in my relationship with God. I continued to read and study His Word, but I found that I spent more time thinking about spending more quality time with Father than actually DOING IT! I had allowed myself to become sidetracked with “busy things” like laundry, watching a movie, talking on the phone, writing letters, talking ABOUT Him, praying shorter “blanket prayers”, etc. rather than going to my secret place to just spend time with my Father and letting Him know how much I love Him. I also realized that I have become more distressed about things going on around me. Why? Because my PEACE, in any given moment depends on being in continual communion with my Father (Psalm 29:11; 34: 14; Song of Solomon 2: 15; Isaiah 32: 17; John 14: 27; 16: 33; Galatians 5: 22; Philippians 4: 7; Colossians 3: 15). I DO CARE ABOUT MY RELATIONSHIP WITH THE LORD, BUT I HAD NOT BEEN PUTTING HIM FIRST; I HAD NOT BEEN ACTIVELY SEEKING HIM … I had become complacent! LORD, forgive me.

In Exodus 33, we read of how Moses would go to the tent of meeting outside the camp of Israel. When Moses went into the tent, the pillar of cloud would come down and stay at the entrance, while the LORD spoke with Moses. The people of Israel would see the pillar of cloud and would stand at the entrance of their own tent and begin to worship. In verse 15 Moses says to the LORD, “If Your Presence does not go with us, do not send us up from here. How will anyone know that You are pleased with me and with Your people unless You go with us? What else will distinguish me and Your people from all the other people on the face of the earth?” Moses ACTIVELY sought the LORD’s Presence and God met with Moses, face to face as a man speaks with his friend (vs. 11). That is what prayer is; communion with our heavenly Father.

I am so thankful for the GRACE that the LORD JESUS provided when He died on the cross and rose three days later to gain the victory over death! I KNOW there is NO CONDEMNATION for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death (Romans 8: 1). Now if the ministry that brought death, which was engraved in letters on stone, came with glory, so that the Israelites could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of its glory, fading though it was (Exodus 33: 29-35) will not the ministry of the Spirit be even more glorious? If the ministry that condemns men is glorious, how much more glorious is the ministry that brings righteousness (2 Corinthians 3: 7-16)! Hallelujah!

The LORD said to Moses, “I WILL DO the very thing you have asked, because I am pleased with you and I know you by name.” What then did Moses reply? It is the very same thing that I ask of Him… “NOW SHOW ME YOUR GLORY” (Exodus 33: 17-23). LORD, forgive my neglect; change my heart LORD and revive my first love. I WILL eagerly seek You, Lord! I KNOW I am forgiven; for where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And I know that my unveiled face reflects the Lord’s glory. That I am daily being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit (2 Corinthians 3: 17, 18; see also 1 Corinthians 13: 12, 13). If you have accepted Christ Jesus as Lord, so are you! Hallelujah!