Skip to main content

Coming Alive To God

             In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. (Romans 6:11)

“If you love me, keep my commands.” ~Jesus (John 14:11)

          Someone recently suggested that in our discipline of celebrating the sabbath, we should do what makes us “come alive in God.” From today’s verse, it might be understood that we are to be unresponsive to sin but responsive to God.  If we love God, we are to obey Him, which we can only do if we are alive to Him or in Him.

          The same person (or another person the same video) suggested that keeping the sabbath could include playing basketball with your kids, taking a nap, or hanging out with friends and family. Again, anything that makes you “come alive in God” is an acceptable part of the discipline of sabbath-keeping. But this is where the trouble begins for me.

          What about playing basketball with your kids makes you come alive in God? Is loving your kids and enjoying spending time with them “coming alive in God”? Or can you love your kids and enjoy spending time with them while ignoring God? I suspect the answer is, “Yes.” And I suspect some folks would like to point out to me that it’s an individual thing and that I shouldn’t judge others for playing basketball with their kids as part of keeping the sabbath.

          But that’s not the problem. If you want to play basketball with your kids on the sabbath, that’s your decision. The question is what makes me come alive in God, and what makes me come alive in me. Yes, this is where I want to pull out my examination table. I don’t want this to have to be a “trial and error.” I want rules, wisdom, direction, and attitude.

          Since those don’t seem to be the way God works at the moment in my life, I’m going to have to take my spiritual life into my hands and experiment. Again. The last round of experimentation with the sabbath revealed that resting – doing nothing – didn’t make me alive to God.

          So, what might? The two ideas that come to mind are music and reading the right sort of material. Both of these ideas could be incorporated with other things, helping me keep my mind on things above while doing other things. The next question that comes to mind is “What would I like to make come alive to God?” Some possibilities include my garden, photography, writing, crafting, cooking – basically being creative, exploring (particularly the realm of ideas, as in reading), and service. Now, I just have to start figuring out how to do those things in a way that involves God.

         Now what are your thoughts about  your coming alive to God?

Comments

  1. AnonymousApril 7, 2025 at 4:40 AM

    Engaging study of the Scriptures with people like you.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Higher Thoughts

  “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the  Lord . “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. (Isaiah 55:8-9)           The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,   for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord      so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ. (I Corinthians 2:15-16) If you read about the ancient gods of the various peoples, you’ll find that they think just like people. In fact, they think just like the sort of people we really wouldn’t want to be around. They think like the most corrupt Hollywood producer or, like hormone overloaded teens with no upbringing.   It’s embarrassing to read. I have a friend who argues that because God is not just like us, He is so vastly dif...
2 comments
Read more

Think About These Things

                 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. (Philippians 4:8) This passage is a major challenge for me. Like everyone else, I struggle to keep my thoughts from wandering off into the weeds, then wondering what possible benefits those weeds might have… Sigh. But as a writer, I have to delve at least a little into the ignoble, wrong, impure, unlovely, and debased. After all, there’s no story if everything’s just as it should be and everyone’s happy. As Christians, there are times when we need to deal with all the negatives, but that makes it even more important that we practice turning our minds by force of attention to what is noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, and praiseworthy. It’s just too easy to get stuck in a swamp. With my...
1 comment
Read more

A Virgin?

           Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)           This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. (Matthew 1:18)           But the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end.”            “How will this be,” Mary asked the...
Post a Comment
Read more