SIGN. Day 3 of Lent. THE WAY.
Directional signs are everywhere.
We watch for them. They get us where we are going.
But sometimes we can think, “If I just change my circumstances – get out of this church, job, school- or change my relationships- get out of this marriage, friendship, work situation- I’ll finally be happy, free, satisfied.” We let our feelings ‘direct’ our movement out, around or away from a dissatisfying environment. We exit here. Go our way.
Yet, wherever we go, there we are.
We find the new direction just took us back to the same old place.
Here we are again.
Finding freedom is never about our outward circumstances.
It is about becoming transformed within our circumstances.
We have to know ourselves and know our God to find the way.
And that journey takes some direction to learn what it means to be free from ourselves and transformed.
Jesus says I am The WAY.
Jesus recognized the dead end problem of “here we are again”.
He came to make a way to replace our old self with a new self that is free. He says the way for you to be free from yourself is to think differently afterwards. Repent.
But we first have to see the contrast of what we repeatedly try to do and what Christ is really asking us to do.
Jesus calls us to think differently.
We continually try to think different – by changing the content of what we think. Our thoughts are this-stop gossiping, start praying, stop cursing, start encouraging. We’re still eating from the tree of good and evil where we exchange evil for good. When we just think different all we are doing is trying harder. We get stuck in a vicious cycle. Driven to find a way out, we pursue an escape and the direction “out” lead us into the very thing that has us trapped. Then the cycle begins again and the continuing dynamic leads many into deeper bondage and dissatisfaction. Been there?
Jesus says that self-effort is the dead end way.
To think differently refers to the way in which we think.
THE WAY in which we think is to renew our minds and be transformed in Christ. But how do we think differently.
We just abide in Christ and His Word.
We seek first Christ.
Focus on Christ as our priority not the circumstances or self effort.
Then, mysteriously Spirit helps us change the focusing lenses over our eyes and the filters of our ears. When we see and hear things differently it becomes almost impossible to do things the same way-the dead end way- of before.
Jesus spoke about THE WAY like this, “Repent.”
Think differently afterwards because “the Kingdom of God is at hand.” Here. With you. In you. Around you. Here is the love and power of Christ. I AM THE WAY.
I AM with you. Always.
The SIGN of that is simple. Peace.
The Presence of Christ in me.
Chi Ro encircled.
Jesus Christ is THE WAY of Peace.
“I certainly still remember him; Therefore My heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy on him,” declares the LORD.
“Set up for yourself road marks, Place for yourself guideposts;
Direct your mind to the highway, The way by which you went.
Return, O virgin of Israel, Return to these your cities.
“How long will you go here and there, O faithless daughter?
For the LORD has created a new thing in the earth–
A woman will encompass a man.” Jeremiah 31:20-22
“Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign: Behold, a virgin will be with child and bear a son, and she will call His name Immanuel.” Isaiah 7: 14
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