 I look forward to the start of a new year for several reasons. One is the feeling of new beginnings. I enjoy looking at a blank planner filled with empty pages that are ready to be scheduled and activities to attend. Second, I relish the opportunity to continue my journey of faith. By nature I am a planner, I like to think about what book of the Bible I want to study and usually I come up with a schedule for the coming year and this one is no different. I am, however, making a small alteration to my usual methods regarding my quiet time this year and that is increasing my exposure to the Word. Typically, I tackle one book at a time, a few verses at a time but this year I want to add a few extras. I will be listening to the entire Bible this year, following a plan through the Dwell app. I am also going to read several chapters each day though I may not read the entire Bible in a year. I want the freedom to just read through the Bible without feeling the pressure to read so much at a time to stay on schedule. My desire is to just soak up the Word of God and perhaps keep notes as I make my way through these precious passages. This plan, what I call “Operation Saturation”, stems from a thought that I have been contemplating over the last few months: my need to be saturated with God’s word.
What does it mean to be saturated? The word “Saturated” means to be completely filled with something so that no more can be added. It comes from a Latin word meaning “to fill, sate, drench”. Think about the impact that definition could have on the life of a believer. When the ground is saturated with water after a downpour it spills out liquid when you walk on it. It is so full of water that it oozes with the slightest touch. Are we so full of the scripture that when someone touches us or presses us, the Bible comes out? That thought forces me to stop and self-examine myself including my thoughts, actions, and habits. If my first response is to snap at someone when they say something mean or unkind to me then I am not displaying love or long suffering. If I grow impatient with the extremely slow cashier and find myself growing more irritable with each passing moment, I am not exercising patience. If, however, my heart is saturated, filled with the Word of God, I will be more equipped to respond correctly. Equipped to Live for Christ To saturate yourself with the Word of God means you are equipping yourself for life’s battles. Every day we will be faced with choices. The choice to be kind to a boss who yells at us even though it was not our fault. The choice to exercise a little more patience with our children as they hurry to keep up. The choice to forgive when someone treats us rudely. When we are filled with the Spirit, our responses will reflect the Spirit, but if we are filled with our own flesh instead our responses will reveal it. Paul told the Ephesians in chapter 5 verse 18 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be ye filled with the Spirit”. To be filled completely with something so that no more can be added. If we are filled with the Spirit we leave no room for the flesh. This is how we put on the armor of God and defeat both our foe and our flesh. Later on in chapter six of Ephesians, Paul tells us why we need this heavenly armor: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” Ready to do Battle I find it interesting that the Word of God is the sword of the Spirit. A sword is a versatile and valuable weapon. It stays nicely by your side but can be ready for defense in a flash. In order for this weapon to be useful, it is important to be familiar with it which requires hours of training. Ask any actor, who has had to portray an expert swordsman on screen, how many hours of work they put into learning to wield a blade. As children of the Most High God, we have for who will spare no effort in his attacks against us. He will use every weapon at his disposal to try and defeat us. The only way to withstand his fierce volley of blows is to suit up in the armor Paul lays out for us in Ephesians six. I do want to point out again, the importance of the sword. Much of the armor Paul describes is for defense, for the protection of the wearer, but the sword is meant for both defense and offense. When Satan tempted Jesus in Matthew chapter four, Jesus used scripture to defeat every argument and attack. Our Savior was able to wield the Word correctly because He was familiar with it. Yes, I know that He also wrote every word but He has provided a way for each of us to be just as familiar with it. God has preserved His written Word for every generation to know it and with the help of technology, we have never before had such easy access to it. Sadly, though we have so many ways to read and even listen to the Word of God, we are among the most spiritually illiterate in history. This diagnosis does not have to be a death sentence, we can cure ourselves by becoming a student of the Word. Become a Saturated Student of the Word In 2 Timothy 2 verse 15, Paul told his son in the faith, “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.” We can be as familiar with the scriptures as we want to be, but the motivation and effort depend completely on us. This choice requires commitment and discipline. Our foe and our flesh will fight us every step of the way but we must endure as good soldiers. We must keep the faith and run the race. I promise that the work will be worth it all when we see Christ, the One who gave His life for us. This is my heart's desire for the coming years, to continue to be a diligent student of the word and the best way to learn the material is to saturate myself with it. I want to be ready to give any man an answer for the hope that is within me (1 Peter 3:15). I want to be so full of the Word of God that there is no room for anything else. This is how I can reflect the image of my Savior in my actions, reactions, and interactions. May this be the year that we choose to become students of the Word. Who else will join me on this heavenly mission and be a part of Operation Saturation.  Hands down, Christmas is my favorite holiday. I love the sparkling lights, the festive decorations and the delicious food and drinks, especially peppermint mochas and peppermint bark(yes, I have a thing for peppermint!). Observing the lights on the Christmas tree twinkling at night while wrapped in a fuzzy blanket and enjoying a warm beverage is the epitome of a perfect holiday evening.
As a believer, however, Christmas carries a deeper, truer meaning than what is advertised as the meaning of Christmas. It is a special time of celebration because of Christ's birth. The Savior, who was long foretold, has come. That is why we sing joy to the world because the Lord has come bringing good tidings to all. The redemption of man was here. What had been lost in the garden was about to be restored, but what if God would have refused to send His Son? What if sin's curse would not have been broken and no forgiveness offered? We would be lost without hope, and the fear of death would suffocate our soul. But it is the nature of God to forgive all who repent and ask for forgiveness. To those who ask, they will never walk away denied but rather cleansed white as snow no matter how red the stain of their sins. What comfort and really, joy, this brings to those who have experienced it. Because our God forgives He expects His children to do the same when others have wronged them no matter how great the offense. One of the classic animated films of Christmas is Dr. Seuss' “How the Grinch Stole Christmas”. I would like to play off of that title by proposing how the grudge almost stole Christmas. A grudge is defined as "a persistent feeling of ill will or resentment, resulting from a past insult or injury". Due to our sin nature, we are doomed to eventually say or do something that will hurt someone else. Whether intentional or not, the wound caused by our behavior can go deep and linger long after the incident has passed. Unfortunately, the enemy of our soul often takes advantage of these circumstances by whispering how wrong we have been by this person. His persistent whispers can be the soil where a grudge begins to sprout. Now we have a choice. We can nurture the grudge by nurturing and watering it, consistently replaying the scene over and over again. This choice does come with a cost that should be considered and weighed before opting to move forward with it. This cost is threefold. A Grudge is Demanding First, a grudge is demanding. For a grudge to remain in good condition, it requires that you think about it on a regular basis. You must play the offense over and over again in your mind in order to keep the emotions fresh. It means that we are busy running from any relationships affected by this grudge inducing incident. Every time you see this person you either walk away from them or bring up the issue again. A grudge demands to be first in your thoughts and often the topic of conversation. It rarely lets you focus on anything else but causes you to waste your valuable resources of time on things that have no eternal worth. You will be unable to invest in the lives of others because your grudge demands to be front and center. This is a high cost of holding a grudge because it is people we have been called to love and serve, even the difficult ones. My friend, can I encourage you to let that demanding grudge go so you have time to fulfill God’s purpose for your life? A Grudge is Draining Second, a grudge is draining. There is a lot of work required to maintain a grudge. It will be draining on the soul as it is heavy by the constant reminder of the hurt inflicted by a person whether intentional or not. There is a constant sorrow weighing us down, robbing us of peace, joy, and love. A soul gripped by a grudge will never enjoy the rest promised by the Savior in Matthew 11:28-30 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Instead, they remain weary and drained of energy to serve their Master. Their days are consumed by the negative effects of a grudge including bitterness, anger, and resentment. This life sounds exhausting, not at all like the abundant life God desires for His children. Sadly, that is the cost of a grudge. It refuses to let you enjoy peace or experience the joy of restoration. How much lighter would your soul be if you let go of the grudge? Please, don’t let one wrong fester inside of you and drain you of the life God desired for you. A Grudge is Destructive Last, a grudge is destructive. When we refuse to let go of an offense someone has committed against us we remain in the past. Truly, we can never move beyond that point in time but remain in the shadow of yesterday instead of the sunshine of today. We can never do what God created us to do because we are held captive in the past. The joy of today is the price of a grudge. Refusing to relinquish a grudge is also destructive to our spiritual growth. As long as we hold tight to the offense we can never cultivate the fruit of the Spirit. It is impossible to love others while clutching a grudge. We will never know peace as long as a grudge resides within us. We will never experience joy because a grudge will not tolerate it. While the path offered to us by the grudge looks satisfying at first and initially gives our soul a feeling of justification, the destination is destruction. A grudge is powerful enough to destroy our relationships, growth in the Lord, and our life’s purpose. Don’t let the enemy of our soul con you into taking the path offered by a grudge. There is another option. The Antidote to a Grudge Our other option when wronged by someone is to give it to God and forgive the offender. Forgiveness is the only antidote to a soul sucking grudge. The path to forgiveness may not be appealing at first because it goes contrary to our flesh. We have been wounded by someone’s actions or words and we want justice. We desire an apology or may seek reconciliation but sometimes that may never come. Letting go of a grudge does not mean you are admitting the incident never occurred or merely erase it. The hurt was real but choosing to forgive means you refuse to let it hold you back. Forgiveness invites us to take the first step down its path by letting go of what happened. When you do, you are walking the same path as your loving Savior. He who while enduring the agony of the cross cried Father forgive them for they know not what they do. Forgiving the one who hurt you and loving them no matter what is among the greatest acts of love we can do. We who have hurt the heart of our Savior so often through our sinful behavior and experienced His forgiveness can do no less than do the same. Remember, the only way to look like Jesus is to behave like Him. When we forgive those who have wronged us, we will reflect the beautiful, loving, heart of God. Don’t let a grudge steal your Christmas or any other season of your life. Your life is too short to be wasted on something like a grudge. Choose the same path as Christ and forgive. When you do, you will experience freedom from the burden of a grudge.  Complaining is a common trait among humans. We complain about the weather, traffic, and long lines. It seems that if you stand around long enough you are bound to overhear someone muttering a complaint no matter where you go. While we know it is not what we should do, we fall so easily into the trap of complaining about most things. Sadly, the children of God are not immune to this, in fact, Israel spent much of their forty years grumbling in the wilderness. Tragically, their complaints were not limited to a lack of goods but also directed toward God Himself.
Contradicting the Message of the Gospel As believers though, have you ever considered the message our complaints convey about our belief in God? To complain is to contradict the very character of God. In truth, every time a complaint leaves our lips it contradicts the message of the Gospel. As children of the Most High God, we declare that our God loves us, so much so that He sent His only-begotten Son into the world to die for our sins. He is a loving, generous, and good God, but our words of complaint don’t back it up. When we say that we don’t have enough, what we are really saying is that God is not a good provider. When we complain about our circumstances, such an extended season of singleness, we are saying that God is not on time or does not know what He is doing. When we complain about feeling abandoned or ignored, we are telling others that God does not love us. If we were to dig a little deeper, however, we would learn the real source of the problem, our hearts. A complaint is merely the verbalization of our thoughts, which are beliefs of our heart at the moment. A Key Battleground Our heart is a key battleground for what we believe to be true and the words that pour from our mouth reveal who won, our flesh or the Spirit. We will face this battle every day and must be vigilant in our guard against the enemy’s weapons. He is relentless in his attack and will use every opportunity to distort the truth of our circumstances and our current conditions to cause us to yield. Our thoughts will be a key piece of ground to fight for in these battles. What we allow to linger in our hearts and minds can impact our perspective. If we let the thought that God has denied us something, we can believe that He is not good. Just as the serpent declared to Eve in the Garden, attempting to make her doubt the goodness of God because she could not eat this tree’s fruit. When we experience an extended season of sorrow or suffering, we can be vulnerable to the belief that God does not even care about us or is even displeased with us. We can think that He is punishing us. Naomi uttered false accusations about God during such a season of loss. She was convinced that God was against her and openly declared her complaints before the people of Bethlehem’s tiny village. Again, the Israelites repeated a similar pattern during their four decades of travel. They often brought their complaints about God to Moses. They could be counted on to find something to complain about, whether that was a lack of water, meat, or even vegetables. Whenever things became a little difficult, they were quick to forget all that God had done for them and loudly complain. The Necessity of the Quiet Place Unfortunately, we can all fall into a similar verbal pitfall when our hearts are worn down by suffering and sorrow. Again, to complain about God is to contradict the very character of God. Every human complaint about God is founded on either a lack of knowledge of God or a lack of trust in God. This is why our quiet time with God matters, because it is the place we continue to learn about who He is and where He reminds us of His person. Every page in scripture is an opportunity to build our faith, knowledge, and trust in God. The greater our faith, the harder it will be to complain because we will remember His promises in the difficult, dark, and discouraging days. The more time we spend in God’s Word, the stronger our armor will become, which enables us to withstand the blows of our adversary. When he whispers to our souls that we are being denied something, the Spirit will bring a promise that “the Lord God is a sun and shield: The Lord will give grace and glory: No good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly.” (Psalm 84:11). When the enemy of our souls tries to tell us that if God loved us He would not have let this terrible thing happen, the Spirit will gently remind us that He loves us “with an everlasting love” (Jeremiah 31:3) and His “grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness.” (2 Corinthians 12:9) plus He also tells us that “all things (including the trials and sufferings) work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28). We must saturate our souls with the truth of God’s Word, or we will be vulnerable to Satan’s attack and prone to complain more. God’s truth is the only way we can shift our focus from the earthly to the eternal. How to Dissolve our Complaints If you have lived for any length of time, you will know that life does not always go according to plan or our timeline. Suffering, loss, pain, disappointments, and hardships will inevitably make their way to us. So what do we do when a complaint threatens to slip out, stemming from these difficult seasons, moments of silence, or times of trials? We must bring them to God. When we have a complaint against someone, it is better to lodge it directly with the person. To complain to everyone else only breeds more problems. In fact, it can stir others to complain or create doubt and stir up discord. There is also no resolution. Nothing can be resolved until the complaint is made to the person we are complaining about. When we find ourselves complaining, like the Israelites, against God specifically, we must bring it before Him. Over and over again, Moses and the Psalmist laid their complaints before the Lord. In Psalm 13, verse one we read: “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever?”. There is an important shift, however, in verse five: “But I have trusted in your loving devotion; my heart will rejoice in your salvation.” This is how they resolved it, by speaking to God and dwelling on His truth, both in His character and His truth. If a complaint is left inside, it begins to fester. This is why it is so important to bring it to God, pouring it all out before Him, the One who knows all our thoughts already. When we take this step of vulnerability, we will find the help our soul needs. The only way to dissolve a complaint is to deal with it according to the truth, comparing our complaint to what is real. Often we will discover that it is grounded on a false perception or belief. May we be a people defined by gratitude. Someone once said that, "gratitude isn't only a celebration when good things happen; Gratitude's a declaration that God is good no matter what happens.". Every time we choose to praise God, even in the hardest of circumstances, we loudly declare to both our enemy and a watching world that our God is great, good, and gracious. That is when our light will brightly shine! |
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