“15 but in your hearts regard Christ the Lord as holy, ready at any time to give a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you. 16 Yet do this with gentleness and reverence, keeping a clear conscience, so that when you are accused, those who disparage your good conduct in Christ will be put to shame.” 1 Peter 3:15-16
At our annual celebration, I shared with the church what God has been doing with me over the past year or two. This has led me to studying the scriptures in a different, more meaningful way. It has also caused me to look how I pray and how I live out my life in Christ.
So, when it came time to set the theme and verse for the year, I was at a loss. How do I describe what I am going through succinctly and memorably? How do I set the goal for us this year when I have trouble articulating it myself?
Then I began to look for examples of what I am desiring. I began to look at lives of great saints of the past who had such an intimacy with Christ that made me long for deeper, more meaningful time with Christ. And as I began to investigate it more, there were some things they did and went through which gave me pause.
I paused because a glaring question came into focus, are you willing to pay the cost for it? To go after the intimacy I long for, I would need to give up some things, which are in themselves not bad, just in the way. I would need to give up some time, goals, and desires in order to go after that which I wanted more.
And then, it happened. That’s the theme for the year. MORE. We want more of God. We want more of His blessings. We want more of His mercy and grace. We want more of His love. We want more of His presence. We want more. But are you ready to pay the cost to get more?
Following Him,
Jeff