Do you feel as if you spend most of your time simply keeping up with the demands of life, or are you experiencing freedom and fullness? Jesus came to set us free (Luke 4:18-21) and to give us a full and abundant life (John 10:10). Knowing this, why is it so many of us feel stressed out, chained to our jobs, and like we are drowning under the weight of everything we must get done?
I do believe we can live in the peace of Jesus even in our social media obsessed and frenetic world. But we won’t ever experience the life God intended for us to live as long as our focus is on anything or anyone other than Him.
Living for Jesus is counter-cultural. Everything we do will go against the grain of societal norms, and that can be very difficult. It’s tiring and wears you out. I’ve discovered two things about that. First, getting alone with Christ, just you, Him, and a Bible is therapeutic beyond words. Nothing is so refreshing as just being in His presence. The second thing I’ve learned is I only get tired swimming against the stream when I begin looking at my circumstances instead of the mission before me. As long as I remember who Jesus is and what He did for me, I don’t get so weary. Nothing I do will ever compare to what He did for me. He did the hardest work. My job is far easier, regardless of what I might face.
I’ve written before about the importance of our focus. It’s so important. When our eyes are on Jesus, anything is possible. Nothing is too difficult. When we begin focusing on ourselves and our circumstances, we lose confidence, hope, and even faith. Satan’s number one strategy is distraction. He knows anything he can put before our eyes to block a full view of Jesus will have a remarkable and devastating effect on us. All the distractions, the vast majority of the “good things” in life are set up to destroy us. Peter warns us the devil is always seeking to harm us (1 Peter 5:8). As we seek comfort, security, and pleasure, Satan knows all too well it’s leading to our destruction. We know it too, but we don’t like to think about it.
You can claim Jesus as your Lord and continue living like the culture around you, but it will all be a lie. We are deceiving ourselves if we think we can get away with confessing Jesus with our mouths and denying Him with our lives. While we are in this life, it may even appear we’re getting away with it. But it won’t last. We will have to answer to Christ for what we did with our commitment to Him (Matthew 25:31-46). If we want Him to be the Lord of our life, then why are we so reluctant to surrender to Him? Where’s the draw in that? I am convinced eternal life is freely provided through the grace and blood of Jesus, but we ignore His commands at our peril. If you want a life that is truly free and truly fulfilled, Jesus is the only way. Everything else is a distraction and a lie. Don’t be fooled. Surrender to the glorious love of Jesus today.