Fullness. An interesting word. When do you use it? When do you think about it? Not a word we use too frequently in our daily conversations, is it? Ephesians 3:19 is part of a prayer that Paul prays for the believers at Ephesus. May you experience the love of Christ, thought it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Wow, the fullness of life and power that comes from God. That is almost too much comprehend.
Some days I am just happy that I have some of the love of God and power in my life. Just enough to make it through my day with enough for me to deal with me. But what would it look like if I walked through my day filled with His life and power? I would have enough grace to be patient at the grocery store, or with my grandchildren’s attitudes, I would have enough to share with my struggling friend to really hear her and her situation. Learning to walk in that fullness is a process. Our Pastor is teaching a series called “Rooted”, being grounded in the Word of God is part of our ability to access this fullness Paul is talking about.
One of the assignments of our Uninvited Bible Study this week, was to re-write Ephesians 1:4-5, exchanging every “us” to “me” and to read it aloud several times a day. As I worked on this exercise the truth just got deeper and deeper. Even before he made the world, God loved ME and chose Me in Christ to be holy and without fault in His eyes. God decided in advanced to adopt ME into His own by bringing ME to himself through Jesus Christ. This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:4-5 I found myself reading it differently each time, emphasizing different aspects of these powerful lifechanging words. Because I read it personally, intentionally and with faith it touched deep places in my soul that only God knew I needed. I would encourage you to try it for yourself. This concept of personalizing scripture is a common teaching tool that I urge you to try for yourself. Especially if you are fighting against pessimism or discouragement. God’s Word is full of Hope and it is His desire to impart this Hope into every one of our hopeless areas. It takes a bit of time, but it is so worth the effort. Join me in the journey to walking in His fullness–we have it, it is just a matter of learning to access it and then apply it to our daily lives.
Father teach me to walk in your fullness of life and power. I’m ready to learn.
Faith Encounters 