It’s Day 3 of making 2019 the year of MORE and wow, God’s Word keeps showing us MORE every day!
Check out the NKJV and the Amplified Classic side by side and breathe in the depth of what God’s Word is saying to us….
Ephesians 5:14-17 (NKJV)“Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.” See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.” Ephesians 5:14-17 |
Ephesians 5:14-17 (Amp. Classic)14 Therefore He says, Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall shine (make day dawn) upon you and give you light. 15 Look carefully then how you walk! Live purposefully and worthily and accurately, not as the unwise and witless, but as wise (sensible, intelligent people), 16 Making the very most of the time [buying up each opportunity], because the days are evil. |
Basically it’s telling us to, “WAKE UP PEOPLE!”
You know when you wake up from a deep sleep and you feel like you’re in fog for the rest of the day. It’s easy to live in a spiritual fog and not really get a grip of what is going on around you. God is calling us out of the fog, to awake from our spiritual slumber, and live our lives with our eyes wide open, redeeming the time because the days are evil.
We only get one shot at this thing called life. We only get one chance to make an eternal difference in the lives of others.
Some of us are surprised by the evil we see going on in the world, but when we live with our eyes wide open, we’re reminded that God told us it would be like this. In fact, He said this world would wax worse.
So, let’s do a little Bible study technique that will helps us make a list of what God’s Word is saying to us. When we examine today’s passage, the MORE we find in God’s Word tells us to:
- Wake up
- Arise from the dead
- Christ will give us light
- Walk circumspectly (Live purposefully and worthily and accurately)
- Redeem the time
- Don’t be unwise but be wise
- Understand what the will of the Lord is
As you review your devotion for the day, please be sure to answer the questions provided on the 10 Day Devotional to Make 2019 the Year of MORE. (Click the link if you haven’t downloaded it yet.)
But rather than answer those questions here, I’d like to turn our attention to the list of things God is calling us to do in Ephesians 5:14-17 and pose them to you (and myself) as a question.
Take a few minutes and ask yourself the following questions:
- Am I really awake as to what is going on in my own life? In my neighborhood? In my city? In my nation? In this world?
- Have I risen from the dead? Have I been born again and allowing Jesus to live His life through me?
- Am I walking in the light that Christ has given me or am I allowing the darkness of this world to creep into my life?
- Am I living with my eyes wide open, paying attention, and living purposefully and worthily and accurately?
- Am I redeeming the timing? Making the most of every minute God gifts me with on this planet? Or am I wasting time choosing the good instead of the best?
- Am I being wise with my time or unwise? Am I being wise with my opportunities or unwise? Am I being wise with the gifts and callings God has given me or am I letting them slip through my fingers, disregarding them, or allowing my fears and inadequacies to keep me from using them and fulfilling them?
- Do I truly understand what the will of the Lord is in my life? In my days? In my minutes? Am I living for His ultimate will for my life to glorify Him in everything I do?
I took a good hard look at my own life as I contemplated those questions and realized I have SO much MORE to do and to STOP doing in order to experience MORE in 2019. Sometimes, I feel like the Lord is just saying, WAKE UP Stephanie! How about you?
How about you? What did you realize as you read through those questions?
