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From Salty to Sanctified
A fine Christian woman once told me I’d know whether my heart was clean by what came out of me when I was hit by surprise. If that cup was full of pure, clean water, then ‘salt water’ wouldn’t spill out when it was jostled.
So, I was pretty excited to realize, after stubbing my toe badly and hopping around on one foot for a while, that I hadn’t cut loose with a ‘blue streak’ of, shall we say, ‘French’! I thought I’d arrived.
At that time, we were among Christians who taught that sanctification – confirmed, Holy-Spirit-filled-holiness – was a second blessing you got after the initial born-again experience. They all had it – could remember the dates even – and I clearly had not asked rightly, or didn’t want it badly enough, or was refusing to receive it. Whatever the cause, it was generally understood that I was definitely not holy yet, and the day couldn’t come too soon for the poor ladies in Sunday School and missions committee meetings, who had to put up with me.
I ran in with my pure, clean toe story, and we all rejoiced! But, it was not to be. Within days, I had to admit that sanctification had once again eluded me. I simply begged the Holy Spirit to get it over with and get me holy, once and for all! Why He saw fit to delay, I could not explain to any of the ‘saints’ around me.
Finally, a merciful God sent a Nazarene pastor for a revival meeting who, when consulted privately about my dilemma, admitted that most pastors actually realized, now, that sanctification is a loooooong process and not the work of a moment. Sigh….relief, but the reality that this was going to be a long, uphill climb.
Still, I think of her advice whenever a jostling spills some salt water, and ask God to fill my cup, once again, with pure, clean living water. My life is full of all the proof I need that the Holy Spirit has come, has blessed, is close, prays for me when I don’t know what to pray, and is working in me constantly ‘to will and to do’ according to God’s own purposes.
The fact that I am not now a fully perfect (heck, sometimes I’m not even ‘fully functioning’!) person does not negate this reality, or cause me alarm. There is no condemnation in Christ Jesus!
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