Friday, March 22, 2013 -- Waste Not, Want Not (2)

As we walk through the seasons of our life, we find ourselves wanting more out of life – more joy and peace, more meaning and satisfaction, more gentleness, more forgiveness and caring.  The only supply to these needs is the cross of Jesus.  Jesus provided healing and forgiveness for us by obeying the will of God even though it was hard.  Jesus would have preferred another way but over and over again during His life on earth, and specifically the night before He died, Jesus turned His will and His life over to the care of His Father.  His prayer of commitment just before he went to the cross 2000 years ago was, “Not my will but Your’s be done.”  His actions all the way through suffering and death on the cross the next day confirmed that surrender of His will to God’s.

Our experience of love and satisfaction in life is tied directly to this way of living.  Jesus described that way for us in these words: ““If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.  (Luke 9:23-24 NLT). 

When times are tough, we know that as surely as God raised Jesus from the dead, so He will take us through our hard times provided we keep on surrendering to His way no matter how difficult our circumstances may be.  This is the gift of Jesus’ example to us from the cross.  This is how Jesus shares His experience, strength, and hope with us.  Let’s not waste it.

Many of us have whole sets of things that we are willing to put on Jesus, but there are other things that we’d rather hang on to.  Some of these things look troublesome and others look attractive.  No matter what they are, if we hang onto anything that is outside of God’s will for us, it will rob our lives and our relationships of the joy and beauty that God intended.  Jesus laid everything down so the full plan of God could come alive for you and me.  Will we follow Jesus and willingly lay down anything in our lives that God asks of us?  If we are willing to do so we can experience the satisfying richness of life with Him.  Jesus promised us that life with God is full and meaningful.  We have another chance today to allow the cross of Jesus to give us a new start.  Are we willing to surrender to Him the clutter we’ve allowed into our lives in recent times?  Let’s not waste this opportunity.

Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. As slaves of Christ, do the will of God with all your heart. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.(John 4:34, Ephesians 6:6, Romans 12:2 NLT)

As Jesus did, God invites us to find our steadiness in His love.  God encourages us to keep our commitment to doing what is right – loving God and loving our neighbour as we love ourselves.   All the rest is His concern and His business.  We can’t earn God’s love.  We can’t deal with the things that have gone wrong in life. We can’t force things to go in the way we think is right.  The cross and resurrection of Jesus Christ stand as unquestionable evidence that God loves us and desires to make a good way for us through anything.   We waste God’s mercy and generosity if we choose to walk in the dark, the negative, or the self-centered.  God has made a way for us to walk in His light with peace and joy and settledness in our hearts. As we approach Easter, let’s practice the advice found in the little slogan, “Waste not, want not.”