THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK
The emphasis in the Christ-following life is always on the work of God. It is God’s mission that is important. It is God’s Reign that determines the values and priorities of our lives. It is God’s grace that enables us to be a part of what God is doing. It is God’s love that draws into the way of Jesus, and it is God’s life that flows into and through us. But this does not mean that we have no role to play. When we speak of “letting go and letting God” we too often think of sitting back and waiting for God to make things happen. Our only task, then, is to hold on to certain ideas that we believe are the key to experiencing God’s presence and power. The problem with a passive faith like this is that it inevitably leads us into some degree of hypocrisy. While we may say and think certain things, the focus of action is all on God, and so we may find that our lives begin to drift subtly from the values that we claim to believe.
This is why integrity is such an important value in God’s Reign. It is only when our thoughts, attitudes, feelings, values, priorities, words and behaviour all align that our lives truly reflect God’s mission. And it is only when we live with integrity that we can really experience the fullness of God’s life, because then we’re not just passive observers, but active participants in what God is doing. When our faith embraces every part of our lives, including our actions, it becomes vibrant, creative and life-giving to all around us.
This week we seek to bring our ideas, attitudes, words and actions into one aligned whole.
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