In need of renewal?
I know how it feels to want renewal. For me, it comes and goes. One day I’m refreshed, alive, and purposeful. I’m on track with my to-do list and making progress. Whether I complete what I’ve started or not, I feel good about my progress and the future.
That’s all well and good. It’s a good thing to feel satisfied as I retire for the evening. I’m sure you’ve experienced it. You might even say to yourself as you get ready for bed, “I’m tired, but it’s a good tired.”
And, if we’re talking about longer-term accomplishments, you might walk around your property and say, “This feels good. I’ve worked hard, done the best I could, and provided for my family.” You don’t have to be rich and famous. Hey, you don’t even have to be pretty well off and kind of well known. When you work hard and finish things, you can feel good about that.
Those types of feelings answer a question like, ‘Are you where you want to be in life?’
But I have another question. ‘Are you where you want to be with your life?’
For me, that’s a different question. It’s subtle, but different. Being where you want to be in life points more toward accomplishments in areas like work, finances, and maybe health. Being where you want to be with your life is a whole different matter. Another way to put it is, ‘Are you satisfied with who you are?’
I hope this question resonates with you.
This week’s photo may represent how you feel. Run-down, rusty, beat up, and badly in need of renewal. You want to be spiritually energetic. You want to wake in the morning, eager to serve the Lord with vigor. I mean, look around you, the world has needs.
As believers, we are called to serve God and others—daily.
However, you wonder if the next trial will be the end of what you have to offer. The light fixture meant to highlight Jesus for those around you is skewed. If you managed to straighten it, what would it reveal? Would someone watching you or depending on you see a weather-beaten hunk of metal?
The Apostle Paul had every reason to be dejected during his ministry. He may have felt much like that old sign. How would he look to others after experiencing being beaten with rods, stoned, shipwrecked, in hunger and thirst, endangered, and imprisoned?
On the outside, likely worn. On the inside, renewed. Listen to Paul share.
“Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16, NASB)
This world and our bodies are in a state of decay. Yet, our spirits are being renewed day by day. We are actively deteriorating. Yet, God is renewing us. Notice Paul doesn’t say outwardly we decay and inwardly we renew. We are being acted upon by someone else in our renewal—God.
We have great hope that even though we struggle with all the things this life throws at us, often slowing us to a crawl, our source of spiritual renewal lies in the eternal strength of the one true God.
How can we be renewed? Drink from God’s Word. Listen for His voice. Learn from Him. Obey and trust Him.
What do you do to experience God’s renewal?
