As we journey deeper into the truths of God’s Word, we begin to see our Heavenly Father’s order for the universe in amazing ways. He tells us in 1Corinthians 14:33 that He is not the author of disorder and chaos; He is a God of order and peace, and these attributes are found throughout His creation. The bounty of His blessings is not excluded from His order. If we look at our lives and the lives of others, we will see that there’s a balance that exists. In most cases, blessings do not show up instantly just because we have a fleeting thought about them. There are requirements and conditions that must be met in order to move from one level of blessings to the next. Our faith must increase, we must pray fervently and earnestly, and we must allow God to transform us into the person He has purposed us to be.
We don’t always get all the blessings we pray for. Although this is a reality that every individual must accept, many have a hard time with it. We look to our left, or our right, and we see the ease with which some individuals seem to have everything they desire. This makes us think that life is so unfair, and we feel cheated and picked on. It’s one of the hazards of not keeping our eyes firmly planted on God, and what He is doing in our lives. We have a purpose in His Will and plan for the entire universe, and this requires that we lean on His perfection and wisdom, and not on our own.
God’s Word tells us in Romans 8:5(NLT), “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.” How we think is the measure of who we are. In this verse, our Heavenly Father is pointing out this distinction. Those that are fully committed to God are always thinking about what pleases Him. They don’t want to participate in things that don’t please Him because they understand that being a Christian means always trusting that our Heavenly Father knows what is best for us. It means that we have given our whole lives to Him, and that we will change from letting our minds and hearts be dominated by a sinful nature. Instead, we will let our thoughts, actions, and attitudes be consumed with the goodness of God.
These are the kinds of thoughts, actions, and attitudes that please the Spirit. Our conversations should be seasoned with words that are thoughtful, loving, and kind, but many of us are being pulled away from this. We are adopting a manner and way of speaking that is worldly, and we’re not thinking about the impact this is having on our faith. For some of us, it’s stunting our spiritual growth and causing us to miss greater blessings.
Romans 8:29(NLT) tells us, “For God knew his people in advance, and he chose them to become like his Son, so that his Son would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters.” Our Heavenly Father is Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. If we had the capacity to look back five million years, God would be there. If we could look ten million years ahead, He will be there as well—still as brilliant, loving, all-powerful, and all-knowing as He ever was. He will never miss a beat. He chose us to be the brothers and sisters of Christ and placed His Spirit in us to help us become more like our powerful Lord and Savior with each passing moment. This is God’s plan for us, and the closer we align ourselves with His plan, the higher we will go in His blessings of abundance and spiritual growth.
Proverbs 16:4(NLT) says, “The LORD has made everything for his own purposes, even the wicked for a day of disaster.” As followers of Christ, we are not the wicked, and we should not act like them in any way. God tells us in Jeremiah 29:11that His plan is to give us a future full of hope. We were made for His good purpose and living by His Will is the way to achieve it. This is the greatest joy and pleasure achievable in this life. Our lives are not our own. They belong to God, and when we begin to think, act, and behave in a way that expresses our gratitude and love for Him, things in our lives will always change for the better. We are works in progress, and as long as we live on this earth, we will always be required to put on more of the example of Christ so that we can be blessed abundantly and go higher in him.■
Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
“Growing Higher in Blessings and Spiritual Growth”, written by Fran Mack. Edits by Kim Times and K. Stephens for Sundie Morning Sistas ©2024. All rights reserved. All done to the glory of God through Jesus Christ, our Lord! SMS is dedicated to inspiring and encouraging Christian Women through the Word of God.