“Lift up your heads, you gates, and be lifted up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is the King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, The Lord mighty in battle.
Lift up your heads, you gates, and lift them up, you ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in! Who is this King of glory? The Lord of armies, He is the King of glory.” (Psalm 24:7-10 NASB)
We have entered what we call the holiday season, a time that often causes us to experience just the opposite of the intended reason! Today, in fact is Thanksgiving, and we should indeed be grateful as opposed to just wanting our stomach’s made greatly full. We should be counting our many blessings and not focusing on things we think we are missing, for that thinking is just a lack of trusting, because God takes care of all of our needing.
Already stores have stocked for the Christmas season, influencing is to remember that we should be celebrating God’s ultimate gift, Jesus, as the real celebration reason. We get messed up by the pressures of personal gift presenting and the influence of skillful marketing.
Instead of joy, we often sink to a place of sadness, and if not careful, we resort to adventures into spaces of badness and madness, thinking that will bring us life and gladness. We think, at times, that our holiday mischief will make our solidified anxiety disband, but I guess you should know, there is no comparable remedy like holding on to God’s unchanging hand.
Instead of external smiles that are sincere, our faces drop to grimaces that silently say, “I’m really hiding a tear,” existing in fear, and not sure I can face tomorrow’s frontier! Instead of optimism and hope, we at times drown in pessimism, wondering if we come to the end of our rope. Is that what should be happening? The answer some falsely arrive at is simply, “Nope!”
Existing in the land of the living but for some persons, a joyful state is quite deceiving! Depressed, distraught, and so down that some think, “There can be no reviving.”
A return to the good old days shows no sign of life. Communities, cities, and countries seem to be dying, dividing, and even decaying in conflict and strife. And get this my friend, churches seem to be helplessly surrendering to a generation of apathy and closing the door! Acting like we don’t need to be present in the assembly of the saints, no, not anymore!
But church folks don’t give up, for there is One, One in whom we are believing; One that can make us come to a posture of ample, abundant, and awesome living! So you ask, “What can make us come to life!” You have already read the answer in the verses above. But just for more assurance, I will close with some inspiring scriptures that I love. Be blessed!
“The hand of the Lord was upon me, and He brought me out by the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; and it was full of bones. He had me pass among them all around, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley; and behold, they were very dry. Then He said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “Lord God, You Yourself know.” Again, He said to me, “Prophesy over these bones and say to them, ‘You dry bones, hear the word of the Lord.’ This is what the Lord God says to these bones: ‘Behold, I am going to make breath enter you so that you may come to life. And I will attach tendons to you, make flesh grow back on you, cover you with skin, and put breath in you so that you may come to life; and you will know that I am the Lord.’” So I prophesied as I was commanded; and as I prophesied, there was a loud noise, and behold, a rattling; and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, tendons were on them, and flesh grew and skin covered them; but there was no breath in them. Then He said to me, “Prophesy to the breath, prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, ‘The Lord God says this: “Come from the four winds, breath, and breathe on these slain, so that they come to life.”’” So I prophesied as He commanded me, and the breath entered them, and they came to life and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army.” (Ezekiel 37:1-10 NASB)
Committed to the climb,
Mark L. King