While walking on the beach, the sandpipers provided quite the entertainment. Along the shoreline, they probed for food with their slender bills, darting away each time the water rushed onto the shore.
This lively scene brought to mind a couple of important reflections:
Fleeing from Sin
Imagine that little bird is you, and the rushing water symbolizes a tempting situation. You have a choice: you can either run as fast as those little legs can carry you away, or you can be like one bird I observed, standing still and allowing the water (or sin) to wash over you.
Is there a sin in your life that you need to flee from? We can all agree that temptation surrounds us each day. I encourage you to pause, reflect, and hand your struggles over to God. Pray for the self-control to escape sin, and watch as the Spirit cultivates remarkable qualities in your life. If you find yourself standing still, remember that God is a God of grace, forgiveness, and love—ready to transform your life into something beautiful.
Avoiding Our Walk with Christ
Now, still envision yourself as the bird, but this time the rushing water represents a divine appointment or an opportunity to share. Perhaps you’re cruising along in your walk with Christ, feeling stagnant in your growth, or aware that you’re strong in faith yet hesitant to act on what God is whispering to you. You may see godly opportunities coming your way, but fear compels you to retreat to your comfort zone.
I can relate. I’ve been in that position and am working through it now. When I finally released my feelings of unworthiness and stepped out in faith, I discovered that God blesses those who take that leap. He can and will enrich your life beyond measure. I encourage you to take a deep breath, surrender to The One Who knows best, and trust His plan. After all, if He calls you to it, He will walk you through it.
A statement my pastor shared resonates with both scenarios: “You can choose your choices, but not your consequences.” Reflect on that. I pray you choose God’s path over your own, for the outcomes of trusting and following Jesus are infinitely better—even eternally so. Run to Jesus.
Keep your “God Goggles” on and learn spiritual lessons from the nature and scenes around you.
What are you running from? Who are you running from? I pray that you will run to Jesus and allow Him to wash over you. Embrace God’s love and the be excited about the plans He has for you.
Blessings to you and yours,
Stephanie
Flee from youthful passions, and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. ~ 2 Timothy 2:22 HCSB
So give yourselves to God. Stand against the devil, and he will run away from you. Come near to God and he will come near to you. You are sinners, so clean sin out of your lives. You are trying to follow God and the world at the same time. Make your thinking pure. ~ James 4:7-8 ERV
The wrong things the sinful self does are clear: committing sexual sin, being morally bad, doing all kinds of shameful things, worshiping false gods, taking part in witchcraft, hating people, causing trouble, being jealous, angry or selfish, causing people to argue and divide into separate groups, being filled with envy, getting drunk, having wild parties, and doing other things like this. I warn you now as I warned you before: The people who do these things will not have a part in God’s kingdom. But the fruit that the Spirit produces in a person’s life is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these kinds of things. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their sinful self. They have given up their old selfish feelings and the evil things they wanted to do. We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit. We must not feel proud and boast about ourselves. We must not cause trouble for each other or be jealous of each other. ~ Galatians 5:19-26 ERV
