Helping Me Up, Helping you up

A few years ago, a first grader and I fell down a step on a field trip. I was holding his hand and we were going down together. Well he hopped right up and I stayed down. I'll never forget what he said, “Let me help you up. That must have hurt you more because you had farther to fall.”

While I was studying the final words of Ephesians, I was reminded of this helping hand.

May God's grace be eternally upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ. Ephesians 6:24

That word for grace is so very meaningful and carries more significance in Greek than we give it credit for in English.

 The Greek word for grace here is “charis.”  Charis in its expanded meaning is; 

1. A gift or blessing brought to man by Jesus Christ
2. His favor as He leans toward us to help us in our earthly situations 
3. Christ freely extending His help and love toward those whom He favors 
4. Christ giving himself away and reaching for us

As I incorporated this meaning for the word grace, I began to really realize the reach of Jesus’ love to me. And it’s a long way down to reach me because usually I fall farther into sin than I want too. And I imagine Jesus reaching down with love to help me up and out of the mess I create and saying, “Let me help you up. You must be hurting because you fell so far.”

And as the end of the verse infers, this is the reason I can't help but give Jesus my love in return. As He leans toward me I want to lean toward Him. As He reaches down to help me up I want to confidently place myself in His forgiveness. The farther I fall, the farther His grace reaches.

I pray this Ephesians prayer for myself:

My Gracious God, reach down and help me up.

Bring Your blessings down as You lean toward me with aid in all my situations.

Let me not forget Your favor.

Thank you for Your precious gift of forgiveness.

I love You.

And this is my prayer for you:

May God’s grace eternally reach down and help you up.

May His blessings be brought to you as

He leans toward you with aid for all of earth’s situations.

May you realize His favor toward you.

May you accept His precious gift of forgiveness.

May you always love our Savior, the one who helps you up.

Complete Collection

I have a love/hate relationship with collections. On one hand, I love to collect different things. In high school and college I collected elephants (no relationship to a college.) I had stuffed animal elephants, a blown glass elephant from Disney World, a mirrored elephant from India, an olive wood elephant from Israel, a coal elephant from West Virginia, elephant jewelry, elephant Christmas tree ornaments, and many, many various sizes of all types of elephants. And I “loved” finding all the elephant options. The problem was the collection was never complete and never ending. The “hate” came in displaying, transporting, and storing the collection. I got bored and frustrated with the elephant overload. I finally sold all of them at a yard sale. Then before I knew it I was collecting something else. I always end up giving up and getting rid of the collection when it gets too much.

In Ephesians chapter 6 I ran across a collection and it is attainable and absolutely complete. It is the collection of armor for the Christian.

13 Take up the whole, full, and complete armor of God that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm. 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one;  17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

 This Greek word for complete is “panoplia”. And it means; panoply – a complete and impressive collection, a complete set of defensive and offensive armor and weaponry, and everything the believer needs to successfully wage spiritual warfare.

It’s all there. We have access to all the resources God provides His children to live a victorious life. Take it up and you are completely shielded and completely ready to stand and fight the good fight of faith. The armor of God is easy to collect and easy to complete.

 I have a love/love relationship with this collection. I love the Lord who equipped me to be able to live a life of victory against sin and evil. And I love being able to be fully equipped needing nothing else to win in the battle of life.

This is the collection I won't give up and I won’t get rid of.

Belt of truth

Breastplate of righteousness

Shoes of the foundation the Gospel

Shield of faith

Helmet of salvation

Sword of the Word of God

The collection is complete.

Put It Away

My family calls my sister “the memory keeper.” If we have something we don't know what to do with and don't want to throw away but don’t want to store we give it to her. I know it’s unfair but we do it anyway. Now this puts her in a very awkward position. What is she supposed to do with these pieces of sentimentality? She usually just stashes it somewhere in her house (she has a large house.) Now all this stashing for so many years is getting a bit overwhelming to her. I mean, you can only stash for so long.  She has come to the place of getting rid of the things we now can let go of. This means a lot of calling around to the family to see if the object is meaningful enough that we want it back. Most of the time, it’s not. Now this is unfair too because she has kept for years the thing we really could do without. It’s the saving of the unnecessary.

Paul helps the Ephesians clear out the clutter in chapter 4 verses 21-32 and Chapter 5:1-2. God says, “Don't save the unnecessary. Put it out and away from yourself. This is not what a Christ follower should be holding onto.  Put away for good your old unsaved self. That’s a memory you don’t need to keep. Put away the lies you've been telling yourself and others. Get rid of the anger you have been harboring. Throw away dishonesty. Put away the ugly things you used to say in your everyday conversations with others. Put away bitterness, anger, clamor, and slander. Get rid of all of it. Put it all away from you for good. ”

Like my sister, when we get rid of the unnecessary we are left with some blessed space. God gives us something to put in this sacred empty place. In these same verses He says, “Replace this junk with: truth speaking, peacemaking, honest dealings, pure talking, and Holy Spirit cheering. Be sweet, pacifying, calming, and complimentary. Build others up and give grace to everyone that you're around.

As my sister is experiencing, this de-junking requires some work. Thankfully when de-junking our lives we have help. We have the help of God Himself. He indicates through the Holy Spirit’s conviction what is unnecessary in our lives. He seals us in Christ our victorious Savior so that we can accomplish this putting off and putting on.

   

I must admit that I catch myself hanging on to the old paraphernalia of a life without Christ sometimes. The junk starts accumulating. It’s just the saving of the unnecessary. I have even found junk in my life I've saved for years. I don't need to be “the memory keeper” of my former old unsaved self. It’s not fair to Christ who died to rid me of that old life. It is an insult to the Holy Spirit and grieves Him. It is an abuse of the love the Father God has for me. When I look at it this way I see just how awful hanging on to my old self is.

Father, Help me put away the old indications of my former life without You.

Renew in me a right way of thinking and living.

Help me to always be ready to put on Your likeness and imitate You.

Help me put away the junk.

Put off your old self which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.  Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.  Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear.  And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.  Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you. Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.  And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

More

Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think. Ephesians 3:20

I like to brainstorm. I can come up with lots of ideas. I’m not always great with follow through but I can think of lots of options. Ephesians 3:20 caught my attention because it’s a brainstorming innovating verse.

I've never really thought of God in these terms. My fault. But our Heavenly Father is an Idea and Follow Through God. While I can come up with ideas He is infinitely more imaginative. While I might lack in follow through He is able to work it and accomplish it. While I might be reluctant to ask Him for something He will do more than I can ask or even think to ask.

When was the last time I prayed this? “Thank You Father for thinking of and doing that in my life. I didn't even know I needed it.” Most of the time I thank Him for answers to prayers I have initiated. Now I’m reminded to thank Him for answers to prayers I didn't pray because they were beyond what I could think I needed.

I like how this old preacher said we should read these verses in Ephesians:

That He would grant you according to the riches of His glory to be strengthened with might by His Spirit in the inner man —

To accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith —

To accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Being rooted and grounded in love —

To accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

Able to comprehend the breadth and length and depth and height, and to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge —

To accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

That ye might be filled with all the fullness of God —

To accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.

More than I can ask for. (And I can ask for a lot.)

More than I can think of. (And I can think of a lot.)

What I didn't ask for.

And what I didn't think of.

He will accomplish this in me and through me.

Now all glory to God who is able to do more.