SEPTEMBER THEME — “SEEING THE CROSS FROM GOD’S PERSPECTIVE”

BEATS FROM YOUR PASTOR’S HEART

YOUR LIFE IS HID WITH CHRIST IN GOD

COLOSSIANS 3:3, “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.”

There are some verses that do more than teach us truth. They settle the heart. They quiet the fear. They reach down into the anxious places of the soul and say, “You are safe in Christ.” Paul says, “Your life is hid with Christ in God.” What security! My deepest identity is no longer hanging on what people think about me, what I accomplish, what I possess, how successful I appear, or what happens to me tomorrow. My life is hidden with Christ in God. That means I do not have to spend the rest of my life proving myself. I do not have to defend every accusation, correct every misunderstanding, control every outcome, or hold every piece of my world together with trembling hands. The old life says, “If I let go, everything may fall apart.” The surrendered life says, “If I let go, I fall into the hands of God.” There is a world of difference between those two ways of living. The old life says, “I have to hold everything together.” The surrendered life says, “God is holding me.” The old life says, “I have to protect my reputation.” The surrendered life says, “My life is hid with Christ in God.” The old life says, “What if something happens?” The surrendered life says, “Whatever happens, I am still in Christ.”

MY IDENTITY IS SAFE IN CHRIST

One of the deepest wounds we feel is being misunderstood. Somebody questions our motives. Somebody tells only part of the story. Somebody forms an opinion without knowing our heart. And everything inside us wants to rise up and say, “That is not who I am!” But Colossians 3:3 reminds me that my identity is not hanging by the fragile thread of somebody else’s opinion. My life is hid with Christ in God. People may misunderstand me, but God knows me. People may overlook me, but God sees me. People may question my motives, but God searches my heart. People may change their opinion of me overnight, but my position in Christ has not moved one inch. That does not mean my testimony does not matter. It does. But it means I do not have to become a prisoner to what everybody thinks. There comes a freedom when I can finally say, “Lord, I will obey You, I will walk honestly before You, and I will leave my name in Your hands.” Sometimes one of the greatest acts of surrender is refusing to chase every misunderstanding. Sometimes peace comes when I stop trying to make everybody understand me and rest in the fact that God already does.

I CAN RELEASE WHAT I CANNOT CONTROL

So much anxiety comes from gripping things God never put in our hands to control. We try to control people. We try to control our children. We try to control circumstances. We try to control timing. We try to control how people respond. We try to control what tomorrow will bring. And then we wonder why our souls are exhausted. We are trying to carry what only God can carry. But Paul says, “Your life is hid with Christ in God.” That means my life is not dangling over some uncertain cliff. It is not secure because I have figured everything out. It is not secure because I have made all the right decisions. It is not secure because I am strong. It is secure because of where it has been placed. The surrendered heart says, “Father, I will do what You have told me to do, but I will not try to do what only You can do.” I can pray. I can obey. I can love. I can speak truth. I can be faithful. I can take the next step God has shown me. And then I can let go. Not carelessly. Not irresponsibly. But trustingly. Faith does not mean I know how everything will turn out. Faith means I know who is holding me while it turns out. That may be the word somebody needs today: You do not have to know what tomorrow holds when you know who holds you today.

CHRIST IS NOT ONLY AROUND MY LIFE—HE IS MY LIFE

Paul does not merely say that Christ protects my life; he goes even deeper. Colossians 3:4says,“Christ, who is our life.” Christ is not just Someone standing beside me—He is my life. That changes everything. Christianity is not merely, “Jesus, help me do better.”It is,“Jesus, live Your life through me.” When I am weak, He is my strength. When I am afraid, He is my peace. When I am impatient, He is my patience. When I want to strike back, He can be my gentleness. When I want to control, He can teach me surrender. When I am empty, He is not empty. When I am confused, He is not confused. When I do not know what to do, Christ within me has not lost His wisdom.The Christian life becomes exhausting when I try to manufacture what only Christ can produce. But when I surrender, something begins to change. I stop saying, “Lord, make me strong enough to handle this,”and I begin saying, “Lord Jesus, be my strength in this.”I stop saying, “Lord, help me love this person,” and I begin saying, “Lord Jesus, love this person through me.” I stop saying, “Lord, help me hold everything together,”and I begin saying, “Lord, hold me while I release this to You.” Here is the truth: I do not have to produce the life of Christ. I have to yield to the Christ who already lives in me.

Imagine a priceless treasure placed inside a massive vault. The treasure itself has no strength. It cannot protect itself, fight off a thief, build walls around itself, or stand guard through the night. Its safety comes from where it has been placed. That is the picture Paul gives us when he says your life is hid with Christ in God. Think about that slowly. Your life is hidden with Christ, and Christ is in God. You are not out in the open trying to defend yourself alone. You are not spiritually exposed. You are not left to survive by your own strength. Your life has been placed in Christ. That is why you can unclench your fists. That is why you can release the people you cannot control, the future you cannot predict, and the reputation you cannot completely manage. You can release your grip because the One holding you has never lost His grip. There may be moments when you feel like you are barely holding on to God, but the greater truth is this: God is holding on to you.

REST IN WHERE YOUR LIFE IS HIDDEN

The exchanged life is not passive, careless, or irresponsible. It is a life of deep confidence in God. I still obey. I still pray. I still work. I still make wise decisions. I still face hard conversations. But I no longer live as though everything depends upon me. My past is covered by His grace, my present is held by His hand, and my future is under His Lordship. My identity is in Christ. My security is in Christ. My life is in Christ. So I can stop living with clenched fists. I can surrender. I can breathe. I can trust. I can rest. The safest place for my life is not in my own hands. The safest place for my life is hidden with Christ in God.

THE HEART OF ALL SIX

These six verses form a beautiful path of surrender. John 3:30 says, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” Galatians 2:20 says, “Not I, but Christ.” Luke 9:23 calls me to deny myself and take up my cross daily. John 15:4 tells me to abide in Him. Philippians 1:21 declares, “For to me to live is Christ.” And Colossians 3:3 reminds me that my life is hid with Christ in God. Do you see the progression? Self decreases so Christ can become more visible. The Cross is embraced, and I stop insisting upon my own way. I abide in Christ because I cannot live the Christian life in my own strength. Christ becomes my life, and because my life is hidden with Him in God, I can finally rest securely in Him. That is the exchanged life. I exchange my strength for His strength, my plans for His will, my control for His Lordship, my fear for His peace, my sufficiency for His sufficiency, and my life for His life in me.I stop trying to produce what only Christ can produce, and I begin yielding myself to the One who already lives within me. And here is the heart of it all:The Christian life is not Jesus helping me live my life better—it is Jesus living His life through a surrendered me.

WARFARE PRAYER

Father, in the mighty name of Jesus, thank You that my life is hid with Christ in You. Thank You that I do not have to build my identity upon the opinions of people, my accomplishments, my possessions, or my circumstances. Today I surrender my need to defend myself, prove myself, promote myself, and control how others see me. I renounce fear, anxiety, pride, self-protection, and the need to control outcomes. Lord Jesus, I place my reputation in Your hands. I place my family in Your hands. I place my future in Your hands. I place every unanswered question in Your hands. I place every situation I cannot fix in Your hands. Where the enemy whispers that I am unsafe, remind me that my life is hid with Christ in God. Where fear tells me everything depends upon me, remind me that You are holding me. Where pride tells me I must defend myself, teach me to trust You with my name. Where anxiety tells me I must control tomorrow, teach me to trust You today. Lord Jesus, be my life. Live Your patience through me. Live Your peace through me. Live Your love through me. Live Your strength through me. Where I am weak, be strong. Where I am afraid, be my peace. Where I want to control, teach me surrender. Let the people around me see less of self and more of Christ.

And today I declare: my life does not belong to fear. My life does not belong to anxiety. My life does not belong to control. My life does not belong to the opinions of people. My life belongs to Jesus, and my life is hid with Christ in God. In Jesus’ mighty name, Amen.

DAILY CHALLENGE

Sometime today, get alone with God and physically open your hands before Him. Let that simple action represent everything you have been gripping too tightly. Then pray, “Father, my life is Yours. My reputation is Yours. My family is Yours. My future is Yours. I surrender what I cannot control. My life is hid with Christ in You. Let Christ be seen in me today.”And when fear rises, when anxiety rises, when somebody misunderstands you, or when you feel the need to take control, stop and remind yourself: “I do not have to hold everything together. God is holding me.”

SATURDAY’S PRAYER NEEDS

Britany Smith

Darlene Kelley – Surgery went well

Darlene Thaxton

Ginny Ford

Kim’s McClain’s Mother

Lee Cronan

Nancy Brown – Rehab

Rob Davis

Susan Bankston