Fields United Methodist Church

Day 41.  Take Time to Be Holy

May 26, 2020

“Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom.”

II Corinthians 3:17

Read:  II Corinthians 3

Everywhere we look these days, there are signs saying what is allowed and what is not allowed. During this season of pandemic, what we are able to do has been limited for the health and safety of others.  Some would contend that the Holy Bible is a rule book, full of “signs” that restrict what we are able to do and not do with our lives. Yet consider this, our Lord Jesus Christ offers a different summation of “God’s love story to us,” the Bible, with 2 simple rules to live by; “to love the Lord your God with all of your heart, mind, soul, and strength, and to love your neighbor as yourself.” In a world governed by rules, the “Spirit of the Lord” offers a refreshing and freeing alternative that is based on grace. This “costly grace” is one that flows through the cross of Jesus and though he died an excruciating death on a cross because of the hatred and callousness of the world, he looked over the crowd that was cheering him on to death and prayed for them, “Father forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing.” (Luke 23:34) Those words of grace, spoken with the power of the Holy Spirit, unbound each of us from sin that chained us to the whims and wishes of others. Though it is important to follow rules that help ensure others are safe as we called to “do no harm” to others, the Holy Spirit calls us to do so with the amazing love of God, grace, that seeks for us to have life in the abundance of the love of God.  We have been offered the freedom of knowing that even as the clouds of doubt and pain may hang over us, there is hope for tomorrow, and today for that matter. As the sun rises to give birth to a new day with new and exciting beginnings, we are offer the “Spirit of the Lord” to open the “eyes of our heart” to see the world in an entirely different way; with grace, hope, and the joy of knowing that no matter the journey we are on today and where ever that seems to be leading, in Christ there is always the freedom of knowing that the Creator of the Universe is with you and will be with you even to the end of the age. That is the freedom that is offered to all who believe.

How have you felt the freedom of God’s presence today?

When have you felt the Spirit of the Lord in the past week?

How are you taking time to be holy today?

Prayer: Gracious God, help me to understand the freedom you give me today. Forgive me for the times I have failed to appreciate the grace you offer and set me free to truly live a life of grace, hope, and joy.  Amen