A separation between two objects or subjects.
There are folks that I am aquatinted with around the world. Miles of separation exist between them and I. I also know persons living right here in town and some are in closer relationships than others who might as well be miles away. This isn’t done intentionally but many persons who I really enjoy spending time with (when we see each other) just don’t cross paths much. Nobody’s fault, we are just living our lives out in different circles of peers.
Separation in understanding and beliefs is also a gap that exists in relationships. Those we tend to enjoy the most are those who are close to the same position on most topics. This is because discussions on topics can become disruptive to our relationships and in our circle create animosity. We generally do not like conflict.
Through life we cross paths with so many other people. My close friends of my youth are still around the area but I don’t see them much if at all. Again, this is nobody’s fault…we just live some distance apart and attend other churches and are within other circles. However when we do see each other it is always good and the conversation is great.
In our walk with Christ we must be sure to not allow distance to come into our relationship. The world blasts us constantly with things that would pull our minds off of righteousness and confuse our thinking. In the book ‘The Pursuit of Holiness’, Jerry Bridges talks about the only way to strive for holiness is the Word of God. He writes…we must hear it taught, read it for ourselves, do topical studies (digging deep into it), and memorize scripture pertaining to life choices. But more than just these four ways to take in the Word, we must meditate on what we know. This means we tumble a verse around in our noggin’ thinking of how it applies to our everyday life.
Wow! The last part of this, the mediation part that he writes about is new to me. I always thought meditating on the Word was just thinking about it…repeating memorized scripture and such, but this way of thinking changes those thoughts. It will prepare the mind for different onslaughts of the enemy by bolstering our thinking as to what our instructions for life spell out.
For example…filthy conversation or jokes…James 3:7-12 (good and bad water cannot come from the same well, nor good and bad speech come out of the same mouth – my interpretation), Proverbs 15:28 the Godly think before speaking while the wicked overflow with evil words, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” Psalms 19:14 NLT
I am going to apply this new way of meditation on scripture to my life. Prayerfully it will strengthen my armor against Satan’s fiery darts and my pursuit of God’s request for me to be holy as He is holy will become more of an actual fact. I know I will never be perfect…but I can strive to live out my life as close to holiness as I can. Who wants to join me in this endeavor?
Thoughts 