what happend?
Meg
"What happened to this sense of being blessed you had?" (Galatians 4:15, HCSB).
When the Apostle Paul wrote to the Galatian church, he reprimanded from straying so far off course. They had gotten caught up in legality and false doctrine. They had forgotten the gospel that had originally been their salvation. They had started to focus on rules, instead of the freedom they had in Christ.
While I don't think I've strayed into false doctrine, I can definitely understand how quickly a person can become distracted by this world. How quickly one can get caught up in busyness, material things, or comparisons. It's easy to look at everything that is wrong or off in our lives, and forget to focus on everything that is good and true and right.
"For you were called to be free, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love" (Galatians 5:13, HCSB).
I believe that it's important to stay focused, to love and serve those around us, and to not get caught up in the flesh. I think this is especially true during the holiday season. I see things I want and start obsessing about them... I compare my Christmas decorating skills to a friends, and see where I come up short, I see the latest gadget, and, suddenly, last years gift isn't so great anymore. I obsess and worry instead of focusing on Jesus. Jesus, who calls us to love and serves those around us. Jesus, who truly is the reason for this holiday season.
It's so easy to get caught up in what this world has to offer. The Galatians let themselves get caught up into a world of legality, I let myself get caught up into what todays world sees as important. Am I really any better?
What happened to being blessed? What happened to knowing where my security lies. What happened to focusing on all the blessings I do have in my life? Focus on the blessings. Look for the good. Serve those around me. Yes, these are traits I'd definitely like to focus on this Christmas season. What about you?