This is simple, brief, and sweet reminder for all our Elisha’s Riddle subscribers . . .
Jesus is our shepherd and we are His sheep!
He knows what he’s doing.
He’s been guiding you your whole life.
Even when you were lost in your sin, He was still drawing you to Himself (John 12).
And like Paul says in Romans . . . if God gave His Son for you while you were still a sinner, how much more will He continue to give you now that His redemption and forgiveness is complete.
In an unbelievably miraculous, supernatural, and illogical way, Jesus is STILL making all things work out for good in your life. It is really, really, really hard to make sense of. But I guess His love surpasses our understanding doesn’t it?
Think about all this for a moment. Take time to actually let this settle in. Gargle it like mouthwash in your mind. (Editor’s Note: I learned recently that in order for mouthwash to be effective, you have swish it around longer than 30 seconds, because the fluid in your mouth actually changes every 30 seconds. The point is – sometimes you gotta let certain truths swish around in your heart for a while before they have the correct impact upon your multi-faceted being.)
Staying in Love
It is more important than ever to keep our focus on our Good Shepherd. Jesus wants us to abide in His tender, caring, shepherding love. And as you know, abiding in His love leads us to loving Him more (1 John 4:19). With the world in a civil war of ideas, it is vital we stay in love with Jesus. He said the love of many would grow cold. It’s easy to shut our hearts off and allow our love to be minimized in this season. It’s easy to choose a side and just settle with demonizing entire groups of people and feeling like you’re on the “right” side. But Jesus calls us to more.
He calls us to continue to fall in love with Him and intimately know Him in His death and resurrection (Philippians 3:10). Like David said, “One thing I desire . . . to know you” (Psalm 27:4). We are not called to fall in love with ideas, political parties, or concepts. We are in love with a Person. His name is Jesus Christ.
He is the One who made all things, sustains all things, and is actively drawing all people to Himself. He’s the One who died on the cross for the entire universe to be made whole. If we stay close to Him, we’ll be just fine. If we drift into our own ideas, apart from Him, we will begin to feel lost and confused.
Let’s stay in love with Jesus in 2023.