Lord of the universe, please help center the life of this dear reader during today's needs and joys; I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.
Our text comes from Colossians 2:18-23: (The Message version) 18 Don't tolerate people who try to run your life, ordering you to bow and scrape, insisting that you join their obsession with angels and that you seek out visions. They're a lot of hot air, that's all they are. 19 They're completely out of touch with the source of life, Christ, who puts us together in one piece, whose very breath and blood flow through us. He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us. 20 So, then, if with Christ you've put all that pretentious and infantile religion behind you, why do you let yourselves be bullied by it? 21 "Don't touch this! Don't taste that! Don't go near this!" 22 Do you think things that are here today and gone tomorrow are worth that kind of attention? 23 Such things sound impressive if said in a deep enough voice. They even give the illusion of being pious and humble and ascetic. But they're just another way of showing off, making yourselves look important.
We all have our "angel stories," incredible, hard-to-explain occurrences where the only explanation we say or hear folks say, "It must have been an angel watching out for me." And Scripture does say in Psalm 91:11 that God will give His angels "charge over you;" but at no point should we worship angels. Angels are created beings. Our worship stays centered on the Creator. Nor should we listen to those who say that we are less than them because we've not had visions like them or worse, we should not tell others that because we've had a vision that we're better than anyone and we should not expect others to seek the same thing we may have seen. Paul says that believers should exalt Christ in all things. This version says Christ is the Head and we are the body. Our spiritual growth is directly from God in the way God nourishes us. We should be at that mature point in our spiritual journey where we put behind "pretnetious and infantile religion." And we should not be bullied by those who continue to stay where they are with their "don't touch this! Don't taste that!" attitude. Ours is faith in the eternal God whose presence will be with us always and we will always be with God. Our should be the life that exalts God and encourages others.
PRAYER: Loving God of encouragement and nurture, bless my life in a way that I might bless others. Let me seek to be Yours in all things. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.
Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.
Eradio Valverde
