Tuesday, October 19, 2010

October 19, 2010

"And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, "Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God." Rev. 21:3
The late and great C. S. Lewis once said, "If nothing in this world satisfies me, perhaps it is because I was made for another world."
It is hard for me to find a shirt that fits. Here's why, my neck is pretty big, my arms are short, I am big through the shoulders and I am longer from the waist up than I am below the waist. So, to get a shirt that fits my neck then the sleeves are usually too long. If I get one with an athletic cut it fits me in the neck and shoulders but tends to be too short and I can't keep it tucked in. So, it seems I am destined to spend my days on planet earth tucking in my shirt-tail or rolling up my sleeves. My kingdom for a comfortable shirt!
For a believer, living in this world often feels like a tight pair of shoes - it just doesn't fit. We don't fit it and it does not fit us. It doesn't fit our vision or our values.
In this Scripture, John reminds us why that is so. This world is not our home. We were designed for eternity and for paradise and this world is neither eternal nor is it holy. As believers, we walk with Jesus and as we do He changes us and conforms us to His image. The more that happens the less this world fits.
Since Adam and Eve, who were designed for Paradise, were evicted from Eden there has been a longing in the human spirit. This latent and yet powerful desire has shaped every human culture and every political, social and economic system since that time. Wars have been fought over competing ideas of paradise or utopia. That is the source of the current conflicts we face with the war on terror abroad and the political strife at home.
This world is not our home. It will never fit right. Even though we spend our time, energy and money trying to add to our comfort level, it still never quite fits.
Christ never called us to fit into this world. He calls us to allow His World and His Spirit and the trials in this world to FIT US for His eternal Kingdom that He is preparing for us!
Are you devoting all your efforts to fit into this world or are you being shaped for His? How will you know the answer?
By the comfort level you have in this world. The less comfortable the fit, the more fit is your soul!