Monday, November 15, 2010

Equipping your Space

That time of the year when we see students preparing to leave home headed to college or returning back to college has come and passed. Parents and students were seen crowding the stores buying items that their sons and daughters would need as they left the nest.

Now you know the routine. Students are assigned to dorm rooms. Sometimes with a roommate and sometimes without. So it is natural that students want to fix up their room and give it personality that makes them feel comfortable in the new enviornment. I remember my days in college in my very first dorm room. I remember my parents driving away as I watched from the steps of my dorm....crying harder the further they were out of sight. Then I turned slowly to head to my new hom.....my dorm room.

My new roommate had arrived so I sat watching her put her things away......all happy. But then again......her mom lived in the dame town all of 10 minutes away! So she could get her home "fix" on at any time. We began to talk and she was telling me how we were going to have so much fun and become the best of buddies. She finally convinced me that I was there to STAY and my parents were NOT coming back to pick me up and take me back home! It was time to unpack and settle in. I put my clothes and my tolietries away and began to "personalize" my side of the room with my posters and my stuffed animals.......YES......I brought my stuffed animals with me to school......and a lot of ya'll did too....so don't trip! My father had bought me my own TV so I could relax and watch my favorite shows during time away from my studies. I had a refrigerator and a hot plate (which was illegal to have by the way!) I put my new bedspread on my bed with my new sheets. And lastly, I accesorized my desk with a lamp and little trinkets and pictures that I brought from home. I could now say, this was my room and my personalized space.

My experience of going away to school and leaving the comforts of home behind is so much like our lives as believers in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

At some point in our lives, we were new students in the world. We found our space and labeled it as ours. As we submit our lives to Christ, we have to do the same. The only difference is this. We sometimes have to leave some things and sometimes some people behind and get new "stuff" as we join the body of Christ. We have to essentially "Equip" our own private space through prayer and the reading of God's Word.

It is time to put up some new things in order to advance in our spiritual walk. First, we will need a spot for "faith". As the Word of God tells us, "Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things unseen." Faith is critical as we equip our space in the body of Christ. Next, we will need to display perserverance and endurance somewhere in our space. "Be patient and wait on the Lord." Life is not easy and we were never promised it would be. When things look hopeless and we feel defeated....we absolutely must perservere and weather the storm and yes it will be rough at times. Lastly, our walls must be painted with praise! We were created to worship......through the good times and the bad. God wants our praise. Now.....our space is ready and we have equipped and personalized our space, we can count on God to hold true to His word showering those that seek Him with deliverance, healing and breaking chains of burden. Hallelujah.

Be encouraged to equip your space in Christ today my brothers and sisters!

Blessings to all!