Breath

I have been in the delivery room to see a baby take its first breathe.  I have watched a tiny body of flesh transform before my eyes as breathe fills its tiny lungs, eyes strainIng to see in the new light of the outside world.

Breathing.





“Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being.” (Genesis 2:7 NASB)

In the beginning, God formed a body. It came to life when He breathed into it.

Sin brings death to the life He gave in the beginning. “... from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat from it you will surely die." (Genesis 2:17 NASB) 

Life became contaminated with sin.  Death became a reality.  

To remedy that awful truth, new life must be breathed. We simply cannot NOT sin.  “...all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23 NASB)



The very breathe of God made humans different from every other living, breathing creature.   It was so on the day of Creation, and it is so on the day of salvation.

 The body of flesh will die, but the life held within it is eternal life.  That new life is brought about by the Holy Spirit of God.  Again, God Himself must breathe that life.  We cannot will it for ourselves.  We can’t un-do the damage that came about in The Garden.  Without the Holy Spirit of God breathed into us, we suffer an eternal death.


There are times when it is a struggle.  Like a baby, I sometimes gasp for breathe. I strain to see, squint at what is hard to look at.  My faith muscles sometimes grow weak and weary, but they are stronger than the day of my spiritual birth.  

 Praise God, He has provided His very own breathe, life giving, and life sustaining.   My body of flesh is frail and weak.  His power is available and always present, regardless of what my circumstances may be.

”In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of promise.” (Ephesians 1:13 NASB)

Hallelujah. 

Marathon

I am having coffee on the patio.  That man of mine has this yard manicured.  He is a mowing maniac.   It is beautiful, all the time.

We have a lot of area between our house and our son next door.  Almost every day during the summer, a part of it gets mowed.  By the time he makes it all the way around. It is time to start over.

I heard it from somewhere, “Life is a marathon, not a sprint.” And so it is.

There are times I get so weary of the steady and pressing pace.  It seems that after one obstacle is overcome, two more present themselves. Just like the mowing, there is always more to do.


It is part of the human condition.  We simply can’t keep everything fixed.  We can’t do enough behavior modification, we can’t make up our minds and will it, we can’t legislate it or force it on others.

We can sure gaze out across other people’s lawn and criticize their mowing.

Perhaps their lawn is a mess, but maybe their sock drawer is organized.  Maybe they don’t edge or weed eat, but they control their tongue.  We can be assured, there is something amiss.  In everyone. Visible or not. We are all broken and marred, all imperfect people, all fall short of the perfect and holy standard of our Creator.  You may measure up to my personal standard, but you will not measure up when compared to Him.



“My people are broken—shattered!— and they put on band-aids, Saying, 'It's not so bad. You'll be just fine.'

But things are not fine!

GOD's Message yet again:

"Go stand at the crossroads and look around. Ask for directions to the old road, The tried and true road. Then take it. Discover the right route for your souls....”

Jeremiah 6:14, 16 from The Message





Just like the mowing, humanity continues to present the symptoms of its fallen nature. One issue may be overcome, and three more manifest.

Sin is our problem.   It is at the core of every single issue.  

We can’t modify our own behavior enough.  We can not convince ourselves with logic or simply make up our minds.  Sinful human nature will manifest itself in yet another way.

We can’t legislate enough rules and laws.  (God showed us that by giving ten simple rules to follow), and certainly, we can’t force other people to behave in right ways.   Fear and intimidation might work for a while, but it won’t fix the heart of mankind.

Only Jesus.

”Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. 

Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you.

Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly." (Matthew 11:28-30 from The Message)

Father God, help us see the right path and give us courage to put our feet on it....one step at a time, walking steadily forward following You, honestly seeking Your way not ours.