by Lilly Lewin
The Gospel reading from last Sunday was Luke 16: 1-13. It’s a passage that most of us who use the lectionary would like to skip and sometimes do skip because it’s not cut and dry and doesn’t fit neatly into our “good and bad” view of life.
In The Message, Eugene Peterson translates verses 8-9
“Now here’s a surprise: The master praised the crooked manager! And why? Because he knew how to look after himself. Streetwise people are smarter in this regard than law-abiding citizens. They are on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by their wits. I want you to be smart in the same way—but for what is right—using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you’ll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior.”
During our lectio divina on Sunday, the phrase that stuck out to me was
“So you will live, really live, and not just get by on good behavior”
I have practiced lectio for many years, and I always find that I have more questions from a text than answers. The questions were: What does it mean to REALLY LIVE? What doe REALLY LIVING mean to me? What does it look like?
I don’t want to just get by on good behavior. I lived a lot of my life that way, as a performance based oldest child and as a performer, people pleasing, Christian.
So what does REALLY LIVING Look like? For Me:
Enjoying each day as a gift!
Trusting that GOD can and does provide for me.
Being Generous. Living in Generosity.
Helping others rather than Helping myself.
REST! Not busyness.
Reflecting LIGHT not darkness in the world. (in my words, my actions, my social media etc)
Seeing God’s ABUNDANCE rather than living in NOT ENOUGH!
Enjoying BEAUTY in the world.
NOTICING small things.
Helping others EXPERIENCE more of Jesus.
REALLY LIVING rather than fearing to live.
NOT WASTING TIME or MY GIFTS.
Realizing and Remembering that each day is a Gift.
I want to Live the Gift…The Journey, the Adventure, and the Pilgrimage of Life with Jesus!
Most importantly, TO REALLY LIVE, REALLY LIVING, involves seeing myself as
LOVED BY GOD!
Living as LOVED and BELOVED of GOD, not as as SLAVE.
I want to receive this LOVE! And help others receive it too!
So what about you?
What does REAL LIVING, REALLY LIVING, look like for you?
Take some time to consider it.
Talk to Jesus about it.
Sit with the questions.
Journal or draw a picture. Maybe even create a collage of what REAL LIVING looks like with Jesus.
What does it mean to me to REALLY LIVE, Not to just get by on good behavior?
Know that you are GREATLY LOVED just as you are today!
Receive that GIFT!
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com