Climbing, Sliding & Standing Still

SCRIPTURE:  Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed. That, however, is not the way of life you learned. Ephesians 4:19-20 NIV

THOUGHT: It is said that the opposite of love isn’t hatred, it’s indifference. Not caring at all. That’s the way Paul describes a people who have turned their backs on God. Completely insensitive. Dull of heart. Devoid of emotion. Unmoved by either beauty or revulsion. “Past feeling,” the KJV says, so, as my cousin Bill said to me recently, “they have to seek wilder and more powerful and extreme stimulus to be able to feel something.” Sounds like an addiction, doesn’t it? A compulsion to keep living in shame as a way to say to the world, “I don’t care!” – a greed to consume more of what makes you not feel anything.

By contrast, the life of a Christ-follower is marked by care, compassion, and self-discipline. There is a growing sensitivity to the Holy Spirit, and a commitment to purity in thought and heart. Serving, not greed, is the central motivation. Love, not indifference.

Two very stark contrasts. Of course, we don’t get to either end of the spectrum overnight – there is an uphill climb for the one, and a downhill slide for the other. So, I guess the question for today is, “am I climbing or sliding?” Unfortunately, there’s not too much just standing still because gravity works against the soul just like it does the body.

PRAYER: Oh God, give me the energy I need for the climb today. Give me love for my fellow travelers – even if they’re on the downhill slide.