So I probably should have made this my very first post. I'm sure some of you may be curious about the title of my blog - "Have This Mind...".
This phrase can be found in Philippians 2 beginning in verse 5 where Paul tells the church at Philippi to "Have this mind among yourselves which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross."
The book of Philippians has been very close to my heart over the past year. The words written by Paul, inspired by God, have brought me encouragement, comfort, and even conviction. While several verses stand out to me, this passage has, by far, stood out the most. All other verses in the book seem to center around this very descriptive passage. If you have ever read or studied Philippians you can better comprehend where I'm coming from.
When I hear the words "Have this mind", my mind immediately goes to having the mind and heart of Christ. Christ didn't come to earth and throw out do's and dont's and then say "alright there you go...good luck with that." By no means! Instead, He lived what He preached. He didn't just say "be this way" or "do this and this and this", He put feet to His words.
Just before this passage, Paul tells the church to have the same mind, be in the same love, to not only look to your interests but to the interests of others, and in humility to put others needs ahead of your own. Then, comes those great words..."Have this mind". "What mind" you might ask. Well, the mind of Christ, who though He was God, He didn't use His power, His deity to retreat away from laying down His life as an atonement for our sin. Even though He was still God, He made Himself nothing - a servant, a man. His death is the greatest act of humility ever done.
So again, we aren't just told to be humble servants, we are shown how to be. We must lay aside who we are, put on Christ, and serve God as we serve those we encounter. What an amazing responsibility we have as followers of Christ! How awesome it is to have this calling on our lives - to live and serve as Christ did. How great a God to have redeemed us and given us this great ability.
My question to you is this...Do you have this mind? Do I have this mind? My prayer is that we will live out this calling. Oh what a testimony of the power of Christ that would be!
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Dusting Furniture and Myself
About two months ago, I completely renovated our bedroom. We needed a mattress and wanted a bigger bed, so we thought it was the best time to "upgrade". Since I was going to have to take a lot of stuff out of the bedroom to move in the new bed, I decided that this was also the time to finally paint the bland, white walls - something I have wanted to do ever since I moved in this house. Well, as you know, whenever you paint you have to do a bit of cleaning first. Dust the baseboards, wipe down the walls, etc.
Before I go any further, I have to admit that I had my work cut out for me. Until May of this year, I worked outside the home full-time, and in doing so, I neglected some of the housework - namely the bedroom because VISITORS DON'T VISIT YOUR BEDROOM, they visit the living room, the dining room, and, in my house, the kitchen. Needless to say, there was an inch of dust on everything, the dresser was piled up with all sorts of stuff, and the hardwood floor, what you could see of it, didn't quite shine like it should.
Since the transformation, I have kept the room fairly tidy, but I was starting to notice my old friend, Mr. Dust! I let Mr. Dust take control about a month too long and today I finally decided that enough is enough. Unless I wanted to revert my room to its old condition, I had to take action.
As I was dusting, I began to meditate on the things of God and it hit me, "had my Spiritual life become like my room?" When I was lost, my life was filled with all sorts of dirty sin. Every nook and cranny of my heart was covered in filth. It couldn't clean itself; in fact, it didn't even know it needed to be cleaned. But then God, in His awesome Glory, pierced my heart and I was "...washed...sanctified...justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (I Corinthians 6:11). And after I was cleanesed, my heart was transformed from one of stone to one of flesh, and the Spirit of God took residence (Ezekiel 36:25-26).
Now, just like that room, I'm beginning to see cobwebs in the corners and what was cleaned now has a thin layer of dust on it. As believers, we were made clean, but we also must continue to be cleansed. As I examined my heart, I realized that I had been failing to continue to be cleansed, lacking in my sanctification. "For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification." (Romans 6:19)
When I was justified (saved), my unrighteousness (sin) was imputed (layed upon) on Christ and His righteousness was imputed (layed upon / credited to) on me. Therefore, I am now a slave to righteousness and must continue in sanctification (growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ).
May we all continue to be "transformed by the renewal of our mind, that by testing we may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2). Let our prayer be as David's (Psalm 51:7-12):
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit."
God's Blessings,
Trish Clardy
Before I go any further, I have to admit that I had my work cut out for me. Until May of this year, I worked outside the home full-time, and in doing so, I neglected some of the housework - namely the bedroom because VISITORS DON'T VISIT YOUR BEDROOM, they visit the living room, the dining room, and, in my house, the kitchen. Needless to say, there was an inch of dust on everything, the dresser was piled up with all sorts of stuff, and the hardwood floor, what you could see of it, didn't quite shine like it should.
Since the transformation, I have kept the room fairly tidy, but I was starting to notice my old friend, Mr. Dust! I let Mr. Dust take control about a month too long and today I finally decided that enough is enough. Unless I wanted to revert my room to its old condition, I had to take action.
As I was dusting, I began to meditate on the things of God and it hit me, "had my Spiritual life become like my room?" When I was lost, my life was filled with all sorts of dirty sin. Every nook and cranny of my heart was covered in filth. It couldn't clean itself; in fact, it didn't even know it needed to be cleaned. But then God, in His awesome Glory, pierced my heart and I was "...washed...sanctified...justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God" (I Corinthians 6:11). And after I was cleanesed, my heart was transformed from one of stone to one of flesh, and the Spirit of God took residence (Ezekiel 36:25-26).
Now, just like that room, I'm beginning to see cobwebs in the corners and what was cleaned now has a thin layer of dust on it. As believers, we were made clean, but we also must continue to be cleansed. As I examined my heart, I realized that I had been failing to continue to be cleansed, lacking in my sanctification. "For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification." (Romans 6:19)
When I was justified (saved), my unrighteousness (sin) was imputed (layed upon) on Christ and His righteousness was imputed (layed upon / credited to) on me. Therefore, I am now a slave to righteousness and must continue in sanctification (growing in grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ).
May we all continue to be "transformed by the renewal of our mind, that by testing we may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect." (Romans 12:2). Let our prayer be as David's (Psalm 51:7-12):
"Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
Hide your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.
Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit."
God's Blessings,
Trish Clardy
Welcome!
Hello Ladies,
I am really excited about starting this new blog. I am hoping that it will be a great tool to hold me accountable to doing the things I need to do in order to be the wife God has called me to be. I also hope it will encourage you as well.
I'm not totally sure how this will all turn out, but I pray it goes well. However, in the event that this turns into more of a distraction from my duties, it will have to cease. I pray that I can manage my time well enough to continue in this effort.
I'm not going to put everything about myself in this first post...that would take too long and too much space. Instead, I hope you read and learn more about me through my posts. I will say this, I am a follower of Christ, a wife/home-maker, a daughter, a sister, an aunt, and a friend. Notice I never said mom. While I don't have children at this time, I do think my list is already quite long and I must give those things my attention. If God blesses us with a child, then so it will be and I will continue to be molded into the woman God plans for me to be.
Hope you all enjoy!
In Christ,
Trish Clardy
I am really excited about starting this new blog. I am hoping that it will be a great tool to hold me accountable to doing the things I need to do in order to be the wife God has called me to be. I also hope it will encourage you as well.
I'm not totally sure how this will all turn out, but I pray it goes well. However, in the event that this turns into more of a distraction from my duties, it will have to cease. I pray that I can manage my time well enough to continue in this effort.
I'm not going to put everything about myself in this first post...that would take too long and too much space. Instead, I hope you read and learn more about me through my posts. I will say this, I am a follower of Christ, a wife/home-maker, a daughter, a sister, an aunt, and a friend. Notice I never said mom. While I don't have children at this time, I do think my list is already quite long and I must give those things my attention. If God blesses us with a child, then so it will be and I will continue to be molded into the woman God plans for me to be.
Hope you all enjoy!
In Christ,
Trish Clardy
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