Author Darlene J Conard

While lying in bed last night I thought about how often I sat in church very cold. I needed something more. Yes, something dynamic, something exciting!

For years the Ark of Covenant sat inside the temple behind a veil. No one dared to touch it or enter unless he had authorization. Only the priest had that unless they had sin in their life. Those priests who entered the Holy Place never came out alive. Upon the cherubs’ wings that stretched forward sat the living God, upon the mercy seat. Jesus came changing everything! He no longer sat on a box hidden behind a curtain.

God is beyond four walls. He sat hidden away for years. I Kings 8:1-11

“Jesus, when he had cried again with a loud voice, yielded up the ghost. And, behold, the veil of the temple was rent in twain from the top to the bottom; and the earth did quake, and the rocks rent;”

The moment Jesus lifted His voice, and gave up the ghost the veil rent in half. Nothing hung to separate God from man. Mercy ran into the streets breaking chains of darkness. The crucifixion’s power eliminated the old law of sacrificial atonement. The crucifixion itself wasn’t the cause but who?

I examine myself, “Do I have Jesus in a box? Is He tucked away like a souvenir? No, He should be spread abroad. Don’t misunderstand me. Can people see the glow of His glory on our faces? Can people say without hesitation that we are Christian without second-guessing? Can people see a change so great they know we’ve encountered God? Is prayer so active and reading and studying His word that it challenges us?”  I don’t want a cold powerless life!

Let’s pray for one another and cast away any bitterness, strife, debate, jealousy, or hatred.

Heavenly Father,

I approach You in all sincerity to search my heart. Reveal to me where I’ve fallen short in serving You. Rekindle the fire I first experienced stepping into repentance. Lord, take me further than I go. Search me, know my ways. Keep me from falling into temptation.

  In Jesus name, Amen

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