Daniel Fast Day 7

DEEPLY ROOTED
A BETTER WAY TO LIVE


There is a phrase or saying in our culture that has become very prevalent. It has become such a part of our culture that we also find it communicated in church circles. But more than it is just being talked about, we see it is strived for and yearned for. The saying is “Living your best life”.  Have you heard it? Maybe you are buying into it or bought a book on it. Just a superficial observation of this statement makes it seem like it is very helpful and noble. I mean after all, who doesn’t want to live their best life? There is nothing inherently wrong with wanting to live the best way possible. The challenge, however, emerges when we have to define what “best” is.

In a self-obsessed, self-indulgent, me first culture of self-absorption, defining anything proves not just difficult, but rather impossible. It is very easy to see why this motto of “living my best life” appeals so deeply. Because for most, it means doing what I want to do, whenever I want to do it. Is this what we as Christ followers should strive for? Living our best life, but putting a positive spin on it, so that it seems spiritual or even godly? As a Christ follower, your best life might not look like the best life to the world. If you trust the Lord Jesus, there is no doubt in my mind that you can live the better life, the life God intends for you to live. 

Maybe we should not strive to live our best life, but rather the life God purposed and planned for us. You see, here’s where things get a little hairy and scary. If I live my best life according to the world, I am the one calling the shots and determining the path I follow. I am living “my’’ best life! The emphasis is on me. But if I live the better life, the focus is on Christ. What does that look like?

Paul writes and says this to the believers in Colossae: “So we have not stopped praying for you since we first heard about you. We ask God to give you complete knowledge of his will and to give you spiritual wisdom and understanding. Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.”
Colossians 1:9-10(NLT)


Paul prays very specifically. He prays that the church in Colossae would receive from God the complete knowledge of God’s will for them. Our better life starts with the knowledge of the will of God for us and not our own desired will. Although we live in this world, we do not live for this world’s system. The question is not where do we live, the question is who do we live for. We have one of two choices: Either we live for self and we identify ourselves, or we allow God the Father to make us and to give us our true identity. We are either trying to make a name for ourselves or we are finding our true identity in the One who created us. The way we receive the knowledge of God’s will is through spiritual wisdom and spiritual understanding. We must have a revelation of who we are in Christ, not who we are in and of ourselves.

“For look at your own calling as Christians, my brothers. You don’t see among you many of the wise (according to this world’s judgment) nor many of the ruling class, nor many from the noblest families. But God has chosen what the world calls foolish to shame the wise; he has chosen what the world calls weak to shame the strong. He has chosen things of little strength and small repute, yes and even things which have no real existence to explode the pretensions of the things that are—that no man may boast in the presence of God. Yet from this same God you have received your standing in Jesus Christ, and he has become for us the true wisdom, a matter, in practice, of being made righteous and holy, in fact, of being redeemed. And this makes us see the truth of scripture: ‘He who glories, let him glory in the Lord.” 1 Corinthians 1:29-31(J.B. Phillips)

Living your best life is nothing but building for yourself and for your own glory. Living the better life, the Christlike life is the life we must embrace. When we decide to build a life without God, a life for our own glory, it progressively leads to confusion. Confusion embraces conformity. The problem with conforming to the world is that the world does not know who they are because they have rejected the One who made them. Everybody wants to be somebody, the only problem is when we try to become somebody without God, we end up being nobody!

Where do we find the wisdom we need? Christ Jesus has become for us the only reliable, worthy, true wisdom. When we embrace the will of God and receive His wisdom and understanding, living the better life is not only possible but it becomes supernaturally natural. Our lives produce every good thing and bring honor and pleasure to the Lord. “Then the way you live will always honor and please the Lord, and your lives will produce every kind of good fruit. All the while, you will grow as you learn to know God better and better.” But there is even more. Unlike the culture of self that never actually leads to a true identity and only leads to confusion, choosing to live God’s way causes us to grow. This growth is the result of knowing God better and better.

Here is the most amazing news of all, the more you know God, the more you find your identity and discover who you really are! Now that’s what I call a better life or truly living “His” best life! 

Prayer and Reflection:
  • In what ways have you bought into the culture of living your best life? Do you see the fallacy of it? 
  • What can you do to avoid the pitfalls that so readily trip you up?
  • Do you pray daily for God’s will and wisdom to be made evident in your life? If you don’t, what does it say about who you are relying on for wisdom and understanding?
  • Could the confusion in your life be traced back to a lack of spiritual growth?
  • What are you doing daily to know God better? (If you are reading this devotional you are on the right track :-) )

Father, I ask for wisdom and spiritual understanding. I pray that in Jesus, I will live the life You intend for me to live. Forgive me when I pursue things that will never satisfy or lead me to the life You want for me. Help my brothers and sisters in Christ, so that we all, with one desire, one heart, and full devotion pursue You. Help me to produce the right kind of fruit that pleases You and honors Your Name. I want to grow in my knowledge of You and I want to deepen in my commitment towards Your purpose. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen!
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