14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. 15 And let the peace that comes from Christ rule in your hearts. For as members of one body you are called to live in peace. And always be thankful.
16 Let the message about Christ, in all its richness, fill your lives. Teach and counsel each other with all the wisdom he gives. Sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs to God with thankful hearts. 17 And whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through him to God the Father. ~Colossians 3:14-17
The Apostle Paul’s instruction to the Colossians for living the new life as my Bible describes it is a timely reminder for us this Thanksgiving. We are called to live in love and peace for Jesus, giving thanks as we do.
Love is what we “clothe” ourselves with by demonstrating His love to each other and the world. God gives us His peace through Jesus’ resolution of our sin. We just need to let His peace rule in our hearts. Let’s think on that for a moment. The peace of God is ours through Jesus. We only have to let it sink into our being to rule our lives.
But the tiny three letter word let is what often trips me up. So often, I let things of this world: worry, responsibilities, schedules etc. rule my life instead. In doing this, I let sin, fear and problems steal the peace Jesus died to give me.
We cannot ignore the things of this life, but we also cannot let them rule our lives, either. We are called to live in this world emulating Jesus. That cannot happen from a place of fear and worry. My personal challenge is to instead let Christ’s peace and love rule my life.
When we live our lives from a place of peace and love, thanksgiving naturally flows. [tweetthis]Thanksgiving naturally flows from a life lived in peace and love ~ @JillMHoven. [/tweetthis]
Choosing to see each day as a gift, being thankful for what we have and whom we share it with is a start. But the ultimate thankfulness should be reserved for Jesus Himself. If it were not for Jesus, we’d be eternally shackled to our sin. We’d be forever chained to our hopelessness instead of free to live in His peace and love.
As we pause today for Thanksgiving and remember all our blessings, let’s also offer thanks for and through Jesus. Only Jesus brings salvation, love and peace. Let these rule in our hearts and minds as we give thanks today and every day.