How Are You Living?
September 8, 2021·Emma Contreras
Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
— Galatians 6:8-9
In this passage, Paul urges the believers to consider what harvest their actions will bring in their life. Do their actions lead to a harvest of Spirit-filled everlasting life? Or, are they living in a way that will cause them to harvest the opposite, a life of death and decay?
In the past few months, I have regularly pondered something similar in my own life. How am I living? Does my life truly honor the Lord?
I love how Paul continues this passage in Galatians with these words, “So let’s not get tired of doing what is good.” As followers of Christ, I think it can be easy to become tired of doing the right things. So much so, they feel burdensome and then we don’t even do them. That’s what I had fallen into. Reading my Bible felt exhausting after a long day of work and motherhood. I would rather listen to my favorite upbeat bands than worship music, and even things like the schedule my husband and I had put into place for our daughter had completely fallen by the wayside. I was just tired.
As a pastor, it’s embarrassing to admit these things, but I was only able to make a change when I was honest with myself. It’s amazing to me how I knew what I was supposed to be doing, but I had completely lost the discipline and the spark to do it. However, once I got back up and going again, I found myself quickly on the right path. I felt renewed and close to the Lord in a way that I haven’t felt in a while.
The promise in this passage of Scripture is that we will reap a harvest of blessing for continuing to keep going. So, keep on going! Don’t live tired! Don’t let yourself fall out of the disciplines that will make you whole and, ultimately, lead to God’s blessing. These are the daily disciplines I had fallen out of… have you found yourself lost in the same?
- Read your Bible every day.
- Spend time in personal worship throughout the week.
- Pray about everything!
I would encourage you to ask yourself today, how am I living? There’s value in taking time to evaluate your life and allow the Lord to speak to the areas that need fixing. Don’t give up, friends — because we will reap a harvest of blessing. Keep on keeping on!
We are in this together,
Pastor Emma Contreras
