For thou hast possessed my reins: Thou hast covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: Marvelous are thy works; And that my soul knoweth right well. (Psalm 139:13, 14) Another translation says, “You made my whole being; you formed me in my mother’s body. I praise you because you made me in an amazing and wonderful way. What you have done is wonderful. I know this very well.
What? God has possessed (owned) my thoughts, my impulses, my affections, and my passions from day one. He covered me in my mother's womb. I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Then what is my problem? Have I never known this? Did I know it and forgot it? No. The truth is I didn't know it. I read the words but did not comprehend their meaning. Consequently, I never applied them.
It is time to understand and live by the understanding that I am owned. I was bought. 1 Corinthians 6:20 clearly says so. “For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's. Verse 19 gives the complete thought. “What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
How did I miss the totality of the connection? I have been treating my entire self as though I own me! Wrong! God purchased me at a price I could not even begin to pay. I have been misusing someone else’s property when I am generally very careful how I treat things belonging to someone else. Wow! I am more careful with things belonging to humans than I am with God's prized possession--the temple, the home of His Spirit!
If a person has ownership of the body of his/her spouse, how much more should the Spirit of God Himself have control over me?
How many times have I sung the words to the song “I Surrender All” with tears streaming down my face? How many times have I run through my stored-up thoughts frantically searching for things I might have missed and failed to surrender? And yet, as I absorbed these words today, I realize I have flashes of anger at inconsiderate drivers, flashes of impatience or frustration with a child who doesn't understand his/her desire cannot be met instantly? And that is just the beginning of things I find when I begin to diligently search.
I hear the words of many pastors, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, fruit exists: Love, joy, peace, gentleness, meekness, kindness, longsuffering, temperance, goodness, faithfulness.” Basically, if these are missing, perhaps He is not at home.
God owns my emotions. They are His. So, it's time to give them back. It is time to surrender all I have taken and mismanaged and time to become a better caregiver of the Spirit’s home. He wants to live in His house. And, I want Him to stay there. Prayer: Holy Spirit water my withered soul today. Be strength for my weakness; touch me and make me whole.
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