John 1:1–3 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…
In Jesus Christ, and through Him, we are redeemed from sin and death. No longer are we tossed to and fro from the destruction that is of this world.
Colossians 1:13-18 He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, 14 in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. 16 For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. 17 And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist. 18 And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence.
Jesus is the head and we, by faith in Him and the salvation that He offers in His death and resurrection, form His Body. Sacred and protected nothing can destroy the honor due God’s only begotten Son. To God all honor and glory. Carla
Domain of darkness refers to the realm dominated by sin and death (Ephesians 6:12). Kingdom is the realm in which Christ reigns as King, where His sovereign rule is carried out.
The transfer from one realm to the other is accomplished by God: In His love and grace, He brings believers out of the domain of sin and death and moves them into the kingdom of His Son. Faithlife Study Bible
Delivered … conveyed: God has liberated believers from the dominion of darkness. The apostle uses the common symbolism of light and darkness for good and evil, for God’s kingdom and Satan’s kingdom, that is found throughout the New Testament. The kingdom from which believers have been rescued is the kingdom of darkness (John 1:4–9; Ephesians 5:8; 1 Thessalonians 5:5; 1 Peter 2:9; 1 John 1:5). The NKJV Study Bible
Ephesians 1:15–23 Therefore I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, do not cease to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers:…
Ephesians 1:6–7 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
Romans 11:36 For of Him and through Him and to Him are all things, to whom be glory forever. Amen.
Revelation 3:14
“And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write;
These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God
I know I write about this—but realize I need to repeat it, for my own absorption; on life’s pilgrimage, God is not waiting until we have it all figured out. The gift of life is in this present moment.
We forget that life is not “a script”. Life is a choice. We choose. This is an invitation to participate in this life. To bring all that I am to the table of this moment. To invest my heart. To spill light where I can. What Barbara Kingsolver calls a “conspiracy with life.” Stories that are reminders of sufficiency and the sacrament of the present, to help us not give way to any restrictive narrative of fear. Sabbath Moments
“Sufficiency isn't two steps up from poverty or one step short of abundance. It isn't a measure of barely enough or more than enough. Sufficiency isn't an amount at all. It is an experience, a context we generate, a declaration, a knowing that there is enough, and that we are enough.” Lynne Twist
When we accept what we cannot control and we acknowledge God's sovereignty, we gain both humility and confidence in our daily activities.
With humility, we acknowledge that nothing in this world is ours forever (Matthew 24:35; Matthew 6:19). There is "a time to keep, and a time to cast away" or let go (Ecclesiastes 3:6).
With confidence, we make the best use of our time, not striving after wind but intentionally pursuing God's appointed purposes (Ephesians 5:16).
Today, may God's sovereignty over "every matter under heaven" (Ecclesiastes 3:1) lead us to live with humble confidence, assured of His purposes in every season. First5
