Sanctifi---What?

"God's way is not to take us out of the world-

But to take the world out of us.

This separateness is not a physical removal from other people

But a spiritual relocation into

God's sphere."

Tonight I enjoyed an evening of Pho (check it out if you've never experienced it), friends and painting.

That girl in the middle is Gwen...we celebrated her birthday and that girl in the blue apron is Carmen...her 3rd baby boy is coming this Tuesday!  What you can't see in this picture is the very drunken girl to my right....who sat next to me for over 2 hours cussing like a sailor and chugging whatever her drink of choice was for the evening...and across from me were four of my other blessed and beautiful friends.

There is nothing "special" about us...except that we are all believers in Christ....we believe that He lived for us, died for us, was raised from his grave on the 3rd day and is seated at the Right Hand of the ONE true God......and that He calls us to something greater than anything this world could offer...... 

"to be holy as He is holy."

This doesn't mean that we have a list of do's and don'ts that we have to abide by ....

But it DOES mean that we Abide ....

We do what we do because we ARE who we ARE...

We ARE set apart....unto Him

Not from the world ....but by His GRACE that takes the world out of us...

We now choose to do or not do...not out of obligation

But out of our LOVE for Him."

As I listened for over two hours to this lost little girl next to me....I was reminded of who I WAS not too many years ago....the drunk girl cussing up a storm....insecure, lonely and full of fear.

On another day, I may have felt the need to put this girl in her place.....to tell her how foolish she was to speak the things she was speaking in a room full of strangers....what a burden she was to our beautiful birthday celebration....BUT somewhere in the midst of my inner dialogue....I was given GRACE.

GRACE to allow her to be who she was.....insecure, lonely and full of fear.  GRACE to pray that when she lays her head on her pillow that she will be reminded of the PEACE that was present in our group.  GRACE to pray that when she wakes up in the morning she will have an overwhelming desire to search for that PEACE.....that her soul would cry out....that she would LONG to rest in that presence of PEACE again...and that she would search and search and that she would be FOUND.

In the midst of all of this.....I was overwhelmed by the thought....how was it that I had been transformed......

Sanctification is just a fancy way of saying "to be put to it's proper use."  I am thankful tonight that it is not me, myself and I who has worked and will continue to work in me to make me into HIS IMAGE....but that it is Jehovah Mekeddeshem...."The Lord who Sanctifies"....In His presence and in His rest He RECREATES me into His image....

.....to be light in the darkness, peace in the chaos, grace in the brokeness...

May we all be aware of who God is...who He created us to BE.... and for what PURPOSE He has created us....