Set our minds on the Spirit.

I have been trying to gain a deeper understanding of how to “walk in the Spirit. ” How do I live in a human body and be constantly bombarded by earthly things but  “set my mind on the Spirit”.  How does that work?  So I have been studying in Romans and also praying that God would direct my thinking and show me truth.  Today I read:

(Romans 8:5-8) For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

Wow- that seems black and white.  If we live according to the Spirit we DO set our minds on spiritual things- otherwise we are “hostile to God”!  Hostile means antagonistic, unfriendly, non-receptive.   We cannot please God if our mind is set on the flesh. 

Yesterday I had some trials and difficulties and as the day progressed I found myself wallowing in self- pity.   Now self-pity is quite obviously a mindset that is focused on flesh.  As I pondered this I realized that in the big picture of life- God had allowed the trials and difficulties so if I reacted in a negative way- ultimately my negative reaction was directed at God since He is Sovereign over-all and He allowed it to happen to me. 

I had never viewed self-pity as being hostile to God but it is easy to see that it is a focus on the flesh. 

Peace with God

Over the years my understanding of why I exist has changed a number of times.  Now that I am officially “old” I know for certain that I will be standing naked and empty handed before my Creator soon.  All of us die- 100% guaranteed no matter how hard we work to stay fit and healthy.  And the existence of God is evident in creation even though the vast majority of people do not want to acknowledge Him.  Just because we don’t want a righteous judge to exist does not change the fact that He does.

I am at peace with God.  I long to meet Him face to face.  I understand the apostle Paul saying “to live is Christ and to die is gain”.  I don’t feel like my work here is done- there are some people I love very much who are not ready to meet their Maker and I keep praying for them and hoping to influence them but if God calls me home I will not kick and scream about it!

I can’t say that I have peace with earthly life though.  I feel like I am on the battlefield in a war.  I feel battered and beat up- pulled in different directions- tempted and tried.  I can feel exhausted like I am climbing up Mt Elbert and there is no oxygen! (Did that once and only reached the summit because my sweet hubby helped me).  Daily life can wear a person down.  Sometimes we have an agenda but the multitude of distractions and interruptions keep us from accomplishing much.  Or we are fighting a bad habit and we have days where we fall flat on our faces, both scenarios can be discouraging.

In the midst of all the madness- all the horrible scenes on the nightly news- there can be a peace and calm inside that feels rock solid.  It comes from knowing with absolute certainty that God Almighty is pleased with me.  I’m not perfect- I still fall flat on my face and sin daily – I get impatient- speak without thinking- eat when I am not hungry- but I have more confidence of my right standing with God than I have ever had before in my life.  I have more compassion for the lost and suffering- more hope for victory over the sins that I struggle with- because God is FOR me. It is a peaceful place to be.