Glory At Our Fingertips

Whew! This journey of faith is quite the process, right?! Picture it as a long distance road trip. Upon starting out, you are so hyped to be starting out and so excited to "get there"...and then a few hours into it (or for me, more like 15 min), you start to feel it. The ancy-ness, the boredom, the fights with your sisters (because you a ref squished together), the realization that this is going to take A LOT longer than what you had envisioned in your mind! The only way to get through the trip is to find the joy in the midst of the journey. That ever so present gift of Joy within our faith forms together with Hope in securing our foundation; equipping us for the process of a faith-filled walking out of our inheritance every step along the way--through every test, roadblock, detour or seemingly never-ending same road.

In Matthew, Jesus lays claim to Simon, renamed Peter, and the security of his faith foundation. He identifies Peter's foundation of faith with being "a rock". Immovable. Steadfast. Enduring. Jesus knew Peter. He knew Peter was his disciple who would deny him repeatedly out of fear. Jesus knew Peter would also revert to fear on the water, walking towards Jesus, the Savior of the world, who had already displayed to him miracle after miracle. Jesus knew Peter's impulsive tendencies. And still, he names him  "a rock"; a steadfast, immovable faith is attributed to one of the most impulsive of the disciples. Why? Because Jesus knew him. He knew all of him. He knew Peter's heart. His motivations. His passionate determination and love for his Master. He identified Peter as he is...as he is through the complete power of Jesus. He is who makes us whole. It is he who calls and marks us as righteous...as perfect...as his sons and daughters. And he sees and knows all of us. He calls forth greatness, great men and women of honor that are capable of the inconceivable---through HIM.

It is us, who stop short. It is our disbelief or disillusions that cause us to remain close to our starting points. As babes still needing and relying on milk, not meat. We don't grow up because we don't think we are capable or worthy or...the list goes on and on. The Enemy's greatest accomplishment is infiltrating our minds and hearts with deception. Deceiving us to belief that we are inadequate even as Christ-followers. And we too easily agree with him. Our beliefs will affect our thoughts...going further to determine our actions. Jesus states in Matthew "If you embrace this kingdom life and don't doubt God, you'll not only do minor feats like i did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles...Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God" (Matt. 21:21-22).

Let us lay hold of ALL that God is. May we not confine him to our disbelief, or cynicism, or wounded view of who he is. May we dig deep within our hearts and minds to pry out that which does not belong, and replace it with truth...with who God claims and defines us as. It is then, and only then, that we will have our eyes opened to all of God. Upon our full embrace, the fullness of God will be capable of being seen. And he is so anxious to show himself to us!!! He is eagerly displaying himself in all of his glory to those "Peters", who are passionately grasping for truth, believing, and ready to open their eyes. Open your eyes and start seeing, feeling and knowing the truest joy that can be ours along our journeys! That is the hope that we have today. That is our inheritance...Glory at our fingertips, as we hold his hand through it all.