i appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect. [rom 12:1-2]
i’ve been quarantined now for 12 days, and i have a confession. i did the bare minimum. i was tested and i chose to be conformed to this world. forgive me body as i did not care for you in my decision to be lazy and lethargic. of course, there is some grace that i am working to extend myself because i did in fact have covid. however, i am passed being sick and yet in the last days i have taught myself to run to television. i have taught myself to give the least amount of effort.
i was tested and i chose to leave God out of my quarantine. instead of worshipping my God and king i chose to worship myself, to worship tv, to worship laziness.
God is so worthy of my entire life, yet I give him my leftovers, my last fruits (1 cor 15:22-24). paul is pleading with the romans that they may see how they too can be in the presence of God. yes, Jesus is the perfect sacrifice, but now in response we are able to give our entire selves, our bodies as a living sacrifice. not to add more to what Jesus did, but in response to the amazing gift the amazing miracle that he provided us.
now, I plead with you fellow believers, learn from my mistakes, do not let your day go to waste. be transformed by the renewal of your mind. run to scripture, learn to read it, memorize it. you will be tested. you may be in the midst of testing. hallelujah, praise God, i pray you are able to discern the will of God.
offer your thoughts back to God today in prayer. give thanks, ask for guidance, ask for forgiveness, and rest in God’s love.
~ holly russell