Oh how I remember the feeling, the anxiety, the turmoil, the conflict in my gut as I made attempts to be like others; to fit in, to say the right "cool" words; to be like the cool kids.  Wait.  Isn't there a song like that?  Well yes there is - here are the lyrics:
"Cool Kids" by Echosmith
She sees them walking in a straight line,
That's not really her style
And they all got the same heartbeat
But hers is falling behind.
Nothing in this world could
Ever bring them down
Yeah, they're invincible, and she's just in the background

And she says
I wish that I could be like the cool kids
'Cause all the cool kids, they seem to fit in
I wish that I could be like the cool kids
Like the cool kids

He sees them talking with a big smile
But they haven't got a clue
Yeah, they're living the good life
Can't see what he is going through
They're driving fast cars
But they don't know where they're going
In the fast lane, living life without knowing

And he says
I wish that I could be like the cool kids
'Cause all the cool kids, they seem to fit in
I wish that I could be like the cool kids
Like the cool kids

That pretty much captures what I was wanting to express :)  The pressure to act in a way to fit in; even though it's not really who we are.  And yes, while these might be descriptions of our youth, we might want to consider if we ever adopt these thoughts as adults.

Who are we anyway?

Consider yourself in a given week.  Think about the different days of the week.  The different hours in the days.  There's Mondays - Fridays. There's Saturdays.  Sundays.  You have morning times when everyone is getting ready for the day.  Day hours of work, job or other daytime activities.  There's evening time, dinner time, meetings, athletic activities.  Bedtime.  What are we like in each of these moments?  Are we similar in all we do?  Are we a different person according to who we are with or what we are doing or what part of the day it is? How do we look throughout the day?

Our Heavenly Father has something to say about this in Colossians 3:15-17, "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace.  And be thankful.  Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.  And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him."

First of all, I get stuck on the very first word, "Let".  After 14 verses of describing what the old and new life looks like, we are led to consider what to do with it all.  "Let".  To choose to allow.  Give permission to.  Position ourselves so that...It's something we have to want, to invite, to let...

As I studied these 3 verses, the Language Arts teacher in me popped out.  I broke them down into the 5W's (&H) of a story.  (Who, What, Where, When? Why? How?)  So here it goes:
Who?  You and me - those who have chosen to commit ourselves to Jesus

What?  Let, permit, allow.  
- What do we Let?  We must let the Peace of Christ and the Word of Christ...
- What do we Let the Peace of Christ and the Word of Christ do?  Rule.  Dwell.

Where?  In our hearts, in us richly
- Where do we let the Peace and Word of Christ rule and dwell? IN US

Why? Why should we Let the Peace and Word of Christ rule and dwell in us? 
- Because we were called to peace;  to teach, admonish, sing psalms, hymns and spiritual songs

How?  How do we Let the Peace and Word of Christ rule and dwell in us?
- with thankfulness, with GRATITUDE in our hearts, IN THE NAME OF THE LORD JESUS!

The 5W's/H of how we are to live our precious lives in Christ!

Two characters in this story are the Peace of Christ and the Word of Christ.  The Peace of Christ would like to rule in our hearts.  The definition of peace = A state of calm; freedom of strife or discord; harmony in personal relationships.  Think on that a moment.  What does the PEACE of CHRIST mean to you?  Next, the original word for "rule" used here refers to acting like an umpire.  According to a home plate umpire, as he positions himself to carefully observe and pay close attention to each and every pitch, a pitch is either ruled to be a ball or a strike.  Imagine what it is like when life throws us a curve ball and we allow our umpire, the peace of Christ, to make a ruling; to make the call.  How would it be different if we try to observe the pitch heading straight at us and try to make the call?  The peace of Christ, if we LET Him into our heart, is in a position to see the pitch fairly...and thus makes the call so that out of that, we can respond and follow accordingly.  And for that we are thankful.

The other character is the Word of Christ.  The very message of Jesus.  The ultimate, non-negotiable, everlasting, steadfast Truth.  A double-edged sword.  The Word that is active and alive.  Where does the Word of Christ want to go?  The Word of Christ desires to dwell, to abide, to make a home - in US!  The Word of Christ wants to settle into us, fill us - so much that the Word becomes us.  It seeps into the way we interact with others - teaching and admonishing, singing and praising.  And for that we are filled with gratitude!

Another piece of this story is the "when".  All the time.  In whatever; everything; in all circumstances; in all we say and do; in our every word and deed.  Holy Living is not just an occasional outfit we pull out of our closet.  Holy Living should BE your whole wardrobe.  We worked at getting rid of the things that belong to our earthly living.  We have replaced them with holy garments.  Now, on each and every occasion, in each circumstance or situation, we should be able to have an outfit to put on that is stitched in the Peace of Christ and the Word of Christ.

Whatever we say and do.  At home.  At work or school.  At meetings and activities.  At church.  On Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays.  To our families.  To our friends.  To our co-workers.  To our enemies.  To strangers.  Whatever we say and do.  In word or deed.  Do it all in the name of the Lord, giving thanks!

Does this seem impossible?  Humanly, Yes.  BUT....LET  the Peace of Christ RULE.  LET the Word of Christ DWELL.  

You see, the Lord God desires all of you all the time.  Do we have our moments?  Of course we do.  For me, after about 9pm, this mama turns into a pumpkin (and that actually sounds like too nice of a description).  The phrase you might here around my house at night is, 'Ok, watch out, Mom's done!' :) So, I must try to understand how I can walk in holy living after 9pm.....maybe the best way is to go ahead and go to bed :):)
He wants all of us all the time.  Not just one outfit.  Not just on Sunday mornings.  Not just in public.  When we LET GOD, when we get to know Him more and fall in love with Him more and truly surrender to Him, and give Him permission to invade ALL of who we are, every piece of clothing in every closet, perhaps we can respond to the curve balls in life with thanksgiving.  He wants us all.  He wants what we say and do to come out of our hearts that are full of the Peace and Word of Christ.  

​He's not looking for canned words or actions...not just someone going through the motions.  In fact, Amos 5:21-23 gives us a glimpse of what God thinks of this, "I hate, I despise your religious feasts; I cannot stand your assemblies.  Even though you bring me burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them.  Though you bring choice fellowship offerings, I will have no regard for them.  Away with the noise of your songs!  I will not listen to the music of your harps."  
Ouch!  

HE WANTS our offerings, our songs, our words and deeds to flow from our hearts of love for Him.  Not out of an action to be like the "cool kids".  But out of a vessel full of the Peace and Word of Christ.

May we LET GOD.  May we be so transformed that we, those He created in His image, look more and more like Him, more and more holy.  LET CHRIST!

Application:

- Do a study on the PEACE of God - meditate on passages that help define God's peace as opposed to a "peace" found elsewhere

- Do a study on the WORD of Christ - meditate on passages that show the power of His Word!
​
- Keep a journal of your words and deeds in each part of each day.  Ask God to show you where you may need to LET Him in more?

Do you find yourself staring blankly at your closet some mornings?  You try to pick out that one outfit for this day, but nothing is jumping out?  Or maybe too many are jumping out?  What do you feel like wearing today?  Does what you pick to put on depend on how you're feeling that morning?  Maybe the weather determines the choices?  Or perhaps something stretchy seems to be in order for the day!

Or maybe none of these apply to you.  Are you one who, with no consideration or thought behind the choice, reaches in, grabs something out of the closet and puts it on?  Period.

We are challenged in Colossians 3:12-14 to clothe ourselves; to put on certain things.  Over the last couple blogs we discovered how to get rid of things from our closet that are earthly, sinful, detrimental to our walk with Christ.  And so, as we continue to sift out those things, as we stand before our closet, trying to pick something out to wear, what choices might we have left?

"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience.  Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.  And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity."  Colossians 3:12-14

First of all, soak in the identify of who we are in Christ..."God's CHOSEN people" - yes - He chose us!!!  "Holy", "Dearly Loved".  Close your eyes and imagine yourself described in such a way.  You are dearly loved by a God who chooses you!  Don't move on until that sets in.  Because until we realize that we matter; that we are so dearly loved; that we are "HOLY and dearly loved"; we won't accept or acknowledge the wardrobe that we are qualified to wear and that awaits us!

Ok, now that you embrace who you are in Christ, let's move on.  Read the list Paul gives again.  Slowly.  Considering each piece of clothing.  Compassion.  Kindness.  Humility.  Gentleness.  Patience.  Forgiveness.  Love.  Define and understand what each one represents.  How different this looks from the list of our earthly nature.  Keep in mind that these verses are a part of a passage that addresses how we lived before Christ was a part of our lives, and how we live in this new life with Him.  It's like putting on a new wardrobe!

For some of us, it could be a challenge to put on a shirt that feels so different than what we are used to wearing.  Ok, here comes my analogy, but first I must state this disclaimer:  I truly believe there is no place or reason or purpose for high heels!  But, for the sake of a comparison, here it goes.  It might be like me, if one day I switch from wearing flat dress shoes to wearing high heels.  At first it may be completely uncomfortable and most likely a bit unnatural.  I might walk a little funny in them.  But the more I wear them, the better they will feel, until one day, I naturally pick them to wear and oh do they feel good! 

Another thing that comes to mind is that there could be days, and probably early on in the "heel training" when I would be tempted to toss the high heels and resort back to my comfortable old flat shoes.  Do you see what I mean?

You see, we have a choice.  In each day, in each situation we face, in each person we deal with, we have a choice in what we wear to the occasion.  When someone has hurt you or you find yourself upset, what will you choose to put on as you deal with them?  Will you clothe yourself in your old comfy ways - putting on anger?  filthy language?  greed?  slander?  rage?  Or will you dress yourself and try on something from your new wardrobe?  Compassion?  humility?  patience?

We get to pick!  It's our choice what we pull out of our closet to put on.  Trust me, it's a challenge sometimes to wear patience or humility or any others on that list.  As we grow in Christ, and learn from His ways, and embrace the spiritual clothes He wears, this new wardrobe will grow on us!

We must set our minds on things above.  All of this comes down to the idea that WE choose.  We use our minds to decide what we wear.  If we just reach into our closet and grab something, it may not be the outfit we need.  Christs calls us to reflect on Him and clothe ourselves accordingly.  

There were times I heard my children use the phrase, "Oh!  They make me so mad!"  The alarm went off - teachable moment alert!!!  I remember sharing with them that "they" cannot make you mad.  Being mad is a choice - it's how you are responding to their actions.  You are choosing to be mad.  In essence, they clothed themselves in anger rather than in patience.

Read Ephesians 4:17-5:21 and learn even more about how we are to live as children of the light and what other apparel we can put on from our new wardrobe.

​O ye followers of Christ, ye holy and dearly loved children of God, ambassadors and representatives of Jesus, being raised from the dead with Christ, may we in all that we say and do, set our minds on things above, rid ourselves of our earthly sinful nature and get dressed up in the garments of Christ!

Application:
* Ask God to show you what things are still hanging in your closet that need to pitch.  What are you still wearing of your earthly nature?  
Also ask Him to show you what clothing you stay away from that He so much wants you to wear?  (review the list in Colossians 3:12)
* Draw a picture of yourself and label what clothes you currently wear.  Name and label that earthly nature(s) that needs tossed.  As you pray for God's strength, cross out the earthly nature labels and replace them with those listed in verse 12.
* Spend some time with Jesus as He affirms His love for you, calling you His chosen, holy and dearly loved child.