Precious You and Me

Something precious. Some little thing set high on a shelf at grandma’s house. Maybe it shined. Maybe it sparkled. And at some special moment in time, she took it down and let you hold it. You focused… in awe and reverence; taking special care not to mar it in any way (or God-forbid, drop it!). Then she’d gently put it back, probably reminiscing some wonderful story behind this special “trinket”. Yes, we all know a little something about awe and reverence. Respect. Honor.

The Bible says our bodies are God’s dwelling place. Do we really “get that”? We picture God far up in heaven, all-seeing, all-knowing – able to reach us to empower us, even way up from His throne on high. We have head knowledge that He is with us – close. But the Holy Spirit within us, Jesus in my heart to stay? Hard to relate the awe and the hush we might experience stepping into a magnificient cathedral… with  - everything about me is holy ground. Holy hands, holy lips, holy feet… holy smiles, holy tears. Set apart for God. With holy comings and goings. Having a holy God-honoring countenance all the day long. Awe and reverence for the physical presence – we are an instrument of His peace. Set apart indeed. So be gentle. Handle with care. Me ? Yes, me. And your fellow believers in Christ. Don’t say anything to yourself or to each other that you wouldn’t say to Christ.  Don’t do anything to your self or to each other that you wouldn’t do to Christ. Because we are the Body – the body of Christ. Let’s be patient. Let’s be gentle and kind – with ourselves and others. Love your neighbor as yourself. Turn your thoughts toward awe, honor, respect, reverence. Your body (and your fellow believer’s body) is a temple of the Holy Spirit Who is in you, Whom you have received from God (1 Corin. 6:19) If you believe the word to be God-breathed, then believe. It’s true of you. Its true of the Christian brother and sister around you. The world can be cold and cruel sometimes. Let us not join it’s rank when the power of God’s love is within us. Today, let’s live honoring and respecting and in reverent awe. For the glory of God. You are precious is His sight. And so are they.