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A Heart Flooded with Light
Andrea Lende • December 21, 2020
Ephesians 1:18-19
A Heart Flooded with Light
You can also listen to the devotion and prayer at: https://anchor.fm/andrea-lende/episodes/A-Heart-Flooded-with-Light-eo2bgi
Ephesians 1:18-19
“By having the eyes of your heart flooded with light, so that you can know and understand the hope to which He has called you, and how rich is His glorious inheritance in the saints (His set-apart ones),”
“And [so that you can know and understand] what is the immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power in and for us who believe, as demonstrated in the working of His mighty strength.”
This passage is simply beautiful.
The words paint this gorgeous picture in our minds, “having the eyes of your heart flooded with light”.
I imagine our hearts being flooded with light.
Not just any light.
But the Light of Jesus and His resurrection.
The brightest Light that is beyond our eyesight to withstand.
When Jesus was in the presence of God, Elijah, and Moses, He was transfigured and was shining as bright as lightening.
That is the bright Light that floods our hearts.
It floods our hearts, so we know without a shadow of a doubt that the Lord is our God and that He sent His Son to die for us.
Paul tells us this Light helps us understand the “immeasurable and unlimited and surpassing greatness of His power”.
As we know and come to understand that this power raised Jesus from the dead, we must then know and understand the Lord has power that surpasses all power.
God is Almighty!
God is All-powerful!
God is Magnificent!
And His love floods our hearts.
He comes to us in such a real way that we fully open our hearts to Him.
Our faith increases.
Our belief becomes firm in the Lord because He gives us understanding and hope.
Today I choose to believe in the Lord, God Almighty and am thankful He chose me to be His as He floods my heart with His love.
May you find the Lord is flooding your heart with Light and love so your understanding of Him is great and your hope in Him is everlasting.
Daily Prayer:
O Lord, my God, thank You for reminding me of the Light You flood my heart with. Thank You for giving me more understanding and more belief in You and Your power. You are Almighty. You are All-powerful. You are Magnificent, Lord! I praise Your name! I praise You and all You have done and will do. Your Almighty power raised Your Son from the grave to save all people from sin. Thank You, Lord, for releasing Your Son to this earth to be the One Sacrifice that saves us. Thank You, Father, for Your perfect plan. Thank You, Lord, for choosing me to be Yours. Thank You for never letting go of me. Thank You for directing my heart to worship You. Thank You for directing my soul to seek You. Keep me seeking You, Father. I pray for Wisdom – as much as You will give me. Lead and direct me each day, Lord. Help me follow You and be obedient to You in every way. Thank You, Lord, for all You do and all You are. Help me bless someone this day. Thank You for hearing my prayer.
Answer: I AM the Great I AM, and I AM with you and will lead and guide you in all that you do.
Response: Thank You, Almighty and All-Power God and Father.
We start a New Year! How exciting! Paul had just finished telling the Ephesians to put off their old nature. They had been run around by their feelings and desires. He told them to be renewed in their spirit. The Amplified Bible defines this to be “having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude.” As we say goodbye to this year, let us put on the new and leave the old behind. We have an opportunity to reflect on what to bring forward into this New Year.
This is a great message for the New Year. We can be in control of our own words. As a mother, I used to tell my children to use their words to explain what was happening in their minds. I tried to help them find the right words. Words that would help the situation and not make it worse. I must do the same thing when talking to them. It’s important to use words that do not damage their spirits. Words that lift up instead of tear down. Even though my children have grown, I still want to be careful how I speak to them because my worlds will impact them for the rest of their lives.
As we approach the New Year, it is a perfect time to take inventory of what part of our lives, our hearts, and our souls are not bearing fruit. What can we give up as this year comes to a close? What do we need to give to the Lord for His cleansing and pruning? The answers to these questions take time. Time with the Lord. We are creatures of routines and habits which serve us well. But we can also change our routines and habits to serve us and the Lord better. So, we can ask God to show us what He wants us to give up so that He can have more of us.
I cannot think of a better verse to meditate on as we approach the New Year. Jesus said, "the kingdom of God is within you [in your hearts] and among you [surrounding you]." For so many years I believed I had to wait to go to heaven to experience the kingdom of God. I have longed to step into heaven and meet the Lord and His Son. However, as we read the Gospels and study Jesus and all that He said, we begin to understand the kingdom of God is all around us. The kingdom of God is within.
Paul wrote to the Colossians and told them he was praying for them. He prayed they would be refreshed, renewed, and invigorated. He also prayed they would be strengthened. May his prayer be heard by the Lord God Almighty on our behalf today just as it was received two thousand years ago. God is the Source of all things beautiful and wonderful. There is no shortage of renewal, refreshment, or inspiration in His kingdom. And as the Creator of this universe, He continues to pour all good things into His people. Paul wrote that refreshment and strength are needed so we may have endurance.
This verse is the perfect verse to reflect on as Christmas comes to a close. The Lord sent His Son to us. He sent Him to this world as a babe. Jesus was given the task of growing up. A difficult one for all of us. He endured the awkward stages we all go through as we grow past them. I look back at old picture and cringe, yes, I cringe. This life provides plenty of opportunities to feel awkward and just plain weird, but our Father loves us as though we are perfect every day of our lives. This is why Jesus came. He came to make us perfect in God’s sight.
God made Himself flesh so He could take away the sins of the world. The story of the very first Christmas was humble, yet the most powerful and loving birth ever recorded in history. All humanity changed in an instant. When Jesus was born, love filled the earth. Love came down and lifted us up. The angels came to tell the shepherds of this beautiful birth. The stars in the heavens also told the story. As we do all tasks that we do to ensure a beautiful Christmas day, may we remember the miracle that God sent long ago. The miracle of all miracles.
The first Christmas was going to be documented, so that it could be read many times over for all Christmas’ to come. It was also documented so the prophecy of the Messiah’s birth would be known to be fulfilled. Prophets of old foretold Jesus would come from the house of David. They also prophesied that He would be born in Bethlehem. And all this came to pass. Even though Jesus would be known as a Nazarene, His beginning began in Bethlehem. God’s divine plan was set in motion with the first census while Mary was at the end of her pregnancy.
What a wonderful passage to read during Christmas week. Our passage touched my heart as I read it through the lens of Jesus’ birth. “It was God [personally present] in Christ, reconciling and restoring the world to favor with Himself.” We have so much to be thankful for in these few short words, “restoring the world to favor with Himself.” So undeserved and yet so graciously given. We are offered favor with the Lord. Imagine having favor with the almighty God, the Creator of the universe. Jesus chose to leave heaven’s door where all was perfect. He chose to be born into this dusty messy world.
Jesus had just spoken to a fig tree and deemed it unworthy to live because it had no fruit on it. His disciples were amazed when they saw the fig tree wither and die. Then the Lord talked to them about prayer and belief. He told them that whatever they asked for, if they had the faith and belief, they would receive it. I remember the day I started hearing music and lyrics. I had just bowed my head at the piano and asked if the Lord would bless praise and worship music. As soon as I prayed that prayer, the Lord bestowed the gift of song writing upon me.