Psalm 91:9-10, New International Version

“If you say, ‘The Lord is my refuge,’ and you make the Most High your dwelling, no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent.”

I feel pretty confident that everyone reading this knows that Jesus Christ is the Son of the living God and that He was born of a virgin, grew up in Nazareth, performed miracles, healed, cast out demons, and raised people from the dead. (He raised all of us who believe from the dead; our spirits were dead until we answered His call).  He was crucified, died and was buried and rose again on the third day. We all know the story and believe, but our levels of belief are different.

Is God/Jesus someone we contact when we reach the point of not being able to handle what’s going on? An emergency, an illness in the family, something out of our control, and we are on our knees or lying in our bed in tears because we have reached the end of what we can do? We put our God, who knew us before we were formed in the womb, in a box on a shelf in a closet to be opened when we need Him. Open in case of emergency!

What we choose to forget or overlook, when we shut that closet door and walk down the hall, sit ourselves in our recliner and turn on the television, is that God didn’t stay in that box waiting for us to come calling Him when things got tough.  He helped us close the box, shut the door, and walk down the hall with us. He is right there with you in that chair. We get complacent when life is good and life is easy.  The electric is on and all is running as it should. Supper is served at 5:00, bed at 9:00, up at 7:30. Repeat - repeat - repeat.

But God did not desire that for us. His love is a living, all-consuming desire for us to love Him. God made us in His image – Adam and Eve were to be His children – but they swallowed (literally) the lie of Satan. When Jesus gave His life on the cross, He covered our sin. We are His family. His Spirit lives in us and gives us direct contact with Him. We can’t be ordinary – Christ is in us! We are not on our own. We have a life that is more than we can hold. Fullness and peace are not an option – we have it in Christ. We are made in His image. He strengthens us in all things. He’s waiting for you to call Him. You can sit on His knee, and He will hold you close. It will be the safest, most peaceful loving life you could have – the arms of Jesus wrapped around you in love!

That box on the shelf does not hold our God. He is bigger than the universe and as small as an atom. He makes His home in our hearts and loves us until the end of time. Don’t let Him sit on your closet shelf.