All Things New

It hurts because it’s death. It’s lonely because we all die alone. It’s dark because it’s the crossing over. There is no life without death. To say I have died for myself and now I live for Christ, takes more than giving up a few bad habits. It takes more than just putting aside the lies and world identity. It takes death. Pure unadulterated death. This is something I always took so lightly, “For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. Phillipians 1:21). This doesn't mean to simply accept Christ as a role model, as an inspiration, but to fully accept Christ means to accept death. His death and resurrection, in order for me to have my death and resurrection. Without death there is no resurrection. I am going through death. It’s been a slow death but sometimes it has to be slow because it takes acceptance of the things dying. It takes mourning the loss. It takes feeling every rotten and impure thing to leave who you are in order for you to become who you were meant to be. A new creation in Christ. How disillusioned of me to overlook death in my choice. To believe that by stepping into “All things new” it would be easier overnight. But the good work is real, y’all. The good work is deeper than what we can see. The good work is actual work. All things new is the surrendering to this process. All things new is only the threshold, only the beginning of death. This enlightenment has shone light to this pain. I constantly ask the Lord, is this what you want for me? This pain? This isolation? And the answer is yes, for a season we need these things to die to the parts of us that are attached to anything other than Him. How can He be front and center if we still cling on to our ways? To other loves? To other paths? To our own plans? To die is to gain. To die is to restart. The ultimate death in Christ in order to step into the ultimate life in Christ. I have been wondering when the light starts to come in and flood over my life, but I haven’t yet fully died. She lingered, she fought to stay. But this isn’t her life anymore. So here’s the good news, death has been revealed, meaning life is right around the corner. Cling to Him until it is finished. Allow Him to invade every part of your life, die to everything else. Embrace the pain and the darkness because what is coming will be so much greater than all of the pain of death. Surrender. Wait. Let His death wash over you, die to everything and everyone to be born again for Him. To be with Him forever and ever.