There is an active
practice of holiness as we carry out, for the glory of God, the ordinary duties
of each day, faithfully fulfilling the responsibilities given us. The passive practice consists in loving
acceptance of the unexpected, be it welcome or unwelcome, remembering that we
have a wise and sovereign Lord who works in mysterious ways and is never taken
by surprise. Which of these two requirements of holiness (active or passive) is
beyond our strength? Remember the words of the apostle Paul, and the conditions
(he was in prison) under which he wrote them: “I have learned the secret of
being content in any and every situation…. I can do everything through him who
gives me strength” (Philippians 4:12,13).
This is all that God demands of us in His work of sanctification. He demands it
from the high and the low, from the strong and the weak; in a word, from all,
always and everywhere. A promise to which I have clung for many years is the
prophetic word in Isaiah 50:7, “The Lord God will help me, therefore shall I
not be confounded, therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I
shall not be ashamed.” Perfection does not consist in understanding God’s designs
but in submitting to them, for “we know that in all things God works for the
good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans
8:28). Sometimes the explanation of his purpose (Romans 8:29) is overlooked: “For those God foreknew he also
predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son.” God works in the soul
to make it holy—to make it, finally, like Himself. The whole essence of the
spiritual life consists in recognizing the designs of God for us at the present
moment.
~Elisabeth Elliot from portions in her July/August 1999 newsletter
~Elisabeth Elliot
The pathway to holiness is located right where you are. In
those circumstances, in those relationships, in that tiredness, in that
challenge. The grace of God to make you holy is
right there. ~Elisabeth Elliot
Posted by~Breanna
