Mama Monday #20

 

My Journal Reflections on this passage

Paul writes

to the Ephesians

giving them

some instructions

for living a life that

reflects God’s heart.

 

At the end of chapter 4,

he tackles the topic

of our words-

as they have the power

to build up or tear down.

 

We should be mindful of what

comes out of our mouths

so that instead of our words being empty,

we can make our words gifts.

We are invited to use words

that help, bless, and heal others

and to be so attuned to those around us

that our words fit their needs

with grace and tenderness.

 

In so doing,

we are also told

to not grieve God

or to break His heart.

We are called to live

and move and breath

in a way that pleases God.  

For His Spirit is moving

and breathing in us,

and we don’t want

to take that for granted.

 

As we receive the gifts

of His movement in our lives,

we can let him weed out

the bitter roots in our hearts

as they only give way to anger

and resentment and pride.

Instead, we can remember

that we have been forgiven,

that our slates have been

wiped clean.

 

By His Spirit, we can be gentle

with ourselves and others,

and we can choose kindness

because we remember

time and time again

that we have been treated

with kindness beyond

our wildest imaginings.

 

We can release others

(and even ourselves sometimes)

from wounds inflicted

and from disconnection.

As beloved children

marked as His own,

we can instead choose

belonging and joy.

 

The invitation is to

embrace God’s tenderness

and soak it up so much

that we can be an embodiment

of the tenderness so desperately

needed in the world.