Structure and Stability (Week 41)

​​The blueberry muffins were already in the oven. As I cleaned the counter top, an egg rolled out from behind a canister. Glancing toward my Home & Careers teacher, I saw the disappointment on her face. Even at my young age I knew the muffins would not taste very good— the egg had a purpose in the recipe.
 
Eggs serve an important purpose in any recipe. They create structure and provide stability; they are the “glue” that holds the oils and waters together. While I barely passed my Home & Careers class, over the years I’ve learned a lot about structure and stability.

​​1 Corinthians 3:3-4 says, “…Ask yourselves: Is there jealousy among you? Do you compare yourselves with others? Do you quarrel like children and end up taking sides?

If so, this proves that you are living your lives centered on yourselves, dominated by the mind-set of the flesh, and behaving like unbelievers. For when you divide yourselves up in groups - a “Paul group” and an “Apollos group” - you’re acting like people without the Spirit’s influence.”
 
The early church in Corinth was struggling. Like every major city throughout history, it was cutting-edge modern, highly individualistic. New believers were struggling to make their faith work in their diverse culture. As Paul wrote to this body of believers, he wasn’t trying to get them to conform to his identity— Paul was writing to help them understand what it means to be God’s children.
 
Our emotions are like the eggs in a recipe. They serve an important purpose and function. Our emotions are divinely designed to provide structure and stability to our faith journey, and to our part in community. When we ignore our emotions and let them run unchecked, we become out of balance and unstable. In Paul’s words, we “act like people without the Spirit’s influence.”
 
We are triune beings; we have a spirit, a soul, and a body. Our soul is the seat of our emotions. It’s our passions, our pains, and our thoughts— all of which direct our attitudes and actions. Jealousy, comparison, offense all are fruit of our soul. But they are bad fruit. When our soul is wounded and left unchecked, it wreaks havoc on ourselves, and our relationships.
 
Paul’s word to the believers in Corinth is to bring ourselves back under the Spirit’s influence. Practically, we bring those wounded areas to Jesus and let Holy Spirit heal them. This is the process of being Spirit-led (Galatians 5:18). Being Spirit-led, not soul-led, is how we live together in community, united even in our diversity. Allowing Holy Spirit to tend to the wounds in our soul keeps the structure and stability.
 
Jealousy, comparison, and offense are healed with forgiveness and stepping back into Grace. Without forgiving and releasing people, we are forgetting the glue that holds us together: the blood of Jesus.
 
Where do you need to step back into Holy Spirit’s influence? Who do you need to forgive and release back to Jesus? Maybe you need to forgive someone in your family, or even yourself. Maybe you need to forgive someone at your church, or your boss at work.
 
Repent from giving into those comparing and judging thoughts. Give them to Jesus. Ask Him what He has for you. Ask Jesus to give you eyes to see things the way He sees them, and come back under Holy Spirit’s influence.

About the Author

Hi! I'm Anne Say. My husband and I have a blended family of five adult children (five sons and daughters-in-love), and nine grandchildren! I am a retired teacher (and former office manager). These days I get to combine all of my experience into helping people make sense of life and faith. God has called me to people who are stuck in their faith and who've lost their sense of identity. I help people make sense of the past, see clearly in the present, and catch a vision for the future. Connect with Anne at www.annesayphotography.com

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