I remember going to a waffle house where they had all different kinds of syrup for waffles. One kid who went with me put different syrup in each square. It looked like stained glass window! I’m not sure about the taste though…

I think our lives are sometimes like that waffle with different syrup in each square. We have compartments. If the syrup is the Holy Spirit, rather than covering each and every square of our lives and overflowing with consistency, each part of our lives has different “syrup” in it. God hasn’t touched every part. We are still operating by the old ways and we will continue to do so until the Holy Spirit runneth over and through.

That is because our brain is broken. Once God comes into our lives, He should rule over every part instantly. But because we are severely broken, it takes a long time for God to saturate every part. For example, after having been a Christian for almost 30 years, I still struggle with generosity. In the name of frugality, I justify not being more generous. I shouldn’t have to work on this. It should come naturally once I’ve been made new in Christ. But because I’m broken, I have to make efforts.

And this is what Paul knew very well about human nature. After having expounded upon Christ and His finished work on the cross, he admonishes us to “work” hard at becoming who we are. Romans 12:9-21 lists 20+ things for us to do. Things such as “let love be real,” “hate what is evil,” “rejoice with those who rejoice,” “be constant in prayer”….

He shouldn’t have to tell us how to live, but because we are broken, we don’t necessarily make the connection between what Christ has done for us and therefore how we should live.

Would you work hard? Do the hard thing. Swim upstream. This means getting up 30 minutes earlier to spend time with God each morning. This means getting your little ones ready on Sunday morning to worship with other brothers and sisters. This means making a call to that brother/sister who is struggling, which may be uncomfortable.

Strive to conform to Christ!

PH