Water Pipes

As I look back on this past year and what the Lord has taught me, all I can say is, "Wow!". There is one thing that sticks out most in my mind though of what God has taught me (and STILL continues to), and it is that of living a truly holy life for Him.

Have you ever been in the kitchen after cooking a long, tedious meal when all of a sudden, you turn on the garbage disposal and the pipes are clogged from all the oils and fats and meat that was used for preparing the food? It's no fun, and it makes it extremely difficult to pick up the kitchen, then it ends up gurgling back up to the surface, unable to push through the pipes and enter the sewer, where it really should be in the first place. Or maybe another example would be showering when all of a sudden, your water pressure is so low from the hard water build up that all your getting is a tiny trickle that isn't useful at all! In order to keep these horrific things from happening, we must monitor what is going into the pipes in the first place, that way they can easily flow to the places that were designed for them…(ex. putting fats in the trashcan rather than the garbage, making sure a soft water generator is installed…etc.)

For me, it is as if we are water pipes for God; we are simply the route that He chooses to send his "flow" of work through, but we have the potential of being the pipes that are friction free, allowing the water to flow smoothly through, or being the pipes that we shove anything down that could possibly prevent water from reaching its final destiny. In 1 Peter 1:16, we are commanded as a group of believers to "be holy, because [he] is holy". First of all, what an amazing concept. The fact that the the Perfect Lord of the universe has called us to be holy…the fact the we have even the POTENTIAL to be holy for Him is kind of mind blowing for me. The common mind set for most Christians today is "We are not perfect and never will be, but that is why Christ came to die on this earth for us", which is totally and completely true, but I often feel that most of us stop right there. I did for a long time of my life, but Yahweh is changing me and opening my eyes to things that I would have never even considered thinking about…holiness. What does the word "Holy" even mean? It is used so often in the English language that it sort of loses its "saltiness" if you will. I looked it up just to sort of refresh my memory on how we should read the word and this is what I found:

ho·ly   [hoh-lee]–adjective

1.

specially recognized as or declared sacred by religious use or authority; consecrated: holy ground.

2.

dedicated or devoted to the service of god, the church, or religion: a holy man.

3.

saintly; godly; pious; devout: a holy life.

4.

having a spiritually pure quality: a holy love.

5.

entitled to worship or veneration as or as if sacred: a holy relic.

6.

religious: holy rites.

7.

inspiring fear, awe, or grave distress.

What's consecrated?

con·se·crate   crat·ing, adjective

–verb (used with object)

1.

to make or declare sacred; set apart or dedicate to the service of a deity: to consecrate a new church building.

2.

to make (something) an object of honor or veneration; hallow: a custom consecrated by time.

3.

to devote or dedicate to some purpose: a life consecrated to science.

There's a lot that "holy" means. By commanding us to be holy, I believe the Lord desires for our lives to be totally set apart for Him, even if that means going to the extreme of looking completely different to the culture that we live in today. If our lives are like water pipes, we should be living that of which are of set apart, pure, holy lives so that God can flow through us as smoothly as possible, bringing water and life to a thirsty generation surrounding us that is longing for Truth and meaning.

I once read a book about 9 months ago called Authentic Beauty by Leslie Ludy and she talked about how we can start applying God's truth to living our lives totally set apart for Him so that we as women can reflect his "lilly-like whiteness" by living to the standard's of God's holiness (yes, we will mess up, because no one is perfect, but what a wonderful opportunity to give it all you've got!).

Just as it can be easy for water to flow through clean water pipes, it is just as easy to block it. When we were invited into Yahweh's family as a believer in Jesus Christ, we were automatically crafted into a water pipe…God will work through me no matter what. But we have a say as to how much we are going to let God work through us. I've seen it as living proof in my own life. Thank the Lord that He has opened my eyes to this huge concept, and still continues to, but I have observed His work through my life and the patterns that have occurred as far as when my life was found purer than other times. In order to live live as clean water pipes, it means that we must give up some earthly pleasures that seem harmless, but are actually toxic and damaging to our spiritual souls. Some examples I've found in my life: What have I had to evaluate after learning this whole holy living concept? What I put into my system and how it affects/clogs my Spirit, preventing the work of God to flow through me. God is faithful and is changing me. I don't need certain things from my past that I thought were satisfying me. God is helping get rid of anything in my life that is impure. One of my favorite things to do in the years back was to go to the movies with my friends…it's PG-13/R…some cussing, some minor sex scenes, so WHAT? Who cares? I know better than to act that way. But now I know how damaging it can be to let some of the most casual forms of entertainment distract me from living a holy life. Therefore, if it not honoring the Lord, I get rid of it in my life. Does this mean I don't watch movies at all? Not at all! I just choose not to watch those that do not reflect His glory. Before this year, I used to think that wearing immodest clothing the our culture accepts today was ok, even as a believer. But the more God changes me, the more I can see that He desires modesty, an attitude that protects my brothers in Christ rather than tempt them. So I've had to do some wardrobe adjusting…no tanktops, no shorts, no bikinis… basically anything that I think would cause someone else to stumble, I simply throw it out so that I am able to please the Lord by purifying my motives that He is changing within me. I used to listen to music on the radio that was teeming with sex appeal, jealousy, lust, and sin. I've tuned it out of my life. Now when I drive in my car, I prefer to listen to the classical station (yes, I'm a nerd ;)) or my ipod that has been cleaned out of songs that do not glorify God. Praise Him who has opened my eyes and still continues to transform my life, but I still have a LONG way to go. We will never stop changing in Him until the day He arrives and we are made new in His glory (Philippians 3:21). It might sound like I'm locking myself up, but I've never experienced something so liberating before. I don't feel like I'm chained down to please the world anymore…I'm living with a purpose, and that is to glorify Christ with all my life because He gave his for mine. God is teaching me to live a holy life so I can hear His voice easier and do what He has crafted me to do. He is cleaning out all the "fats, oils, and meat" that have been clogging up my pipes for far too long, and I'm finally experiencing what it's like to live truly as a vessel for Him. It does not matter if the world around me doesn't understand the way I am living, all I hope is that I am pleasing to my God, and that the people around me are able to see how much more rewarding it is to serve that of which is Holy rather than that of which is just an image of fake pleasure created from the flesh of man. WOOHOO! :)

-Taylor