“Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you” (Isaiah 60:1). Last Sunday, we learned that Jesus faced darkness at Golgotha so we could be saved from it. He was forsaken so we could be brought near. The cross was intended to be an instrument of death, but Christ redeemed it to become a bridge to life. Through faith, we now have been crucified with Christ, and Christ lives in us. The light has come, so we are called to “arise” and begin shining for Him.
The truth is most of us have a hard time getting up. I know this because I struggled with the snooze button for years. I would set my alarm clock every night with good intentions of waking up early, but time and time again I would not rise up, I would roll over. This bad habit was only broken when I finally hit my limit. I was tired of missing out on the life that I knew I could experience in those early hours. I understood that rolling over was robbing me of the personal growth that I desired, and rising up would lead me to experience new life.
Many of us want to experience more of God, but we keep rolling over. The Holy Spirit calls us to rise up each day, but we keep hitting that snooze button. He calls us to spend one on one time with Him, but we can’t fit it in our schedule. He calls us to experience Him by serving others, but our spiritual gifts are going dormant. He calls us to grow our faith by giving generously, but our flesh tells us it doesn’t make sense. He calls us to be vulnerable with others. He commands us to confess our sin, find community, and seek counsel to help us overcome folly. But that snooze button is so alluring, and it keeps us from experiencing new life.
“Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you” (Ephesians 5:14). I encourage you to stop hitting that snooze button this week. New life will never be found by rolling over, it is only found by getting up. Have you hit your own limit? Are you tired of stagnation in your faith and dullness in your life? Then take a kingdom step during this Holy season. Let me know what your step is, so our team can help you take it. New life will never be found through the snooze button, so I’m praying that you will rise up boldly this Easter season.
Invite a friend to join you this Sunday as we examine saying #5 from Calvary. I’m praying for you this week, and I look forward to seeing you in worship.
Onward and upward,
Jonathan Spencer
www.jonathanspencer.org 