Learning to Receive Before We Strive
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2 Peter 1:3–4
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
I remember a time when my mom invited a young woman she worked with to spend a weekend with our family at the ocean.
It was simply an invitation extended out of kindness. My mom wasn't looking for anything in return. She just wanted to share something good with someone else.
But what my mom didn't realize was that this young woman was suspicious of her kindness.
Why would someone invite her along, include her in their family, and give her a weekend away without expecting something in return?
She wondered if there was an ulterior motive. Was my mom trying to manipulate her? Did she want something from her?
By the end of the weekend, something had changed.
She told my mom that she had noticed something different about her. She realized that my mom really hadn't wanted anything from her. She had simply wanted to bless her.
I've thought about that story and how beautifully it illustrates something about our relationship with God.
Sometimes we have a harder time receiving a gift than we do working for one.
We understand earning. We understand working. We understand proving ourselves worthy.
But what do we do with a God who tells us that He has already given us everything we need for life and godliness?
Listen to the words of 2 Peter 1:3:
"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." (NIV)
Notice what Peter doesn't say.
He doesn't say that someday, if we work hard enough, pray long enough, serve faithfully enough, or become spiritual enough, God might give us what we need.
He says, "His divine power has given us everything we need."
Given.
Not earned. Not purchased. Not achieved.
Given.
And perhaps one of the greatest struggles in our Christian walk is that we keep trying to earn what God has already freely given.
We strive to become worthy of His love when His love is what first invited us into a relationship with Him.
We work to gain His approval when He has already called us to Himself through His goodness.
We exhaust ourselves trying to produce spiritual growth without first learning to rest in the One who makes that growth possible.
And here's something I want us to consider.
What if our striving sometimes reveals that we haven't fully understood the heart of the Giver?
That young woman couldn't enjoy the invitation completely until she began to trust the heart of the person who had invited her.
And I wonder how often we do the same thing with God.
We approach Him with our lists of what we need to do, what we need to change, and who we need to become.
All the while, He is inviting us to know Him.
Because Peter tells us that this divine power is ours through knowing Him.
Not merely knowing about Him, but growing in a personal relationship with the One who loves us.
And that's where our garden tour begins.
Not with a shovel in our hands.
Not with a list of weeds to pull.
Not with instructions to work harder.
But standing at the garden gate, learning to receive what the Gardener has already provided.
There will be cultivating to do. There will be weeds to remove. There will be seasons of pruning and growth.
But none of that is how we earn the gift.
We cultivate because we have received the gift. We don't cultivate to deserve it.
Before we grow, we receive.
Before we strive, we abide.
Before we ever begin tending the garden, we need to get to know the Gardener.
And the more we come to know His heart, the more we begin to understand the beauty of what He has freely given us.
Christine
His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
I remember a time when my mom invited a young woman she worked with to spend a weekend with our family at the ocean.
It was simply an invitation extended out of kindness. My mom wasn't looking for anything in return. She just wanted to share something good with someone else.
But what my mom didn't realize was that this young woman was suspicious of her kindness.
Why would someone invite her along, include her in their family, and give her a weekend away without expecting something in return?
She wondered if there was an ulterior motive. Was my mom trying to manipulate her? Did she want something from her?
By the end of the weekend, something had changed.
She told my mom that she had noticed something different about her. She realized that my mom really hadn't wanted anything from her. She had simply wanted to bless her.
I've thought about that story and how beautifully it illustrates something about our relationship with God.
Sometimes we have a harder time receiving a gift than we do working for one.
We understand earning. We understand working. We understand proving ourselves worthy.
But what do we do with a God who tells us that He has already given us everything we need for life and godliness?
Listen to the words of 2 Peter 1:3:
"His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness." (NIV)
Notice what Peter doesn't say.
He doesn't say that someday, if we work hard enough, pray long enough, serve faithfully enough, or become spiritual enough, God might give us what we need.
He says, "His divine power has given us everything we need."
Given.
Not earned. Not purchased. Not achieved.
Given.
And perhaps one of the greatest struggles in our Christian walk is that we keep trying to earn what God has already freely given.
We strive to become worthy of His love when His love is what first invited us into a relationship with Him.
We work to gain His approval when He has already called us to Himself through His goodness.
We exhaust ourselves trying to produce spiritual growth without first learning to rest in the One who makes that growth possible.
And here's something I want us to consider.
What if our striving sometimes reveals that we haven't fully understood the heart of the Giver?
That young woman couldn't enjoy the invitation completely until she began to trust the heart of the person who had invited her.
And I wonder how often we do the same thing with God.
We approach Him with our lists of what we need to do, what we need to change, and who we need to become.
All the while, He is inviting us to know Him.
Because Peter tells us that this divine power is ours through knowing Him.
Not merely knowing about Him, but growing in a personal relationship with the One who loves us.
And that's where our garden tour begins.
Not with a shovel in our hands.
Not with a list of weeds to pull.
Not with instructions to work harder.
But standing at the garden gate, learning to receive what the Gardener has already provided.
There will be cultivating to do. There will be weeds to remove. There will be seasons of pruning and growth.
But none of that is how we earn the gift.
We cultivate because we have received the gift. We don't cultivate to deserve it.
Before we grow, we receive.
Before we strive, we abide.
Before we ever begin tending the garden, we need to get to know the Gardener.
And the more we come to know His heart, the more we begin to understand the beauty of what He has freely given us.
Christine