Carol J German

We are all created with three parts; body, mind and spirit (or soul). Each part can not operate independently. God gave us these attributes because we are made in His image (Genesis 1:26). And His image operates within a Trinity; God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. He never operates autonomously. The Trinity always works together in a united fashion. And since He created us in His image, we are not to either.

We are to live accordingly. God the Son is the bridge that connects us to God. Because of sin, we are separated from God the Father yet Jesus broke the barrier of death, caused by sin, when He resurrected from the dead! There is no other person who walked on Earth who accomplished that. No one! This is why He is the one that we can trust and follow to get us to heaven. This is why He is the Messiah! The God of Love and unity!

Think of a wheel. Since we are created in His image, our hearts are made to follow Him. When Christ begins residing in a heart, He become the center of that life. Did you know, that the center part of a wheel is where strength lies? It gives the wheel its stability. Christ is what gives each of our lives stability and strength. When Christ is at the center, everything in your life radiates out from Him. This is vertical-style living. God/Christ needs to be center-stage or first in your life. Then your spouse comes next in priority. Children follow after marriage then you have your employment, serving at church, hobbies, etc. Your relationship with Christ must come first. He then leads you how to love/work/serve others, thus fulfilling your calling.

Unfortunately, our hearts want to do their own thing. This is what sin is. And because of it, we end up living life horizontally. We juggle life in our own strength and fit God in by our own standards. God gets bounced around depending on how our days unfold. Maybe I can get to church. I have to save for vacation. It’s football season, hunting season or garage sale season. How can I possibly add a Bible study with all that I have going on? My job (or add your own thing) keeps me busy. This style of living leads to an unbalanced way of life.

Horizontally, we are like a teeter totter. We go up and down, up and down in whatever has our attention for the moment. This lifestyle is lacking one key component, the Holy Spirit. There are many of us riding along on flat tires. This world leads us to believe that we can live life successfully in body and mind only. The spiritual side? Take it or leave it. But look around. Can we? Look within? Can you? If someone was honest with you, what would they say about your style of living?

God will prioritize your life so you will be the best version of yourself. Why? So you can live in such a way where you are loving others and helping them be at their best. According to the Bible, a true fulfilling life begins in Christ. When Christ, do I dare say, becomes the boss of your life, then the Holy Spirit enters in and your life gets inflated! The best part? You live balanced, refreshed, and yes, content. These are traits of a life filled with the Holy Spirit.

The world (man’s fleshy, sinful ways) speaks otherwise. The world says to help yourself first. Take care of you. Focus on how you are wired, your traits, the things that make you who you are. Focus on your interests and likings because life is about you. The problem with our world is that there are six billion people all wanting to be seen, heard, valued and respected. What we get is chaos, division, injustice and malarkey, to name a few.

But because of Jesus Christ, six billion people can live in unity and love one another. It starts with a relationship with Christ which He then leads you to love those around you. He is that big of a God and His love can heal all the people of Earth! Amazing, isn’t it!?!

All someone has to do is repent of your fleshy, sinful, selfish ways and turn to the God that loves you. Repent simply means you are realizing that you are not perfect and you want to make things right with God. He will meet you right where you are and receive you into His family! It doesn’t end here though. We all need to seek God daily and walk with Him, vertically 🙂