Christ's Light

Breathe… part 2

“This is the account of the heavens and the earth as they were created.

When the Lord God made the earth and the heavens—and no shrub of the field had yet appeared on the earth and no plant of the field had yet sprung up, for the Lord God had not sent rain on the earth and there was no man to work the ground, but streams came up from the earth and watered the whole surface of the ground—the Lord God formed man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.” Genesis 2:4-7

In Ecclesiasties 3:19-21 again we see this idea that we are from the dust and to dust we shall return.

I came across something interesting about this whole topic that is a clear paradox at the heart of what it means to be a human being. Because of the position I am in God has shown me a lot of different things in the bible that have led me to this little revelation.

David talks about it in Psalm 39:5 in worship and adoration of Jesus. He wanted to know from the Lord just how fleeting his life was and David says that life is but a breath. Job talks about it in Job 7:7 when he dealt with a crisis of losing everything he had yet ironically it was in worship and adoration again before the Lord. And God made him realize that his life is but a breath and his years are nothing before the Lord. On another account Ezekiel in Ezekiel 37:5 is prophesying life into dead bones and he will make breath enter them.

The last account of Ezekiel is where I want to stay for now and to that I want to say this: It is written multiple times throughout the scriptures (many of which I did not quote) that everyone’s life is but a breath even to those who seem secure in where they are at. Life is fragile yet at the same time it is very divine. The divine breath of the Lord is in everyone and to that we all have a calling. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again as followers of Christ we have got to give ourselves to the place of prayer for it is our highest calling. It is our lot. And I’ve realized over the past 12 weeks that I have got to breathe in the things of God and breathe out the things that are not of God.

Yes, life is not the greatest right now and I really do feel like Solomon in Ecclesiastes. I’ve had to realize that everything that sets itself up against the knowledge of God I need to breathe out. I’ve been delving a lot into the place of worship and adoration and I’ve had to learn what it truly is worship is about. I became more profoundly fascinated with David’s house of prayer he set up in the Old Testament and especially his psalms that were birthed out of that. Psalm 119 has spoken a lot to me about my life. Psalm 119:71 is where I’ve had to tarry with the Lord for awhile. It says “ It was good for me to be afflicted so that I might learn your decrees.” In doing so I’ve begun the beginning of my life by breathing in God. The Hebrew word for breath is “ruah” and in Greek it is “pneuma”. And what really blew my mind is when I found out that the word for breath and spirit is the same.

I’ll expound upon this more later and I realize that much of this might be rambling. My point for this post is simply I’m going through a rough time right now and loving it. I want all of you to do the same thing. I want to encourage you to take a deep breath of God and know that He is coming again. So continue to fight the good fight and breathe in perfect love for that is how God loves his people and calls us to do the same.

May the God of glory thunder over, in, and through your ruah! Grace and peace be with you all!

Noga