December 5 I Thursday

Daniel 1-2

1 John 4

“To them God has chosen to make known among the Gentiles the glorious riches of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”  —Colossians 1:27

There is a very endearing story about a little boy which somewhat resonates with the power and majesty of Christ in us. This little boy is about five years old. While on his way to school––a very familiar route to him––he notices something quite unfamiliar. He sees two huge blocks of stone placed in front of the gates of a big house, which were not there before. Curious, he stares at the massive stones, but has to get to school and moves on. On his way home, the stones are still there.

The next day, he sees men chipping away at the stone; being intrigued, he watches for a few minutes before going on to school. Day after day, as he walks by, the men are still there, chipping away at the stone. Then summer break comes and the little boy stops walking along that road. Two months later, when it came time to return to school, he approaches the corner, where he always turns, to listen for the chipping of the stone but he does not hear it. To his amazement, when he gets to the house, instead of the stone, is a big beautiful lion! The sculptor had just finished his work. Excited, the little boy ran up to the sculptor and exclaimed, “The lion is amazing! How did you know he was in there?”

We can imagine the look of awe on this young boy’s face as he gazed at the lion. Lions are majestic and mighty, king of the jungle in which they rule. In the Christian life, a kingdom is not about a geographic location, but firstly, about a king and secondly, his sphere of rule. The king within us is the Lord Jesus Christ and His sphere of rule is over our lives. Unlike the sculptors, Jesus works from the inside out, chipping away the rough edges, smoothing out the bumps and forming us into something beautiful. No one sees Him and no one knows He is there, but little by little, our lives take shape.

“How did you know he was in there?” the little boy exclaimed excitedly. The resurrected life of Jesus Christ is inside every Christian, and that is exciting! We never know what is around the corner, but with Christ, the possibilities are endless. The Christian life is an adventure, and though we seldom see it in ourselves, other people recognize the presence of Jesus, who is alive and active within us. The glorious riches of Christ in us are full of surprises that leave us in awe time and time again.

Prayer: Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for Your work in me and for the many times when You leave me in awe. I pray that every day brings me into a closer reflection of You.