Experiencing God's Presence #284

It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.

Galatians 2:20

Hudson Taylor, the pioneer missionary to China’s interior, wrote of the sweetness of the rest he felt in being fully identified with Jesus. He said he was no longer anxious about anything—that no matter where God put him, no matter how hard the constraints or pressures, God’s Presence within him would be equal to the task. Somehow he had learned how to rest and let the Spirit flow through him.

That’s one of the benefits of the Presence, if we can learn to rest and let the Spirit live in us fully. In order to do that, we have to be able to trust in the goodness of His purposes, even when our path takes unexpected turns. We have to be able to believe that He is living and working within us. And we have to be able to let go of all competing props that would hold us up or tempt us to rely on our own resources. In some respects, it can be hard work to rest in Him.

The “hard work” ends when we get the right perspective and establish new habits and thought patterns. Resting in Him gets easier with practice. At first it goes against our normal tendencies, but over time it becomes less of a conscious choice and more of a default posture. We’re so used to striving and straining that the idea of resting in Him seems irresponsible and unnatural. But when we see the fruit of it, we realize it was irresponsible and unnatural to do anything else.

Choose rest. Let Jesus live in you. Insist that the vine bear fruit through the branch. Not only is that your true desire, it’s His, too.

Jesus, do You really live Your life in me? Can I really depend completely on Your strength? have Your desires? display Your purity and character? walk in Your power? Show me how. Become all You want to be in me.

From the book