“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.” (Philippians 2:13 NLT).
Whether you know it or not, we as Christians, are works in progress. When we got saved and asked Jesus into our hearts, we were filled with the Holy Spirit and it was a new beginning for us. (2 Corinthians 5:17). But we weren’t immediately transformed into the exact image of God. No, it was going to take some work and it is ongoing, a work in progress.
I thought of an acronym for work in progress, WIP and it reminded me of whip. I remember when I was a kid and my Mom used that activity to help me progress in life but, back then, it was called a whoopin’. Discipline, in whatever form, is designed to teach us and help us to move to the next level. God, our Father, will discipline us too as He helps us progress. “The Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.” (Hebrews 12:6).
In athletics, the coach will put their players through hard training to help them progress in their strength and ability. It’s hard work but worth it if they are to move forward to win the prize. The apostle Paul said, “I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:14).
So, we know that, as a kid, we needed help in growing up. An athlete needs work to be on the first team and help their fellow players to win and as a Christian, we all need discipline, direction and desire in order to fulfill the plan of God. Yes, desire. We must be willing to go through whatever God uses to take us to the next level in His plan for us. Now we know we’re going to fail the test sometime and have to go back and try again, that’s part of the “work”. King David said, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.” (Psalm 51:12). “Make me willing”, that’s a pretty strong request but if we want to progress in Christ, we’ve got to be willing and declare it.
So, where are you in the process? In the game of life, God will never say, “OK, you’re finished, go do what you want now.” No, He’s always got something more for us to do, we’re all moving from, “glory to glory”, (2 Corinthians 3:18). Let’s have the desire, accept the discipline and follow the direction of our God. We are His work in progress, His masterpiece.
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