“…so that you will walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, to please Him in all respects, bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all power, according to His glorious might, for the attaining of all steadfastness and patience; joyously giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us…” (Colossians 1:9-14 NAS).
I love when God’s words jump off of the page and grab my attention while I’m reading Scripture. I write them in my journal. I spend time chewing, cross-referencing, and asking what the Lord wants to say through them. Then, I draw near to listen.
Colossians 1:9 -14 is a powerful way to pray for those I love. And, a prayer designed for me.
Walking worthy are words I wrestle with. They don’t mean walking perfectly—that’s been a struggle for me as a recovering perfectionist. Walking worthy means being in step with the LORD and walking in the shadow of his grace. He alone is worthy. And Jesus walked the earth in a temporal body, so he knows what a struggle it is. He did it perfectly to redeem my steps.
Walking worthy also means seeing myself through his eyes; this is important because the way I see myself is skewed. Either I will emphasize the positive, not seeing my lack—or dwell on the negative and not be effective for the Kingdom.
Because of Christ, I’m redeemed, forgiven, a unique creation chosen from the foundation of the world to be his child. I’m an ambassador of Heaven, with diplomatic status to share what he has done for my soul. I want to walk worthy of that definition but need to learn how.
To walk worthy also means making choices which reflect God’s heart. Most of these choices, my selfish nature needs help with—but he promises to equip me to walk worthy of his calling to be holy and blameless. He gives me wisdom to know the right way. He gives me grace when I fall, all while becoming more like him.
Walking worthy requires possessing a teachable heart—willing to hear from him and change my direction if I’m heading the wrong way. An illustration of this quality is found in King David. Even though he messed up royally, his repentant heart drew near to God. He desired to make things right, taking personal blame rather than seeing his people punished. I look at his less than perfect life with hope as God calls him, ‘a man after his own heart.’
I want to be a woman after God’s heart too, having my heart softened by his Spirit. And, when his heart is broken, I want to grieve so I am driven to my knees in prayer. I want to see those who need Jesus through his eyes. And, see myself as He does—forgiven.
There are several explanations in Scripture for how to walk worthy. These give us a glimpse of how to walk like Jesus did.
Philippians 1:7 tells me to stand firm in one spirit, with one mind, striving together and not being alarmed by my opponents.
Ephesians 4:1 says to walk in humility, gentleness, patience while preserving unity and peace.
Colossians 2:6 charges me to be firmly rooted and built up in him.
1 John 2:6 reminds me to walk like Jesus did.
Finally, walking worthy means I know him as my Savior. He gave his life in my place so that God sees the righteousness of Jesus when he looks at me. I am forgiven and set free because of what Jesus did on the cross—restoring me to a relationship that was once broken, but is now redeemed.
Walking worthy isn’t for the faint of heart, but it is for the born-again soul. What we are unable to do in our own strength, God provides through the regenerating power of his Mighty Spirit—the same Spirit that raised Jesus to new life from the grave, will enable us to live our lives worthy of his call.
How are you walking? Will you walk worthy along with me?
Article originally posted to Books by Joy & Others. Used with permission.
Jeanne Doyon loves encouraging others to draw nearer to the Lover of their souls. She connects the Truths in Scripture to the ordinary events of life and shares her reflections on her blog at www.streams-edge.blogspot.com. Jeanne enjoys photography, tea with friends, creating with beads and looks forward to being a grandma. She and her husband, John enjoy their empty nest but wish their children weren’t so far away. Email Jeanne at jeanne.doyon@gmail.com and find out more about her speaking topics at www.jeannedoyon.blogspot.com
Publication date: April 22, 2014