“For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God. Now unto him that is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that worketh in us, Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”
Ephesians 1:14-21
In the above prayer the Apostle Paul prayed for the church of Ephesus, we can see a key to living an abundant life. When he says by the Holy Spirit: “Now unto him that is able to do exceeding, abundantly above all that we ask or think,” that should create great excitement and expectation in all of us. It sounds like the Lord wants us to not just survive but thrive. He wants to provide more than we could even imagine or hope for. Yet, it appears the key to that kind of living is already on the inside of us. He goes on to say that we will receive this kind of abundance by “the power that worketh in us.” Therefore, this abundant living is not coming from the outside in. It comes from the inside out.
How do we get to the place where we can activate this kind of power within us? Paul gives us another key earlier in his prayer. He prays that they get a revelation of how much they are loved by God. It’s the love of God combined with our revelation of how much he loves us that activates the power of Christ in us that produces abundance and victory in our lives. Therefore, to live the abundant life, we need to meditate on scriptures that talk about the love of God for us personally. It’s not enough to know that God loves the world. You need to know that God loves you!
In this new year, let’s take time to develop our fellowship with the Lord by spending time meditating and reflecting on the love God has for us. As we do, that love will rise up and activate our faith. We will be able to walk in love towards those around us. When we understand how much we are loved, then we are better able to forgive a suffered wrong from others. We begin to see others the way God sees them, with love. We are also able to see that if God be for us, who or what could ever be against us. (See Romans 8:31) Just as a parent loves their children and wants the best for them, we will see that our heavenly Father desires the best for us because He loves us. He wants to shower us with His blessings. Just as a child can easily receive and believe their parents when they feel loved, it is so much easier to walk in faith in God’s promises when we understand His love for us. Faith works by love. When we realize how much we are loved, we will more easily receive all the blessings the Lord wants to shower upon us. We will activate our faith and see the mountains moved! Let’s commit this year to not simply survive, but instead choose to walk in God’s best and Thrive!
Further Reading: Luke 11:1-14, 1 John 3:16, 1 Corinthians 13, Ephesians 1:16-23, John 1, 1 John 3 – 5, John 14, John 10
