Filling Up and Standing Up Go Hand in Hand

Today I have a Proverbs 31 devotion running, called Choose Where You Will Stand, which covers the topic of standing up for our faith in a world that now seems to be completely against the mere thought of Christianity.

In this devo, I referenced Proverbs 20:5, which says, "Knowing what is right is like deep water in the heart; a wise person draws from the well within" (The Message).

This "well within" is referring to that deep place in our hearts where we have tucked away Gods truths, promises, and Words. That secret place where all those spiritual things we have learned throughout our lifetime and our Christian walk are stored. That special place where spiritual wisdom and discernment resides.

Each one of us who have professed faith in Jesus Christ, has this well within our hearts. A well that upon our acceptance of Jesus, was enthusiastically built and passionately filled to the brim with Gods love.

But at times, regardless of how deeply or how long we have loved the Lord, life can drain our wells.

The anxieties and worries that we experience every day as we face problems in marriage, parenting, finances, work, family, health, the economy, the culture, etc, can eventually cause the wells within our hearts to seem dry and dusty.

Or maybe our heart wells are running dry, simply because we have not made our relationship with Christ a priority in our lives. We have become too busy, our plates are too full, and we are pulled in so many directions that we inadvertently forget to turn to God along the way.

Or, maybe our wells have run dry, because it seems that Christianity is slowly but gradually getting pushed to the back burner in our nation, while the work of Satan and the voices of those against God are seen and heard loud and clear. Maybe hopelessness and despair for what we wish our country could still be, are the culprits.

In any case, the end result is a dry well. A heart thirsty for God. A mind that knows what is right, but that fails to tap into the well in tough decisions. A walk that does not exemplify God. An increased level of tolerance for what is not right in Gods eyes. And a decreased ability to stand up for our faith in every day situations.

I think I can safely say, that none of us want to walk around with a dried up heart well! So how do we deepen the waters of our heart again, with the living water that only God can provide? How do we dig deep into our wells, and draw refreshing water out that helps us shine as a light for Christ every day?

Thank goodness Jesus did not leave us to figure out this question on our own. 2 Peter 1:3 says, "Everything that goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. The best invitation we ever received!" (MSG)

Hebrews 4:12 says "For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."

These verses portray that all we have to do to fill up our wells so deep that Gods strength and power exude from every ounce of our being, is to store His knowledge and promises away in our hearts. To memorize His Words. To get to know Him intimately, and personally. To love Him with such passion, that if anyone dares to speak out against Him, that we will stand up for our faith, without regard for what others think.

That kind of faith is powerful - but rare. None of us want to be ridiculed, judged, misunderstood or shunned, because of our love for Christ. But it is those common fears, that have led our country, and our world, down a road that is getting farther and farther from the one where Jesus treads.

Those common fears are the sole reason that our children can no longer pray in school; that our government wants to remove "in God we trust" from our currency and remove the word "God" from the pledge of allegiance.

Those common fears are the reason that abortions are common place, gay marriages are legalized, businesses no longer acknowledge Christ in Christian holidays; and governments, schools and business bend over backwards to tolerate every religion under the sun EXCEPT for Christianity.

Isnt it high time that Christians start standing up for what is right in Gods eyes, instead of accepting the wrongs because we are afraid of what other eyes might think? Through Christ, we can have a faith that is stronger than those common fears.

I think it is high time that all of us, as children in the Kingdom of God, begin to speak up, and stand up! As Christians, we need to have a bold faith. A faith that is overflowing from the wells in our hearts, and be willing to take on anyone who tries to speak out against what Gods Word claims to be true and right.

The word Christian simply means Christ-like. We can never be perfect, or anywhere near capable of living up to all that Christ was, but we can strive to be like Him. We can strive to honor with Him our lips and our lives. We can strive to be transformed by His power within us.

We can strive to glorify Him through our actions, by clinging to our faith as if it we were our only lifeline, which actually, it really is.

At the rate things are going, eventually God, our God, the God of Israel, the Father of Abraham, Jacob, and Isaac, is going to be out of the picture. Are we going to let that happen?

You know, it is hard to even imagine what this world would be like today, if the Christians in all the decades past had vigorously and endlessly stood up for what is right and made their voices heard loud and clear, rather than being drowned out by the few voices that opposed all that God stood for. Hard to consider what our society might look like today, if me, and you, and every other Christian alive, vigorously and tirelessly stood up for Christ every day - locally, regionally, and nationally about the downfall of morals and values and Godly decisions in our government and society today.

Hmmmmm..... I can only imagine.

Lets bind together today, as sisters in Christ, and start filling up our heart wells with the knowledge of all that Christ Was, Is and will forever Be. Then lets stand up and fight the good fight of faith - in our homes, our neighborhoods, our communities, our cities, our states, our country.

It only took the voice of one woman in 1973, to get abortion legalized. She had an opinion, that was completely opposite of Gods Word, and her one voice was heard loud and clear. Since then, millions and millions of innocent babies have died.

Let us never forget that our voice matters. That our faith, our willingness and our passion to stand up for what is right, can make a difference. It only takes one voice to glorify God, and it only takes One God to make amazing things happen through that one voice.

Jesus has already won the battle, but in the meantime, lets stand up and defend His mighty victory!!! Lets start filling up our heart wells to the brim, so that we can faithfully stand up with power, passion and purpose for Christ.

By filling up with God, and standing up for God, we CAN make a difference.
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Have you stood up for your faith in a special way? Have you defended God in your home, community, city or state? Are you considering doing something radical for God out of pure passion for what He stands for and who He is? Has your voice made a difference for Christ in any small or huge way?

If so, I would love for you to share those experiences by leaving a comment! Nothing is more encouraging and motivating than to hear how others are fighting the good fight of faith, to see how God is using ordinary people to do extraordinary things, and to know that none of us are not in this battle alone.