Ephesians 3

"I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith-that you, being ROOTED and GROUNDED in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that suprpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to Him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."

I love the idea of being "grounded". So many in this sin-wrecked world are floundering and hurting and being tossed around like literal rag dolls. The idea of being rooted somewhere and grounded somewhere makes me feel so secure.

I have done a lot of moving in my 13 years of marriage. It has been a journey to be sure.

I would be lying if I said that there is a desire in my heart to "belong" somewhere. To be grounded. To date this has not be God's best for me as God has given me a passionate and sensitive, God-fearing man that I have been blessed to follow. I am comforted by the idea; the thought that I can be grounded in my soul to the anchor of God's love and that will bring me purpose and wholeness and identity no matter where He takes me physically. His love for me gives purpose and identity. It is my home.

I am constantly meeting wonderful, delightful, well-meaning Christians who are on a pursuit of loving God without the crucial understanding of His love for them. It is a self-willed motivation to be obedient to God and to try and make Him pleased with us. The end result of this type of obedience results in pride or self-loathing. Not freedom.

I have found that my resting place is in the truth that God is NOT pleased with my goodness. He is not impressed with my righteousness. Understanding God's heart rests in His work on the cross. His love grounds me. It gives the tree of my life fruit and that fruit is a direct result of the soil of God's love.

Wishing to fight and combat the sin that is in my heart is anchored to His immeasurable love for me. It is only this understanding that motivates my obedience to Him.

"It is the awareness of His love and ONLY THIS

that will equip us to wage war against sin.

Until we really grasp how much He loves us, we'll never be able to imitate Him. We won't come near to Him if we're afraid of His judgment. We won't repent and keep pursuing godliness if we don't believe that our sin doesn't faze His love one bit. We won't want to be like Him if we believe that His love is small, stingy, censorious, sever. And we'll never be filled with His fullness until we begin to grasp the extent of His love." ~Elyse Fitzpatrick