Would you say your life matters? You have great value. God intends you to have an Alive and Active Life. Did you know Scripture teaches specific qualities of that kind of life?
Alive And Active Life
How do you define an Alive and Active Life? What qualities go into that lifestyle? Perhaps words like “involved, -pro-active, positive, cheerful, hopeful, informed, healthy, engaged, good decisions, helping others, integrity, excellent character.”
Now, pick four or five words that describe how you interact and problem-solve.
God is an Alive and Active God. He intends people to be like Him. After all, He created us in His image. Even with a broken world, that gives us a blueprint. In fact, being alive and active is the original design of creation. It’s your original design.
An Alive and Active Life is something you can aim for, practice, and measure. Every person can. YOU can have an Alive and Active Life.
God Values And Loves You
God made you in His image. Ps. 8: 5-6 says amazing things about you – about all people. Here are some of them:
- God made people a little lower than the angels.
- He crowned them with glory and honor.
- God intended people to rule over His creation.
- He put everything under their feet.
Did you know this is how God thinks of you and designed your life? This information is significant – a game-changer.
Let’s look at each statement one at a time.
A Little Lower Than The Angels
Did you know God thinks of you this way – a little lower than the angels? Angels are powerful, great, and beautiful beings that carry out God’s ways. They worship Him – because they “get” who He is. In some Scripture versions, believe it or not, the phrase – “You have made him (mankind) a little lower than the angels” – is worded like this:
- You have made him a little lower than God.
- A little lower than You, Yourself.
- You made them almost like gods.
- A little lower than the heavenly beings.
- Made him a little less than divine.
- You placed him just beneath God.
Wow! Does this not grab your attention?! Talk about incredible value! This is how God sees you and me. Your design is modelled after God’s.
Crowned With Glory And Honor
Various versions of Scripture say “You have crowned him (mankind) with glory and honor – or splendor, or beauty, or majesty, or greatness. God made you like this.
Are you living in this knowledge? Do you see yourself like God sees you? If not, why not? I’m not talking about having a prideful self-image! I’m talking about a humble awareness of who God designed you to be. And I’m talking about agreement with God regarding the highly sophisticated functions you are to carry out.
Your life has value! Your life matters!
So – how can you be this kind of person? You may need to change the way you see yourself.
Rule Over Creation
Did you know this is part of your life purpose? If you are like me, you feel rather small compared to the huge globe and complicated creation. But God doesn’t intend you to be Superman or Wonder Woman. God intends you to be “the best you” possible. And He intends to help you do that.
Is this your intention? Do you trust God, obey Him, and seek His input in your daily decisions? Do you honor other people? What about the environment? Are you ruling your own property in a way that cares for His creation and our climate? Do you promote the health of His earth, skies, and seas? What about the soil? Emissions into the air?
How are you ruling your part of the earth?
Put Everything Under Your Feet
Life sometimes feels way too big. And you get tired. What does it even mean to manage everything under your feet?
Let’s start with your personality and skill sets. Your family and friends. Your job and community influences. What about your aspirations and dreams of what you could accomplish? These are all ways you manage what is “under your feet.”
Your life has great purpose. Your life matters.
As you navigate each day, there are things you can do to “put everything under your feet.” Maybe it would help to think of this as “responding with wisdom and grace to each person and each activity you have influence over.”
Most of all, it means God made you for Himself. He wants relationship with you.
Here are four ways you can manage what’s under your feet:
- Healthy thinking.
- Hold to truth you already know.
- Set boundaries with others who lack integrity
- Trust God’s timing.
How To Engage An Alive And Active Life
1. What Is Healthy Thinking?
Philippians 4 helps define healthy thinking with a “Thinking Grid.” [Whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent, praise-worthy]
First, engage healthy thinking with this list instead of negative, critical, angry thinking.
Second, ask practical questions to define and roll out dimensions of your life. Use the Thinking Grid:
- What movies do I watch?
- Which friends have I picked?
- What books am I reading?
- Where do I surf on my device?
- What do I let into my head?
- What attitudes and moods do I choose?
- Do I insist on replacing negative, critical, angry character with character that pleases God?
- How much time do I spend reading Scripture? Memorizing it? Praying it into my heart?
- Who do I invite to “speak into” my life? Whose influence should I “boot out?”
2. Hold To Truth You Already Know.
It helps to remember truth comes from God’s Word. Anything that agrees with Scripture is truth, no matter where you find it. Knowing God’s Word helps you assess things. So, you need to spend time in it.
A quick list of some truths that will never change:
- God loves you – so much!
- Jesus became a human like you.
- He lived without sin and died to take punishment for sin onto Himself and away from you!
- Jesus rose from the dead, accomplishing His life purpose.
- He went into Heaven and rules all creation.
- Jesus sent His Spirit to live inside every believer.
- He is coming back – as promised.
- God’s Word contains action steps and excellent teaching to use in everyday living.
3. Set Boundaries With Others Who Lack Integrity
Scripture urges to set boundaries with people who live for their own pleasure, who mock or make fun of others and God’s ways. Ps. 1:1 says, “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers.”
Other people have direct influence over you. Carefully choose your influencers.
Jesus guarded His heart and did not sin. He wants that same boundary for you. At the same time, He loves and values all people. He doesn’t have favorites. Jesus is on a mission to take back anyone who will respond – from the enemy who tricked them. And He wants you to partner in this work.
So, let’s re-evaluate our relationships and their purposes. Let’s set boundaries with scoffers who lack integrity and who make fun of others and God’s ways.
4. Trust God’s Timing
Sometimes you have done exactly what you should have. You’ve served, sacrificed, stayed the course. Yet you still wait for results. Where’s the harvest? Will God keep His Word?
God will always keep His Word. Whether it’s the Second Coming Of Jesus, or simply blessing you with the harvest you labored for, there is timing involved. God is fully engaged, aware, and working where we cannot see. His thoughts, ways, and timing are not ours. 2 Peter 3:8 says, “With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.” God sees results differently than we do. But He also sees your hard work.
God is faithful to Himself, to His promises, and to you. He will bring both results and reward as you accept the wisdom of His timing. This isn’t so much about Him as it is about you (and me). What kind of character are we practicing as we serve God each day and trust Him for results and timing? Are we patient like He is?
Ps. 37:4 says God will give the desires of your heart if you first delight in Him. This defines living an Alive and Active Life!
Application Questions and Thoughts For An Alive and Active Life
- Do you remind yourself each day of God’s deep, rich love for you? He loves you so much!
- Did you know God made you a little lower than the angels?
- Are you living within the glory and honor He gave you
- Are you ruling your portion of His creation in a way that pleases Him?
- How are you managing what is “under your feet?”
Remember to engage healthy thinking. Hold to truth you already know. Set boundaries with others who lack integrity. Trust God’s timing.
God wants you to have an Alive and Active Life!
