Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had.
Though he was God, he did not demand
and cling to his rights as God.
He made himself nothing; he took the humble position
of a slave and appeared in human form.
(Philippians 2:5-7 NLT)
To live an incarnational life is to live a missional life.
The words radical and missional are current adjectives to describe Christian discipleship. As always, I find it difficult to take words at face value. I am compelled to find richer meaning to common catch phrases.
In my inbox today, Kevin Scott at Sustainable Christianity referred to this post: Subterranean Life:Re-Imagining Radical. The author, Dan White, Jr. digs deep to the roots of radical. Literally, he mentions that the word radical, comes from the Latin word, radix, which means root. His post made me want to shout: Yes! Someone else gets it! Living out the gospel right where we are rooted makes so much sense. Read his post and you’ll get it, too.
Speaking of doing radical things, I have started a online study called Prayers for a Woman’s Soul, hosted by Julie K. Gillies. We are praying for ourselves. It’s a very basic and important practice that I neglect often. Last week, we asked God to show us any negative mindset that may be hindering our growth and relationship with God and others. This week we are tackling the topic of attitude. Yikes!
But here’s the good news: we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16) and we can ask for our attitudes to be made new. (Ephesians 4:23)
Missional is a fairly new word to me, but the goal is to live intentionally in a way that demonstrates the grace and love of God to others. Jesus continues to be our best example because He took on human flesh. Who better to make God known to us than God’s own Son.
I sometimes resent the discipline that it takes to live a missional life, but when I read God’s word, He infuses me with hope and courage to pursue His ways.
The apostle Paul describes “missional” living this way: “So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life–your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life–and place it before God as an offering.” (Romans 12:1 The Message)
This directive takes the pressure off of me. It reminds me that when I am rooted in Christ’s love then my mind, my attitude and my will become pleasing in His sight.
I leave you with an article that opened my mind to why I resent or even resist discipline sometimes. Check out Artful Obedience by Margaret Manning.
How does the definition of radical
change your perspective
on missional living?
Linking with Soli Deo Gloria Party
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