Are You Spiritually Cozy

The first cool snap of the year recently hit the deep south.  It was a day I had been waiting for!  My favorite time to walk is early morning and as I stuck my head out to feel the cool air, excitement filled my heart.  For the past several months, the focus for walking clothes was comfortable and cool. This day, I chose a beautiful jacket which was warm and cozy and began my walk.

Walking down the driveway, watching the rising sun and feeling the cool air on my face was fabulous. My warm jacket felt great as I began the walk. It didn't take very long for that cozy jacket to get a little warm. With a long way to go, I unzipped it to get a little cooler. Well then, at the bottom, it began to swing and the zipper pieces flew into my hands with every stride. Finally after getting too hot with it on, it came off.  Then it was where do I keep it? Before long, I was cold again!  Returning home from an almost miserable walk, I determined that 'warm and cozy' jacket wasn't one made to go for walks in.  Although it felt wonderful at first, it was too heavy and restricted movements needed for the walk. 

Pondering what went wrong on the walk, the thought came, 'Are we spiritually cozy?' As Christians, we bask in the fact that God loves us, He has great plans for us and He is so wonderful. Those are truths to wrap around us. They comfort us in trying times, they are truths to fall back on when life gets hard. Like a warm jacket we put around us, we are safe, secure, warm and cozy.

Warm and cozy is wonderful and surely has it's place in our life. Rest, comfort, stillness are vital to our well being. But like on the recent walk, I needed something different. Warm and cozy hindered my moving, make me hot, uncomfortable and took the enjoyment out of the walk because I was focused on how uncomfortable I was. There is another jacket in my closet, an athletic jacket. It is lightweight, thin and flowing. I provides warmth, but also allows free movement.

Sometimes, spiritually we 'go for a walk'. There are times we find some action to do, in service, volunteering, or meeting a need for others.  We need those times of spiritual activity. In the Bible we read about times to move:  'faith without works is dead', 'we are created for good works', 'do everything as unto the Lord' projecting a spirit of excellence. We are called to be a blessing, to minister to others, to share the good news of the Gospel.  It should never be confused that we 'work' our way to God, but that God works in us, His love so that we reach out to share that love with others. 

After a time of sitting and being wrapped up God's love which is warm and cozy, may we be ready to put our work clothes on and be energized to go about doing good.