A Daily Call to Holiness

There are songs on my heart as I write. I pray the song lyrics that follow these phrases will  flood your heart with encouragement today.

“Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty…”

“More Holiness Give Me…”

“Oh, to Be Like Thee...”

“God wants me to be happy.” I remember the day a sister in Christ said this to me as she sought justification for leaving her marriage. It hurt my heart that she was hurting, but as the same time, I was hurt at her misapplication of God’s desires for us. In Psalm 37:4, the psalmist states that God will give us the “desires of [our heart].“  Even if we equate the idea of the “desires of our heart” being happiness, we need to pay attention to the first clause in the sentence, “Delight yourself in the Lord…”, because it is only when our hearts are oriented toward the Lord that our desires (our contentment, happiness, etc.) will be granted.

God is holy. Isaiah 6:3 reminds us of this, “And one called to another and said: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” I will come back to this verse in a moment.

We are made in God’s likeness as described in Genesis 1:24. So, since God is holy and we are made in His image, therefore, we are called toward holiness. 1 Peter 1:15, “But just as He who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do.”

In referencing back to Isaiah 6:3, though said of God during Isaiah’s vision where he encounters God and His holiness, the phrase, “the whole earth is full of his glory” leaps out from the page. Obviously, God is innately holy and does not need us for His nature to be holy; however, He does call us to be His ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20) and to spread the fragrant aroma of the knowledge of Christ (2 Cor.2:14) here on earth for Him. 

So, I am struck by the fact that if Christians are living out God’s plan for our holiness, we will fill the earth full of His glory!

At times I am overwhelmed by the responsibility to be holy and to call others to holiness. I need a daily reminder to “give this day to Him”, whatever the day’s schedule dictates. I am sobered by the fact that God chooses me to diffuse His fragrance.

I want to be able to say, as the apostle Paul did, in 1 Cor.4:16 and 11:1, “Imitate me, even as I imitate Christ”. It is my prayer that when my life comes to a close, I can in humility say this.

Holiness is a life-long pursuit. Happiness is a decision. Because of Christ, we can have both.

Join me in asking, “Where will I seek to increase in holiness today?”

Kristi Burleson, Henderson, TN