in this morning's time with my Lord He impressed this verse upon my heart..
"but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy" ( 1 Peter 3:15 )
this struck me in a very different way than one would expect..
listening to Annie Herring, another song had gotten my attention these last few days.. it's called :
Over and Over..
tell me you love me,
say it again,
for I'm no good without your love
tell me you love me
say it again
over and over, over and over, over and over
without end
I know we will face hard times
when the sun will not shine,
and it is through those hard times
that I need to know you are mine...
and I won't let the sun go down,
without saying to you
over and over, over and over, over and over
I love you
I freely give you my heart,
my lover and friend
over and over, over and over, over and over
without end
the verse, it made me think of how in my heart, in the secret place of intimacy and vulnerability He wants me to honour Him as holy.. as in cherish Him, the closeness and who He is...
this was precious and special... the song resonated with my soul, realizing that I need to hear Him over and over telling me how much He loves me.. but if I do not go to that secret place with Him, if I do not immerse myself in His Word, if I do not have that special time with the Lord, who I am regarding and honouring as holy / most important / my 1st priority, I am not going to hear Him saying it to me over and over...
not wanting to go with my feelings alone about this, I just did a little searching.. all cross references of most versions only pointed to the second part of the verse.. so I just looked how different translations have taken a little bit of a different view of this verse..
- you must worship Christ as Lord of your life.
- but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts,
- but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy,
- through thick and thin, keep your hearts at attention, in adoration before Christ, your Master.
- set Christ apart as holy in your heart
- honour Christ and let him be the Lord of your life.
- simply concentrate on being completely devoted to Christ in your hearts.
- But make sure in your hearts that Christ is Lord
- Your heart should be holy and set apart for the Lord God
I think I will go with what He impressed upon my heart this morning... that I am to honour Him, the closeness I have, by cherishing it, and making it my highest priority.. that from that will flow what the 2nd part of the verse says: "always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect..."
sounds like a plan...
