God has been gently reminding me lately of His holiness.
What an amazing concept to consider: THE Holy God loves an unholy me.
It's the launching pad in my pursuit to holiness. The starting line, if you will.
"Be holy, because I am holy."-I Peter 1:16
And yet, for Christ-followers, this is the bane of our existence.
The key is balance. Of course, balance is the key to everything, right? Balancing time, balancing money, balancing family, friends, hobbies. Too much of one or two of those can send your life into a tailspin.
Don't worship holiness itself
Sometimes we can get so focused on becoming holy that it becomes the goal, replaced by the main goal which is a deeper, more unhindered relationship with God. This is legalism. Legalism is a god amongst some Christians. Music. Modesty. Mission. I mean, most of the time, we don't even recognize what it is and what it is doing to us.
When we worship holiness, we are self-seeking, self-righteous, and self-obsessed. We throw God out of the picture only to fill His void with a lifestyle that has us in chains.
If God brings you to something, for example; an idea, a lifestyle change, a specific direction that may just go against the rest of the societal norm, don't run from that thing. Embrace it for the purpose of drawing closer to Him. Not heeding His advice will leave you in a place that has you fighting for growth. But don't ever allow "the thing" to consume you. When it has consumed your mind, your actions, and your speech, you may as well cast a statue and display it on your mantle.
Holiness in motherhood
In the day to day of motherhood, I will admit, I don't strive for holiness. Instead, I may replace holiness with sanity, survival, and six seconds of no requests ("Can I have a drink? A snack? A horse? A rocket to blast to Mars?"...to which I may reply: "Yes, yes, no, and maybe.").
God expects us to do our best, but never alone. We must include Him moment by moment, breath after breath, and rest in His goodness to us. How incredibly monumental this kind of thinking can seem!! I picture a Mt.Everest twice the size when I consider how difficult it is to keep my eyes on Jesus during my every waking moment.
Holiness is simply focusing on Christ as He guides our lives. When we do so, we cannot help but want to please Him in all our ways; Acknowledging His goodness, His provision, and His sacrifice to us.
Holiness is not a set of rules. If you feel like your pursuit of holiness is puffing you up instead of exalting The One. If you find yourself comparing your "holiness" to another's "ungodliness", then you aren't in pursuit of real holiness. You are living a life of rules, of "I'm better than, because...", and you are missing the mark completely.
As mothers, as we journey towards serving our families and our communities, may we not become deceived as to whom (or what) we are following in our pursuit. Only one way leads to freedom. I will choose to go that way.