Philippians 1:10
"For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may life pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ's return."
It's not a word that often graces our vocabulary. I mean, when is the last time that you heard anyone in the hallways of your school talk about purity? Probably...never. The idea of purity is seen in our culture as uptight, ultra-conservative, prudish, strict, straight-laced, and usually all-things boring and bland.
As Christians, though, we have to understand that a calling to purity isn't a calling to boring. It's not a calling to dull, lame, strict and tedious. If we are going to embrace the life that God has for us- a life that is full of adventure and the absolute opposite of boring- we have to change our perception of purity.
Purity is less about what you can't do and more about what you should do. Living a pure life isn't living by a set of rigid rules and strict guidelines. Are there boundaries that the Bible sets for a pure life? Of course. But real purity is about knowing the path that you should follow and how the [sometimes] hard choices you make pay off big time in the end.
Imagine that you're an athlete, training for an upcoming competition. You have two choices. You can join your friends and indulge in junk food and late-night parties and reckless fun and risk the chance of getting sick/hurt/exhausted and throwing all your hard work away. Or you can see the bigger picture, keep your eye on the prize, value your own skill and hard work, and skip the indulgence for now so that it pays off with a greater reward later. Then after you've achieved your goal, you can enjoy life more freely and without regret because you've crossed the finish line.
Purity is much like that. We know that God has an incredible story He is writing with all of our lives. We can be an epic part of that story when we do our best to live in purity. When sin isn't holding us back, there's nothing we can't do. Sometimes we have to say no to things for right now, knowing it will pay off in the end, and the enjoyment we'll experience then will be so much more fulfilling.
Purity is living in freedom from sin and embracing the thrill of a life completely surrendered to God's amazing adventure!
-What areas of my life might there be hidden sin that is keeping me from being pure?
-Is there something in my life (habit, relationship, hobby) that is making me struggle in being free from sin? What can I do to eliminate that struggle?
God, more than anything I want to live a life that is full of meaning, purpose, adventure and excitement. I want to experience all that You have planned for me. Help me to understand that unless I am intentional about keeping my life pure, there is a good chance I will miss out on some of the things You want me to experience or do. Show me areas of my life that I need to surrender to You and eliminate sinful habits. Thank You for Your blood, that washes even the worst sinner and makes him clean.
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