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Walk Wisely and Stay Awake – Love Beyond Measure · Still, Here

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: This is still here.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: A quiet moment to remember what is true.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: Listen to these words from the book of Ephesians, chapter 5, verses 15 through 18.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: Therefore,
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_00: watch carefully how you walk,
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: not as unwise but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: Therefore, don't be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
• 0:30
  SPEAKER_00: Do not be drunken with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: We can turn almost anything into another ruler, even time.
• 0:44
  SPEAKER_00: How productive was I today?
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: How much did I finish?
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_00: Did I use the day well enough?
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_00: The small ruler says, I have to control my time and circumstances to make my life meaningful.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: Then we read Paul's words about redeeming the time and hear another instruction
• 1:04
  SPEAKER_00: to become more efficient.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think that fits the movement of Ephesians.
• 1:10
  SPEAKER_00: Paul tells us to walk wisely, to understand the will of the Lord, to be filled with the Spirit.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: Wisdom is more than getting the most done in the least amount of time.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: Wisdom is learning how to live by God's design and
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: Earlier in this journey, we pictured God's will as a compass rather than a detailed map.
• 1:36
  SPEAKER_00: A compass does not give you every turn in advance.
• 1:40
  SPEAKER_00: It keeps giving you direction.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_00: As grace forms us, we become more able to recognize that direction in ordinary life.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: We notice what draws us toward truth.
• 1:53
  SPEAKER_00: Peace, courage, love, and a deeper awareness of God's presence.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: We also begin recognizing what pulls us back toward fear,
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: hurry, comparison, and the need to prove ourselves.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: That does not mean wise living always feels calm.
• 2:13
  SPEAKER_00: There are busy days.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_00: Deadlines are real.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: People need things from us.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: Some seasons ask more than others.
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: But hurry can become an inner condition even when the calendar is not full.
• 2:28
  SPEAKER_00: We can live five minutes ahead of ourselves all day long.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: Redeeming the time may be much more about inhabiting the life God is giving
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: than squeezing more production out of every hour.
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: Yesterday does not need another hour of guilt.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_00: Tomorrow does not need today's anxiety.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: This moment is where we can meet God.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: Paul's description of being filled with the Spirit is also strikingly ordinary.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: In the verses that follow,
• 3:00
  SPEAKER_00: he speaks about worship, thankfulness, conversation, and relationships.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: Spirit-filled living does not have to be spectacular.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it looks like being fully present while someone else talks.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_00: It looks like doing one task without mentally carrying six others.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: It looks like noticing that you are tired and responding with wisdom instead of shame.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_00: It looks like recognizing an opening to love someone that would have been easy
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_00: to miss if you were rushing toward the next thing.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: The Spirit becomes the motivating power beneath the action.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_00: So, perhaps the question at the end of the day is not only, what did I accomplish?
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_00: It may be, was I awake to the life God gave me today?
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: You do not have to master the whole schedule.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_00: Receive this moment.
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_00: Let the Spirit direct the step that belongs in it.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: Take a moment for this prayer of presence.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_00: Spirit of God, the pressure to hurry can make me miss the life directly in front of me.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_00: I release yesterday and tomorrow for this moment.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_00: Direct my energy toward what matters now.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_00: Help me recognize when I am moving from fear and when I am moving with you.
• 4:26
  SPEAKER_00: Fill me again so that what I do grows from your presence rather than pressure.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_00: Amen.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: As you pick up the next task in front of you, carry this prayer with you.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: I receive this moment.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_00: The Spirit directs my steps.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: I receive this moment.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_00: The Spirit directs my steps.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, stay steady,
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: Stay open.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_00: Stay present.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: You are still here.