Shake Things Up
Today’s Verse:
And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness. ~Acts 4:31
We, sometimes, use the phrase, “It’s time to shake things up!” By this, we mean that we have become too comfortable and need to get back our focus and enthusiasm for what we do. This applies to every aspect of our life. The Christian life needs to be at the point where we are always ready to shake, or else we will be shaken. This morning, let’s look at some things that need shaking.
We need to shake up our solution.
Jeremiah 48:11 and Zephaniah 1:12 speak about men who have settled on their lees. Lees is sediment that unsettles itself from the rest of a fruit juice or other liquid mixture and settles on the bottom of a container. Unless the solution is shaken up, the lees will remain on the bottom and the effectiveness of the drink or solution will be greatly diluted and tasteless. Once it is shaken up, the solution or drink regains its effectiveness. Every now and then, the solution of our spiritual life needs to be shaken up in order to regain our usefulness. Don’t settle on your lees: shake up your life with sacrifice, service, and selfless giving.
We need to shake out our salt.
We are called the salt of the earth. We are to have a permeating and long-lasting influence in the lives of people around us in order to create a thirst in their heart for the Lord. However, salt left in a salt shaker has little potency if it is not poured out. Salt shakers need to be turned upside down for the salt to be shaken out! Let’s shake the salt out of our life. Make witnessing a continuous discipline. Go and witness where the gospel has yet to be heard. Go on a short-term missions trip where there is a need for the gospel. Be a more vibrant witness to people you see every day. Just shake out the salt!
We need to shake off the serpent.
As Paul was helping place some wood on a fire, a venomous viper came out of the heat and latched its fangs on his hand and wrist. At first sight, this looked really bad and fatal. However, Paul shook the serpent off his hand back into the fire. Satan will try to sink his fangs into us, but shake off that old serpent. His bites don’t have to be fatal. Just shake off the serpent. Shake off that temptation. Shake off the lustful thoughts. Shake off the ill will towards someone who is trying to hurt you. Shake off those thoughts of jealousy and envy. Shake off the serpent.
Let’s shake off the sand.
Jesus told the disciples that if they entered into a city and the people did not accept their message, they should shake the dust off their feet. In essence, He was saying: “You did what you could; don’t let it bother you. You are not responsible for their reaction to you. You are only responsible for being obedient to Me.” You cannot control another person’s disposition towards you. If you have tried to reconcile and make things right but they persist in being adverse to and opposite of you, then just shake the sand off your feet. Don’t let it bother you, follow you, or overcome you. Shake the sand off your feet and keep moving. There is still a lot of territory to cover.
Are you a shaken Christian? Are there some things that need to be shaken up, shaken out, or shaken off? Does God need to do the shaking, or are you humble enough to do the shaking yourself?
Have a shaking God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: 1 Samuel 25-27