all the treasures
in colossians paul expresses his hope for the laodiceans :
“…that they may be encouraged in heart, knit together in love, and filled with the full riches of complete understanding, so that they may know the mystery of God, namely Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.”
colossians 2:2-3
what would we do without Jesus, who contains all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge? we can face any fear or perplexing circumstance, & also the most mundane decisions, open up to Him in easy conversation, & ask, simply, “what’s going on here?” or “what should i do here?” & He’ll tell us. we just have to believe & not doubt, & all those treasures will open up for us!
like many of you, i’m guessing, i was having memory problems. friends of all ages have shared that they are, too, & great fear often accompanies it. one day i just asked Jesus about it, & He gave me a key.
He showed me that the time i most consistently noticed my memory failing was during reading time with my little girls. i’d read a few sentences or paragraphs, & wouldn’t have the slightest idea what i’d just read! my mind would wander off into other things, usually something i was trying to figure out, often something quite trivial (like a paint color or a grocery list), & i’d be using half of my brain to read aloud, the other half to try to problem-solve. then this verse came to mind :
“If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord; he is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.”
james 1:5-8
once i asked the Lord about it, He showed me the solution : i could just ask Him, outside of reading time, for wisdom on these issues, & trust that He’d give me the answer. instead, i’d literally been dividing my mind (being “double-minded”) in a moment that required single-mindedness—focus on the present moment, a precious reading time with my little girls, meanwhile, wreaking havoc on my memory.
once He revealed this, & i began noticing, i could actually reign my thoughts back in quite simply. now every time i begin to slip into double-mindedness, trying to think about two things at once, i can repent, say, “thank you, Jesus, that You’re figuring that out for me right now!” & go back to the beautiful, single task at hand. that’s simple faith in action (for a simple expression of faith is just to say “thank you!”). this revelation has begun to re-wire my brain, & my overall memory is improving!
simple, & not simple, all at once, but i hope for some of you this will be a huge rescue today! 🤎
(wallpaper is oak leaf by tess newall in original colorway)
