Prepare the inside
that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, Ephesians 3:16
How much time do you spend getting ready for your day? Is it an hour or two? Is it 10 – 15 minutes before you walk out the door? The point is, we all take some time to prepare our outside body to face each day. Whether it’s shower and shave, dry and curl (or straighten), put on make up and even eat breakfast? These things all take time, and we take time to do them every single day that we get out of bed.
Today’s verse is the beginning of a prayer that the Apostle Paul prayed for the Ephesian church. His very first thought is that they would be strengthened in their inner person. He also tells them how to do this and its through God’s Spirit. They must take time to fill themselves up with God’s Spirit of energy and wisdom, which of course comes from God and His Word. He doesn’t pray that they will be the most clean and beautiful people. That they will prepare their body’s to be pleasant to look at and talk to. Most people instinctively already do this and it is the right thing to do. Please, by all means, don’t stop preparing the outside, but make the inside at least as, if not more important than the outside. At the very least, spend as much time preparing the inside as you do the outside. If you have to get up a little earlier, make the change today. Your inner person is your greatest investment. It is where the issues of life are resolved! (Prov. 4:23) Get a fresh perspective each morning from your Heavenly Father to see the day in a whole new light.
Today I want to encourage you to first of all consider your inner person. Ask yourself “Is there any places it needs to be strengthened?” Then write down the areas you see that you are weak in and make a plan of how to strengthen them. Get a scripture to go along with each of the areas and begin to pray and ask the Spirit of God to strengthen you in these areas. Each day, spend quiet time with God to step into a new level of confidence with Him and know His heart for you better. Lastly, look for opportunities to encourage others that may be showing the weakness of their inner person and help them to know how they can be strengthened also.
Today’s scripture reading: Ephesians 3:14-19
The Daily Dose 