Scripture Of The Day — Colossians 1:27
“To them God chose to make known how great among the Gentiles are the riches of the glory of this mystery, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Big Idea
There is a difference between believing that God is somewhere “out there” and daring to trust that Christ lives in you. The first keeps God at a safe distance, like a powerful stranger you occasionally call on in emergencies. The second is an unfathomable mystery: your ordinary life has become a dwelling place for the presence of Jesus. This isn’t a religious transaction; it’s an invitation to live every moment aware that you never walk alone.
Reflection
There are mornings when you wake up and you’re not really sure who is running your inner world—your anxieties, your to-do list, your scrolling, your old stories about yourself. You step out of bed already feeling behind, with a quiet ache for something deeper than notifications and worries.
Into that scramble, this ancient line drops like a spiritual thunderclap: “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Not Christ above you watching from a distance. Not Christ occasionally visiting when you “feel spiritual.” Christ in you. The very life of Jesus has chosen your heart as a home address.
The question isn’t “Is Christ present?” but “Do I live as if Christ is really in me? Do I make room for the One who already lives here?” When you feel a tug toward silence, a nudge to put your phone down, a longing just to sit and breathe in God’s presence, that is your soul knocking from the inside, reminding you that you are not empty; you are inhabited.
Russell talks about sitting quietly with his little dog—a creature who doesn’t negotiate or bring a list of demands, who simply wants to be with him. That becomes a parable: what if your relationship with Christ shifted from utility to love? Not “Christ, fix me, fix this, give me that,” but “Christ, I’m here because I love You, and because You already live in me.”
You can’t add to Christ’s finished sacrifice; you can only receive the life He has already placed within you. The hope of glory is not that one day you might finally become worthy enough for God to draw near. The hope of glory is that He already has. Your only job is to notice it, welcome it, and receive it.
Application
Today, try this:
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Take 60 seconds to sit in stillness and simply repeat: “Christ, You are in me, and I am in You.” Let the words move from your lips to your awareness.
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Identify one old pattern—a fearful thought, a shame story, a way you talk about yourself—and gently refuse to rehearse it one more time. When it surfaces, answer it with: “That’s not the truest thing about me. Christ lives in me.”
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Do one small embodied action that agrees with this reality: breathe slowly and deeply for a minute, put your hand over your heart and thank Jesus for dwelling there, take a quiet walk, or share a kind word with someone as a person carrying Christ’s presence into the room.
Prayer
Christ within, thank You for choosing my life as a place to dwell. When I feel empty, remind me that I am not alone. When I reach for You as if You were far away, gently turn my attention to the nearness of Your Spirit. Teach me to sit in Your presence the way a beloved friend sits beside me—with no agenda but love. Let “Christ in me, the hope of glory” become more than words on a page; let it shape how I think, speak, move, and love today. Fill every corner of my mind, my body, and my soul with Your living presence. Amen.
Closing Line
Be gentle with yourself today—every ordinary moment is now holy ground, because Christ in you is the hope of glory.
