As I contemplate the daily struggle of putting on tights - this is obviously a woman thing, not to mention new tights, I see myself with my tendinitis damaged right hand and emerging carpal tunnel left caught up in the battle. This is why I often try to purchase my tights (a very necessary accessory for my frigid office) in a little larger size. Even then, getting them on can be fierce whether my skin is moist or dry. I dread the fight.
Yet, today, it occurred to me - isn't this similar in some respects to putting on the new 'man' or the new self - the identity of Christ? Read Ephesians 4:17-24 and Colossians 3:5-10. God has gifted us this treasure - it is not an accessory that we put on and take off! This gift is intended to be worn through eternity, even if we must struggle into it daily while still in the flesh. This is not a surprise since Jesus tells us that we will struggle all the while the new identity - the new self - covers us. Read his words in the 'Beatitudes' in Matthew 5; also Luke 9:23, Matthew 16:24/Mark 8:34, Matthew 10:22/Mark 13:13/Luke 21:17, John 15:18-19, John 17:14. Paul describes his personal battle in Romans 7:22-25. He speaks of our universal battle in Ephesians 6:10-13.
Thanks be to God for simple truths - as one of my beloved preachers often says, "the main things are the plain things, and the plain things are the main things." Look for God in your everyday plain things.
