Holy. What does it mean to you? Well, up until a couple of weeks ago when I heard the word “holy” the first thing I thought of was ‘perfection’. I believed that in order to live a holy life you had to be perfect, free from blemish, or very close to it. Until two Monday evenings ago, living a holy life seemed impossible to me. After all, only Christ is perfect. I believe perfection is one quality of holiness, but not the only. In that case, man would be destined for failure, with no access to God. In the Bible it says that all have sinned and fell short of God’s glory (Romans 3:22-24). But thank God for Jesus! It is Christ that gives us the righteousness to live holy and not necessarily our own actions. For me it was good news (and a relief) to learn, through my study of Isaiah, the true meaning of ‘holy’ and that it’s actually attainable.
The biblical terms associated with “Holy” include “separated”, “withheld from ordinary use” or “treated with special care” and “belonging uniquely to the Lord”. Does being set apart mean that you do everything right in God’s eyes? I don’t think so. However, I believe it requires a commitment to live our lives in a way that makes us available to be used by God. It’s also a lifestyle were God’s principles override what the world classifies as “acceptable” or what everybody else is doing. Thinking back to 2001 when I rededicated my life to Christ to the present, there are places that I don’t go anymore and things I refrain from doing or saying. I continue to cultivate my relationship with God. Yet, despite remaining imperfections, I now realize that this is my path towards holiness and I believe I’m heading in the right direction. God has set me apart for His specific purpose and He will equip me to become the vessel needed to fulfill it. Now, I can stop trying to be a perfectionist! <wiping sweat from my forehead>
~Alicia
www.aliciahilljones.com
