A BREATHLESS SUMMER?
It’s summer, traditionally a season for less stress and more relaxation, more time off. But are you already out of breath? Is your schedule running you instead of you running your schedule?
When we leave too little breathing room in our lives, we feel drained. Near the end of my father’s death with lung cancer, it hurt to watch him breathe. The in-and-out of air was slow and tiring. Instead of invigorating his body with fresh oxygen, breathing seemed like dreary work.
Our lives can become that way as well when we don’t guard our spiritual breathing.
BREATH IS SPIRIT
Our breath is a gift from God, one of our very first.
Then the LORD God formed the man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living creature.
Genesis 2:7
In the New Testament, Paul taught the Athenians about our marvelous Creator who gives us life and breath and everything (Acts 17:25). In the Greek, “breath” here is from pnoe (G4157). It also means a breeze, wind.
In John 3:8 the root word pneo (G4154—to breathe hard, breeze, blow) and its more common derivative pneuma (G4151—a current of air, breath, breeze, spirit) are both used.
The wind [G4151] blows [G4154] where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit [4151].
John 3:8
A literal translation could be:
The breath breathes hard. . . . We are brought forth from the Breath.
We are born of that Breath. That Wind. That Spirit. Just as we live physically by breathing in oxygen 10-20 times per minute, so we breathe in God continually for sustained spiritual life.
LET THE WIND REMIND US
So when you’re outside this week, pay attention to the wind. Look for signs of it around you.
- Are tree limbs dancing in praise to its rhythm?
- Are birds resting their wings in its current?
- Do you feel it blowing away your sweat, cooling down your body?
Let the wind remind you to breathe in God’s grace. And breathe out His praise.
Awaken to God’s Spirit breathing through your world. Look for signs of His movement.
- Do you see evidence of His grace in people you live or work with?
- Are you breathing in His gifts with each lungful of air?
- Can you breathe out honor to Him through your mouth for His provisions?
Just as we can’t see the wind, neither can we physically see God. But we know both are here through other ways.
God is very real, leaving His fingerprints all over our world and hearts to remind us of His presence. Pause periodically to notice and praise.
Each day we take around 26,000 breaths. Can we use a few this week to give God thanks for them?
- Praise Him for His splendor
- Honor Him for His goodness
- Bless Him for His love
BIBLE STUDY SUGGESTIONS
- Take your Bible (outside, if possible!) and slowly read Psalm 145.
- Look up wind/spirit/breath in a concordance.
- Close your eyes. Do you feel any wind on your face? Tune in to your breathing.
- Pray. Thank God for how He is breathing through your life, in ways you feel and in ways you don’t.
- More verses to read: Job 33:4; Psalm 34:1-7; Psalm 51:15; Psalm 67:3-5; Psalm 71:5-8; Psalm 150; Ezekiel 37:5; Amos 4:13; Mark 4:36-41; John 2:21-22.
- Pick up a physical object to bring inside. Perhaps a leaf blowing across the lawn. Or a rock that stayed put through a storm. Or a wildflower that sways when you blow it. Let this object remind you this week to stay aware of the invisible Spirit breathing through you.
QUESTION
When is the last time you’ve been really out of breath, physically or spiritually? Please leave a comment below of how God breathes through your life. We’d love to hear.
More:
5 things I learned from my “Year of Deep Breathing”
We can all get so busy with the seemingly myriad number of things that MUST be done that we often completely forget to take the time to breathe! I recently read where Denzel Washington (a strong Christian man) said that when he goes to bed at night, he kicks his slippers under the bed – that way, the very first thing that he has to do when he gets out of bed is get down on his knees…what a GREAT idea – and a wonderful way to “breathe”!
What a beautiful story, Tommy. Sometimes it’s those small things, like putting our slippers under the bed, that can get us in a good groove (different from a boring rut). When we think we’re too busy to pray, we’re too busy NOT to.
Glad you’re here! The link to LisaNotes does not seem to be working today.
I’m a bit out of breath, yes…physically (it really hurts to breathe these days), and in other ways as well. But the sun is going down, and there’s a harvest to be brought in. There’s a job to be done, and the work of service and encouragement is far more important than how I might feel.
In losing myself, I gain Heaven, or a at least a bit of it, while I am yet here.
I can’t pretend to know how you feel, hurting to breathe like that, Andrew. :( I just stand amazed that your sense of purpose still overrides how you feel physically. You are strong, brother. May the Lord continue to give you the breath you need. We all benefit by breathing your breathing Him in and out.
(Thanks for the heads-up about my blog. I’m probably going to switch hosts; lots of inconsistency lately.)
Lisa, trust me…you don’t want to know how this feels. “Being cut in half while having a heart attack” might get close to the reality.
But even in that…God loves me. He hates what’s happening, but while he can’t change the circumstance (without ruining the meaning of free will in our souls, and in the world) He can help me…through encouragement, or through kicking my butt bloody to keep me witnessing, because He knows I will regret it if I don’t.
No rest here, but there is that sweet spot of glorious exhaustion, knowing that I am doing my very, very best.
I selfishly hope you’re right, Andrew, that I never know how that feels. :( But I would love to have the strong faith that you have through it all. You inspire us to keep trusting in God’s goodness even when we don’t “feel” it.
That “sweet spot of glorious exhaustion” – a beautiful description.
Lisa, thank you so much. I hope you’re never ‘here’ either, but if you are, so will God be, and He will feel every bit of your pain, to help you bear it.
He will gladly be crucified again, just for you.
Yes, I am in need of a deep breath. Thank you for the study suggestions. Going to take time to do that this weekend. Thanks Lisa!
Awesome! It’s a beautiful warm day where I am, perfect to sit outside and feel His gentle breeze.
Lisa, this is especially sweet for me to read tonight. I have followed you over from Faith Barista and so thankful that I did.
I will be looking at wind and breath through different eyes this week. I want the refreshment that comes with God-breathed Truth.
Praising Him with you, ~ linda
I’m about to go for a walk right now and hopefully feel the wind, reminding me of God’s Spirit blowing through our lives. Thankful that He sent you our way, Linda! You’re such a wonderful listener and servant in sharing the Truth in our world.
Oh Lisa, this is such a wonderful reminder, early in our summer schedules, to not forget Who it is that gives us breath. I can’t say that I’ve been practicing breathing outside…BUT I can tell you that each night for this past week when I’ve had a hard time falling asleep, I have actually been practicing my breathing. Making that conscious effort to pay attention as I inhale and exhale has been a tremendous blessing because before I know it the natural rhythm of it has carried me off to slumber. Thank you so much for sharing this piece of godly wisdom with us, my friend.
Isn’t it amazing that something so simple as practicing breathing can be a reminder of how much we are loved? I do that as well when I wake up at night. It calms my anxious thoughts (somewhat anyway!) to just take one breath at a time, knowing God has it all under control and my only job at 2 a.m. is to rest. :) So glad you left your thoughts here, Dianna. Kindred hearts, we are.