Non-Negotiable: Steadfast

Hello friends,

For Lent, I'm trying to do a bit of a word study. As Christians, not only do we throw around buzz words that have no meaning to non-Christians, but sometimes we don't know their full meaning either. (Secretly I'm an English nerd in nurse's clothing). As we come into Lent, we are called to repentance, self-denial, almsgiving etc. I'll do word studies on these in due time, but these are not easy things to do. Recently, as I've been struggling with depression, I've come to the realization you have to put your foot down and make some things non-negotiable. It may seem really obvious to you, but resorting to self-harm is simply not an option. Also, for the stability of my mental health - regular exercise is non-negotiable. Without realizing it, we often prioritize things on a basis of what is most comfortable, easy, or what we want. However, sometimes what is best for us does not include any of those things. So Lent is a time to reprioritize what must absolutely be done in the day. That's why we practice fasting from certain things - we are trying to leave behind that which has gotten in the way of what is most important - spending time with God.

Because this is so hard for me (believe me, I struggle with sloth and discipline), I have found it helpful to view my Lenten fasting and almgiving as non-negotiable. For example, every day I'm going to wake up and write down 50 things I'm thankful for. Not getting to bed on time in order to wake up to do this is not an option. Sure it may happen, but then I'm still going to get up on less sleep and be thankful. What does this have to do with steadfastness? Well, in Luke 9:51, Jesus "steadfastly set his face to Jerusalem". This is a potent little verse which needs the enlightening context that in going to Jerusalem, Jesus knew he was going to the cross.... which is certainly not comfortable, easy, and not what he wanted. So, we also are patterning ourselves after Jesus. In my concordance, steadfast is defined as "to turn resolutely in a certain direction, to set fast, to establish, to confirm" When we live out the discipline of non-negotiability, we set our faces to our own crosses, to the Lord on whom we depend, and to establishing new life-giving habits. In my mind, non-negotiaion is steadfastness. It is being resolute in the face of temptation. It is being set fast to do what is good and right and true. It is the strength through the Holy Spirit, to go beyond our comfort zone.


I pray you will learn more about the Lord's steadfast love.
Katie