#18 My Heart Undressed | Scramble Eggs

JANE PHINNEY: “Increasingly yielding to the awareness of Jesus Christ’s presence in my life, automatically decreases the futile expression of my self-effort.”

I CAN’T SCRAMBLE EGGS (Part 1)

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Over the course of our married life, we lived in 4 states & worked for 4 people-helping or ministry organizations. Perhaps none was more daunting as incorporating our own discipleship non-profit, suggested & encouraged by our seasoned mentors, at that time, Keith & Judy. I believe all of us have “markers” in our lives that stand out as lifelong game changers. This is one of mine. Carrying out the steps to accomplish this endeavor was an intimidating experience for me! And given the busyness of young family responsibilities, I wasn’t all that excited about functioning as the ministry bookkeeper. Fulfilling advanced legal business requirements put me in uncharted waters & I felt trapped by the unfamiliar. Over the course of time, the pace did me in. I felt burned out & at loose ends in my soul! It was at that point that Steve made the necessary arrangements for me to spend a weekend with Keith & Judy in Denver. Their basement apartment had been designed as a refuge for weary souls, from all walks of life, needing rest & refocusing. And that it was!

I don’t recall all the details about that weekend. But I fondly remember a relaxing jacuzzi tub, hours of talking & sharing, extended time in the Word, & FABULOUS food. Judy was a very gifted artist and an excellent cook! So, it caught me off guard when she said what she did. We were at the breakfast table discussing the implications of Christ’s finished work on the Cross & our new identity because of His victory or sin & death. She declared, “I can’t scramble eggs without Jesus.” I think I literally stopped chewing! I glanced down at my gourmet breakfast: beautifully plated fluffy eggs, crispy bacon, raspberry-topped cream cheese blintzes, & fresh fruit. I thought, “You’re kidding me, right?” I looked at her in disbelief. I mean, I had the evidence sitting in front of me. Clearly, she knew how to scramble eggs, plus a whole lot more! I didn’t have a clue what she was implying.

It was quite a few years later that I began to grasp the Biblical meaning behind Judy’s words. It’s one thing to understand something in your head. But it’s an altogether different story to embrace the Truth in your heart where it becomes a living passion. That long ago day, Judy sowed seeds that awakened a desire in me. I saw her intimacy with the Father, through Jesus Christ, & it exposed a void in my spiritual understanding. I wanted more. Throughout the years, I repeatedly said “I get it now. I know what Judy meant. I really can’t scramble eggs without Jesus!”

So, what made the difference? How has this Truth been massaged in the fiber of my relationship with my heavenly Father? Hardship, loss, disappointment, rejection, emotional pain, & some physical suffering…the kind of words most of us would rather not hear, let alone experience. But God has used, & will continue to use, all of it—to show me the evidence that no good thing dwells in my flesh. And that I need to live in agreement with His conclusion (Romans 7:18). He desires to work in me to accomplish His will & to give Him pleasure (Philippians 2:13), a supernatural possibility only because I have been crucified with Christ. The life I now live in my human body on earth, I live by faith in Jesus Christ alone, who loved me & died for me (Galatians 2:20). I am reconciled to God, in relationship, through Christ’s death. I am saved experientially in my daily living, by His resurrected life (Romans 5:10). Amazingly, the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead, indwells every true believer & gives life to/works through our mortal bodies. Therefore, we aren’t obligated to respond to sinful, selfish fleshly impulses or passions (Romans 8:9-12). We have a choice. Jesus became sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God, in Him (2 Cor 5:21). WOW! This side of heaven, I’ll never fully grasp it. But it IS spiritually miraculous, to me, nonetheless. The old man is no longer my identity because I am brand new in Christ.

At any given moment, my thoughts/actions are either honoring God or honoring Satan, the enemy of my soul. I’m either allowing Christ’s life to work through/flow out of me, or I’m motivated by SELF-ishness & trying to prove that I’m somebody. I’m either fearing God or performing for man. I’m either focused on Christ, or, by default, trapped by the enemy. (Galatians 5 clearly presents the warring between the Spirit & flesh.) My fruit either glorifies God or is pretentious & plastic-- empowered by my flesh, influenced by the world, or motivated by pride. It is most assuredly disgusting & nasty! At the end of the day, self-effort leaves me empty inside, while the enemy of my soul accuses, laughs & mocks me. And as we all know, plastic fruit has no taste, no substance. It might look good or even pretty. But in the light of eternity, it doesn’t make the cut.

I believe this is applicable to everything in life. From the smallest gesture to, what I might consider, a great accomplishment, God is after my heart motivation…solely & totally yielded to the Holy Spirit in any given moment. He wants to work (i.e. “scramble”) through me.

He has a plan to complete His purposes. My paraphrase of John 3:30 would read something like this: “Increasingly yielding to the awareness of Jesus Christ’s presence in my life, automatically decreases the futile expression of my self-effort.” This is sanctification…until heaven. We can experience a progressive freedom…not having to measure up to perceived standards, both those imposed by others & those we put on ourselves.

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