A recent event made me think about faith outside the box. The event happened when we visited the ER at a local hospital after my father-in-law fell. After checking him in, we waited in the waiting room for any updates on his condition. After a while, I walked outside to get a breath of fresh air and stretch my legs. His injuries did not appear severe, but we still waited for all the test results before we could relax.
Faith in the Box
Off to the side of the entrance, I noticed some workers boxing up a huge object. Their work piqued my interest during the moment’s boredom, so I walked closer. I saw a statue of Jesus encased in bubble wrap inside the box. I stepped back, and I think I let out a small gasp as the men turned to look at me. One of them spoke, “The hospital doesn’t need the statue any longer, so it is going to a new place.” I nodded and headed back inside. The family all laughed as I retold the story. The imagery of the Jesus statue all boxed up provided us some laughter, which relieved the stress of my father-in-law’s fall.
As God sometimes does, He takes an event and teaches me something from it. I found the statue in the crate as one of these teaching moments. Do we keep Jesus in a box? Do we try to limit His impacts on our daily schedules? Or do we box Him up because we feel we no longer need a Savior?
Unboxing Faith
The call from the secular world is strong in our society. Some believers try to box God into a Sunday-only God and then don’t acknowledge Him the rest of the week. Some people believe they can live a life rooted in the material world without the consequences because they can unbox God anytime they need Him. This also makes me think about those old bumper stickers: “God is my co-pilot.” Some Christians still believe they can pilot their destiny without Jesus along for the ride. But is that the kind of relationship God wants with His people?
God created us for a relationship with Him. But, He also made us to serve His purpose in the world. The Great Commission Bible verse found in Matthew 28:19-20 sums up God’s purpose for us, to share our faith in Christ with others. To fulfill that purpose, we must be in the right relationship with God. So what does a Godly relationship look like when we take Him out of the box? Let’s look at some ways to strengthen our relationship with Jesus.
Ways to Open the Box of Faith
Talk Daily God
Relationships involve communication, and the way to communicate with God is through prayer. When we take God out of a box, we can have a deeper relationship with Him. Start with the Lord’s Prayer if you don’t know what to say. Over time, prayer becomes more natural as we grow comfortable with sharing our thoughts and feelings with Christ. Also, take time to be quiet and listen.
Read the Bible Daily
The words of the Bible are one way that God speaks back to us. But if we are not reading it, how will we know what He is saying to us. We can find many apps and websites to help us accomplish this goal. Some offer a new verse each day, which can be a great way to start unboxing our relationship with God.
Surround Ourselves with Faithful People
Attend church regularly. Additionally, Sunday School classes or small Bible study groups can help us grow our faith and hold us accountable for that growth in Christ. We can learn much from those already living a life with God out of the box.
Memorize Some Bible Verses
I find it helpful to memorize and recall Bible verses when stressed or feeling worried. My life verse, the one I go to in a time of trouble, is Romans 8:28. I recite it often during struggles, and I feel His comfort surround me and His peace settle over me.
God does not want us to box Him up and only interact with Him on our terms. He wants a daily relationship with us. So unpack the crate and invite Him in. Christ is waiting; He stands at the door and knocks. All we have to do is open the box to let Him out.
Prayer
“I pray that the Father of glory, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, would impart to you the riches of the Spirit of wisdom and the Spirit of revelation to know him through your deepening intimacy with him. I pray that the light of God will illuminate the eyes of your imagination, flooding you with light, until you experience the full revelation of the hope of his calling—that is, the wealth of God’s glorious inheritances that he finds in us, his holy ones!” Ephesians 1:17-18 (TPT)
What a great reminder to never put Jesus in a box. He wants a daily relationship with us, not just when we take Him out of a box. 🙂
I love when God provides me with these kind of visual reminders to deepen my relationship with Him. Blessings on your day.
SO good as always. I am working hard to make sure God rules my life, every bit of it, and that I’m not compartmentalizing and confining Him to certain areas. I don’t want Jesus in a box! 🙂
I try also but sometimes I realize I have put Him in a box as I try to take control. Thanks Jessica and blessings to you.
Yes, yes, yes!
I wonder how many times I’ve gotten in the way of how the Lord wants to use me because I’m stuck here (inside the box) and He’s working there (outside the box)!
I think we all experience such times in our lives, I know I do. It is so easy to fall into this worldly trap. Thanks Ava and God bless.
We do sometimes put Jesus in a box when we don’t even realize that’s what we do. We are surrounded by so many distractions that can pull us away from our faith. It is so important to stay connected to Him and abide in the vine so the fruit of the Spirit can be evident to the world.
Thanks Barbara. I believe The distractions around us like to focus on ourselves instead of our relationship with Jesus. Jesus in a box keeps us in our comfort zone. God bless.
You’ve given some good tools for self-evaluation. Thanks!
Thank you very much Annie. God bless
These are powerful questions, Yvonne! Do we keep Jesus in a box? Do we try to limit His impacts on our daily schedules? Or do we box Him up because we feel we no longer need a Savior?
Thanks Melinda. It was a powerful visual message when I saw it. God bless.
I love this post. What a visual. I get annoyed (even though I am guilty of it) of comfortable Christianity. Putting God in a box so we remain in control and comfortable. Thank you for this great post.
Thanks Jen. I think we are all guilty of this at times in our lives. It is so easy to fall into the trap of trying to be in control of life. Thanks and God bless.
I was saddened about the comment the workers made, “The hospital doesn’t need Jesus anymore.” So they put Him in a box. Thanks for sharing a lesson from that interaction. I wish there was a way we could let others know that we ALWAYS need Jesus. Your strategies for us to keep Jesus in our lives rather than in a box are right on target. As with any relationship, we have to commit to making it work and that takes time and effort. Thank you, Yvonne.
Thanks Katherine. It did sadden me too but I see that kind of attitude all around me daily. Like you, I want to let everyone know that they need Jesus. God bless
Thanks for the reminder to not put God in a box and limit His abilities. Instead, I need to spend time with Him daily and watch as He works in my life.
Amen. We all need connect more with Jesus. Thanks Joanna
Fun AND powerful post, Yvonne. This is certainly a new twist on “Think outside the box.” lol. I like how several of your key points say, “daily.” Talk to God and read His Word daily!
It made me think of that saying too. Agreed that we need to interact with God daily. Thanks Karen and God bless
I am floored by the stunning visual and thoughts about putting Jesus in a box. That was really good. I see that as such a real problem in my life and in the church. Thanks!
Thanks so much Sylvia. I do see this as a problem with our lives and in churches. Praying we can all find ways to let Christ loose in our lives. God bless.
Sorry I’m so tardy in responding Ms. Yvonne. I need to do some “weeding” I think. 🙂 In any case, as I always do, I loved your post ma’am. I must admit though, I felt a different feeling come over me as you described what you saw when you went outside. The “boxing up of Jesus” brought a dark, foreboding cloud over my soul. While I can’t know the impetus behind the hospital’s decision, I pray it’s because they replaced it with an even larger version, I felt a nefarious presence of worldliness surrounding me. As you went on to explain, there’s a great deal of placing Jesus in a box, removing Him from the public eye, etc. that’s going on in the world today. And in many of those cases, much like statues that show our uniquely American history, the reason behind it is man’s desire to remove God from the public eye. What these purveyors of sin, hatred, and division will never understand is that you can remove God’s name from the public eye, but you can’t dethrone Him from the hearts of His children. They’ll learn, the hard way for a great many of them I’m afraid, that He is the king of kings and Lord of lords. God’s blessings precious lady, and let us endeavor to keep shining His light into this ever-darkening world.
Very good points JD. Our world does want to box Him up and put Him out of sight. I did not think to ask if they were putting up a new one or removing their public association with Christ. Many, throughout history, have tried to wipe out Christ from the public and it has never worked. Thanks for your added insight. God bless.
Yvonne, thank you for sharing your experience and ways to keep our focus on Jesus instead of boxing up our relationship with Him. Excellent
Thanks so much Jeannie. May the Lord bless you