See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ. For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and in Christ you have been brought to fullness.

Colossians 2:8-10a

Happy Easter week!

I’m loving the concept of Jesus “the Way” after reading Diane Bass Butler’s Freeing Jesus. There’s comfort knowing that he is there, walking, talking, being together. The grace of having a companion while hiking or walking brings to me a sense of contentment.

While reading another book (Emily P. Freeman’s Grace to the Good Girl), I was struck by these verses in Colossians. The author stressed the importance of those last six words: you have been brought to fullness. When I have Jesus with me on my way, I have complete fullness. There’s nothing lacking.

These verses lined up with a sermon I heard at a Christian college. Dr. Chris Green of Southeastern University explained how the noise of the world can be so overwhelming. The “hollow and deceptive philosophy” we bump into at every turn, you might say.  It’s impossible to avoid, and available all day, everyday. If you can’t get away from it, what is a person to do? 

Dr. Green pondered if it were possible to allow art and specifically literary art to take our minds captive (2 Corinthians 10:5). Even Scripture could take our imaginations captive. If the Bible grabbed our attention, we would be less focused on the attention grabbers of our world: social media, TV, and the likes. Now that I think about it, those attention-grabbers are imaginative by telling stories. Humans love stories; If not, it wouldn’t be a primary marketing tactic. Yet we have the Bible, something God-breathed (2 Timothy 3:16) and full of imagination. If the Bible were to grab our attention, we may avoid the philosophies of the world, and instead be “brought to fullness” in Christ. Maybe we don’t need noise-canceling headphones; Maybe we need a noise-canceling storytelling Way forward.

When I think about what I allow to grab my attention, it’s often work. It’s the noise of tasks, assignments, and issues that push me to be more, do more. But, what if instead, I found Jesus as my Way. I could be taken captive with imagining how He might bring fullness to the situation at hand. I could walk on the path beside him, creatively finding those moments of fullness while I’m at the job. What if I didn’t see my work as a destination, but rather a path that I’m following and I’m experiencing His story? I have a friend who closes her mailed cards, “Be part of HIS-tory.” Being on the Way is just one way of being part of His story. May that take my attention.

When you are wavering between issues at work, what grabs your attention? What way do you follow in that moment? Consider how Jesus is already on the path with you, and how he is bringing you to fullness through what grabs your attention.

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© 2022, Mollie Bond. All rights reserved. Originally published at www.molliebond.org.