If you are anything like me, you can be quick to get stirred up about some things. When someone rubs us the wrong way, or perhaps we want to jump to a friend’s defense in a matter. We have to be SO careful about being easily “stirred up” in these kinds of matters. James 1:19 tells us to “be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath”. But there ARE a few circumstances God instructs us to be “stirred up” in. Let’s examine these:
- Stir yourself up against hypocrisy.
Job 17:8 “…the innocent shall stir up himself against the hypocrite.”
Don’t spend your time entertaining hypocrisy. Don’t just tolerate those who claim to be one thing, yet live a lifestyle that depicts another. This doesn’t mean we should hate them, or be mean to them. We are commanded to love and encourage them. Instruct them in righteousness. Live a life that shows them Christ-likeness. Pray for them. Hypocrisy is a heart problem, and we have all probably been guilty of it at one time or another. - Stir up the gift God has given you.
2 Timothy 1:6 “Wherefore I put thee in remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God, which is in thee…”
This word gift is translated from the Greek language, and means “the free gift; spiritual deliverance”. The gift we are to stir up within ourselves, is the gift of salvation. Once you are saved, you are saved forever. You have eternal life, as John 3:16 puts it. You never lose it, but there will be times when you have to stir up that gift. Times when God’s grace is not as “real” to you. Draw close to him. Ask Him to restore the joy of salvation in your life. Be faithful to Church events. Spend more time in prayer and Bible reading. - Stir up memories of past blessings.
2 Peter 3:1-2 “…which I stir up your pure minds by way of remembrance: That ye may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us the apostles of the Lord and Saviour:”
This “stirring” kind of goes along with the previous one. Sometimes you will stir up the gift of God that is in you, by remembering how God blessed you or others in the past. Remember the words of Peter, Paul, Moses, David, and others who have gone before. Remember how God has worked in the lives of others around you, and stir up your mind to lay aside fear and doubt, knowing He can do the same for you!
In summary, there are times we should be slow to get ‘stirred up’, and there are times that being ‘stirred up’ is a good thing.
