Wake up sleeper, 

Rise from the Dead, 

And Christ will shine on you.

This past week, I was reading through Ephesians.  It’s one of my go to reads for a quick, humbling, lay-it-all-on-the table reflection session.  Ephesians, a letter from St. Paul, [debatably] written in Ephesus, is an instruction manual in many things.  Like a vintage teacher rapping on an old chalkboard, Paul rebukes sin in all forms and addresses debauchery, obscenity, sexual immorality, falsehood, lack of love, etc., etc., etc., in 6 short chapters.  While, in his typical Paul fashion, framing each sin with reminders of God’s love, our place in the Body of Christ, and our boundless access to the armor of God.  

In one particular section of Ephesians (5:13-14), Paul references the initiative drawn originally from Isaiah: 

Wake up sleeper, 

Rise from the Dead, 

And Christ will shine on you. (Eph 5:14)

For whatever reason, this resounded in my soul today.  I wanted to paint it on my wall, write it on my mirror, and repeat it over and over again. I wanted to turn it into a song, and if you know me, you’ll understand, I wanted to tattoo it on myself.  Why did this hit me so differently today than the countless other times I’ve heard it? I’m not sure, but I’m thankful that it did.  

Wake up sleeper

Wake up is a command. What I love about it, is its absolute flexibility and universality.  There is no modifier, there is no “wake up from.”  He is speaking to each of us in our unique frameworks.  The powerful context of this command, paired with our response to oblige or not, is a soul-saver and world-changer. 

Every single one of us has something that keeps us in the dark.  Every single person you have ever and will ever meet is a victim and an exponent of sin.  We are, however, not slaves to sin. We have, in every moment, the choice to wake up from our darkness, and be flooded by the light that is true grace.  

The tireless, ever-available choice that we have to rise up is what is so motivating for me.  No matter the sin, no matter the length of the shame, or the depth of the darkness, we will never lose the choice to step into the light.

I find myself in sin often. I lose to temptation, sometimes without a fight. To pretend that I don’t fall in these ways would be childish, because I do. All the time. When I do, I feel the distance, the lackluster prayer, and my answer, time and time again, is scripture. This is the way that God allows me to come back every day - the transformative narrative of the New Testament, the way that God flips the world on its head. The subversive ministry of Jesus Christ. The apostles who die to themselves day in and day out in desperation as they attempt to make disciples. The promises made in Isaiah, fulfilled in the Gospels. Every time I fall, I find the strength to rise up again and again in Scripture.

In my reflection, I was reminded of the several times throughout Paul’s letters in the New Testament, and specifically in Ephesians, that he refers to himself as the slave of Christ.  In doing so, he incites some confusion.  Just as we are not slaves to sin, we are not enslaved by God.   God doesn’t trap us, God doesn’t force us; after all, God gave us free will.  A forced love would be ungratifying, so what does he mean?  Paul has made a choice to serve Jesus Christ in all that he does, letting the love of God dictate his every move.  In doing so, he has enslaved himself to the will of God and formed a union that is consecrated by free will, emboldened by commitment, and led by the Holy Spirit.  He chose to step into the light, and once he did, chose to remain a servant of God. 

You and I have this same choice, every day.  To wake up and step into the light.  To rise from sin and shame, and to let ourselves be engulfed by the light of Christ, which raises us from the depths of our own deaths in sin. 

Every time we speak life in the name of Jesus, every time we shed light on truth, we beat sin and death down a little further.  Together, we can wake up, rise from the dead, and watch Jesus Christ overcome darkness – in us and through us.

How do we do this? It’s strangely simple. For me, I shared I run to scripture, but there are so many ways. Go to confession. Walk into the church doors as soon as they re-open and just sit. Tithe 10% of your time to prayer today. Open your bible and let God speak to you. Start a novena intentioned towards your own awakening. Choose one of these, and then make the choice to start. Make the choice to rise up.

Just as St. Paul, and millions of Christians, were given before us, we are offered the command, and then the choice, to rise up.  When we respond, we begin to fulfil our own restoration stories.

I hope you can reflect on this today. If you, like me, are making a choice to rise today, let me know how it goes.

Wake up Sleeper

Rise from the Dead

And Christ will shine on you

 Leeanne Leary is a missionary serving in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and a member of the Army Reserves. She is a graduate of Mount St. Mary's University and The Citadel, where she earned a degree in Literature and then an MBA. Since graduation, she has worked in education and business development, and is passionate about many things, but mainly just Jesus. You can read more of her writing by subscribing to the Seeking Excellence blog