Chasing Shadows
By Elin Henderson
“So let no one judge you in food or drink…which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”
Colossians 2:16-17 (NKJV)
Sometimes I ask myself, “Am I chasing shadows when I have the substance staring me in the face?” Too many times, the answer is “Yes.” We are grasping for things that are just out of our reach and when we get to it, find it once again tempting us onward while remaining unattainable. The foolish ones to whom Paul is speaking here in Colossians were doing the same thing! They were chasing the shadow of the Sabbath when the reality of true rest was right there staring them in the face…Christ! They were chasing the shadow of the Law, the “do’s and don’ts,” when the reality of freedom, victory and grace in Christ was right there in front of them.
While we may not struggle with the same shadows as those in Paul’s day, we have our own. We struggle for peace in the midst of anxiety and mayhem, only to have it right there with us in the Person of the Holy Spirit. We pray for wisdom and seek it in books, struggling for shadows, when He says, “Just ask, I will give you more than you can imagine.” We cry out for strength, yet continue running after the shadow of it, only to find that He is waiting there for us saying, “Stop striving and rest! I will be your strength.”
So, let’s give up chasing after the shadows when we have the real deal, the substance of Christ living in and through us! Let us look to Him for our every need and find that the substance alone will satisfy, whereas these other fleeting shadows will simply remain just out of our grasp.
GOING DEEPER:
1. What are some shadows that you have been chasing after lately? Can you make a list of them?
2. Now, what are some verses that you can find that will help you remember the substance that you need is found in Christ alone?
FURTHER READING:
Hebrews 10:1, 12:1-2
Oakwood’s missionaries Elin Henderson and her husband Phil serve as church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa. Elin is mother to ten-year-old Callie and seven-year-old Elias.
