Wednesday, April 8, 2026 – Set Your Sights (Alive Again — Living Resurrection Every Day)

Devotional Thought

Focus: Colossians 3:1 (NLT) — 1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand.

Resurrection is not just something that happened to Jesus.
It is something that has happened to you.

That’s what Paul is saying.

Not “one day you will be raised”…but “you have been raised.”

Which means the same things no longer define your life.

Not by your past.
Not by your failures.
Not by what others think.
Not even by what you feel in the moment.

Your life is now anchored somewhere else.

Colossians 3:3 (NLT) — 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God.

That doesn’t mean your current life doesn’t matter.
It means it’s not the final word.

We often live as if resurrection hasn’t happened—reacting out of fear, insecurity, comparison, or control.

But Paul invites us into a shift:

Lift your eyes.
Re-center your life.
Live from a different reality.

Alive again means:

You don’t have to keep living from who you were—you can start living from who you are becoming.

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Going Deeper

Scripture Reading

Colossians 3:1–4 (NLT) — 1 Since you have been raised to new life with Christ, set your sights on the realities of heaven, where Christ sits in the place of honor at God’s right hand. 2 Think about the things of heaven, not the things of earth. 3 For you died to this life, and your real life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 And when Christ, who is your life, is revealed to the whole world, you will share in all his glory.

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Historical Context

Paul writes to believers in Colossae who are navigating competing ideas about spirituality—mixtures of philosophy, religious rules, and cultural pressures.

Some were being taught that spiritual maturity came through strict practices, secret knowledge, or external performance.

Paul redirects them: True transformation doesn’t come from adding more—it comes from being rooted in Christ.

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Literary Context

Colossians moves from theology (chapters 1–2) into practical living (chapters 3–4).

This passage is a hinge moment.

Because of what is true about Jesus, something is now true about you:

• You have been raised
• Your life is hidden in Him
• Your future is secure

The rest of the letter flows out of this identity.

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Theological Context

This passage captures a core New Testament truth:

Union with Christ.

What is true of Jesus becomes true of those who belong to Him.

• His death → your death to old life
• His resurrection → your new life
• His future → your hope

Resurrection is not just future hope—it is present identity.

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Key Insights

• Resurrection is both present reality and future promise.
• Identity shapes behavior—not the other way around.
• Spiritual growth begins with re-centering your focus.
• Your life is “hidden,” meaning secure—even when it doesn’t feel visible or clear.
• You live from resurrection, not toward it.

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Looking In the Mirror

• What has been defining your identity lately?
• Where are your thoughts and attention most focused?
• Are you living from fear and pressure—or from security in Christ?
• What would change if you truly believed your life is “hidden with Christ”?

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Guided Prayer

Jesus,
Thank You that my life is not just what I see on the surface.
Thank You that through You, I have been raised into something new.

I confess that I often get pulled back into old ways of thinking—
old fears, old patterns, old identities.

But today, help me lift my eyes.
Help me set my focus on what is true, not just what is immediate.

Remind me that my life is secure in You.
That I don’t have to prove myself.
That I don’t have to live stuck in the past.

Teach me to live from resurrection—
steady, grounded, and full of hope.

Amen.