In the world of mysterious religious ideas, Paul reminded the Colossian Christians that while the shiny religions around them and the particular practices of those religions might feel like a more spiritual lifestyle, these religions are only a shadow of what God offers us in Jesus. In Jesus, we have reality: spiritual reality and human reality. God became one of us in Jesus so we could be one with him and share in his glory. What is real is what we find in Jesus.

Give me focus, O Lord, to follow your Son with all my heart. I know so many other religious ideas are out there, but I also know that only Jesus showed how much you love me by dying for me and saving me from sin and death. I want to not only trust and follow him, but I also want my character to be conformed to his. I pray in the name of the only true Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.