"It's the word of faith that welcomes God to go to work and set things right for us...Say the welcoming word to God - "Jesus is my Master" - embracing, body and soul, God's work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That's it. You're not doing anything; you're simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That's salvation." Romans 10:8-10, The Message.
I don't know why we make this life of faith so complicated, but we do. It's that life becomes so often about us rather than about God. That is what St. Paul says, that the quest for God (or religion) centers on us rather than on God. And when our focus becomes selfish, it becomes sinful and instead of moving towards God, we move in the opposite direction.
In other words, our greatest obstacle in receiving all that God has in store for us, in trusting in the one who loves us, even in fully believing in Christ is...us!
A simple question, then, for the day...are you in the way?
"So here's what I want you to do, God helping you: take your everyday, ordinary life - your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life - and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God has done for you is the best thing you can do for Him." Romans 12:1, The Message.
I know that in my personal life of faith, I struggle with what constitutes my needed attention and what becomes selfish. I struggle because many times my identity as a person is often equated with my profession, my vocation. So sometimes even personal time feels selfish. Yet the struggle is important because I've lived without it before and when the struggle doesn't exist it's because I'm too focused on myself to see the bigger picture, the free life with God. In other words, I often get in the way.
I've discovered that the answer is to dedicate each day to God, to choose to be a servant, to choose to have faith. It's the choice to get out of the way and see God work in and through me.
That's what God simply wants from all of us to get out of the way!
Peace ><>
pc
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Tuesday, August 21, 2007
Welcome Back, Self!
Okay, so it's been a while. There have been so many things happen this summer that has made me lapse (or fail miserably, depending on your perspective) in blogging. I've disappointed many of you who were daily readers. I've let you down and I'm sorry. My goal is to get back into the groove as the kids go back to school and I get on a more regular routine. (yeah, like that is really going to happen!)
Anyway, I do hope someone reads this. (I see that there have been almost 3-4 hits per day still, that gives me hope!) But I also hope you respond. This blog was created not only to be a devotional thought from me, but a devotional discussion, where we as a community can look at a passage, a daily thought and add our own two cents in it. So, here goes...a new chapter for a new day.
"But sin...doesn't have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it's sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that's the end of it. Grace, because God is puting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life - a life that goes on and on and on, world without end." Romans 5:20b-21, The Message.
I'm a little behind in my daily Bible reading. I end up reading weeks and months ahead for my sermon planning but try to come back to the daily scripture readings so that I can spend time devotionally. Today I read this passage from Paul's letter to the Romans and it was just what I needed to hear.
Grace. That's what I need today because of the thoughts that have been going through my mind; because of the pain that people cause; because of the trust that is broken; I could go on, but I won't. The details of my issue aren't important in this space, the really important thing is grace. I need it, God gives it. The church needs it, God grants it, I try and live it.
I only wish it were that easy.
This morning I'm focusing on the meaning of grace for me so that I can show grace toward others.
Maybe you can do the same.
It's a healthy exercise and we might just all be more spiritually fit for it.
Peace ><>
pc
Anyway, I do hope someone reads this. (I see that there have been almost 3-4 hits per day still, that gives me hope!) But I also hope you respond. This blog was created not only to be a devotional thought from me, but a devotional discussion, where we as a community can look at a passage, a daily thought and add our own two cents in it. So, here goes...a new chapter for a new day.
"But sin...doesn't have a chance in competition with the aggressive forgiveness we call grace. When it's sin versus grace, grace wins hands down. All sin can do is threaten us with death, and that's the end of it. Grace, because God is puting everything together again through the Messiah, invites us into life - a life that goes on and on and on, world without end." Romans 5:20b-21, The Message.
I'm a little behind in my daily Bible reading. I end up reading weeks and months ahead for my sermon planning but try to come back to the daily scripture readings so that I can spend time devotionally. Today I read this passage from Paul's letter to the Romans and it was just what I needed to hear.
Grace. That's what I need today because of the thoughts that have been going through my mind; because of the pain that people cause; because of the trust that is broken; I could go on, but I won't. The details of my issue aren't important in this space, the really important thing is grace. I need it, God gives it. The church needs it, God grants it, I try and live it.
I only wish it were that easy.
This morning I'm focusing on the meaning of grace for me so that I can show grace toward others.
Maybe you can do the same.
It's a healthy exercise and we might just all be more spiritually fit for it.
Peace ><>
pc
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