Thursday Devotional - Harmony without Humility?

Can there be true harmony without humility? I don’t think so.

In the United States, we are very individualistic and self-centered. We also teach children from a young age to take pride in who they are, where they came from, what they can do, etc. Instilling appropriate confidence is one thing, but we tend toward conceit more than just confidence. Then, we wonder why we as adults struggle to be inclusive, collaborate, and resolve conflicts. We can’t be prideful or conceited AND live in harmony. Harmony comes from humility, as Paul points out in the following passage.

Romans 12:14-16  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position.  Do not be conceited.

What relationship in your and my life lacks harmony right now (especially with fellow believers)? We can’t control the other people, but we can examine ourselves and ask God to help us recognize where we can be more loving and humble versus prideful and arrogant.

Paul gives us some practical ways to be humble and harmonious by sharing in the joys of and sympathizing with the hurts of others.

So, we can begin our harmonious and humble living by looking for ways to genuinely rejoice or mourn with someone else this week!

Alice

Not Guilty

“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery.  The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger.  They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman.  Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

 “No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”  John 8:4-11

This week, I served on a jury.  I had the unique perspective of being foreman for the group.  Thus, my job was to not only come up with a reasonable decision on my part but also help facilitate the others in the coming up with the verdict.  Thus, our job was to look at evidence, which in this case was almost entirely circumstantial, and decide guilt or innocence.  As I thought about the various testimonies brought into the discussion and angles of exhibits, it made me think of my life and all the wrongs I have done.  It was not that I was dwelling on them and carry them like luggage.  Instead, it was thinking where I would be if I hadn’t had Jesus Christ as an advocate for me.  Unlike in a jury case, there is only one prosecutor, judge, and jury in my life.  God knows all I have done, and has presented a flawless case where one can only find me guilty as charged.  I confessed to being guilty as charged.  However, we have Jesus Christ as our defendant, and through Him, I am somehow found blameless.  The crimes that I am guilty of are left without punishment as Jesus Himself paid the price for it.  I am grateful that I have been given another chance to prove myself worthy of His gift of grace even though I can in no way do enough to either repay or earn it.  What an incredibly humbling thought!

Jesus frees us from the burden of our past to allow us to see a future.  We all have had moments where we regretted an action or done things we were not proud of.  If you were once like me, you lingered with thoughts of your past transgressions never being free and feeling less worthy than others.  Some of you despite dedicating your life to Jesus may have that one incident or thought that continually hovers over your head.  Others have people much like followers of Christ who want to hang your sins over your head like a crown of thorns or like jurors who have made the decision of your guilt.  This is not the life God intended for you.  This is why the story of this woman put before Christ is so important.  The Pharisees, having already in their minds found the woman guilty, put her before Jesus to either justify their beliefs or discredit Jesus entirely.  Note there is not even a denial from the woman in the story.  Jesus’ answer has a two-fold purpose for us.  First, it is to remind us that all fall short of God’s glory, and we must not be judgmental of other sinners (i.e. like the Pharisees).  Second, it is to lift the burden of our past to allow for us a brighter future.  This is Jesus’ purpose in our lives.  We are given a new life, where we are to follow Him given a higher purpose to ‘sin no more.’

God’s gift of grace through Jesus Christ is one of the greatest blessings in our walk of faith.  We are no longer burden by the guilt and shame of our past and our given a new life.  While we as mature Christians should know this, we are always susceptible to falling into old habits and believing we are beyond redemption.  But even when we fail the Lord promises to be with us saying, “”But with everlasting love, I will have compassion on you,” says the Lord, your Redeemer.” (Isaiah 54:8b)  So whether it is past transgressions before accepting Christ or overwhelming guilt that has hindered you after, be joyful in knowing your debt is paid, and God wants for you an amazing relationship with Him on your journey to eternal life.  What burdens do you need to cast on God today?  How can you move beyond your past toward His future for your life?  My prayer is that we understand that while we are guilty of sin, we are given new life as Jesus Christ finds us ‘Not Guilty.’  Amen.

Tues Devo: Not us, through us

Luke 9:12-14 “Now the day was ending, and the twelve came and said to Him, ‘Send the crowd away, that they may go into the surrounding villages and countryside and find lodging and get something to eat; for here we are in a desolate place’. But He said to them ‘You give them something to eat!’ And they said, ‘We have no more than five loaves and two fish, unless perhaps we go and buy food for all these people’. For there were about five thousand men. And He said to His disciples, ‘Have them sit down to eat in groups of about fifty each.’” (NASB)

Hello,

Feeding of the 5,000 – not a new story! One you have likely read or heard so many times, that it is tempting to breeze through it when reading. But this time, something caught my eye that has not before. We tend to focus on the miracle of the feeding, the person who gave what they could to Jesus and His ability to do more with it etc. But this is the first time where I noticed some uniqueness about the front of the story. The disciples noticed and stated the need for the people to eat on their own. As they see the need, Jesus told His disciples to feed the people. In the end, they did feed the people….they passed out the food and made sure everyone got fed – but it wouldn’t have happened without the power of Jesus at work.

Here is what I see that I relate to in my life: I see the need around me – then I have a rough idea for how it could be met, but my plan is limited in impact. You see, we often look to filling needs in our own strength and ability – and miss the chance to invite Jesus in and let His power and ability work through us.

If the disciples handle the feeding in their own strength the story is strange! The people rush the markets of nearby cities, sending them into chaos without planning for such an amount of people and then they become scattered from the presence of Jesus.

Instead, we see the power of God and then (read the rest of Luke 9) Jesus uses the crowds presence as a reason to go to the other side of the lake and pray – which leads right into Him walking on the water, where Peter also walks (for a minute) on the water.

When we see the need – don’t go in your own strength, but let the power of God work through you.

Have a blessed day,

Will Hill

Be a light

Matthew 5:14-16

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.  In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.

At church we just completed a series that talked about how we often share our lives but most of what we share is a lie.  Not that things aren’t true but that we are only sharing the positive so we make our life look so much better than it is.  We don’t share the struggles and the ugly as much.  This got me thinking about witnessing to others.  If someone cannot relate to you, why would they listen to you? 

Sometimes in life, sometimes daily, we are going to struggle with different things.  We were forwarded that in this would we would have troubles.  Sometimes we are going to mess up.  Should we hide all of that?  I don’t believe we should.  If we allow others to see that our lives are not perfect, they will be able to relate during their struggles as well. 

The key, as Christians, is how do we deal with those struggles.  Do we turn to Christ and trust in him?  Do we let our light shine and show that even through the struggles, Christ is there to get us through those times? 

I am certainly not saying that everything should be put on social media or blasted to the entire world.  If you have a fight with your significant other, you don’t bash them for all the world to see.  Yet maybe you’re having a rough day with your child, you could post a simple post that says you could use a prayer for patience or whatever it is. 

My challenge to you today and this week is to look for the opportunities to be real.  Don’t live your best lie, live your best life.