One Day To Victory

‎Friday, ‎March ‎4, ‎2022 Good morning, Lord Verse of the Day: Joshua 1:9 New King James Version Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” Memory of the Month: 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. Today's reading: NUMBERS 29-31 MARK 9:1-29 One Day To Victory I walked the halls of the hospital and began to notice the folks with ashes on their foreheads and I realized many were employees. Then I saw the Chaplain with a small kit of sorts in his hands and heard one nurse tell him to wait until he could give her ashes. It occurred to me that those of us who did not grow up in a discipline who practices this that we may not know what it is all about. Oh, we see it from a distance but some wonder if they are missing something. So, I found a quote from The CatholicSpirit.com: “When we come forward to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday, we are saying that we are sorry for our sins, and that we want to use the season of Lent to correct our faults, purify our hearts, control our desires and grow in holiness so we will be prepared to celebrate Easter with great joy” (The CatholicSpirit.com). That all sounds scriptural to me. I maintain that the Resurrection(Easter) should be celebrated each day of the year. Yes, Easter is a very, very special time. But just as we should not consider worshiping only one day a week, Sunday, I believe I cannot, in humility, remember Easter 46 days a year(the length of Lent). The truth is, and please think this through, if we truthfully follow God in Christ Jesus, there is no way for us not to live in Lent each day of our lives. I will explain as best I can. Each of us should read the scripture each day. The more we read, the more we realize that Christ is all the way through the scripture-cover to cover. Micah 6:8 says: "He has shown you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justly, To love mercy, And to walk humbly with your God?" Luke 9:23 says, Then he said to them all: "Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me." So we should, everyday of our lives following Christ, >do justly >love mercy >walk humbly before God >take up our own cross so we can follow Christ. Road and Rubber- How can I humble myself before God with hate or fear in my heart? Well, first we must go to God with these things and confess them-everytime we take up our crosses. Humility before our Divine God demands our hiding nothing-humility before God means trusting Him to open your life completely before Him. My point is not that the idea of Lent is wrong in any way. I simply propose that we cannot wait until Lent to sacrifice something. Romans 12:1&2 reads: 12 Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship. 2 Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. We live 365 days a year. The scripture says we are to be a living sacrifice-not live in neutral part of the year or any time at all but to live as a sacrifice-to give our lives daily. We are to: >do justly >love mercy >walk humbly before God ...and take up our cross or sacrifice our living everyday for God in Christ Jesus-our living our lives-physical and mental and spiritual lives. There is nothing more serious than the thought behind Lent and if we take it seriously we will live it everyday. Now, all of us have much, much work to do, yes, and our first matter at hand is to stop judging everyone else for what they do or do not do-get our eyes off the behavior of others and not just look in the mirror but seek God's face. Psalm 27:8 7 Hear, O LORD, my voice when I call; be merciful and answer me. 8 My heart said, “Seek His face.” Your face, O LORD, I will seek. 9 Hide not Your face from me..." And, for those who think they are not worthy to go before God-none of us are outside of Christ. But, inside of Christ, He says we are forgiven and worthy. Jesus says , "Come unto me..." Matthew 11:28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. ...because He loves us... Father in Heaven, Have mercy on me and forgive me my fear and hate. I will walk with You daily. Guide me. Guard my heart. My life is Yours. Precious God of forgiveness and mercy, In the name of Christ Jesus, Amen

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