Pray As You Go

Friday, May 12, 2023

Good morning, Lord

Verse of the Day: And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.—1 Corinthians 2:1-2

Memory of the Month: John 10:27-28

27 My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

Today's reading: 2 KINGS 15-16 JOHN 3:1-18

Pray As You Go

John the baptizer, in John, chapter 3, when tempted to be jealous of Jesus by a outside voice said, “A person can receive only what God gives. 28 You yourselves heard me say, ‘I am not the Messiah. I am only the one God sent to prepare the way for him.’ 29 The bride always belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who helps the bridegroom just waits and listens. He is happy just to hear the bridegroom talk. That’s how I feel now. I am so happy that he is here. 30 He must become more and more important, and I must become less important.

The enemy is about the business of making us fall if not one way, then another. We must always be ready and sharp to recognize temptation. Any time a word comes to be-little our ego, this is one of those times.

John saw it for what it was because he knew what God had sent him to do. He knew his place. He is recorded in scripture as 'one crying in the wilderness'-he knew he was just the announcer for the big event. That was his job. He said it-he was just an attendant-not the groom.

You may not feel that your job is very important but you got your job from the same place John the baptizer did. He said that, too.

"A person can receive only what God gives".

That tells us a couple of things. First, the world may appear to 'give' us all sorts of things but none are eternal. That is clear enough.

We can only receive what God gives us. We can only keep what God gives us and it is eternal-just like John's job-your job is from now on. The blessings we receive from God are always and constant.

The upkeep on our Godly gifts-the maintenance is also provided by God. It is also a big part of our lives to learn how to keep our gifts sharp and ready and this takes a daily routine. Without a constant, daily seeking, things get out of shape and weak.

My brother had a 1968 Mustang with a 390 cubic inch, high performance engine. He worked on that thing everyday to make sure he could outrun all he could. In the dark by flashlight and in the heat or cold, he was relentless. That was simply a car that has long since gone by the way.

Only a car...

Our gifts have been given by God.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

The world changes and times change but what God has given us does not change-only our perception changes-it becomes deeper and greater if we use what God has given us to keep it sharp-if we keep up the maintenance.

You have received from God-get it out-shine it up-keep shining...

...because He loves us...

Father in Heaven,

I have not kept up-I am guilty of not being serious about using what You have given me. Forgive me. Pull me into the place You want me and I will listen.

Merciful and equipping God of love and peace!

In the name of Jesus,

Amen