Under His Scrutiny

James 1:4

And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

As parents, we stood by the side of our children as they learned to ride a bike.  We picked them up and consoled them each time they fell.  We brought attention to the errors of their ways and reminded them of the the right ways to ride.  We went out with them time and again, rejoicing in each moment of progress, until they had mastered the skill of riding.

Thank the Lord for His salvation promise to complete every good work that He starts in us.  He will let nothing in our lives escape His attention.  He will steadfastly stand by us even as we stumble over and over.  He will pick us up as many times as we fall, even though He knows that we will never get it completely right on this earth.  He will continue to show us the error in our ways and point out the path that He has set aside for us.  He will continue to pick us up until that glorious day when we stand before Him in the image of His Son and He welcomes us into heaven as good and faithful servants.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, blessed be the name of Jesus Christ, Our Lord and Savior.  Thank You for His steadfast work in our lives.  We pray that we will be quick to see the error in our ways and be even quicker to respond to Your correction.  May we completely surrender our lives to the perfect ways of Your Son.  As we rise and fall in our frailty, may we rejoice in knowing that Your presence is always with us and You will not leave us before Your perfecting work is done.  

With Perfect Love and Forgiveness

Jeremiah 17:9

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?

We are commanded to love one another as we love ourselves.  How can we be commanded to take on such an impossible task?  Does God not know how incapable our hearts are to fulfill this commandment?

Of course He does.  That is why He gave us His Son, Jesus, to be Our Savior.  Jesus is the expression of the perfect love and forgiveness of Our Heavenly Father.  When we receive Jesus as Our Savior, we receive the capacity to love as God does.  Through our salvation, we are able to free ourselves from our judgmental natures and our cynical hearts.  We are able to free ourselves from demanding of others what they cannot give.  We are able to free ourselves from every disillusioned thought that our deceitful heart contrives against others.  

So, are we able to love one another as we love ourselves?  Of course we are.  When we allow the Holy Spirit to work in our lives, we are able love one another with perfect love and forgiveness just as The Father loves us. 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for revealing the wickedness in our hearts.  We thank You for providing Your Son, Jesus, so that we have a way to overcome our selfish natures.  We praise You for giving us the capability to share Your perfect love and forgiveness with the world around us.  We pray that the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit will aid us and strengthen us to love others just as You love us.

He Cometh with Clouds

Revelation 1:7

Behold, he cometh with clouds;

It is quite natural to associate the idea of clouds with storm clouds.  When storm clouds are building we are likely to think, "look out."  

As we grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ, we come to realize when storm clouds begin to build in our lives, we need to think, "look up."  Just as God used the clouds to guide the Israelites to the promised land, He can use the storm clouds in our lives to turn our focus to Him for guidance.  Through this process, He teaches us dependence on Him for providing the pathway through the storms of our lives.  Paradoxically, without the storm clouds we would have little faith.

The perfect pathway through the storms of life lies in our relationship with Jesus.  When our clouds become the darkest, we can always look up and turn to Jesus for He is the light of the world.  "He cometh with clouds."

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for providing the Light of the World when darkness surrounds us.  We praise You for the faith that You build in us as Jesus carries us and comforts us through our trials.  We pray that we may learn from the trials that we pass through so that we may comfort others who pass the same way.

Each Precious Moment

Matthew 6:45

Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd.

The directive was clear to the disciples.  "Get in the boat.  Go to the other side of the lake.  Wait on Me."  So off they went, obedient to the directive given them.  They probably assumed this would be a relatively easy trip.  Little did they know that their journey would be difficult.  In fact, their journey was described as painful for the wind was strongly against them.  But in the midst of their struggles, Jesus showed up and the winds ceased.  Once again their were reminded of the power and ever presence of the Lord in their lives.  Once again God received the glory. 

This passage reminds us that life is not about achievements, not even achievements in the areas that God is leading us.  We may have the feeling that God is leading us to a particular end.  He is, but not how we are thinking about it.  The goal of getting to a particular end is simply a by product of the process that God is taking us through.  With God, the process is the end.

All the headwinds that we encounter in life are part of the process of preparing us for our eternal place with the Father.  The process is complete when we seek the will of the Father in every circumstance in our lives.  His purpose is that we call on Him and His power in each moment that we live, regardless of the end that we may be working toward.  It is each precious moment and not the end result that is important to God.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for being ever present with us during the chaos of our lives.  We thank You that we can call on You every single moment of our lives to be our strength when the headwinds of life come against us.  We pray that You teach us how to live every moment of our lives aware of the sanctifying process that You are taking us through.  May our relationships with You mature beyond our expectations as we experience the fullness of Jesus Christ in our lives.  May we savor each moment, knowing that it brings glory to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. 

More than Conquerors through Jesus Christ

John 16:33

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.

In this scripture, we read some of the last words spoken by Jesus to His disciples.  He intended for them to be encouraged in the face of the tribulations that they would soon face after He departed.  His tone was one of triumph...victory in the face of trial, peace in the face of turmoil.

Jesus wants us to know that we will face tribulation in this world, but He has overcome anything and everything that comes against us.  He wants us to have the peace of knowing that He going to prepare a place for us in communion with Him in the presence of the Father.  He wants us to know that the various persecutions and afflictions that we endure for His sake will bring glory to His name and many blessings and joy to us.  He wants us to be of good cheer because our sins are forgiven and the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts for all eternity.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank You for Your promises of peace, courage and victory over all the trials in our lives.  We pray that you will strengthen us to overcome all that the world throws at us, whether it be the temptations of the Satan, the infirmities of our flesh or the persecution we suffer in Your name.  Father, may we know the joy that only You can provide when we are in the midst of the battle.  May it all be for the glory of the One who overcame it all on our behalf.   May we be more than conquerors through Our Lord, Our Master and Our King, Jesus Christ.