Thank You, Father, for the many blessings in my life. Thank You for Your mercy and the forgiveness of my sin. I come before You today only because of Your abundant provision and love. All praise to You alone.
James 1:9-11 (<<click here)
Rich or poor we stand on equal ground before You, Lord. There is not one of us that stands higher – wealth, power, strength, wisdom mean nothing. None of us fall lower – race, gender, mental faculties mean nothing. We are judged by what we do with what we have been given in regards to our relationship with You. “Things” are only tools in Your kingdom; they do not define who we are.
That, Lord, is reality. As followers of You, many of us understand that. In our relationship with You, we generally acknowledge that mentality. So why is it so difficult for us to live in that mentality in the world?
A big factor is that many of us live in two separate spheres – the sphere of the world with its rules and mindsets and the sphere of Your kingdom in the aforementioned reality. For many of us, these spheres overlap very little. For many, time spent in the sphere of the kingdom is limited. It is regulated to an hour or so each week. Whereas time spent in the world’s sphere is all encompassing – it’s rules and mindsets becoming the controlling factor of our lives. Living this way defeats us. We make no progress; we make little or no impact for the kingdom.
As lovers of You, the kingdom sphere must encompass the world sphere in our lives and how we live them. We pray “thy kingdom come, thou will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:9-13) But do we believe it, much less live it?
Lord, help me to abide in the sphere of Your kingdom every moment of every day. May its reality guide my decisions. May it impact everything I say and do. Enable me to use the “things” You have so graciously given me to share the reality of You with the world.
Aug 7th, Sun, 6:36 am
