Day 345 – Can’t Catch a Break
Having a Heart in a Sometimes Heartless World
Having a Heart in a Sometimes Heartless World
Scripture focus: About that time Caesar Augustus ordered a census to be taken throughout the Empire. This was the first census when Quirinius was governor of Syria. Everyone had to travel to his own ancestral hometown to be accounted for. So Joseph went from the Galilean town of Nazareth up to Bethlehem in Judah, David's town, for the census. As a descendant of David, he had to go there. He went with Mary, his fiancée, who was pregnant. While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. She gave birth to a son, her firstborn. She wrapped him in a blanket and laid him in a manger, because there was no room in the hostel. Luke 2:1-7 The Message
Living a satisfying life while stationed on planet earth is crucial for sons and daughters of The King! We aren’t created to sit around, wringing our hands, waiting eagerly and desperately to get sucked up to heaven. Indeed, we are commanded to join the movement of God’s children who actually bring heaven to earth as we practice the principles of heavenly living while stationed here in earthly dwellings.
This is a commandment – not a suggestion for the especially mature.
No where in this scenario does it say we’re going to catch a break for our big believing.
A few weeks ago Scott wrote some devotionals about his own struggles with learning this truth the hard way. He found his mind wandering as he adjusted to life on the West Coast. He realized that he had potty brain. Assured that God was calling him to Fuller Seminary to equip himself to serve God, he started making some assumptions. (And you know what they say about assumptions, right?)
Scott slipped into the mentality that traps many a believer – hey, God, can’t I catch a break?
Fortunately, Scott spent some time examining his thoughts, and soon realized his faulty believing. I wonder if Joseph had to do the same. Required to go to Bethlehem for the census, wasn’t it enough that he had to endure the trip with a pregnant wife? Perhaps Joseph thought, “Well, I’m doing the noble thing. God is surely going to honor these herculean efforts on my part! Surely, I’ll catch a break and end up with a room at the inn – maybe even the honeymoon suite!”
Who knows if Joseph required a mental realignment or not? All I know is that I often need to examine my own thoughts and make some mental adjustments.
Following God is the privilege of sons and daughters – and this kind of commitment has its own unique rewards – but they don’t always come in the form of catching a break. In fact, sometimes we end up feeling as if our commitment to God following is yielding us nothing but trouble. It’s times like these when we need to pause to prepare. If we want to live a satisfying life – we cannot determine our state of contentment by looking at our current circumstances. Satisfied people aren’t folks who always get the good deals and parking spaces close to the mall. I am praying for you today – that you learn how to evaluate your life in ways far more gratifying than measuring your satisfaction by how lucky you feel!
Recommended reading: Amos 4 and 5 in the morning; Amos 6 and Revelation 3 in the evening
No comments:
Post a Comment