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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly
loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and
patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have
against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these
virtues, put on love, which binds them together in perfect unity. Let the peace
of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to
peace." Colossians 3:12-15a
This ends this
reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
NOTE: This has been a traditional
devotion for each New Year. Part 1 will be today, followed by Part 2 tomorrow.
Enjoy and may the Lord’s richest blessings be yours in 2015!
"Therefore,
as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with
compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other
and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as
the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues, put on love, which binds them
together in perfect unity. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since
as members of one body you were called to peace." Colossians 3:12-15a
Making New Year’s resolutions has been a tradition that goes
back to the Babylonian Empire. Most of us have made them. Maybe we have vowed
to lose weight, quit a bad habit, save money, or commit more time to family.
There is any number of things we might try to do.
But what if we changed our vantage point and instead of
choosing what we want, we focused on what the Lord wants instead. I believe in
Paul’s words to the Colossians, we find ten resolutions He would have us focus
on as we enter 2015. Today, I’ll offer resolutions six through ten and tomorrow
will share one through five.
10. Clothe
yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.
How many of you are selective in the things you wear?
Most people are and want to ensure that they look their best every day.
But how well do we clothe ourselves with our attitudes
and demeanors? Do we take time to properly prepare ourselves before we let
others see what we look like on the inside? Here’s what God's word says about
what should be part of our inner wardrobe:
Compassion, Kindness, Humility, Gentleness, Patience
With this, how well dressed are you on the inside? In 2015,
maybe a makeover might be in order.
9. Bear with each
other
Can you think of someone right now who just seems to constantly
annoy you?
This year, resolve to be more tolerant and respect
others. To stop looking so closely at a person's shortfalls while ignoring your
own for we're all imperfect when we get down to it.
Seek to be more understanding and strive to resolve
differences when they occur. Seek to rebuild bridges instead of tearing them
down. Pray for those you differ with and seek reconciliation in the year ahead.
8. Forgive
whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord
forgave you.
We all know what forgiveness is but putting it into
action is often the real problem. If left to our own devices, we would choose
who want to forgive. That's why God has to provide strict guidelines to govern
our forgiveness.
His word from verse 13 orders us to “Forgive as the Lord
forgave you”. WOW! This takes all the guesswork out of forgiveness for we must
forgive everyone without exception. If you doubt that, then ask yourself if you’ve
done anything that the Lord has not forgiven you for? There isn’t.
We are to forgive likewise. Period.
7. Over all these
virtues, put on love, which binds them together in perfect unity.
The package of prior resolutions all revolve around love
which is central to the greatest commandments of Jesus. Remember His answer
when asked about the greatest commandments? He said, "Love the Lord your
God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength." Then He said,
"Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matthew 22:36-40)
If you truly love God with all you are, you will easily
embody compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience, bearing with
and forgiving one another, all in the name of love through the One who showed
and taught us what love is all about.
6. Let the peace
of Christ rule in your hearts
In a world full of violence, confusion, problems and
constant change, peace is sometimes very hard to come by? I think that's why we’re
given God’s word in Philippians 4:6-7:
"Do not be anxious about anything but give your
concerns to God in prayer and petition and with thanksgiving. So you might find
the peace of God that transcends all understanding and your hearts and minds
will be guarded in Christ Jesus."
God wants us to remember He is fully able and ready to
handle any problem we have. And when we truly surrender our burdens to Him, we
can then fully experience the peace that transcends all understanding. I pray for
that peace to rule your hearts and the hearts of all creation in the New Year.
Amen.
In
Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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