Focus
Take time to rest in the comfort of the Lord today.
Read
12 I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.
3 For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. 4 For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, 5 so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. 6 We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; 7 ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; 8 the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness.
9 Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; 10 love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. 11 Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. 12 Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. 13 Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.
Reflect
In Romans, we are exhorted to be living sacrifices to God. We do that by giving up ourselves to be used for the healing and reconciliation of the world. It may cost us our comforts, money, or time. It may mean becoming a preacher or volunteering at a soup kitchen or giving sacrificially to your church. It begins when you can like Paul writes later in Philippians 3:8, “ More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.”
When we humble ourselves before God, we learn to submit to God and submit to one another. This is a very needed concept in our culture. Unfortunately, we do not like to submit or be submissive. 1 Peter 5:5 says, “In the same way, you who are younger must accept the authority of the elders. And all of you must clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”
In a way, the practice of humility is sacrifice, and servanthood coming together in your daily life. We are humble enough to see others. We give up our will to God’s will. We serve God in this world by focusing our actions to bring God glory in our lives, family, church, and community.
Pray
God, help us to be living sacrifices. Let us be tools in your hands to redeem the world. Amen
Go with God!
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