Monday, June 18, 2012
Prov 27:1 and Acts 5:3 "Ambition" (June 19)
What causes you to keep back for your own interest? Others are not going to take care of me, so I will take matters into my own hands. Keep back a little here, a little there. God sends a potent message in this story of Ananias & Sapphira who were filled with ambition to be the best disciples, the ones who looked devoted. Meanwhile, just in case God was not going to provide for A & S, they kept a small stash of provision. What drives our decisions? When we are left in the lurch, do secure our own stash? Here is the new face of Peter who used to care about what others thought of him. Not so. He orders the men to carry out the dead bodies of A & S. A powerful message in our reading that God will not honor our intentional (there's that word again) gaze on our comfort here on earth. None of us knows what a day may bring, Proverbs 27:1, and we are to live toward the Intentional Gaze of the Author of our lives. If God leaves everything in our lives alone, will we still follow? The words of Oswald Chambers come to mind: "My goal [ambition] is God Himself. Not joy nor peace nor even blessing, but God Himself."
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Today's reading in My Utmost for His Highest fits in well with today's reading in Act. Oswald says, "We consider what we do in the way of Christian work as service, yet Jesus Christ calls service to be what we are to Him, not what we do for Him. He is simply saying, in effect, “If you want to be My disciple, you must be devoted solely to Me.”
ReplyDeleteProv. 28:25, 29:25 Encourages me to continue to trust in the Lord. Even in fear, injustice, confusion, frustration, etc. Clinging to Him in trust today.
Those are timely words for me this morning, Bev and Nise'. Trusting in Him, and not holding back, with provision, with devotion, with all that we are, all that we have, all our hope is in Him alone.
ReplyDeleteOn a lighter note, don't you just love some of the Proverbs!
"Whoever blesses his neighbor with a loud voice,
rising early in the morning,
will be counted as cursing"
Learned this one the hard way-not everyone is a morning person!