DEVOTIONS

Monday, February 20 – “Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:6) As a follower of Jesus you are called to be more than simply nice.  Nice is good.  But God is calling you to great.  Great is being “full of grace, seasoned with salt.”  This means that you are called to draw out what is good, preserve what is good and be a fragrant offering to God.  If this is who you are striving to be, you will know how to “answer everyone” with graceful conversations.  Today, your question is this: Will I answer everyone with graceful conversations?

Tuesday, February 21 – “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” (John 1:9) The true light is Jesus.  On this Fat Tuesday, the announcement of the coming of Jesus, the light of the world, is most appropriate.  We live in a fallen world, where seeking pleasure is the name of the game.  Today, take note of all the things that you do, simply because you seek pleasure.  Not that there is anything wrong with seeking pleasure.  But, if seeking pleasure has become the thing you worship and the thing you serve with your time, talents and treasures, you do have a problem.    

Ash Wednesday – “Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning.” (Luke 12:35) Are you ready to be of service to God and to the people in your life?  Yes?  Great.  Now get up and get going.  Get out there and be light and salt in your corner of God’s kingdom, through who you are and how you interact with the world around you.  No?  Great.  Get up and get going anyway.  The way that you will be light and salt in your corner of God’s kingdom is through you being you, right out in front of everyone else.  How will anyone learn how to grow in their relationship with Jesus, if they never see anyone learning how to grow in their relationship with Jesus?  Your learning and growing is your service and your light.       

Thursday, February 23 – “Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives.” (Titus 3:14) Here we go, another day to focus on God’s idea of what is “good”.  Giving attention to this is vital.  For you are able to define “what is good” in your life, all on your own.  God has given you that freedom.  Thus, your struggle is this: Without God’s input, your definition of “good” will always end up focusing inward.  Your definition of “good” will become all about you.  God’s definition of “good” always focuses outward, toward the other.  In fact, God’s perspective is that only through doing what is “good”, for others, will anyone be able to truly experience what is “good”, for themselves.  

Friday, February 24 – “Then he went out to the spring and threw the salt into it, saying, ‘This is what the Lord says: I have healed this water.  Never again will it cause death or make the land unproductive.’” (2 Kings 2:21)) Lest you believe that all of this salt stuff started with Jesus, here is a passage from about 1,000 years before his birth.  Jesus didn’t come to start something new.  Jesus came to fulfill everything.  Salt draws out what is good, preserves what is good and is a fragrant offering to God.  And you are called to be salt.  It’s always been that way and it will always be that way. 

Saturday, February 25 – “When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, ‘I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’” (John 8:12) Lest you believe that all of this light and dark stuff started with George Lucas, here is a passage from about 1,978 years before Star Wars first hit the big screen.  Living is a constant battle between the light and the dark.  Jesus is the light.  Jesus is the source of “The Force”.  I guess that makes you a Jesus Jedi!  For Jesus is the light, the source and power of “The Force”.