Monday
Matthew 5:12
"Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven. For in the same they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Following Jesus is not a guaranteed easy kind of road. I see in scripture that people were verbally abused, beaten and killed for their faith in him. And while in the western world here we may not see that kind of persecution, we do face it in other ways. But I would rather have my reward of being in heaven eternally than aligning with the world and going it easy for this short time.
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Tuesday
Matthew 19:29
"And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for my name's sake, will receive many times as much and will inherit eternal life."
This one speaks loudly to me. When Jesus calls us to follow, we may not know where that path will lead. It may mean moving away from our "home" and our families who we love and it may mean not seeing them often or even again (although I hope that's not the case), but we must be willing. We must love Jesus more than we love anything else and be certain that what he offers is eternal. Is it hard? YES! So many times I have wanted to just turn around and go home... but ultimately, I said "yes" to Jesus and I meant it and therefore, I determine to carry on following him. Great is my reward in heaven, yes... but great is my reward even now of being with him and him with me through this life. I can't imagine it any other way.
When I truly live a life of following Jesus and his love, joy, peace, patience, etc flow through me, I believe it is a testimony to my children of how truly great Jesus is. When they see how he transforms a life, I believe they too will follow him... even if it means leaving behind "home" (Oregon in my family's case) and family (all of their cousins, some grandparents, etc.). Easy? No. But I believe they'll see the gain. That is my prayer for them.
Matthew 19:29
"And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for my name's sake, will receive many times as much and will inherit eternal life."
This one speaks loudly to me. When Jesus calls us to follow, we may not know where that path will lead. It may mean moving away from our "home" and our families who we love and it may mean not seeing them often or even again (although I hope that's not the case), but we must be willing. We must love Jesus more than we love anything else and be certain that what he offers is eternal. Is it hard? YES! So many times I have wanted to just turn around and go home... but ultimately, I said "yes" to Jesus and I meant it and therefore, I determine to carry on following him. Great is my reward in heaven, yes... but great is my reward even now of being with him and him with me through this life. I can't imagine it any other way.
When I truly live a life of following Jesus and his love, joy, peace, patience, etc flow through me, I believe it is a testimony to my children of how truly great Jesus is. When they see how he transforms a life, I believe they too will follow him... even if it means leaving behind "home" (Oregon in my family's case) and family (all of their cousins, some grandparents, etc.). Easy? No. But I believe they'll see the gain. That is my prayer for them.
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.... as I was laying in bed the other night, this scripture came to mind and I thought about it's meaning and it occurred to me that "leaving behind one's family or home" may not necessarily mean leaving and going far away, but rather, leaving a way of life that is not in line with God's. Duh. What took me so long to "get" this?
Furthermore, I believe it even means "leaving" or putting aside those who are most important in our lives each day to get away alone with Jesus. We love our family and they need us, but we do need to be alone with Him and it's okay to shut everyone away for that amount of time.
Jesus is simply saying we need to be prepared to leave behind whatever it is that may keep us from following him with our whole heart.
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Wednesday
1 Peter 1:3
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you."
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Thursday
Romans 8:28
And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.
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Friday
Hebrews 11:1-6
Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for. By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death; he could not be found, because God had taken him away. For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
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