Obedience

Today I am again taking from the devotional, "My Utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers. The verse I'll reference is 2 Corinthians 4:10 "That life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh".

We have to form habits to express what God's grace has done in us. It's not a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved in order to manifest the life of the Son of God in our mortal flesh, and it's the disagreeable things which make us exhibit whether or not we are manifesting His life.

Yes, upon salvation, we are saved from hell - no question about it, but there's more to living in God's grace than that. We are to put ourselves in God's hands and get out there and let what he has done work through us, so others will see and give us the opportunity to point them to Jesus. When he was on this earth, everything he said and did pointed to the Father, and that is how we are to live while we are here.

Sometimes the Lord will put us in a situation that seems "uncomfortable" to us; he might ask you to witness to a total stranger in a public place; he might ask you to pray for someone that you don't really like, or to do them a kind deed; he might ask you to go to someone who's hurt you and tell them that you forgive them. Whatever he asks, do it immediately; the minute you hesitate or question him, you grieve the Spirit of God.

If God puts you there, he is amply sufficient. I'll paraphrase my step-daughter Kim - "If God brought you to it, God will get you through it".

Ask the Lord to fine tune your hearing to know his voice. Ask him to give you the courage and boldness to do whatever he says no matter how "out there" it might seem. Once you obey him in a situation that is so out of the normal for you, it's then that you will experience the joy and the blessings of obedience.

Have a beautiful Wednesday!
Janelle