Un Viaggio Verso l'Alto

Hey Brothers and Sisters!

I apologize in advance for the quasi-randomness of today's devo. I am thinking "out loud" and letting you in on it.

Take a look at Romans 5:1-5...

"Therefore, since we have been justified through faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace
in which we now stand.

And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings,
because we know that suffering produces perseverance;
perseverance, character;
and character, hope.

And hope does not disappoint us,
because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit,
whom he has given us."

What a passage, eh? If you stick this verse inside your head for a few days I bet you'll be amazed at the things that God will show you about what it really means, specifically, in every day moments.

If God is trying to get your attention by something in the Bible, I would like to share with you(s) something I am trying that has helped me quite a bit. I am the kind of person who sometimes likes to be vague and inconcrete when God is telling me something uncomfortably specific. If you are a bit like me, writing out your answers for these questions should be useful. Give it a try sometime:

-What does this passage say to me?
-Where am I falling short?
-Give specific examples
-What am I going to do about it?

These are some truths I have re-learned recently:
-God is willng to give me mercy (not give me the punishment I deserve, see Exodus 20)
-He is also eager to give me grace (give me the gifts of salvation and blessings, John 3:16, Ephesians 1:3)
-Not only has he spared me, he has saved me and blessed me.
-God blesses me so much every day, and I am so thankful because I don't deserve it for a second.
-I have to say "YES!" to Christ when He directs me in the little uncomfortable details in life. If I say "No", I am rejecting God's gifts and not walking in the Spirit. (See Romans 10:2-4, Galatians 5:16-24, 6:1)
-I need and want to be a faithful, cheerful giver. God deserves everything I have and He is even willing to bless me for giving it back to Him. (See Malachi 3:10)

These are the kinds of things God shows me when I am not afraid of facing the truth when He speaks to me.

I have a friend named Thomas who started writing down the things that he thought and read during his morning devotions. That inspired me to do the same. So I have started "journaling" my devos, and it blows me away how often and how soon my prayers are fulfilled. Often I will pray for something but then instead of just praying it and moving on, I will write it down and look back later to remember what I prayed and how Jesus has answered it. It's funny how many prayers God answers when I don't even remember that I asked Him for it.

So, despite what seems to be a randomly organized blog entry, I hope I can challenge you with this:

-Read your Bible, open your heart and don't be afraid to accept exactly what God tells you.
-Pray, write it down, and be prepared for God to open your eyes.

Love in Christ,

Matt