I continued my study of 1 Peter Finding Encouragement in Troubling Times, written by Sue Edwards, this week. Lesson 2 focused on 1 Peter 1:13- 2:3. The verse that really spoke to my heart was 1 Peter: 2:1. God commands us to “put aside all malice and all guile and hypocrisy and envy and all slander.” Wow. That is a lot to ask of us Christians! Don’t get me wrong, I’m certainly not this loud mouthed babe that walks around hating on people! It’s just that in my heart of hearts I do covet, I do judge and I do get my feelings hurt which in turn causes me to often react negatively. Sad to say, my mouth sometimes get the better of me. This doesn't sit well with the Lord and I need to work harder to not get so caught up in this world. God commands in Romans 12:2, “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what the will of God us, that which is good and acceptable and perfect". In order for me to show others what God is all about, I need to check myself- often. sigh. It’s not easy, but God is always there to help us, guide us, in loving others. It takes too much energy to hate. God tells us to “fervently love one another from the heart” in 1 Peter 1:22. In this way, we all win!
God is certain and constant. We know that He has a plan for us and it’s always for the good, even though we may not understand. When times are difficult and I am being held captive in fear by the devil, I pray. God is always there to hold me in the palm of His hand. That is when God’s light shines the brightest! Walking through life on Easy Street keeps us far from God. I am certainly not a fan of anxiety or fear, but it does bring me closer to the Lord, and that’s the best place to be.:) Like a child that strays from his parents and onto a road full of fast moving cars, how wonderful it feels to be back by their parent’s side!
Feel free to see what other bloggers are saying in this Kregel Tour here.
*I was given a copy of "1 Peter Finding Encouragement in Troubling Times" from Kregel in exchange for an honest review. No other compensation was received.*
No comments:
Post a Comment