Monday Reading: 1 Peter 4:1-8
Key Verse: 1 Peter 4:7
7 But the end of all things has drawn near. Therefore be of sound mind, and be sensible to prayers.
Devotion:
Probably the biggest temptation we face is from our peers, from those friends that we have around us. Just because we live in a world where we are surrounded by friends who do not stick to God’s Word, does not mean that we have to be like them; nor does it mean that we have to leave them behind and go off and live our life in spite of them… what it does mean is that we should not give in to the same things as they do. They will be the ones asking us why we do not join in with the way that they live their lives and they will be the ones tempting us to go along with them and have a good time – we must be the ones to stand up and be strong in prayer so that God will give us the strength to live with Him rather than with them.
That is not turning your back on your friends; far from it. What it is doing is encouraging them to live their lives in a manner that God would approve of instead of fighting against God each step of the way. Each one of us will have to stand up and be counted at the end of the day. We will be the ones that have to face up to God and account for all the things that we did when we knew that God had said otherwise.
Our prayers should be for strength to continue on in Gods ways in spite of the world trying to drag us along with them. Our prayers should be that we can stand up and be counted as Christians in a world that seems bent on leaving God out of everything. Our prayers should be that we are Christians who can glorify Christ our Saviour in spite of what we may be like on the inside. Christ has paid our debt and set us free so that we can be that example for others to see Him and His ways. We need to lift up our prayers to make sure we are asking God for the strength that He can give us to do exactly that.
Points to Ponder:
Do you feel like superman?
How big do you feel when you know God just saw you do that?