Today's meditations gives insight to the real source of our life energy and more importantly our spiritual life energy. Consider these thoughts, first from James Ryle:
September 20
Crowding Out the Things that Matter
"What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?" (Matthew 26:40).
A few years ago National Geographic magazine did a report on Yosemite National Park, and featured a story about Carl Sharsmith, an 81 year old guide at the historic site. Carl was in his tent after a long afternoon with tourists. His nose was flaked white and red with sunburn; his eyes were watery, partly from age but also from hearing again an old question after a half century of summers in California's Yosemite National Park.
"I've only got an hour to spend at Yosemite," a lady tourist declared, "What should I do? Where should I go?"
Carl sighed. "Ah, lady, only an hour?" he asked; and then softly added, "I suppose that if I had only an hour to spend at Yosemite, I'd just walk over there by the river and sit down and cry."
The same could be said for those who have such little time to give to reading and reflecting upon the Word of God. Oh, what treasures we forfeit; what loss we incur – simply because we imagine ourselves too busy to take the time.
But, out of curiosity, just how much time do you think it would take to read from Genesis to Revelation? Well, if you would read the Bible out loud slow enough to be heard and understood, the full reading time would be seventy one hours. If you break that down into minutes and divide it into 365 days, you could easily read the entire Bible in one year by taking only twelve minutes each day.
The treasures you will find are of inestimable value. Here's but one fine example — a prayer taken from the Psalms:
"Train me in your ways of wise living.
I'll transfer to my lips all the counsel that comes from your mouth; I delight far more in what you tell me about living than in gathering a pile of riches.
I ponder every morsel of wisdom from you, I attentively watch how you've done it.
I relish everything you've told me of life, I won't forget a word of it.
Be generous with me and I'll live a full life; not for a minute will I take my eyes off your road.
Open my eyes so I can see what you show me of your miracle-wonders. I'm a stranger in these parts; give me clear directions." (see Psalms 119:12-19, The Message).
Truly our life only begins when God takes the control, when we yield all of ourselves to Jesus and the Father through the Holy Spirit!
And now think about this from Bob Hoekstra:
September 20
Access to Grace through Humility and Faith
God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble . . . through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand. (Jam_4:6 and Rom_5:2)
Thus far in our daily meditations on growing in the grace of God, we have examined various areas of biblical truth: such as, the Old Covenant of law, the New Covenant of grace, God's sufficiency for godly living, living by the promises of God, and Old Testament saints who lived by God's grace. Now, we return to an extended consideration of how we avail ourselves of the glorious riches of God's grace. As noted earlier in our studies, God's grace is accessed through humility and faith.
If we desire to live by God's grace, we must be willing to renounce pride and to walk in humility. "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
The Lord is opposed to the path of self-sufficiency. When we pridefully assume that we can produce the kind of life God calls us to live, spiritual progress is prevented. Humility involves agreeing with God's pronouncements concerning our inadequacies.
"Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves" (2Co_3:5). The person who is willing to walk humbly before the Lord has an accurate understanding of our comprehensive need for the Lord to work in and through our lives. "Without Me you can do nothing" (Joh_15:5).
Along with humility regarding ourselves, God wants us to walk in faith regarding Him. The Lord wants to work in our lives by His incomparable grace. Faith accesses grace: "through whom [Jesus] also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand." The Lord is pleased by the path of "Christ-dependency."
Whenever we face any issue of life by faith in Jesus Christ, we are drawing upon the abounding grace of the Lord. When we dependently accept that God can produce the kind of life He calls us to live, spiritual progress is assured. Faith involves agreeing with God's pronouncements concerning Him being our adequacy: "but our sufficiency is from God" (2Co_3:5).
The person who is willing to walk in faith toward the Lord has an accurate understanding of His comprehensive ability to work in and through our lives. "He who abides in Me . . . bears much fruit" (Joh_15:5).
Also, as noted earlier, humility and faith are relational realities. Neither can be produced by us. They are not the result of human labor. They can only develop as an increasing reality through a growing relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Dear Lord, I humbly admit my own insufficiency to produce the life You want me to live.
Nevertheless, I confidently confess Your grace as my sufficient resource for abundant fruitfulness. Lord, I want to know You better, that humility and faith might be growing realities in my life, Amen.
May you have a life abundant in the Love and Grace of our Lord Jesus!
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