Thursday, December 7, 2023
Thursday, December 7, 2023:
Pause. Pray. Read. Be still. Write. Pray. Go about your day or turn in for the night.
Read: 1 Thessalonians 1:2-10
Waiting and watching for Christ’s return is not a passive occupation but an active one in which we imitate his life and words within personal interactions and circumstances. In his letter, the apostle Paul called out how the Thessalonians exemplified the reinforcing cycle that gets set into motion when we imitate Christ. The more they lived by his words and model, the more they became, or embodied, the Message. The more they embodied the Message, the more they experienced the love, joy, and favor of God.
Be still and Reflect: Where do you want or need to experience revival and restoration in relationships or your personal spiritual life?
Pray: Loving God, who is full of grace and mercy, thank you for forgiving and delivering me from the times I fail you. Revive me again that I, too, might become the Message of hope to a hurting world. Like the words of that hymn, I pray,
Lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary, pure and holy, tried and true;
With thanksgiving, I want to and will be a living sanctuary for you.
By the resurrection power of Your Holy Spirit through our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen.