Scripture of the day
1 John 2:6 - Those who say they live in God should live their lives as Jesus did.
Our identity as Christians cannot be one of living life passively. It's a constant struggle to always do the right thing and ultimately we will fail from time to time.
But we must actively be striving to overcome our weaknesses, take back our self-control and surrender our will to Jesus.
Saying that we live in God, and living our lives as Jesus did are two very different things. It's easy to say I love God. It's hard to love sinners (especially when they sin against you). But that is how Jesus lived. He loves EVERYONE.
When I look back in my life, I see the countless times I have failed, sinned and stepped away from God to do my own thing. It most often ended up in misery and pain. But Jesus still loved me, never abandoned me and was generous with his blessings when I was at my lowest points of my life.
If I am to say that I live in God, then I need to live as Jesus did. I need to love others, to forgive, to go out of my way to help others in need and to do ALL of this with kindness and gentleness in my heart.
Will I mess up from time to time? Yes, but I will keep on fighting the good fight to live more like Jesus every day.
As I heard a pastor say once, "We are not perfect as only God is perfect, but our perfection comes from striving to live as Jesus did."
If we stop striving, we fail. If we try, we succeed. If our lives are to be a reflection of Jesus then we must actively surrender our will over to God's and be obedient to his Holy Spirit.
May God give us strength today to overcome obstacles in our lives that prevent us from showing the love of Jesus to others.
