Old Testament: Jeremiah 13:1-11
Psalm 87, 90 * 136
Epistle: Romans 6:12-23
Gospel: John 8:47-59
I recently read a book called The Power of Full Engagement as part of a leadership book club. It is an older book, but still very relevant. One of the quotes that came from the book struck a chord with me: “Is the life you are living worth the things you are giving up to live it?” My answer... I don’t know, sometimes? I realized that my focus isn’t always directed on the right things: on those things that are most important, that I value the most. Like many people, I get so caught up in my day-to-day living that I feel like I am on autopilot and go through the motions of life without thinking about why I am living this way and the choices I make. Is my life worth the things I am giving up to do what I am doing? I have become a slave to the daily grind.
In Romans 6: 16-23, Paul talks about slavery to sin. Paul reminds us that through God’s Grace we have been set free from sin as long as we obey God and live a Godly life. In this way, the thing we give up to live a life with God is death. When our choices in life are driven by our desire to obey God, we are sure to be making decisions that not only benefit us, but benefit others as well. Another quote that came from the book is that “Value is a roadmap to action.” By valuing our relationship with God and by obeying God, we can use this as roadmap for our daily lives and make choices to live a life that glorifies God.
God recognizes that we are human and flawed. It is through His Grace that we are forgiven and given chance after chance to get it right. However, we must be aware of our values and our desire to live a Godly life in order to accept God’s Grace. So is your life worth the things you are giving up to live it? Are you using your values to direct your life? Are you a slave to things that take you away from God? Fortunately there is time to refocus our values and change our direction and use God as our roadmap because there is nothing more valuable than God’s Grace and eternal life.
Mallie Steele
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