Blinded by hope for eternity?

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 27, 2010 at 8:06am

Dear Ezra,

I believe that God is already using you.. God Blesses us in the way that He does not let us know when HE is using us.. This way we also stay humble...

God has used you in this very conversation to bless many people in knowing that you desire to live for Christ.. This has blessed me as it always does when I know that another beloved child wants to live for Him... I believe all brothers and sisters would agree. ;)

Blessings, Carla

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 29, 2010 at 7:47am

Hi Ezra,

This devotional came in my email today. I hope it blesses you and many others. ;)

The Right Thing at the Right Place
Key Passage: Matthew 17:1-13

Topic: Christian Living; Service; Obedience/Discipleship

And Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah." (Matthew 17:4, ESV)

Peter, James and John witnessed an incredible and wonderful thing. They actually saw a glimpse of the glory of God in Jesus. They'd seen the miracles Jesus did, heard the wisdom He taught, and experienced the love He had. Here they got to physically experience a little of His glory. Awesome.

Peter didn't know what to say or do, so in his excitement, he just blurted out the best thing he could think of. "If you want, I'll make three shelters as memorials--one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."

What could be so wrong wanting to do something for Jesus? Well, nothing...except Jesus hadn't asked Peter to do anything. He simply told them to come with Him. Jesus wanted the disciples' presence; He wanted them to experience this--not to do anything.

Here's Peter, in the middle of one of the most amazing moments of his life, and he's missing it because he's thinking of things to do rather than soaking in this time. Even as Peter's babbling, God makes His presence known and says about Jesus, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to him" (Matthew 17:5, ESV).

That's the point. There are lots of good things that need to be done and you can fill your time doing them. But if you're so busy doing even the good things that you don't spend any time being with Jesus and listening to Him, you've missed it all. Sometimes the greatest thing we can do for God is to just sit down and shut up.

Now a word of warning: Do not use this as an excuse to do nothing. Jesus does call you to action. He calls you to love those around you, to share the good news of who He is. Don't abandon these things. But if you're trying to do these things without God, your efforts are meaningless.

Don't rush into work you've dreamed up or blindly agreed to and then tell God to bless you in it. Instead, seek after God--be ready to act when He calls you to act and be ready to rest when He calls you to rest.

After all, this is all about Him, not you.

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Permalink Reply by Ezra Medcalf on March 30, 2010 at 4:32pm

Wow, I'm sorry I missed this update yesterday, thank you so much Carla, that's very helpful, I had never seen that story from that angle before, thank you!

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Permalink Reply by Carla on March 31, 2010 at 9:37am

You are very welcome Ezra... :)

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