Living Worthy of the Call

 

Readings 102326 

You've heard it said:
Preach the Gospel by the way you live your life.

Today, Scripture says it to you:
live worthy of the call you have received,
with humility, gentleness, patience, and love.

Not someday. Not when life is easier.
Today, in the room you're sitting in,
with the people you'll see before the day is done.

Think of one person.
The one who tests your patience.
The one who hurt you and never said sorry.
Your witness begins there.

Every act of forgiveness preserves unity.
Every act of mercy strengthens the bond of peace.
You may never preach a sermon,
yet your kindness can still proclaim Christ.

But Jesus also asks something hard of you.
You can look at the sky and predict the weather.
You can look at the world and name its brokenness.
Yet have you looked lately
at the condition of your own soul?

Settle matters on the way, Jesus says,
before you stand before the judge.
Make things right with God now.
Is there something you need to confess?
Is there someone you need to forgive?

Don't wait for a perfect moment.
Let this be the moment.

Hear this and take it to heart:
God does not want to condemn you.
He wants to make you ready
for the fullness of His presence.

Pray:
Lord, 

 Show me what needs healing in me.
Give me the courage 

 to seek forgiveness
and the grace to offer it.
Help me live today 

 worthy of Your call,
one heart and one spirit 

 in You.
Amen.

The Change Worth Making

Readings 102226.cfm 

The deepest change in our lives
comes from following Christ.

When I left for college
and joined the football team,
I stayed away almost two months.
When I finally came home,
my brother said,
“You’ve changed.
You’ve gotten uppity.
You even talk like a Northerner.”

He was right about one thing:
I had changed.
But the change that mattered most
came later,
when I chose to follow Jesus.

That’s why today’s Gospel stings.
“Do you think I have come
to establish peace on the earth?
No, I tell you, but rather division.”

Jesus isn’t stirring up conflict.
He’s telling the truth about discipleship.
His peace is first a peace with God,
and that peace can set us
at odds with a world
that values other things.

So He asks one question:

Who comes first?

Not “love your family less.”
Love Him more.

Some will notice.
Some won’t understand.
But a change that draws us closer to Him
is a change worth making.

Prayer

Lord Jesus, 

Change our hearts 

to be more like Yours.

When following You 

brings tension 

or misunderstanding, 

give us courage and peace.

Help us always to put You first. 

Amen.