Seeking the Life in Christ: July 2025

Thursday, July 31, 2025

A Living and Holy Sacrifice

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 31, 2025

A Living and Holy Sacrifice

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

Romans 12:1

For most of her two-thousand-year history, the various parts of the Christian church have debated who is responsible for the epistle to the Hebrews. Many today just say the authorship, since the letter is unsigned, is unknown. When the ‘church’ developed the litmus test for material to be included in the New Testament of whether the author was a person who had been with Christ, some people believe Hebrews was assigned to the Apostle Paul just so it could be included. Others say Hebrews was a sermon delivered by the Apostle Paul.

As for me, I have often commented on the importance of Hebrews 12:28 in my life: “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe.” (NRSV) The similarity between Romans 12:1 and Hebrews 12:28 is enough for me to agree the Apostle Paul created the epistle of Hebrews, either by writing or preaching.

What do my comments, thus far, have to do with staying in God’s grace for today? Let’s read Romans 12:2

Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

Tomorrow, I will go a little deeper on this point as we consider God restoring our soul. For today, I see this call to be a willful participant in God’s work to transform my life, by changing the way I think, as a foundation to staying in His grace for today.

My Takeaway: When I give my body to be a living and holy sacrifice to God, I am becoming a willful participant in His transformative work in my life. Being at the center of God’s will is how we remain in His grace for today.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life. The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Love Self for God’s Sake

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 30, 2025

Love Self for God’s Sake

Then Jesus said,

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens,

and I will give you rest.

Matthew 11:28

The Apostle Paul, writing about marriage relationships said, “. . . husbands ought to love their wives as they love their own bodies. For a man who loves his wife actually shows love for himself.” (Ephesians 5:28) What Paul said about marriage relationships applies to all our relationships.

If I am at peace with myself, that peace is revealed in my relationship with others. If I am angry, if I am ashamed of myself, or disturbed by unresolved issues, my condition is revealed in my relationship with others.

Bernard of Clairvaux in his book, “On Loving God” put forth four stages of personal growth.

Stage 1: Love Self for Self’s Sake

We begin this way, taking responsibility to meet all our needs.

Stage 2: Love God for Self’s Sake

We hear John 3:16 and love God so we can be saved.

Stage 3: Love God for God’s Sake

We grow in faith and learn to love God with our heart, soul and mind.

Stage 4: Love Self for God’s Sake

We take God at His word and believe we are the beloved child of God

with whom He is well pleased and upon whom His favor rests.

How do we progress to stage 4 of Bernard’s teaching?

My Takeaway: Come to Jesus, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and he will give you rest. Let Jesus teach you, and you will find rest for your souls. And you will love yourself because that is God’s will for you.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Tuesday, July 29, 2025

Hope and Confidence

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 29, 2025

Hope and Confidence

For I hold you by your right hand—

I, the Lord your God.

And I say to you,

‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.’

Isaiah 41:13

Isaiah experienced God’s help. So did Jesus’ disciples, especially after Pentecost when they were filled with the Holy Spirit. The churches birthed by the Apostles also experienced God’s help.

These churches made the Lord their hope and confidence and they did great work building for the Kingdom of God. Through their hope and confidence in the Lord, the churches exhibited what theologian Origen called God’s “invisible power.” They had a bubbling energy—a bottom-up inner life—that had immense potential. This invisible power nurtured in the Christians the life of the Beatitudes and the life of love that Paul celebrates in 1 Corinthians 13. Through their hope and trust in the Lord, they entrusted their future confidently to God, and we today are the beneficiaries of their legacy.

Which is to say, what God did for Isaiah, what He did for the Apostles, what He did through the churches established by the Apostles, He will do for us today!

My Takeaway: I can make a list of hundreds of people and places that desperately need God to say, ‘Don’t be afraid. I am here to help you.’ However, I never, ever, want to lose sight of the number one place God wants to speak these words: My life!

God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.

Philippians 2:13

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Monday, July 28, 2025

Hope and Confidence

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 28, 2025

Hope and Confidence

“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord

and have made the Lord their hope and confidence.”

Jeremiah 17:7

On July 18, I shared a quote from Pope Benedict when he knew his death was near. That quote from the Pope was relevant to me because Cheryl and I have been working with a terminally ill cancer patient and her primary caregiver. The caregiver was comforted by Pope Benedict’s personal sharing, the patient, not so much. The patient has been vacillating between hospice care or continued chemotherapy. Their predicament reminds me of the cartoon showing a man waist deep in a swamp, surrounded by alligators. The caption reads: “When you are up to your waist in alligators, it is hard to remember your original task was to drain the swamp.”

The point here is that when you are in the midst of the storm, it is difficult to begin grounding yourself in faith. Pope Benedict’s awareness of his friendship with God didn’t begin when he knew death was close at hand; his friendship was nurtured over decades of devotion to God.

Death is certain for all of us. Hopefully, we will, like Pope Benedict, be aware of our life’s end and be able to process the time in faith. If we are so blessed, we will rejoice that we have made the Lord our hope and confidence.

My Takeaway: Making the Lord our hope and confidence allows us to be comforted by these words of Jesus:

“Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me. There is more than enough room in my Father’s home. If this were not so, would I have told you that I am going to prepare a place for you? When everything is ready, I will come and get you, so that you will always be with me where I am.” (John 14:1-3)

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Friday, July 25, 2025

It Would Have Been Enough

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 25, 2025

It Would Have Been Enough

The disciples were astounded.

“Then who in the world can be saved?” they asked.

Jesus looked at them intently and said,

“Humanly speaking, it is impossible.

But with God everything is possible.”

Matthew 19:25-26

A few months ago, I was diagnosed with asthma. Why has this come into my life? The doctor doesn’t know or isn’t saying. I was prescribed a rescue inhaler, which I am having to use more often, after even moderate exertion. In many ways, asthma has become a controlling influence in my life. But what controls me, doesn’t control God. What fatigues me, doesn’t fatigue God.

Yesterday, I mentioned the impact Hebrews 12:28 is having on my life. I still vividly remember when the Holy Spirit led me to read this passage. I had been sitting in my living room making a list of all the ways I needed God to change my circumstances and improve my life. Hebrews 12:28 was His answer. That day I also gained great appreciation for this passage from Isaiah 55:8-9,

“My thoughts are nothing like your thoughts,” says the Lord.

“And my ways are far beyond anything you could imagine.

For just as the heavens are higher than the earth,

so my ways are higher than your ways

and my thoughts higher than your thoughts.

Recently, when Cheryl and I were watching the video series on the life of Jesus, The Chosen, we were introduced to the "Dayenu,” a traditional Jewish song sung during the Passover Seder. The word "Dayenu" translates to, "it would have been enough.” The song is a list of things God did for the Israelites during the Exodus, with each item followed by "Dayenu," emphasizing that even if God had only done that one thing, it would have been enough.

My Takeaway: Yes, everything is possible with God. Everything that is within His perfect and complete will. In my present circumstance, I am seeking to stay close to God, even when I have shortness of breath. Close to Him assures me I am in His grace for today. I am in the place in my life where God’s grace for today is enough.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Soli Deo Gloria

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 24, 2025

Soli Deo Gloria

All honor and glory to God forever and ever!

He is the eternal King,

the unseen one who never dies;

he alone is God. Amen.

1 Timothy 1:17

I have written before, probably several times, how this passage in Hebrews has impacted my life:

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable worship with reverence and awe, (Hebrews 12:28 NRSV)

During the last five years, the Holy Spirit has been leading me into an ever-deeper appreciation of worship with reverence and awe. I have found ancient liturgies, such as the Gloria in Excelsis, are beautiful expressions of both reverence and awe, and embrace the prose of Timothy quoted above.

My desire is to live my life as, “Soli Deo Gloria" --- Glory to God alone. I have been blessed in this quest through using the app, My Daily Office, which is daily prayers adapted from the Book of Common Prayer. I do like contemporary worship, but I am finding these ancient rites reveal an understanding of our Heavenly Father that the Christian community in the first few centuries after Christ’ resurrection appreciated at a deeper level than I have experienced in many Christian communities of the present age.

My Takeaway: How do I live giving glory to God alone? The first step is to stay in God’s grace for today. I am helped in this endeavor by using My Daily Office. This is not the only way. First, commit your life to Soli Deo Gloria, and the Holy Spirit will lead you on your unique path.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Wednesday, July 23, 2025

To Know Jesus

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 23, 2025

To Know Jesus

For even the Son of Man came not to be served

but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”

Mark 10:45

Cheryl and I have been watching season 5 of The Chosen. It has some compelling scenes with Jesus and his disciples at what we refer to as The Last Supper. The presentation of this drama makes it clear the disciples were struggling to ‘wrap their heads around’ Jesus’ mission. They knew Jesus was being threatened by the religious leaders, and they were worried sick. At the time, they could not comprehend the meaning of Jesus’ words in Mark’s Gospel, quoted above. Or other statements of Jesus, such as, “For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.” (Luke 19:10)

From the moment Jesus left his carpentry bench in Nazareth and traveled to meet his cousin, John, by the Jordan River, he had one focus: Calvary. The lost would not be saved until he gave his life as a ransom on the cross at Calvary. Jesus used his teaching and his signs and miracles to make disciples, who when empowered by the Holy Spirit, would take the message of salvation through our risen savior to the world.

My Takeaway: The tragedy in the floods of Texas have made this a difficult and troubling month. Over and against the question, often asked, “Why did God allow this?” is a reaffirmation that Jesus had but one mission: to give his life to seek and save the lost. This truth has helped me stay in God’s grace for today in this troubling time. Faith in God is not a means to pain avoidance, rather to know Jesus is eternal life.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

God Has Made You His Heir

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 22, 2025

God Has Made You His Heir

Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child.

And since you are his child, God has made you his heir.

Galatians 4:7

At the end of Galatians Six, Paul makes clear that the ultimate purpose of God working through Jesus is to create the ‘new people of God.’ (Galatians 6:15) We become the new people of God when we are transformed to become like Jesus. In the opening passage of Chapter Four, Paul reveals what I believe is the key to understanding how the transformation to the new people of God comes about. In the first six verses, Paul is speaking in general terms, using second person plural ‘we.’ In verse 7, Paul speaks in specific terms, using the second person singular ‘you’. Paul moves from talking about ‘we’ and ‘us’ to talking about YOU. You are God’s child. You are God’s heir. This is a foundation to our seeking the life in Christ as our way of life; our personal ownership of our new identity in Christ, that we are God’s heir.

Many Christians believe one of the most beautiful passages of scripture is, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). However, we understand this passage together with what John said a few verses earlier: “Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.” (John 3:6) The work of the Holy Spirit is to lead us to when we take personal ownership of the subject phrase ‘everyone who believes,’ and we affirm, I believe.

My Takeaway: Sometimes people tend to focus on the whole people of God, because they cannot imagine God caring for them as an individual. These people struggle with applying the promises of God to their personal life. However, God saves us one at a time, so that together, we can become God’s heirs, the new people of God.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Monday, July 21, 2025

Fooling Ourselves

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 21, 2025

Fooling Ourselves

If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves

and not living in the truth.

1 John 1:8

Back when my daughter, Tammy, was in high school, she was on their dance team. One day I received a phone call to come and pick her up – she had wrenched her knee. I took her to the orthopedic clinic, and after an examination the doctor said her knee was swollen and he needed to remove the fluid around the knee. Tammy saw him reach for a large needle and called time-out. She hated needles. “Can’t you just put a bandage or brace on it?” she asked. No, that wouldn’t have helped, and I held her hand as the doctor used his needle and removed a substantial amount of fluid.

An issue I believe most Christians face is becoming too comfortable with our confession of sin, especially in liturgical services such as Holy Communion. We say the words and then the minister pronounces our absolution. Are we just hoping that our words and the minister’s absolution cover our sin? I suspect our Heavenly Father wants more from us. I suspect our Abba knows that sometimes we need to face the needle.

My Takeaway: I am seeking to keep Philippians 2:13 ever close to my consciousness: “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”

God wants me to confess my sins. He also wants me to listen, intently, for His still, quiet voice instructing me how to live in His truth. When I do, I am firmly camped in His grace for today.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Friday, July 18, 2025

We Shall See Him

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 18, 2025

We Shall See Him

Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror,

but then we will see everything with perfect clarity.

1 Corinthians 13:12a (NRSV)

How is it that we will see everything with perfect clarity? The Apostle John answers this question:

“Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is.” 1 John 3:2

What a day of rejoicing that will be when our faith becomes sight and we behold Jesus, face to face. How do you feel about your homecoming to Jesus, a day that is certain for all of us?

This from Pope Benedict, speaking when he knew his own death was near, affirms his friendship with Jesus, which answers our question.

Quite soon, I shall find myself before the final judge of my life. Even though, as I look back on my long life, I can have great reason for fear and trembling, I am nonetheless of good cheer, for I trust firmly that the Lord is not only the just judge, but also the friend and brother who himself has already suffered for my shortcomings, and is thus also my advocate, my ‘Paraclete.’ In light of the hour of judgment, the grace of being a Christian becomes all the more clear to me. It grants me knowledge, and indeed friendship, with the judge of my life, and thus allows me to pass confidently through the dark door of death.

My Takeaway: Focusing on my friendship with Jesus truly enables me to remain in His grace for today.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Thursday, July 17, 2025

He Will Be with You

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 17, 2025

He Will Be with You

Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord will personally go ahead of you.

He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”

Deuteronomy 31:8

I recall hearing Henry Blackaby, in his course Experiencing God, share how traumatic it was for him when his daughter was diagnosed with cancer. He struggled for a while, blaming himself, and wondering what he had done wrong, what sin he had committed, that allowed this evil disease to be visited upon his child. Ultimately, Blackaby was able to affirm in his life the truth we saw in Monday’s meditation: he was a child of God, and as we see in Psalm 56,

8You keep track of all my sorrows.

You have collected all my tears in your bottle.

You have recorded each one in your book.

9bThis I know: God is on my side!

With his reaffirmation that his life belonged to God, he was able to embrace the truth of God’s words in Deuteronomy 31:8.

Blackaby’s struggle is just one of thousands and thousands of struggles Christians have experienced since the resurrection of Jesus and the gift of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost. Continually, Christians wonder if God is mad at them; is their sin forgivable; are they good enough? This struggle is captured in the opening lyric of the song, Who Am I by the group Casting Crowns: “Who am I, that the Lord of all the earth would care to know my name?”

We saw the answer to this lyrical question in yesterday’s meditation, and today’s scripture passage reveals the confidence our Heavenly Father wants His children to experience.

Recently one of my tennis buddies asked me why Jesus admonished his disciples lack of faith when they were on the lake in a raging storm. (Mark 4:35-41) Fearful for their lives, the disciples woke Jesus from his nap and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” My friend said their boat was about to be capsized and it seems they were right to be afraid. I told my friend, Jesus wanted his disciples to grasp the truth that when he was with them, they need not be afraid or discouraged, for He will personally go ahead of them. He will not abandon them. By the time of his ascension, the disciples, well eleven of them, learned this lesson.

My Takeaway: Because we belong to God, by creation and redemption, we can trust that no matter how we feel or what we are experiencing in the world, God wants us to not be afraid or discouraged, for He will personally go ahead of us. He will be with us; He will neither fail us nor abandon us.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

God Wants Us Now

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 16, 2025

God Wants Us Now

And since it is through God’s kindness, then it is not by their good works. For in that case, God’s grace would not be what it really is—free and undeserved.

Romans 11:6

The Apostle Paul, in the passage above, was referring to the remanent of Jews in Israel who were remaining faithful to Christ as the Messiah. Paul said they were established as part of the new community of believers through God’s grace, not through their good works. This observation of Paul points us to another foundation stone in our life in Christ; God wants us now.

Every pastor has had the experience of asking a parishioner to serve in the church only to be told they were too busy with their job. “Ask me when I retire and I’ll be happy to help out” was often the reply the pastor heard. Perhaps they did have a busy work life, but more often I think their reluctance to serve was based on their self-perception that they were not ready, not good enough yet to serve in Christ’s church.

An appropriate response may well be, “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners.” (Romans 5:8) God did not wait until we were perfected. God did not wait until we deserved Him through our good works. No God didn’t wait; God wants us now. God has been forming and will continue to form Christ in us until we are perfected. (Philippians 1:6, 2:13) But he doesn’t wait. He wants us just as we are.

My Takeaway: As is. Much property is offered for sale, as is. That is exactly how God took me, and you. As is. For me, I was much in the same condition as the prodigal when I came home to God. Nevertheless, He crowned me with righteousness. As I was. Remembering God’s acceptance of me helps we remain in His grace for today.

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

The Voice of Truth

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 15, 2025

The Voice of Truth

Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for,

the conviction of things not seen.

Hebrews 11:1 (NRSV)

When we were walking out of church recently, a woman, admiring Cheryl’s hair, said to her, “When you look in the mirror, it must make you smile.” That was such a nice compliment for her. But I wonder if for most of us, do we smile when we see ourselves in a mirror? Think again about that quote from N. T. Wright I often mention: The world is telling us a pack of lies about who we are, who God is and who our neighbors are. But God in Christ Jesus is telling us the truth.”

As we are seeking the life in Christ as our way of life, one of our foundational stones is continually listening to the voice of truth. The voice of truth, God’s voice, calls us to embrace our identity in Christ. When we do, we exhibit Hebrews 11:1 faith --- the assurance of things hoped for (new life in Christ), and the conviction of our right standing with God.

As we listen to the voice of truth, we affirm with God that because Christ redeemed our souls, we are a new creation of infinite worth. We are deeply loved and completely forgiven. We are fully pleasing to God and totally accepted by God. We are complete in Christ. When our lives reflect our new identity in Christ, that reflection is dynamically unique. There has never been another person like us in the history of mankind, nor will there ever be. God has made us an original, one of a kind, a special person.

Trusting in the voice of truth, when my eyes see my faults, my faith sees my Savior, Christ Jesus. When my eyes see my guilt, my faith sees the blood of Jesus shed for me.

My Takeaway: I wear a Jerusalem cross I purchased in Israel and often, during the day, I touch it. For me, it is like the ring of grace the father put on his prodigal’s finger when he came home. These touches remind me to live by faith, not by sight. (2 Cor 5:7)

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Monday, July 14, 2025

I Appointed You

Meditations on

Staying In the Grace for Today

July 14, 2025

I Appointed You

“I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.

Before you were born I set you apart

and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

Jeremiah 1:5

First, a bit of context. I have noted before N.T. Wright’s statement "What is true for Christ is true for you." This means that for those who are in Christ, the spiritual realities that are true of Jesus are also true for them. This includes righteousness, or right-standing before God, access to God, and the promise of eternal life, all received through faith in Christ. And the Apostle Paul noted in Romans 2 that God is not a respecter of persons, which means that God does not show favoritism or partiality towards individuals based on external factors like wealth, social status, race, or any other human-defined characteristic. When we take these two truths together, we can see that God’s word to Jeremiah, quoted above, is as true for us as it was for Jeremiah.

God knew me, and you, before He formed us in our mother’s womb. And before we were born, He set us apart and appointed us. As for me, I was appointed to be a United Methodist preacher for the congregations where He sent me. God appoints us all to a particular work or service where, empowered by the Holy Spirit, we get to build for the Kingdom of God.

The day I am writing this has been average for me. I enjoyed a few hours of tennis on a cool July morning. I made lunch for Cheryl and me and then I participated in a committee meeting for my HOA. The rest of the day will be relaxing. Even so, my Heavenly Father knew me before He formed me in my mother’s womb. Before I was born, He appointed me to be a pastor to his children.

My Takeaway: My worth, my value is not because of what I do, but because of whose I am. This truth inspires me to seek to stay firmly in God’s grace for today. How about you?

Sē’lah

My book on prayer,

First Think, Then Pray

is now available on Amazon Kindle.

(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

Thursday, July 31, 2025

A Living and Holy Sacrifice

Wednesday, July 30, 2025

Love Self for God’s Sake

Tuesday, July 29, 2025

Hope and Confidence

Monday, July 28, 2025

Hope and Confidence

Friday, July 25, 2025

It Would Have Been Enough

Thursday, July 24, 2025

Soli Deo Gloria

Wednesday, July 23, 2025

To Know Jesus

Tuesday, July 22, 2025

God Has Made You His Heir

Monday, July 21, 2025

Fooling Ourselves

Friday, July 18, 2025

We Shall See Him

Thursday, July 17, 2025

He Will Be with You

Wednesday, July 16, 2025

God Wants Us Now

Tuesday, July 15, 2025

The Voice of Truth

Monday, July 14, 2025

I Appointed You

Seeking the Life in Christ

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