Peter

Monday: 1 Samuel 9-12. Tuesday: 1 Samuel 13-14. Wednesday: 1 Samuel 15-17. Thursday: 1 Samuel 18-20, Psalms 11 & 59. Friday: 1 Samuel 21-24. Saturday: Psalms 7, 27, 31, 34, & 52. Sunday: Psalms 56, 120, 140, 141, & 142.

Our executive pastor spoke on 1 Peter this past Sunday. This book is so encouraging so let’s meditate on chapter one this week (in addition to the chronological reading). I will highlight some of my favorite verses.

Verse 2: “God the Father chose you long ago, and the Spirit has made you holy. As a result you have obeyed Jesus Christ and are cleansed by His blood.” All 3 members of the trinity are mentioned here along with that we were chosen from the beginning.

Verse 3-4: “…for it is by His boundless mercy that God has given us the privileged being born again… For God has reserved a priceless inheritance for His children. It is kept in heaven for you, pure and undefiled, beyond the reach of change and decay.” Let’s live for what God has promised us. This life will decay but the eternal will not. That gives me so much joy as a Christ follower.

Verse 6-7: “So be truly glad! There is wonderful joy ahead, even though it is necessary for you to endure many trials for awhile. These trials are only to test your faith, to show that it is strong and pure. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold- and your faith is far more precious to God than mere gold. So if your faith remains strong after being tried by fiery trials, it will bring much praise, and glory, and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.” When we let our light shine in the darkness there will be trials ahead. This process burns away impurities and prepares us to meet Christ. These verses are some of my go to’s when I am faced with a trial. I love the comparison to gold being refined. That is exactly what is happening. After what I have been through, looking back, that has been my journey.

Verse 24-25: “As the prophet says, ‘People are like grass that dies away; their beauty fades as quickly as the beauty of wildflowers. The grass withers, and the flowers fall away. But the word of the Lord will last forever.’ And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.” Paul is restating what Isaiah said in Isaiah 40:6-8 here. All through the New Testament they quote the old prophets, which to me just shows the God wow-ness that He is. We need to stop grasping for the things here on earth. They are temporary! Focus on the eternal!

If you are needing some encouragement today please go read Peter or James. Meditating on His word really does help how we are reacting to the flesh. I don’t know about you but I can’t wait til we get to party up in heaven! Give me Jesus 🧡