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When tasked for items or even in life, there are often dueling philosophies:

1. do your best and
2. do the bare minimum.

We know we should strive to do our best and go “above and beyond” when we can, but often we are too beat, lazy, uninterested enough to do anything beyond the bare minimum.

In school we all know the folks (not saying I was one of them, even if I was) who spent a fair amount of time figuring out what the minimum grade I could get on something and still get the grade I wanted in the class. Had I spent less time doing the math for the grade instead of studying math for the class, I would have done better overall – and probably felt better about the result.

We are Called to believe in Jesus for forgiveness, for life, and for salvation. We are Called to follow Him and His ways; to live in obedience and using the gifts He has blessed us with. We are Called to live as best we can because we rejoice in the Gift of Salvation He has given us, not the minimum because we are already saved and we can just “ride life through.”

Jesus gave us the example: He was perfect and did not need to be baptized. Yet He did so, “to fulfill all righteousness.”

The goal isn’t just to be saved, but also to live as His saved!

One of the implications is that we do not go on living a life of sin “that grace may abound” (Romans 6:1). We are not to live in the sin that once held us, but let the life we live, “live to God” (Romans 6:10).

Instead of a mindset that says, “God has saved me through Jesus and has done everything, so all is good and I don’t ever need to worry” (a true statement), we should be living in the joyful reality that “God has saved me through faith in Jesus and has done everything, empowering me with the Holy Spirit to do all things to God and for others!”

We have been saved; fully and completely!

Respond to that free Gift by doing your best and living for God!

“Dear Lord Jesus, thank You for saving us and fulfilling all righteousness! Grant us a grateful and generous heart that responds to this gift by living our fullest to You and for others by the power of the Holy Spirit. And let us do so with the best of intentions and to the best of the abilities You have given us. In Your precious name. Amen.”

WE HAD NO POWER TODAY, SO NO RECORDING! Our apologies.

Scriptures

• Romans 6:1-11
• Matthew 3:13-17

I find the Gospel text for today to be humorous as an outsider and terrifying as a parent.

But beyond the implications for Mary and Joseph at the time, there are several things we can take from the lesson.

• Jesus is the Son of God and desires to be in His House.
• Jesus values learning the Word (even though He is The Word [we won’t get into that pickle of thought!]) and being in said House with others.

It started me thinking about setting some good habits for the New Year.

From the example this reading and other places Scripture gives us, I would humbly suggest making a commitment to the following:

1. STUDY & WORSHIP: like Jesus, be in the Father’s House as much as possible, surrounding yourself with other believers to grow in wisdom and knowledge of the Word and in worship to God.
2. READ: make a commitment to reading the Scripture daily. Use a Scripture app; set a daily reminder; make a daily habit to read without constraints or agendas, even if you don’t understand everything you read. Let the Holy Spirit enter, teach, and draw out from you.
3. PRAY: too often we think of prayer as the last resort instead of the constant resort. Scripture tells us to “pray without ceasing” (I Thessalonians 5:17), meaning that it should be a natural part of our everyday lives. Commit to chatting with the Lord throughout the day every day. You will find it will make a world of difference, not just in your life but in the lives of others and even of our world. (See also James 5:16b).

It’s a new year with old challenges. But God is a God who has victory over all challenges and is with us through them.

We don’t do this just so we are “better Christians” (though we should certainly strive to be or best). We do this because we are amazed at the Gift the Lord has given to us through Jesus; His birth, suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension and want to respond by study and worship, buy reading His Word daily, and by praying continually. We seek to do this out of a loving, humble, response in gratitude, not compulsion, fear, or obligation.

The Lord Jesus has come, and He has given us everything – including an example. May we seek this year to live and follow that example in Joy and thanksgiving.

Thank You, Lord, for showing us what a joy and blessing it is to be in Your House and in Your Word, by reading, studying, and praying with You as our heart. Send us Your Spirit so that we may daily and continually draw closer to You, grow in our faith, and be a blessing to others. In Jesus’ Name do we pray. Amen.”

Scriptures

• Luke 2:40-52
• 1 Thessalonians 5:14-25
• Psalm 119:97-104