Are we Really Devoted?

God wants our devotion.

That's probably not news to most of us.  And we know He is the most deserving of anyone we are acquainted with to ask of us and receive our devotion. While praying and reading our Bibles are vital in growing our devotion, living out our faith day by day, minute by minute is what He asks of us as well. An often overlooked part of walking in our devotion to Him is to be devoted to the imperfect human believers who walk Planet Earth with us.  Yes, He asks this painfully difficult thing of us:

Let love be without hypocrisy.  Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good.  Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; not lagging behind in diligence, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord; rejoicing in hope, persevering in tribulation, devoted to prayer, contributing to the needs of the saints, practicing hospitality.  Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse.  Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.  Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, but associate with the lowly.  Do not be wise in your own estimation.  Never pay back evil for evil to anyone.  Respect what is right in the sight of all men.  If possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men. --Romans 12:9-18

God makes it clear that all believers are to be devoted to one another.

That means those who have more or less money than we do.

That means those who irritate or annoy us.

That means those who prefer different kinds of music or different styles of worship services.

That means people we deem as too loud or too quiet, having too many or too few tattoos, too opinionated or too wishy-washy, having "too many" children or "not enough," etc., etc., etc . . . unfortunately, the list could go on and on.

Every person who trusts Christ as his or her Savior is a part of the family, whether or not he or she sees and experiences the world just as we do. Love and devotion are great when those on whom we bestow them are similar to us.  Love and devotion are proven real when they are genuinely bestowed upon people who drive us crazy in one way or another.

This devotion, of course, does not mean accepting sinful behavior from believers without attempted accountability.  No family will be fully functional without loving reproof and correction when necessary, and it's no different for the church family.  The key to this, of course, is the love and adhering to biblical methods of accountability.

Wow, the Romans 12 passage above is packed with ways to show our devotion to one another.  A few of the highlights:

• Give preference to each other
• Contribute to the needs of others
• Practice hospitality
• Bless even those who persecute you 
• Rejoice with those rejoicing, weep with those weeping
• Do not be haughty--associate with everyone!
• Don't take revenge
• Respect what is right
• Live at peace with everyone as much as possible

Friends, it's a tall order, but God doesn't ask us to do the impossible!  Or, maybe a better way to say that is God makes the impossible (on our own) possible (with His help).  Prayer, along with reading Scripture and putting aside self-centered ways, will be powerful in helping us as Christ-followers to be devoted to one another, which points to our devotion to our Savior!

Shine Your Light!

By Laurie Ness

Photo by Kay Hartman

The ladies of SGC were blessed to have the beautiful (inside and out) Miss Indiana, Jackie Jerlecki, speak at the Christmas breakfast in December.  Even without the sparkling crown on her head, one surely can't help but notice her in a crowded room.  The warmth of the light within her shines all around her and touches those who are blessed to be in her presence.

The topic of "warmth" was chosen for January's WoW Connect! long before I had even heard Miss Jerlecki's name, but when the time came to start thinking about writing a devotional about warmth, she immediately came to mind.  She had a wonderful and inspiring message that chilly December morning, about letting our light shine instead of putting it under a bowl.

No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl.  Instead, they put it on its stand, so that those who come in may see its light.  Your eye is the lamp of your body.  When your eyes are healthy, your whole body also is full of light.  But when they are unhealthy, your body also is full of darkness.  See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.  Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be just as full of light as when a lamp shines its light on you.  Luke 11:33-36

I don't remember now Jackie's exact words, but I still feel the general inspiration to look around me during times that are easy to be absorbed in my own thoughts.  I've always tried to act kindly toward people, but that day, after the breakfast, my mom and I went Christmas shopping, and I found myself trying to pay more attention to the people around me, making eye contact with strangers more often and offering a smile, instead of pouring over my list of Christmas gifts and scouring the store shelves so intently.  I mean, we all have things to accomplish while we're out and about, but why not lift up our eyes more often to meet those of others who might need a connection of kindness, even if for just a second?

In the verses above, the word "healthy" is referring to generosity, and the word "unhealthy" points to stinginess.  Does the word "stingy" paint a picture of warmth?  Absolutely not!  Generosity, though, is a warm word.  With what can we be generous?  There are the obvious things, like money and material objects.  That kind of generosity definitely meets needs, but what about those less tangible things, like our time, our encouragement, our smiles, our conversation . . . our eyes off ourselves?  Our warmth?  Sometimes these can be more difficult to offer than money or material possessions.

And what about the people we are closest to?  It can be easy to take them for granted and maybe forget the warmth we might show to someone else.  Those we see every day (like our families, for instance) ought to be greeted and treated warmly always.

True warmth shines from the light of the Spirit of God living within and is not hidden under the "bowl" of our irritation, grumpiness, sadness, self-centeredness, or any other emotion.  True warmth does not ask anything of the one being warmed, nor attach itself to conditions that the "warmee" must meet.

Look up, loved one!  Smile!  Even if we are in the middle of a period of sadness in our lives, if we truly want to be pleasant anyway, God will help us to be pleasant if we ask Him!  It's what He wants of us--to shine His light.  You never know what that kindness toward a cashier on an ordinary shopping trip might lead to.  Our own children will be more likely to take us seriously if we make the effort to show them what a blessing we think they are, in simple ways like cheerfully wishing them a good morning when they awake every morning and giving them smiles and encouraging words throughout the day.  Our husbands will find home to be a haven if they are treated with warmth there.  Our friends and acquaintances will be warmed by our light if we allow it to shine.

And the message of Jesus will be communicated most effectively to everyone around us when it is preceded and accompanied by His warmth exuding from us!