Scripture: 2 Corinthians 13:5
Examine yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Don’t you understand that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless, of course, you fail the test.
Thought for the Day: A few days ago, I referenced the author Brennan Manning. Within a few hours of writing that devotional, I had watched a YouTube video of Manning from the 1970’s, and then pulled up a portion of one of his books. He was inspiring and challenging at the same time. He made you feel good about who you are as a beloved child of God, while also opening the door to even greater opportunities of faithfulness. In my reading, I came across this quote:
The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.
Christianity is exceptional at the blame-game, assigning responsibility for the decline in American churches on everyone and everything except Christianity. This smokescreen of denial is fooling only those who remain inside the church, while the culture shakes its head with sad embarrassment. There is a longing to know Jesus as a model for life, yet the opinion of so many within our current culture is that the church is the last place to go and look for this Jesus.
Now before you feel too depressed, I see amazing examples of the Jesus-life being made real in the daily lives of those who yearn to follow Jesus. We need to be more passionate, not in an egotistical way, of sharing these stories. I don’t know if we really fail the test or if we fail to share the stories of the faithful.
Prayer: In a world consumed with bad news, I wish to share some good news. Merciful God, encourage and inspire my words as I tell the stories of those who are really doing a beautiful job of revealing Jesus. Amen.
