PAYING ATTENTION

PAYING ATTENTION

Friday, January 25, 2019

1Thessalonians [ESV] 5:22-24 Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it.

  As a result of my inattentiveness, yesterday I erred. But personally such events now turn out differently.

  My old story: There would be angst; regret, guilt, shame plus memorable historical blunderings added to the resultant distracting mess. And there would be digestive problems.

  My blessed new story: Decades ago I was schooled by a few Christian mentors that had had like reactions that hindered their overall health in body, soul, and spirit. They introduced me to God’s provision of love and mercy; accepting His forgiveness leading to peace with confidence. They also emphasized the importance of applying Philippians 3:13. Not long after an addict introduced me to the summarizing Serenity Prayer, which out of necessity I apply daily.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time;
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His Will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next. Amen.

  Have you been traveling a path paved with sidetracking angst? Look to God’s Word Living and written. Trust Him. He is faithful in providing the way of deliverance and even edifying us through it.

EBB4