Promises Like This

ByJim Stephens

Reading:  2 Corinthians 7; Psalm 19

With promises like this to pull us on, dear friends, let’s make a clean break with everything that defiles or distracts us, both within and without. Let’s make our entire lives fit and holy temples for the worship of God. (2 Corinthians 7:1 MSG)

Paul reminded the Corinthians of the good promises of God for believers: We’re God’s temple. We’re God’s kids. We’re God’s army. We’re God’s house. He has committed to bless us and protect us and provide for us and be our loving, caring, providing Dad!

With promises like this to pull us forward in life, let’s drop the distractions and unload the rubbish and go for it!

It seems as if there are three ways to navigate the River of Life:

  • We can be ambitious and power up and just go for it – driven by our own ambitions and moving under our own power.
  • We can be passive and just drift wherever the current takes us – and more than likely end up in a swamp among the cattails and alligators!
  • We can hook our rope to God’s promises and let the purpose and promise of God pull us out of the swamp and directly to where God wants to take us.

I know, friends, it’s not the best metaphor you’ve ever heard, but God has given us these wonderful promises of his purpose and blessing! I so want us to believe the promises and prepare ourselves for their fulfillment! It’s about purposeful and active dependency on God!

Prayer:

Father, Please help me today and tomorrow and always to stay conscious of your very specific purposes and promises for my life. I’m going to hook onto those promises so that they will pull me out of passivity and away from personal ambition and directly toward the plan you have laid out for my life. I want to know and do your will! For Jesus’ sake! Amen.