Daily Scripture Reading: Romans 12:1 KJV
Romans 12:1 KJV
(1) I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Today’s Devotional Is SERVING THE LORD
The first thing we must do is present our bodies to God as living sacrifices and to be alive to God. There is no other way to enter the path to blessings. Only if we refuse to conform to the world and allow the Holy Spirit to transform us, can we learn all that God has for us. We are nothing, but He is everything. He is all-powerful and ready to do everything in us, provided that we open our hearts to Him like the land to the summer sun.
The yielded person is one who does not need signs to confirm God’s Will. It is the whisper of His voice or the touch of His hands that they can recognize it. We can only prove His goodness, perfect will, and accept the world’s molds if we resist the temptation to conform to it. We live for others and draw from the fulness God’s grace to minister to them right.
We first understand the Will of God; then, we present our bodies so that it may fulfill itself through us. Then, we discover that it is goodwill to men and become happy channels of heavenly ministry for those around us in any of the spheres listed in Rom_12;6-8. It is impossible not to feel jealousy because the Head might use one member or another; but it is also impossible to be proud because we do not have anything that we haven’t received. We must remember that every person has a unique ministry that needs to be fulfilled, and that every day we will have the chance to fulfill it. Many of us can identify with the Eastern story landowner who sold his property to search for diamonds. The man who bought his property discovered it was full of diamonds. It was indeed the Golconda region. Your heavenly opportunity will be found in the daily grind of life. Many who yearn for greatness, but are unable to accept the small and humble opportunity to serve their immediate community, will not be allowed to go on a great mission.
These divine ideals of service cannot be achieved by external obedience. Our Lord must constrain us by our holy love for one another and for Him. Without the Holy Spirit, these ideals could lead to despair. He is the source of this holy love.
PRAYER for Today
O God, work in me to not only will but to do Thy good pleasure. May I live out what Thou doest in my daily life. AMEN.