Take a moment to read Romans 12:9-21 before reading the devotional below.
Yesterday’s passage told us to offer our bodies as living sacrifices to God in response to his merciful offer of salvation. Wonder what that looks like in day-to-day life? Paul gives us a list of examples in today’s verses:
1. Love other people from the deepest place in your soul
2. Hate and oppose evil things
3. Delight in honoring others
4. Work hard
5. Rejoice in the hope of salvation
6. Be patient in trouble
7. Pray, pray, pray
8. Help people in need
9. Practice hospitality
10. Bless and pray for those who persecute you
11. Demonstrate empathy
12. Live at peace with everyone
13. Don’t be above anybody else
14. Don’t seek revenge
15. Do everything in a way that shows your honor and integrity
16. Overcome evil by doing good
There you go. That is your daily to-do list for the rest of your life. Imagine if people who claimed to follow Jesus did those 16 things every day. What would the church be like? What would the world be like?
Here’s your freedom for today: God’s will is not a mystery. We often make the Christian life more complicated than it needs to be. We spend loads of time asking God to show us his will and we wait for writing in the sky while ignoring what we has already told us to do. Until you get more directions, use these. They’ll cover most situations anyway. When we stop trying to figure out some complicated “next step” and start living the way God has already showed us, we are freed up to truly live as Jesus did rather than being caught in a trap of inaction. Pick one thing from today’s list and do that one thing well. There is tremendous spiritual power in simple obedience.