Oh Father, I come before You now to hear Your voice, to feel Your heart as I read Your Word. I rejoice in Your great compassion You feel for me and I will forever be amazed!  I humbly bow down before You and ask Your Holy Spirit to fill my mind with what You want me to hear from this passage. In Jesus Name I pray.  Amen Ephesians 4:29-32

From the Message:

29 Watch the way you talk. Let nothing foul or dirty come out of your mouth. Say only what helps, each word a gift.

30 Don’t grieve God. Don’t break his heart. His Holy Spirit, moving and breathing in you, is the most intimate part of your life, making you fit for himself. Don’t take such a gift for granted.

From NIV

31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you

In the middle of my prayer above I received a phone call from a friend who needed compassion. I told her how sorry I was, I prayed for her and her family and told her I would pass on her prayer request and that I would contact another person for her as she requested.  After I did those things I was convicted about whether I had showed her true compassion.  I’m sorry to say I did not.  Now, if we’re talking about the world we live in - yes, I was very kind and compassionate - I had told her to text me or call me to if they needed anything.  But, not anywhere near what verse 32 says, “as Christ God has done for you”.  I didn’t act, offer concrete things she needed, like transportation or a meal until after convicted.

I love the way The Message version titled this section of Ephesians 4 - “The Old Way HAS To Go”.  That is how God answered my prayer - how I was convicted, how He wants me to live.  I was trying to control the situation, just like Pastor said in Sunday’s Message, the disciples were trying to control the 5 thousand.  And Jesus said NO, you do it my way!

Part 2 of this blog is verse 30 from The Message.  Paul reminds me - don’t break His heart by not changing your ways, by doing things my way.  Cindy, treat the Holy Spirit daily as FIRST in your life, because that is the only way I can experience Kingdom life.

 My Lord and Savior, I so want to love others as You love me.  You are so welcome in my heart today and always.

May your Friday be filled with the true Love, Joy and Compassion of Jesus Christ!

Love,

cindy