Devotion is a word I rarely come across these days. In my early
years as a Christian I heard it used frequently in reference to a certain
activity during a certain time of day: our Bible reading and prayer time in the
morning was called “devotions”.
It may be good that we rarely use the word in that way
anymore because too often the Christian will spend time cloistered from the
world in reading and prayer then rise from that time only to treat others like
dirt. Such activity is far from “devotional”, in the true sense of the word.
For example, if I am “devoted” to my wife that means I will
not only treat her with kindness and respect but I will be willing, active and
prompt to do so. I will dream of ways to make her smile, to lift her spirits,
to delight her with love. I will have no hesitation whatsoever to carry out
what’s imagined and I will be faithful to see it through when faced with
obstacles. I will do all this with a glad spirit—even those chores I would
otherwise deem mundane or bothersome.
If this is true of our relating to one another, how much
more should this characterize our relationship with God! If our devotional life
with Christ is regarded as a mere duty and contained to a designated time-slot,
it is neither devotional nor living. Whole-hearted devotion and soft-hearted
responsiveness go hand-in-hand.
Let us be eager to speak with the Lover of our soul any time
of day. Let us be willing to carry out with gladness whatever he would ask of
us. Let the joy of God find a home in our hearts; let us delight in Christ and
his creation; let our faces and lives radiate his life-giving goodness. Let us lead lives that are truly devoted to
God and one another.
No comments:
Post a Comment