SCRIPTURE: It was nothing you could or did achieve—it was God’s gift to you. No one can pride himself upon earning the love of God. The fact is that what we are we owe to the hand of God upon us. We are born afresh in Christ, and born to do those good deeds which God planned for us to do. Ephesians 2:9-10 Phillips
THOUGHT: Can you relate to working really hard for a promotion only to get passed over? Or working hard at a relationship only to have the one you love walk away? Or working hard at your physical health only to have an injury or illness wreck you? Life is full of ironic twists and turns. We want to earn love and respect and rewards, but our ideal is often thwarted.
Part of why “the good news” is so good is that we can lay down all that striving and disappointment when it comes to our relationship with God. He doesn’t love us for what we do, how hard we work, or our slickest successes. He just loves us as a gift. His love comes free to a good home! That’s a truth that can slowly change everything in our lives – particularly for those of us with performance-based wiring.
What we are we owe to the hand of God upon us, Paul tells the Ephesians. God doesn’t just love us as a gift, he has also given us gifts for which we can take no credit. It’s humbling and freeing at the same time. We are only ever free when we have nothing to prove and such is the case for the mature Christ-follower. Who we are is his. What we do is live into the gifts he’s given with hearts of gratitude and eyes watching for the “good deeds” he has planned for us to participate in.
PRAYER: Oh God, thank you for your love – it was and is and will always be free to a good home – these grateful hearts you’ve redeemed!
Dear Reader,
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ABOUT ME:
Blogger Amy Clemens is the author of Walking When You’d Rather Fly: Meditations on Faith After the Fall. In it she explores childhood sexual abuse and how it impacted her faith (or lack thereof) for four decades. You’ll find not only her story, but better yet, the Big Story of God.
Check out Walking When You’d Rather Fly, and learn more about the book and Amy’s other ministries. You will also find her devotional work at Words of Hope.
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