Hope For Today
Daily Encouragement for a Healing Heart from the Word of God
Deep pain and brokenness have a way of making Bible study difficult. To help bridge the gap and re-ignite our hunger for the Word of God, we’ve put together a daily devotional designed to help us all lean into God as we heal. May we seek Him daily!
Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life. Psalms 143:8 (NIV)
- Hope For Today
April 6 – Ephesians 5:1-2
Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are His dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God.
Isn't it easy to forget how all-encompassing our faith should be? It's easy to remember that we should imitate God when we're doing family devotions, or teaching Awanas at church, or even the whole time our small group is over at our house. But it can be tough to be imitators of God in the mundane details of each day. The verse doesn't say that we should imitate God sometimes though, it says "in everything you do." Everything you do. That's a tall order! Are we up for the challenge? Are we ready to take Scripture seriously and settle for nothing less than obedience? If so then there is one thing that will flow out of us at all times. One thing that will make it obvious that we're different from the rest of the world. One thing that will make us look like our Lord: Love. These verses tell us that when we are imitators of God, when we are following the example of Christ, we will live a life filled with love. So when we're doing the most annoying chore in the house (laundry) AGAIN, we'll do it with an attitude of love. When our children require the attention or discipline that the stage they're in demands we'll approach that challenge filled with love. When we're sitting at work (or in church) and feel the pull to participate in office gossip we'll have the self-control to follow the example of Christ and treat others with loving kindness. We'll do these things because Jesus Christ gave up everything so that we could be saved. He sacrificed His comfort, His privilege, and ultimately His life because of His great love for us! Shouldn't we be willing to give up a few things to show others that love so they, too, can see and understand the saving grace that comes through Christ alone? Let's decide today to live a life filled with love. Let's resolve to imitate God in everything we do!
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