DAY 54: On your lips and in your heart…

Read: Romans 9:25-10:13

Think: Throughout the book of Romans, Paul consistently uses the Old Testament to teach about Christ. This is a perfect example of the concept of how the Old Testament conceals Jesus and the New Testament reveals Jesus. In today’s reading, Paul refers to passages in Deuteronomy and Isaiah, saying, “And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by confessing with your mouth that you are saved. As the Scriptures tell us ‘Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.’” Paul is explaining to the Romans that faith in Jesus Christ—at its core—should be a message that is always on your lips and in your heart.

Act: I regularly use the phrase, “I’m on fire!” Students love that I use that phrase and they often repeat it back to me. I’m just simply expressing that the living, loving God is on my lips and in my heart—that He “fires” me up with passion for His Word, love for this young generation, and a deep desire to see my church and community grow more in love with Him. My encouragement to you today is to unashamedly allow others to see, feel and hear your love for God! Why? Our culture is determined to destroy faith. Therefore, I implore you to be bold, not shy or reserved, about your faith in Jesus Christ. Let others hear and feel, today, that Jesus is on your lips and in your heart.

Pray: Dear Lord, give me an opportunity today to share you with someone who is lost, someone who is lonely, someone who is searching for You. Let Your name be on my lips and let Your love be in my heart, so much so that I can’t help but share the Good News message with others. I love You, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 53: The Patience of God

Read: Romans 9:1-24

Think: I have written 15 books. With every word I write, my hope is that the reader personalizes the message by filtering it through his or her life and circumstances. My hope is to speak into the life of my reader so that he or she would see God more clearly and love Him more intimately. I also realize that a biblical message is counter-cultural, therefore I am always looking for ways to describe God’s love so that the reader will be compelled to turn away from anything that is keeping him or her from God’s will for his or life. Paul, in today’s reading, has the very same intention writing, “In the same way, even though God has the right to show his anger and his power, he is very patient with those on whom his anger falls, who are destined for destruction. He does this to make the riches of his glory shine even brighter on those whom he shows mercy, who were prepared in advance for glory.” Though human beings are incredibly weak, and the world and its ways are incredibly destructive, God is incredibly patient. We must hold onto this truth. 

Act: One of the reasons I read through the entire Bible each year is to keep my heart on fire for the Lord Jesus Christ. I read daily to listen to God. I read daily to grow more mature in my faith. I read daily to understand God better. I read daily so that I can accurately share God’s words with others. Today, as you read about the patience of God, how does this message strike your heart personally? Is God calling you to become more set apart for Him, or does this inspire you to become more forgiving, compassionate, and merciful to those who are struggling with their sinful nature? What is God saying to you today as you read Romans 9:1-24? Now, act on it.

Pray: Dear Lord, without You, I am nothing and in me is no good thing. With You all things are possible. Give me a deeper faith in You. Give me a greater love and understanding of Your will and Your ways. Give me the confidence to speak truth to others and to exhibit an extra measure of patience with those who are struggling. I love You, Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 52: Prayer leads to Purpose

Read: Romans 8:26-39

Think: Ros Rinker, a 20th century InterVarsity Staff woman said, “Prayer is a dialogue between two people who love each other.” When prayer is defined as a two-way conversation with Someone who cares for us, it changes the way we think about prayer—it becomes less of a duty and more of an exchange of ideas, hopes, and concerns. Paul suggests that even when we don’t know how to pray, the Holy Spirit will pray for us “with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for them.” What an amazing thought—the Holy Spirit prays for us to know God’s will for our lives!

Act: In Romans 8:26-39, Paul teaches us that our relationship with God requires constant companionship through communication with the Holy Spirit. He reminds us that we are to pray (or converse with God) both when we know exactly what to pray or when we don’t have any idea how to pray. God is available to talk with us and listen to us at anytime—we never have to wait in a line or be put on hold. In fact, it is often through prayer that God will make us aware of His plans (or His will). Through prayer, He gives us assurance of our future, and He confirms and convinces us of His enduring love. Prayer is a nonnegotiable component of living a successful Christian life. How can you pray more effectively? Set aside time daily to talk to God and listen to God. In that quiet time, let the Holy Spirit comfort you, plead for you, groan for you, and work out God’s good purpose for your life. Begin today.

Pray: Dear Holy Spirit, thank You for praying for me when I don’t know how or what to pray. Draw me closer to You. Help me to bring all my cares to You rather than try to carry them on my own. Show me how to let You pray through me and for me. Give me the courage to make a daily appointment with You for the rest of my life—to make our time together a priority. Oh, how I need more and more of You Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 51: The Holy Spirit is Key to Living!

Read: Romans 8:9-25

Think: In Romans 8, Paul mentions the Holy Spirit 19 times! In today’s verses, Paul gives the reader a list of invaluable benefits or key reasons for being filled—or controlled—with the Holy Spirit beginning with Romans 8:11, “The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, he will give life to your mortal bodies by this same spirit living within you. Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do.” C.S. Lewis’ fictional tale, Screwtape Letters, brings this verse to life through its characters—an uncle who is a demon and his nephew who is a demon-in-training. Their goal is to do everything possible to entice their “assigned” human being to engage in sin! Paul is warning, begging, convincing, assuring, and describing to the readers (then and now) how the Holy Spirit is key to overcoming our sinful natures and living a victorious Christian life on earth. 

Act: Paul reminds us that the Holy Spirit is the holy person of God who is given explicitly to help the believer navigate his or her life on earth. After reading Romans 8:9-25 a second time, make a detailed list describing these benefits. Then personalize this list; make it specific to your life. Include a time (or times) when the Holy Spirit helped you to (1) overcome sin, (2) identify with Jesus, and (3) understand, more deeply, that you are a child of God.

Pray: Dear Jesus, thank you for reminding me how important Your Holy Spirit is to living my life on earth. Fill me up to overflowing with an immediate outpouring of Your Holy Spirit today. Call me to come to You. Daily guide me. Help me not to resist You. Give me more and more of Your Holy Spirit. I love You, Lord. I need You. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 50: What do you think about?

Read: Romans 7:14-8:8

Think: Today is Day 50 of 100 Days of Faith in Action. I imagine that you have truly grown to appreciate Paul’s passion, personality, and preaching through his Acts journeys and Romans writings. Today, in Romans 8:5-8, Paul talks about the tension within ones thought life. He writes, “ Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit. So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. That’s why those who are still under control of the sinful nature can never please God.” In these passages, Paul identifies where the big battle is fought—in our minds!

Act: Paul is very practical. He reveals the way to identify what is controlling your thoughts—whether they are more dominated by your sinful nature or by the Holy Spirit of God. If your thoughts consistently give you a sense of peace and lead to life, you are controlled by the Spirit of God. If you consistently battle in your mind with rebellious thoughts that are hostile to God, you are controlled by your sinful nature. Today, think about what triggers cause “sinful nature” thoughts to go off in your mind. Is it unrealistic expectations, selfishness, lack of sleep, overcommitment, lack of prayer and Bible reading, or something else? Identify the trigger and keep it at bay!

Pray: Dear Lord, help me to identify and admit exactly what triggers my selfish, sinful nature. Help me to protect and prepare my heart so that I am—daily—more and more full of your Holy Spirit and less and less willing to let my thoughts be dominated by things that hurt You and others. Give me courage today, dear Lord. Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 49: The Seduction of Sin

Read: Romans 7:1-13

Think: One of the earliest Christian authors was St. Augustine, Bishop of Hippo of Africa (354 to 430 AD). He became a Christian at the age of 30, after years of living in immorality and following after the popular philosophers of his era. His conversion to Christianity was significant and has resulted in Christian thinking and writing that, throughout history, has greatly influenced the faith of every generation. One of his main teachings related to sin (which Paul discusses at length in Romans 7:1-13). In St. Augustine’s book, Confessions, he tells of a time as a young man when he stole pears from a garden. His reason for stealing the pears? He wrote, “I picked them simply to become a thief.” The result of his sin? He continues, “The desire to steal was awakened simply by the prohibition of stealing.” As one translation of Romans 7 suggests, Paul describes the terrible power of sin saying, “Sin seduced me.” Paul, like St. Augustine, wants to make the reader aware, if he or she isn’t already aware, that sin is not passive. Sin is seductive and deceitful. 

Act: Paul appears to over-communicate about sin in the book of Romans. But he doesn’t talk about sin to demoralize or shame us. Paul, like St. Augustine, wants us to be aware of the devastation and power of sin. So rather than ignore or deny its power, Paul suggests that we think about sin as a seductive, powerful personae that lurks in the shadows to deceive and seduce. Take a moment now and personally consider sin, as Paul suggests, as a thief coming into your heart and mind to steal, kill, or destroy (John 10) your faith, your testimony, your progress, your sobriety, or an important relationship. Give this thief (or sin) a name (ex: jealousy, hate, gossip, pride, immorality, etc.) Journal about how you can protect your mind and guard your heart from this specific sin.

Pray: Dear Lord, I surely need your help to identify the sins that capture my eye and my heart. Cause me to call them by names, to identify they way they seduce me. Give me great courage today—and everyday—to turn my eyes and guard my heart from it/them. Forgive me, Lord.  Amen.

Be full of faith today!

DAY 48: Still a Slave?

Read: Romans 6:1-23

Think: Paul is giving very simple, but serious advice on how to be set free from sin. Here it is: Those who have been slaves to someone or something only need to exchange their master! In Romans 6:18-22, he says, “Now you are free from your slavery to sin, and you have become slaves to righteous living. Because of the weakness of your human nature, I am using the illustration of slavery to help you understand all this. Previously, you let yourselves be slaves to impurity and lawlessness, which led ever deeper into sin. Now you must give yourselves to be slaves to righteous living so that you will become holy. When you were slaves to sin, you were free from the obligation to do right. And what was the result? You are now ashamed of the things you used to do, things that end in eternal doom. But now you are free from the power of sin and have become slaves of God. Now you do those things that lead to holiness and result in eternal life.”

Act: As an addict, I know this experience well. When you are chained to something or someone (a substance or a person), you can’t stop thinking about them/it, your mind cannot focus on anyone or anything else. You are consumed with your cravings. You are held hostage by them—they control your emotions, your schedule, your expenditures…everything. Paul makes it simple. Give yourself over to God. Become a slave to righteous living. Chase after God like you chased after ungodly or immoral things and He will free you from the power of sin! Today, identify one thing to which you consider yourself a slave.

Pray: Lord, I admit that I am incapable of overcoming sin without You. I ask for Your power to work in me. Please give me freedom from ______________. I need You. Amen.

Be full of faith today!