2021 Daily Devotion - Day 306

-
Throughout my life, I have witnessed many expressions of faith and religion. I have worshiped on occasion in a variety of churches. From Presbyterian to Assemblies of God, I have seen their services. When I was in middle school, I attended the bar mitzvah of some of my friends at their Jewish synagogue. I have seen people healed of brain tumors and other challenging illnesses. I have seen people “slain in the spirit” which is when they pass out and fall backwards to the floor. I have heard people speak in tongues and watched others prophesy. I was brought up a Lutheran and, am now an ordained Lutheran pastor of many years. Torild and I have traveled to many places in the world, learning more about issues of faith.

The reason I bring all this up is because over the last several years, I have been thinking about the deepest spiritual experiences someone can have. Is it speaking in tongues? Is it meditative prayer? After faith in Jesus Christ as Savior, I believe the deepest experience is learning to “die to self”. This is so difficult to do, because in our broken nature, we are prone to want to live for ourselves. Think of all the phrases we have in our culture: “to thine own self be true” or “charity begins at home”.

This concept of dying to ourselves is very comprehensive. We resist God being in charge of our lives because we want to be, and when we “die to self” we are allowing Him to take control. We want power and control. Many want to be the center of attention. Others want to dominate the lives of others. Some want to amass a fortune so they can live in extreme wealth. When we die to self, we are resisting these tendencies and coming into one of the most rewarding spiritual experiences. Dying to ourselves means the needs of others become our concern. So, we might work to help feed hungry people or become involved in helping the homeless. The challenges of people struggling with mental health issues might become our concern. On and on the list goes. Dying to self means we want to make sure others are okay and getting the help they need. We add the needs of others to the list of our concerns and try to take actions to help.

Matthew 16:24 ESV
Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.”

Pray with me:
Heavenly Father, there is an entire world filled with pain, and most people don’t care. So many only care for themselves, and if they are alright, then nothing else matters. This is such a shallow way to live. Set us free from this kind of selfish existence. Help us to die to ourselves and take up our cross and follow Jesus on the road of serving others. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Yours because of Him,
Pastor John R. Steward
Senior Pastor
Mount of Olives Church
Tags:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2020 Daily Devotion - Day 268

-
Father Alfred Delp was a prisoner of the Nazis during World War II. He was charged with treason for true Christian preaching. From his jail cell, he wrote about the meaning of Advent, the coming of Christ: "Advent is a time for rousing. Human beings are shaken to the very depths, so that they may wake up to the truth of themselves. The primary condition for a fruitful and rewarding Advent is renunciation, surrender ... a shattering awakening; that is the necessary preliminary. Life begins only when the whole framework is shaken." (From Russell Brownworth's Sermon "When You Walk in a Dream") Too often, the only things that shake us to the core are the bad news of a health condition, a death of a loved one or some other tremendous setback. Wouldn’t it be better to be shaken to the foundation of our beings by the tools of God? Then we would be better equipped to face the challenges of this life. Too often, we only have a casual relationship with God. When the tough
More »

2021 Daily Devotion - Day 340

-
Many years ago, we decided we needed a dog in the house. After all, we had a cat our son named “Sweat Pea”. We heard about a breeder who had a recently returned dog, because the new owner couldn’t keep the dog where she lived. We also learned the dog would be free. So, we went to visit the breeder and the little Dachshund. Her name was Fraulein von Munchkin. The breeder said she was one of the original munchkins. So, we took her home and had some fun times with “Munchie”. Some people at church were even able to meet her a few times. One of the things I will always remember is how worked up the dog got if anyone came to our front door. She would almost loose her mind with barking and the like. You could always count on Munchie to become hyper-excited when someone came knocking. There were times when I knew someone, like the plumber, would be coming over to the house at 2:00pm, and Munchie would be lying in her bed in my home office. I would look at her sleeping; knowing in a short time
More »

2021 Daily Devotion - Day 458

-
When Ken retired, I planned a trip around the U.S. which would take us through 30 states in a two month period. One of the things we were determined to do was to find a worship service each Sunday. We were interested in finding fellowship with other believers in different parts of the country. We weren’t interested in sticking to one denomination, and so we witnessed a variety of worship experiences. We found churches where Christ was exalted, and the people were warm and welcoming. We also found churches which felt more like a social gathering, and we were “crashing the party”. A church in Sandusky, Ohio, exalted its auspicious history and architecture as only a handful of congregants gathered in this great cathedral. Our most memorable experience came in a small Texas town where the Gospel was preached, and the people embraced us as part of their family. During the pandemic of 2020, it has been difficult to be in isolation on Sundays. While we are grateful for the streaming worship
More »