2021 Daily Devotion - Day 345

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Perhaps you have heard the joke about the man who was asked by a pastor if he knew about the dangers of ignorance and indifference. He responded by saying, “I don’t know, and I don’t care.”

Unfortunately, there are many people who actually live this out. It is one of the reasons people do not grow in their faith and get stuck in religion. They know the routine and the drill, yet they haven’t given any thought to what it all really means. They never study their Bibles and are content to have limited understanding.

This attitude is lived out when all we do as religious people is sit in the pew and function as spectators. I remember a barber I had once. When I mentioned the plight of the homeless, he said, “I really don’t care.” I was stunned, but this is how many people think and live. Many in the church simply go through the motions, and that is where it all ends. This is not something new. The Lord Jesus confronted the same problem with the religious leaders of His day.

Quoting from Isaiah 29:13 He said:

Matthew 15:8-9
“These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men."

Lent is a season where we are meant to do some self-examination. It might be good to ask ourselves if we are just mindlessly living the Christian faith. Are we growing? Is our Bible being opened more? Have our conversations with God become more real and regular? Am I just going through the rituals, or am I growing in a personal relationship with Him? Do I hear His call to serve a broken and hurting world, or am I content to just not care? Allow Lent to be a time of growth.

Pray with me:
Heavenly Father, help us to ask ourselves the tough questions. Lent is Your calling us to take new steps and grow in our relationship with You. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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