2021 Daily Devotion - Day 357

-
“Discipleship is the process of becoming who Jesus would be if He were you.” ― Dallas Willard

This is a powerful definition of discipleship. Dallas Willard calls it a “process of becoming”, which is exactly what happened to the first disciples of Jesus. From the moment Jesus called them to follow Him, a “process of becoming” was launched.

While we never truly arrive, being a disciple of Jesus must mean we change and grow to be more like Jesus. As we examine the lives of all of the first disciples, we see significant growth in their outlook, faith and service.

Lent is a good time to stop and seriously examine our own spiritual growth. Take a moment and write down on paper how you are different as a Christ follower today compared to where you were ten or twenty years ago. If there is no significant growth, then perhaps the time has arrived to take the steps to grow. Read your Bible and pray daily. Join a small group or serve somewhere in the church. Certainly, making the commitment to go on a Cursillo Weekend would supercharge your growth as a disciple of Jesus.

1 John 2:6 RSV
He who says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.

Pray with me:
Heavenly Father, help us to enter into this “process of becoming”. For too long, we have been satisfied with where we are spiritually. But You love us too much to leave us where we are. Empower us to take new steps in spiritual growth. 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

2021 Daily Devotion - Day 369

-
Palm Sunday Matthew 21:1-11NRSV When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, ‘The Lord needs them.’ And he will send them immediately.” This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, “Tell the daughter of Zion, look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes i...
More »

2020 Daily Devotion - Day 81

-
John 15:15 NRS I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. From an article on some of the great hymns of the church, we learn about the hymn, “What a Friend we have in Jesus”:   In 1844 a young Irishman, Joseph Scriven, had completed his college education and returned home to marry his sweetheart. As he was traveling to meet her on the day before the planned wedding, he came upon a horrible scene—his beautiful fiancée tragically lying under the water in a creek bed after falling off her horse. Later, Scriven moved to Canada and eventually fell in love again, only to experience devastation once more when she became ill and died just weeks before their marriage. For the second time, this humble Christian felt the loss of the woman he loved. The following year, he wrote a poem to his mother in Ireland that desc...
More »

2020 Daily Devotion - Day 120

-
"An optimist may see a light where there is none, but why must the pessimist always run to blow it out?" Many people often look at the negative side of life. President Reagan used to say that when people do this, it’s as if when you “give them a silver lining, they will find a cloud”. Of course, he was using the old saying “in every cloud, there is a silver lining” and reversing it to make a point. It is very important to be a “glass half full” kind of person. Looking for and expecting good things helps us to stay hope-filled. So, on this new day, be a positive person. Look for the good in everything. Look for hope in everything. Refuse to let yourselves dwell on the negative. Speak to others in inspirational ways, and you will find that your days will be better. Ephesians 4:29 ESV Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. Pray with Me: Heavenly Father, so many peop...
More »