Silence and Stillness before God (2 minutes)
Rest in the knowledge that Gods will for you is so much greater than your own. Reflect on the ways He has guided your path throughout your life. Thank Him and give Him praise.
Scripture Reading
The next day, the news that Jesus was on the way to Jerusalem swept through the city. A large crowd of Passover visitors took palm branches and went down the road to meet him. They shouted,“Praise God! Blessings on the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hail to the King of Israel!” Jesus found a young donkey and rode on it, fulfilling the prophecy that said: “Don’t be afraid, people of Jerusalem.Look, your King is coming,riding on a donkey’s colt.” His disciples didn’t understand at the time that this was a fulfillment of prophecy. But after Jesus entered into his glory, they remembered what had happened and realized that these things had been written about him. Many in the crowd had seen Jesus call Lazarus from the tomb, raising him from the dead, and they were telling othersabout it. That was the reason so many went out to meet him—because they had heard about this miraculous sign. Then the Pharisees said to each other, “There’s nothing we can do. Look, everyone has gone after him!”
Devotional
“Christian spirituality, the contemplative life, is not about us. It is about God. The
greatest weakness of American spirituality is that it is all about us: fulfilling our potential, getting the blessing of God, expanding our influence, finding our gifts, getting a handle on principles by which we can get an edge over the competition. The more there is of us, the less there is of God.” – Eugene Peterson
We sing the songs that say, “more of you God, less of me” but do we really mean it or are they just pretty words with a catchy tune? The bible says we hold the power of life and death in our tongue, do we really get that? Really? Living in an age of “insatiable narcissism” is a hard place for Christians to be. It goes directly against what the Bible teaches us to do in the upside-down kingdom principals that Jesus teaches us to live by. But even the disciples struggled with not understanding these principals, we see this over and over again in scripture and especially leading up to the days of his crucifixion. “Jesus, who commands the winds and waves, allows himself to be arrested. Jesus, who beats the brightest Pharisees and Sadducees, refuses to defend Himself when falsely
accused. Jesus, who raised others from the dead, chooses not to save Himself.” Instead of thinking of Himself, Jesus repeatedly honours His Father and says, “Not my will but Yours be done” when it comes to His life. He submits Himself to His Father and walks through the process of teaching us how to lay our own lives down. Jesus lived a life of no regret. He recognized that His life on earth was short, a mere spec in the Fathers timeline of forever. Jesus example to surrender his own will and to choose obedience to the Father is critical in the way we can relate to His humanity bowing to the Father. In our world surrender and submission are seen as negative words, but here we see the absolute awe and wonder of saying Yes to God. Like Jesus I do not want to live a life of regret, and I don’t think you do either, so how do we put this into action in our own lives? How do we fast regret? Well, it starts with a choice. We choose to fast regret by choosing “not to feed it. Do not give it space. Let it go: God’s mercies are ‘new every morning’ (Lamentations 3:23). And meditate on Jesus’ glorious promise from Revelation 21:5 ‘I am making everything new!’
Questions to Consider
What is an example of a way that you can consciously submit your will to Gods will in your life? Am I willing to really give my regret(s) to God and not take them back? Ask yourself, when the temptation to fall back on old habits of living in regret comes knocking on my door, “what will I do?” This is a great opportunity to make an action plan. When you know your plan you will not be taken by surprise and give in when the temptation to revert to old ways comes knocking. This is a great tactic to live a victorious life in Christ.
Prayer
Lord, thank you for giving us Jesus as an example of how to live the way that you want us to live. Thank you that Your Will for my life is far better than anything that I could come up with on my own. Thank you that I can trust you completely in every area of my life. Thank you that Jesus came to give us life and life abundantly, so I do not have to live my life in regret. Thank you that You have overcome and made me an overcomer too! I praise you Jesus and honor you! In Jesus Name, Amen.
Conclude with Silence (2 minutes)
The 40 days of decrease blogs have been inspired by the book “40 Days of Decrease” by Alicia Britt Chole.
Expressions from Summerside Community Church 