Pastor Radovan and me
Scripture, in addition to prayer, is another spiritual discipline that has been a hallmark of this ministry month in Serbia. As I mentioned in the previous post, we begin each morning with our ministry host, Pastor Radovan, in a devotional time. Each morning we rotate the responsibility of being the one to come prepared with a passage of scripture to read and discuss with the group. It was my turn again this morning and I chose 2 Peter, chapter one. I love many parts of this chapter, but verses 5-7 are particularly powerful. Peter says to the believers: “In view of all this [that God has given us everything we need to live a godly life including promises that enable us to share in his divine nature] make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.” These are the fruit of our faith…one building on the other…all leading to love.
Sometimes though, we don’t know how to love. Perhaps this passage from 2 Peter gives us a rubric! First, we evaluate whether we are practicing moral excellence in all the areas of our life, then, we pray for knowledge and wisdom (Proverbs 2). We discipline ourselves with self-control (1 Peter 1:13), which allows us to wait patiently when God tells us to put on our “patient hat” as I like to call it (James 5:8). We train ourselves in godliness (1 Timothy 4:8), from which, among other things, flows the practice of brotherly affection (1 Peter 3:8)…and finally, with all these areas under control (or at least, being actively strived for through the strength we have in Christ), we are free to love.
I want to be someone who lives a godly life, someone who takes seriously the holiness of our God and the subsequent call on my life, someone who changes the atmosphere simply because the grace and love of God are overflowing from my heart. I have been excited to see what God would do in me this month as I walk in a season of consistent, corporate scripture study and prayer…and I think I’m beginning to feel what he is doing. I am beginning to grow more in love with God. I read scripture and it affects me in an increasingly intimate way. I want more of it. I pray every day for things and people that are dear to my heart and I know that God hears me.
This month my team has taken on the challenge of memorizing scripture each week. It is certainly a discipline, but what better way to respond to God’s promises and strive towards love than to put his life-giving Word in my mind and heart.
“But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus – the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.” ~ Acts 20:24
