W@W WRAP – Week 302

Choices!

Read:

Luke 10:38-42 (NKJV): “Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.”

Act:

Let us remember this week that our choices make a profound difference in our lives and the lives of others. God created us as physical beings, and He allocated time and space to each of us. God’s creation truly sets the scene for all of the choices that we make. Even though our circumstances may differ, there are universal choices that each of us face at some point in life, including:

Do we want to belong to Jesus? This choice determines our destiny here and forever. We can choose to depend on our own strength or to surrender our lives to the One who created us and gave us that power of choice. May we wholeheartedly choose God, and delight in loving and worshipping Him with our choices and our obedience.

Will we allow God’s Word to lead and direct our lives, or will we conform to the patterns and lies of this world? The quality and direction of our lives are outcomes of how we spend our time, whether we are working towards our life assignment, or just aimlessly falling around. Each one of us has a unique Kingdom assignment! Have you prioritised intentionally living out the life God predestined for you specifically? Are you acting in obedience to God’s call upon your life? May we long for a greater awareness of God’s plan for us and recognise our divine assignment, so that we can fulfil His purpose in the time that we have. As we read in Psalm 90:12 (NIV): “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.” May we be wise with our time and live on purpose to advance God’s Kingdom here on earth.

Will we prioritise spending time with God or will we waste our time on unimportant things? We can all relate to the epidemic of busyness. There is a difference between ‘busyness‘ and ‘productive, intentional work‘. We sometimes go through seasons and times of hard-work and serving. There are also seasons when Jesus invites us to be still and quietly sit at His feet – for that is where we find peace and rest for our souls. May we be intentional about spending time with our Lord, so that we can know Him deeply, and be filled with His guidance, goodness and strength, ready for the task at hand.

Will we remember God’s faithfulness and trust Him, or will we depend on our own abilities and strength? Remembering is not just a quick thought – it is an awareness which is followed by action. We have seen this when God remembers us, followed by an act of blessing, direction and restoration. Similarly, Jesus prompts us to remember Him and act accordingly – advancing His Kingdom based on the gifts we have received from Him. Jesus promises us that “He is with us always, to the very end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). We do not have to do anything out of our own strength and ability. Even though we sometimes forget, we have a constant, undeniable, desperate need for Jesus to help, guide and love us. What is keeping you from a 100% pursuit and need of Jesus? Are we lukewarm, self-centred, and self-sufficient; or are we willing to get off our own thrones and bow down, allowing Jesus to save us and help us with all of life’s decisions? May we follow Him with devoted hearts! May our biggest pursuit be more of Jesus! Then, and only then, will our choices be in alignment with His choices for our lives.

Pray:

Lord, thank You for opening our eyes. Thank You for showing us what’s important and what isn’t. Jesus, You did everything that was necessary for us to see You and then to have a relationship with You. We trust You. We trust Your process. It doesn’t matter what You take us through, we hold on to You. We love You. In Jesus’ name.

Lord, I just want to thank You for the gift of life, the life that we are so fortunate to live. Please forgive us if ever we take that for granted. I also want to thank You for this unique Kingdom assignment that You have given us. May we always live according to Your purpose. Forgive us if ever we go ahead of Your plan. I pray for all those who haven’t yet realised their divine purpose. Reveal Yourself and Your plan, so that we may complete our mission in the time that we have, which we know is so limited. Give us all a heart of discernment and let Your purpose prevail always. In Jesus’ name.

Father, I want to thank You today that every one of us has this desire to know You more intimately. We want to know You and to be used by You in a special way. My prayer is that You will come by Your Holy Spirit, and empower us afresh to go out and walk through the open doors that You have provided for us. Father thank You, that You have opened doors for each of us, and no one can shut them. Thank You that You promise us a future of hope. Your plan is to prosper us and not to harm us. But we want to spend time in Your presence. We want to know You.

Father, thank You for Your Son, who went to the cross and died for our sins. As You fill us with Your Holy Spirit, may we remember everything that You’ve done for us and everything that You’ve taught us. Lord, I just ask that we put these reflections into action. This may be in loving those around us, confronting our own sin, recognising unforgiveness in our lives, or anything like that Lord. As we remember You and everything that You have done for us and as we consider everything that You’re going to do, may we put our learnings into action, according to the love that You have shown us. We ask all of this in Jesus’ name.

Father, do we need You? All of us know that the answer to that question is, ‘yes we desperately need You.’ Theologically and doctrinally, we know that the answer is, ‘yes, of course, I need Jesus!’ But Lord I’m afraid that sometimes we live our lives as if that is not true. We live as if what we need is a better house, a better car, more money, a more secure pay cheque; or even more Bible reading or religious activity. In fact, what we really need is You, Jesus – to come and express Yourself and Your life in and through our lives. Lord, please make us aware of our desperate need of You. Please continue to be patient with us as we grow together to become more like Jesus. We pray this in Your precious name. Amen.