Scripture Passage that caught my attention today: 1 Peter 1:13 Therefore prepare your minds for action; discipline yourselves; set all your hope on the grace that Jesus Christ will bring you when he is revealed.
Observation: This verse is a great combination of personal responsibility in relation to grace.
Application: I woke up early today. I wanted to sleep considerably longer since I went to bed late, but my mind was buzzing—not with worry, but with an earnestness to tie-up some administrational loose ends (personal and professional) and make a plan for a productive day. I was, before I even got to my devotional time, preparing my “mind for action” and attempting to ‘discipline’ myself.
Preparing for action and practicing self-discipline are well and good; I need more and more of both! Nevertheless, they have their own limits. For the author of First Peter, grace is never far away and, in fact, is the condition under which self discipline and plans for action have any lasting value. Verses 3-9, the very introduction to the book after the greeting, takes great pains to remind the reader that God is the one who is blessed and God is the one who provides and God is the one in whom we are to trust. Yes, we are to prepare our minds for action and discipline ourselves, but only in relation to the incredible gift of grace that has been given to us and continues to be given to us.
It is true that I can plan to squander the day (by not planning and not having any discipline) or plan to make efficient use of the day (by planning and practicing discipline). But it is also true that, no matter how meticulous my plans and no matter how diligent my implementation, circumstances beyond my control can change the course of the day, for better or for worse, in a heartbeat.
I have influence over my day (as if I owned it!), but not total control. Why? Because this day is ultimately God’s day and not my own. God has provided it and I get to experience it. I have some idea what that experience might be like, and some plans for how to perhaps make the most of it, but surprises are quite likely to come as well. And that may well be as it should be…it might even be the grace of Jesus Christ being revealed.
Prayer: Lord, although a little more sleep would have been nice, thanks for the good start to the gift of this day. In Jesus’ name. Amen.
(Readings today included: Isaiah 36-37, Psalm 76, and 1 Peter 1)
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