Week Nineteen-Day Three: End of Day

This morning’s reading is a reminder to us of the need and the challenge to always do what is right – consistently and regardless of the response of others. It’s hard enough to do what is right, don’t you think? But then when we try to do or say what is right, I mean really right, and we have the right motivation … okay, if under those circumstances we get misunderstood or accused of doing wrong, or if we’re made to suffer in some way … well, things can get ugly, can’t they?

We deserve better, right? If we’re doing the right thing … well, the least that others can do is to respect us. But what if they mistreat us? What if “we suffer for doing what is right”?

This is the real test of our character it seems! Can we continue to do the right thing even if suffering comes on us for doing so?

Here’s my problem with what Peter has taught us: he’s messed up my spiritual math. My spiritual math works like this: I do my best to do what is right and God rewards me and my life runs like I want it to. This just makes sense. If I were running the universe I think I would make this like the moral law of gravity. “Do good and good will come.”

But God never made us this promise. Here’s gospel math: I don’t do good so that … I do good because! In other words, I don’t do good so that I will get what I want. This is legal goodness. This is what the Pharisees believed. But gospel goodness says that I do good because I now can do good. There is a new life and a new Spirit living in me. I have access to the very life of God because Christ has died for me and has come to life again. The life of God flows through me out to the world and because of this life I can do good. What a privilege! I do good because I can!

1.    Think through your day today.  Was God stirring in some way?  As you look back, do you see His fingerprints in anything
       around  you?
2.    End your day by praying: “Guide us waking and guard us sleeping that awake we may watch with Christ and asleep we may
       rest in peace.”
3.    Lights out!