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Closing the Gap 2.9.18

By February 9, 2018Daily Devotional

Week 5 Day 5

Pray:

Ask God to reorient you to Himself. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Be still and reflect on Jesus and His sacrifice for you. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to God’s Word. Pray for others in your life that they, too, would know and love God today.

Read:

Hebrews 11:7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. 8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God.

Reflect:

Abraham lived as a migrant in the land of promise. He didn’t get to spend his life in cities like you do.  He didn’t have ready access to food or grocery stores.  He didn’t have central heat and air. He spent a lot of time being hot and cold.  He didn’t travel paved highways.  He didn’t have access to medical care.  No malls, no movies, no recorded music.  His life was very, very basic.  He was a “prince” among his people, but if you were to suddenly find yourself living his life, you would likely consider your life very, very difficult.   But in at least one important way Abraham had a distinct advantage over you.  He was less able to be distracted.  He had no illusion that he was living in a “heaven on earth.”  You may not think your life is a heaven on earth either, but you certainly have many opportunities to be distracted from eternity.  The cities we live in offer constant mental and physical stimulation.  We need never experience silence if we choose not to.  We do not need to look forward to a city whose architect and builder is God because our cities offer so much.  There is so much to do, eat, see, experience…it takes a death bed for most people to see that their “city” did not have foundations.  The cities we inhabit and all the things that divert our attention from eternity are built without foundations.  Of course, they have physical footings: tall buildings have concrete deep underground, often going all the way to bedrock.  But in eternal terms, they still lack a foundation.  They are not built to last.  Our city of final destination is built by God to last.  It cannot be shaken or taken by the elements of war or entropy.  Eye has not seen, ear has not heard, mind cannot conceive what God has prepared for those who love him.  Do not wait for a deathbed (even if you have the opportunity to die on a bed as many do not) to see this. Tonight, as you lay in your “life bed” look forward to the City of God, where he is the builder, the foundation, and the main attraction.  Think of all that is wonderful in this life, and then consider that what is to come far surpasses all of it.  No human mind can even conceive of the “city” the dwelling place God has prepared for his children.  You can close the gap on your faith by learning to choose carefully what you look forward to.  Look forward to the city designed and inhabited by God; learn day-by-day to set your hopes there.

Pray:

(Personalize this prayer today; make it specific to the circumstances that face you.)

Ask God to lead you through His Spirit as you go through your day. Ask Him to bring to mind the truth of the gospel and its implications for what you will encounter today. Tell Him “Yes” to His will and ask Him for His power and protection to live this “yes.” Ask God to create and reveal opportunities to proclaim the good news today.

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