Friday March 20, 2020

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ.

Ephesians 5:1-2a (NLT)

Last night I couldn’t sleep. I found out that the governor of my state was forcing all non-essential businesses to close, and it got to me.

• What does this mean for our town, state, and nation?
• What will this do for members of my congregation?
• Will people that I know be forced to go without pay for an undetermined amount of time?
• What am I going to do if bills keep coming, but my pay doesn’t?

To worry is a natural human response to stress, but worrying can also be a pointless exercise. How much would I be able to do, laying in bed, in order to address any of the concerns on my minds?

The answer is that I wouldn’t be able to do anything but pray.

But why is prayer often option 2, and worry is option 1?

Because when we are stressed, we want to take control even when its almost impossible to control our situation right then and there. But what is option 1 to stress became seeking God’s help through prayer?

If we are to imitate God, then we have a clear example from Jesus as to how we are to respond to life’s pressure’s and worries – Prayer and Love.

Multiple times throughout Christ’s ministry on earth, He excused himself from the group and went off into nature to pray. Some of these times were in the middle of people demanding so much from him that He and his disciples were chased down from place to place. But still, Jesus excused himself to pray.

Why?

Because praying focused Him in his love towards His Father, and prayer grounded him and gave him the energy that He needed to love others well, even when he was stressed or worried.

We may be worried about things now, but do we turn to prayer first in order to love God, ourselves, and others despite our worries and fears?

Please look for Lesson 5 on Monday