4-13-2007


	LINKS DAILY DEVOTIONAL


	A Bible study for today’s devotion is available for quick printout as a pdf file. Click here.

SIMULTANEITY

"...righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe." (Romans 3:22, NIV)

Have you ever considered how many things are going on at once in your golf swing? When you’re not hitting it well, I bet you have! All those mechanical bits and pieces—some with the arms, some with the legs, some with the hands, some with the feet, some with the hips, some with the head, oh dear!—sure add up when they're not working together.

Your calendar might not look too different. A meeting over here, a dinner over there, a car repair on Monday, a haircut on Tuesday, a church group in there, a tee time, your daughter's recital, your son's parent-teacher meeting. Suddenly, that oh dear! is all over the place.

So where is the balance supposed to come from?

Well, every golf professional can tell you that balance comes from a solid foundation, spread feet beneath an athletic posture. And every life coach can tell you that balance comes from pre-organizing your day to include the rest and exercise you need to sustain that rapid-fire schedule.

In both of these approaches, we see elements of a disciple's walk in Christ.

First, we must have the right foundation in our lives. This is Christ Himself, the One whose life was lived in service of others. Attending to such an outward perspective will put us before Him first and before others second—the very order of the two great commandments.

Second, we must use the spiritual disciplines as tools of balance in our lives. Prayer, meditation and solitude provide essential spiritual respite. Fasting exercises the spirit above the flesh, while feasting reminds us that celebration of our God is also meant to be a high priority.

In our earthly lives, we will often be required to juggle several balls simultaneously. We can do this in our own strength until we drop them one by one; or we can, in faith, set our feet on Christ's foundation and attain His easy yoke of righteousness through what He has already done.

Jeff Hopper

April 13, 2007

Receive the Devotional by email