Remember

I have SO much catching up to do on this blog.  So much that, quite honestly, it might never get done.  But, if I keep avoiding creating a new entry because there's so much from which I have to choose, my last entry will truly become "my last entry".  In order to prime the pump, I'm posting my daily devotional from today, because it really hits home for me.  I try to keep God at the center of all that I do, but then the to-do lists keep getting longer, and I find myself focusing on quantity of tasks checked off instead of quality of how and for Whom they are done.  I hope you enjoy this devotional as much as I do; and yes, now that the big "crush" is over, I think I'll be back very soon!

REMEMBER

December 17, 2008

Mark 1:1-8: It is written in Isaiah the prophet: "I will send my messenger ahead of you, who will prepare your way" --"a voice of one calling in the desert, " 'Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.' " 
 
A friend pointed out that yesterday, where I thought I had written of going to visit family "for Christmas," I had written instead that I was going to visit "for Christ."  I need to pay attention to the message in that particular slip. With final exams and holiday preparations, I seem to have forgotten to focus on Christ instead of on Christmas.

 

Most activities we get caught up in this time of year are grounded, at least initially, in our love of other people, a gift given to us by God through Christ. Somehow, though, in all the pressure, I get more focused on tasks and less focused on God. Certainly such busy-ness does not fit the bill of "preparing the way for the Lord."

 

Because of the signal sent to me yesterday in my own typographical error, I will stop today to listen. I will remember to tell people in my life that I love them. I will remember that the people in the stores and offices I visit are not pieces of the vast machinery, but are people loved by God, people to be respected and loved by me.

 

Today I will remember that God must live at the core of everything we do in this season--and in every season--of the year. Today I will remember.

 

Today I will prepare the way of the Lord.

 

 
Psalm 119: 49-72; Isaiah 9:8-17; 2 Peter 2:1-10 
© 2008 by Carol Mead. This material is copyrighted, but you may forward it in its entirety to others. To subscribe, visit the website at www.holyordinary.com