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Living on Purpose
.
James
Banks
Our
Daily Bread
“Whatever
you do, do it all for the glory of God.” - 1 Corinthians 10:31
“We’re
going on vacation!” my wife enthusiastically told our three-year-old grandson
Austin as we pulled out of the driveway on the first leg of our trip.
Little
Austin looked at her thoughtfully and responded, “I’m not going on vacation.
I’m going on a mission!”
We’re
not sure where our grandson picked up the concept of going “on a mission,”
but his comment gave me something to ponder as we drove to the airport:
As I
leave on this vacation and take a break for a few days, am I keeping in mind
that I’m still “on a mission” to live each moment with and for God?
Am I
remembering to serve Him in everything I do?
The apostle
Paul encouraged the believers living in Rome, the capital city of the Roman
Empire, to “never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor,
serving the Lord” (Romans 12:11).
His
point was that our life in Jesus is meant to be lived intentionally and
with enthusiasm.
Even
the most mundane moments gain new meaning as we look expectantly to God and
live for His purposes.
As we
settled into our seats on the plane, I prayed, “Lord, I’m yours. Whatever
you have for me to do on this trip, please help me not to miss it.”
Every
day is a mission of eternal significance with Him!
Have
you ever been on a mission? How can you make life all about God?
Please
give me grace to live for You, Jesus, so that I may one day hear You say, “Well
done, good and faithful servant!” (Matthew 25:23).
INSIGHT
Romans 12:9–21 is
referred to as a hortatory section, meaning “to exhort” or to strongly
encourage an action.
This
passage contains encouragement to act in specific ways and contains a variety
of seemingly random instructions consisting of internal attitudes and external
activities.
Internal
attitudes sometimes require external expression; however,
external actions must have an external expression.
Internal
attitudes include hating evil, being joyful in hope and patient in affliction,
and not being proud.
External
actions express themselves in being devoted in love, honoring others, having
spiritual fervor (serving), and being faithful in prayer, sharing, and
hospitality.
We’re
exhorted to bless the persecutor, live at peace, and not take revenge on our
enemies.
Read: Romans 12:9–21
(NIV) | Bible in a Year: Psalms 84–86; Romans 12
Dr.
James Banks and his wife have two adult children and live in Durham,
North Carolina, where he is the pastor of Peace Church. He is the author
of The Lost Art of Praying Together, Praying the Prayers of the Bible, Prayers
for Prodigals, and Prayers for Your Children. Find books
by James Banks
Our
Daily Bread. In 1938, the ministry started with a
radio program called Detroit Bible Class. Since then, our audience has grown
from a small group of dedicated radio listeners to millions of people around
the world who use our Bible-based resources.Over the years our name has changed
to better reflect the variety of resources we offer. Today, we realize that
most people recognize who we are by the well-loved devotional Our Daily
Bread. So we changed our name to Our Daily Bread Ministries to more clearly
communicate who we are. Although our name has changed, our focus remains the
same: reaching out to people all around the world with the message of God’s
love.We’re
a non-denominational, non-profit organization with staff and volunteers in over
37 offices working together to distribute more than 60 million resources in 150
countries. Regardless of whether it’s a radio or television broadcast, DVD,
podcast, book, mobile app, or website, we provide materials to help people grow
in their relationship with God.https://ourdailybread.ca/living-on-purpose/
