Scripture of the week and prayers.

My Scripture of the week this week is: "But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; Avoid such men as these." 2 Tim 3:1-5 (I stole the image from the Resurgence)


I have been wrestling with what the Christian life looks like. I evaluate and re-evaluate this in my own life frequently, because I feel I should be bearing the fruit the Bible says I should be bearing as a follower of Christ. And the bottom line for me is that, even as a pastor, sometimes I don't feel like I am doing as well as maybe I should be. I don't want to be one of these people who has this "form of godliness" but denies its power. I want the power of God at work in my life to produce good fruit always and often because I am close to him, because I am obedient to him, because I don't do the things listed in the Scripture above. 


My prayer today, for this week, is that I wouldn't be one of these people. That I would be a person who is the antithesis of the things on that list. And God, I pray that you will use any means necessary to convict me when I step out of line, or when I fall into one of these things. God, make me a person after your own heart; make me a better pastor, a better husband, a better son, a better brother, a better person - not for my glory but for yours. God you are everything good in the world and no (true) good comes apart from you. I draw close to you and ask you to draw near to me, too. I love you. Amen.