Today’s scripture: Gal 2:15-21 (NRSV) (The Message) (KJV) What might God be saying to me?
My thoughts (Sue Robinson):
At LifeJourney, we have a wonderful tradition of dining out with each other. We have had dinners in our fellowship hall, wedding receptions, potlucks, oasis dinners, and many times of just going out with friends after church. Each time we meet, we always pray before our meal. I was not in the habit of doing that as a child because we never had grace at mealtime. But I love the thankfulness that praying for our food brings. And I try to always do that now in my private meal times.
But, when eating with non-Christians, I found it hard to take a few minutes to pray silently. What would these people think? Shouldn’t I just eat and not make a scene? (Okay, so praying silently is not exactly a scene, but in my mind it was.)
This is just what Paul was warning about. We either believe something or we don’t. We either stand up for our beliefs or we don’t. We can’t have it both ways. It is not authentic to have different standards with different groups. No one can see or respect the REAL us if they don’t know the real us.
Prayer for the day: Lord, help us to be straightforward in our behavior so others can see You shining through. Amen.
We encourage you to include a time of prayer with this reading. If you need a place to get started, consider the suggestions on the How to Pray page.