Sunday August 11th, 2019 9th Sunday after Pentecost Luke 12:32-40
"You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour." (verse 40)
This week of scripture readings has challenged me. I continually found myself attempting to reconcile encouragement to know we are loved and accepted with strong counsel to constantly strive toward God’s higher standards.
God accepts that we are works in progress, and we must cultivate the patience to do the same. Have you ever noticed how we can be much harder on ourselves than we are on anyone else? But there is a paradox, there’s no getting around it: we accept ourselves where we are in this moment, as God does, but we also keep taking steps forward to become more like Jesus with each passing day.
The reading for today reminds us that things in God’s plan will happen on God’s timetable, not ours, and they will happen when we least expect them. So, it’s very important that we keep on the watch. Yet, as we consider the week of readings, we know that being watchful doesn’t mean being worried. Striving to be better people day-by-day doesn’t mean being bogged down in the futile search for perfection.
Dear Lord, you accept us as we are, and you help us become all we need to be. We praise your wonderful, complex nature. Amen. — DLG
Contributed by Ready and waiting
This week of scripture readings has challenged me. I continually found myself attempting to reconcile encouragement to know we are loved and accepted with strong counsel to constantly strive toward God's higher standards.
God accepts that we are works in progress, and we must cultivate the patience to do the same. Have you ever noticed how we can be much harder on ourselves than we are on anyone else? But there is a paradox, there's no getting around it: we accept ourselves where we are in this moment, as God does, but we also keep taking steps forward to become more like Jesus with each passing day.
The reading for today reminds us that things in God's plan will happen on God's timetable, not ours, and they will happen when we least expect them. So, it's very important that we keep on the watch. Yet, as we consider the week of readings, we know that being watchful doesn't mean being worried. Striving to be better people day-by-day doesn't mean being bogged down in the futile search for perfection.
