This morning I was reading a devotion directed towards moms, but as I read the words it seemed to be to address all of us as disciples of Jesus Christ. The below quote is from Proverbs 31 ministries and where you see the word motherhood, I would replace it with "being a disciple of Jesus Christ".

"Motherhood is saying no to the clanking cadence of selfishness and yes to the quiet rhythms of love. It's relinquishing pride and persisting in prayer, surrendering greed and growing in grace... Quite simply, motherhood is a daily decision to paint the ordinary moments of our days with the extraordinary love of Christ. And this kind of love may not resemble a bouquet of golden giggles or blossoms of bright pink hugs. It may look more like a batch of brown blooms tucked in a shoebox. Or like our Savior hanging from a rugged cross." (Alicia Bruxvoort)

I was reminded of this scripture from 1 John:
"This is how we've come to understand and experience love: Christ sacrificed his life for us. This is why we ought to live sacrificially for our fellow believers, and not just be out for ourselves." (1 John 3:16)

So as you go through your day and your week, how can you "say no to selfishness and yes to love"?

How will you "relinquish pride and persist in prayer"? How can you surrender "greed and grow in grace"?

I think these are some tough questions to tackle and involve a daily decision to live differently than many of the messages we hear/see in our media and culture around us. Love is not always a perfect picture, but love is a perfect sacrifice. Christ set an example for us and calls us to live a life of love, prayer, and grace.

Prayer for Today

Gracious God, Help us to be imitators of your love in what we say and do. In Christ's Name, Amen.