‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭11‬-‭12‬ ‭NIV — Dear friends, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from sinful desires, which wage war against your soul. Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.‬‬

Often to the human eye, our good deeds go unseen. Unfortunately, our sinful nature and mistakes tend to make more of a lasting impression on those around us. Satan would love for us to get stuck in our sins and keep our good deeds to ourselves. Thankfully through the strength of God, when we share in good deeds and show Him praises, we can trample our enemy, Satan. 

We can thank God this day by joining together and proclaiming His name in unity as the Psalmist writes in ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭105‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. 

Will you make Him known among the nations? Water Walkers is one way we can share God’s word together one blog post, one story, one photo at a time.

Let’s pray. Dear God, I desire to give You praises so all who know me, see You. Help me to rise above the enemy’s schemes and share good deeds. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.
Worship with “Christ Be Magnified” by Cody Carnes.

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭NIV — But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.‬‬

Lent is a time of fasting, prayer, and reflection as we journey to the cross. This year I have made the choice to give up my time by reflecting daily on five gratitudes. On Water Walkers, we often share about writing daily gratitudes, but it is a habit that I am not always consistent with. I’ve noticed that I am at my weakest when I am not cultivating a heart of gratitude.

Lent can be a dark time as it represents Jesus’ journey to the cross. Writing gratitudes can be a way to shine God’s wonderful light on the joys we get to experience on this side of the cross. We can share that joy with others when we speak of His wonderful deeds as the Psalmist writes in Psalms‬ ‭9‬:‭1‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — I  will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.

Let’s pray. Dear God, I am looking forward to sharing my gratitudes with You. Thank You for the joy I can experience on this side of the cross. I desire to draw closer to You during this time of Lent. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭6‬-‭8‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — For in Scripture it says: “‘See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.’ Now to you who believe, this stone is precious. But to those who do not believe, ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone,’ and, ‘A stone that causes people to stumble and a rock that makes them fall.’” They stumble because they disobey the message—which is also what they were destined for.

A cornerstone is a strong corner piece to the foundational structure of buildings. Jesus, the cornerstone of our faith is the strength of our spiritual houses. Trust doesn’t always come easy but it is essential to our relationship with others. It is however easy to stumble as we are destined with our human nature. It is those stumbling blocks that Satan would like to use to tear us down. If we are open and willing God builds us up by using our stumbling blocks to cultivate transparency and vulnerability in our relationships. 

Allow yourself to trust God so when you sing His praises, your heart leaps for joy as the Psalmist writes in ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭28‬:‭7‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him, and he helps me. My heart leaps for joy, and with my song I praise him.

Let’s pray. Dear God, I praise Your precious name. My heart leaps for joy. You are my strength and shield. Help me to offer transparency and vulnerability to those in need. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

‭‭1 Peter‬ ‭2‬:‭4‬-‭5‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — As you come to him, the living Stone—rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him— you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

Do you ever feel rejected? Maybe you didn’t get invited, someone used hurtful words, or plans were canceled. Think about Jesus and how He came into the world knowing He would face the ultimate rejection. Good news, just like Jesus’ story was made for more, we are made for more as well. It is important that we protect our Spiritual Houses. We can do this by offering God a sacrifice of praise as the Psalmist writes in ‭‭Psalms ‭116‬:‭17‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the Lord.

We are God’s living stones with the Holy Spirit dwelling in us. All we have to do is call upon the name of the Lord. Imagine with each praise to God, another brick in our spiritual houses being placed. In the midst of human rejection, we must continue to lay our bricks with the love of Christ Jesus.

Let’s pray. Dear God, thank You for choosing me to be Your living stone.  I praise You through rejection, knowing I am made for more. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

You can read this week’s full passage from 1 Peter 2: 4-10 @biblegateway.

Worship with, “Made For More” by Josh Baldwin, featuring Jenn Johnson.

‭‭Ephesians‬ ‭6‬:‭14‬-‭17 ‭NIV‬‬ — Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Ever feel like you are under a spiritual attack? I feel as though Deborah, Ray, and I have been under attack from the enemy as our service to Water Walkers grows. We wanted to meet in early January to discuss our plans for 2024. We were forced to pause those plans due to each one of us being sick at different times. In Ephesians, we have the tools to arm ourselves against the enemy’s schemes. Let’s go into our places of worship this day and get armored up for 2024. What better way to bind Satan than with gratitude and songs of worship. Let’s enter His courts as the Psalmist writes in Psalms 100:‭4‬ ‭NIV‬‬ — Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.

I love listening to Podcasts. Recently while listening to The Jess Connelly and National Community Church podcasts, both suggested creating a music playlist for different seasons of our lives. I love this thought as I create a running playlist for every race. What would your 2024 music playlist consist of? A new favorite running song of mine is called, “Runnin” by Elevation Worship, Featuring Brandon Lake.

Let’s pray. Dear God, I come into Your gates this day with thanksgiving and praise. Thank You for Your armor that protects me. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.

You can read today’s full passage from Ephesians 6:10-19 @biblegateway.

Acts‬ ‭20‬:‭24‬ ‭NIV — However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me—the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.‬‬

Join us for See You Saturday as we recap our week on Retirement.

Acts 20:24 NIV — However, I consider my life worth nothing to me; my only aim is to finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me — the task of testifying to the good news of God’s grace.

We have spent this week together examining different aspects of retirement. If you are not retired, I pray you are still able to glean God’s message for you. No matter what stage of life or season you are in, God still has work for you to do. God can and will use us any time we are open to His guidance. As Christians, we are called to be God’s messengers. Writing is my avenue to share God’s love. How is God using you? Whether you have retired, are in the thick of the workforce, or just starting out, God’s got work for you to do to build His kingdom. Let’s be open, let’s be intentional, and let’s “finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given” us!

Let’s pray. Dear God, I am Your vessel. Guide and direct me so that I may complete Your task. Forgive me when I fall short. I am aiming to finish the race! In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.