February 9- 2 Thessalonians 3:5

THE VERSE

May the Lord direct your hearts into God's love and Christ's perseverance.
2 Thessalonians 3:5

THE THOUGHT

Turning our eyes and hearts to God has been a theme of many daily verses, and is crucial to living for Christ. But the impetus and power for this gaze of our souls doest not lie with us. Our wayward hearts, by their own power, cannot stay fixed on our God. We must daily cry with the Psalmist, "Incline my heart!" and pray with Paul, "Open the eyes of my heart!" We need God's Spirit directing us to Himself every day, because when we try to do it on our own strength and willpower, we will inevitably fail. But as we abandon ourselves to God, we will find our hearts being drawn into God's love, where we will find more and more joy as we see more and more of His goodness. As we give up our feeble attempts to please God on our own, we will find a wealth of persevering power in Christ's Spirit as He draws our eyes to the cross and to God, showing us His glory and giving us the motivation to continue to surrender to Him.

THE PRAYER

Holy Spirit, I surrender my self-trying to You. Move me to die to myself and all my strivings, and to open my heart to all Your directing and transforming power. Show me the depths of the Father's love and the power of Christ's perseverance, and make them available in my life as I trust You.

EXTENDED READING

2 Thessalonians 2:13-3:5
Ephesians 3:16-4:3
Hebrews 12:1-3

THE QUOTE

"I have a feeling that maybe sound doctrine is more important than goose-bumps." ~Rich Mullins