CamDevo

“For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, but worldly grief produces death.”
‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭7‬:‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬

When I read today’s verse, my first thought is “what the heck is godly grief?” After reading the verses leading up to this, I see Paul is talking about grief caused by guilt, regret, and remorse due to past sin. The consequences of sin are often dire. Besides the consequence of ultimate death because of judgment from God, there are usually worldly consequences like broken relationships, lost jobs, injury, sickness… Here’s a very simple example: if I rob someone, I may get caught and end up in jail. Big consequence for me! Even if I don’t get caught there are consequences. The person I rob will be sad from their loss. Perhaps they will be traumatized and frightened for the rest of their lives. Or perhaps they will seek revenge on me. Lots of possible consequences. Sin is awful. In today’s verse, Paul is specifically talking about the consequence of grief that sin causes. In 1 Corinthians, he scolded the Corinthians about their sin. Here in 2 Corinthians, he has heard about their godly grief because of that first letter. And he’s saying how wonderful that kind of grief is. Why? Because it encourages me to change my behavior. It draws me to God to seek forgiveness. And it brings complete healing in my relationship with Him. How wonderful indeed! But then there’s this idea of worldly grief. He says it brings death instead of healing. Why is that? Worldly grief doesn’t include God. There can be no true healing because there can be no salvation. Maybe I’m grieving because I got caught or because now I’m being retaliated against. I might change my behavior, and the people I have wronged may even forgive me, but without God’s forgiveness (because I don’t care to seek it), I can never be made clean. Sin may cause grief, but without God, it will never lead to healing. It will only lead to death.

Dear God,

Thank you for your offer of forgiveness when I come to you in grief over the mess I’ve made of things. Show me clearly when I have sinned, and soften my heart so I will confess, repent, and change my behavior. I want to leave my grief behind.

“Start a youth out on his way; even when he grows old he will not depart from it.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭22‬:‭6‬ ‭CSB‬‬

This verse always made me nervous when I thought about having children. I guess because I would read it in a negative way: if I screw up a kid, they are screwed up forever! Eek! That’s not the author’s intent here though. At least not their main point. Instead, the author is stressing the importance of teaching children about God so they can have a lifelong relationship with Him. And teaching a child about God isn’t just a one-time lecture. It isn’t a once-a-week Sunday school class either, although that can be very important. It’s about modeling the behavior that pleases God for the child. Monkey see, monkey do. I can’t teach anyone about God if I don’t know Him myself. I don’t have children myself, but I am so grateful for the adults in my life who taught me who God is and how much He loves me. I know and love God today because of them. So I know I can have an impact on future generations just by living boldly for Jesus.

Dear God,

Thank you for reminding me of all the people who raised me to know you! Show me how I can participate in showing how wonderful you are to children you put in my path.

“Pure and undefiled religion before God the Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”
‭‭James‬ ‭1‬:‭27‬ ‭CSB‬‬

I’ve always been fond of the book of James. It’s so easy to read and understand and full of useful, pithy wisdom. And why not, James was Jesus’s brother. Can you imagine growing up with Jesus! Clearly Jesus was very special to have a brother that literally worships Him. No sibling rivalry there. James got to learn from Jesus every day of his life. Today’s verse is one among many wonderful verses in his book. It describes what religion should be. In my mind, that is absolutely not what religion is. And it probably was not that in James’s day either. Religion seems more about rituals and activities that hope to appease some angry and needy god. Jesus didn’t want that. He made it clear by saying the most important command was to love. James is basically reiterating that here. True religion – the true way to please the true God – is about love. In particular, making sure no one goes unloved. In James’s day that was widows and orphans. Today, they are probably included, but there are so many more categories of people who fall through the cracks of society, missing out on love. Immigrants. People desperate to cross our border to find safety and hope for a future. Elderly. People who have worked all their lives and lost everyone they knew only to find themselves alone with nothing in a strange unpredictable world. Veterans. Prisoners. Homeless. Addicts. They are all unloved. It’s time to start practicing true religion. Starting with me.

Dear God,

Thank you for today’s reminder of what my religion should look like. Show me the people in my life who are lacking love and care. And show me how to care for them and love them they way you want me to. I want to worship you in this way today and everyday.

“And I pray this: that your love will keep on growing in knowledge and every kind of discernment, so that you may approve the things that are superior and may be pure and blameless in the day of Christ,”
‭‭Philippians‬ ‭1‬:‭9‬-‭10‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Paul clearly has a close relationship with the people in the church he planted in Philippi. He prays for them a lot. He mentions praying for them several times in this letter. In fact today’s verse is a prayer. It must have been hard for Paul to leave the fledgling church, especially knowing how badly the devil wants Paul’s efforts to fail. Paul himself used to be a church killer, literally seeking out followers of Jesus to kill or imprison. So he knows the dangers. But the dangers for the Philippians are less physical and more personal and theological. There are power-hungry people who would love to preach things Jesus never said. They seek to have power over the people by tempting them or scaring them or confusing them. So in today’s verse Paul prays for them to have knowledge and discernment in their love. These things aren’t necessarily associated with love! But Paul wanted to make sure love was still the priority. Love isn’t blind though. It hopes for the best but sees the truth. It keeps no record of wrongs by forgiving, but it recognizes what wrong is. I’m supposed to love God first. To love Him is to listen to and obey His Spirit. Christians in Paul’s day had that same Spirit. If I listen to God, I will be able to discern truth from lies. I won’t be frightened into acting a certain way. I won’t be tempted to do what I know is wrong.

Dear God,

Thank you for this letter from Paul about his concerns for the new church which are still very valid concerns. Help me to be discerning in how I love, where I spend the resources (time, money, energy…) you’ve given me. Thank you for being constant and unchanging in an unpredictable world. I know I can always turn to you and not be afraid or confused.

“But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you.”
‭‭Matthew‬ ‭6‬:‭33‬ ‭CSB‬‬

Today’s verse is a very familiar one. It’s been turned into songs, including the campfire song you may remember from our summer camp days. But what I didn’t realize is that it is in a part of Jesus’s speech given the heading ‘the cure for anxiety’ in this translation. Wonderful! In the rest of the verse Jesus tells me not to worry about my needs. Jesus also compares my life that that of birds and flowers both of which are fed and clothed more than adequately because God loves them. And then Jesus says that God loves me even more than the birds and flowers. Then in today’s verse He finally answers the how question. How do I stop worrying? The answer is to stop focusing on myself and my needs and to focus instead of God and what He wants. Simple, but not that easy. God wants to be my number 1 priority. Not after I finish my chores. Not after I relax for a while after a long day. Not once the bills are all paid. Before all that! Number 1! It’s a matter of trust. Do I believe this verse? If I tithe first, before my bills are paid, do I trust God to help me steward my money more wisely so I have enough at the end of the month to put gas in the car? If I take time to listen to a lonely stranger when I’m rushing around, do I trust that God will bless me by getting me where I need to be in time? If I take time to pray and study the Bible before I take care of important paperwork, do I trust God to give me the time and strength to complete it later? Or maybe He’ll work some miracle where the paperwork isn’t needed after all. God is creative. The important thing for me to know is that He loves me and if I make His plans my number 1 plans, then my needs will be met. And then some. 

Dear God,

Thank you so much for this promise! Help me to trust you with all my needs so that I don’t have to worry about any of them. Teach me to risk leaving my worries at your feet while I spend time with you. Show me everyday where you want my time and money to go first.

“Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation.”

‭‭2 Corinthians‬ ‭5‬:‭18‬ ‭CSB‬‬

I don’t know for sure but I think Paul must have been near the end of his long ministry when he wrote this. He seems ready to be done. In the verses before this he talks about preferring to be ‘home with God’ instead of in his ‘tent’ or his earthly body. I think he’s in pain. Prison, torture, isolation… that’ll do it to you. But this is not a hopeless message. Quite the opposite! He is excited about what is to come and he can’t wait. Why? Because he knows that he has been forgiven. Reconciled by Jesus. His whole ministry has been based on that excitement. He wants everyone to know reconciliation with God! He wants everyone to be sure of what comes next. Today’s verse explains how this reconciliation with God should affect me. When I accept forgiveness, I also accept the exciting job of sharing that potential reconciliation with other people. Lots of people are afraid to die. Because they don’t know what’s next. But Paul did. And I do. And everyone who knows Jesus knows what’s next. Because of Jesus’s efforts to reconcile me, the beautiful wonder of eternity with my loving Creator is next. Sharing that good news is my ministry of reconciliation.

Dear God,

Thank you for your forgiveness. Thank you for reconciling me to you. And thank you for your beautiful promise of what happens next, after this life ends. I look forward to that. In the meantime, teach me how to run a ministry of reconciliation. I don’t know what that looks like so speak to me about it in practical ways as I interact with the people you put in my path.

“Be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”

‭‭Luke‬ ‭6‬:‭36‬ ‭CSB‬‬

This is Jesus talking. Part of His sermon on the mount. It comes right after His discussion about loving your enemies and turning the other cheek and all that. Then comes today’s verse. At first it doesn’t seem to fit. Is loving my enemies the same as being merciful? Mercy isn’t a word I use very often in my every day speech. Oxford defines mercy as “compassion or forgiveness shown toward someone whom it is within one’s power to punish or harm.” I may not immediately recognize my power to harm someone, especially if they are my boss or someone else with authority over me, or just someone much stronger or with more resources than me. But there are always ways to harm. It’s always within my power. Little sabotages here and there. Some unkind gossip. Working slower than I can or just doing sloppy work. When someone has wronged me, become my “enemy”, it feels so right to get back at them in some way big or small. But that’s what today’s verse warns me not to do by reminding me that God has extended mercy to me. God definitely has the power to harm me! He could direct a bus to squash me flat or send a tornado to sweep my house off the earth or inflict my loved ones each with a different disease to pick them off one-by-one. But He doesn’t do this. He has shown me mercy instead. I deserve His wrath. But He has extended forgiveness and compassion instead.

Dear God,

Thank you so much for the great mercy you have given me. I know I don’t deserve that and I could never earn it. Your generosity is unbelievable! Teach me how to be merciful with everyone in my life. Open my eyes to the times when I am not showing mercy and give me the courage and strength to change my attitude back to love.

“But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
‭‭Romans‬ ‭5‬:‭8‬ ‭CSB‬‬

It is so true that it is so hard to do something nice for an ungrateful, mean person. Imagine someone who has insulted you, bullied you, ignored your efforts at friendship, returned borrowed tools with broken parts or not at all, gossiped about you, keyed your car – whatever ugly behavior you can think of… (It’s so easy to think of awful things, isn’t it?) Now imagine giving that person your house to live in when theirs burned down because they had a meth lab in the basement. Then imagine donating a kidney to them. They aren’t grateful but mock you for being such a pushover, a fool. Now imagine you are dying because of an infection due to the kidney donation and having no home. They still aren’t grateful but you stop by to mow their lawn with a smile and a kind word right before you die. This is how much Jesus loves me. He gave everything, including His life, to save me from my own bad choices, my sin, even though I wasn’t grateful and didn’t care.

Dear God,
Thank you for your love. I am so grateful. Teach me never to take your love for granted but to accept it with gratitude every day and share it generously with everyone in my life whether they ‘deserve’ it or not.