Other gods are in plentiful supply, each reaching out, calling out, desiring our loyalty and service to them.  However, there is some truth to the statement that no one can serve two masters.  Divided loyalties always require some degree of unfaithfulness.  And if there is unfaithfulness, there is also distrust.  And if there is distrust there is always the temptation to waft from one God to the other, never relying on either god to provide what we really need, in some ways inviting each god to make an appeal to our need of the moment.  Our gratification always becomes momentary and circumstantial.  But it also leads us to never know which God can be trusted.

         For those of us who seek stability in our lives, it’s important for us to choose which God we will serve — the God who is consistent in fulfilling us, providing for us, caring for us with understanding and compassion, or the god who tempts us with momentary pleasures but in the end leaves us empty and unfulfilled.  One God has a track record for being faithful.  The other gods tempt us for a while with immediate gratification, but in the long run, always leave us desirous of something more.  It’s those tempting temptations of immediate gratification that war against our need to deny ourselves of immediate gratification and cling to the certain promises of God that come with being faithful to Him. 

• What other gods are in your life that — at times — draw you away from faithfulness to the God of your salvation?
• What “itch” do you have that needs immediate attention (scratching) that’s most difficult to deny waiting on God’s faithfulness?

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
God of faithfulness, give me a heart to trust only you with my life and my circumstances. Teach me the art of self-denial, avoiding those tempting temptations that lead me away from You.

         One of our greatest temptations is to test God.  Perhaps it’s because we live with the uncertainty that God’s faithfulness can be trusted.  Perhaps it’s because God doesn’t always work within our timeframe of what’s important to us.  Because of that, we might begin our prayers with, “God, if you really loved me …”, or “God, you said you would, and so I’m stepping out on faith … ”  Those are all ways we have of testing God.  Our short-term memory kicks into gear and suddenly, we forget the stories of faith told by those who have lived placing their trust in God from long ago.  We even forget the times in our lives when God showed up with wonders and powers and saved or sustained us during our times of trials.  Those times display a serious lack of faith and trust, while inviting God to answer to our demands rather than letting God be God.  The truth is faith gets tested when a sense of God’s presence fades, or when the circumstances of life cause us to question if God is even there.  At times, God can be very silent.  If we’re honest, God is more of an actor than a talker.  For the most part, God just goes around being God without fanfare.  Which means that our tempting temptation is to lose all faith and trust in God, causing us to try to be god and make God respond to us rather than us responding to God’s faithful actions.  We must fight the temptation to test God and increase our faith based on our memories of how God has responded in the past.

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
Gracious God, help me to fight the tempting temptation to love my faith and trust in You. Help me to be humble, always making me mindful of Your actions in my past to that I will never test you.

         A tourist came too close to the edge of the Grand Canyon, lost his footing and tumbled over the edge, clawing and scratching to save himself.  After he went out of sight and just before he fell into space, he encountered a scrubby bush which he desperately grabbed with both hands.  Filled with terror, he called out to heaven, “Is there anyone up there?”  A calm, powerful voice came out of the sky, “Yes, there is.”  The tourist pleaded, “Can you help me?  Can you help me?”  The calm voice replied, “Yes, I probably can.  What is your problem?”  “I fell over a cliff and am dangling in space holding to a bush that’s about to let go.  Please help me!”  The voice from above said, “I’ll try.  Do you believe?”  “Yes!  Yes, I believe!”  “Do you have faith?”  “Yes, yes, I have strong faith!”  The calm voice said, “Well, in that case,  simply let go of the bush and everything will work out fine.”  There was a tense pause, then the tourist yelled, “Is there anyone else up there?”

         God’s faithfulness is without question.  And yet, not matter what lengths God goes to prove God’s faithfulness, we always find a reason to doubt.  We forget all the things that God has done in the past and question God’s willingness to provide for us today.  That typically leaves a huge question mark around God’s faithfulness about the things for tomorrow.

         The most tempting temptation we face is distrusting God as our provider and our sustainer.  Without trust in God’s faithfulness, we spend our entire lives questioning — not only God’s faithfulness — but questioning our ability to fully trust God, wasting our lives dancing between life and death instead of trusting God, even in the most dire circumstances.

Todays Prayer

Today’s Prayer —
Almighty God, teach me to trust in Your faithfulness in even the most dire circumstances of life. Help me to remember the ways you’ve been there in the past as an example of how You’ve always been there.