Monday, February 23, 2009

At A Stop Light In Surrey


I was driving around being "Real Estate Rod" yesterday when I looked over at the car next to me. The woman in the passenger seat was reading one of those little devotionals like "Our Daily Bread," or something, to her husband. I have to admit I had a twinge of judgment thinking they looked a little too religious for my liking, but right on the heals of that thought, the beauty of what was taking place in their car struck me. I know that sounds a little over the top, but somehow I immediately sensed the presence of God as I could see how attentive and absorbed they were in what they were reading.

My dad does his morning devotions with a little book like the one they were reading, and he often sends them to his four kids. When I take the time to prayerfully read what he e-mails us, and I connect with it in that mysterious, but now familiar way, I have to admit, it has a God affect on my day.

Another way to say it is: this type of good old fashioned devotional grounds me in God's presence and helps to inform my day. It helps me to fulfill Saint James' plea for faith and action in an inside out sort of way, which is one of the things all of us who follow Jesus are hoping for, isn't it? I know many of us have had this experience where I read a passage of scripture and then that same day I have a chance to apply it. Maybe, I have the opportunity to comfort someone with it, or give hope, or make a personal decision, or take a stand when tempted or opposed.

See what a beautiful thing this is? Inevitably, I experience more joy, more love, and more life when I read scripture, or our one of my various devotionals, and I allow it to sink in and then cooperate with God and apply it during the day.

Allowing it to SINK IN has to be one of the keys to all this type of devotional discipline, doesn't it? In Colossians 3:15 it says "Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts..." The word "Let" means to "allow" the peace of Christ to rule in my heart. I could also say it means to "dip into" the peace of Christ, like a bucket being lowered and then dipped into the water at the bottom of a deep well. I LOVE this way of saying it, “dip into” the peace of Christ!

Maybe this is what I saw in one brief moment with the couple in the car next to me yesterday. I had the privilege of seeing someone else "dipping into"" the well at a stop light in the middle of Surrey, and the beauty, and the wonder of it all drew me in, and allowed me to take a dip too.

- Rod

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