Doctrines one and two of The
Westminster Catechism are keys to living your best life as a believer.
- Our chief purpose in life is to glorify GOD and enjoy Him for all time
- Our how-to guide for doing number one is the WORD of GOD.
Sadly, we too often ignore our purpose and choose instead to
focus on our needs and pleasures. We live too much for ourselves and outside
the will of GOD.
Once we confess CHRIST as our Savior we are children
of GOD by faith and our lifestyles ought to speak loudly and clearly of what we
are.
As the second Catechism
doctrine states, the WORD of GOD instructs us on how to live (2 Timothy 3:16.)
JESUS Himself teaches us to focus our energies on GOD’s will
and growing in holiness above all else. We are to worry less about our lives – “what you will eat or what you will drink;
or about your body, what you will wear,” and allow GOD to take care of our
needs. (Matthew 6.)
There is no time like the present to redirect our focus from
ourselves and commit to living out and doing GOD’s will.
Believers have the Holy Spirit living in us and His job is
to teach and guide us in GOD’s truth. With grace He will enable us to:
- Love GOD and others more than we love ourselves (Matthew 22:36-40)
- Forgo selfish ambition and do for others, even those who hurt us, and do it without complaint. (Philippians 2:3; 1 Thessalonians 5:15-17)
- Focus our energies on telling the good news of the Gospel of hope to a lost and dying world. (Matthew 28:19; Mark 16:15)
- Believe that GOD works in our pain for our benefit and His glory; that His Name and our well-being are His main concern; that He loves each of us uniquely and completely and will never leave us. (Romans 8:28-39)
- Trust GOD to give us great success because His plans for us are not for evil but to give as a future and a hope (Proverbs 3: 5-7; Jeremiah 29:11)
- Choose GOD’s wisdom over our own foolish desires because GOD’s wisdom outweighs ours by far (Isaiah 55:9)
With the Holy Spirit we can do all this and much more.
Our Father never asks us to do what He will not give us
grace to do. He has promised to “…equip
you with everything good that you may do his will, working in us that
which is pleasing in his sight, through JESUS CHRIST.” Hebrews 13:21. He will do
no less.
We have an abundance of Divine help available so we don’t
have to keep doing life our own way.
This is not GOD’s will for us.
Living by our own rules and for selfish pleasure brings only physical, mental
and spiritual chaos into our lives.
On the other hand, when we live out our divine purpose –
loving, serving and enjoying GOD, obeying His WORD, GOD rewards us with all the
desires of our hearts and lives filled with peace and joy.
Take delight in the Lord, and He will give
you your heart’s desires. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in Him, and He
will act, making your righteousness shine like the dawn, your justice like the
noonday. Psalm 37:4-6
Prayer and
Thanksgiving: Holy and Everlasting Father, we praise YOU our as the faithful
GOD who is always with us. YOU order our steps and WHEN we fall, we are not cast
out or overcome by sorrow because YOU never let go of our hands and will lift
us up again. Teach us to make YOU our greatest delight, to seek YOUR face and
your righteousness, to be anxious for nothing and to trust that YOU are Jehovah
Jireh who always provides above and beyond what we could ever imagine. Thank
YOU for JESUS CHRIST, our LORD and Savior, that in Him we lack nothing. You are
truly a good, good Father, worthy of all honor, all glory, and all praise! And
we love you. To YOU, be dominion and power for ever and ever. We pray and ask
all things in JESUS’ name. Amen.
Always by God’s Word and prayer,
Cecile
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