Devotional Thoughts of the Day:

For if a man is in Christ he becomes a new person altogether – the past is finished and gone, everything has become fresh and new. All this is God’s doing, for he has reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ; and he has made us agents of the reconciliation. God was in Christ personally reconciling the world to himself – not counting their sins against them – and has commissioned us with the message of reconciliation. We are now Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were appealing direct to you through us. As his personal representatives we say, “Make your peace with God.” For God caused Christ, who himself knew nothing of sin, actually to be sin for our sakes, so that in Christ we might be made good with the goodness of God. 2 Corinthians 5:16 (Phillips NT)

103      Your life, your work, should never be negative, nor anti anything. It is—it must be!—positive, optimistic, youthful, cheerful and peaceful.

As I write this blog, a movie I’e longed to see id playing on my television.  It is called Monuments Men, A bunch 0f artists and aficionados who have a mission.  Some give all they have, their very lives to accomplish the mission.   Some find a sense of redemption, a sense of meaning in the life that is given in pursuit of  mission.

How much more should we be driven to focus on our mission?  How much more should our love for God drive our mission, we should be willing to sacrifice for our mission, the way soldiers did, for the stakes are the same.

The mission, the raison d’etre, of the church.

In truth, there is only one ministry.  There is one mission God has given His people.  One work He has commissioned for us, the work He hs planned for us to be part of since before the foundation of the world.

The mission, the ministry of reconciling the world to Himself.

We are to be the agents of such reconciliation.

That is our only ministry, it is our mission, it is the work He has given to us, that He has gifted us.

It is our hope, it is our life, walking with the Lord, fulfilling His will.

And there are times where it gets to pessimistic, to depressing, to negative.

Yet it is too easy.  We are effected by what goes on around us.  The seemingly impossible task of reconciling people together.  The seemingly impossible task of seeing what God so desires to come to fruition.  We here of church politics, or we see brothers fighting each other without mercy, without recognizing the unity we have, because we are reconciled together in Christ.   We see brothers dismiss each other, questioning each other, avoiding actual discussion, hiding behind defenses created to avoid any real conversation.

It is too easy to get caught up in the negativity, in the political machiavellianism.  In the lack of reconciliation.

But what were we expecting?  That this ministry, which required Jesus to die on the cross would be easy?  THat we would snap our fingers and relationships would be reconciled and healed?

Even knowing the cost, we have a God who asks us in fulfilling His dream, of seeing Him call people to be His people, to see them healed, counted righteous.

it’s what we are called to do.

Nothing else. though we will do this in all we do……every vocation, in every place, in every moment we have.  Especially in the midst of our sin…our sin, the sins of the people God calls, so that He can cleanse the of that sin.

So let’s get back to our service, let us work hard to diligently do what God has called us to do…..

and realize this…

¹³  For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Philippians 2:13 (NLT)

Rejoice… He will complete this work in you! in us!

He has promised this. so trust Him!

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Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 575-576). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.