Happy Friday friends! It’s the first Friday of the Lenten season and I have yet to figure out what I am giving up or doing for the next 40 days…I am slacking!
This week we read the Final Witness of the Baptist.
After this, Jesus and his disciples went into the region of Judea, where he spent some time with them baptizing. John was also baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was an abundance of water there, and people came to be baptized, or John had not yet been imprisoned. Now a dispute arose between the disciples of John and a Jew about ceremonial washings. So they came to John and said to him, “Rabbi, the one who was with you across the Jordan, to whom you testified, here he is baptizing and everyone is coming to him.” John answered and said, “No one can receive anything except what has been given him from heaven. You yourselves can testify that I said [that] I am not the Messiah, but that I was sent before him. The one who has the bride is the bridegroom; the best man, who stands and listens to him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom’s voice. So this joy of mine has been made complete. He must increase; I must decrease.”
This probably has NOTHING to do with this weeks reading – but I feel like this is such a powerful message – that we need to take the back seat so Jesus can take the wheel. *cue Carrie Underwood song* After all John was still man. He still sinned like the rest of us. So many times we want to control the situation and in doing so we are not allowing God to work. Our pride gets in the way. But John recognized this, “He must increase, I must decrease.”
I think I now have what I will do during this Lenten season. Anytime I want to try to control things – which is a LOT of the time – I will stop and pray. Pray that God guides me to follow HIS will, instead of my own. I will decrease, so that He can increase in our lives.
How did this weeks reading speak to you?
I think this reading was perfectly timed for the beginning of Lent.
“He must increase. I must decrease.”
That is kind of what faith is about and what specifically Lent is about.
How often when preparing for Lent (or life in general) am I only thinking about me? What should I give up? What should I take up? What should I do?
The real questions should be: What can I do to glorify God? What is God calling me to give up that will allow me to live for Him better and bring Him greater glory? What is God calling me to take up that will allow me to grow closer to Him and glorify Him more? What is God calling me to do that will allow Him to be seen and known?
Our goal for Lent and our goal for life is about letting God increase in our lives and letting ourselves be humbled, letting ourselves decrease comparatively. And that’s such a counter cultural thing, but also a beautiful thing.
God became man, suffered and died for us. The least we can do is let ourselves decrease a little in areas of our lives and let Him increase.
Yes! Totally agree! It’s funny how these readings have been so perfectly timed. Holy Spirit much? Lol
I need to ask myself that question more … what can I do to glorify Him? Am I glorifying Him in all I do?