JOHN SHIRK – In the Year to Shine, today’s Vital Step to a Radiant Faith is to live with an undivided heart.
King Solomon had much wisdom, but he had many wives who led him to places of compromise. Toward the end of his life, his heart was not fully devoted to the LORD his God as the heart of David his father had been. This is how unholy alliances can weaken our loyalty to God.
Solomon’s father David prayed for a fully devoted heart to God in Psalm 86:11. “Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.”
An undivided heart will free us to praise God joyfully and guide our activities into places that glorify His name. This kind of loyalty can begin with a single prayer.
An undivided heart is a vital step to a Radiant Faith that makes a difference in our world.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – In the Year of Endurance, today’s Daily Challenge motivates us to learn loyalty from the example of Ruth.
She was a widow, along with her sister-in-law Orpah, and her mother-in-law Naomi. Together, they set out for Bethlehem from Moab.
But Naomi urged them to go back to the homes of their mothers. Orpah kissed Naomi good-bye, but Ruth clung to her, saying, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. Where you die, I will die and there I will be buried.”
Ruth was committed to Naomi and her God for the rest of her life. This decision was the beginning of a journey that would bring Ruth into the genealogy of Jesus. That is what happens spiritually when we put our faith in Jesus with a loyal heart. We are included in God’s family of believers.
You can read about the loyalty of Ruth in the book of Ruth from the Bible.
Take the daily challenge to learn loyalty from the example of Ruth on the journey of faith.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
JOHN SHIRK – Today’s Relationship-Building Principle comes from Ruth 1:16.
The book of Ruth opens in the land of Moab, reporting the deaths of three men. The surviving widows were Naomi, and her daughters-in-law Ruth and Orpah.
Naomi was originally from Bethlehem. After her husband and sons died, she was bitter in spirit, and decided to go back to Bethlehem. Naomi’s heart was so heavy that she believed that the Lord’s hand was against her. Tragedies can lead us to believe that way sometimes. But God had not abandoned Naomi.
In her bitterness, she told Orpah and Ruth to return to Moab, so that they could remarry. But Ruth was tenacious in her commitment to Naomi. She uttered these famous words, “Don’t urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God my God.” She was committed to Naomi as a daughter for life. In addition, she was drawn to Naomi’s faith in the Lord and would follow the same God that Naomi worshiped.
Ruth would be grafted into the line of ancestors that led to the birth of Jesus. When we are grafted into the family of God through faith, our story becomes part of His story, which is our blessing for His glory.
Commitment is a vital-relationship building principle to take to heart in the Year of Connection.
John Shirk
john@wjtl.com
