Copy

Friday, June 26


 

Ephesians 4:17-24

17Now this I affirm and insist on in the Lord: you must no longer live as the Gentiles live, in the futility of their minds. 18They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of their ignorance and hardness of heart. 19They have lost all sensitivity and have abandoned themselves to licentiousness, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. 20That is not the way you learned Christ! 21For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. 22You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, 23and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.

Reflection

Right now in our world, there is a lot of conversation, protests, and change happening with the Black Lives Matter movement. I recently got to have a very open discussion with a neighbor who was adamant that “All Lives Matter” should be said instead. I shared with her a sign I saw from a local peaceful protest that said, “We said Black Lives Matter, never said Only Black Lives Matter, we know All Lives Matter. We just need YOUR HELP with Black Lives Matter because Black Lives are in danger right now.” This sign instantly reminded me of the story about the 100 sheep in Luke 15 and how Jesus went to protect the one who went missing because he was in danger. My neighbor and I got to go back and forth on why the right verbiage is so important right now and I shared with her that the Bible says we are all children of God and we have to stand with our brothers and sisters in Christ.  

Today’s reading from Ephesians says, “That is not the way you learned Christ! For surely you have heard about him and were taught in him, as truth is in Jesus. You were taught to put away your former way of life, your old self, corrupt and deluded by its lusts, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to clothe yourselves with the new self, created according to the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” We need to remember that it is okay to change your verbiage, your former way of thinking, your actions, your views, and your biases. In fact, it is a normal process of growing in faith.   

My neighbor was open to hearing what I had to say and at the end of the conversation, she was thinking very differently and more openly. As in today’s reading, she was “renewed in the spirit of [her] mind” and I am truly so proud of her. 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, help open all of our hearts to you and your love for all of your children. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Written by Amanda Lawler

Administrative Assistant for Office and Communications

alawler@stjohns-springfield.org
Facebook
Website
Email
Instagram
Copyright © 2020 St. John's Lutheran Church, All rights reserved.


Want to change how you receive these emails?
You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list.