Lent: Monday, March 13, 2006

Old Testament Lesson

Genesis 41:46-57

Joseph was blessed by God after all he had endured earlier on in his life. God is at work in all of our lives, placing us where He needs us to be. We have to, though, choose to go where he leads. Joseph could have been bitter, he could have turned against God, but instead, he trusted God and stayed true to him, even when he didn't know how the road would end.

Faith in God is trusting in Him, even when we don't know how things will end. It is easy to trust in times ease and when we know the end result. Will we trust, even when we don't know what God is doing. He was at work in Joseph's life, bringing him to the place that God needed him to be. He is doing that in our lives as well. God is bringing us to where he needs us to be. The question is, how will we respond when we don't like the way the road looks. Joseph trusted God. What will you do?

New Testament Lesson

1 Corinthians 4:8-21

Humility is one of the greatest of virtues. Humility is not a hatred of one's self nor, is it thinking little about yourself. Rather, it is what a professor of mine in seminary called "self forgetfulness." It is where you just forget about yourself and focus on God and focus on others. Pride comes from only focusing on yourself. Humility comes from focusing on others. Today, where will your focus be? Will it be only upon yourself? Or will you focus on God and focus on others. That focus, that determines our humility.

Gospel Lesson

Mark 3:7-19a

Jesus in this passage appoints the 12 Apostles to go and to do Him ministry. We as the church and as Christians continue that today. The church is called to be the Body of Christ. I've always like that concept. That means that we are a the physical "body" of Christ upon the earth right now. That means as the church, we should be about doing what Jesus would have us to do, and what Jesus would. We need to be about His work, about His mission, about His gaol, about what He would have us to do. We should not be about ourselves, but about Him. And, in Him, we find life.

Today, who are we living for? Is it Jesus, or is it ourselves? He sent the 12 out to do His mission. He sends us out as well. Will we be faithful to that mission today?