Message Magazine’s Online Devotional for Monday, December 5, 2016
Listen to “Thoughts in Worship 12.5.2016” on Spreaker.
“We then, as workers together with him, beseech you also that ye receive not the grace of God in vain. (For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee: behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.)” 2 Corinthians 6:1–2.
Father knows best! If this phrase rings a bell and you’re searching your memory banks to recall exactly where you’ve heard it before, you are really showing your age. Yes, it was a radio series that also hit the TV screen in the 40s and 50s. The father’s character was less than complementary, and folly was made of life’s daily circumstances to make listeners/viewers laugh.
This life, while it has its joys, happy times, and times for celebration, is no laughing matter. It is not chock full of mindless mirth if we discern the times. For generations, our heavenly Father has been holding the doors of mercy open and entreating us tenderly to hear His voice and enter into right relationship with Him. And for many generations, countless people chose rather to treat life as a perpetual carnival while the enemy of our souls has been stealthily distracting us with the mundane.
Natural disasters of historic proportions destroy vast swaths of land, life, and property, while many slip away unsaved. Amid injustice, misogyny, abuse, and outright murder, the din and sin of life drown out the voice of God. While world diplomats meet and call for peace in war-ravaged regions, our young and elderly are being snuffed out and their memories trampled.
Every day you awaken is an opportunity to hear God’s voice and embrace His mercy. Every day you think clearly and reason is an opportunity to experience His power to live a righteous life in the face of near-impossible odds. Whenever now is during your experience, it is always the acceptable time to welcome God’s entreaties and walk in our holy calling until Jesus comes.
Our heavenly Father knows best. He knows best to love us even when we are unlovable. He knows best that we need His grace to live for Him. He knows best that we need constant reminders of the nearness of Jesus’ coming. He knows best that there is no better time than this moment to respond to His loving voice to surrender our lives to Him forever. Our heavenly Father really does know best.
