Devotional by Cadet Rachel Aren
20 Now may the God of peace—
who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus,
the great Shepherd of the sheep,
and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood—
21 may he equip you with all you need
for doing his will.
May he produce in you,[a]
through the power of Jesus Christ,
every good thing that is pleasing to him.
All glory to him forever and ever! Amen. Hebrews 13:20-21
I grew up to believe that God will give me everything I needed to be successful for whatever He has called me to do, or anything he has called me to be. In my adolescent naivety, though, I always believed that it would just be granted if I simply prayed for it. If I needed to be equipped with more patience, for example, He would simply give it to me. Or if I needed to granted self-control, I would pray out about it during my nightly prayers and would wake up the next morning and, then, BOOM: I would be more patient. Like Mary Poppins who snaps her fingers and things are magically and strategically assembled or arranged. In my 29 year of life, however, I have learned that that is not always the case. Correction: that is NEVER how it works with Jesus. Jesus and Mary Poppins do not have the same style. Throughout my life, I have come to realize that one particular way that Jesus equips us to better do his will, is to give us opportunities to develop what we need. Sometimes, that is the hard way. (Like when we ask Jesus for patience and then he arranges our day to have a conversation with the 10 most challenging people we know)
Now, instead of being discouraged when God brings hard things into my life, I find encouragement, because now I know it all just a part of the journey; it is all a part of being more and better equipped to do His will. Now, I find JOY is those trails, tribulations and challenges. Now, I know that I will not be equipped to do God’s will effectively without them.
“to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen”
Questions to help you PROCESS:
In what ways do you treat God like a genie in a bottle?
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control – which area comes naturally to you, like a spiritual gifting? Which area do you need to seek the Holy Spirit to produce in you?
What part of the scripture Hebrews 13:20-21 speaks to you the most?
