Corona Devo 444

I zipped up our travel bag for the weekend trip (soccer/campground/family visit/fill-in-your-own-destination), and I happily checked-off all the items on my packing list.

I actually enjoy packing and I take pride in being "prepared for any situation".  Scorching sun--I packed the SPF.  Steady rain--I packed the rubber boots and umbrellas.  It's "Summer" but still freezing--I packed gloves and maybe even hand-warmer packets.  

Packing for our journeys started off years ago with extra outfits and emergency snacks in a diaper bag and it's developed into a full-palette of ingredients for a week's-worth of meals when away on vacation or double toiletry bags if our family is "split" in two cities or states for soccer games over a weekend.  

It may sound crazy, but I enjoy packing and lists give me a sense of comfort, control and even purpose.

Whoops!  That's probably exactly why God told me to throw out my lists when I opened the Bible today.  

God is the One that we should look to for comfort, control and purpose over our life, not a list or the items on it.  

“Take nothing for your journey,” he instructed them. “Don’t take a walking stick, a traveler’s bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes."  ~Luke 9:3

Jesus was talking to His disciples as He was sending them out to share His Good News.  (Exactly what Jesus commissions you and me to be doing today.) 

And the first advice Jesus gave them (and us!) was to “Take nothing for your journey".  

Forget about the list.  Trust in Me.

Forget about worry and pre-planning every situation you might encounter.  Trust in Me.

Forget about your pride that is swelling because you are relying on yourself.  Trust in Me.

“Take nothing for your journey" except Jesus.  

And just to prove that God knows us and our list-making tendencies: He gives us a list of what not to take.

“Don’t take a walking stick, a traveler’s bag, food, money, or even a change of clothes."  ~Luke 9:3

I'll swap-out "walking stick" for "cell phone", because GPS is what helps me navigate from here to there, but except for that list item, it is uncanny how similar my packing list is to the one that Jesus gave to the disciples.

God knows our hearts and He knows the areas-of-our-lives that may have started off as "planful" but move quickly to "seeking control".  God directs us back to complete dependence and reliance on Him alone.  He will provide what we need on this trip-of-life if we will trust in Him to do so.

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One day Jesus called together his twelve disciples and gave them power and authority to cast out all demons and to heal all diseases.  ~Luke 9:1

Jesus gave his closest followers their marching orders for serving Him, and in His next breath, He challenged them to trust in Him alone for the provision along the way: “Take nothing for your journey".

I know that Jesus is challenging us to the same thing today.

We don't need to find our sense of comfort, control, and purpose from a list or anything else.  We can check-off all of those items by relying on Jesus alone.

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"Wherever you go, stay in the same house until you leave town.  ~Luke 9:4

His instructions were spoken (as always) with the assurance that God understands our needs and will take care of them.  

Jesus did not say--"Pray for a house to stay in or someone that will host you"...

Jesus had their lodging and needs all planned out.  They did not need to worry about it or add "find lodging" to their to-do list.  God had arranged their housing, and he has arranged provision for the "list items" on our minds too.

Jesus has our life-reservations made.  We just need to trust Him.  

(5) And if a town refuses to welcome you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate.”  ~Luke 9:5

If others refuse us (or God's message), we need to persevere and move forward.  Move on and shake its dust from your feet as you leave.  Being a Believer means developing thick skin and discernment and it wouldn't hurt to add "don't take it personally" to our list.

Oops, I forgot that we are supposed to scrap our lists!

Lists in themselves are not bad things, but I got God's message today that anything in our lives that is encroaching on the supremacy and authority that God alone should hold, needs to be re-evaluated and "scratched off our list".  

The same is true for anything that we are priding ourselves on instead of God.  If my pride is in myself (and my packing) rather than my Lord, then I have misunderstood His life-assignment for me.  It's not about how prepared we are, how much we know, or our accomplishments.  

"Take nothing for your journey," he instructed them. ~Luke 9:3

God directs us back to complete dependence and reliance on Him alone.  He will provide what we need on this trip-of-life if we will trust in Him to do so.

We don't need to find our sense of comfort, control or purpose from a list or anything else.  We can check off all of those items by relying on Jesus alone.

Blessings,

sarah

https://sarahsundy04.blogspot.com