As I was sitting in the Coffee shop one morning, I was reading my bible, pondering life, and journaling. Sitting there, spending time with the Lord, I got distracted and began some people watching mixed with eavesdropping. What caught my attention that morning was the conversation between 2 men. One was a tad bit older than the other, and my assumptions started taking root. "Probably some sort of mentoring or discipleship happening," I thought. Call me Sherlock; There was a bible on the table. But the conversation is what really grabbed my attention. Here I was reading the bible and journaling pondering life, and I found myself thinking I was doing it right or better. If you are reading this thinking to yourself, "Kenny, you are sitting in the word and taking time to listen to the Lord. Why are you judging yourself for that?" Listen to the next part of the conversation I overheard.
“I’ve always heard man of God this, man of God that, and I never understood it," said the younger man. "Then I read this passage and boom…there it was.” What a simple statement. I hope to bring to light what you may be missing, and that I was definitely missing in my journaling and a time in the word: the excitement in the young man's voice. The awe and wonder at the Lord revealing something to Him. The joy from hearing the gospel. The beauty of knowing the Lord and seeing that he is good. His faith was fresh.
2 Peter Chapter 1:5-13 has a reminder from Peter on a fresh faith:
5 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with goodness, goodness with knowledge, 6 knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with godliness, 7 godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 8 For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being useless or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 The person who lacks these things is blind and shortsighted and has forgotten the cleansing from his past sins. 10 Therefore, brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election, because if you do these things you will never stumble. 11 For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.
12 Therefore I will always remind you about these things, even though you know them and are established in the truth you now have. 13 I think it is right, as long as I am in this bodily tent, to wake you up with a reminder,
In verses 5-7 Peter lays down the way to walk in our faith. Practice and submit to these things so that we may see growth, bear fruit and experience the joy of the lord.
Verses 8-9 tells us that if we only gain the knowledge of the Lord, knowing but not walking with him, our faith becomes useless and fruitless. Knowing Jesus should move us. Knowing Jesus should have me excited and overjoyed!
So Peter tells us how that happens in verses 10-13. You keep your faith fresh through the remembering of why Christ came. He reminds us that being in the word, sitting with Jesus, and walking out our faith with others cultivates a fresh faith, because this world will make us forget. This world will steal the joy, will harden our hearts to the Lord.
My hope today is that you remember Christ. Recall the new life found in knowing Jesus and walking with him daily. Perhaps where your faith feels stale, useless or unfruitful, you are reminded from the short conversation I overheard, or by the words from Peter, to allow the Lord to freshen your faith today.
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