Daily Bread

Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honour. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.

Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another; do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly; do not claim to be wiser than you are.

You may be forgiven reading this Bible passage and exclaiming, "Easier said than done!" However, there is hope.

The thing about being a human being is that we live in a single moment of time. We cannot change the past and we, at best, can only influence the future. The only time over which we have control is the present — the current moment in space that we occupy. This is good news!

What it means is that the only decisions we really need to worry about are the ones made in the here and now — even if they are choices about our future. Translating this into living as Paul describes in the Book of Romans, it means we can only express genuine love in the here and now; we can only hate what is evil in the here and now; we can only hold fast to what is good in the here and now; and so on.

No-one is sure who first coined the phrase, "Life is a series of decisions" but it is true, but we only have true control over the decisions we make in the ongoing present. Right now I can choose to love, be affectionate, show honour, serve, hope, be patient, persevere, contribute, be hospitable, be a blessing, live in harmony, and be humble.

Of course we can be determined to live this way, but it is only through opening ourselves and allowing the Holy Spirit to shape and transform us, that we become able to live this way in the ongoing present.

Holy God
Today, may I live a genuine life of love,
where I am a living expression of You
to others and the world around me.
May I continually be open
to the transforming power and presence
of your Holy Spirit.
Now and forever.