Today’s devotional thought is from Troy:
I am finishing up a book titled Living God’s Love: An Invitation to Christian Spirituality. I came to a part in the book that deals with hearing God through others. The author describes how we come to hear God through family, spouses, and friends. He goes on to say that we hear God’s voice through our “spiritual friends”. He writes:
“Spiritual friendship is one that does not seek to have our needs fulfilled in friendship, but rather proclaims the reign of God over all. It is a dangerous love that opens us and our friends to the socially disruptive possibilities of the life of God. In other words, a spiritual friend cares more about our relationship to God than about our happiness or even about our friendship. Such friends can confront us in love about our weaknesses, gently restoring us to deeper fellowship in love (see Galatians 6:1-2). They can speak the tough words of God to us, words we would not hear if they did not come from those who did not love us.
“God speaks through wise men and women who serve as spiritual mentors to us. We show wisdom if we seek the counsel of these wise ones. The book of Proverbs advises that we follow the path of the wise (Proverbs 8:33; 12:15; 15:31; 19:20; 22:17). One of the essentials ways of growing spiritually is intentionally looking for those who can guide us spiritually with an attitude of humility.”
Over the past several months I have witnessed this principle in work. What is very interesting to me is that it does not have a trickle-down effect, but rather a horizontal effect. I see older, more experienced staff members giving advice to the younger, less experienced staff members, and I see the older, more experienced staff members asking the younger, less experienced staff members advice. God has brought together a group of people with a wide variety of ages, experience, and education, to work together. This impacts the lives of not only our boys, but also each other; we are better because of this. What I see from the staff at Westview Boys’ Home is the living out of Romans 12:3-13:
“For by the grace given to me I bid every one among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith which God has assigned him. For as in one body we have many members, and all the members do not have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them: if prophecy, in proportion to our faith; if service, in our serving; he who teaches, in his teaching; he who exhorts, in his exhortation; he who contributes, in liberality; he who gives aid, with zeal; he who does acts of mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with brotherly affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in your hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints, practice hospitality.”
Blessings,
Troy
