Bible Challenge – Romans 9

“But the people of Israel, who tried so hard to get right with God by keeping the law, never succeeded. Romans 9:31 (NLT)

It’s easy to think I have to work harder, faster, smarter, to achieve greatness. But when it comes to our relationship with God, we can work harder, faster, and smarter and still miss Him completely.  We may feel pleased with ourselves, we may have even seen some people encounter Christ a long the way, and others may even applaud our efforts, but if we do all of these things and forget the simple act of surrender, we run the risk of missing God ourselves.

For me, sometimes the greatest thing I can do is to stop what I am doing, and focus on what He requires of me, and to rest in His Grace and Mercy. I confess, it’s much easier to want to do things, to work more, to work faster, harder and smarter, because it makes us feel like we are making progress.  It’s much harder for me to sit still and seek the Lord. I have to remind myself not to get so busy doing ministry, that I forget about the person God wants me to be and become. A relationship with God does not come from working harder, faster, smarter, it comes from the solemn surrender of the heart where we admit our sin, believe that Jesus is the Way, repent of the things we have done, we surrender every detail of our lives to Him, and ask Him to be the Lord and Savior of our lives. This is the essence of what it means to be a Christ Follower

Father today, instead of getting caught up in all the things that have to be done, let me be still in spirit knowing that you are Lord and i do these things not to feel better about myself, but to advance your Kingdom, and make your name known. In Jesus Name I pray, Amen

When you read Romans 9 what speaks to you?