Trust and Obey

In Daily Devotional by Tim Pippus

Bible Verse: “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 7:21

Scripture Reading: Matthew 7:21-29

I’ve got a confession to make:

It’s easier to write about helping kids find God’s path than it is to help my own kids find God’s path.

My final reflection for both of us is that we just need to put Jesus’ teaching into practice.

We live in a world where many kids grow up in church and leave their faith.

I’ve walked us through biblical teaching that we must continue articulating and modelling for our kids.

I’ve also pointed to a few areas we frequently neglect.

I’ll finish the week reflecting on Jesus’ poignant conclusion to the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 7.

Jesus didn’t give gold stars for listening and comprehending. He spent a huge amount of His most famous sermon simply inviting people to put His teaching into practice.

What if our homes and churches are known as communities of obedience? What if we spur one another on to love and good deeds (Hebrews 10:24)? What if our game is better than our talk?

Most of my Christian life has been about God graciously showing me the gap between what I say/teach and what I actually do. He has graciously enabled that gap to decrease over time, and I’m experiencing more of His eternal life because of it.

Let’s be people who put His teaching into practice.

Remember the grace of God. He is the Creator and sustainer of all things, the Author and perfecter of our faith, and the perfect Father.

Even more than striving to raise our kids the right way, we must trust the grace of God for ourselves and our kids.

Trust Him to love your kids perfectly.

Trust that He is working out His plans in this (and every!) cultural moment.

Trust that He’ll lead you as you wrestle with how to help your kids find His path.

Trust that He is pursuing each and every person that has walked away from Him.

He’s in charge, He’s good at being God, and our little part is to trust and obey.

Bless you, as you keep seeking to raise the kids of this generation towards Him.

Prayer: Lord, I trust You to lead me and our kids, and I also pray You’ll increase my faith and meet me in my times of unbelief. Help me obey and follow You—for Your glory and all of our good. Amen.

Reflection: Do you relate to the gap between what you know and what you do as a follower of Jesus? Is there one place Jesus is inviting you to trust deeper and/or take a step of obedience?


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About
Tim Pippus
Tim Pippus is an apprentice of Jesus. He's a proud husband to Laura and father to Emily, Abigail, and Elizabeth. Tim has the pleasure of serving Hope For Life as one of it's pastors and delights in both big ideas and very practial discussions of how human beings are formed and changed. He loves hockey, but has an off and on relationship with his Calgary Flames.
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Tim Pippus
Tim Pippus is an apprentice of Jesus. He's a proud husband to Laura and father to Emily, Abigail, and Elizabeth. Tim has the pleasure of serving Hope For Life as one of it's pastors and delights in both big ideas and very practial discussions of how human beings are formed and changed. He loves hockey, but has an off and on relationship with his Calgary Flames.