Stress Test Devotional May 4
May 04, 2024
ROMANS 8:38-39 | 38 For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creations, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
“Let goods and kindred go,
This mortal life also
The body they may kill,
God’s truth abideth still,
His kingdom is forever.”
Undertake a trenchant exercise, Luther bids us. Imagine your life without family or possessions or health. Think forward to your death. Now remember no loss can destroy your citizenship in the forever Kingdom of God. Luther believed all our relationships and resources were a divine gift and responsibility, never to be taken lightly. Our faith is exercised in the midst of family and
vocation. But our security is independent of any earthly tie, it rests solely on the will and provision of the King. Nothing can separate us from the love of God we know in Jesus.
Do Luther’s exercise.
Gracious God,
Thank you for kin and goods, for responsibility and resources and relationships. Help me use them for your kingdom, which is real and lasting, independent of my efforts.
Amen.
