Word for the day by Christian Education Forum

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CHOOSE LIFE WITH DISCERNMENT

Genesis 2: 8-25
So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals. But for Adam no suitable helper was found. (Genesis 2:20)
Living is all about relationships, relationship with God and with all God’s creations; there is no living without relationships. It is of divine appointment that we should not live for ourselves and this passage is often used as a basis for family life. At the end of the sixth day of creation God was very pleased and said, ‘it was very good.’ But immediately after this, in the given text, God is saying, ‘It is not good for man to be alone.’ There is a difference in being alone and being lonely. God gives Adam a helper to remove his aloneness and create companionship, for living within the life of the other. This intimacy was lost through man’s disobedience to God. Adam and Eve decided to have discernment, a sense of good and evil, with their own self-centred initiative, overriding the commandment of God and in the process created a God-shaped hole in their life. Jesus Christ came down to fill that hole, which is our faith.
How do we then go about choosing a life with discernment?

Pray ardently: Prayer is the most important step for obtaining this wisdom. In James 1: 5 we read, “If any one of you lacks wisdom, he should ask of God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.” This is exactly what King Solomon did, he prayed, “So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong”(1King 3: 9).Therefore, we must pray continually to God for leading a life with awareness of right and wrong, of insights and good judgement.

Study diligently: St. Paul warned the church leaders at Ephesus about false teachers who would try to infiltrate and destroy their community. “Now I commit you to God and to the word of His grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified” (Act 22: 32).

Share sincerely: Fellowship (koinonia) is essential for attaining maturity; there are elders and priests who walk the faith in our communities who are role models through God’s amazing grace who could help young people and beginners with much needed pastoral care. “Carry each other’s burdens and this way you will fulfil the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2).This law is simply to love one another (2 John 5, 6). The individual soul is developed and nurtured in a social environment, wherein man, living in fellowship with God is also to live in fellowship with community.

Prayer: Dear Lord, Guide us in the deep things of thy heavenly wisdom, and of thy great mercy lead us by thy word and the fellowship of believers unto everlasting life, in the name of Lord Jesus, we pray. Amen.

Dr. Zac Varghese, London





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