Roller Coaster

Daily Reading: Mark 8

And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. But turning and seeing his disciples, he rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” (Mark 8.32-33)

Devotional Thought: Peter was on an emotional and spiritual roller coaster.  He was a close student of Jesus, but often failed to pay attention to his teachings.  He proclaimed Jesus as the Son of God, but then he rebuked Jesus!

Is your spiritual journey like a roller coaster?  Sometimes up, sometimes down?  Sometimes hot, sometimes cold?  Do you desire to have a more consistent spiritual walk?  Yes!  But how?  As Jesus indicated to Peter, we need to set our minds on the things of God and not the things of man.

When we set our minds on the things of man, we are prone to push for personal advantage, to take offense, to make comparisons, and to harbor envy.  If, on the other hand, we set our minds on the things of God, we become more like Jesus, denying ourselves, taking up our crosses, and following him.

You may say, "But how can I set my mind on the things of God?  I can't possibly hope to do that!"  Good!  Now you’re coming close to the solution!  In the Old Testament, God foretold, “I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.  And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules” (Ezekiel 36. 26-27).  That's exactly what happened to Peter in Acts 2, on the day of Pentecost.  That's how Peter solved his roller coaster problem.

God himself is the solution to our roller coaster spirituality. Surrender your will completely to God and be filled with the Spirit.

Prayer: Lord, I don't want to be on a spiritual roller coaster.  I want to follow you completely and consistently.  But I cannot do it on my own.  I need you to give me a new heart and fill me with your Spirit.  Amen.

Psalm of the Day: Psalm 6.1-5

1 O Lord, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath.

2 Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am languishing; heal me, O Lord, for my bones are troubled.

3 My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O Lord— how long?

4 Turn, O Lord, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love.

5 For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?