Renewed Daily

God's Exceptional Choice  Out of Slavery - Into Nationhood The Call of Gideon Live in the light of God (Isaiah 2:5)  2 Corinthians 4:8-18 The Voice 8 We are cracked and chipped from our afflictions on all sides, but we are not crushed by them. We are bewildered at times, but we do not give in to despair. 9 We are persecuted, but we have not been abandoned. We have been knocked down, but we are not destroyed. 10 We always carry around in our bodies the reality of the brutal death and suffering of Jesus. As a result, His resurrection life rises and reveals its wondrous power in our bodies as well. 11 For while we live, we are constantly handed over to death on account of Jesus so that His life may be revealed even in our mortal bodies of flesh. 12 Socontinuouslyconstantly at work in us, but life is working in you. 13 We share the same spirit of faith as the one who wrote the psalm, "I believed; therefore I spoke." [a] We also believe, and that belief leads us to acknowledge 14 that the same God who resurrected the Lord Jesus will raise us with Jesus and will usher us all together into His presence. 15 All of this is happening for your good. As grace is spread to the multitudes, there is a growing sound of thanks being uttered by those relishing in the glory of God. 16 So we have no reason to despair. Despite the fact that our outer humanity is falling apart and decaying, our inner humanity is breathing in new life every day. 17 You see, the short-lived pains of this life are creating for us an eternal glory that does not compare to anything we know here. 18 So we do not set our sights on the things we can see with our eyes. All of that is fleeting; it will eventually fade away. Instead, we focus on the things we cannot see, which live on and on. For Reflection Jesus' death is the means to new life for others. Similarly, when believers suffer for others as Jesus did, their suffering is an avenue for God's life to transform situations. As flawed as we are, God uses us for a divine purpose. Not as a puppeteer might, but as a willing confederate. Though we are afflicted, we are not crushed by our flaws. Instead, God resurrects and restores us as God had restored Jesus.  Pray Pray for the courage to be God's confederate in realizing God's kingdom. Pray and rejoice in the new life God breaths into you each day.  Forward to a friend Sign up for our mailing list!