Week 8 | Monday
Monday
Written by Carla Hughes (Lithopolis Campus)
Ephesians 5:21
“Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.”
Growing up, I remember a girl named Ruth in my classes who was always alone and quiet. Her clothes were dirty, and her head was often down. She was never included at recess or a lunch table. And years later, when I saw her at a fast food restaurant, her countenance was the same. I can’t help but wonder what would have happened if someone had seen her, talked to her, and offered friendship? If someone had shown her kindness with a simple kind word?
Culturally, we are all about honoring and serving those who are considered important, successful, or high-ranking such as celebrities or those with wealth or power. But what about the one who is not any of those things? What about the person who is broken by life? Those dealing with addictions, homelessness, or other circumstances?
Submission gets a bad rap from our culture, and yet it is foundational to our relationship with Jesus and to our relationships with people. When you and I surrender, we are voluntarily yielding our will, our desires, and our plans to build or continue relationships with people who are highly recognized and those who are not, in a way that honors God. This is selflessness, not weakness. That yielding is possible because we know and love God and are filled with His Holy Spirit and as a result have a desire to honor Him (revere Him). The result is a willingness to serve and honor others – no matter their status, wealth, or power. When we yield, we are showing selflessness to see and care for people in ways that catch the attention of people and can make them ask why? That is our opportunity to point them to God.
As followers of Jesus, you and I can make the choice daily to willingly submit, knowing that God has a purpose in that submission in our relationship with Him and others. Submission builds relationships. Submission means serving others. Submission reveals the heart of God.
Reflection Questions:
- When the topic of submission arises, what emotions and thoughts come to mind for you? Do those more reflect a worldly or a Biblical perspective on submission?
- In what relationships do you struggle most to practice submission? Why is that?
- What relationship do you need to re-focus to begin practicing submission?
Prayer Prompt:
“God help me to understand and implement more fully your plan for submission in my daily relationships and in my relationship with you. Please show me a relationship I need to begin practicing submission. Help me draw closer to you to have a deeper desire and reverence for you and a heart to serve others.”