In Peter’s last recorded letter, he emphasizes his passion and conviction to always be reminding believers of the Gospel. It is, in some ways, a pastoral “mission statement” for all leaders to constantly be reminding those in their lives of the important Gospel truths that keep us walking with Jesus daily. We, as believers, can easily become near sighted, losing sight of the bigger, eternal picture. But, as John Owen reminds us, "So much as we see the love of God, so much shall we delight in Him, and no more." And to know God, we must know His Word. We must pray. And we must join in these things with His people.
We live in an incredibly noisy world. Noisier than any other time in human history, and that is by design...some of our Enemy's greatest weapons are distraction and busyness. As Corrrie ten Boom put it, "If the devil can’t make you sin, he’ll make you busy." So how do we counter these weapons? The answer is to start simple and small...to just start building with the tools given to us by our Father: prayer, the Word, and Gospel Community. Around these things we build a trellis designed not to look impressive but simply to support the growth of a living, vibrant vine of relationship with Jesus. This won't happen by accident, though. It takes hard work and training, and a commitment to loving and following He who first loved us!
