May 4, 2011
Devotion
John 16:33 “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
This morning Martina and I knew that we had a long distance to cover. So we made sure that we got an early start. By 7:15 AM I was pedaling and Martina was leading the way. She had the route planned, we knew how we were going to get to Augusta, Georgia from Statesboro. Martina goes to a lot of effort to find streets that are rural routes because they have less traffic. What she can’t plan, nor can anyone else, is what the conditions of the roads and weather will be. Some of the roads were very rough and some were dirt roads making riding over them very challenging. Some of the roads had rumble strips along the sides so that I could not ride over them. There were lots of hills which are always a challenge to climb. Then we started off with temperatures in the sixties and a light rain. Yuk! But the worst of all was the stiff breeze coming out of the northeast that blew against me all day. Instead of being able to average 14-16 mph speed, I was working hard to maintain a speed of 8-11 mph! I had to work much harder all day today against these conditions to get where I needed to go. The good news, with persistence, discipline and hard work we reached our 81 mile goal, Augusta.
Friends, life is like that for us each day. We have our plans worked out to accomplish certain goals. And then sin happens. It is all around us. It is a part of everything we experience and do. It comes in a thousand different shapes and forms. There is no escaping it. So what do we do, we remember what Jesus did for us on the cross and what Jesus said, “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows, but take heart, because I have overcome the world.” Then with this promise we give our best effort, being persistent, disciplined and working hard. By the grace of God we too will be victorious.
Prayer: Gracious Father, life is hard. Sin makes things so difficult. Help me to rely on your promise, to believe in the victory of the cross, and to not give up. Amen
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