Sabotaging God's Plan?

~~~ 1 John 5:14-21 ~~~ Psalm 149 ~~~ John 3:22-30 ~~~

Today we hear from John the Apostle about John the Baptist.

John is speaking to some members of the community
 who had strong doubts; questioning whether Jesus
 was both the Christ and man.
In this letter he has written about God as the light and
the importance of loving one another.
Now we are hearing his closing remarks...his final arguments.

“No one can receive anything except what has been

 given from heaven. 

You yourselves can testify 

that I said that I am not the Christ,

but that I was sent before him. 

He draws our attention to how God sent John the Baptist
 to prepare the way for Jesus.
John the Baptist, from the beginning,
 acknowledges that he is not the Christ.
If we recall John the Baptist leaped in the womb
 of his mother when Mary came to visit.
The intimate relationship between John the Baptist and Jesus
 was established by God from the very beginning.

We know that we belong to God...

When we are connected to God in an intimate personal way
we open ourselves to being used by God.

John was more than willing to be
the messenger preparing the way for Jesus.

It seems this was his main purpose in being alive.

Not discounting our free will, God has a plan
for our lives as well.

How many times have we unintentionally
sabotaged God's plan for our life?

I say unintentionally because we make choices every day
 without including God into the equation.

Knowing that we belong to God
does not insure our decisions will reflect that knowledge.

John closes his letter with words of caution...
Children, be on your guard against idols.

These words are necessary for us to hear even now.
Those who belong to God
have the challenge to act accordingly.

Blessings from God sustain us
in our intention to live
like we belong
to God.

~~~Peace~~~