“They were offended and refused to believe in Him.” Matthew 13:57 NLT
“Remember; if you are walking with God, you are somebody going somewhere; don’t settle for less.”
My thoughts today encourage you, “don’t settle for less.”
People are usually changing in some measure, not always noticeably or quickly, but changing nevertheless. The passing of time, changing circumstances, and life experiences affect changes in you and others more than you might realize at the moment. Often the It is easy to assume that you are the same and others remain the same as they were, when that may not currently be true.
Sometimes the people who once knew you best don’t know you presently as well as they think. That happened to Jesus. He went home, home to Nazareth, where He had grown up and was well known by the villagers and neighbors as “the carpenter’s son” of Joseph and Mary. Read Matthew 13:54-58 NIV. But Jesus did not appear to them to be the same then as when they had known Him earlier. He really was the same as He had always been, just not the same as they had previously known Him. Change is the price of growing and becoming.
There was a single-mindedness and divine purpose that pushed Him on the way. They assumed everything was as it had been, but things were not as they had been and neither was Jesus. What was their reaction? “They were offended and refused to believe in Him.” Matthew 13:57 NLT. Jesus was on a journey toward His destiny.
You also are on a journey to your destiny; your destiny is the calling that God has placed upon your life. Don’t settle for less. Too many will. However wonderful your history, it is not better than the destiny that awaits you. God is at work in you, directing your steps, blessing your efforts, opening and closing doors, relating you to needed friends and companions, and leading you each day. Every step in that direction requires a measure of change – laying aside things that hinder your progress and embracing all that serves the process. People around you may not notice that happening nor necessarily encourage you as it does.
There will likely be reactions – positive or negative. Some rejoice; some react. Some are encouraged by what they see; others may feel threatened, or just confused. Whatever the reaction of others, you must keep moving forward. Read Philippians 3:10-16 NLT/John 1:12 KJV. Some are wrongly content to live in what was comfortable and familiar. Memory lane is a good place to visit, not so great a place to live. Those who do so are compromising their future.
Remember; if you are walking with God, you are somebody going somewhere. Be thankful for those who join the journey, but don’t become discouraged or dissuaded by those who can’t, or who won’t. See 2 Corinthians 5:16-18 NLT.
My prayer for you today is to rise above the offenses that would distract you.