EXPAND TO READ: 1 CORINTHIANS 11 (HCSB)
PERSONAL JOURNAL:
SIN (verse 31): In this verse, You speak of us properly evaluating and judging ourselves. If we perform this correctly, then You have no need to judge us in Heaven. I have failed so much at evaluating myself, Father. Instead, I often find my default to be that of evaluating and judging others far more often than myself. Please forgive me for this selfish way of living out my faith. In essence, I am saying that I am better than others when I am really not. Help me to live in a way that glorifies You by evaluating and judging myself more so than I do others at all times. Help me to be better at pointing the finger at myself instead of others when needed. Give me righteous discernment and wisdom in these matters, so that I may be better at evaluating my own mistakes and shortfalls first and foremost.
PROMISE (verses 31-32): The promise You make us here goes right along with my sin confession, but at the same time it is something I never knew before. Thank You for revealing this amazing promise to me, Father. You promise us that through self-evaluation and self-judgment, we can avoid the Heavenly judgment You will have for us when we arrive at Your footstep. If we truly embrace and perform self-evaluation and self-judgment in this life, then You promise us that those items will not be judged and disciplined by You when the time comes. I know I will have a LOT to atone for when my day of judgment comes, but I hope and pray that I can begin to reduce the list in this life as I move forward in my relationship with You, Father.
ATTITUDE (verses 27-28): I do struggle often with proper self-evaluation and prayer during my feasting moments, but also during the times that I take communion. I do pray before communion, but often it is not a true and full self-evaluation prayer of humiliation like You ask of us here. Help me to embrace an attitude of self-evaluation and humility, Father, so that I may not disgrace my body and You in this life. Help me to be better at honoring and respecting You by ensuring when I do eat and drink I do it in a worthy way by examining myself thoroughly based on what You have put on my heart in the moment.
COMMAND (verse 28): Your command is quite simple yet oh so difficult for someone like me. Quite simply, You command us to be serious and thorough in our self-evaluation prior to partaking in communion. This is difficult for someone like me because I often find it rather difficult at times to point the finger at myself and to point out my own mistakes, flaws, and shortcomings. Help me to be better at this, Father. Illuminate the things in my being that You want me to work on and focus on, but also help me to recognize those as faults that do not glorify You so that I can push aside my pride and selfishness in order to truly evaluate and examine myself.
EXAMPLE (verses 27-30): In this verses, You essentially give us a powerful example of some of the many issues with this world. The main thing You are pointing out has been the general theme You’ve had me write about in my journal today—self-evaluation. Humans in general seem to be pretty horrible at taking a look at ourselves and finding flaws or blame. I know I have been horrible at this for most of my life. Often it has been “someone else’s fault” and couldn’t have possibly been my own fault. This is not the way You expect us to live this life. You expect us to always look internally at ourselves long before any finger-pointing to others is even a consideration. With so many faults of my own, how can I even remotely think I am justified in blaming others or pointing out the flaws of others before I take on my own? Help me to be better with this, Father, so that I no longer point the finger at others. In those moments that I do try to point the fingers at others, please continue to put a mirror in front of my hand so that my finger-pointing is directed right back at myself.
*DAILY NOTE: This has been a very convicting chapter for me, mostly just in the latter few verses. I have struggled so much in my life with finger-pointing instead of self-evaluation and that has essentially been the theme of the last 7 verses in this chapter. Thank You for Your conviction in these matters, Father. I know I will continue to struggle with this here-and-there, but I also know that the more I lean on You in my daily walk, the easier living by Your will and Your commands is for me. Remind me daily, Father, that I have so many faults of my own that I need to work on before I can even consider pointing the finger at the faults of others. Help me to be better at recognizing my own issues so that I may glorify You in the changing of those faults.
EXPAND TO READ: GENERAL NOTE FOR MY QUIET TIMES
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