Today’s Bible reading is Numbers 27 and 2 Peter 1.
Have you ever felt spiritually anemic?
INEFFECTIVE. Little, if any, progress. Spinning your wheels. Knowing you can (and should) do and be more.
UNFRUITFUL. Disengaged. Inactive. Unhealthy. Troubles on the inside that are effecting more and more on the outside.
BLIND. Having lost your way. Struggling to remember what it was like to walk in the light. Wondering if you can ever really be forgiven of your past or enjoy hope in the future.
For the ineffective, unfruitful, and spiritually blind, 2 Peter 1 contains a God-breathed prescription:
Make every effort to supplement your FAITH with VIRTUE, and virtue with KNOWLEDGE, and knowledge with SELF-CONTROL, and self-control with STEADFASTNESS, and steadfastness with GODLINESS, and godliness with BROTHERLY AFFECTION, and brotherly affection with LOVE. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For whoever lacks these qualities is so nearsighted that he is blind, having forgotten that he was cleansed from his former sins. Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Pet 1:5-11)
When essential vitamins and minerals are lacking in our physical diets, the doctor prescribes a supplement.
When our souls are anemic, the Great Physician points us to the essential supplements–the spiritual building blocks of an abundant, joy-filled, vibrant relationship with God.
Faith. Virtue. Knowledge. Self-control. Steadfastness. Godliness. Brotherly affection. Love.
These qualities can be yours. They can be increasing in your heart, for the good of your soul, day by day. That’s a challenge worth focusing on and applying yourself towards this weekend.