Scripture

Our verse for today comes from 1 Samuel 13:14, “But now your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for Himself a man after His own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be commander over His people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you.”

Background

I have two questions. Do you play fantasy football? I do not. As much as I love football, I’m not interested in spending the time to research the players, draft a team, and select which individuals I want to play each weekend. But what is interesting is how much some people are into fantasy football who could care very little about the actual games, or even football in general. In case you don’t know, fantasy football is designed around the concept of choosing the players for your team who can best achieve certain statistics in any particular game. Your ” team ” is a fantasy, merely a collection of individual players who accumulate points for you based on their performances each week. The more yards they gain or more touchdowns they score in their actual games, the more points your fantasy team earns. And if your fantasy team totals more points than your opponent’s fantasy team that week, you win. It’s the average man’s way to manage the best players in the world without having to pay their salaries or deal with their egos.

Application

Now for my second question. Do you play fantasy Christianity? I think I do play that sometimes, but in a different way. In fantasy football, you are the manager. You choose the players and decide who plays each week. But in fantasy Christianity, I’m not the manager, but I seem to act like I am. I’m picking and choosing what to do and not to do. I’m clinging to certain truths, and brushing by others. I’m weighing choices which have already been determined. I’m filled with the Spirit of Jesus, yet He rarely occupies the throne of my heart or my head. In Christianity, there is no fantasy. God is God, and I am His “player.” He chooses, He selects, He sends, to follow, to obey, and to give Him my all. In choosing you and me, He also equipped us in Him. Now is the season to play like He’s called you to play.

Charge

As we seek Him today, let the depth of your belief that God has saved you be just as deep as you live out the life He has called you to live today.

Salvation – Eternal Life in Less Than 150 Words