Day 5 - Week 5 - Romans 3:23 - "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

Excuse my absence yesterday - I was with my two sisters and my mother celebrating Mother's 88th birthday!  Isn't that a wonderful blessing that not many daughters get to enjoy?  I've been so blessed with Christian parents.  My sweet Daddy left this earth when he was only 65, he was never anything less than the best Daddy that I can imagine having!  We have been able to enjoy so many extra years with Mother, and have come to realize just what an incredibly strong and faithful woman she is.  She continues to teach me so much about what is and what isn't important...and she has taught me once again that the things that money can buy are of little consequence, and that what is important are the expressions of love we show each other throughout our lives in light of God's love for us.

Traveling on down our Romans Road..."For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."  Falling short---it's the result of our sinfulness.  Sin is what diverts us from the course that God has laid out for us; sin is what delays us in our pursuit of holiness; sin is what stops us from being what God designed us to be.  And we fall short.

"Falling short" carries with it the idea of lacking something...and we are definitely lacking something in comparison to the glory of God.  We will always fall short, but does that mean we quit trying?  That we become satisfied within our sinfulness?  Paul answered that pretty clearly in Romans 6:1-2, "So do you think we should continue sinning so that God will give us even more grace? No! We died to our old sinful lives, so how can we continue living with sin?"  Once we have given our lives to Christ, we can't be comfortable "abiding" in sin...living in a surrounding of sin, or in continual, habitual sin.  That kind of lifestyle will grieve the Holy Spirit within us and will cause us to have unrest and overriding guilt.  The Spirit will not allow us to be comfortable there...thank You God for that!  While we may always fall short, once we accept Jesus Christ as our Savior, the gap between our sinfulness and the glory of God has been bridged.  But what has also happened is that the world has lost it's appeal to us...we now have our eyes on the things above, and hearts that are turned toward His desires should result in lives that come closer to Him and His ideals for us. 

Dear Lord Jesus - give me peace tonight and strength when I wake tomorrow to walk closer to You; to do Your will over mine; and to love as You have loved.  I have sinned...I have fallen short...you alone can bring me into God's glory. Thank You for loving me so much that you are willing to be the bridge for me.  You are my Savior and my Lord - Amen!