Unashamed Reading Plan
Check out all the previous Unashamed readings here.
Unashamed Reading Plan | Week 13 | Day 1
Prayer
Ask God to help you focus on Him. Confess any known sin. Thank Him for His forgiveness. Pray for others in your life that they will know and love God today.
Bible Reading: Romans 12:3-5
Read these verses three times slowly.
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body,and each member belongs to all the others.
Reflection & Questions
By Heather Mahoney
One of the most important things we can do as Christ-followers is to have a sober (sane) self-estimate of ourselves.
Culture calls for us to look for ways to stand out from everyone else, not have a sober view of self. How can I make sure my boss notices all the good things I’m doing? How can I make myself look good? When a person lives like this, they find themselves striving to make sure they are seen in the best light. It’s a vicious cycle that leaves us empty. As Christians, we’re called to have a different mindset.
To think with sober judgment means to think accurately about who you are— your strengths and weaknesses, your talents and abilities—but to think of them in line with the gospel. You and I have been given gifts and talents from God to use in the service of the Church, not so we can become conceited. We’re to use them for the good of all. This is what Paul wanted us to think soberly about.
- Take a moment and think about where you’re at right now. Keeping in mind what you have just read and considered: What is a personal implication/application for your life today?
Prayer
Ask God to help you think about yourself rightly, not too high and not too low. Ask Him to help you think accurately about yourself. Remember, your identity is in Christ! In Him, you are valuable and capable of worthy service to the King!
Worship Song
You might use this song today to worship Jesus today:
Bible Reading: Romans 12:3-5
Read these verses three times slowly.
For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.
Reflection & Questions
Have you ever done something really cool, like scored the winning goal in soccer, or played a recital piece flawlessly, or built a robot that did everything you commanded it to do? It’s tough to be humble in a situation like that when we have accomplished something impressive! We start to think that we are pretty great and maybe even compare ourselves to others, thinking we are better than them. We might even look for ways to show off so that people can see just how awesome we are!
In today’s verses, Paul wants us to check ourselves – “do not think of yourself more highly than you ought…” Sounds like he’s asking us to do a real review of who we are: our strengths AND our weaknesses. He’s also asking us to look at our talents and abilities in line with the Bible and how God would want us to use them. Afterall, He’s the one who gave them to us.
So the next time you do something awesome, remind yourself that God is the one who gave you the talent and ability and then thank Him for those gifts. And then think of ways in which you can use those gifts for Him and His church.
- What is a gift that God has given you that you can use in the church?
Pray
Ask God to help you think about who you are as His child. Then ask Him to show you ways that you can use your gifts for Him.
Check out more Bible Reading Plans here.
Questions?
Ed Applegate
