Letter of James // Day 7

James 2: 14-26 (day two of two, on Faith V. Works)

How to do Lectio Devina:

Sisters, this is really your time with the Lord. This will be a challenge but so fruitful. There will also be a short reflection. Give this a chance and see where the Lord takes you.

There are a couple of different ways to do this but there is one way that I will point out. This is a simple way to pray. A great resource here is your prayer journal.

1: Read the whole Scripture: James 2: 14-16

2: Reflect on it for a short time (3 min or more) and see if any particular verse stands out to you.

3: Read the verse that stood out to you again.

4: Reflect on it and see if a particular word stands out to you (3 min or more)

5: Reflect on the word and see what the Lord is trying to point out to you.

You can go back and read any verses that you stood out to you and just spend a short time in prayer (silence) and listening to what God wants to point out to you. God will show up. He always does.

Short Reflection

Last post, we talked about how when we have faith, it means there are works to go with it. We need this faith in order to show our works because they go hand in hand. This helps us to live out the gospel.

Our actions show who we are. When we say something and mean it, we display what we firmly believe in. Say someone loves jokes and loves to tell jokes. You can tell because they might have a playful disposition and have already told you a couple of jokes. If someone loves to workout you might see them post something on Facebook about a triathlon they are preparing for or a workout quote that they like. Who we are inside and what we believe in will flow out through our actions in many different ways and even in ways we are unaware of.

This goes hand in hand with our faith. What we believe goes hand in hand with HOW we live. So I recently heard a talk (I know I said this last time too, but I went on a retreat and heard a lot of really good talks!!) and this one was talking about how we take our faith and love for God, and give it to others. Be that to the poor, or on a mission trip, or those around us who don’t know God, but give Him by our actions and acts of love. We can only give this love when Christ fills us in our relationship and prayer with him. When we give to others, we give this love through our imperfections. 

Yes, I said that right, our Imperfections. We don’t have to be fully filled with Jesus and our cups totally filled in order to do his works. We might not think that we are in a place to love or to preach the gospel especially when our prayer isn’t the best or is even non-existent. BUT God is so good and still works through our imperfections and will still use us for his good in his glorious plan if have that desire to let him. God is not bound by our shortcomings.

We should never be afraid of the moments God gives us to do his works. It's needed. We need these works. It shows who we are and it’s apart of our dignity to give who we are.

When we think of saints, we think of their lives; their EXAMPLE of faith. They did something to display their faith. We are all on the path to sainthood. We should also show by our lives who it is that we are living for and who it is that we love.

Sisters, lets take a look at our lives and examine how we live. Would someone know that there was something different about us by how we are living right now? Or if someone could read different parts of the bible, by just thinking about our actions and how we live? I know I have some things to think about and how I can change certain actions to not just say I have faith but to display it.

“Preach the gospel at all times, and when necessary, use words.” –St. Francis of Assisi

Remember, no matter what changes need to be made, you are loved!