At Our Worst

Hi, friends. I'm glad you could join us for today's devotional reading from Our Daily Bread.

It was written by Monica LaRose, and she titled it At Our Worst. She is tolerable, but not handsome enough to tempt me. This sentence, pronounced by Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, is the reason I will never forget that novel and its impact on me. Because after reading that one sentence, I firmly decided I would never like Mr. Darcy.

But I was wrong. Like Austen's character Elizabeth Bennet, I had the humbling experience of slowly and quite reluctantly changing my mind. Like her, I'd been unwilling to know Darcy's character as a whole. I preferred to hang on to my reaction to one of his worst moments. After finishing the novel, I wondered who'd I'd made that same mistake with in the real world.

What friendships had I missed because I wouldn't let go of a snap judgment? At the heart of faith in Jesus is the experience of being seen, loved, and embraced by our Savior at our worst. It's the wonder of realizing we can surrender our old false selves for who we truly are in Christ.

And it's the joy of understanding that we are no longer alone, but part of a family, a body of those learning to walk the way of love, real unconditional love. When we remember what Christ has done for us, how can we not long to see others the way He sees us? Today's Our Daily Bread devotional scripture reading is from Ephesians chapter 4 verses 20 through 32. That, however, is not the way of life you learned when you heard about Christ and were taught in Him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. You were taught with regard to your former way of life to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires, to be made new in the attitude of your minds, and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Therefore, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. In your anger, do not sin. Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.

Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands that they may have something to share with those in need. Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, help us to let go of the impulse to judge others and compare ourselves to them. Help us to understand deeply and personally that we don't need to compete for affection or the esteem of others because we can't be more perfectly loved than we are by you. Thank you, Lord. It's in Jesus' name we pray. Amen.