Lent 2024 | Day 11

By Janet Nygren
Day 11 (Monday, Feb 26)

As I enter prayer now, I pause to be still; to breathe slowly, to re-center my scattered senses upon the presence of God.¹

Pause and pray.

“If someone else thinks they have reasons to put confidence in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee;  as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for righteousness based on the law, faultless. But whatever were gains to me I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things.”
(Philippians 3:4-8)

Think about it.

This week we will think about reputation, and how it might fit into a J-Curve. From a Jewish perspective, Paul had a lot of strong credentials that gave him a great reputation. Before he knew Jesus, his confidence came from his birthright, and from his zealous pursuit of the law–doing everything he could to be considered righteous. But when he encountered Jesus, Paul reconsidered everything. He began walking the same path of suffering that Jesus did. We see a Repentance J-Curve, as Paul lets go of his reputation (the suffering part of the J-Curve) in order to experience the surpassing worth of knowing Jesus (the resurrection part of the J-Curve). We saw in Philippians 2 that Jesus also let go of his reputation when he left heaven and lived on earth, and was even obedient to death on a cross.

Consider.
Your reputation is essentially how people view you. Like Paul, it can be based on your birthright or your resume, or it might be something else. What aspect of your reputation do you put your confidence in? Another way of thinking about it is what, if it were stripped away from you, would make you feel fearful or ashamed to navigate life? Your ability to figure things out? Your success in life? What your children are like? Your health? Your looks? Your marital status? Something else? Take some time today to pray about it–talk to Jesus honestly about your fears. He understands. He lived here too.

Pause and Pray.

Jesus, help me to trust you more than I trust myself.

“I once sent a dozen of my friends a telegram saying ‘flee at once – all is discovered.’ They all left town immediately.” (Mark Twain)

Notes
Prayer used daily in Lectio365 found at https://www.24-7prayer.com/resource/lectio-365/