"Not on Your Life!"

Charles Blondin, whose real name was Jean François Gravelet, was a French acrobat who first walked a tightrope 1100 feet across Niagara Falls in 1859. He performed this feat many more times. More than once he walked across the falls while carrying his manager, Harry Colcord, on his back. After one such trip he said to a man in the crowd, “Do you believe I could do that with you?” 

The man answered, “Yes, I’ve just seen you do it.” 

“Well, then,” Blondin said, “Hop on and I’ll carry you across.” 

But the man replied, “Not on your life.” 

Saving faith goes beyond mere mental assent that affirms certain statements as true. Faith must also involve the consent of our will. We must trust in Christ.

from High Calling, published by the Francis Asbury Society, March - April issue 2022

Good Works in Secret

Robert E. Boertien (Oregon, USA) writes (in an Upper Room devotional):

"I volunteer with an organization that provides meals to people in need. One day when I delivered a meal to Tom, I noticed a repairman approaching the home next door.

I learned that Tom had secretly paid to have his neighbor’s broken hot water heater replaced, knowing they were unemployed, had young children, and had no funds to cover such a cost. I asked Tom why he didn’t tell the family about his generous act, and he replied, “Because I want the credit to go to the Lord, not me.”

Tom has a variety of health issues and lives with few amenities. He has a strong and abiding faith in Jesus Christ. For me, Tom’s kind act and humility are perfect examples of what it means to be a Christian."

November 30, 2020: https://www.upperroom.org/devotionals/en-2020-11-30

Confession: a Devotion from the Upper Room June 4, 2008

Confession

Read James 5:15-20

When you realize your guilt . . . you shall confess the sin that you have committed.
-Leviticus 5:5 (NRSV)

WE know we are supposed to confess our sins and seek forgiveness. But imagine finding not a forgiving God but a judge who is about to sentence us to life in prison. How would that change our outlook on confession?

The answer to the question is: it doesn't have to. Having accepted Christ into my life six days after my arrest, I stood before the judge knowing that I could not both stand for Christ and lie on the witness stand. So, I confessed and, according to the penalty prescribed by law, was given a life sentence. Confessing was one of the most difficult things I have ever done, but ironically it was also the most rewarding. God took the small faith I had when I told the truth in court and began a work that has sustained me for over 20 years in one of the world's toughest prisons. I do not think this would have been possible had I refused to confess my sin and to live for God.

By confessing our sins before God and people, we also confess our total reliance upon God's grace and mercy. The measure of mercy we receive depends on our willingness to admit our shortcomings. Our reward is a closer, more intimate relationship with the One who someday will judge the world.

Richard Ryan (Ohio, U.S.A.)

Prayer
Lord, help us to lay our sins at the foot of the cross and to humbly seek your face. Grant us your loving mercy. Amen.

Thought for the Day
Even when we fear our sins, we can confess them and find forgiveness

Prayer Focus
For courage to confess our sins

from The Upper Room, June 4, 2008

Faith to Move Mountains, Prayer to Move the Hand of God

“Have faith in God. Amen I tell you that whoever says to this mountain ‘Be raised and thrown into the sea’ and has no doubts in his heart but believes that what he says is happening, it shall be his. So I tell you all what you pray and ask for, trust that you get it and it shall be yours. And when you stand praying forgive if you have anything against anyone so your Father in Heaven may also forgive you your wrongs.” (112)

Jesus in Mark’s gospel, translated by Reynolds Price in Three Gospels.

The video below from the Charlie Rose show features Reynolds Price: