Lenten devotionals from our DS's wife Robbie Craker

Day #4 (Sorry it's posted a day behind, this is intended for Saturday)

At the New Year I began reading a small devotional book entitled The Royal Way of the Cross. I had been looking for my old copy of Streams in the Desert to read, but it wasn’t on the shelf where I thought it should be – instead I found this little book by a 15th century French Priest. Each chapter is a short portion of a letter written to someone under his spiritual direction. It’s very challenging and intriguing. And I’m allowing the Holy Spirit to give direction to any application I need to make from these writings.

Of course it isn’t easy stuff in this book – it’s about the Cross! And remember, the Cross is death! He talks about our love in God being like a stream flowing from Him to us and back again. Whenever we look aside and allow anything to take precedence over our love for God, it is like the stream being diverted. Our love isn’t as deep and swift-moving as it should be – it’s flowing in directions it shouldn’t be and the force is dissipated.

Perhaps this is what Jesus means about loving our father or mother or son or daughter more than Him. We must not let that love be diverted away from Him. Those loves are important, we must love our families and others, but they must live within the stream of our love for God. Then instead of the stream of our love in God being dissipated it will actually be deeper and stronger and more powerful.

Matthew 10:37-39:
"Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

Father, we want to live in the stream of Your love. Please accept the flow of our love back to You. Help us to keep our relationships within the stream of Your love. Amen