August 21 - Ephesians 5:1-2

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Do you reflect on your day and judge yourself as to whether or not you behaved as a Christian and acted in love in everything you did, said, or even posted to your Facebook wall or Twitter?

When I was in high school, I became quite concerned that I was such an awful sinner that I was forgetting things I had done or said and hadn't asked forgiveness for doing (or saying).  So I began a notebook, listing my sins.  Each night when I spent time in prayer, I thought back over the day, tracking each of my interactions. If I remembered something I might have said that could have been misconstrued, or negative and nasty comments I made about someone, I wrote each item down on the page. Things I did which hurt someone or things I avoided that someone needed me to do to support them – I wrote those down.

I eventually had to stop doing this because it was overwhelming. If you believe that you are sinless, just spend a week or two doing this exercise and you will immediately discover that isn't the truth. Or … maybe you are a much nicer person than I ever was.

But, I was horrified at my own behavior. How could I call myself a Christian and still be such a nasty girl? I spent a lot of time in prayer about my actions, asking forgiveness and even more so, asking for help to be better when it came to interacting with others.

Thirty five (plus) years later, I continue to reflect on my interactions throughout the day and find that I am often ashamed of things that I've said or done. I want nothing more than to ‘walk in the way of love,’ every day and I believe that I must be constantly aware of my interaction with people around me so that in me they see love ... God’s love.

This is the offering I can give back to God.