make every effort

When I began working remotely from home, I thought I would finally be in a position to take care of all of those “honey do” action items memorialized on my refrigerator door.  Nope!  Even now, I still don’t seem to have enough time to do the things I ought to be doing.  

Peter likewise complained about the lack of time to get things right despite his best efforts.   And, he offers some advice on how to be successful anyway.  In a nutshell, Peter admonishes us to strive to lead an ordered and disciplined life.

2 Peter 1:5-7
5 But also for this very reason, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, to virtue knowledge, 6 to knowledge self-control, to self-control [d]perseverance, to perseverance godliness, 7 to godliness brotherly kindness, and to brotherly kindness love.

Like all great leaders, our ability to organize ourselves despite the chaos of life enables us to obtain success.  Peter advises us to add virtue and diligence to our faith in order to ensure a specific perfect outcome.  

According to the great theologian D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones virtue is defined as vigor or energy/strength.  In order for us to be happy here on earth, we must not only be vigorous in our earthly pursuits, but we must be vigorous in our Christian pursuits.  In fact, if we want to be happy, we must actually pursue God with even more energy and fervor than we use to pursue our careers and material gains.  We must believe (faith) and we must seek God with energy and power. 

When we make every effort to exercise self control, to be just and kind, and charitable to all, we will be rewarded.  

2 Peter 1:8-11
8 For if these things are yours and abound, you will be neither [e]barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 For he who lacks these things is shortsighted, even to blindness, and has forgotten that he was cleansed from his old sins. 10 Therefore, brethren, be even more diligent to make your call and election sure, for if you do these things you will never stumble; 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

God knows that we are not perfect and that we make mistakes even as we strive to serve Him.  God asks that we simply strive to be diligent and disciplined.  If we “make every effort” He will reward us.  It is our effort plus His grace that ensures victory.  

-Be encouraged in 2021,
Simone Butterfly