Share Life: 40 days of Prayer

Day 13 - March 7, 2007

Ezra 10:1-17

Repentance means to ‘turn around’. Sometimes the meaning of the word is cheapened a bit by articulating it as an invitation to merely ‘think differently’. But as this passage shows, true repentance must always lead to a different way of living, not just a different way of thinking. John the Baptist said the same thing in the New Testament. He told the religious leaders to ‘bring forth fruit in keeping with your repentance’, and then clearly articulated what that would mean in practice. And he was very practical. “Repentance”, John says, “must change your economics, your sexuality, the way you treat friend, foe, family, neighbor. This is an important for us, living as we do at a time in history when we’re tempted to confuse right thinking with right living.

Ask God to show you a practical expression of repentant that’s needed in your own life today – something you need to either begin doing, or something that needs to stop. And then, in obedience to what God has shown you – step forth, bringing forth fruit in keeping with your repentance!

Maybe you’d like to offer, anonymously, some contributions to this entry. What is it that God is showing you, in response to your prayer for clear steps of repentance?

posted by Richard Dahlstrom @ 4:56 PM