Fixed, Centered, and Prepared

 By: Joanne Viola

 

“Therefore, prepare your minds for action, 
keep sober in spirit, 
fix your hope completely on the grace 
to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
(1 Peter 1:13, NASB)

Here Peter begins with the word “therefore.” I once heard it said, when the word “therefore” is used in Scripture, we should see what it is there for.

Peter draws us to realize, or think about, all God has done, therein, lies the “therefore.”

So what is he commanding us to do?

• to prepare our minds for action
• to get rid of anything that gets in the way of us following Jesus
• to know God’s Word and
• to be sober-minded. This means to be morally alert.

We are not going to be ready to face the challenges of this life without our being intentional or deliberate about preparing ourselves.

If we are going to face the battles of life victoriously, we must be controlled by Christ and God’s Word.

“When we center our thoughts on the return of Christ and live accordingly, we escape the many worldly things that would encumber our minds and hinder our spiritual progress.” (from the Wiersbe Study Bible)

May we become a people whose thoughts are fixed on Christ,
are centered on His purposes,
and prepared for the challenges of life.

 

Reflection:
What is hindering you today from further spiritual progress? It’s a good question to ask ourselves.

 

Image by Moshe Harosh from Pixabay