July 27: JESUS' PLAN FOR SELF-PROMOTION WAS ALWAYS THE SAME: "TELL NO ONE."

Affirmation: Life doesn’t have to be perfect to be beautiful.

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Ponder, Personalize, Practice:  As you ponder and personalize 1John 4:16, be deliberate about practicing love. Know and rely on God’s love. Live in love, and God will live in you. Make this a verse that is part of your daily routine and habits.

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.” 1 John 4:16 NIV~~~~~~~

Reading for Today

Walk in Grace. Live in Love. by Bob Goff

                     July 27

JESUS' PLAN FOR SELF-PROMOTION WAS ALWAYS THE SAME: "TELL NO ONE." 

Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: "See that you don't tell this to anyone." 

MARK 1:43-44 

With the advent of social media came this urge we have to essentially market ourselves. We might not do it intentionally, but friends display unwritten rules on social networks. We're subtly invited to curate only the best moments, and we're given filters and tips to make our pictures look better. We know we're telling a story about ourselves, and we don't want to be misunderstood, so the story reflects only the best. It's a misrepresentation of who we are, and we're misunderstood. 

I'm sure I'm guilty of falling into this kind of innocent misrepresentation too. Since it's the air we breathe as a culture, it's hard to step outside of it and consider another way of interacting. But it might be easier than you think, because Jesus paved the way for us. Whenever He healed people or worked miracles in their lives, He always left them with the same instruction: "Tell no one." The greatest humanitarian of all time had no marketing pitch and no plan to scale His work. He just loved whoever was in front of Him and wanted to make their lives better. That was enough for Him. He didn't need matching hoodies or a name for what He was doing. He knew love already had a name. 

We won't be as concerned about our image if we're more concerned with seeing the image of God in other people. When we love others well, we don't have the energy to worry about what they think of us. If you find yourself wrapped up in trying to present only the best in your life in hopes of winning the approval of other people, dream up a way to make someone else's day the way Jesus would. Here's what He'd do-He would love people with no photos, no expectations, and no announcements. Give that a try today. 

What act of kindness and love will you show someone today without reporting about it on social media?