CONVERSION

CONVERSION

READ:
2 Corinthians 12:14-21

I will very gladly spend
and be spent for your souls.
-2 Corinthians 12:15

Before my husband and I travel, we go to the bank and trade in our US dollars for the currency of the country we'll be visiting.  We do this so we can pay for expenses while we're away from home.

When we become Christians, another kind of exchange takes place.  Our lives are like currency that we convert from one medium to another.  We trade our old life for a new one so that we can begin "spending"  ourselves in a different kingdom.  Instead of spending ourselves for the causes of this world, we are able to start spending ourselves for the cause of Christ.

The apostle Paul is a good example of this difference.  After his dramatic conversion on the way to Damascus (Acts 9), he began spending his life in a dramatically different way.  Instead of pursuing Christians to imprison and kill them, he began pursuing non-Christians to convert them.  Then he spent the rest of his life for their welfare.  He wrote to the church at Corinth, "I will very gladly spend and be spent for your souls" (2 Corinthians 12:15).  Everything he did was for the edification of his spiritual children (vv. 14, 19).

Conversion is far more than just changing our final destination.  It's changing the way we spend each day of our lives. -Julie Ackerman Link

Lord, help me to spend myself on what will last,
not on what will fade away one day.
I give my life to You that I might spend and be spent
for others and Your will. Amen
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Conversion takes only a moment-
transformation takes a lifetime.

INSIGHT
Paul said that he was planning yet another visit to the church (v.14).  The first was during Paul's second missionary journey when he planted the church (Acts 18:1-18), and then stayed some 18 months teaching them (v.11).  The second visit was a "painful visit" (2 Corinthians 2:1 NIV) because Paul faced strong opposition from fellow believers.

Have a blessed day.
God Our Creator's Love Always
Unity & Peace