“If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?  But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired” (1 Corinthians 12:17-18).

Do not worry
about whom the Lord is making you to be. 
Rest in the truth that He is conforming you to be like Him, a child of
God.  Do not worry about who is
what.  Rejoice that the Lord in knitting
together His one church according to His eternal and perfect plan.  Know that in Him, all people are redeemed by
the same grace.  He has placed you in His
fellowship, there to live and grow.

Lord, help me to not get caught up in this world’s idea of
being conformed to the ways of the world. 
Help me realize that You are making me to be whom You have always
intended.  Guide me in Your goodness to
see that in You alone is all hope.  Grant
discernment to see and understand that we each have our part and You will
perfect in each one of us exactly what You have always intended.

Lead me, O
Lord, in the way of truth.  You are the
way, the truth and the life. Help me to keep my eyes focused upon You and not
those around me.  To be caring and
loving, yes, but not distracted from You. 
Help me to learn to rejoice in all the good gifts you give to everyone,
each according to Your grace.  In and
through all things, may I arrive at the place where I can see things through
Your eyes and rejoice in all of Your creation. 
Amen. 

“If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part
of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part of the body.  And if the ear says, “Because I am not an
eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any the less a part
of the body” (1Corithians 12:15-16).

Why do we
look at one another and want conformity? 
“Unless you see things as I do, you are wrong?”  Look at the Lord’s creation and what do you
see?  A great variety and diversity.  Live with what the Lord has given you and do
all you can, for you stand only before Him. 
He is the One who is creating all things for His pleasure.  Abide in the Lord and seek Him above all
things.

Lord, I do judge all day long.  Help me to let go of the desire to take Your
place and rest in the truth that You are the author and finisher of my
faith.  Guide me in Your goodness that I
would now and always turn to You knowing that You are doing for all what needs
to be done.  Let me rejoice in the fact
that there will be only one of me in eternity. 
Let me rejoice in this truth for others.

Lord Jesus,
You have come to lead the way and You have sent Your Spirit to be in me to
guide me.  Help me now and always to
trust in what You are doing.  Teach me to
rejoice in the gifts of others and to not covet.  Guide me in Your goodness to know that You
are authoring my faith and will lead me all the days of my life.  Keep my eyes focused upon You, dear Lord, now
and always.  Amen.

“For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.  For the body is not one member, but many” (1 Corinthians 12:13-14).

All who are in the grace of Christ are the bride of Christ. Yes, we have our denominations, fellowships, and groups, but in the Lord, there is only one. Let this sit upon your heart, for often we are too quick to criticize our brothers and sisters. Let it not be so with you. We are partaking of the one hope and promise which is common to us all. Live in the fellowship of the one holy Church to which you have been called.

Lord, help me to not see my brand as the brand, but as a part of Your church. Guide me according to the Holy Spirit to grow in faith and love knowing that You hold us all accountable to the cross. Guide me in my own life so that I look to You more and more and do not give into the wickedness of this world. Lead me Lord in the way You would have me go that I may now and always abide in Your steadfast love.

Lord Jesus, You have always modeled the role of being a dutiful Son.  Guide me to learn what it means to be a child of God. Help me to recognize that it is You who is building the church. Lead me according to Your goodness to see that in You alone is all hope. May I now and always come to You amidst the troubles of this world and receive Your guidance that what I do may be pleasing to the Father. Amen.

“But one and the same Spirit works all these things,
distributing to each one individually just as He wills.  For even as the body is one and yet has many
members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body,
so also is Christ” (1 Corinthians 12:11-12).

It is the
Lord who is the Savior.  It is the Lord
who works all things together.  Do not
envy what the Lord grants to another, but rejoice that the Lord is working
through those whom He has graced.  We are
called out of the nonsense of this world to the goodness of the Lord.  Wait upon the Lord and He will work through
you that which is pleasing in His sight according to His goodness.

Lord, lead me to turn to You and not the the world.  You have come that we might have life and
have it abundantly.  Be the One who
guides that no other would come puffed up and stir Your sheep in the wrong
direction.  Help each of us to see that
it is You who does all things and that only through You and according to Your
will can any good things come.  Keep our
eyes upon You.

Lord Jesus,
You have sent the Spirit to guide us from the inside out.  Lead me, O Lord, that I may be directed by
You and no other.  Renew my mind and help
me to have the attitude You would have in every situation.  Guide me according to Your purpose.  Help me see that I am gifted for the time and
place according to the Father’s good pleasure. 
In all things, teach me to rejoice that You have overcome the world.  Amen.

“To another faith by the same Spirit, and to another gifts
of healing by the one Spirit, and to another the effecting of miracles, and to
another prophecy, and to another the distinguishing of spirits, to another
various kinds of tongues, and to another the interpretation of tongues” (1
Corinthians 12:10-11).

The Spirit
of God moves where He will and does what needs to be done for the
faithful.  The Spirit works in and
through those who are willing to come into the Christ-life that is granted by
grace.  Come then into the life to which
you were initiated through your baptism that the Spirit may work in you that
which is well pleasing in the Father’s sight.

Holy Spirit, You are with me to guide me in all of my
ways.  Let me not focus upon what You do
but upon the truth that You are working in me. 
Guide me according to Your goodness to see that in You alone is all the
hope we need.  Do as You will, for You
are God and I am called as Your servant. 
Guide me and keep me from the temptation to think that it is the other
way round.

Holy Spirit,
You know what is needed not only for me, but for those who are around me.  Lead me in Your goodness to see that in You
alone is the hope for guiding me and those who live by faith.  Teach me to be willing to submit to Your
prompting that no matter what You choose to do through me I would rejoice and
be glad to be a part of Your kingdom. 
Guide me as I need to be guided and let me give thanks for Your
influence in my life.  Amen.

“But to each one is given the manifestation of the Spirit
for the common good. For to one is given the word of wisdom through the Spirit,
and to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit” (1
Corinthians 12:7-8)

The Holy
Spirit is the One who guides and directs us. Insofar as it helps, use the
guidance of others, but do not make the mistake of thinking that they are the
ones leading. Just as there is One Lord, there is One Spirit who unites us in
the One Lord, Jesus Christ. Come then into the Holy Spirit’s leading and go as
the Spirit leads that You may live into the life to which You have been called
by grace.

This world is filled with ideas about how to live life. We
have teachers and those who guide, but there is only One Spirit who has been
given that we might live in the unity the Lord is creating by grace. Do not
seek after what will tickle your ears, but come as the Spirit leads into the
faith given once for all. The gifts of the Spirit will come as the Lord directs
and according to His will.

There are
many conflicts in my mind and practice. Come Holy Spirit and kindle in me the
heart of Jesus that I would live into the life for which You are directing me. Let
nothing hinder Your guidance in my life that I may now and always abide in the
truth of Your presence and be led by You in all things. May I not live just for
myself, but be led by You in all things to the glory of the Father. Amen.

“And there are varieties of ministries, and the same Lord. There
are varieties of effects, but the same God who works all things in all persons”
(1 Corinthians 12:5-6).

The Lord
created each person according to His purpose. We are not all the same, nor are
we to imagine anything other than that we are to be conformed to the image of
Christ. Do not be deceived, it is the Lord who builds the house. If it is not
the Lord, then it is in vain. Come into the Lord’s presence and be led by the
Holy Spirit that you may live a life that is pleasing to the Lord.

Lord, we so often want to categorize things and make plans. Help
me to return today and every day to You that I may be led as You lead. Guide me
that I may walk in Your purpose and live as You have designed me to live. May I
no longer resist Your direction, but come willingly into Your presence and
dwell with You and You with me. Help me to hear and obey that I would learn to
be faithful.

Lord, guide
me according to Your eternal plan which You have revealed by grace and through
faith. Enlighten me by the power of Your Spirit that I may grow in the grace
You have given me. In all things, may I see that it is You who works all things
together according to Your purpose and live into the life to which You have
called me, doing all this to Your glory. Amen.

“Therefore I make known to you that no one speaking by the
Spirit of God says, “Jesus is accursed”; and no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,”
except by the Holy Spirit. Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same
Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3-4).

The greatest
gift is the awakening that comes as a gift of the Holy Spirit in which one
knows that Jesus is Lord. Those who curse the Lord do not even know whom they
are cursing. Walk in the gift you have received and know that in the Lord alone
is all hope and the fulfilment of His promises. Be guided by the One who saves
and listen as the Spirit speaks.

Lord, You are speaking to me and I am often confused by the
things of this world. Guide me in the way of truth that I may now and always
listen to what You have to say. Lead me in Your goodness and cause my eyes to
be opened to the way of the world which tugs at me to do other than what You
are teaching me. In You alone is the hope for all people and apart from You is
the continued rebellion.

Holy Spirit,
You have awakened me to the truth that You are God and there is no other. You
know my heart, for You have searched it. You know the direction I need to go. Lead
me in the truth of Your word that I may now and always abide in You as You
abide in me. You know the direction I need to go and You have already prepared
the way. Guide me according to Your will to walk as You lead. Amen.

“Now concerning spiritual gifts, brethren, I do not want you to be unaware. You know that when you were pagans, you were led astray to the mute idols, however you were led” (1 Corinthians 12:1-2).

Concerning
how the Holy Spirit works in our lives, we ought not be unaware. The Spirit
moves where it will and always for the sake of all that needs to happen. Walk
in the ways of the Spirit and know that the Lord is always with You. Be guided
by God’s goodness and do not stray back to the ways of the wicked. Live into
the promise which is yours through the grace of Christ.

Holy Spirit, lead me in the ways I should go. Remove from me the hindrances that keep me away from godliness and holiness. Help me now and always to be clear in action and precise in thought. In all things, never let me forget that it is You who must lead me. This world is constantly calling me back to itself. Keep my thoughts and deeds clear and true to the calling You give.

Lord Jesus, You came not only as the One through whom grace is possible, but also as the model of the godly life. Lead me, Lord, according to all that You have taught that I may walk in the light and be guided day by day into the life to which I am being called. Guide me according to the Father’s will to see the foolishness of this world and live for that which lasts. Amen

“The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman caught in
adultery, and having set her in the center of the court, they said to Him,
“Teacher, this woman has been caught in adultery, in the very act.” (John
8:3,4)

We love to
catch others sinning as if it were some kind of novelty rather than the rule of
our sinful existence. We love to lift up the sins we do not commit as the ones
that are especially heinous. Then we love to go to the Lord and show that we
are better because we are not that kind of sinner.

Lord, help me see that any and all sin pits me against You
and, in effect, causes me to nail You to the cross once again. Grant that I
would truly see the travesty in every sin and not get caught up in the game of
separating sins. Help me also have compassion, as You have compassion, on
everyone caught up in sin.

Thank You, Lord
Jesus, for responding to every sin by dying on the cross for us. Help me see
that reconciliation is always better than retaliation. Grant that I would live
into a life that is like Yours in every way, reacting in wisdom to situations
as You do, beginning with today. Grant that I live out compassion and mercy
this day in Your Name. Amen.