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For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 2 Peter 1:5-7 ESV
Like most fish, the great white shark “breathes” through gills—respiratory organs like our lungs that extract oxygen from water. Unlike most fish (including most other sharks, actually), the great white shark has to keep swimming for water to continually pass over its gills. If it stops swimming, it runs out of oxygen and dies.
Faith is like a great white shark. It has to keep swimming forward lest we run out of spiritual oxygen. As we swim along, we will naturally add practical expressions of faith to our life. Each expression from today’s passage—virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, and brotherly affection—starts with faith, and they all move toward love.
Swimming isn’t always easy. The currents of culture actively flow against faith, tempting us to abandon love and settle for selfishness, pleasure, and ease. If we give in, our faith may as well be dead.
Are you swimming toward love? Is your faith growing in each virtue? Look for ways to express your faith practically, and ask God to help you overcome the currents of this world.
Prayer: Father, swim beside me as I grow in my faith and move toward love.
Like most fish, the great white shark “breathes” through gills—respiratory organs like our lungs that extract oxygen from water. Unlike most fish (including most other sharks, actually), the great white shark has to keep swimming for water to continually pass over its gills. If it stops swimming, it runs out of oxygen and dies.
Faith is like a great white shark. It has to keep swimming forward lest we run out of spiritual oxygen. As we swim along, we will naturally add practical expressions of faith to our life. Each expression from today’s passage—virtue, knowledge, self-control, steadfastness, godliness, and brotherly affection—starts with faith, and they all move toward love.
Swimming isn’t always easy. The currents of culture actively flow against faith, tempting us to abandon love and settle for selfishness, pleasure, and ease. If we give in, our faith may as well be dead.
Are you swimming toward love? Is your faith growing in each virtue? Look for ways to express your faith practically, and ask God to help you overcome the currents of this world.
Prayer: Father, swim beside me as I grow in my faith and move toward love.
