So, on Sunday, we talked about the disciples focussed on Jesus dying--everytime he would warn them that he was going to die, he would also tell them he would rise again.  Bu they always seemed to miss that.  They focussed on the process--not the promise.  

And we do that a lot too--complain about the process, and forget about the promise.

BUT there is a flip side.  In Mark 10, James and John wanted a promise--to be on the right and left of Jesus when He entered his Kingdom.  But they didn't understand or want the process.  

That made me think how important both the process and the promise are.  Satan's tempting Jesus was similar--he made the promise without the process.  

Could it be that the process and promise go hand in hand?  Equally important?  Jesus rising from the dead would be less miraculous if had just died without the harshness of the cross.  If had died of starvation, it wouldn't be as profound--and he wouldn't have declared his love.  Without the process, the promise is lessened.  Yet, without the resurrection, the process of the cross would be meaningless.  Jesus wouldn't have conquered the grave.  

So both are necessary.  Let's not focus on one without the other as we walk through life in 2020.  What is the process teaching us--is it the right process?  What is the promise--are we trying to skip the  process?  I suspect God has something for us in both the promise and the process!

What ways is God teaching you about the process and the promise?

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