In view of all this, make every effort to respond to God’s promises. Supplement your faith with a generous provision of moral excellence, and moral excellence with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with patient endurance, and patient endurance with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love for everyone.

2 Peter 1:5-7

Dear God, I’ve always thought this was a great list, but it’s hard to memorize like I can the Fruits of the Spirit. Maybe if I list it differently. How about if I say, “To build your life, add these things in this order: faith, moral excellence, knowledge, self control, patient endurance, godliness, brotherly affection, and love. I’m assuming by knowledge that Peter meant studying the he scripture available to them at the time which would have been what we now call the Old Testament. But did they have access to those scriptures like we do now? Were they literate as a whole?

Regardless, it is a good list for me to look at. Start with faith and then move to being moral. That seems to be a key. Plenty of people try to portray themselves as being of you, but they never decide to lay down their immorality. That’s too much to turn loose. That would mean denying themselves, taking up your cross and following you.

Father, I could probably do a journal around each of these items, but today I think I will just work on the morality angle. Help me to think about even the small ways in which I might be immoral. Forgive me and help me to embrace the simplicity of a life yielded completely to you.

In Jesus’ name I pray,

Amen