Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:48 (NRSV))
On a recent vacation I took two of my sons to northern New Mexico where we saw many beautiful places and visited a number of historic sites. We also spent one day climbing Wheeler Peak, the highest mountain in the state. I had been exercising and losing weight in anticipation of this great adventure, but I knew that the real challenge was going to be the thin air. Wheeler Peak is 13,160 feet high.
As I slowly made my way up the mountain, I began to think, Am I willing to exert this much effort in my walk with God? Am I as determined to reach the pinnacle of faith as I am to reach the pinnacle of this mountain? Though I had to stop quite often to catch my breath, I made it to the top.
At times I thought about quitting the climb, but I did not entertain those thoughts for long. I had come too far and worked too hard to give up. So, am I that committed to pushing the limits of my love for Christ and my neighbors? I may not be a great mountain climber, but I am trying to be a “spiritual giant.” I want to go as far and as high as Christ will take me, because he is the pioneer and perfecter of my faith. (See Heb. 12:2.)
TODAY'S PRAYER: Dear Lord, help us to give our best efforts in growing our relationship with you. Help us to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Amen.
TODAY'S READING: Philippians 2:1- Therefore, if you have any encouragement for me from your being in union with the Messiah, any comfort flowing from love, any fellowship with me in the Spirit, or any compassion and sympathy, 2 then complete my joy by having a common purpose and a common love, by being one in heart and mind. 3 Do nothing out of rivalry or vanity; but, in humility, regard each other as better than yourselves — 4 look out for each other’s interests and not just for your own.
5 Let your attitude toward one another be governed by your being in union with the Messiah Yeshua:
6 Though he was in the form of God,
he did not regard equality with God
something to be possessed by force.
7 On the contrary, he emptied himself,
in that he took the form of a slave
by becoming like human beings are.
And when he appeared as a human being,
8 he humbled himself still more
by becoming obedient even to death —
death on a stake as a criminal!
9 Therefore God raised him to the highest place
and gave him the name above every name;
10 that in honor of the name given Yeshua,
every knee will bow —
in heaven, on earth and under the earth —
11 and every tongue will acknowledge[Philippians 2:11 Isaiah 45:23]
that Yeshua the Messiah is Adonai —
to the glory of God the Father. (Complete Jewish Bible).
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: How much effort am I giving in my walk with God?
PRAYER FOCUS: Someone trying to lose weight
READ MORE: Link2Life - May 31 by MICHAEL L. FRALEY (TEXAS)
RELATED DEVOTIONALS: QUITE A CLIMB
Sam, Mike, and James Fraley at Mineral Wells State Park in Texas. 
Mike and Sam at the top of Wheeler Peak in New Mexico
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