Christian singer TobyMac recently spoke on my podcast about his new album, “The Elements,” and his strong faith. There were three powerful lessons he delivered that are worth pondering as we embark on the day — and prepare to head into the weekend.
Listen below for today’s devotion based on these lessons (and read more below):
Be Intentional
Life sometimes throws us a slew of curveballs. The day-to-day grind can be enough to push us off-track and to lead us away from focusing on gratitude, faith and God’s love. TobyMac explained the importance of waking up every day and being intentional in how we live.
“To me it means waking up every morning and setting your mind on being the person you want to be, the friend you want to be, the spouse you want to me,” Toby said. “I think it’s a recommit every morning.”
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Toby’s right. Here’s some insight from the Bible:
“Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.” -Psalm 25:5 (NIV)
“Lord, be gracious to us; we long for you. Be our strength every morning, our salvation in time of distress.” -Isaiah 33:2 (NIV)
Love Matters
We’re living in an increasingly divided era, but TobyMac stressed the importance of loving one another, and finding community amid the discontent.
“When … tough times come, instead of stepping into community, now it feels like we’re isolating ourselves,” he said. “I do feel like collaboration is tougher sometimes. You have to be a little more brave, but in the end it’s worth it.”
Again, Toby is right. Jesus made it pretty clear that we’re supposed to love God and love others. Here’s Mark 12:28-31 (NIV) with more on that:
One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”
“The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
Be the Person God Wants You to Be
The singer also stressed the importance of diversity, and of being the person God wants you to be. He’s hoping his new music will help his fans along this path.
“Diversity’s a beautiful thing. It enriches our lives … I hope people are inspired to step forward, to move forward,” he said. “[And] to recognize the elements, call them out for what they are and rally to remain the person that they want to be — that God has called them to be.”
I’ll leave you with my full discussion with TobyMac: