Set Apart to Be Set Apart 

 
As you prepare yourself for time with God, let’s ask the Spirit to open our hearts and minds to what He wants to do in us today:  
 
Spirit, speak! Help me to hear You through this time of meditating on Your Word! I need Your presence, Your guidance, and Your provision. And as You speak, give me the strength and courage to obey all that You say. Amen.

 
1 Peter 1:13-19 (NLT)

So prepare your minds for action and exercise self-control. Put all your hope in the gracious salvation that will come to you when Jesus Christ is revealed to the world. So you must live as God’s obedient children. Don’t slip back into your old ways of living to satisfy your own desires. You didn’t know any better then. But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the Scriptures say, “You must be holy because I am holy.”

And remember that the heavenly Father to whom you pray has no favorites. He will judge or reward you according to what you do. So you must live in reverent fear of him during your time here as “temporary residents.” For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And it was not paid with mere gold or silver, which lose their value. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.
 

There is a lot to think on here, but the focus of today’s time with God is the idea that holiness means we have been called “out” of the world’s way of living and thinking, and “into” God’s way of living and thinking. Imagine being transported to a foreign country. In what ways would you need your life to adapt to the new culture and in what ways would you want to hold onto your current traditions?  
 
When God calls His people “out,” it is not by physically leaving the world, but by living by His values, His ways of thinking, and His ways of behaving. How does Jesus’ way of living and thinking differ from our current culture?  
 
Can you identify a specific practice in your life right now that God is calling you “out” of so that He can call you “into” new life?
 
As you reflect on these questions, take your doubts, cares, and concerns to God, asking Him for help. Don’t rush through this; take as much time as you need with God! Here are some thoughts to help get you started:
 
God, show me the ways You want me to live differently in this world.  
 
God, give me the strength to live differently when it’s so very easy to go with the flow.
 
 
If you are interested in doing some more reading on this idea: 
 
1 Peter 1-5
 
John 13-17