The Church Calendar today commemorates Apostles Simon and Jude
"Simon is not mentioned by name in the New Testament except on these lists.
Judas (often called Jude in English, but the Greek has Judas) is variously
named, but this is not surprising. Before the Crucifixion, there would be a need
to distinguish him among the apostles from Judas Iscariot, and after the
Crucifixion there would be an additional reason for being emphatic about the
distinction. After the Last Supper it was Jude who asked Our Lord why he
chose to reveal Himself only to the disciples. He received the reply: "If anyone
loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will
come to him and make our home with him." (John 14:22f) [James Kiefer in Oremus]"
What a wonderful promise: God the Father & Son will come to me and abide with me. I can have His presence in my life today. There is a condition: I must regularly obey the Word of the Lord. Why would I do that? Not to have God's presence [or other rewards], but simply because I love the Lord.
Things can go wrong in a Christian's life. There are difficult times and set backs. I did not sleep well last night, my "dreams" were reminding me of some that I have experienced. I am anxious about some of the things planned for today. We often do not have explanations for why we sometimes, regardless of the Lord abiding with us- have troubles, We often do not understand why things are turning out the way they are. If we are Calvinists, believing in the sovereignty of God, it is easy to slide into fatalism or resignation or defeat, and say "What's the use trying to obey God and follow the Bible if this [stufff] happens to me?" It must be His will and for my good. Ugh
Why not give up? Why hang in there? Because, in site of it all, by His grace, I love the Lord. I love Him. So I keep on keepng on to please and obey Him. Simple as that.
[Disclaimer: As regular readers know, I use Oremus.org for my Morning Devotions every day. I do not endorse everything on it. It is an Anglican website and has what some will consider Catholic elements. As with eating fish, you pick out and set aside any "bones" and go on to enjoy the "meat"]
