[S] 1 Corinthians 9:17 --
17For if I do this voluntarily, I have a reward; but if against my will, I have a stewardship entrusted to me.
[O] Paul refers to his preaching of the gospel here and points out that certain aspects of a Christ-follower's life has no option but to do it whether voluntarily or not -- there is no compromising here. I feel that I'm so used to the customization of this society offers and quickly and easily apply that to my walk with God when it's God who sets the pace and the rules for me to follow. It's not about God being so mean or strict but His nature is such that He is perfect and that means the followers like me also need to abide by His perfect nature and that translates into certain aspects of following Him is not optional or customizable. I just have to do it -- voluntarily when it becomes a joy and until then as a stewardship entrusted to me.
[A] Need to work on missing less of my daily devotions, especially on weekends when there are just too many activities going on (so I should wake up earlier to do this).
[P] Dear God, touch my heart with Your Spirit such that I will spend that time with You not as a stewardship but a joyful volunteering. I've tried a lot of stuff but I give up on all of them because they're just not working completely. I want to totally surrender to Your Spirit's leadership in this area. In Jesus' name. Amen.