Posts from 2020 (Page 18)
Daily Devotions: June 16, 2020
June 16, 2020 Jeremiah 20:11-13 … “But the Lord is with me like a dread warrior; therefore my persecutors will stumble, and they will not prevail. They will be greatly shamed, for they will not succeed. Their eternal dishonor will never be forgotten.” vs. 11 Through the centuries, Prophets have clung to their visions and dreams with a tenacious optimism that could not be extinguished even in the face of intense opposition and persecution. Jeremiah was carried away against his…
Daily Devotions: June 15, 2020
June 15, 2020 Jeremiah 20:7-10 … “For whenever I speak, I must cry out, I must shout, ‘Violence and destruction!’ For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long.” vs. 8 Jeremiah gives us a glimpse of his mindset in today’s passage and he obviously wasn’t enjoying his work as Prophet. The message given him by the Lord sparked resentment in all that heard it, and he was regularly mocked on all…
Daily Devotions: June 14, 2020
June 14, 2020 Matthew 10:1-8 … “These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions: ‘Go nowhere among the Gentiles, and enter no town of the Samaritans, but go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’” vss. 5-6 While Jesus did have occasional encounters with Gentiles during the course of his ministry, and granted their requests for healing, it seems clear from the Gospel record that he considered his call to have been to the house of…
Daily Devotions: June 13, 2020
June 13, 2020 Matthew 9:35-38 … “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” vs. 36 When Jesus began to preach and teach and provide a healing touch for hurting people he was stunned at the response. The crowds were enormous, so much so that he scarcely had time to rest and eat. They came, Matthew says, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a…
Daily Devotions: June 12, 2020
June 12, 2020 Romans 5:6-11 … “But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.” vs. 8 In recent years, there have been many instances when people of color have been killed while in the hands of the police. When that happens we can count on two very different reactions. On the one hand there are loud demands for justice and accountability; sometimes crowds of protesters fill the streets and there…
Daily Devotions: June 11, 2020
June 11, 2020 Romans 5:1-5 … “And not only that, but we also boast in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope…” vss. 3-4 Most of us can’t even begin to imagine what it must have been like for Africans to have been sold into slavery and hauled across the seas to spend their lives in hard labor on American plantations. Not only were beatings and abuse common, husbands, wives, and children…
Daily Devotions: June 10, 2020
June 10, 2020 Psalm 100 … “For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.” vs. 5 It’s easy to be distracted when we’re fed a mind-numbing stream of images, tweets, videos, and memes from every direction nearly every day. We get caught up in the charges and countercharges and are overwhelmed by the sense that evil is ruling in our world and that humanity is doomed. We can’t seem to shake the…
Daily Devotions: June 9, 2020
June 9, 2020 Exodus 19:5-8 … “The people all answered as one: ‘Everything that the Lord has spoken we will do.’ Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord.” vs. 8 According to Exodus, the people were eager to do what the Lord had required of them and willingly vowed their obedience. Of course, we know the rest of the story. Those same people quickly forgot their promise and followed the instincts of their hearts instead. Such has…
Daily Devotions: June 8, 2020
June 8, 2020 Exodus 19:2-4 …“You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” vs. 4 From the Israelites’ perspective, their deliverance from slavery in…
Daily Devotions: June 7, 2020
June 7, 2020 Matthew 28:18-20 [The Great Commission] … “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…” vs. 19 While initially there may have been some followers of Jesus who believed themselves to be the leaders of a reform movement within Judaism, it didn’t take long for the majority to understand themselves as evangelists to the world. By the end of the first…
Daily Devotions: June 6, 2020
June 6, 2020 Matthew 28:16-17 … “Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.” vss. 16-17 Right at the end of his Gospel, after his long account of Jesus’ teaching and ministry, having reported the resurrection and an angel visitation, Matthew says that some of the eleven had doubts. While he doesn’t mention what the doubts were, he does imply that the…
Daily Devotions: June 5, 2020
June 5, 2020 2 Corinthians 13:11-13 … “Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.” vs. 12 Paul closes his letter to the Corinthians by encouraging them to pay attention to his words and to live at peace with one another. In essence, this is his bottom line—he wants this dear little community of believers to experience the love and peace of God in their daily lives. If they do, his heart will be glad! And…