'Homeless' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
They were all amazed, and they kept on asking one another, ‘What is this? A new teaching—with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him.’ At once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.” vss. 27-28 Mark 1:25-28 The gospels all report that the casting out of demons was a part of Jesus’ healing ministry. In fact, encounters like the one Mark describes here caught people’s attention and boosted his reputation. We don’t…
Daily Devotions
When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.” vs. 36 Matthew 9:35-38 Jesus had been overwhelmed by the crowds that he encountered as he began his ministry in Galilee. Everywhere he went they flocked to hear his words and be touched by his healing hands, and his heart was filled with compassion. If we’ve ever wondered about our mission as his followers, there really can be no…
Daily Devotions
For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” vs. 6 Hosea 6:4-6 Somehow the people of Israel and Judah had managed to get the Lord’s message all screwed up during their time of prosperity. Their forefathers had developed a sacrificial system that provided times for pilgrimages and offerings. It was a way of giving thanks and praise to the Lord while also atoning for sin. But through the years it had become…
Daily Devotions
Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house…?” vss. 6-7a Isaiah 58:5-9a In the last couple of weeks, authorities have been conducting homeless counts. Volunteers scatter across the Valley and seek out the people living in the streets,…
Daily Devotions
Who is like the Lord our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down on the heavens and the earth? He raises the poor from the dust, and lifts the needy from the ash heap…” vss. 5-7 Psalm 113 The psalmist can scarcely contain himself as he sings a song of praise to the Lord his God, the One who is greater than anything that can even be imagined. In his effort to show just how mighty God…
Daily Devotions
Give justice to the weak and the orphan; maintain the right of the lowly and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.” vss. 3-4 Psalm 82 This psalmist imagines God sitting in the divine council and holding judgment. And from that throne God calls out, “Give justice to the weak…maintain the right of the lowly…rescue the needy.” The psalmist has no doubt about God’s priorities–indeed we hear this refrain throughout scripture,…
Daily Devotions
As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs.” vs. 27 Luke 8:26-31 Many of the homeless who can be seen in the streets of our cities suffer with various forms of mental illness. Some find refuge in shelters but many simply wander, looking for food and begging, and often being a…
Daily Devotions
You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.” vs. 8 John 12:4-8 Judas had weighed in on Mary’s extravagance by cynically suggesting that it would have been better to sell the perfume and give the money to the poor. But Jesus doesn’t bite. Instead he suggests that the poor will always be hanging around, but that his own time is limited. Ironically his words are often repeated by people who see no point in…
Daily Devotions: September 5, 2018
September 5, 2018 Psalm 146:5-10 …“The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow, but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.” vs. 9 While we can find fragments of scripture to support whatever harebrained notions we might choose to hold, when we take the bible as a whole there are certain themes that rise to the top. The psalmist had his finger on one of those underlying principles and wasn’t afraid to let…