'Reflection' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring upbefore all the nations.” vs. 11 Isaiah 61:10-62:3 As one year yields to the grim reaper and another eagerly awaits its birth, there is a natural tendency to reflect and predict. We look at the year gone by, consider its triumphs and tragedies, and then make our best…
Daily Devotions
Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice. He prostrated himself at Jesus’ feet and thanked him. And he was a Samaritan.” vss. 15-16 Luke 17:11-19 The ten lepers were not healed instantaneously. Jesus had only told them to go and show themselves to the priests, and it was as they were on the way that healing came. And then only one of them came back to give thanks…
Daily Devotions
I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you.” vss. 23-24 Philippians 1:21-26 While in prison Paul began thinking about death and then shared his reflections in this letter to his friends in Philippi. Knowing that death was not the end and that there would be new life for him in Christ, he wasn’t afraid to die.…
Daily Devotions
and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.” vss. 12-13a 1 Kings 19:11-21 Huddled in his cave, Elijah waited for the Lord to make an appearance. First came a great wind, then an earthquake, and finally a great fire, but the Lord was…
Daily Devotions
At that place he came to a cave, and spent the night there. Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’” vs. 9 1 Kings 19:9-10 Elijah was on the run. Queen Jezebel and the prophets of Baal had forced him to flee for his life and he’d gone south into the desert mountains of the Sinai Peninsula. There in a cave, isolated from his country and kindred, he spent the night,…
Daily Devotions
Now when Jesus heard this, he withdrew from there in a boat to a deserted place by himself. But when the crowds heard it, they followed him on foot from the towns.” vs. 13 Matthew 14:13-14 John the Baptist had been killed while in the custody of King Herod at Machereus, a palace east of the Dead Sea, and it didn’t take long for the news to travel to where Jesus was doing ministry at the north end of the…
Daily Devotions
Ash Wednesday Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.” vs. 1 Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21 For some believers, the season of Lent is a time for serious reflection on faith and its implications for daily living. They cherish the opportunity to retreat from some of their usual distracting activities by adopting one or more disciplines. Often thought of as “giving something up for…
Daily Devotions
We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way…” vss. 3-4 2 Corinthians 5:20b–6:3-10 Paul had been reconciled to God through Christ Jesus, and now, as Christ’s ambassador, he believed that others might be reconciled to God through his ministry. Because of that important calling, he was now determined not to be an obstacle to anyone’s faith. His behavior…
Daily Devotions
The Name of Jesus … and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.” vss. 18-19 Luke 2:17-21 In Luke’s story, Mary treasured the report of the shepherds when they came to see the baby in Bethlehem. Obviously it was good news for her–but it was more than she could comprehend. She needed time for reflection as she pondered their words in her heart.…
Daily Devotions
Then you, together with the Levites and the aliens who reside among you, shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you and to your house.” vs. 11 Deuteronomy 26:1-11 The Israelites, convinced that the God of their ancestors had directed them to cross the Jordan and take possession of the land, codified thanksgiving as a part of their written law. Each year after the harvest they would take a portion of the firstfruits…
Daily Devotions
The descendants are impudent and stubborn. I am sending you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’” vs. 4 Ezekiel 2:3-5 Ezekiel’s call was to be a prophet to the rebellious nation of Israel and he believed that he spoke for God as he addressed them. He wouldn’t be just expressing his opinions in his sermons, he would be the voice of God! That’s an audacious claim, and we can be fairly confident that…
Daily Devotions: July 21, 2019
July 21, 2019 For full passage click: Luke 10:41-42 …“But the Lord answered her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and distracted by many things; there is need of only one thing. Mary has chosen the better part, which will not be taken away from her.’” vss. 41-42 It’s not unusual to be overwhelmed by distractions in our fast-paced world. Tasks and responsibilities related to work and leisure come at us from every direction every day. And always, there’s that cultural…