'transformation' Tagged Posts
Daily Devotions
Philippians 3:8-14..“Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” vss. 13-14 Paul knew that no matter how much he had accomplished, he wasn’t yet what he one day would be. It wasn’t that he lacked perfection and somehow had to clean…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 21:28-31.. “Which of the two did the will of his father?’ They said, ‘The first.’ Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I tell you, the tax-collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you.’” vs. 31 When he was challenged by the chief priests and the elders in the temple Jesus told them a little parable about a father who asked his two sons to go work in the vineyard. One says that he will…
Daily Devotions
Psalm 119:33-37..“Lead me in the path of your commandments, for I delight in it. Turn my heart to your decrees, and not to selfish gain.” vss. 35-36 Like most of us the psalmist had a deep desire to walk in the way of righteousness. He knew that this was the way to true delight, and we can relate. It does feel good to lead good and decent lives and we bask in those beautiful, and sadly rare, moments in which…
Daily Devotions
Ezekiel 33:7-11…“So you, mortal, I have made a sentinel for the house of Israel; whenever you hear a word from my mouth, you shall give them warning from me.” vs.7 Ezekiel had been taken to Babylon with the first group of captives in the early 6th century BCE. There he had been called to be a prophet to all those in exile. It was not a good job! Being a prophet seldom is! He understood himself as being compelled to…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 16:24-28…“For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose theirlife for my sake will find it.” vs. 25 While these challenging words of Jesus have sparked countless debates among his followers, they also touch on the essential teachings of all the major religions. Humans know intuitively that the divine spark is the essence of life and that it resides in the heart of every person. Through the centuries authentic spiritual leaders from many…
Daily Devotions
Romans 12:1-2…“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.” vs.2 In recent years countless entrepreneurial types have discovered they can make millions of dollars by using social media to advertise products of various kinds to their followers. They simply take a video of themselves, well made-up and looking beautiful, showing how their life is being…
Daily Devotions
Isaiah 51:1-3…“Listen to me, you that pursue righteousness, you that seek the LORD. Look to the rock from which you were hewn, and to the quarry from which you were dug.” vs. 1 Many people have a strong interest in genealogy and ancestry. They like to trace their national and ethnic origins, and to learn as much as they can about their historical roots. Isaiah encouraged the Israelites to do exactly that as they languished in captivity, and advised them…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 13:31-32…“He put before them another parable: ‘The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field;’” vs. 31 As Jesus taught the people who came to him for refuge, consolation, and healing he regularly used familiar metaphors to describe the kingdom of heaven that was now at hand in his presence. It was a genius way to make the indescribable real. A simple image could open their minds to understand the great…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 13:18-23…“But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty.” vs. 23 We don’t know if Jesus was thinking of himself as he told the parable of the sower, but it is likely that the story reflected his experience in the course of his teaching ministry. And his point in telling…
Daily Devotions
Matthew 13:1-9…“And he told them many things in parables, saying: ‘Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up…’” vss. 3-4 Jesus didn’t lack for crowds in the course of his Galilean ministry. Wherever he went people gathered, and he taught them many things, often in the form of parables. The one about the sower is familiar and shows how he felt about those…
Daily Devotions
Romans 7:21-25a…“Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!” vss. 24-25a Paul had concluded that there was absolutely nothing that he could do to help himself. No matter how hard he tried, no matter what kind of self-talk he used, no matter how many self-help books he read, there was no way he could escape his addiction to sin. It was impossible! And after a…
Daily Devotions
Romans 7:15-20…“I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.” vs. 15 It’s not likely that the Apostle Paul played golf, yet his description of his own actions sounds very much like the lament of an addicted golfer. It’s probably one of the most frustrating sports ever invented, precisely because it mirrors the human experience. Even though we know exactly how life should be lived, we…