Daily Devotion, September 14, 2020

 

Devotion: Read John 21:1-3.

In Matthew and Mark, Jesus had told the disciples to go to Galilee as he would go ahead and meet them there. Yet it is only in John’s gospel that we learn of this encounter in Galilee. The apostles had indeed gone to Galilee, but they had not yet seen the risen Christ there. What prompted them to go fishing? Perhaps Simon Peter was just bored and decided to go fishing to pass the time. But it is more likely that he was attempting to return to something familiar. This may have been much more than simply a way to pass the night. Peter and a number of the apostles had left commercial fishing as their livelihood in order to follow Jesus. Was this their acknowledgement that it was over, that their “fishing for people” was a failed venture, and now it was time to return to life as they had known it? Peter’s leadership is evident in the group’s getting into the boat and going along, but they caught nothing.

There is a wise expression that “you cannot go home again.” Home changes, life changes, and we change. The apostles were not meant to go back home to that kind of fishing. Jesus changes us, and once we know him, we can never go back to the old life. The apostles would soon learn that their ministry in Christ was just beginning! Personal Worship Option: After major change, we often long to “go home” and return to life as we knew it before the change, but that is not always possible or even good. Pray today for insight into what life after your current changes may be like. Ask God to lead you to new and better things instead of simply placing you back where you were.

Daily Devotion, September 13, 2020

 

Devotion: Read Psalm 137:1-4.

  It is one of the saddest, heart-rending passages in all of the Bible. God’s people had been defeated. Their beloved Jerusalem had been ransacked, the temple destroyed. Many of them were taken captive and marched to Babylon. Their world and lives were forever changed. These words of lament state the depth of their sorrow; they were finding it hard to even sing their favorite songs.

  What carries you through the changes of life? Whether the changes are minor or major, what is it that helps you in those times? For me, one of my primary resources is the songs of our faith. There are so many of them. Lots of old hymns that we sang as I grew up in the church. Then there were praise choruses that were simple, yet contained key points of life with God. And contemporary music for the last thirty years has continued to resource me with songs that help see me through anything that comes my way.

  I can understand why those captives did not want to sing for their captors. Yet I am sure the songs of their faith helped carry them through what they were experiencing. What is it for you? Personal Worship Option: What are the two or three hymns or songs that are vital resources for you when you are going through tough times? Sing them today and give thanks to God for them.

Daily Devotion, September 12, 2020

 

Devotion: Read 1 Corinthians 13:13.

  It’s just one verse, but it has much to offer. The focus of this section of Paul’s letter to the Christians at Corinth is on the love that Jesus Christ lived and taught. To a people who had become divided, Paul stressed that this love was the key to staying united. This whole chapter is devoted to emphasizing that point and defining this love.

  Then comes this verse. There he included two other powerful, life-giving forces: faith and hope. The verse leading into this chapter says “Now eagerly desire the greater gifts. And yet I will show you the most excellent way.” Faith, hope and love are those greater gifts of the most excellent way. They are what remain in life, when all else fails. They are the foundational building blocks of a solid life. They are what will carry you through when all else fails. They are the core of what God provides for us through Jesus Christ.

  Think about the power of those three gifts in your own life. Faith gives you a place to stand when everything changes around you. As the old hymn says “On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.” Hope gives you something to look forward to in the future, a future that belongs to God. And yet, as powerful as those gifts are, love stands out above even them. It is the love of God shown to us in Jesus Christ that will see us through any changes in our life and in our world. It is a love that we are to receive as a gift, then share with everyone we can. Personal Worship Option: Reflect on the effect that faith, hope and love have had on your life. Give thanks to God for these life-giving gifts.

Daily Devotion, September 11, 2020

 

Devotion:

Read John 15:4-9.

No matter what happens in your life, Jesus invites you to remain in him, and more specifically, to remain in his love. In other words, no matter what happens around you and to you, be assured that he loves you. To begin to understand the analogy of the vine and branches is to acknowledge that the vine and branches are not the same. Jesus is the vine and we are the branches. The two are joined together but not one. The common denominator in nature is the sap. The sap is the life of the vine. As the branch draws its life from the vine, so we draw life from Christ. To abide in Christ is to draw upon his life. His love flows from him through us to others. His love is what makes a difference in life.

Personal Worship Option: Count the many ways that God demonstrates his love to you. Share that love with others today.

Daily Devotion, September 10, 2020

 

Devotion: Read Isaiah 43:1-5a.

What reassures you in times of difficulty and hardship? What gives you comfort in the midst of incredible pain? From what source of strength do you draw when suffering is a reality in your life, or when it is inevitable in the days to come? How can you squash the natural feelings of fear, feelings that can so easily consume us? Throughout the Scripture the phrase “fear not” appears 366 times. We are not to fear, for God is with us. In this Isaiah passage, God provides the reason why His children need not fear. They will not be overcome by their situations and circumstances for one reason: God is with them. That is an incredible concept and a precious truth on which to stand.

Christians should take heart. He is with us in every situation, every scary moment, every tear, every pain, and every hardship. He is a God who strengthens, helps, and upholds us. He is a God who transcends time, space, and matter. He is a personal God, who is abundantly able to keep watch of each of us. He not only knows us each by name, but He also calls us by name, for He is the good Shepherd of the sheep, Who gave His life for His little flock. Personal Worship Option: May the truths in this passage hold us during our difficulties and strengthen our practice to cast our fears on Jesus! He is always there for us. Amen.

Daily Devotion, September 9, 2020

 

Devotion: Read Matthew 22:34-40.

In his “The Character of a Methodist” written in 1742, John Wesley writes that the heart of Christianity for him is to “Love God and neighbor.” He continues, “Dost thou love and serve God? It is enough. And neighbors include as Jesus says, neighbors and strangers, friends and enemies.”

These verses seem so simple to read and to hear, but living out these verses with our lives calls us to follow the ways of Jesus more closely and into a deeper walk of faith. We are enabled by the power of the Holy Spirit to “love God with our whole being and to love our neighbor as ourselves.”

We can be sure that anything Jesus asks us to believe and do is reflective of God’s ways already. God’s love unto us is  completely unselfish, self-giving and sacrificial. We rarely can begin to even understand this kind of love.

 

Dr. M. Eugene Boring writes that we understand this love is “God’s nature made known in Christ. It is from this revelatory perspective that we come to know love as unmotivated and unmanipulated, unconditional and unlimited. Such love is not a matter of feeling, which cannot be commanded in any case, but of commitment and action. It is related to the Old Testament word for ‘covenant love’ or ‘steadfast love.’”

We have the example of this kind of love through Jesus. And Jesus teaches us what this kind of love looks like lived in action toward others, as he teaches his disciples, “Forgive seventy times seven, love and pray for your enemies, and if someone asks you to go one mile to go the second mile.”

 

When everything around us is changing, these are truths to which we can anchor our core beliefs, not in words only, but in actions as well. Even when so much changes in your world, keep on “loving God and loving people.” Personal Worship Option:

Loving God, it’s so easy when everything is changing around us to become self-centered. Help us to re-center our lives in You, remember your great love and compassion toward us and to hear your call again to love You and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves. Thank you for loving us and calling us back to you. Only in You do we experience true contentment and peace. Amen.

Daily Devotion, September 8, 2020

 

Devotion: Read Psalm 119:105.

What do you think of when you hear the word “change"? Does it bring about fear, anxiety, uneasiness? Or does it bring excitement, anticipation, readiness, willingness? Does the song “Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes…Ch-ch-Changes”…start to swirl in your mind? In these past few months we have experienced change that has affected every aspect of our lives. Covid-19 and the tornado that hit our area this year have drastically changed us. To make matters worse, we are witnessing division, hatred, and financial woes all around us. What are we to do when the world has become such a dark and scary place? Our only hope to lighten our path is the Word of God. God’s Word gives us direction to help us in every situation we face and every decision we make. It lights our path. Just as we must correct the steering wheel of a car twenty times every minute (so as not to run the vehicle into the ditch), God’s Word steers us down the straight path. Psalm 119:105 gives us a beautiful promise and an eternal truth...that God's Word is a shining lamp to our feet that will guide us through the darkness of this fallen world. Let’s grab that light today and learn of God’s promises. Personal Worship Option: Memorize our passage today and claim its promise for your life. “Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.” Psalm 119:105