June 30: The grace of God has appeared....

Titus 2:11-12 “The grace of God has appeared, offering salvation to all men. It trains us to reject godless ways and worldly desires and live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age.” (NAB)

“For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age…” (NIV)

“For the grace of God, which can save every man, has now been shown for all men, and it teaches us to have no more to do with godlessness or the desires of this world but to live here and now, responsible, honorable, and God-fearing lives.” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father, 

“The grace of God has appeared”…Hallelujah! It offers salvation to all men and it is here and now. That is the Good News in Jesus Christ. It's your grace and forgiveness because Jesus bore our sins and died for us, and it opens up to us all the riches of heaven, and we can all have this grace if we want it. 

But your grace does more. Here we are told that it “trains” or “teaches” us to reject “godless ways and worldly desires”. The NIV says it teaches us to “say no” to these things. The Phillips says it “teaches us to have no more to do with godlessness and the desires of this world.” Once we experience grace and feel the weight of our sins being lifted, we change. We no longer want to be out of “right relationship” with you ever again. We lost it, we’ve gotten it back, we want to keep it! Grace is such a relief, such a haven of peace, that we don’t want to leave it. 

The salvation we receive is worth so much more than the world’s offerings. As the Holy Spirit moves into us and abides we realize this more and more each day and reject those things that keep us from you. We can’t do this without your grace! But there is a “plus” side to this verse, also. We not only reject bad, but we embrace good….”live temperately, justly and devoutly”…”live self-controlled, upright, godly lives”…”live here and now responsible, honorable, and God-fearing lives”. If grace doesn't bring about change in our lives, than we don’t really know it or have the Holy Spirit abiding in us. It’s a life-changing process and it is “here and now”. There is evidence of your grace in how we live and interact with others.

 I see the word “justly” in this verse, which we have discussed in previous days. Our actions toward others are always just as well as self-controlled and obedient to your will, if we are in your grace. Thank you for the life changing grace that you offer to all mankind through Jesus Christ! Amen.

June 29: Being completed in holiness...

1 Thessalonians 5:23 “May the God of peace make you perfect in holiness. May he preserve you whole and entire, spirit, soul and body, irreproachable at the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ.” (NAB)

“May God himself, the God of peace, sanctify you through and through. May your whole spirit, soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (NIV)

“May the God of peace make you holy through and through. May you be kept sound in spirit, mind, and body, blameless until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father,

 Paul prays for those he was writing to, but his prayer comes down to us in holy scripture and applies to all of us just as well. He prays that You, our Father, the God of peace, will “make you perfect in holiness”…or “sanctify you through and through….or “make you holy through and through”. Holiness comes from You, the One who is always holy. You wish for us to attain this level of holiness also. Our holiness is to be “completed” or all the way through our being. We are to have a holy spirit, holy soul, holy body, an integrated being with one focus in all things. 

The world tears us in a million directions….it distracts us with busyness, stresses us with multiple worries, tests us with many bodily trials and tribulations. Paul is praying that we can set all that distraction and stress aside and focus every aspect of our life on You. You will take the mundane in our lives and make it holy. You will faithfully do this in us because we love your son, Jesus Christ. His holiness can become our holiness. 

You are addressed as the “God of peace” because this perfectly integrated state of holiness that You wish to created in us is one of peace…perfect peace. No battles going on within us between our will and yours. Our will is to perfectly submit to this sanctifying process that you will bring about in us. 

I keep coming back to verse 24, which should not be separated from 23: “The One who calls you is faithful and he will do it.” Or in the Phillips: “He who calls you is utterly faithful and he will finish what he set out to do.” You have a plan for us. We have done our best to mess it up by our sin, but you sent Jesus Christ to take care of that. Now that we are back in right relationship with you through Jesus Christ, you can finish the plan for us you started. You are not a quitter. You are Omnipotent as well as Holy and faithful! You can and will complete what you “set out to do”. 

We are to offer spirit, soul and body to your sanctifying process as we wait for Christ’s return. Complete me in holiness in all things through your son, Jesus Christ. Thank you, amen.

June 28: Not just an idea or sentiment, but a new life.....

Galatians 5:25 “Since we live by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s lead.” (NAB)

 “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” (KJV)

 “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” (NIV) 

“If our lives are centered in the Spirit, let us be guided by the spirit.” (Phillips)

 “Since this is the kind of life we have chosen, the life of the Spirit, let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives.” (MSG)

 Heavenly Father, 

We are told in verse 16 to “live by the Spirit” and that the Spirit will desire what is contrary to the sinful nature. We are given a list of acts of the sinful nature and we are given a list of the “fruit of the Spirit.” If we are living by the Spirit, we will have this fruit as our character and it will show to others. This is a permanent commitment. Once we accept Jesus as our Savior and the Holy Spirit takes up residence we can’t continue to live a life of sin. The Holy Spirit will convict us of the things that are contrary to our Spirit-filled new life and we won’t desire them any more. We will find instead: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. 

I like The Message translation of the seriousness of this commitment to “live by the Spirit”…”Let us make sure that we do not just hold it as an idea in our heads or a sentiment in our hearts, but work out its implications in every detail of our lives.” It’s not just a “philosophy” or “religion” and it isn’t just a “nice way to live”. It is a deep centered focus on You, our Father, and Jesus Christ, our Savior, and the Holy Spirit within us. “Every detail of our lives” is to be affected….big or small. Every decision is to be “filtered through this Spirit filled teaching of right and wrong. Every action is to be guarded by your will for us. Every thought is to be connected in some way to you, our Father.

 Jesus Christ should be in our thoughts at all times and gratitude and thanks should over-flow from us. Walking in the Spirit is a complete way of life. The Way, shown in Jesus Christ. Guided by the Holy Spirit who abides within us at all times. It is a changed life, a new life, a desired life, an integrated life in all things. Thank you, O lord, for your Holy Spirit and may I walk in the Spirit’s lead in all things, living by the Spirit completely in everything I do. amen

June 27: Doing what is right.....

Proverbs 21:3 “To do what is right and just is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice.” (NAB)

Heavenly Father, 

This verse agrees with 2 others that come to my mind. Micah 6:8 says: “What does the LORD require of you? To act justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.” These are things that you require in all of our “doing”….just actions, loving and merciful actions, and walking humbly with you by obediently following your teaching. 

Psalm 51:14 says: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.” Walking humbly with you comes from an attitude of “broken” heart and spirit. When we acknowledge your supremacy and accept your teaching and your will, we please you more than anything we “do”. The only sacrifice you need or want is our will in tune with yours. Allowing you to be in charge of every part of our life. 

Doing right comes from being in right relationship with you. Acting justly comes from doing what is right. Our relationship with you establishes the pattern of how we live. We love others because you first loved us. We forgive others because you have forgiven us. We share with others because you have given us all we need and more. We learn to want you, more than the things you give us. We want to please you. We want to be accepted by you. We do the things that are right and just in your sight, and we learn to recognize what those things are. 

Your Holy Spirit is present in us and in your scriptures to “teach, rebuke, correct, and train” us (2 Tim 3:16). Doing what is “right and just” is acceptable because it comes from a heart in tune with yours. Sacrifice can come from many motives….some good, some bad. Sacrifice is an attempt to “do” something to earn our place. Jesus is the source of our righteousness. His sacrifice saves us. If we have Jesus, we will think and act justly, righteously through the Holy Spirit’s leading. Teach me your will in all things. Thank you! Amen.

June 26: Like a deer longing for water.....

Psalm 42:1-2 “As the hind longs for the running water, so my soul longs for you, O God. Athirst is my soul for God, the Living God.” (NAB)

“As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the Living God.” (NIV)

Heavenly Father, 

My mind automatically starts singing the song based on these words, when I read them. A beautiful song, a beautiful image. Deer are drawn to the waters that will give them life. Deer thirst for cool, refreshing, life-giving water. But they have to let their guard down to drink. They have to lower their heads to receive the water, making themselves vulnerable to be preyed upon. Their need for water is so great they will take the chance. 

My soul must find this same longing that needs to be quenched. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.” If the thirst is there, then the source of “living water” to quench it will be found, also. Endless water of life. Over-flowing blessings. This psalm is a psalm of longing for your presence. It is the thirst of a depressed soul for its maker. Seeking the Living God. Nothing else will satisfy. Nothing else will last. 

Twice the author of the psalm says: “Put your hope in God for I will yet praise him, my Savior, my God.” No matter how bad life gets, no matter how low or lost we feel, we have living water to return to, to quench our thirst. My Savior, my God! I have hope in the One who never fails me. I will praise you, O LORD, for your goodness! I will praise you, O LORD, for your presence! I will praise you, even when I feel dejected or rejected by the world around me. You are my God, my hope, my stream of living water that satisfies and fills me.

“You alone are my strength, my shield. 

To you alone will my spirit yield. 

You alone are my heart's desire 

And I long to worship you! “

 (“As the Deer” by Martin Nystrom) Thank you! Amen.

June 25: Are you thirsty?.......

Revelations 22:17 “Let him who is thirsty come forward; let all who desire it accept the gift of life giving water.” (NAB) 

“Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.” (NIV)

Heavenly Father,

 “Come”….all who are thirsty are invited. All who see and hear and desire the gifts that Jesus has for us, are offered the free gift of “living water”….”the water of life”. This is eternal life. Ours if we want it. 

This chapter of Revelations and the previous one describe the New Jerusalem and our home in heaven in God’s presence: “The home of God is with men, and he will live among them. They shall be his people and God himself shall be with them, and will wipe away every tear from their eyes. Death shall be no more, and never again shall there be sorrow or crying or pain. For all those former things are past and gone” (21:34). 

Jesus says: “I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the thirsty water without price from the fountain of life” (21:6-7). We need to be thirsty. We need to want to leave this decadent world behind and desire this beautiful new world, this living water, this eternal home with You, our Father, with the Lamb, and with the Holy Spirit. 

Thirst is need. Thirst is craving for what gives life. Thirst is a symptom of dissatisfaction with what we see around us. We have a beautiful world here, but we have tainted it with our presence. We have corrupted it with sin, lust, violence, evil. I enjoy the beauty of this world very much, but cannot go far before finding man’s intrusion upon it and our mark of ruin and decay and spoiling. Sin corrupts all. Death is around each corner. 

I thirst for living water! I thirst for beauty and harmony with You as it was intended! I thirst for all evil to be gone! I thirst to have my own sin and failure and greed and pride and lust and selfishness gone forever. Glory to God in the highest! Peace in your holy presence! Worthy is the Lamb who saves me! Holy, holy, holy is the One above all, who will fill our thirst! Lead me to the Fountain of Life, the Living Water! I’m thirsty, very thirsty! Thank you. Amen.

June 24: Blessed through hearing and obeying....

Luke 11:28 “Rather….blest are they who hear the word of God and keep it.” (NAB)

 “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (NIV)

 “Even more blessed are those who hear God’s word and guard it with their lives.” (MSG)

 “Yes, but a far greater blessing is to hear the word of God and obey it.” (Phillips) 

Heavenly Father,

 Mary, “the mother who gave you birth and nursed you” (vs. 27), was blessed because she obeyed you and accepted her role as Jesus’ mother. Her being chosen to be Jesus’ mother isn't what blessed her, but her obedience to your will. All of us are blessed in the same way. This verse tells us that the greater blessing is for “all who hear the Word of God and obey it.” 

We can’t be blessed until we've listened to your Word. Your Word was spoken in Jesus Christ. To hear Jesus and understand him and desire him is the key to eternal life. If we never come into contact with your Word…Jesus…we can’t even begin to know what blessing is in store for us. Once we hear the Word we must follow it, act on it, obey it, “guard it with their lives” (MSG). The Word is important! The Word changes lives! Jesus came to save us, but it begins with hearing that promise and being willing to give up our sinful lives and allow Jesus to redeem us. 

Being “blessed” is more than just surface happiness. This is deep down life-changing joy. This is a happiness that affects all that we do and that can’t be taken away from us! Even in the face of trials and temptations, this blessed state remains. All is well because all of our life is now resting in Jesus Christ. We are saved, reborn, resurrected in Jesus. 

When we “hunger and thirst” for this state of righteousness and realize that Jesus is the Word we need to hear and obey, then our blessing is assured. You love us and provided a Way home for us. You want us, and make us your sons and daughters, if we love your son and listen to him. Hearing and obeying don’t sound like ways to receive the best blessing, but those 2 things bring us back into perfect relationship with you, our Father. Thank you, always, for loving me! I am blessed in the name of Jesus Christ, Living Word of God! Amen.

June 23: Be perfect.....

Matthew 5:48 “In a word, you must be made perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” (NAB)

 “Be perfect, therefore, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” (NIV)

 “You will be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” (Phillips)

 (vs. 44) “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.”

Heavenly Father,

 “You must be perfect”. Trying isn't good enough, perfection is required. Measuring our deeds and keeping records isn't good enough. Goodness is a set standard. Only one is good….You, O LORD are good! How can we possibly be good or perfect? How can we reach a godly level of perfection? 

I searched this whole section of scripture trying to tie this verse to something specific. We begin with the Beatitudes and their definition of blessedness. Then we are told to be salt and light to the world…..”That they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” What others see in us must reflect you and bring you praise. Jesus tells us he fulfills the law: ”…whoever practices and teaches these commands will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus is the fulfillment of the law…we are to practice and teach Him. 

Jesus gives examples of extremely obeying the law…surpassing even the Pharisee’s strict views. We don’t get to set limits on your perfect law to fit our desires, we must learn to live the extreme perfect law beyond any limits we can imagine. Your law, your love, your holiness has no limits. 

Verse 44 says: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.” Until it becomes as natural as breathing to love the unlovable, and pray for those who show us hatred, we are not fully your sons and daughters. 

All of this is the salvation we work out. Jesus lived this life. Jesus died to save those who hated him. Until we fully take on Jesus’ character, we are still striving. Jesus must be in us….we’ll never attain perfection any other way. The Holy Spirit must be in us, changing us, producing fruit. We can only be “perfect” as you are perfect, through your Son, Jesus Christ….the Way, the Truth, the Life…the Resurrection. Holy Spirit fill me with my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! Make me perfect in him! Made new, reborn, whole, complete as a daughter of my Father in heaven. Thank you! Amen.

June 22: Chosen to be holy and blameless....

Ephesians 1:4 “God chose us in him before the world began, to be holy and blameless in his sight, to be full of love.” (NAB)

 “For he chose us in him before the creation of the world, to be holy and blameless in his sight.” (NIV)

 “Before the foundations of the world he chose us to be, in Christ, his children, holy and blameless in his sight.” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father, 

You chose us to be holy and blameless, and you chose Jesus Christ, your Son, to be the Way in which this would be assured. When we failed to walk humbly before you and follow your commands, you knew that Jesus Christ would redeem us and bring us back into right relationship with you. You are our Father and we are your children. How fortunate to be part of your family! How blessed to have a Father who never stops loving us! 

Chosen…the word has an aspect of “wanted” in it. We choose something or someone we want. We choose what or who we love. We choose with great care what or who will bring us pleasure. When children are chosen for adoption the perspective parents go to great lengths to ensure success of the adoption for everyone concerned. They want a perfect match, compatibility and blending. Once chosen, they pour out love to seal the match. You chose us. You pour your love upon us at all times. You have done all you can to ensure that our adoption will succeed. 

You had a back up plan from the beginning of time, to make sure that failure was not an option. Jesus Christ has done all that we fail to do. Jesus Christ, the perfect Son, redeems the fallen sons. We become “holy and blameless” in him. He removes our sins, so that we take on the family likeness and blend into your family. Our adoption is a new start. Our adoption is the seal of approval showing we are “chosen”. We are yours. You are our Father. We love you whole-heartedly. We want to be in your family and be called your sons and daughters. We want to live in the love you show us always. Thank you! Amen.

June 21: What does the LORD require.....

Micah 6:8 “You have been told, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: only to do the right and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.” (NAB)

 “He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” (NIV)

Heavenly Father, 

What is good? Verse 8 says: “You have been told…” or “You have been shown…” We shouldn't need to ask this question. You, O LORD, have told us and shown us what is good. You are good. Jesus Christ, your Son is good. Jesus is ”Goodness” spoken as a Word for us to hear. Jesus was born and lived that we might “see” goodness in action. Good is your holiness and righteousness. Good is the way you created us before we chose to sin. Good is perfect harmony with your perfect will.

 The second question here is related to what is good. “What does the LORD require of you?” A holy God cannot abide with sin. We are required to seek “good” by doing these three things: act justly, love mercy, walk humbly with your God. These three things are in harmony with the two great commandments: “Love the Lord you God with all your heart, soul, strength, mind….and your neighbor as yourself.”

 When we love you with all that we are, we walk humbly with you. We recognize your goodness, your supremacy, your authority and position, and humbly submit to your will, knowing that you love us and want what is best for us. We walk beside you, listening, obeying, and rejoicing in your presence. Acting justly and loving mercy are ways we react to our fellow man. We put their concerns equal to or above our own. We love them “as we love ourselves.” Justice and mercy go hand in hand. We want what is right and pleasing to you in all things, but we need mercy and love to bear and share each others burdens. We want everyone to know and love you and walk in harmony with you.

 Jesus brought all of us this opportunity. He showed us your goodness and redeemed us to share in it. We follow him and likewise offer justice and mercy to all we meet so that we all might walk humbly in your presence together. Thank you, LORD, for showing us your goodness in Jesus Christ! Amen.

June 20: What must I do?......

Luke 10: 25 “ Teacher, what must I do to inherit everlasting life?”

Heavenly Father,

 “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself.” The lawyer knew what the law said, yet he asked Jesus, in order to test him, what he needed to “do” to be saved. The law is all about “doing” and “not doing”. To be saved by the law we have to perfectly follow it. 

Jesus replied, “Do this and you will live”. So why didn't the lawyer leave it at that and not go on to ask, “who is my neighbor?” Was he looking for legal loopholes? Looking for an easier way? Did he have a neighbor he didn't love, so he wanted to find an excuse? Or did he just realize that he couldn't really do what the law said, so he was fishing for ways to trip up Jesus and discredit him? 

Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan. I’m sure it irked his listeners to hear a priest and a Levite put in the position of being wrong and a Samaritan shown in the right! The priest and Levite were following “the law”…they couldn't touch an “unclean” person, or they would become “unclean”. Once again the “letter of the law” fails to follow what you intended for us to do. 

Loving our neighbor is seeing their need and doing something about it. Loving our neighbor is not about worrying “who is our neighbor” but about “what is their need and what can I do about it”. The lawyer recognized that the correct answer to Jesus’ question…”which of these 3 was a neighbor to the man who was robbed?”…..could only have one answer: “The one who had mercy on him.” Love is about mercy. 

Being a neighbor is not about boundaries or proximity, but about love. Jesus would personify this merciful love by dying for all of us, taking our punishment, removing our sin…..even though we were undeserving. He didn't have to choose to be our “neighbor” and love us, but he did! We are to do the same. Thank you, O LORD, for loving me! Amen.

June 19: The promise fulfilled...our purpose......

Luke 1:74-75 “We should serve him devoutly and through all our days be holy in his sight.”(NAB)

 “…to enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.” (NIV)

 “…and in his presence should serve him unafraid in holiness and righteousness all our lives.” (Phillips)

 “So we can worship him without a care in the world, made holy before him as long as we live.” (MSG)

Heavenly Father,

 The promise. Zechariah is repeating here the promise you made to Abraham for your people. You would “rescue them” and “enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.” This is what the people were waiting for. This was about the Messiah who was to come. Zechariah was telling them that the time was here and that his son, John would go before the Messiah preaching repentance to get ready. 

The first part of the promise is “rescue”. The Messiah would rescue or save us. Jesus came so that we could be rescued from our sin and death. No more separation from you! No more endless animal sacrifices of repentance. Jesus was to become the one Lamb, the one sacrifice we needed and if we believe in him we are saved…rescued! 

Today’s verse follows with a “purpose” for this rescue. Now we are able to serve and worship you without fear and in holiness and righteousness. No fear because we are assured of your forgiveness through Jesus Christ. Our past is wiped out if we give it to Jesus to wash clean and our future is secure if we follow him in faith. Through him, and only him, are we made holy and righteous. Now we can stand before you because your Son brings us into your presence. No longer wearing the dirty rags of sin, but clothed in robes of holiness and righteousness given to us by Jesus Christ.

 “All our lives”…this is forever! Our rescue, our serving and worshiping in holiness, are not a temporary thing. Once Jesus washes us clean, we stay clean as long as we continue to trust him. Our focus this month is “hungering and thirsting for righteousness”. We have to really want this! The promise is only good if we allow you to complete it in us through faith! We have to believe the promise and recognize that Jesus fulfilled it. Thank you for restoring me and giving me a holy new life for eternity through your Son, Jesus Christ! Amen.

June 18: The seed is the Word of God....

Luke 8:15 “The seed on good ground are those who hear the word in a spirit of openness, retain it, and bear fruit through perseverance.” (NAB)

 “The seed on good ground stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by perseverance produce a crop.” (NIV)

 “The seed sown in good soil means men who hear the message and grasp it with a good and honest heart, and go on steadily producing a good crop.” (Phillips)

 “The seed in good earth…these are the good-hearts who seize the word and hold on no matter what, sticking with it until there’s a harvest.” (MSG)

 Heavenly Father, 

It begins with the seed. “The seed is the Word of God” (Jesus Christ). We are the soil. Some soil is too hard to penetrate. It refuses the seed, won’t allow it to die and grow. These people want some other answer. They don’t want a Savior that dies for them. They are hard-hearted, hard-headed, independent, self-sufficient. 

Some soil is shallow. These people like the idea of a Savior and being saved without any effort on their part. They accept the idea of Jesus as long as life is easy and things go well. But trials and tribulations make them lose their faith, because they never really got to know Jesus. They “accepted” him as their Savior, but didn’t hear his voice in any part of their daily life. Shallow, easily swayed, wishy-washy, apathetic. 

Some soil is full of weeds. These people want a Savior to die for them and welcome the seed, but they don’t take care of it or nurture it so it can grow. They are “too busy”. They have “too much to do and too little time”. They plan to weed their garden “later” when they have taken care of all their other interests and concerns. The world first, Jesus eventually. The seed can’t grow in over-crowded conditions. The seed can’t grow through the jungle of worldliness. The seed must come first and be treasured. 

The good ground of today’s verse is dug deeply to welcome the Word. It is tended every day. It is weeded of distractions. Jesus is welcomed here and honored and nourished. A “good and honest heart” is ready to receive him. His sacrifice is accepted, looked upon with gratitude, shown off with pride to others. This is the jewel of our garden! This is our prized possession and all we care about! These people hear the word, grasp it tightly, and persevere in tending it so it will become a flourishing plant with much fruit.

 Production of your fruit is the harvest of the good soil. Fruit for others. Fruit for more seed with Jesus’ likeness in it. Thank you! Prepare my heart to produce your fruit. Help me hold on to the Word no matter what and care for it. Amen.

June 17: Listen for God's word.....

John 8:47 “Whoever is of God hears every word God speaks.” (NAB)

 “He who belongs to God, hears what God says.” (NIV)

 “The man who is born of God can hear the words of God.” (Phillips)

 “Anyone on God’s side, listens to God’s words.” (MSG)

Heavenly Father, 

Children speak the same language as their parents. If we are your children we will recognize your voice when it speaks to us, just as an infant knows its mother’s voice and cries out for her. We will listen to see what you want to say to us and it will ring of truth. Faith is the filter through which we hear your voice and it lets us understand your words of life.

 If we aren’t in your presence or seeking your call, we will miss hearing it. It requires a stillness, a quietness, away from the world long enough to hear you. Jesus makes it clear in this passage that when we hear him, we hear You. He is the Word spoken so we could see, hear, feel, touch, and follow it. He is your word made visible and understandable. He is your love in action for us to experience and know what forgiveness and grace mean. Jesus died for our sin and arose glorified for us. This was the message. We have a way home to our Father. 

The Holy Spirit interprets this for us in every language so that all can hear and understand it. You speak to all your children clearly. They hear you, they listen to you. We are children, born of our Father, through Jesus Christ, so we hear your words and recognize your voice. It’s important that we listen and not just hear. Listening contains the idea of “paying attention to”. It isn’t just sound, it is instruction. It is important. It is to be obeyed. If we understand it and identify with it, it becomes a “mark” of identification showing that we belong to You. We will speak your language as well as hear it. We are family. Thank you, LORD for speaking a language of love and grace that I can understand in Jesus Christ! Keep my ears tuned to your voice and no other. Amen.

June 16: Go...sell all...then come back....

Mark 10:21 “Go and sell what you have and give to the poor you will then have treasure in heaven. After this come and follow me.” (NAB)

Heavenly Father, 

It isn’t what we do, but what we hold back. This young man was very seriously seeking eternal life and he came to Jesus to get the answer. Obviously he thought Jesus was someone who had the authority to tell him what he needed to do. This is more faith than the Pharisees and religious leaders showed. 

Jesus patiently answers him. Jesus questions why the man calls him “good”…does he truly recognize that his authority is from God, the only source of goodness? Then he asks if the man obeys God’s commandments that were given to Moses for the people. The man says, “yes” he has. I don’t think he was bragging. I think he was seeking deeper knowledge. He was being given a jolt of conscious that said, “something is still missing…find it”. 

Jesus “looked at him and loved him”. This is not the same reaction Jesus usually had with the Pharisees who questioned him, who also claimed to have done all that was commanded of them. The difference is that they thought that was enough. They were neither looking for or expecting the Messiah, and were satisfied with their own success and position and ability to “do”. They didn’t need or seek out Jesus, except to deny who he was. 

The young man sought Jesus for answers and “eternal life”. Jesus loves him and gives him the next step: “Go…sell all…give to the poor.” It won’t matter because your true riches will be in heaven…the eternal life he was seeking. “Then come back and follow me.” The young man went away distressed because he now knew the “secret” …total commitment to Jesus Christ. Get rd of all else first. Strip yourself, so you depend only on him. We all struggle with that one! Worldly goods and self-reliance stand in our way. They are very difficult to give up!

 I think this young man eventually came back to Jesus. Jesus saw his potential. Jesus died for him and I’m betting the man understood that fact after the resurrection if not before! Thank you for teaching us and for giving us a second chance. Amen.

June 15: Throw yourself into God's work with confidence...

1 Corinthians 15:58 “Be steadfast and persevering, my beloved brothers, fully engaged in the work of the Lord. You know that your toil is not in vain when it is done in the Lord.” (NAB)

 “…stand firm, let nothing move you. Always give yourself fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.” (NIV) 

“…stand firm! Let nothing move you as you busy yourselves with the Lord’s work. Be sure that nothing you do for him is ever lost or wasted.” (Phillips)

 “Stand your ground! Don’t hold back. Throw yourself into the work of the master, confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of the effort.” (MSG)

Heavenly Father, 

I feel like you gave me this verse today for the beginning of our VBS tomorrow. “Give yourself fully to the work of the LORD”…throw yourself into the work of the Master.” This VBS isn’t our work, it’s yours. We are doing it to reach children with your message and draw them to you. Your children, your work. We are just the instruments being used to complete this work. We are to “be steadfast and persevering”…”stand firm and let nothing move you”…”stand your ground and don’t hold back”. Our job is to keep at it, don’t quit, move forward. 

The second step is to be “fully engaged”…”give yourself fully”…busy yourselves with”… “throw yourself into the work of the Master.” We have to go at it whole-heartedly knowing it is your work that we are doing. We can’t just play at it part time…this is your work and needs our full attention and commitment. 

The final part of the verse is our goal and also our encouragement. “You know that your toil is not in vain when it is done in the Lord.”(NAB)…. we will succeed because it is done in you not for our own gain, or by our own power. “You know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain (NIV)….we have confidence in you. “Be sure that nothing you do for him is ever lost or wasted” (Phillips)….we must care about the outcome and do our best, so that nothing and no one is lost. If we only go at this half-heartedly or don’t do it “in the Lord”, you can’t use our work. “Confident that nothing you do for him is a waste of time or effort” (MSG). 

 We may not see the plan fully or ever see the results, but you will use and multiply our efforts and our time. We can trust that what we do will have an effect on your kingdom when we do it “in you” and remain faithful and steadfast and persevere. Bless our work and give us hearts fully committed to your work this week and always. Thank you! Amen.

June 14: Put on the new life....

Ephesians 4:24 “You must put on that new man created in God’s image, whose justice and holiness are born of truth.” (NAB)

 “And to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” (NIV)

 “To put on the clean fresh clothes of the new life which was made by God’s design for righteousness and the holiness which is no illusion.” (Phillips)

 “Take on an entirely new way of life…a God-fashioned life, a life renewed from the inside and working itself into your conduct as God accurately reproduces his character in you.” (MSG)

 “…and make you into a new person. You were created to be like God, and so you must please him and be truly holy.” (CEV)

 Heavenly Father, 

This is actually “step #3” of a longer sentence about how our life is transformed by Jesus. 

Step #1 is to “put off the old man or our corrupt sinful nature. We have to shed the old before we can grow into the new. 

Step #2 is changing the “attitude of our mind”….a mental shift…so that we leave the world and its ways behind and move into the light of Jesus Christ. We have to want this new life, think about this new life, and go to the source of this new life to follow and be instructed. Jesus is a Door. On one side is complete darkness. On the other side is complete Light. We can’t stand on the threshold or go back and forth. We need to desire the Light and step through into it….no turning back. 

Step #3 is putting on this new life, like a set of clothes to cover us. I like the image in Phillips of something “clean and fresh”. It should make us smile and inhale deeply the fragrance of the maker, You, the Father. “Created in God’s image”….”made by God’s design”…”a God-fashioned life”. How wonderful to have our new life “tailored” by the Creator just for us…a perfect fit! 

One thought describes this new image from You…”truth”…”no illusion”…”accurately reproduces”. It is from You, it is exactly right, perfectly holy, just and righteous. You didn’t design a flawed life or character. You only know what is holy and righteous. Christ was the representation of this perfect life and will draw us into the same mold if we allow him to. We must abide in him. We must let the Holy Spirit abide in us at all times. Out with the old! Shift mental gears! Put on the new! Rejoice! “Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Thank you, amen.

June 13: Don't grow weary....

2 Thessalonians 3:13 “You must never grow weary of doing what is right”. (NAB)

 “…never tire of doing what is right.” (NIV)

 “…don’t get tired of honest work.” (Phillips)

 “…don’t slack off in doing your duty.” (MSG)

 “…you must never become tired of doing right.” (CEV)

Heavenly Father, 

Idleness, laziness. Paul tells us to keep busy and pay our way in life. The early Christians shared everything…work, money, food, property. Each one had to contribute in some way and not just allow the others to support them while they sat around. Paul is speaking here to those who were not doing their share of the work. This is a good message for those in the Church. It seems like church members often fall into two categories…those who never stop working and those who never start. A small number often do the majority of the work. We sit back and let others do it all with a million excuses for why we don’t help….”I’m too old”…”I’ve done my share in the past”…”I’m not good at that”. 

It’s easy for me to write this because I feel this is one of my worst sins at times. I’ve become lazy. I want someone else to do it. I’m tired. Paul says: “Never tire of doing what is right.” Those words don't mean “always choose right over wrong”. In the context of this passage, it isn’t about right vs. wrong, but about being active vs. inactivity. Paul talks a lot about the need for all parts of the Body of Christ to be busy and active. We are all needed. We need to stop looking at what we don’t want to do, or aren’t good at, and find something that we can do! 

Where does our weariness come from? The world, stress, trying to do it in our own power. Jesus told us to: “take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” We won’t “grow weary of doing what is right” if we are yoked to Jesus. He found his strength in you. He drew power from his close relationship with you, his Father. Prayer is our lifeline, our yoking with our Savior, our learning place, our restoration and renewal at the well of Living Water. Thank you! Amen.

June 12: Your will and purpose complete in us.....

Philippians 2:13 “It is God who, in his good will toward you, begets in you any measure of desire or achievement.” (NAB)

 “It is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” (NIV)

 “For it is God who is at work within you, giving you the will and the power to achieve his purpose.” (Phillips)

 “God is working in you to make you willing and able to obey him.” (CEV) 

“reverent and sensitive” (MSG)

 “fear and trembling” (CEV, NIV, KJV)

 “awe and responsibility” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father, 

This passage is about “working out our salvation”….completing it…learning to live it at all times. We are allowing you, our Father to transform us from the inside out like in yesterday’s passage. The three words that caught my eye immediately were “It is God”. This is about You, your work in us, your power saving us, your love transforming us. It is your purpose and your will that become our goal at all times. You are the one who is working out our salvation within us. The more we know Jesus Christ and understand him and accept his sacrifice, the more grace can change us. 

I chose three different translations on how we should work out our salvation…”reverent and sensitive”….”fear and trembling”….”with a proper sense of awe and responsibility”. This is not a frivolous endeavor. This is serious. We do it in awe or fear or reverence of you, our Father who makes it possible. Only a holy God can make us holy. Only a righteous God can create righteousness in us. We are to be so intent on this transformation that we tremble, are sensitive, accept responsibility for it. We are expectant and willing. You are placing your holy “will and power’ within us to serve your purpose! Wow! That’s quite a responsibility and definitely awesome! 

We are so unworthy! But Jesus died so that we can be worthy. Jesus died so we would have no excuse to remain as we are…sinful, dying creatures out of sync with our Father. “It is God!” You have a purpose! You have a means of accomplishing it! You “will” for this work of salvation to be completed in us. We are open to receive …reverent and responsible, fearful and trembling with expectation! Thank you, O LORD! Father God complete me in accordance with your will! Amen.

June 11: Don't conform, do transform.....

Romans 12:2 “Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, so that you may judge what is God’s will, what is good, pleasing and perfect.” (NAB)

 “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is…his good, pleasing and perfect will.” (NIV)

 “ Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into it’s own mould, but let God re-make you so that your whole attitude of mind is changed. Thus you will prove in practice that the will of God is good, acceptable to him and perfect.” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father, 

Don’t conform, do transform. It sounds like the slogan on a poster. What does it mean? When we “conform” we adapt ourselves to what is around us. When we “transform” we change and become something new and different. This passage begins by telling us that having experienced your grace, we now should respond in worship by offering ourselves as “living sacrifices”. 

What is a “living” sacrifice? Sacrifices are usually dead….a one time offering. I think the Phillips translation captures this “living sacrifice” idea when it says that our transformed selves will “prove in practice” that your will is good. If we “live” as a transformed living sacrifice offered to you in all we think and do, we will prove it by our actions. This fits with the idea of crucifying “self” daily…taking up the cross of obedience…and following Jesus Christ. Jesus didn’t just die and it was finished forever…he came back to life, transformed…glorious, renewed, resurrected, reborn! 

We do the same by transforming how we live now. We can’t just adapt to the world…fit in…be a part of our world that looks and acts no different. As transformed Christians we should stand out in any crowd as being “different”, peculiar, out of sync with this world. We can’t do this alone. This verse says we must let You “remake us”…”change the way we think”. It is an inner transformation that the Holy Spirit accomplishes in us. 

Our willingness to be changed in all that is necessary. We want your will to be done in and through us, and this leads to learning to know your perfect, pleasing, good will as we live our daily life. It becomes our nature and shows to others. It isn’t something we just “do” but something we “are”. Transformed by grace! Sons and daughters of our Father! Christ-like! Living breathing sacrifices ready to do your will! Thank you! Amen.

June 10: How to be "filled".....

John 6:35 “I myself am the Bread of Life, no one who comes to me shall ever be hungry.” (NAB)

“I am the Bread of Life. He who comes to me will never go hungry and he who believes in me will never be thirsty.” (NIV)

Heavenly Father, 

The theme for this month is “hunger and thirst for holiness”. In this verse Jesus gives us the solution to our hunger and thirst: “He who comes to me will never go hungry”…”he who believes in me will never be thirsty”. This is where the holiness or righteousness we hunger and thirst for is found…in Jesus Christ. 

Everyone gets hungry and thirsty. Our bodies have to have food and water to live. When we go beyond this human view of hunger and thirst and instead look at our spiritual hunger and thirst, we move from the desires of the world to the desires of kingdom life. We have to feel that same “gotta-have-it” need to find you, a need to have an abiding relationship with our Father, our Creator, that we feel for food and drink. Our life must depend on it! We must feel starved and dried up without it. We must be wasting away and literally dying. 

Life must be sustained and nourished. Our nourishment comes from the life Jesus Christ gives us. He becomes our food and drink. He accented it in his teaching: “I am the Bread of Life”….bread the perfect food to fill us. He promises to give us “living water”…liquid that we can’t live without. He left us a last meal to remind us…bread and wine, representing his body and blood. This meal we call communion reminds us always that our true Life comes through his body and blood crucified and resurrected. 

We become righteous through him. All we have to do is crave it, want it, need it, ask for it! We must “come to him” and be fed and “believe in him” and have our thirst quenched forever. “Never” to be hungry or thirsty again! Sounds impossible? If we abide in him and he abides in us, the food and drink of righteousness are always there! We are filled! We are satisfied! We are saved and have eternal Life! Thank you, Father of all provision for the food and drink of Life, found in your Son, Jesus Christ! Amen.

June 9: New life comes from death....

John 12:24 “I solemnly assure you, unless the grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat. But if it dies, it produces much fruit.” (NAB)

“I tell you truly, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains a single grain of wheat, but if it dies, it brings a good harvest.” (Phillips)

Heavenly Father,

 Death brings life. One seed becomes many. Jesus was the seed that leads to eternal life. Because he was willing to “fall to the earth and die”, new life was able to sprout and grow and produce more seed. He didn’t hang on to what he was…Son of God, Son of Man. He allowed himself to be sacrificed, to die, in order to be resurrected as new life…first fruit of the Kingdom of heaven. Christ died and brought forth a great harvest that increases year after year…all from his one seed. 

Every seed holds life within it. Some lie dormant for many ears. For any seed to reproduce it has to first die of itself. Literally split apart so a new shoot can come out of its husk. Seeds usually require fertile ground, sunlight, rain, good growing conditions. But seeds have a “need” to grow and a great tenacity to do so. Some seeds are triggered to grow only after enduring a forest fire that burns away the parent plants and all else. Seeds often grow in very harsh conditions with barely a toe-hold or crack to send down roots. But you designed each of us to grow somewhere. We all have a need to grow and reproduce, and we have an environment waiting for us to die in and split and produce. You will guarantee the growth if we plant ourselves rather than sitting safely on the shelf. 

A seed alone, unplanted is useless. It doesn’t matter if we contain life within us, if we never produce it. We have to fall and die. Self has to go, be shed, in order for the new plant to grow. Our new plant contains your likeness and our fruit will feed others and eventually produce more seeds…many seeds. Life is there, within us because Christ put it there when his new resurrected life began. Now it’s our turn to die and grow. Help me die to self and grow new life for others! Amen.

(based on John 12:24) 

ONE SEED

“Unless the grain of wheat falls to the ground…..and dies”, 

There shedding its husk of human sin,

 No harvest will be reaped, no fruit will grow 

Only in death will the seed, the victory win. 

A single seed alive is good for naught. 

A single seed unplanted will not grow.

 Its purpose is to lie beneath the earth 

And break apart, so shoots of life can show. 

One Seed in death produced a thousand more. 

One Seed was buried, according to God’s will. 

The harvest from that Seed is full and plentiful 

Because that Seed its purpose did fulfill. 

(7-16-2007 Mary Freeman)

June 8: Asking the right questions will cause Living Water to flow....

John 4:10 “If only you recognized God’s gift and who it is that is asking you for a drink, you would have asked him instead, and he would have given you living water.” (NAB)

 “If you knew what God can give, Jesus said, and if you knew who it is that said ‘Give me a drink’, you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” (Phillips)

 (vs. 14) “Whoever drinks the water I will give him will never be thirsty again. For my gift will become a spring in the man himself, welling up into eternal life.” (Phillips)

 Heavenly Father, 

Jesus asked for a simple drink of water, and the woman begins pointing out the problems between the Jews and the Samaritans! Is this what we do in our Churches today? You merely ask us to “go and make disciples, teaching them…” and we waste a lot of time worrying about which church has the right way to worship, what Bible translation to use, what type of music to have, counting how many people we can lure to our particular “well” to drink. 

Jesus wants to give “living water”…”water that gives life”. It doesn’t matter what building we worship in, what sort of clothes we wear, whether we sit or stand, raise our hands and clap or sit in solemn silence. It doesn’t matter if we say “debtors” or “trespassers”! “If only you recognized God’s gift, and “who it is that is asking you…” We must see Jesus…really see him…and give him whatever he asks us for. We must recognize that he is from You, our Father, a gift of hope and a source of endless living flowing water and eternal life! 

We need to focus our attention on Jesus and what he asks us and what we can ask him. He wants to give us living water…but we have to ask for it! We have to look past the world and the trappings of our denominations and church worship patterns and look at the One who stands before us knocking at our door, asking for water. Until we know “who it is that is asking us for a drink”, we won’t know enough to ask him for so much more! Each time we give a drink to someone else, we give Jesus a drink…he said so! He provides the water of life…his life and blood…we need only pass it on, as we first drink and then share with everyone else.

 His “water” never runs out, but becomes “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Thank you, Jesus, water of eternal life, living water that never ceases to flow to us and through us! Amen.