Category Archives: Daily Devotion

Go-To Scripture

Ordinary Time

February 3, 2022

Scripture Reading:
1 Corinthians 15:1-11

For I handed on to you as of first importance what I in turn had received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. Then he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have died. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to someone untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace towards me has not been in vain.–1 Corinthians 15:3-11

Do you have a go-to scripture that you turn to when you need to be reminded who you are or whose you are? Mine is Psalm 63:1-7. I memorized it years ago from The New English Bible, published in 1961. I now stumble over it when I read it in any other translations. Memorizing allows me to access it immediately, particularly helpful in the middle of the night when I do not want to reach for my phone. I think the first few sentences of the above scripture were Paul’s go-to scripture. It concisely states the story and the purpose of Jesus, the Christ that drew Paul to share Christ’s story and message. The change in Paul’s life was recognizing Jesus as the Messiah. Two thousand plus years later, we still profit from Paul’s mission. Indeed, God calls us to send it forth for generations to come.

If you do not have a go-to scripture, I encourage you to identify one. We can even have more than one. Hebrews 4:12 says, Indeed, the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul from spirit, joints from marrow; it is able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Prayer: Lord, be ever near us through our study of scripture. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Bonds of Love

Ordinary Time

February 2, 2022

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 138:1-3, 7-8

I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
   before the gods I sing your praise;
I bow down towards your holy temple
   and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness;
   for you have exalted your name and your word
   above everything.
On the day I called, you answered me,
   you increased my strength of soul.


Though I walk in the midst of trouble,
   you preserve me against the wrath of my enemies;
you stretch out your hand,
   and your right hand delivers me.
The Lord will fulfill his purpose for me;
   Do not forsake the work of your hands. –Psalm 138:1-3, 7-8

God created all for a purpose, and according to the Psalm above the Lord will fulfill that purpose. I must say I do not envy God’s tasks in that regard. The world works hard at distracting us from our purposes and can even be very destructive. I have stood over the bed of abused children on life supports and tried to understand a mother who held her infant’s feet and bottom in boiling water for what reason I never knew. I cannot fathom that God created these children to suffer in such a manner. Such incidents as these, no doubt, planted the seed of advocacy in my being.

When I was a child we sang, He’s got the whole world in his hands*. Children may have a better grasp of that theology than we adults do. God created an interdependent world that only works well when each of the elements in it fulfills their purposes and do not hinder any other from fulfilling theirs. God tethered those elements together with love. When the bonds of love break, we are all called to restore them by whatever means possible.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when the world distracts and misdirects us, restore our souls and our commitment to love like you. Amen.

*See at https://hymnary.org/text/hes_got_the_whole_world_in_his_hands

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United

Ennui Leads to Destruction

Ordinary Times

February 1, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 6:9-13

And he said, ‘Go and say to this people:
“Keep listening, but do not comprehend;
keep looking, but do not understand.”
Make the mind of this people dull,
   and stop their ears,
   and shut their eyes,
so that they may not look with their eyes,
   and listen with their ears,
and comprehend with their minds,
   and turn and be healed.’
Then I said, ‘How long, O Lord?’ And he said:
‘Until cities lie waste
   without inhabitant,
and houses without people,
   and the land is utterly desolate
until the Lord sends everyone far away,
   and vast is the emptiness in the midst of the land.

Even if a tenth part remains in it,
   it will be burned again,
like a terebinth or an oak
   whose stump remains standing
   when it is felled.’

We are the cause of our own destruction. Fred Craddock, in a sermon I heard years ago, shared his thoughts about ennui—a French word incorporated into the American form of English. It means a feeling of weariness and dissatisfaction: languor or emptiness of spirit*. The essence of Craddock’s message was that God did not create us to live in such a state of being. God called us to lives of wholeness, fulness, and abundance. However, we choose to target our greatest talents and skills in all the wrong directions—greed instead of generosity, self-righteousness replacing justice. José Andrés is an outstanding chef and successful in business. Since starting his relief organization, World Central Kitchen, 10 years ago, Chef José Andrés has helped serve more than 50 million meals to people impacted by natural disasters around the globe, from hurricanes and earthquakes to wildfires and even a volcanic eruption**. We all have seen former president Jimmy Carter building Habitat for Humanity houses always with a smile on his face. Mother Teresa had the tenacity to soar to the top of politics, yet she chose to serve and advocate for the poor. None of these people wallowed in languor or emptiness of spirit. Neither should any of us.

Prayer: Lord, when we find ourselves in despair, open the windows of opportunity that show us the way to fullness of spirit.  Amen.

*https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/en%C2%B7nui

**https://www.shondaland.com/act/a35618726/chef-jose-andres-serves-up-hope-and-a-helping-hand/#:~:text=Since%20starting%20his%20relief%20organization,and%20even%20a%20volcanic%20eruption.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

God’s Messengers

Ordinary Time

January 31, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 6:1-8

In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty; and the hem of his robe filled the temple. Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. And one called to another and said:
‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.’
The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. And I said: ‘Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!’

Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. The seraph touched my mouth with it and said: ‘Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I; send me!’

I stopped to imagine the Seraphs described above and wondered if any artists had attempted to draw it. Most pictures that I found dealt in abstraction, but a couple attempted a likeness. One such picture is featured above. We take for granted today’s flight without pilots having the ability to see where they were going. In the 7th century BC, the idea of sightless flying was most likely tied to the guidance of the Divine.

How does God speak to us today? The Man of La Mancha, musical addresses that question in the second verse of The Impossible Dream,

To right the unrightable wrong
And to love pure and chaste from afar
To try when your arms are to weary
To reach the unreachable star

Our calling is to identify the unrightable wrongs and seek God’s guidance and power to correct them. Isaiah tried to save Israel from its unrightable wrongs as did other prophets and the people stubbornly refused to turn to God’s ways. Time will tell if we follow God or face the consequences if we do not.

Prayer: Lord, let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. (Amos 5:24) Amen.

Second verse of The Impossible Dream by Leigh Mitch / Darion Joseph, The Impossible Dream lyrics © Helena Music Company, Andrew Scott Music, Helena Music Corp. See at https://www.google.com/search?q=the+impossible+dream+lyrics&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS987US987&sxsrf=APq-WBvgCIb1irM5m3aM56we2YigDoqcEA%3A1643579189923&ei=NQf3YdTVN-amqtsPq9CXgAY&oq=right+an+unrightable+wrong&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAEYADIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQsAMQHkoFCDwSATFKBAhBGABKBAhGGABQAFgAYPIZaAFwAXgAgAEAiAEAkgEAmAEAyAEEwAEB&sclient=gws-wiz

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Here Am I Send Me

Ordinary Time

January 30, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 5:1-11

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.’ When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

What do we put first in our lives? What are our priorities? Where does God fall in our plan for our lives? How invested are we in sharing the love of God to the ends of the earth? How hard do we work to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly with God*? If Jesus called us from our work, would we leave everything and follow him?

We are not all called to be full-time pastors, God does call us to be full-time Christ-followers. In fact, being in the world, working, going to school, volunteering gives us opportunities to answer that call in very meaningful ways. We do not have to do everything, but we do need to do something as well as possible to share the love of God with others and to create a world ruled by love.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes to see where you need us most and guide us in following you wherever you call us.  Amen.

*Derived from Micah 6:8

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Called to Serve

January 29, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 5:1-11

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. So they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!’ For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.’ When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

Jesus understood he needed a diversity of disciples to carry out God’s plan for God’s people.  Paul put it this way in Romans 12:1-5, For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another.

I once worked in a hospital that was being rebuilt while conducting its mission. That resulted in the main parking lot’s closure requiring much of the staff to walk several blocks from a temporary lot located in a high crime area at all hours of the day. Most of the janitorial staff were women over 50, many did not have the appropriate clothing for the weather. The elite parking places near the entrance of the building were reserved for doctors, residents, and interns, most, at that time, were males in the prime of their lives. In a staff meeting, the issue of the long, unsafe walk arose. The leaders said the doctors are the most important staff in the hospital. Lives depended on their presence. To which one in attendance replied, “if the surgical theater was not spotlessly clean, the work of a surgeon could be meaningless.” There was silence and finally the comment “we will look into it.” That same week two vans began picking up and returning employees to the distant parking lot on a regular schedule.

God created an interdependent world where everyone has a purpose and is needed to fulfill God’s vision of God’s kingdom here on earth.

Prayer: Lord, enable us each to serve you as you have called us and enable us to work together in shalom. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Learning from Mistakes

Ordinary Time

cycle to reach success: try, fail, try again, success

January 28, 2022

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 2:14-18

Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

It took guts for God to create humans and grant them free will. God could have basked in a Garden-of-Eden world where all things were bright and beautiful, all creatures great and small, all things wise and wonderful, the Lord God made them all*. Why do we suppose God created humans? Did God long for pardners in God’s quest to create a more dynamic world with beings who could also create along with God and spread love and be loved in return? Was God so perplexed by human’s inability to escape the temptations of the world that God needed to understand being human? Through Jesus God experienced being human and learned the test of temptation and God gave us a reboot? With the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ, we gained salvation and grace. We have a loving Creator God who recognized the need for humans to have second chances which we must choose to take and not remain in the cycle of Groundhogs Day**.

They say there’s a universal plan
For every woman, for every man
I do believe there’s a higher power
But in our darkest hour it’s hard to understand
So we start to question, start to doubt
We lose faith in what life’s all about
Why did the right road take the wrong turn
Why did our heart break, why’d we get burned
Just like the seasons there are reasons for the path we take
There are no mistakes
Just lessons to be learned***

Prayer: Lord, give us the guts to learn from our mistakes and take advantage of your second changes until we do not need them anymore. Amen.

*First verse of All Things Bright and Beautiful by Cecil Frances Alexander see at https://hymnary.org/text/each_little_flower_that_opens#Author

**https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Groundhog_Day_(film)

***First verse and chorus to song Lessons to be Learned by Gazeley / Malamet / Rich see at https://www.google.com/search?q=lessons+to+be+learned+barbra+streisand+lyrics&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS987US987&sxsrf=APq-WBvmA1VgseLRLx3vKIfKQuCbR4hQLg%3A1643381883802&ei=ewT0YcWtMPyoqtsP2bq7uA4&oq=Lessons+to+be+learned&gs_lcp=Cgdnd3Mtd2l6EAEYADIHCCMQsAMQJzIHCCMQsAMQJzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIHCAAQRxCwAzIMCC4QyAMQsAMQQxgAMgwILhDIAxCwAxBDGABKBQg8EgExSgQIQRgASgQIRhgAUABYAGC-G2gBcAJ4AIABAIgBAJIBAJgBAMgBC8ABAdoBBAgAGAg&sclient=gws-wiz

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

God’s Abundance

Ordinary Time

January 27, 2022

Scripture Reading: Hebrews 2:14-18

Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

Have we lost the art of empathy and compassion? Are we trading it for self-rightlessness and greed as we are encouraged on every side to think we are better than others, and that others are people we should fear? Franklin Roosevelt cautioned the people caught in the snares of deep depression and drought that the only thing we have to fear is…fear itself.

The Hebrews scripture above tells us that Christ did not come to help angels but flesh and blood people—that is us. Why did we need help? The people of God had training from the beginning in how to live a life that would serve the tests of time. God sent prophets to remind our ancestors in the faith of God’s formula for an abundant life. Yet, many longed for the world’s definition of abundance rather than God’s, and each time, too late, they learned the error of their way.

I suppose we have always had some element of such distractions but today we are surely caught in not only a viral pandemic but also a pandemic of the soul. God’s ways are still out there for us to follow, Christ’s messages are readily available, but are we willing to seek God’s higher ground?

Prayer: Lord, open our lives to living in your abundance. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Restore Our Souls

Ordinary Time

January 26, 2022

Scripture Reading: Psalm 84

For a day in your courts is better
   than a thousand elsewhere.
I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God
   than live in the tents of wickedness.
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
   he bestows favor and honor.
No good thing does the Lord withhold
   from those who walk uprightly.
O Lord of hosts,
   happy is everyone who trusts in you. –Psalm 84:10-12

The Lord is brighter than the sun and more protective than the strongest shield. Envision a group of people waiting on a hillside for the sun to come over the horizon. A wonderful explosion of color surrounds it until it rises high enough and becomes so bright one cannot look at it without the help of sunglasses.

 The title of J. B. Phillips’s book, Your God Is Too Small, flashes through my mind when I read scriptures like this one. Scriptures like this give me great hope that God will restore us to wholeness from our wandering ways. I have become very cynical during the COVID pandemic because of our response to it. We seem caught in a web of total denial unable to deal with the reality that is around us. Our self-righteousness may be catching up with us. We have lived in a favored state for so long we forget the blood, sweat, and tears our ancestors experienced creating the privilege we now see as normal. Indeed, to whom much is given, much will be required (Luke 12:48)  We have millions of fellow citizens who do not have enough of the basic needs of life and we have a world full of starving people longing for the people of God to relieve their suffering so that they might too enjoy setting under a rising sun with the protection of God’s love.

Prayer: O Lord God of hosts, hear my prayer;
   give ear, O God of Jacob!
Behold our shield, O God;
  look on the face of your anointed*. Amen.

 All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Rebuilding

Ordinary Time

January 25, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Jeremiah 1:4-10
‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you,
and before you were born I consecrated you;
I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’
Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.’ But the Lord said to me,
‘Do not say, “I am only a boy”;
for you shall go to all to whom I send you,
and you shall speak whatever I command you.
Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you to deliver you
says the Lord.’
Then the Lord put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the Lord said to me,
‘Now I have put my words in your mouth.
See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms,
to pluck up and to pull down,
to destroy and to overthrow,
to build and to plant.’

What in our lives do we need to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow? Those are harsh words of action.  Pluck means to take hold of something and quickly move it from its place. The word pluck reminds me of the unpleasant task of removing the feathers from a dead chicken before it could be cooked. Pulling down probably refers to tearing down a building, destroying means to turn something like a building into ashes, and overthrowing means removing and replacing one in control. However, I do not think these are the concerns of Jeremiah. He is using symbolism to suggest how people need to change and change drastically if they are going to get out of the mess in which they find themselves. We are in such a situation today. We each need to consider what is holding us back from creating the Kingdom God envisioned for us when God sent Jesus, the Christ, to us for the purpose of remolding us to be the people we are totally capable of being. We have moved a long way from that standard, and it will take serious intentional change to live into that vision.

The final phrase, to build and to plant, is our source of hope. Once we clear out the rubble, we can rebuild and plant needs seeds of love.

Prayer: Lord, help us examine ourselves and our communities of faith to find your path and follow it as we rebuild and renew our love and act within it. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.