Category Archives: Devotional Reading

December 9, 2008 · 6:22 am

Psalm 5

 

1 O Lord, hear me as I pray;
      pay attention to my groaning.
2 Listen to my cry for help, my King and my God,
      for I pray to no one but you.
3 Listen to my voice in the morning, Lord.
      Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.

4 O God, you take no pleasure in wickedness;
      you cannot tolerate the sins of the wicked.
5 Therefore, the proud may not stand in your presence,
      for you hate all who do evil.
6 You will destroy those who tell lies.
      The Lord detests murderers and deceivers.

7 Because of your unfailing love, I can enter your house;
      I will worship at your Temple with deepest awe.
8 Lead me in the right path, O Lord,
      or my enemies will conquer me.
   Make your way plain for me to follow.

9 My enemies cannot speak a truthful word.
      Their deepest desire is to destroy others.
   Their talk is foul, like the stench from an open grave.
      Their tongues are filled with flattery.
10 O God, declare them guilty.
      Let them be caught in their own traps.
   Drive them away because of their many sins,
      for they have rebelled against you.

11 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
      let them sing joyful praises forever.
   Spread your protection over them,
      that all who love your name may be filled with joy.
12 For you bless the godly, O Lord;
      you surround them with your shield of love.

New Living Translation (NLT)

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September 25, 2008 · 9:06 pm

The invisible ingredient

The Kingdom of Heaven is like the yeast a woman used in making bread. Even though she put only a little yeast in three measures of flour, it permeated every part of the dough.       Matt 13:33

So, as members of the Kingdom are we not then to infiltrate and permeate our country and culture like the yeast of the dough in the parable that Jesus told? It seems to me that this is likely the most effective form of spreading the way of the Kingdom.

People living out new ways of relating to co-workers. People wanting their clients to be treated with care and consideration. People acting as if they understand that the people around them are also loved by their Father and carry part of that divine spark that inhabits all of God’s creatures. People taking care of the world around them because God gave it to us to care for.

Maybe it really is the least, the most humble, the followers of Christ who quietly live like this that are the yeast – the invisible but potent ingredient that is essential to making a most excellent loaf of bread. And who can resist a slice of fresh warm bread?

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September 22, 2008 · 1:09 pm

Psalm 119:33-40

Teach me, LORD, the way of your decrees,
       that I may follow it to the end.

Give me understanding, so that I may keep your law
       and obey it with all my heart.

Direct me in the path of your commands,
       for there I find delight.

Turn my heart toward your statutes
       and not toward selfish gain.

Turn my eyes away from worthless things;
       preserve my life according to your word.

Fulfill your promise to your servant,
       so that you may be feared.

Take away the disgrace I dread,
       for your laws are good.

How I long for your precepts!
       In your righteousness preserve my life.

 

Psalm 119:33-40 TNIV

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June 26, 2008 · 5:21 am

Reflecting in this silent place

Reflecting on Teresa of Avila’s writings, The Interior Castle and a quote from someone given to me by one of the spiritual directors here,

“There are places in my heart that I have never been. Lord, sometimes I don’t know myself. I am blessed that you do.”

I get the feeling that there are whole rooms inside me that God wants to open and infuse with his presence. I don’t know what they are or how to go there – yet. I guess if God wants to go there then he knows the door to them. Someone said that these sorts of doors are tricky – they can only be opened from our side, which I think is true to an extent.  However, somehow we have to hear God knocking from the other side, I think, before we realize where the door is located.   Gradually as I open up those inner places to God I believe that I will understand a whole new level of freedom and be closer to really knowing who I am.

So, here in the silence I have been discovering stuff about me and God.  And it is good.

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May 16, 2008 · 1:55 pm

Help

I guess this is a legitimate prayer.  Some days that is all there is energy for. 

And David the psalmist seems to have been accustomed to this too.  Here, from Psalm 31:22 (NLT):

In panic I cried out,
      “I am cut off from the Lord!”
   But you heard my cry for mercy
      and answered my call for help.

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April 16, 2008 · 4:12 pm

Psalm 138

A portion of this Psalm was part of the reading in my daily devotional time today. 

Psalm 138
A psalm of David.

1 I give you thanks, O Lord, with all my heart;
      I will sing your praises before the gods.
2 I bow before your holy Temple as I worship.
      I praise your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness;
   for your promises are backed
      by all the honor of your name.
3 As soon as I pray, you answer me;
      you encourage me by giving me strength.

4 Every king in all the earth will thank you, Lord,
      for all of them will hear your words.
5 Yes, they will sing about the Lord’s ways,
      for the glory of the Lord is very great.
6 Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble,
      but he keeps his distance from the proud.

7 Though I am surrounded by troubles,
      you will protect me from the anger of my enemies.
   You reach out your hand,
      and the power of your right hand saves me.
8 The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
      for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever.
      Don’t abandon me, for you made me.

Parts of the Psalm stuck in my mind – "your promises are backed by all the honor of your name"  And I call on this promise in these days as friends struggle through some really tough issues.

Then the last bit, "The Lord will work out his plans for my life—
      for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever."  really seems right for me at this time.  It is hard to be hoping for changes, not having them realized, waiting to see what is the next step for me. 

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February 4, 2008 · 12:48 am

Transfiguration Sunday

A quote from the book by Edith M. Humphrey, Ecstasy and Intimacy: Where the Holy Spirit Meets the Human Spirit, p. 89

In Luke 9:28-36, we watch another rabbi taking his inner group of disciples to a holy place to pray.  They call him “Master” but through this event he will be revealed as greater than any mystical rabbi, indeed, greater than both the law-giver and the prophets….Their master enters into significant communion with Moses and Elijah, both of whom had, in their lifetimes, powerful revelations of God’s power, and poignant moments of intimacy.  Moses, we remember, spoke with God “mouth to mouth”; Elijah was visited by God’s still, small voice in a time of despair.  These two great servants of God talk with Jesus about his death to come, in terms that clearly recall God’s delivering power in past times – Jesus is being strengthened in order to accomplish his “departure” (literally his “Exodus”, 9:31) his redemption of the people, in Jerusalem.  The disciples, though they do not understand all this, are themselves embraced by the glory of the scene.  Though they are afraid, the cloud of glory, the numinous presence of God, envelopes them, too, and they are left with the sound of the Father’s voice ringing in their ears: “This is my beloved Son, my chosen, listen to him!”

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January 29, 2008 · 3:05 pm

No dead ends

From Isaiah 43: 1b to 3a  The Message – part of my reading for the morning.  Next to the Psalms, Isaiah ranks highest for me in speaking to needs deep within me – for comfort, for my need to feel cared for by a God who never comes to dead ends like I do.

Don’t be afraid, I’ve redeemed you.
I’ve called your name. You’re mine.
When you’re in over your head, I’ll be there with you.
When you’re in rough waters, you will not go down.
When you’re between a rock and a hard place,
it won’t be a dead end—
Because I am God, your personal God,
The Holy of Israel, your Savior.

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January 15, 2008 · 3:33 pm

Freedom

Just a verse that has been going through my mind a lot lately:

John 8: 31 and 32

31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. 32 And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

I think it is telling me not to be afraid of investigating truth because God is found there. The kind of truth that is illuminated by God’s wisdom is freeing, not something to fear.

So, I must spend time really listening to God as I study.

You know I think I’ve been in this place before. God was there and I learned to trust him/her to b e a bit bigger than an old image of him was. There was freedom from fear there as well.

I guess I should trust that my questions won’t scare God away.

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January 14, 2008 · 4:41 am

Open or Classical?

We began quite the discussion tonight deciding to delve into the book God of the Possible by Gregory Boyd.   The Open view of God as opposed to the Classical view is explored in his book.  We decided to read it since last week we were grappling with some of the issues it discusses – issue that keep coming up in conversations about God.

I’m not sure we knew what we were getting into.

I looked up some stuff on the internet to see what was being said about this and came up with this and this.   Lots of interesting discussion.

I think we will  certainly stretch our minds a bit as we discuss this.  We are no theologians but we need to be aware of this and weigh the evidence for both sides as best we can.  I personally find that the open view makes sense to me but I also know that God’s ways are not always going to be understood by me.  I can accept that.  I also know that it is not necessary for me to choose between the viewpoints but to learn from both.

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