Category: daily devotions

Are we living the plan?

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The purpose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others. Albert Schweitzer

Are we ready to do what Jesus did? Are we willing to put ourselves out there and help the poor, the homeless, the disenfranchised? Can we really see the dirty, ragged man on the street? Do we turn away in disgust? Do we judge?

life question

I think at times we do all of those things. It is not easy to live the life that Christ did. He is still the babe in the manger but soon…..very soon he will be on his journey to teach us how to live. Get ready!

Compassionate Jesus, we don’t always understand that you have given us a map for our lives. Help us to live it out.

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I will honor Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. Charles Dickens
True Meaning Of Christmas Jesus – Happy Holidays! in What Is The True Meaning Of Christmas

Here is the core of Christmas. It is not just a special day in the year. It is not a holiday to give gifts. It is not about Santa Claus and reindeer. It is not about trees and lights.

Christmas is about the amazing love of God and his gift of his son. On Christmas day we have “God with us.”

Amazing God, we need to focus on the reason for this holiday. Christ must be the center of our thoughts. Help us to not forget. AMEN

Afraid?

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Fear defeats more people than any other one thing in the world. Ralph Waldo Emerson

I is so easy to be overwhelmed by fear. So much is going on in the world. People are shot by people with emotional problems. Terrorists set off bombs. There is illness and problems with insurance to cover it. Children (and us also) are more stressed than ever. The news is depressing. What can we do?

There is only one thing. Turn to the Lord our God. He is our strength. He places us on a rock that is higher. We are safe from the raging floods. He is always with us.

Psalm 23:4
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff— they comfort me.
do not be afraid
Comforting Lord, we turn to you in the midst of our fears. Hold us close and help us withstand the storm. AMEN

“Comparisons are odious”

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comparissons

My favorite author, Madeleine L’Engle says: “Comparisons are odious.” This works in several different ways. Do we spend time comparing ourselves to others and falling short? Do we compare to prove that we are better than. Comparisons hurt. It hurts us if we end up feeling unworthy. It hurts us in a different way if we see ourselves as better than others. In this country our founding fathers said the “all men (women also) were created equal and endowed with their creator certain inalienable rights…..etc.

Lear not to make comparisons. They hurt no matter what.

Creating God, you planned for to stay away from comparisons. You know their power to create pain. Help us to see all mankind as equal. AMEN

Lost plans

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The most painful state of being is remembering the future.  Kierkegaard

Remembering the future is remembering something that didn’t happen. It is grieving over a plan that we had that didn’t come about. We constantly make plans and some of them go awry. God has plans for us and they may be vastly different that ours. We don’t need to grieve things that didn’t go our way. God’s plan is the right plan.

Live-in-the-moment

Giving God, we need to learn to live in the moment and not in the future. Help us to be thankful for each second of each day. AMEN

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Music is well said to be the speech of angels. Thomas Carlyle

angels singingI love music. Hymns and songs of praise can take me away from the world. Music can move me to tears and bare my soul. St Francis says that those who sing pray twice. Pay attention to the words of hymns. They tell a story of God. Sing praises to him!

Giving Lord, thank you for the gift of music. Remind us let the words of the hymns enter our hearts. AMEN

Live in community

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Religion is about fellowship and community….The task of religion is the maintenance and extension of human community.                        John Macmurray, The structure of Religious Experience, 1936

romans 11It is difficult, if not impossible to be a Christian in isolation. I have heard people say “I find God best outdoors alone.” That is finding God and listening for him in beauty and silence but it is not being a Christian. A Christian is called to do more than that. We are to live in compassion and love toward others. Jesus tells us to feed the sick, clothe the naked, and aid the homeless. We see His love best through the eyes of other Christians so meeting him outside and alone is good but not enough.

Loving God, you are a community with Jesus and the Holy Spirit. Help us to see the importance of sharing with other Christians. AMEN

 

Respect

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respect-1Since women are becoming ever more conscious of their human dignity, they will not tolerate being treated as mere material instruments, but demand rights befitting a human person both in domestic and public life. Pope John XXIII, Pacem in Terris, April 1963

It is interesting that this was written in 1963. With #me too in the news the pope saw the problem many years ago. There are two versions of the creation of humans in the Bible. One has woman created from a rib of Adam and here is the other one.

Genesis 1:27 So God created humankind[e] in his image,
    in the image of God he created them;
    male and female he created them.

In this version male and female were created equally. Women must be respected.

Loving God,  you created us in your image. Remind us to respect both sexes equally. AMEN

This moment will be gone

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Why is life sped up so? Why are thing so terribly, unbearably precious that you can’t enjoy them but con only wait breathless in dread of their going? Anne Morrow Lindbergh, “Hour of Gold, Hour of Lead”

dance

Each day and each moment is precious. Do we recognize that? Do we stop long enough to enjoy the day, the hour, the minute? We are so busy planning for what comes next that we miss the most joyful moments. Stop and see! Look around you! This moment will never come again.

Understanding God, you see us letting precious moments pass us by. Help us to stop and see the life that is right in front of us. Show us how to appreciate when and where we are. Remind us to thank you. AMEN

Hope

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Prayer breathes hope, and a prayer without hope is a sinful prayer. John Sergleff of Cronstadt (1829-1908}, My Life in Christ.

hope4This brings the question why pray if we don’t have hope? Advent is the season of hope. A season of expectation. We are waiting….waiting for everything to change forever. Cling on to hope, pray with hope, wait with hope.

Gracious God, you have promised us the one to come. We will bear the waiting and continue to hope. AMEN