Sunday, April 14, 2019

Unstoppable happiness

Won’t you give us fresh life and let your people be glad because of you? ~ Psalm 85:6 (CEV)

Jesus said: You are now very sad. But later I will see you, and you will be so happy that no one will be able to change the way you feel. ~ John 16:22 (CEV)

KEY IDEA:
The new life that God generates is the source of unstoppable happiness.
PRAYER:
Creator God, starting with the resurrection  of Jesus, you are in the process of refreshing all of creation. That makes me happy like nothing else. Please forgive me when I allow the discouragement and negativity of this current world system to get me down. Start the refresh with me. I am going to live now the kind of happy life that characterizes the new creation. Amen.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Always merciful

Palm Sunday

Please look down from your holy home, from heaven itself, and bless your people Israel... ~ Deuteronomy 26:15a (CEB)

He helps his servant Israel and is always merciful to his people. ~ Luke 1:54 (CEV)

KEY IDEA:
The Lord is always merciful to his people.
PRAYER:
Lord, I am grateful for the ongoing kindness which you show to me. I need to be more responsive to your mercy. I am too ho-hum about it. Reshape my life so that your mercy is a major theme in my life story. I'm going to make sure that I remember your kindness 24/7. Amen.

Friday, April 12, 2019

Peacemaking

A kind answer soothes angry feelings, but harsh words stir them up. ~ Proverbs 15:1 (CEV)

You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family. ~ Matthew 5:9 (MSG) 

KEY IDEA:
We're at our best when we focus on creating cooperation rather than escalating conflict.
PRAYER:
Lord, you are the Prince of Peace and you have brought incredible peace into my life. But I still react harshly when people treat me poorly. Give me the heart of a peacemaker and the practical wisdom to know when and how to create cooperation. Because I'm a follower of you, Jesus, I'm going to live the life of a peacemaker. Amen.

Thursday, April 11, 2019

Reclaimed and Restored

God... you will restore me to life again and lift me up from the depths of the earth. You will restore me to even greater honor and comfort me once again. ~ Psalm 71:20b-21 (NLT)

In the same way, my Father who is in heaven doesn’t want to lose one of these little ones. ~ Matthew 18:14 (CEB)

KEY IDEA:
God's desire is that all people -- great and small -- might be reclaimed and restored to life.
PRAYER:
Generous Lord, you never want any of your sheep to be on the other side of the fence. You seek to bring each one home with comfort and honor. From our wayward trails, you reclaim and return us to the safety of your loving arms. Thank you, Good Shepherd. Amen. (Daily Texts, Mount Carmel Ministries edition)

DAILYTEXTS.ORG

*ABOUT THE
DAILY TEXTS

The Daily Texts have been published by the Moravian Church since 1731. In 2011 I started posting these Bible verses for my spiritual formation students at Pacific Islands University. In the process of responding to the verses, I found the rhythm of looking for a common thread and writing a prayer based on that key idea to be helpful for my own soul.

The prayers are more or less modeled on the TRIP method, which is what I ask my students to do in their journaling. ~ Brad Boydston

TRANSLATIONS

ABP = Authorized Boydston Paraphrase -- a freestyle biblical adaptation -- somewhere between paraphrase, commentary, and sermon

CEB = Common English Bible (©2011, the Common English Bible)

CEV = Contemporary English Version (©1995, American Bible Society)

EEB = EasyEnglish Bible (©2015, MissionAssist)

ERV = Easy-To-Read Version (©2006, World Bible Translation Center)

GNT = Good News Translation (©1992, American Bible Society)

MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)

NCB = New Catholic Bible (©2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp.)

NCV = New Century Version (©2005, Thomas Nelson Inc)

NIRV = New International Reader's Version (©1996, 1998, Biblica)

NIV = New International Version (©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011, Biblica)

NLT = New Living Translation (©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, Tyndale House Foundation)

NRSV = New Revised Standard Version (© 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.)

NTE = New Testament for Everyone (©2011 Nicolas Thomas Wright.)

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