READINESS

JOEL 2:21 (CEB)
The day of the LORD is coming. It is near.

MATTHEW 24:44 (NLT)
You also must be ready all the time, for the Son of Man will come when least expected.

THE ESSENCE
Since Jesus' big day is right around the corner, we need to maintain a constant state of readiness.

DAILY FODDER
Maintaining a state of readiness isn't so much a special activity. Rather, it is allowing life in the shadow of his return to become the norm that shapes our lives.  

PRAYER
I'm glad, Jesus, each time I hear about your return. I confess, though, that I haven't fully integrated this hope into my daily life. It's more of a special emphasis or occasional awareness. I want to live a more integrated life where I make all decisions and breathe every breath in light of this coming reality. I no longer have to be frustrated with the world as it is because your coming is a done deal. Amen.

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. Amen.

GOD-LISTENERS

ISAIAH 50:5 (TCEB)
The LORD gave me ears
And I don’t resist using them.
I don’t ignore what he says.

LUKE 10:39 (TCEB)
This woman had a sister named Mary, who set herself near the feet of Jesus and listened as he taught.

THE ESSENCE
We have to become good listeners if we’re to become devoted doers of what Jesus says. 

DAILY FODDER
We often think of prayer as talking to God, but what if we rethought of it as mostly listening to God talk? How can you become a better God-listener?  

PRAYER
Thank you, patient and loving Jesus, for releasing all my senses to learn from you. I'm sorry that sometimes I turn away in rebellion or fear, whether I realize it or not. Draw me near to you this day that I may open my ears to listen, my eyes to see, and my mind to know you more. Amen. (Daily Texts, Ground Up Grace edition)

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. Amen.

JUSTICE

PSALM 37:28 (CEB)
The LORD loves justice.

MARK 12:17 (GNT)
So Jesus said, “Well, then, pay to the Emperor what belongs to the Emperor, and pay to God what belongs to God.”

THE ESSENCE
God loves justice.  

DAILY FODDER
Justice in the Bible happens when people get what is their’s or what they deserve. But biblical justice is always couched in love and mercy. So, when God's justice shows up people are treated better than they deserve. The greatest surprises in the gospel accounts occur when people become aware of Jesus' extremely generous form of justice. 

PRAYER
Gracious God, thank you for taking justice to the next level by sending Jesus to model and teach mercy. Through his ascent to the cross he made right what we couldn't repair on our own. Forgive me for adopting cavalier culturally-defined ideas of justice and calling them biblical. Help me to notice how true justice revolves around Jesus and to embrace him and his mission of extremely merciful justice. I'm counting on my relationship with him to generate the wisdom to dispense justice in our complicated world. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. Amen.

MERCY

The 12th Sunday after Pentecost

ISAIAH 60:10 (TCEB)
In anger, I tore you down.
With mercy, I build you back.

1 THESSALONIANS 5:9 (TCEB)
God hasn’t scheduled us for punishment. For us, it’s salvation ahead, compliments of our leader, Jesus the Messiah.

THE ESSENCE
God's mercy prevails over anything else we deserve.

DAILY FODDER
Many older translations use the word "wrath" to describe God's anger or whatever punishment he dishes out. It's a good word but too often it's seen as something mechanical and without consideration of human weaknesses. Fortunately, whatever word is used in passages such as Isaiah 60:10, God’s mercy always seems to prevail. So, that's what we emphasize.

PRAYER
Kind God, I'm grateful that you don’t simply let us live with the consequences of our actions. We've broken the world and our relationship with you beyond what we can repair. Help me to fully grasp the magnitude of what you’ve mercifully done to recreate creation — to provide salvation. I want to shift from avoiding your wrath to emphasizing your great mercy. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.

Give us enough food for today.

Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. Amen.