Then Moses said to Aaron, “This is what the Lord meant when he said, 'I will display my holiness
through those who come near me.
I will display my glory
before all the people.'” ~ Leviticus 10:3 (NLT)
You know the message that God has sent to the people of Israel is the Good News that peace has come through Jesus Christ. Jesus is the Lord of all people! ~ Acts 10:36 (NCV)
KEY IDEA:
Jesus is the Lord of all people!
PRAYER:
Lord, thank you for extending your hospitality to all people. You want to be known by all and honored by all. That makes sense. It does not make sense that I live as though I am the center of the universe. Help me to get over that so that I can appropriately honor you and focus on helping all people know you. I'm going to think and live as a missionary. Amen.
The 26th Sunday after Pentecost
The Lord said: I will defend this city and save it for my sake... ~ 2 Kings 19:34a (CEB)
God’s solid foundation is still standing with this sign: The Lord knows the people who belong to him... ~ 2 Timothy 2:19a (CEB)
KEY IDEA:
The Lord knows and defends his people.
PRAYER:
Lord,
THANKS: Thank you for being here for us -- for me.
REGRETS: Even though I know that you are here defending us, I easily cave into fear.
INTERCESSION: Help me to remain calm and trusting -- even when I and my values are under threat.
PURPOSE: I'm going to live boldly because I know that you are defending me.
Amen.
I will praise you among your assembled people. ~ Psalm 22:22b (NLT)
May the patience and encouragement that come from God allow you to live in harmony with each other the way Christ Jesus wants. Then you will all be joined together, and you will give glory to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. ~ Romans 15:5-6 (NCV)
KEY IDEA:
We praise the Lord together.
PRAYER:
Lord,
THANKS: I add my praise and thanksgiving to that of the assembly.
REGRETS: It's not always easy to be a part of the church where we praise God together. I don't like all of the people. Some of them are mean and nasty.
INTERCESSION: Cheer me up with your patience so that I can contribute to the harmony of the church. Then our praise will be genuine.
PURPOSE: I'm going to add to authentic worship by keeping harmony in the church.
Amen.
Obeying your instructions
brings as much happiness
as being rich. ~ Psalm 119:14 (CEV)
The kingdom of heaven is like what happens when a shop owner is looking for fine pearls. After finding a very valuable one, the owner goes and sells everything in order to buy that pearl. ~ Matthew 13:45-46 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God's ways are so valuable that we would benefit by giving up everything else to share in them.
PRAYER:
Lord, I feel rich to know you and about you. Sometimes I don't act appropriately for what I know. Please change my heart and mind so that I can leave everything else behind to serve you. I want to be one of those crazy people who just thinks about living for God 24/7. Amen.
*ABOUT THE
DAILY TEXTS
The Daily Texts have been published by the Moravian Church since 1731. In 2015 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 — my own 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)
MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)
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)
