The Lord is merciful and will not reject us forever. He may bring us sorrow, but his love for us is sure and strong. ~ Lamentations 3:31-32 (GNT)
But God shows undeserved kindness to everyone. That’s why he appointed Christ Jesus to choose you to share in his eternal glory. You will suffer for a while, but God will make you complete, steady, strong, and firm. ~ 1 Peter 5:10 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God's love for us is sure and strong -- even if there is suffering.
PRAYER:
Thank you, Lord, for your love. I admit, though, that I am afraid. I don't want to suffer.
Save me from suffering. Or at least use your love to redeem the suffering and sorrow I experience. I'm going to trust that you will render me complete, steady, strong, and firm -- no matter what happens. Amen.
The 11th Sunday after Pentecost
Thus may all God’s enemies perish, while his lovers be like the unclouded sun. ~ Judges 5:31 (MSG)
You yourselves used to be in the darkness, but since you have become the Lord's people, you are in the light. So you must live like people who belong to the light... ~ Ephesians 5:8 (GNT)
KEY IDEA:
Our exposure to the light of the Lord makes us shine like him.
PRAYER:
Lord, I'm thankful for the light of Christ who has come into the world to shine. I confess that I worry about all the darkness in the world. I want to trust that your light will outshine it. But at times I have doubts. Help me to trust you more so that I can shine with the light of Christ. Amen.
Your sun will never go down, your moon will never fade. I will be your eternal light. Your days of grieving are over. ~ Isaiah 60:20 (MSG)
Let us give thanks to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! Because of his great mercy he gave us new life by raising Jesus Christ from death. This fills us with a living hope... ~ 1 Peter 1:3 (GNT)
KEY IDEA:
Christ Jesus is our living life-giving hope!
PRAYER:
Merciful and faithful God -- thank you for the promises. Thank you for the hope. I deserately need hope in my life.
I need something significant to look forward to. Sometimes I allow the despair of the world to get to me. I act as though I have to fix everything because it all revolves around me. Rekindle your living hope in me so that I can trust you for a bright future in the presence of Christ Jesus. Amen.
Joyfully you’ll pull up buckets of water
from the wells of salvation. ~ Isaiah 12:3 (MSG)
Jesus stood up and shouted, “If you are thirsty, come to me and drink! Have faith in me, and you will have life-giving water flowing from deep inside you, just as the Scriptures say.” ~ John 7:37-38 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
Jesus quenches the deep thirst inside of us.
PRAYER:
Thank you, Jesus, for being the living water that satisfies my soul. I need to drink more of your health water. I need to stop drinking unhealthy things. I am trusting that as I drink from you that you will remove all the other less-healthy types of thirst. When something tastes as good as you, it is hard to accept anything less.
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 -- 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)
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)
