You have given me life and constant love,
and your care has kept me alive. ~ Job 10:12 (GNT)
Epaphroditus nearly died, as you know, but God had mercy on him. And not only on him—he had mercy on me, too. His death would have been one huge grief piled on top of all the others. ~ Philippians 2:27 (MSG)
KEY IDEA:
The Lord mercifully keeps us going.
PRAYER:
Kind and loving God, thank you for Jesus who clearly shows us how merciful you are. Through him, we discover what it truly means to be alive. I confess that I take my life for granted. Help me to thank you for each breath and each companion -- for each thing which makes life rich and wonderful. I'm going to live with gratitude by showing your mercy to others. Amen.
THE 6th SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST
I punished you in my anger;
now I will be kind
and treat you with mercy. ~ Isaiah 60:10b (CEV)
Get ready for the great gift that is coming your way when Jesus is revealed. Get ready for him through the practice of clear thinking and faithful action. ~ 1 Peter 1:13 (ABP)
KEY IDEA:
Enjoy God's grace and mercy!
PRAYER:
Thank you, Savior, for making yourself known to me. My frailty and many errors make me fearful, but you surprise me with your mercy and love. In you, my hope becomes powerful. Open my eyes today, Jesus. Make me alert to a world that needs you badly. Let me share your grace freely in words and actions. Amen. (Daily Texts, Mount Carmel Ministries edition)
Those who know you, Lord, will trust you;
you do not abandon anyone who comes to you. ~ Psalm 9:10 (GNT)
Paul writes: But it doesn’t matter—the Master stood by me and helped me spread the Message loud and clear to those who had never heard it. ~ 2 Timothy 4:17a (MSG)
KEY IDEA:
The Lord is faithful and stands by his people.
PRAYER:
Lord, I'm thankful that you are so reliable. You call us to serve alongside you. You will not abandon me. I know that you are always present -- that I am never out of your sight. Please give me the confidence to trust you even more. I want to be a bold witness calling others to trust you, too. Amen.
When you think about how you acted, you will be ashamed ... I will forgive you, but you will think about your sins and be too ashamed to say a word. I, the Lord God, have spoken. ~ Ezekiel 16:61a, 63 (CEV)
Paul writes: This saying is reliable and deserves full acceptance: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” -- and I’m the biggest sinner of all. ~ 1 Timothy 1:15 (CEB)
KEY IDEA:
Trust Christ Jesus to eliminate the shame.
PRAYER:
Lord, thank you for forgiveness. I accept what you have done for us -- for me. And I feel shame over my past behavior and thinking. But I'm scared because that shame has not totally eliminated all the current sin. I know that I'm forgiven and I don't want to dwell on my shortcomings. But I would like to move forward in living a shame-free life. Because of Jesus, I will. 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)
