I will bring a gift
and offer a sacrifice
to you, Lord.
I will praise your name
because you are good. ~ Psalm 54:6 (CEV)
Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us comfort. ~ 2 Corinthians 1:3 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God is generous. Praise him!
PRAYER:
Merciful God, I'm grateful for your generosity. And I am ready to worship you. This is true right now because I am thinking about you and what you've done. But in reality, my worship is sporadic because I get so caught up in the moment that I neglect to pause, reflect, and express appreciation for all your gifts. Please send me reminders. I want to be one of the people who faithfully praises you. Amen.
The 24th Sunday after Pentecost
Love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your being, and all your strength. ~ Deuteronomy 6:5 (CEB)
Paul writes: I pray that from his glorious, unlimited resources he will empower you with inner strength through his Spirit. Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. ~ Ephesians 3:16-17 (NLT)
KEY IDEA:
Sink your roots deeply into God's love because his love is deep enough to sustain you.
PRAYER:
Dearest God, your love is so big that no one could measure it. That's good for me because you have enough love so that people like me, who don't really take full advantage of what you give, can still be loved. Help me to sink the roots of my life deeper into your love so that I can grow strong and healthy. Amen.
I may walk through valleys
as dark as death,
but I won’t be afraid.
You are with me,
and your shepherd’s rod
makes me feel safe. ~ Psalm 23:4 (CEV)
We share in the terrible sufferings of Christ, but also in the wonderful comfort he gives. ~
2 Corinthians 1:5 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
Life is full of dark times but Christ is the shepherdng guide who walks us through them.
PRAYER:
Jesus, Good Shepherd, thank you for getting me through so many difficult situations. But why do I have such a hard time trusting you when a new problem comes? Guide me through my unreasonable ambivalence and flakiness so that I can enjoy the safety that is mine through your sheperding. Amen.
... God had made them rejoice with great joy. The women and children also rejoiced, and the sound of the joy in Jerusalem could be heard from far away. ~ Nehemiah 12:43b (CEB)
Paul writes: Celebrate God all day, every day. I mean, revel in him! ~ Philippians 4:4 (MSG)
KEY IDEA:
The Lord God gives his people cause to celebrate all he has done for them.
PRAYER:
Lord, you give us many reasons to be glad if only we pause long enough to consider them. But I tend to focus my attention on the problems that are not yet resolved. So I don't get around to rejoicing because there always seems to be one more unsolved problem. Shut down my fixation on the challenges and focus my attention on what you have done. Perhaps I will find the faith to tackle new problems by celebrating your past victories. 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)
