The Second Sunday after Epiphany
You know where I go and where I lie down.
You know everything I do. ~ Psalm 139:3 (NCV)
Two sparrows cost only a penny, but not even one of them can die without your Father’s knowing it. ~ Matthew 10:29 (NCV)
KEY IDEA:
God knows everything, so rely on him.
PRAYER:
God, you know everything about me. You know more about me than I know about me. Yet, I still pretend to know more than I do. I want to look smart so people will respect me. But you know that. Help me to set aside my proud ambition and to trust in you -- your knowledge -- your perspective. That's the only thing which makes good sense. Amen.
I, the Lord All-Powerful,
have made these plans.
No one can stop me now! ~ Isaiah 14:27 (CEV)
So what should we say about this? If God is for us, no one can defeat us. ~ Romans 8:31 (NCV)
KEY IDEA:
Align your life with God because he can't be defeated.
PRAYER:
Great and powerful God, it is good to have a friend like you on my side. I know that it would make sense to be on your side. And I want to be on your side but I'm still a bit flakey. So I need a lot of your attention to help me keep my priorites straight. Fortunately, in spite of my weaknesses you are still on our side. Amen.
In my trouble I called to the Lord. I cried out to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my call for help reached his ears. ~ Psalm 18:6 (NCV)
Then Jesus touched their eyes and said, “It will happen for you just as you have believed.” Their eyes were opened. ~ Matthew 9:29-30a (CEB)
KEY IDEA:
God responds to our requests for help.
PRAYER:
Lord, I know that you respond to our cries for help. That is not a struggle for me. The problem for me is concern that you would respond in the way that I think is best. So help me to trust your wisdom and that you have the best of intentions for me. I'm going to refrain from panic when bad things happen because I know that you will deliever the best possible outcome and in the overall scheme of things it is what will do me the most good. For you are a good and responsive God. Amen.
Joshua fell to his knees and bowed down to the ground. “I am your servant,” he said. “Tell me what to do.” ~ Joshua 5:14b (CEV)
But God has blessed you, because your eyes can see and your ears can hear! ~ Matthew 13:16 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God has blessed us with the experience of his presence. We respond by serving him.
PRAYER:
Lord, thank you for allowing me to experience your good news for myself. In a very real sense my eyes have seen and my ears have heard. And it is all a gift from you! I too easily take it all for granted and I don't allow this blessing to fully penetrate into my life. So, I am responding to the prompt now and I am asking you to tell me what to do. I want to serve you as Jesus served us. 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)
