Any immigrant who lives with you must be treated as if they were one of your citizens. ~ Leviticus 19:34
John wrote: Dear friend, you have always been faithful in helping other followers of the Lord, even the ones you didn’t know before. They have told the church about your love. They say you were good enough to welcome them and to send them on their mission in a way that God’s servants deserve. ~ 3 John 5-6 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God is into extreme hospitality.
PRAYER:
God, you have been extremely welcoming of us even though we are unworthy of your attention. You hospitality is totally undeserved. I, on the other hand, have tried to create a system where only those who have proven their worth can receive my approval. Please recalibrate my life so that grace defines what I do and how I think. I am going to welcome strangers into my life -- even those who will not be able to pay me back. Amen.
I am the one who cut a path
through the mighty ocean. ~ Isaiah 43:16 (CEV)
Be brave when you face your enemies. Your courage will show them that they are going to be destroyed, and it will show you that you will be saved. God will make all of this happen... ~ Philippians 1:28 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
God overcomes the major obstacles.
PRAYER:
Leading God, you have brought your people through far worse than I am facing today. Why, then am I afraid? Train my eyes to not see the rising floodwaters around me, but to see the world through the gracious waters of baptism. Give me courage to love those who seem to be my enemies, turning us into friends. Amen. (Daily Texts, Mount Carmel Ministries edition)
I will rescue a few people
from Israel and Judah.
I will forgive them so completely
that their sin and guilt
will disappear,
never to be found. ~ Jeremiah 50:20 (CEV)
And in addition to everything else, we are happy because God sent our Lord Jesus Christ to make peace with us. ~ Romans 5:11 (CEV)
KEY IDEA:
Through Christ God gives us a clean slate -- a fresh start -- a restored relationship with him.
PRAYER:
Generous God, thank you for your forgiveness. I appreciate the fresh start that you have given to us. This is important news. Help me to share it. It makes me especially happy when I'm able to introduce God's peace to other people. Amen.
The Seventh Sunday after Epiphany
Our Lord, I will sing
of your love forever.
Everyone yet to be born
will hear me praise
your faithfulness. ~ Psalm 89:1 (CEV)
We have received one ongoing blessing after another from the Son of God's ginormous tank of grace. ~ John 1:16 (ABP)
KEY IDEA:
Praise God without ceasing, for his blessings never cease.
PRAYER:
Kind Lord, I will never stop praising you because you just keep on pouring blessings out on me. I've been so incredibly blessed, yet I can be a grumpy complainer -- which makes no sense what-so-ever. Help me to break loose from this unhealthy pattern so that I can more fully give myself over to praising you forever. 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)
