UNCHANGING

PSALM 102:25-26 (CEB)
You laid the earth’s foundations long ago;
the skies are your handiwork.
These things will pass away, but you will last.
All of these things will wear out like clothing;
you change them like clothes, and they pass on.

HEBREWS 13:8 (CEB)
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever!

SUMMARY SENTENCE
God endures; so you can rely on him.

PRAYER
Enduring God, in this world of unending change, I am grateful that you are stable and reliable. Forgive me for chasing after the new and flashy, thinking that they can add meaning to my life. Slow me down and help me to see that the world is a rat race but that Jesus is here to lead me at his steady pace. I'm going to look to that which is unchanging. Amen.

GOD'S PROMISES

PSALM 56:10 (ERV)
I praise God for his promise.
I praise the LORD for his promise to me.

2 TIMOTHY 1:14 (CEB)
Protect this good thing that has been placed in your trust through the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
God entrusts us with his promises and the skills needed to live according to them and to share them.

PRAYER
Thank you, God, for your promises given to us -- to me. I confess that I'm overly casual about my responsibility. Show me how to apply your promises to my situation and give me, please, the energy to act on your word. I'm going to celebrate your promises by acting on them. Amen.

HONOR

JUDGES 5:31 (CEB)
LORD, may your allies be like the sun, rising in its strength.

JOHN 17:22 (CEV)
I have honored my followers in the same way that you honored me...

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Those who align themselves with the LORD are those who will be honored with him and through him.

PRAYER
Glorious God, I'm grateful that you have chosen me to be on your team. Forgive me for the times that I pursue honor on my own. Strengthen my faith so that it grows with the intensity of a rising sun on a summer day. I'm going to burn hot for you. Amen.

IN PURSUIT

 The 5th Sunday after Epiphany

ISAIAH 65:1 (NLT)

The LORD says,

"I was ready to respond, but no one asked for help.
I was ready to be found, but no one was looking for me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am!’
to a nation that did not call on my name."

LUKE 14:23 (CEB)
The master said to the servant, ‘Go to the highways and back alleys and urge people to come in so that my house will be filled.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
God is actively pursuing people -- even those who are ignoring him.

PRAYER
Thank you, God, for pursuing us. Even when we're uninterested, you stay at it. Forgive me for my daily indifference to you and your agenda. I'm lost in my own world, unable to escape. Find me. Rescue me. I'm going to find what I need in you, Savior, Christ Jesus. Amen.