Thursday, May 30, 2024

THE FUTURE

PSALM 126:1 (MSG)
   It seemed like a dream, too good to be true,
when GOD returned Zion’s exiles.


1 CORINTHIANS 13:8, 12 (MSG)
   Love never dies. Inspired speech will be over someday; praying in tongues will end; understanding will reach its limit. We know only a portion of the truth, and what we say about God is always incomplete...
   We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us!

SUMMARY SENTENCE
How we relate to God now is incomplete but someday we'll be relating on a level that we can only dream of now.

DAILY FODDER
What do you dream of asking God?

PRAYER
We struggle, God, to take in your loving and generous nature. We can only imagine what it will be like to be more fully in your presence. Prepare us now for what's coming. We want to live eternally confidently in your presence, trusting fully in the sacrifice and life of Jesus. We can only imagine what all that means but we are trusting you to prepare us for the future. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.
Give us enough food for today.
Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. 
Amen.

Wednesday, May 29, 2024

REFRESHING WORD

DEUTERONOMY 32:46-47 (MSG)
When Moses had finished saying all these words to all Israel, he said, "Take to heart all these words to which I give witness today... Yes. This is no small matter for you; it’s your life."

JOHN 6:63 (MSG)
The Spirit can make life. Sheer muscle and willpower don’t make anything happen. Every word I’ve spoken to you is a Spirit-word, and so it is life-making.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Take God's life-giving word to heart.

DAILY FODDER
What habits are you developing in your life that keep you connected to God's word?

PRAYER
Lifegiving Spirit, come dwell in the depths of my heart. Thank you for revealing the divine love of God through Jesus. I am sorry when I trust in myself rather than resting on your never-failing grace. Refresh my faith as you sweep through every moment of my life in you. Amen. (Daily TextsGround Up Grace edition)

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.
Give us enough food for today.
Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. 
Amen.

Tuesday, May 28, 2024

DIVINE ENCOUNTERS BY DIVINE DESIGN

PROVERBS 20:12 (CEB)
   Ears to hear and eyes to see—
the Lord made them both.

ACTS 8:30-31 (NLT)
   Philip ran over and heard the man reading from the prophet Isaiah. Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
   The man replied, “How can I, unless someone instructs me?” And he urged Philip to come up into the carriage and sit with him.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
God truly sets us up to encounter him. 

DAILY FODDER
Describe a moment when you felt that God had set you up to experience his grace.

PRAYER
Awesome God, I enjoy the divine suprises you've created in my life. Forgive me for missing some of them because I'm too busy or too set in my expectations regarding your mode of operation. Break through my brain fog with a fresh word. Reshape my outlook so that I'm ready to take on the next phase of my life—whether here or there with you. Amen. 

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.
Give us enough food for today.
Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. 
Amen.

Monday, May 27, 2024

YOUR FULL POTENTIAL

PSALM 60:12 (MSG)
In God we’ll do our very best;
he’ll flatten the opposition for good.


ROMANS 12:1 (MSG)
So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Embracing what God does for you is the best thing you can do for him.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Through our connection with Christ we can live into our full potential. 

DAILY FODDER
If we can be all we're meant to be through Christ, what gets in the way of that? 

PRAYER
Creator of all, you imaginatively formed humanity to be a reflection of your goodness and grace. I regret that I am often a poor reflection of your holiness. Help me, Lord, to be a living sacrifice to you and others. May your presence guide my days and ways as I offer my life to you. Amen. (Daily TextsGround Up Grace edition)

THE LORD’S PRAYER (ABP)
Our Father in Heaven,
     we hold your name in the highest regard.
Please come and establish your reign here on earth
     so that everything that happens here will align
     with what is happening in heaven.
Give us enough food for today.
Forgive us our wrongdoing,
     and we’ll forgive those who have wronged us.
Shield us from the trials and temptations that come our way.
Lastly, we pray that you will protect us from all forms of evil. 
Amen.

DAILYTEXTS.ORG

*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)

EEB = EasyEnglish Bible (©2015, MissionAssist)

ERV = Easy-To-Read Version (©2006, World Bible Translation Center)

GNT = Good News Translation (©1992, American Bible Society)

MSG = The Message (©1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson)

NCB = New Catholic Bible (©2019 by Catholic Book Publishing Corp.)

NCV = New Century Version (©2005, Thomas Nelson Inc)

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)

NRSV = New Revised Standard Version (© 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.)

NTE = New Testament for Everyone (©2011 Nicolas Thomas Wright.)

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