Thursday, September 12, 2024

GUSHING

PSALM 82:3 (NLT)
Give justice to the poor and the orphan;
uphold the rights of the oppressed and the destitute.


1 THESSALONIANS 3:12 (NLT)
And may the Lord make your love for one another and for all people grow and overflow, just as our love for you overflows.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Might the love of Christ gush from our lives onto everyone around us — especially our Christian siblings, as well as the marginalized.

DAILY FODDER
What are the visible signs that the love of Christ flows from a person's life?

PRAYER
Most high God, you are in authority over all: the high and lowly, needy and content, rich and poor, hopeful and hopeless. I confess that often I am arrogant. I judge and critique others and their lives. Help me to increase and abound in love, being an advocate and encourager of all. Show me who to support today. 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.

Wednesday, September 11, 2024

DEEPLY REVEALING

PSALM 51:10 (ABP)
Purify my heart, God, and plant your faithful life deep inside me.

1 TIMOTHY 1:5 (MSG)
The whole point of what we’re urging is simply love—love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God.

SUMMARY SENTENCE
Our desire is for a God-crafted life that reveals his life.

DAILY FODDER
Why does the Bible emphasize getting the interior life right? Isn't it enough just to do right?

PRAYER
Faithful God, you are busy renewing my life so that I'm as clean on the inside as the outside. I acknowledge that there is still work to be done. Enable me to cooperate with you. Purify my heart, God, and plant your faithful life deep inside me.  I want to live a life that reveals your life. 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.

Tuesday, September 10, 2024

PTL

PSALM 111:1 (MSG)
Hallelujah!
   I give thanks to GOD with everything I’ve got—
   Wherever good people gather, and in the congregation.


REVELATION 19:5 (CEV)
From the throne a voice said,
   “If you worship
   and fear our God,
   give praise to him,
   no matter who you are.”

SUMMARY SENTENCE
When we praise God today we're preparing for the great day of praise that's on the way. 

DAILY FODDER
How do you rehearse for praising God?

PRAYER
Praise you, Lord! There is nothing more fundamental for living in your regime. Forgive me for all the times I neglect praise rehearsals. Change the way that I prioritize my life so that I can naturally recognize the opportunities for praise and thaksgiving. I want to be warmed up and ready to join the choir at the marriage feast of the Lamb. 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, September 9, 2024

TRUST JESUS

PSALM 40:4 (CEV)
You bless all of those
who trust you, Lord...

JOHN 1:41 (CEV)
The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother and tell him, “We have found the Messiah!”

SUMMARY SENTENCE
You have to trust Jesus the Messiah in order to experience his blessing. 

DAILY FODDER
Practically speaking, what does trusting Jesus as the Messiah look like in today's world? (Answer using non-church words.)

PRAYER
Lord, thank you for reaching out to people like me through others who have discovered the joy of trusting you. Forgive me for the ways I make your invitation overly complicated and conditional. Send me out with the enthusiasm of Andrew. I not only trust you but I want to help others experience the blessing that comes with following Jesus the Messiah. 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.

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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