UNUSUAL BLESSING

PSALM 25:10 (GNT)
With faithfulness and love he leads
all who keep his covenant and obey his commands.

MATTHEW 5:11-12 (MSG)
Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do!

THE ESSENCE
When we're faithfully following Christ we are blessed, even when people are pushing back against us. 

DAILY FODDER
People usually associate blessings with things going well for us. How is it that we can experience God's blessings even when we're under attack?

PRAYER
Steadfast Lord, you bless the paths I can't walk alone. I need your steadfast love to enable me to walk where I want to go. I depend only on your faithfulness. You strengthen me when I am cursed by those who despise you. Thank you for rewarding me with joy and gladness. Amen. (Daily Texts, Ground 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.

CRYING OUT

The 23rd Sunday after Pentecost

PSALM 106:44-45 (MSG)
Still, when God saw the trouble they were in
and heard their cries for help,
He remembered his Covenant with them...

ACTS 7:59 (CEB)
As they battered him with stones, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, accept my life!”

THE ESSENCE
God answers our cries to him with responses that are for our best. 

DAILY FODDER
Was Stephen mad at God when his cries of desperation were his last words? Have you ever cried to God in desperation, only to have his response not be what were asking for? Why does that happen? Does it mean he isn’t paying attention? 

PRAYER
God, thank you for your well-practiced, listening love. I know you have heard the prayers of the faithful for generations. Help me to believe that you truly hear my prayers as well. Grow my trust that you receive all I release to you in prayer, no matter how loud or soft my cry may be. Amen. (Daily Texts, Ground 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.

GOD’S SATISYING LOVE

PSALM 90:14 (NLT)
Satisfy us each morning with your unfailing love,
so we may sing for joy to the end of our lives.

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.

THE ESSENCE
God's love, implanted in us through Christ, is what keeps us going day-in-day out, until the end of our days and beyond. 

DAILY FODDER
A question to ponder throughout today: What is it about Christ’s love that refreshes me on an ongoing basis? 

PRAYER
God, you are love and your love holds everything together, including my life. Forgive me for pursuing self-help to keep things going. There are lots of good ideas out there but they all end up falling short of what I truly need. Your love is already present and active. Shower me in it so that I start off each day refreshed by the awareness of what I have been given by Christ. I'm going to revel in your uninteruptable unending love. 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.

OUR PROTECTOR

DEUTERONOMY 32:11 (GNT)
Like an eagle teaching its young to fly,
catching them safely on its spreading wings,
the LORD kept Israel from falling.

JOHN 10:29 (CEB)
My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them from my Father’s hand.

THE ESSENCE
No matter what happens, we are well-positioned in God's firm and caring hands.

DAILY FODDER
Lots of people have died for their faith in Christ Jesus. How was God a person of ultimate safety for them? What does it mean to be safe?

Nineteenth-century songwriter Lina Sandell wrote in her hymn Children of the Heavenly Father,
Neither life nor death shall ever
from the Lord his children sever;
Unto them his grace is showing,
And their sorrows all is knowing.

Then in the last verse:

God has given, he has taken,
But his child is ne’er forsaken;
His the loving purpose solely
To preserve us, pure and holy.

PRAYER
Heavenly Father, I'm alive because you keep me alive. Forgive me for worrying over what's to come. Help me to recognize how safe I am under your care. Even if death comes knocking, I'm not rattled because I know that your care is eternal. 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.