GOVERNED BY PEACE

The Second Sunday after Epiphany

ISAIAH 60:17 (CEB)
I will make peace your governor
and righteousness your taskmaster.

2 JOHN 3 (GNT)
May God the Father and Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, give us grace, mercy, and peace; may they be ours in truth and love.

THE ESSENCE
The Jesus regime in its fullness is one governed by peace. 

DAILY FODDER
Peace, in the Bible, is greater than the absence of conflict. It's a holistic state of well-being that we can experience even while conflict rages around us. Imagine how wonderful it will be when all conflict comes to an end. Peace on steroids.

PRAYER
Jesus, I'm grateful that you are the Prince of Peace. I get so discouraged by the conflict around me. Sometimes I even allow it into my life. But I'm asking you to flush it all out of me, as you flood me with your peace. I pray for the day when all creation allows your peace in and you govern with peace. This is the future I'm looking for for myself and all who come after me. Show me how to best represent that vision now. 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.

JESUS CARES

PSALM 91:9 (NIRV)
The LORD is the one who keeps me safe.

MARK 10:47 (NLT)
When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

THE ESSENCE
Jesus is the one who cares. 

DAILY FODDER
How do you feel as you realize that Jesus cares deeply about you?

PRAYER
Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. At times I am blind to your presence and deaf to your leading. Yet I know you are my salvation and my refuge. I am grateful for your kind and gentle heart. With my eyes focused on you, I will follow your leading and rest in the shelter of your arms. 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.

OUR POINT OF UNITY

ZECHARIAH 8:23 (MSG)
“At that time, ten men speaking a variety of languages will grab the sleeve of one Jew, hold tight, and say, ‘Let us go with you. We’ve heard that God is with you.’”

1 CORINTHIANS 12:13 (GNT)
In the same way, all of us, whether Jews or Gentiles, whether slaves or free, have been baptized into the one body by the same Spirit, and we have all been given the one Spirit to drink.

THE ESSENCE
Regardless of our backgrounds, we all grab onto the sleeve of the same divine Jew, to walk with him. 

DAILY FODDER
A lot of the New Testament is written to address the tensions between various ethnic groups and cultures within the church. What does that tell us about the magnitude of this challange? It seems to me that when we're facing such challenges, we're doing the right things because we're taking the gospel to people unlike us. This forces us to find our point of unity in the presence of Christ and the Holy Spirit, rather than in familiar and comfortable practices. 

PRAYER
Thank you, Lord, for the way you have drawn so many different kinds of people into your church. Forgive us for our intolerance of those whose cultures lead them to do things differently. Expand our vision beyond "separate but equal" so that we can through the power and wisdom that comes through the Holy Spirit live together as loving siblings. I want to experience unity that transcends culture — even if it means giving up some of the ways I do things. 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.

WORSHIP

PSALM 95:1 (MSG)
Come, let’s shout praises to GOD,
raise the roof for the Rock who saved us!

REVELATION 15:4 (ABP)
As they see your justice in action, all the peoples of the world will come together to worship you.

THE ESSENCE
In the future we'll all join together to worship the Lord.  

DAILY FODDER
The worship we do now is a warm-up for what's coming. 

PRAYER
Glorious yet approachable God, you alone are worthy of all our praise and honor. We can see that ultimately the world will join together to express praise. But we confess that we are currently divided in the way that we worship. It's not that worship needs to be uniform but that we make it more about our personal preferences than about corporately acknowledging you as Savior. Save us from our selfish obsessions with form and style. Prepare us now for the worship to come. We need the practice. 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.