MERCY

PSALM 40:11 (NRSVUE)
Do not, O LORD, withhold
your mercy from me;
let your steadfast love and your faithfulness
keep me safe forever.

JUDE 2 (NLT)
May God give you more and more mercy, peace, and love.

THE ESSENCE
We are mercy-dependent beings.

DAILY FODDER
How have you experienced God's mercy in your life? In the last day?

PRAYER
Faithful God, your mercy is beyond measure. I confess, though, that I'm still at times trying to repair my situation on my own. It feels futile. Reveal, again, your mercy to me, and all the peace and love that flows with it. I'm going to allow your steadfast love, faithfulness, peace, and compassion to become the load-bearing walls in my 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.

UNITE IN PRAISE

PSALM 66:8-9 (MSG)
Bless our God, O peoples!
Give him a thunderous welcome!
Didn’t he set us on the road to life?
Didn’t he keep us out of the ditch?

ROMANS 15:5-6 (MSG)
May our dependably steady and warmly personal God develop maturity in you so that you get along with each other as well as Jesus gets along with us all. Then we’ll be a choir—not our voices only, but our very lives singing in harmony in a stunning anthem to the God and Father of our Master Jesus!

THE ESSENCE
Unite in harmoniously praising God for his faithfulness.

DAILY FODDER
Is it possible for believers to unite in praise if they sing different styles of music? That is, (I'm talking in metaphors here), how can so many different kinds of people get on the same page and sing the same kind of praise? What would that take?

PRAYER
Bless the Lord, O my soul, for together we bless your holy name. Father, forgive me when I forget that being together with Jesus means together with his people. Change me, Lord, so that my voice will harmonize with the community you are creating. Show me new ways for togetherness so that in your name life may abound. 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 LIFE-SHAPPING WORDS

Ash Wednesday

(The beginning of Lent)

PSALM 119:41 (MSG)
Let your love, God, shape my life
with salvation, exactly as you promised...

LUKE 4:36 (NLT)
Amazed, the people exclaimed, “What authority and power this man’s words possess! Even evil spirits obey him, and they flee at his command!”

THE ESSENCE
God's loving words are powerful enough to reshape lives.  

DAILY FODDER
Identify one obvious and one not-so-obvious way that God's loving and powerful words have shaped your life. 

PRAYER
Thank you, Lord, for all the ways that you shape and reshape my life. Forgive me for getting discouraged by my seeming lack of progress. Help me to trust that your love and your power will get the job done. I am available to you and your life-shaping words. 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.

GOD’S SECRETS REVEALED

DEUTERONOMY 29:29 (NLT)
The LORD our God has secrets known to no one. We are not accountable for them, but we and our children are accountable forever for all that he has revealed to us, so that we may obey all the terms of these instructions.

COLOSSIANS 2:2-3 (GNT)
In this way they will know God's secret, which is Christ himself. He is the key that opens all the hidden treasures of God's wisdom and knowledge.

THE ESSENCE
Christ is the key to all of God’s "hidden" plans, knowledge, and wisdom.

DAILY FODDER
If the Bible generates more questions about God than answers for you, focus your attention on knowing Christ Jesus. He embodies God’s secrets. 

PRAYER
God, I appreciate that there are things I'll never be able to comprehend. Forgive me for acting as though I'm smarter than I am. Help me to grow in true knowledge and wisdom through my living connection with Jesus. He’s the one who most clearly reveals your mind. 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.