God's generosity

THE 7th SUNDAY IN THE SEASON OF EASTER

May the Lord catch your eye with his all-consuming smile so that you can start to see his unrelenting mercy and generosity. ~ Numbers 6:25 (ABP)

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. ~ 2 Corinthians 13:13 (CEB)

KEY IDEA:

Christ's non-stop grace will empower us to live out the love of God in partnership with the Holy Spirit.

PRAYER:

Thank you God for the blessings which continue to come my way and encourage me daily. I am not yet tuned in enough to you and your ways to fully realize how generous you are. So I end up doing silly things to gain recognition and sense of purpose -- even though you have already given me everything I need. Renew my mind and continue to show me you smiling face so that I start to more perfectly reflect your love and grace to all around me. Amen.

God's heart

I will strengthen the weary and renew those who are weak. ~ Jeremiah 31:25 (CEB)

Later Jesus and his disciples were at home having supper with a collection of disreputable guests. Unlikely as it seems, more than a few of them had become followers. ~ Mark 2:15 (MSG)

KEY IDEA:

As counter-intuitive as it seems, Jesus poured his time and energy into weak people.

PRAYER:

Lord, thank you for caring about the broken, the people with bad reputations, the tired, and the weak. I'm among such people. I am a receipient of your grace and care. But in my bokenness it is still way too easy for me to look down on other sinners. Give me a heart for such people -- lots of patience and sympathy. I want to be able to help broken people become followers of Jesus. Amen.

Amazing activity

We thank you, God, we thank you— your Name is our favorite word; your mighty works are all we talk about. ~ Psalm 75:1 (MSG)

You have become this people so that you may speak of the wonderful acts of the one who called you out of darkness into his amazing light. ~ 1 Peter 2:9b (CEB)

KEY IDEA:

God is full of wonderful activity.

PRAYER:

Lord Jesus, thank you for calling us to be your people. It really is an honor to be associated with you because you are so full of amazing deeds. Your name needs to be the center of every conversation. But I like to talk about myself too much. Help me to shift the focus from me to you. For it is only in you that the most of amazing things happen -- that we are moved from enduring darkness to living in light. I'm going to look for ways to talk about what you do. Amen.

Never abandoned

ASCENSION DAY

The Lord will continue to guide you without interruption. He will provide what you need to survive, even when you are wandering through the dryest desert. ~ Isaiah 58:11a (ABP)

Jesus says: "I won’t leave you like orphans. I will come back to you." ~ John 14:18 (CEV)

KEY IDEA:

Even though we aren't always aware of God's presence, he's there and guiding is along the way.

PRAYER:

There is no end to the stories, God, of how you stick close to your people -- how you lead and guide them -- even during difficult times. But for some reason, your people fail to recognize and trust you. I admit that I'm such a person at times. I don't know why it is so easy to think that I'm on my own and that I have to come up with solutions. Maybe it's really about my ego. Whatever the reason, I need your help to stop pretending that it all rests on my shoulders. I'm going to open my eyes to your presence and trust your guidance. Amen.