Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Hold tightly

If you don’t take your stand in faith, you won’t have a leg to stand on. ~ Isaiah 7:9b (MSG)

Seize the eternal life, the life you were called to, the life you so fervently embraced in the presence of so many witnesses. ~ 1 Timothy 6:12 (MSG)

KEY THOUGHTS:
Hold tightly to the life which God gave you.
PRAYERS:
Thank you, God, for calling me to live out eternal life. Forgive me for allowing lesser things to divert my energy. Prop me up so that I am standing firm. I want to stand without buckling. Amen.

Monday, January 20, 2020

Freedom

I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt so you would no longer be their slaves. I broke the yoke of slavery from your neck so you can walk with your heads held high. ~ Leviticus 26:13 (NLT)

Christ has set us free to live a free life. So take your stand! Never again let anyone put a harness of slavery on you. ~ Galatians 5:1 (MSG)

KEY THOUGHT:
Christ has set us free to live for him.
PRAYER:
Thank you, God, for the freedom that we have in Christ. Forgive me for returning to the slavery of rigidly-defined rules and regulations. Help me to live by faith alone so that my life of service flows from freedom. Amen.

Sunday, January 19, 2020

Second chances

Count yourself lucky— God holds nothing against you and you’re holding nothing back from him. ~ Psalm 32:2 (MSG)

The past is forgotten, and everything is new. God has done it all! He sent Christ to make peace between himself and us... ~ 2 Corinthians 5:17b-18a (CEV)

KEY THOUGHT:
God gives second chances.
PRAYER:
Thank you, God, for your generosity as it comes to us through Christ Jesus. You are a lot more gracious than me. I have trouble extending grace to others and myself. Awaken within me a fresh sense of the new thing you are doing and draw me into it. Second chances are going to become second nature to me. Amen.

Saturday, January 18, 2020

Salvation

The Second Sunday after the Epiphany

And if wicked people turn from their wickedness, obey the law, and do what is just and right, they will save their lives. ~ Ezekiel 18:27 (NLT)

Paul wrote: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.” This saying is true, and it can be trusted. I was the worst sinner of all! ~ 1 Timothy 1:15 (CEV)

KEY THOUGHT:
Christ has saved us from sin so we should turn away from it.
PRAYER:
Thank you, God, for sending Christ into the world to save even the worst of sinners. We can't be obedient enough to save ourselves so Christ did it for us. Help me to live a life that celebrates this great sacrifice. I want it all to be about him. Amen.

DAILYTEXTS.ORG

*ABOUT THE
DAILY TEXTS

The Daily Texts have been published by the Moravian Church since 1731. In 2011 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.)

Blog Archive