Saturday, February 28 - Galatians 4
Where did God speak to you in this passage? For me, it in verse 9:
"But now that you know God - or rather are known by God - how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?"
Through Christ I am cleansed and forgiven. I am called by Christ to leave behind habits/practices/sins that turn my life away from God. The danger Paul alludes to is that I can slip back into those old ways. I may not plan to do this, but it is easy to justify to myself why an action that I know is wrong, is one I should do.
This is one reason it is so important for me to read the scripture on a daily basis. The scripture helps me evaluate my life, it gives me a standard. If I only have self-evaluation, I can justify what I want. But if I have the scripture pushing that evaluation, then it gives me a very different standard. A standard that reminds me there is a reason I once gave up that habit/practice/sin.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Friday, February 27, 2009
Friday, Feb. 27
Friday, February 27 - Galatians 3
What verse spoke to you today? Here is what caught my attention:
:28 "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free; male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
When I read this, I immediately thought of our Ash Wednesday service. Armando invited those coming to the Spanish service to attend the Ash Wednesday service. He set up a translation system so they could understand the service. A number of the people came. It was great that we could worship as one body in Christ! Our language may be different, the color of our skin may be different, but in Christ Jesus we are all part of God's family.
Lord, help me to see people as you do. Amen
What verse spoke to you today? Here is what caught my attention:
:28 "There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free; male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus."
When I read this, I immediately thought of our Ash Wednesday service. Armando invited those coming to the Spanish service to attend the Ash Wednesday service. He set up a translation system so they could understand the service. A number of the people came. It was great that we could worship as one body in Christ! Our language may be different, the color of our skin may be different, but in Christ Jesus we are all part of God's family.
Lord, help me to see people as you do. Amen
Thursday, February 26, 2009
Thursday, February 26
Thursday, February 26 - Galatians 2
What about this passage struck you? There are some powerful words written in chapter 2 but today I was caught by his first few words:
"Then after fourteen years" These words brought me to a complete stop. I quite reading and thought about these words and the implications for several minutes. I always seem in a hurry, everything about life seems to demand immediate attention. It is hard to imagine all that God did in Paul's life those 14 years to prepare him to lead the early church. Paul waited 14 years. After 14 years he went to Jerusalem and his service of Christ becomes very public. At times I can hardly wait 14 minutes or hours. Maybe, everything that seems so demanding at the moment is not as important as it seems. Maybe, if I am willing to wait...
What about this passage struck you? There are some powerful words written in chapter 2 but today I was caught by his first few words:
"Then after fourteen years" These words brought me to a complete stop. I quite reading and thought about these words and the implications for several minutes. I always seem in a hurry, everything about life seems to demand immediate attention. It is hard to imagine all that God did in Paul's life those 14 years to prepare him to lead the early church. Paul waited 14 years. After 14 years he went to Jerusalem and his service of Christ becomes very public. At times I can hardly wait 14 minutes or hours. Maybe, everything that seems so demanding at the moment is not as important as it seems. Maybe, if I am willing to wait...
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Ash Wednesday
Wednesday, February 25 - read: Galatians 1
When I read the scripture for my daily devotional, I pay attention to what strikes me. At times, the scripture pushes me to reflect on how I am living. I write out at least one part of the passage and spend time writing whatever comes to mind about that passage. What I will be posting here is not a devotional, but just the reflections I have as I read. I usually end with a short prayer.
I invite you to share what strikes you from this chapter. My hope is that as we share together, we can provide each other insights into the scripture.
"10Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."
Paul's questions of whether he is trying to please/gain approval of God or men pushes me. My desire is to please God, but I know that life feels much easier when I please people. There is no doubt that at times, my actions please both God and people. But there are other times when I stand at a crossroads of who I please. God give me the courage to match my desire. Help me to not give into the moment because it is easier.
When I read the scripture for my daily devotional, I pay attention to what strikes me. At times, the scripture pushes me to reflect on how I am living. I write out at least one part of the passage and spend time writing whatever comes to mind about that passage. What I will be posting here is not a devotional, but just the reflections I have as I read. I usually end with a short prayer.
I invite you to share what strikes you from this chapter. My hope is that as we share together, we can provide each other insights into the scripture.
"10Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ."
Paul's questions of whether he is trying to please/gain approval of God or men pushes me. My desire is to please God, but I know that life feels much easier when I please people. There is no doubt that at times, my actions please both God and people. But there are other times when I stand at a crossroads of who I please. God give me the courage to match my desire. Help me to not give into the moment because it is easier.
Thursday, February 19, 2009
Weekend Food Diet
The weekend food diet begins on Friday evening. The food listed below is all you eat for Saturday and Sunday. On Monday morning, you resume your normal food.
Each person participating gets:
2 instant oatmeals
1 single serving individual spaghetti
1 breakfast bar
1 apple1 lunch size applesauce
All members in the household share:
1 medium size jar of peanut butter
Each person participating gets:
2 instant oatmeals
1 single serving individual spaghetti
1 breakfast bar
1 apple1 lunch size applesauce
All members in the household share:
1 medium size jar of peanut butter
Fasting references in the Bible
These are biblical references from Biblegateway.com to the word fasting.
1 Kings 21:9In those letters she wrote: "Proclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in a prominent place among the people.1 Kings 21:8-10 (in Context) 1 Kings 21 (Whole Chapter)
Nehemiah 9:1[ The Israelites Confess Their Sins ] On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads.Nehemiah 9:1-3 (in Context) Nehemiah 9 (Whole Chapter)
Esther 4:3In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.Esther 4:2-4 (in Context) Esther 4 (Whole Chapter)
Esther 9:31to establish these days of Purim at their designated times, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had decreed for them, and as they had established for themselves and their descendants in regard to their times of fasting and lamentation.Esther 9:30-32 (in Context) Esther 9 (Whole Chapter)
Psalm 35:13Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered,Psalm 35:12-14 (in Context) Psalm 35 (Whole Chapter)
Psalm 109:24My knees give way from fasting; my body is thin and gaunt.Psalm 109:23-25 (in Context) Psalm 109 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:1[ True Fasting ] "Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins.Isaiah 58:1-3 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:3'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.Isaiah 58:2-4 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:4Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.Isaiah 58:3-5 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:6"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?Isaiah 58:5-7 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Jeremiah 36:6So you go to the house of the LORD on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the LORD that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who come in from their towns.Jeremiah 36:5-7 (in Context) Jeremiah 36 (Whole Chapter)
Jeremiah 36:9In the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, a time of fasting before the LORD was proclaimed for all the people in Jerusalem and those who had come from the towns of Judah.Jeremiah 36:8-10 (in Context) Jeremiah 36 (Whole Chapter)
Daniel 9:3So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.Daniel 9:2-4 (in Context) Daniel 9 (Whole Chapter)
Joel 2:12[ Rend Your Heart ] "Even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning."Joel 2:11-13 (in Context) Joel 2 (Whole Chapter)
Zechariah 7:1[ Justice and Mercy, Not Fasting ] In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Kislev.Zechariah 7:1-3 (in Context) Zechariah 7 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 4:2After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.Matthew 4:1-3 (in Context) Matthew 4 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 6:16[ Fasting ] "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.Matthew 6:15-17 (in Context) Matthew 6 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 6:18so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.Matthew 6:17-19 (in Context) Matthew 6 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 9:14[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"Matthew 9:13-15 (in Context) Matthew 9 (Whole Chapter)
Mark 2:18[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, "How is it that John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?"Mark 2:17-19 (in Context) Mark 2 (Whole Chapter)
Luke 2:37and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.Luke 2:36-38 (in Context) Luke 2 (Whole Chapter)
Luke 5:33[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] They said to him, "John's disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking."Luke 5:32-34 (in Context) Luke 5 (Whole Chapter)
Acts 13:2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."Acts 13:1-3 (in Context) Acts 13 (Whole Chapter)
Acts 14:23Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.Acts 14:22-24 (in Context) Acts 14 (Whole Chapter)
1 Kings 21:9In those letters she wrote: "Proclaim a day of fasting and seat Naboth in a prominent place among the people.1 Kings 21:8-10 (in Context) 1 Kings 21 (Whole Chapter)
Nehemiah 9:1[ The Israelites Confess Their Sins ] On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads.Nehemiah 9:1-3 (in Context) Nehemiah 9 (Whole Chapter)
Esther 4:3In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.Esther 4:2-4 (in Context) Esther 4 (Whole Chapter)
Esther 9:31to establish these days of Purim at their designated times, as Mordecai the Jew and Queen Esther had decreed for them, and as they had established for themselves and their descendants in regard to their times of fasting and lamentation.Esther 9:30-32 (in Context) Esther 9 (Whole Chapter)
Psalm 35:13Yet when they were ill, I put on sackcloth and humbled myself with fasting. When my prayers returned to me unanswered,Psalm 35:12-14 (in Context) Psalm 35 (Whole Chapter)
Psalm 109:24My knees give way from fasting; my body is thin and gaunt.Psalm 109:23-25 (in Context) Psalm 109 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:1[ True Fasting ] "Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins.Isaiah 58:1-3 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:3'Why have we fasted,' they say, 'and you have not seen it? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you have not noticed?' "Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.Isaiah 58:2-4 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:4Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.Isaiah 58:3-5 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Isaiah 58:6"Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen: to loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke?Isaiah 58:5-7 (in Context) Isaiah 58 (Whole Chapter)
Jeremiah 36:6So you go to the house of the LORD on a day of fasting and read to the people from the scroll the words of the LORD that you wrote as I dictated. Read them to all the people of Judah who come in from their towns.Jeremiah 36:5-7 (in Context) Jeremiah 36 (Whole Chapter)
Jeremiah 36:9In the ninth month of the fifth year of Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah, a time of fasting before the LORD was proclaimed for all the people in Jerusalem and those who had come from the towns of Judah.Jeremiah 36:8-10 (in Context) Jeremiah 36 (Whole Chapter)
Daniel 9:3So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and petition, in fasting, and in sackcloth and ashes.Daniel 9:2-4 (in Context) Daniel 9 (Whole Chapter)
Joel 2:12[ Rend Your Heart ] "Even now," declares the LORD, "return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning."Joel 2:11-13 (in Context) Joel 2 (Whole Chapter)
Zechariah 7:1[ Justice and Mercy, Not Fasting ] In the fourth year of King Darius, the word of the LORD came to Zechariah on the fourth day of the ninth month, the month of Kislev.Zechariah 7:1-3 (in Context) Zechariah 7 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 4:2After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry.Matthew 4:1-3 (in Context) Matthew 4 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 6:16[ Fasting ] "When you fast, do not look somber as the hypocrites do, for they disfigure their faces to show men they are fasting. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.Matthew 6:15-17 (in Context) Matthew 6 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 6:18so that it will not be obvious to men that you are fasting, but only to your Father, who is unseen; and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.Matthew 6:17-19 (in Context) Matthew 6 (Whole Chapter)
Matthew 9:14[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] Then John's disciples came and asked him, "How is it that we and the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?"Matthew 9:13-15 (in Context) Matthew 9 (Whole Chapter)
Mark 2:18[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. Some people came and asked Jesus, "How is it that John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees are fasting, but yours are not?"Mark 2:17-19 (in Context) Mark 2 (Whole Chapter)
Luke 2:37and then was a widow until she was eighty-four. She never left the temple but worshiped night and day, fasting and praying.Luke 2:36-38 (in Context) Luke 2 (Whole Chapter)
Luke 5:33[ Jesus Questioned About Fasting ] They said to him, "John's disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking."Luke 5:32-34 (in Context) Luke 5 (Whole Chapter)
Acts 13:2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."Acts 13:1-3 (in Context) Acts 13 (Whole Chapter)
Acts 14:23Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust.Acts 14:22-24 (in Context) Acts 14 (Whole Chapter)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)