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Category Archives: Luke

Luke 12:1-3, Psalm 19:14

16 Oct

12 Meanwhile, the crowds grew until thousands were milling about and stepping on each other. Jesus turned first to his disciples and warned them, “Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees—their hypocrisy. 2 The time is coming when everything that is covered up will be revealed, and all that is secret will be made known to all. 3 Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!

Luke 12:1-3

14 May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing to you,
O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

Psalm 19:14

Dear God, I woke up this morning kind of convicted about something. Then these verses from Luke were part of the church’s Gospel reading for today and this part of Psalm 19 was the verse of the day from Bible Gateway. Conviction complete. I need to pray through this.

So, I’m frustrated with another agency in town. I’m not totally sure what to do about it, but I know what I’ve been doing isn’t right. For a long time now, I’ve wanted them to do more to serve the community. It has seemed like they do their thing and then that is all. They don’t raise their game to meet the growing need. Then, I figured out several months back that they have a ton of money and resources compared with what they are spending. In the particular year I looked at their IRS 990, I saw they brought in about three times in revenue what they spent on program, and their program spending had actually gone down between 2024 and 2025.

What have I done with that frustration? Nothing constructive. I’ve mentioned it to a few pastors and nonprofits in town who have a vested interest in their work and serving the same types of clients. I’ve actually discouraged a couple of donors from giving to them when they asked me directly whether or not they should. But I haven’t gone directly to them and asked them to explain their actions. I know the president of their board. I haven’t had the courage to ask him what’s up.

I woke up with this on my heart this morning, and then I read these passages: “Whatever you have said in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be shouted from the housetops for all to hear!” “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” I need to find a way to constructively challenge this agency and invite them into doing more. And if they don’t respond to me, perhaps invite others to join me in inviting them. And if that doesn’t work, start talking about solutions to the problem in the light instead of “behind closed doors.”

Father, thank you for this still, small voice asking me, “What are you doing here?” You have some work for me to do, and I am hiding. I’m sorry. Guide me, Holy Spirit, as I try to do better.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 16, 2026 in Luke, Psalms

 

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Galatians 5:16-26; Luke 11:42-52

14 Oct

16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

19 When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, 21 envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

22 But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. 25 Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. 26 Let us not become conceited, or provoke one another, or be jealous of one another.

Mark 5:16-26

42 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.

43 “What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you love to sit in the seats of honor in the synagogues and receive respectful greetings as you walk in the marketplaces. 44 Yes, what sorrow awaits you! For you are like hidden graves in a field. People walk over them without knowing the corruption they are stepping on.”

45 “Teacher,” said an expert in religious law, “you have insulted us, too, in what you just said.”

46 “Yes,” said Jesus, “what sorrow also awaits you experts in religious law! For you crush people with unbearable religious demands, and you never lift a finger to ease the burden. 47 What sorrow awaits you! For you build monuments for the prophets your own ancestors killed long ago. 48 But in fact, you stand as witnesses who agree with what your ancestors did. They killed the prophets, and you join in their crime by building the monuments! 49 This is what God in his wisdom said about you: ‘I will send prophets and apostles to them, but they will kill some and persecute the others.’

50 “As a result, this generation will be held responsible for the murder of all God’s prophets from the creation of the world— 51 from the murder of Abel to the murder of Zechariah, who was killed between the altar and the sanctuary. Yes, it will certainly be charged against this generation.

52 “What sorrow awaits you experts in religious law! For you remove the key to knowledge from the people. You don’t enter the Kingdom yourselves, and you prevent others from entering.”

Luke 11:42-52

Dear God, these are the New Testament and Gospel readings for the church today (although I did add a couple of verses around the original selections just for added context. Here’s what struck me as I read both of them together. It’s the first verses above from Galatians 5:16-18.

16 So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. 17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. 18 But when you are directed by the Spirit, you are not under obligation to the law of Moses.

That last sentence in verse 18 is powerful. Paul is saying that if I’m directed by your Holy Spirit then I am not under the law of Moses. I am free to let the Holy Spirit’s fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control grow in me and move me however it will.

I was listening to a debate this morning about the government’s decision to publicly execute someone via firing squad. The Catholic church has come out against both the capital punishment nature of the execution (they believe in the sancity of life from conception to natural death) as well as the public display of it. Some evangelical leaders who are nationally known have come out saying that Genesis 9 commands us to shed blood if blood was shed. Hmmm. I’ll come back to that.

Then there is Jesus’s interaction with the Pharisees in Luke 11. He’s telling them how they are focused on the law but have no relation to tapping into being led by your Spirit.

When thinking about the death penalty, for example, I was thinking this morning about the parable of the wheat and the weeds, which has become one of my favorites over the last few months. We cannot tell what is a weed and what is wheat at this point in any human’s life. What might look like a weed we should pull might turn out to be wheat that will bear fruit. Some biblical examples of murderers whose lives you used later: Levi and Simeon. Moses. David. Saul/Paul. What if these men had been weeded out of this life after they committed their murders. What if Moses had never made it to the wilderness and eventually found the burning bush? What if David were killed after he killed Uriah and never fathered Solomon who was part of Jesus’s lineage? What if Paul had been killed for his participation in Stephen’s stoning and had never found you on the road to Damascus? What if your Holy Spirit is still active for our entire lives, and it’s up to you to separate the wheat from the weeds at the final harvest?

Father, the death penalty is just one example. I used to be a believer in it, but I’ve changed my mind over the years. I’d like to think the Holy Spirit’s fruit growing in me changed my mind, but some in the conservative Evangelical sphere would probably just call me “woke” because of it. Whatever the case may be, regardless of how I might selfishly want to see the world, I pray that your Spirit will counsel me and guide me. That you will grow your fruit in me. That the things of earth, the wisdom of this earth, and my attraction to the desires of my sinful nature will grow strangely dim in the light of your glory and grace.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 14, 2026 in Galatians, Luke

 

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Luke 11:14-28

10 Oct

14 One day Jesus cast out a demon from a man who couldn’t speak, and when the demon was gone, the man began to speak. The crowds were amazed, 15 but some of them said, “No wonder he can cast out demons. He gets his power from Satan, the prince of demons.” 16 Others, trying to test Jesus, demanded that he show them a miraculous sign from heaven to prove his authority.

17 He knew their thoughts, so he said, “Any kingdom divided by civil war is doomed. A family splintered by feuding will fall apart. 18 You say I am empowered by Satan. But if Satan is divided and fighting against himself, how can his kingdom survive? 19 And if I am empowered by Satan, what about your own exorcists? They cast out demons, too, so they will condemn you for what you have said. 20 But if I am casting out demons by the power of God, then the Kingdom of God has arrived among you. 21 For when a strong man is fully armed and guards his palace, his possessions are safe— 22 until someone even stronger attacks and overpowers him, strips him of his weapons, and carries off his belongings.

23 “Anyone who isn’t with me opposes me, and anyone who isn’t working with me is actually working against me.

24 “When an evil spirit leaves a person, it goes into the desert, searching for rest. But when it finds none, it says, ‘I will return to the person I came from.’ 25 So it returns and finds that its former home is all swept and in order. 26 Then the spirit finds seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they all enter the person and live there. And so that person is worse off than before.”

27 As he was speaking, a woman in the crowd called out, “God bless your mother—the womb from which you came, and the breasts that nursed you!”

28 Jesus replied, “But even more blessed are all who hear the word of God and put it into practice.”

Luke 11:14-28

Dear God, it is apparent that the idea of demonic possession was more prevalent and top of the mind in Jesus’s time than it is now. Sure, we talk about it now a little, but it was assumed back then that a lot of the mental illness people were experiencing was demon possession. From what Jesus describes in verse 19 about there being other exorcists, it was not uncommon for this issue to be addressed, for demons to be cast out, and for people to be freed from the mental/emotional state they were in.

I am sure I should think of this more when I pray for people. When I pray for people with addiction. Anger issues. Depression. Maybe even as simple as ADD/ADHD (and I say “simple” not because they aren’t real or complicated, but because the others I mentioned can be much more destructive to a person). It makes me think of Screwtape Letters by C.S. Lewis. I wouldn’t consider the “patient” in Screwtape Letters to be demon-possessed, but he is certainly demon-tormented. How much of that am I subject to? I don’t feel demon-possessed, but I can relate to a little demon torment. I can start to feel sorry for myself. Is that a demon whispering in my ear? I can have some really unhealthy eating habits. I can be judgmental. I can get anxious about thing over which I have no control. I can be insecure and needy. How much of all of this is my little demon hanging around and whispering these thoughts to me?

Father, this is why I’m here right now. I’m not trying to get fire insurance. I’m not showing up and typing these prayers each day so that I can check a box for you and make you happy with me. I’m here because I need you. I need your grace and forgiveness. I need your strength to stand against the plans of the enemy (Ephesians 6:11). In fact, I have a friend who told me over lunch yesterday that he is doing a Bible study series on the “armor of God” part of Ephesians 6. And that’s what I’m here for. I’m trying to put on the belt of truth and armor of your righteousness. I want to put on the shoes of peace and taking your gospel to others. The shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit. So arm me with all of this as I move through this day. And help me to help others as they struggle against their own demons. Make me mindful of the attacks we are all under. Help me to have mercy and to pray.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 10, 2026 in Luke

 

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Luke 10:38-42

06 Oct

38 As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. 39 Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. 40 But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.”

41 But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! 42 There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”

Luke 10:38-42

Dear God, it’s easy for all of us to compare our work to other people’s. And it’s easy for us to feel sorry for ourselves. I want to think about how much harder I work than this person or that person. But there are two flaws in that. First, there’s always someone out there working harder than me, so I need to be careful how much I should be throwing stones. Second, you taught me to work as unto you. You’re the reason I’m here this morning, praying through typing. I’m not trying to outperform anyone and earn your favor more than you might give it to someone else. I’m here because I need you. I’m here because you are forming me every day, little by little, through these prayers.

Yeah, I look at Martha here, and I want to condemn her, but am I not like her too?

Father, help me to simply work as unto you today. Help me to lead. Lead me as I lead. You know the specific needs my organization has right now. Help us to meet them. Help us to know our path forward. You know who is struggling right now with personal issues. Help them to find your path for them. Of course, you know my family. Those who are most precious to me. Heal. Love. Hold them close. Draw them into yourself. And be with my wife today as she teaches her Bible study and records her podcast.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on October 6, 2026 in Luke

 

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Luke 7:36-50

17 Sep

36 One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to have dinner with him, so Jesus went to his home and sat down to eat. 37 When a certain immoral woman from that city heard he was eating there, she brought a beautiful alabaster jar filled with expensive perfume. 38 Then she knelt behind him at his feet, weeping. Her tears fell on his feet, and she wiped them off with her hair. Then she kept kissing his feet and putting perfume on them.

39 When the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would know what kind of woman is touching him. She’s a sinner!”

40 Then Jesus answered his thoughts. “Simon,” he said to the Pharisee, “I have something to say to you.”

“Go ahead, Teacher,” Simon replied.

41 Then Jesus told him this story: “A man loaned money to two people—500 pieces of silver to one and 50 pieces to the other. 42 But neither of them could repay him, so he kindly forgave them both, canceling their debts. Who do you suppose loved him more after that?”

43 Simon answered, “I suppose the one for whom he canceled the larger debt.”

“That’s right,” Jesus said. 44 Then he turned to the woman and said to Simon, “Look at this woman kneeling here. When I entered your home, you didn’t offer me water to wash the dust from my feet, but she has washed them with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45 You didn’t greet me with a kiss, but from the time I first came in, she has not stopped kissing my feet. 46 You neglected the courtesy of olive oil to anoint my head, but she has anointed my feet with rare perfume.

47 “I tell you, her sins—and they are many—have been forgiven, so she has shown me much love. But a person who is forgiven little shows only little love.” 48 Then Jesus said to the woman, “Your sins are forgiven.”

49 The men at the table said among themselves, “Who is this man, that he goes around forgiving sins?”

50 And Jesus said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.”

Luke 7:36-50

Dear God, I think I’ve ever only spent time thinking about Simon when reading this story. His arrogance. His insensitivity. His judgment. His self-righteousness. I don’t know that I’ve ever just sat with this woman. What was she experiencing? What was her hopelessness of heart? What did she expect her adoration of this man to produce? Had he already had the forgiveness talk with her earlier, but he was letting Simon and the others know about it? Now that I think about it, she would have almost had to have already experienced Jesus’s forgiveness before this dinner even happened. I don’t think she was trying to glatter him in order to get forgiveness. I think she was trying to love and adore him for what he had already done.

I don’t want to say that I haven’t been forgiven much because 1.) I have confessed some things to you that I am completely ashamed of and 2.) I know that all the sins are equal. But when I think about the levels to which I have hit “rock bottom,” my bottom is probably closer to Simon’s than it is this woman’s. And I know my gratitude isn’t even close to her level. It’s much closer to Simon’s.

I was at a men’s meeting the other night, and one of the men started talking about all of the things he thanks you for every day. He grew up in great need. He grew up in a neglectful, abusive environment. He went down a wrong path. He has been to state prison. And so when he sits there are expresses gratitude for your forgiveness, your provision, your love, etc., I’ll be frank, it comes from a deeper place of appreciation than where mine comes from. There’s a line from a Steven Curtis Chapman song where he says, “There’s no one more thankful to sit at the table than the one who best remembers hunger’s pain.” Well, this man grew up knowing hunger and not only trying to scrounge for food for himself, but also his younger siblings as well. “Give us this day our daily bread” means a completely different thing to him than it does to me.

Father, I think there’s only so much love and thankfulness than I can will myself to manufacture. First, I need to remember that you have forgiven me of much and you have provided for me beyond what it reasonable. Thank you. I love you. I offer myself to you. Second, I need to look with mercy on others. On those who have come to you and repentance and are now my brothers and sisters and for those who have not yet come. Give me love for them. Give me words for them. Use them to teach me and draw me closer to yourself. You are God. I want it to be all about you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 17, 2026 in Luke

 

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Luke 7:31-35

16 Sep

“To what can I compare the people of this generation?” Jesus asked. “How can I describe them? They are like children playing a game in the public square. They complain to their friends,‘We played wedding songs, and you didn’t dance, so we played funeral songs, and you didn’t weep. ’ For John the Baptist didn’t spend his time eating bread or drinking wine, and you say, ‘He’s possessed by a demon. ’ The Son of Man, on the other hand, feasts and drinks, and you say, ‘He’s a glutton and a drunkard, and a friend of tax collectors and other sinners!’ But wisdom is shown to be right by the lives of those who follow it. ”

Luke 7:31-35

Dear God, is anything good enough for me? I mean, I think it is. I don’t think I’m hyper-critical of others, but I’m sure I am sometimes.

A lot of people like to complain about their church. I think I’ve grown out of that to an extent because I worship in. Catholic Church even though I am not Catholic. I don’t expect to agree with everything that is said or that happens. It’s actually very liberating. I can just be there to worship. If there is something happening I don’t agree with I can run it through a filter, pray about it, and then possibly have my mind changed. And then sometimes I don’t change my mind. And sometimes I’m probably still wrong.

I know if you were here teaching in-person today, I would probably find things in you I would disagree with, and I would most assuredly be wrong to do so. I’m a fool. The good news is, I know I’m a fool. And I know everyone else is a fool, and, as long as I do t see them hurting others out of their foolishness, and as long as I’m not hurting others, I think there’s room for us to be fools for now and allow your Holy Spirit to slowly form us into your likeness.

Father, you are enough for me. I have no criticisms. Yes, sometimes I want to complain, but where was I when you laid out the foundations of the world, right? I’m a fool. Thank you for loving this foolish child. You are enough for me.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 16, 2026 in Luke

 

Luke 5:33-39

03 Sep

33 One day some people said to Jesus, “John the Baptist’s disciples fast and pray regularly, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees. Why are your disciples always eating and drinking?”

34 Jesus responded, “Do wedding guests fast while celebrating with the groom? Of course not. 35 But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.”

36 Then Jesus gave them this illustration: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and uses it to patch an old garment. For then the new garment would be ruined, and the new patch wouldn’t even match the old garment.

37 “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the new wine would burst the wineskins, spilling the wine and ruining the skins. 38 New wine must be stored in new wineskins. 39 But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. ‘The old is just fine,’ they say.”

Luke 5:33-39

Dear God, I think I’ve let the metaphors Jesus uses in this passage distract me from the message Jesus is giving in verse 34. As I sit and think about the disciples of John the Baptist (JTB) and the Pharisees vs. Jesus’s disciples, there is one huge difference I’ve never considered. JTB’s and the Pharisees’ disciples were seemingly focused on themselves and learning. They were serving JTB or the Pharisees, they were studying, and they were soaking in you and the growth you had for them. It makes me wonder what happened to them after JTB died. Or what eventually happened to the Pharisees’ disciples. Did they go out into the world. Did JTB’s disciples become part of The Way? Did the Pharisees’ disciples become part of the persecutors of those in The Way? For all of them, time in fasting would be a way to connect with the unembodied you. Your Spirit.

But as for Jesus’s disciples, they were being prepared for something different. They would definitely have a job to do after Jesus was gone (ascended). They would be responsible for The Way. They would be responsible for building the new paradigm. Selling the new wine, as it were. Come to think of it, I knew of a church in my small town called “New Wine Church.” And after you ascended, they would need to spend some contemplative time in prayer and fasting to connect to you, but while Jesus was with them they had you/him there with them. No fasting required.

As for me, as I sit here now, I have to wonder why Luke took the time to preserve this story for us. Was it to underscore the importance of fasting for us who do not have the embodied God/Jesus with us? Maybe so. Maybe this is my reminder that I need to take these times with you. It occurs to me that the Gospels never depict the disciples as getting alone and praying, but they are continually telling us about how Jesus does it (and maybe meeting with Elijah, Moses, and/or others while he’s doing it). They had Jesus. Jesus was you.

Father, I have a full day of vacation left here. I want to be about doing what you want me to do with it. I need to connect with you. I need to connect with my wife. I need to disconnect from work, which has been very hard to disconnect from this week because of one emergency after another. But here I am. Show me what you have for me. Help me to gladly sink into a time of connection that my spirit/soul needs with you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 3, 2026 in Luke

 

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Luke 4:15-30

31 Aug

14 Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region. 15 He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone.

16 When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. 17 The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written:

18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
    for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor.
He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released,
    that the blind will see,
that the oppressed will be set free,
19     and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. 21 Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”

22 Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?”

23 Then he said, “You will undoubtedly quote me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself’—meaning, ‘Do miracles here in your hometown like those you did in Capernaum.’ 24 But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown.

25 “Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. 26 Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner—a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. 27 And many in Israel had leprosy in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.”

28 When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious. 29 Jumping up, they mobbed him and forced him to the edge of the hill on which the town was built. They intended to push him over the cliff, 30 but he passed right through the crowd and went on his way.

Luke 4:15-30

Dear God, I can’t believe I never saw the racial insecurity in this story before someone pointed it out to me a few years ago. The people in Nazareth weren’t upset after Jesus proclaimed he was the Messiah. They were in wonder. No, when they got mad was when he said that there is a role in your Kingdom for Gentiles too. That there were times in history (Elijah and the widow and Elisha and Naaman, the Syrian who had conquered Israelites and taken a Jewish girl as a slave) when you mysteriously showed your favor on a Gentile over an Israelite. That he was there everyone. “When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious. Jumping up, they mobbed him and forced im to the edge of the hill on which the town was built. They intended to push him over the cliff…” Wow, he really hit a nerve!

It seems like the theme of my prayers lately have been about the humility I am supposed to represent as your child and ambassador. I’m not supposed to look for more power. I’m supposed to look for more opportunities to love–whether the person is a Christian (or even my TYPE of Christian) or not. In this case, there is a mob mentality that happens. And of these people on their own might have responded to Jesus differently. But together…well, I’m sure that each and ever one of them regrets what they did that day. They tried to kill your Messiah after he said just a few words that they felt insulted them as a collective.

Father, it feels like the tribes that are out there–in America right now that pretty much means conservative or liberal–are trying to get me to join their anger and their fury. I was watching Ted Lasso season 4 episode 4 the other day, and one of the new characters says, “So never underestimate the power of anger as fuel.” It feels like that is the temptation all of the click-bait monsters are trying to offer us right now. But our anger turns into their fuel. And it begats only more anger. Ugly, ugly, ugly. Oh, Holy Spirit, help me to identify when someone is trying to falsely draw me into their anger and when there is something happening that should legitimately make me angry. And then, when the anger is the right thing to feel, guide me in how I respond to it. Let it be in love and compassion. Let it be sacrificial. You gave me four tools to use to impact my world: Prayer, Service, Persuasion, and Suffering. Help me to limit myself to those four tools.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 31, 2026 in Luke

 

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Jeremiah 15:16-21 and Luke 10:38-42

29 Jul

When I discovered your words, I devoured them. They are my joy and my heart’s delight, for I bear your name, O Lord God of Heaven’s Armies. I never joined the people in their merry feasts. I sat alone because your hand was on me. I was filled with indignation at their sins. Why then does my suffering continue? Why is my wound so incurable? Your help seems as uncertain as a seasonal brook, like a spring that has gone dry. ” This is how the Lord responds:“If you return to me, I will restore you so you can continue to serve me. If you speak good words rather than worthless ones, you will be my spokesman. You must influence them; do not let them influence you! They will fight against you like an attacking army, but I will make you as secure as a fortified wall of bronze. They will not conquer you, for I am with you to protect and rescue you. I, the Lord, have spoken! Yes, I will certainly keep you safe from these wicked men. I will rescue you from their cruel hands. ”

Jeremiah 15:16-21

As Jesus and the disciples continued on their way to Jerusalem, they came to a certain village where a woman named Martha welcomed him into her home. Her sister, Mary, sat at the Lord’s feet, listening to what he taught. But Martha was distracted by the big dinner she was preparing. She came to Jesus and said, “Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me. ” But the Lord said to her, “My dear Martha, you are worried and upset over all these details! There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her. ”

Luke 10:38-42

Dear God, as I read the Old Testament and Gospel readings this morning the theme occurred to me that everyone has a different role to play in your world, whether we like it or not. It might be struggles through hardships of parenting or marriage. It might be poverty. It might be to be the unwelcome prophet. It might be to be wealthy and share resources with others. It might be to be a role model of who to be, and it might be a role model of who not to be.

Honestly, it’s hard for me to complain about my life. And while I have sorrows and things I lament, even those could be so much worse. The question I ask myself when I stop and appreciate what I have and what you’ve done for me is, What is my responsibility and the work you have for me to do? There’s my vocational work. There’s the volunteer work I’ve found myself doing. But is there more? Am I missing anything?

Father, I am having the privilege of visiting some tremendous people yesterday and today. Really great people who love and worship you. Who submit themselves to you and are doing their best to discern your will for their lives. Who celebrate you in their successes and in their struggles. They are good examples for me. I love them all. I pray, Holy Spirit, your blessing over the home I’m in right now. Let your Spirit move, reign and live in every room. With each life that lives here. With each life that enters here, let them feel your presence, let your peace envelope them, and draw each one closer to the center of you and who you are. I ask your blessing on this family.

I pray all of this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 29, 2026 in Jeremiah, Luke

 

Matthew 12:46-13:2

21 Jul

46 As Jesus was speaking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, asking to speak to him. 47 Someone told Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, and they want to speak to you.”

48 Jesus asked, “Who is my mother? Who are my brothers?” 49 Then he pointed to his disciples and said, “Look, these are my mother and brothers. 50 Anyone who does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother!”

13 Later that same day Jesus left the house and sat beside the lake. 2 A large crowd soon gathered around him, so he got into a boat. Then he sat there and taught as the people stood on the shore. 

Matthew 12:46-13:2

Dear God, this is one of those synoptic gospel stories that Matthew, Mark, and Luke give us, but I wish each of them gave us more. I want to know more about the behind the scenes conversations between Jesus, Mary, and his siblings. I want to know more about what the conversations were like between Mary and Jesus’s brothers and sisters. How much did she wish she had Joseph, Elizabeth, or Zechariah (the others who knew of the angel visits and messages all those years ago) to talk through all of this with? But that’s obviously not the point of Matthew, Mark, and Luke telling us these stories. So what is the point?

I don’t think they wanted to make a point of Jesus dismissing his family and relegating them to a lesser position. After all, that wouldn’t be honoring his mother. No, I think he was elevating in importance everyone else. He was admonishing the crowd to look on each other as family. That’s a totally different thing. In fact, Luke boils this story down to three verses in Luke 8:19-21: 19 Then Jesus’ mother and brothers came to see him, but they couldn’t get to him because of the crowd. 20 Someone told Jesus, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, and they want to see you.” 21 Jesus replied, “My mother and my brothers are all those who hear God’s word and obey it.” He doesn’t dismiss his family here. He elevates everyone else.

Father, there’s no one more important to me in this world than my wife, followed closely by our two children. All three of them live rent-free in my head, and I welcome it. My children would be shocked to know how much I think about them and love them. And I get that it’s different for them and how they see me. For Mary, this must have been so hard. There was no one on earth for her like Jesus. And maybe she was feeling pressure from the other children to rein him in. I guess what I’m saying is that I want to really care about the people around me. I want to love them more. I don’t want to be codependent with them, but I want to see each person with love and mercy. And not only other Christians. I want to love everyone richly. Help me to know how to do that in any given moment.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 21, 2026 in Luke, Matthew

 
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