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Romans 15:13-22

07 Nov

13 I pray that God, the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of the Holy Spirit.

14 I am fully convinced, my dear brothers and sisters, that you are full of goodness. You know these things so well you can teach each other all about them. 15 Even so, I have been bold enough to write about some of these points, knowing that all you need is this reminder. For by God’s grace, 16 I am a special messenger from Christ Jesus to you Gentiles. I bring you the Good News so that I might present you as an acceptable offering to God, made holy by the Holy Spirit. 17 So I have reason to be enthusiastic about all Christ Jesus has done through me in my service to God. 18 Yet I dare not boast about anything except what Christ has done through me, bringing the Gentiles to God by my message and by the way I worked among them. 19 They were convinced by the power of miraculous signs and wonders and by the power of God’s Spirit. In this way, I have fully presented the Good News of Christ from Jerusalem all the way to Illyricum.

20 My ambition has always been to preach the Good News where the name of Christ has never been heard, rather than where a church has already been started by someone else. 21 I have been following the plan spoken of in the Scriptures, where it says,

“Those who have never been told about him will see,
    and those who have never heard of him will understand.”

22 In fact, my visit to you has been delayed so long because I have been preaching in these places.

Romans 15:13-22

Dear God, I’m pretty distracted this morning and having a hard time digging into this passage. I’ve read it about three times now, and the first time I was really touched by the part about how Paul was speaking affirmatively towards the Romans (verse 14). They aren’t perfect (verse 15), but just saying they are full of goodness is quite a compliment. I’d love to receive that word from Paul.

But once again, Paul is essentially coming back to what he said in Acts 20:24. That he considers his life worth nothing to him. He just wants to preach the gospel of Jesus to everyone, including Gentiles. What is the gospel? That we are reconciled to you through the life, death, resurrection, and power of Jesus–you incarnate. Fully God. Fully human. You succeeded where we failed.

I was listening to an episode of the Bible Project podcast this week. They are doing a series on “The Wilderness,” and they were talking about how Jesus succeeded where we failed. He succeeded in the wilderness where Adam failed. Where Abraham failed. Where Moses failed. Where David failed. Where Elijah failed. Even the greats failed. But Jesus didn’t. Fully you and fully us, he succeeded and bridged the gap between us. You’re amazing.

Father, help me to live this gospel today. Help me to figure out how to share it better. Give me the courage to share it better. And guide me in the complicated path ahead of me. Give me clarity, wisdom, and insight. Give me compassion. Give me your eyes so I can see what you see. Give me your ears so I can hear what you hear. Take my ego out of it. Take my self-interest out of it. Help me to boil these situations down to what you need me to do.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on November 7, 2025 in Romans

 

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Romans 8:26-28

09 Sep

26 And the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t know what God wants us to pray for. But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. 27 And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers in harmony with God’s own will. 28 And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.

Romans 8:26-28

Dear God, this is one of those precious passages that is so encouraging. The problem is it’s also easy to misinterpret if one is a subscriber to prosperity gospel teaching. But before I get to verse 28, I want to spend some time with verse 26.

You, Holy Spirit, are so overlooked by all of us, but I think I’m getting a little better at thinking about you and the role you play in my life. The depths of your companionship with me. The teaching. The comfort. And the praying. This is the one I probably don’t think about as much. That you pray for me. And I don’t have to ask you to pray for me “with groanings that cannot be expressed in words.” Paul indicates here that you just do it. And I have friends for whom I pray. I hope you are praying for them with groanings too because, frankly, I am just not a very focuses intercessory prayer. I’m not nearly as purposeful or disciplined about it as my wife is. She’s much better at praying for others than I am. But I also believe that you are there just loving me and praying for me and the things I care about.

This leads me to verse 28. The trick on my end is to not expect that I know what my good is. That’s where prosperity gospel teaching fails. It assumes we can identify when something is good for us or not. If I were to win the billion-dollar Powerball that was awarded the other night, I might think that is good for me, but you would know better. How many lottery winner who win large amounts actually have their lives improve? Not many. But there are the more practical things too. I remember in 2005 when I was really mad at you about not getting a specific job, but what I couldn’t see in the moment was you had something different for me. And there are things in my life that I want now. There are broken relationships I long to be healed. But maybe you don’t have that as what is best for everyone involved. I’m too ignorant to know what is your best, so the Holy Spirit is praying for me and my faith allows me (most of the time) to be patient and let you work things out for the collective good, not just my selfish wants.

Father, I love you. I trust you. I thank you. Holy Spirit, thank you for praying. Thank you for all that you do for me that I almost never acknowledge. Thank you for the comfort you give me. Thank you for teaching and directing me. Thank you for loving me. Now, as I have different names come to mind who need prayer, I pray that you will strongly support them. Love them. Bring glory to your name in their eyes and through their lives. Heal, but do it for your glory. Comfort. Teach. Provide. All for your glory. Our utmost for your highest.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 9, 2025 in Romans

 

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1 Thessalonians 2:9-13

27 Aug

9 Don’t you remember, dear brothers and sisters, how hard we worked among you? Night and day we toiled to earn a living so that we would not be a burden to any of you as we preached God’s Good News to you. 10 You yourselves are our witnesses—and so is God—that we were devout and honest and faultless toward all of you believers. 11 And you know that we treated each of you as a father treats his own children. 12 We pleaded with you, encouraged you, and urged you to live your lives in a way that God would consider worthy. For he called you to share in his Kingdom and glory.

13 Therefore, we never stop thanking God that when you received his message from us, you didn’t think of our words as mere human ideas. You accepted what we said as the very word of God—which, of course, it is. And this word continues to work in you who believe.

1 Thessalonians 2:9-13

Dear God, it seems Paul was leaning on his credibility to get the right to speak into the lives of the Thessalonians. It’s as if he was saying, “Hey, I didn’t just show up and tell you what to believe. I worked with you. I took nothing from you. I wasn’t a huckster for personal gain. I was there to give to you, not to receive from you.” And I think that does make a difference. It’s one thing for Paul to have been run out of town by the Jewish leadership if he was going town to town like a traveling evangelist looking for money from the people (which he wasn’t doing). It’s another thing when he shows up to invest in the community, give more than he takes, and then share the message he wants everyone to know.

There are a lot of ideas that float around within the church right now. Some of them are varying shades of progressive. Some of them are varying shades of conservative. In both cases, both politics on the left and politics on the right have seeped in. I could name liberal issues that I think are steering the people of the church away from you, and I could name conservative issues as well. And it is hard to know where, on the spectrum of ideas, you would fall.

I think the thing I keep coming back to is when we start asking ourselves if something is a sin or not I go back to the Sermon on the Mount when Jesus gave the series of “You have heard it said ____, but I say ____.” He raised the bar on hate and equated it with murder. Lust and equated it with adultery. So when we talk about some of the political issues and start to wonder how close we can get to the fire without getting burned, I wonder if we aren’t asking the wrong question. Not only how far from the fire can we get, but how do we lovingly show people who don’t want to let go of those things the why behind it?

And then what are the blind spots I have? Where am I still too close to the fire? Am I willing to let you reveal those parts of my life to me through your Holy Spirit?

Father, it’s funny because this all started with Paul working with the people to get credibility with them, and it ended with me asking you to reveal my own sin to me. Maybe that’s exactly how all of our prayers should be: being led by you into repentance. So help me to see. I hope you can be gentle with me as you reveal my sin to me. And help me to be your man with others so that you can touch their lives and draw them closer to yourself as well.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 27, 2025 in 1 Thessalonians

 

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Romans 1:16-17

17 Jul

16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. 17 This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”

Romans 1:16-17

Dear God, it is so easy for us to make the “Good News” so complicated. I think the tendency of the modern American Christian is to say it is that we get to go to heaven and escape hell. But that’s not what you’re offering. You are just inviting us to use you for our benefit. The Good News tells us that faith in Jesus and everything he taught makes us right in your eyes. And following Jesus in faith and being right in your eyes brings us life. It’s right there. And on the other side of the veil, eternity with you is our destiny, and that’s great. And I don’t know what they cut line for eternity with you is.

I don’t know where you draw those lines. But I know that what you’re offering me and all of us is life now. If I ignore you and just walk through my life as best as I can in my own power then I don’t know what will happen to my soul. Jesus was a little vague on how you’ll decide those things. He said in Matthew 25:31-46 that some of us who claim to know you don’t know you, and some who didn’t realize they were loving you were loving you all along by loving the least of these.

Father, help me to be absolutely loving to everyone today. Help me to see every interaction with everyone who crosses my path as an opportunity to love. Give me ears to hear. Give me eyes to see. Help me to be slow to speak and quick to listen. Help me to be curious and not judgmental. Help me to offer you to those who need you. Help me to recognize those you are calling me to serve. Help me to be wise, shrewd, and discerning. Holy Spirit, speak to me today. Help me to hear you and your counsel. Give me the life Jesus promised and Paul offered.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 17, 2025 in Romans

 

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Colossians 2:8-10

16 Jul

8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. 10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

Colossians 2:8-10

Dear God, I was listening to the Geoff Moore and the Distance song “Tell Me Again” this morning while I was getting ready for work, and it was talking about some of the Bible stories from the Old Testament that I love so much, and I got to thinking about Daniel and then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. Are these the most flawlessly-portrayed Bible characters? Okay, now that I think about it, there are a lot of Bible characters for whom we don’t really get to see their weaknesses. Isaiah. Even Paul after he’s converted on the road to Damascus seems pretty perfect. But all those guys from Genesis all the way through 2 Kings are pretty flawed. But when you get into the exile and you look at Daniel and the other three and how they worshipped and loved you through difficult times, even up to the threat of death, is really impressive.

But I know that I know that I know that if I were to tell any one of those four men that I perceived them to be as good and holy of people as there are in the Bible they would roll their eyes, laugh, and tell me just how flawed they were. They weren’t even close to being who they were designed to be. I just didn’t get those stories. In some way, I just get the Facebook version of their lives. The highlights. The greatest hits. And if someone were to see my greatest hits only then it would look pretty cool too. But there is a lot of crud that fills in between those highlights. And that’s okay in the sense that I don’t have to be perfect or even better than David to be good enough for you. In fact, the more time I spent with David the last few months working with the men from Christian Men’s Life Skills the more I learned that there really wasn’t that much about him I found honorable. He lied a lot. He killed a lot. But I think what made him different is that he leaned into you in his failings. He prayed. He sang and wrote psalms/poetry. And he didn’t take shortcuts to the throne. He waited on you. Ironically, I think he had my problem in that he seemed to have a problem with confrontation. He didn’t confront Amnon when he raped Tamar. He didn’t confront Absalom when he killed Amnon. He didn’t confront Joab when he killed Abner. He just kind of let things fester and left some of the confronting (and killing) to Solomon to do later. In fact, now that I think about it, Solomon is different because he wanted peace on all sides on a macro level, but he didn’t mind confronting individuals in front of him.

All of that is to say that this passage by Paul makes it clear that Jesus was different. He wasn’t a good man. He wasn’t a good teacher. He was you incarnate. He was you in the flesh. And somehow, through this reconciliation with you through Jesus, there is this piece of my nature, the core of me, that is whole. While I’m still here in the current earth, I will make mistakes. I will hurt people. I fill frustrate you and grieve you sometimes. But I also walk with this newness about me that, the more I allow it to, exudes your fruit. On a scale of 1-10, I might be a 3, but at least tomorrow I have a chance to be a 3.0001. Just a little more every day.

Father, thank you that you love me through all of this. Thank you that I can be sure that Daniel et. al. were just as flawed as I am. They had amazing faith in their best moments, but I am sure they also had their moments like Elijah where they were calling down fire and being powerful in your name in one moment and then hiding in caves from the king in the next. As a flawed man, I am in good company. Thank you for Jesus. Now, help me to take the mercy you have for me and give it generously to those around me.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 16, 2025 in Colossians

 

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Acts 14:8-20

18 May

8 While they were at Lystra, Paul and Barnabas came upon a man with crippled feet. He had been that way from birth, so he had never walked. He was sitting 9 and listening as Paul preached. Looking straight at him, Paul realized he had faith to be healed. 10 So Paul called to him in a loud voice, “Stand up!” And the man jumped to his feet and started walking.

11 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, “These men are gods in human form!” 12 They decided that Barnabas was the Greek god Zeus and that Paul was Hermes, since he was the chief speaker. 13 Now the temple of Zeus was located just outside the town. So the priest of the temple and the crowd brought bulls and wreaths of flowers to the town gates, and they prepared to offer sacrifices to the apostles.

14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening, they tore their clothing in dismay and ran out among the people, shouting, 15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings—just like you! We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. 16 In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, 17 but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” 18 But even with these words, Paul and Barnabas could scarcely restrain the people from sacrificing to them.

19 Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowds to their side. They stoned Paul and dragged him out of town, thinking he was dead. 20 But as the believers gathered around him, he got up and went back into the town. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.

Acts 14:8-20

Dear God, I know I’ve read this story before. So how could I forget it? I guess there’s only so much place for things in my memory, and this one didn’t make the cut. But it is such a wild story! Such a wild story.

But I guess it reminds me of the mob mentality I talked about yesterday. What is it about us that is so susceptible to the group think and peer pressure of others? These people in Lystra have preconceived notions about religion, and when they see a miracle they apply that to the situation as a collective. Not even Paul and Barnabas themselves can disabuse them of their mistake. Then some persuasive men show up and talk the crowd into stoning them. It is reminiscent of Jesus’s triumphal entry on Sunday and crucifixion on Friday.

I guess this is a reminder for me to question everything. Absolutely everything. I know some people I truly respect and love who have a completely different view than me of the current political landscape in the United States. They celebrate what I grieve and they grieve what I celebrate. There are still areas for our Venn Diagrams overlap, but on some really core issues we are miles apart. So who is part of the mob mentality and who isn’t? Or are we all in different mobs, deceived in different ways?

Now that I think about it, the passages in the Gospels that describe passion week and this passage here never say that they crowds at the beginning of the stories contain the same people as the crowds at the end of the stories. Maybe we are all part of a mob and we don’t realize it. Maybe it’s human nature to find comfort in group-think.

Father, open my eyes so I can see this. Open my mind and heart and reveal the lies I believe to me. The main thing I need you to show me is how to love you better and how to love people around me better. If I can stick to those two things then the rest will fall into place. At least, that is what Jesus promised me. All of your other laws fit under those two. So I worship you. You are God. You are my absolute authority. You are my King. Let your Holy Spirit guide me moment to moment today. Show me where I am wrong and make me quick to repent. I offer myself to you. Help me as I teach this morning. Keep me from heresy. Keep me from leading anyone in the wrong direction and away from you. Use me today to lead others at least one step closer to you.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on May 18, 2025 in Acts

 

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2 Corinthians 6:1-10

10 Mar

6 As we work together with him, we entreat you also not to accept the grace of God in vain. 2 For he says,

“At an acceptable time I have listened to you,
    and on a day of salvation I have helped you.”

Look, now is the acceptable time; look, now is the day of salvation! 3 We are putting no obstacle in anyone’s way, so that no fault may be found with our ministry, 4 but as servants of God we have commended ourselves in every way: in great endurance, afflictions, hardships, calamities, 5 beatings, imprisonments, riots, labors, sleepless nights, hunger; 6 in purity, knowledge, patience, kindness, holiness of spirit, genuine love, 7 truthful speech, and the power of God; with the weapons of righteousness for the right hand and for the left; 8 in honor and dishonor, in ill repute and good repute. We are treated as impostors and yet are true, 9 as unknown and yet are well known, as dying and look—we are alive, as punished and yet not killed, 10 as sorrowful yet always rejoicing, as poor yet making many rich, as having nothing and yet possessing everything.

2 Corinthians 6:1-10

Dear God, Paul really gets on a roll here. Sister Miriam focuses on verse 2 in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, but it’s verses 3-10 that really struck me this morning. I am just picturing Paul sitting somewhere either writing this feverishly or dictating it to someone who is feverishly trying to keep up with what he is saying here.

I like how I see Paul’s “fruits of the Spirit” from Galatians 5 weave their way into his other writings. It’s one of his themes. Part of his stump speech. They appear here: patience, kindness, love.

But I think the point of all of this is to encourage the Corinthians (and me) to accept the responsibility inherent in receiving your grace. To whom much is given, much is required. What do you require of me today? I doubt it will be to physically suffer as Paul did, but it might mean exposing myself to ridicule out of my love for you. It might mean embarrassment. It might even mean losing a donor who doesn’t like my devotion to you. I don’t know. But I know that I need to be prepared now for when that moment comes. I cannot wait until I am challenged to decide I will stand up to that challenge. I need to decide it now.

Father, I am your child. I love you. I make mistakes all of the time. Not only ever day, but as much as every hour or more. I am sorry. But I accept both your grace and the responsibility that comes with that grace. Sister Miriam talks about the courage to explore the parts of our heart that we have kept from you and hear you say, “It’s time now. Let’s look at these things together. I am with you. You are never alone. it is time to allow these places to surface so you can be well.” So I invite you in. I accept your presence in every part of my heart. I pray that you will be gentle with me.

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

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 10, 2025 in 2 Corinthians, Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation

 

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Roman 10:5-13

09 Mar

5 Moses writes concerning the righteousness that comes from the law, that “the person who does these things will live by them.” 6 But the righteousness that comes from faith says, “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will ascend into heaven?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ down) 7 “or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ ” (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead). 8 But what does it say?

“The word is near you,
    in your mouth and in your heart”

(that is, the word of faith that we proclaim), 9 because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For one believes with the heart, leading to righteousness, and one confesses with the mouth, leading to salvation. 11 The scripture says, “No one who believes in him will be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; the same Lord is Lord of all and is generous to all who call on him. 13 For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:5-13

Dear God, I never get excited about reading Romans. I probably should. I guess it just seems so academic to me. It feels like he’s teaching a class, and I cannot just take bits and pieces here and there like I prefer to do. For example, today, Sister Miriam just has verse 11 as her verse of meditation from Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, but it’s really out of context without the verse around it. But then they are out of context without chapter 9. And when you go back to chapter 9, you realize it is a continuation from chapter 8. It’s just very verbose and almost cryptic. I’d rather someone like Paul, Peter, or John just beat me over the head with what they are saying instead of taking so many words to build the foundation and justification for their argument. Don’t get me wrong. I understand why they did it that way, and I think that way is right. It can just be hard for me to digest given how I tend to read scripture (which is probably wrong since these were mainly written as letters to groups of people or individuals).

So what is Sister Miriam trying to get me to focus on by just pulling out Romans 10:11?

On this first Sunday of Lent, we are led by the Spirit into the desert with Jesus…In the desert, things become very clear. We see our idols–the things we grasp at for salvation other than God. We see where we hide behind our fig leaves of self-righteousness and shame. We see where our sin has wreaked havoc in our lives and in the lives of others.

I had an email exchange with a friend whom I respect as a Godly man. He loves you. He is also very upset right now and some developments in the world. While we lament the same things, I feel like I am reminded time and again the last few years that there is a difference between despair and lament. As long as you are my God, I will not despair (except when I lose faith and I do, indeed, despair), but I will lament things that make me sad and concerned. And you use that lament to comfort me, motivate me, and draw me closer to yourself. If someone came along tomorrow and fixed everything that I am currently lamenting, I might be tempted to worship that person and turn my eyes from you. I might want to make them my idol. I like how Sister Miriam says, “In the desert, things become very clear. We see our idols.” Why does it often take a desert to reveal our idols? Maybe because we look to our idols to comfort us in the desert, and when they fail us (and they will always fail us eventually) we see them for what they are. Or at least you are trying to reveal them for what they are. We just have to be willing to let go of them and allow the Holy Spirit to help us see them as you see them.

Father, I know I still have idols I’m not aware of. My bank account and how much is in it is an idol. I’m sure it is. I know how I feel if I have different amounts in it. A lot makes me happier. Just a little makes me fearful. So it’s certainly in there somewhere. And I know there are other idols. I know I can look to see who is or isn’t in any given political office and make it an idol to get my person in that position one way or another. But that is fool-hearted. One I’ve talked to you about in the past is my interest or need for the U.S. military to be the strongest in the world so I will feel safe. But am I really safe? Do I need to be safe? My nice little neighborhood in my small town can be a place where I find refuge instead of finding my refuge in you. The examples are everywhere. I confess them to you this morning, in this desert place. Be glorified. You are my God.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on March 9, 2025 in Restore: A Guided Lent Journal for Prayer and Meditation, Romans

 

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1 Corinthians 12:29-13:3

10 Feb

29 Are we all apostles? Are we all prophets? Are we all teachers? Do we all have the power to do miracles? 30 Do we all have the gift of healing? Do we all have the ability to speak in unknown languages? Do we all have the ability to interpret unknown languages? Of course not! 31 So you should earnestly desire the most helpful gifts.

But now let me show you a way of life that is best of all.

13 If I could speak all the languages of earth and of angels, but didn’t love others, I would only be a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God’s secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn’t love others, I would be nothing. 3 If I gave everything I have to the poor and even sacrificed my body, I could boast about it; but if I didn’t love others, I would have gained nothing.

1 Corinthians 12:29-13:3

Dear God, how many times have I read 1 Corinthians 13 without first reading what came before? How did Paul segue into this? What was his set-up?

He was talking about the different gifts and how not everyone has them, but then he told them what is universal to all of us. He told them about love, which is the “way of life that is best of all.”

I kind of talked about this a few days ago when I talked with you about how we treat life as if it is simultaneously precious and then cheap. Our lives are precious to us. Our existence is important. But then when we tear down another person. Bully them. Are indifferent or rude to them. We act as if their lives are not important.

And Paul is good here about explaining the difference between being kind and loving. In 13:3, he talks about how giving to the poor is fine, but if you don’t love those around you then you still aren’t hitting the mark.

Father, I have a conversation coming up soon that could be difficult. Help me to lead with love. Help me to truly love this person and be concerned about them. Help me to be compassionate, but to also understand that a higher bar set for them can be good for them as well. Holy Spirit, whisper in my ear. Speak to me and through me. Help me to be exactly what my friend needs me to be this morning. I want the absolute best for her. I want to love her in the purest form of your love. And I have relatives I want to know how to love as well. I have other friends. Of course, I have a wife who needs my love. Help me, Father, to love well.

I pray this in Jesus and with your Holy Spirit,

Amen

 
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Posted by on February 10, 2025 in 1 Corinthians

 

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Ephesians 6:10-12

27 Jan

10 A final word: Be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on all of God’s armor so that you will be able to stand firm against all strategies of the devil. 12 For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:10-12

Dear God, with my limited mind, it can be so hard for me to remember this. I look around me and I think I am just fighting the bad ideas or idolatrous behavior in others. I think I am confronting their sin. Of course, I ignore my own bad ideas, idolatrous behavior and sin most of the time because I like my bad ideas, idols, and sin. I don’t want to get rid of those. But I need to remember that I am not fighting others, per se. I am not fighting my own nature either. There is a bigger evil happening in your world, and I need to engage it through engaging deeper and deeper with you. Then you will give me your eyes to see others for who they really are: your loved children. You will give me eyes to see my own bad ideas, idols and sin. You will reveal to me opportunities for me to repent before you and love, love, love.

So how do I do this? Paul continues in verses 13-18:

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of God’s righteousness. 15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 Pray in the Spirit at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere.

Your truth. Your righteousness. Peace offered through Jesus. Faith. Embrace my salvation. Engage the Holy Spirit.

Father, walk with me today as I do these things. Give me your eyes to see. Give me your ears to hear. Give me your heart to love. Give me your wisdom and discernment so that I will know how to act proactively and then react to everything happening around me. Give me your peace so that others might be drawn to you through me. And I pray for the couple we met yesterday. I pray for my wife. I pray for my children and their significant others. My parents. My siblings and in-law siblings. My nieces and nephews. My coworkers. My friends. The people the place I work serves–all of them. Find each life. work in each person. Bring glory to your name. Let everything that has breath praise you.

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

Amen

 
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Posted by on January 27, 2025 in Ephesians

 

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