Devotion
Hope We Can Believe In David Jacobs
What is hope? And what do you feel when you are hopeful? The Apostle Paul asks that we are not ashamed for our hopeful thoughts and feelings. In Hebrews 6:11, it says: "And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end." The same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end. What is the basis for our hope? We have answers that we can believe in.
2 Thessalonians 2:16 - "Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God, even our Father, which hath loved us, and hath given us everlasting consolation and good hope through grace,"
Colossians 1:23 - "If ye continue in the faith grounded and settled, and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel, which ye have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under heaven; whereof I Paul am made a minister;
1 Peter 1:3 - "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,"
All Christians have reasons to be hopeful: we have been given the gift of salvation from our Lord Jesus Christ. Maybe we feel that we don't deserve this and we should not be hopeful because of our sinful ways. It is right: we don't deserve it. We have been given it, however, and with this gift God also asks that we remain steadfastly faithful, filled with hope. The Scriptures and the life of Christ act as encouragement so that we might have hope (Romans 15:4). We owe it to God, to rejoice in His glory, to celebrate the life of Jesus, and to remember that we are surrounded by the Holy Spirit.
Prayer
What is the opposite of being hopeful? Think about that for a minute: do you want your life to NOT be filled with hope? Do you want it to be filled with doubt and despair? Of course not, and neither does God. A hopeful life is a happy one. Paul knows this and asks us to rejoice in the name of the Lord. We must rejoice, lift our hearts, minds, and voices, rejoicing in his name. A hope that we can believe in! Amen.
Night Prayer
For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be any other commandment, it is briefly comprehended in this saying, namely, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Inspiration
God commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves, which is easier said than done. God loves us although we are challenging to love, and He extends mercy to us for actions that seem impossible to forgive. His love is available to everyone, and we must make our lives a reflection of His character. We trust the Holy Spirit to guide our hearts and teach us to act as commanded.
Prayer
Dear God, we trust Your Spirit to help us love each other as You love us. We desire to be a reflection of Your character to everyone we meet. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Devotion
Do We See and Hear?
Frances Taylor
Jesus spoke in parables to the people of his time as well as to us. Do we hear and understand what he is trying to tell us? We have heard and read the parable of the sower and the seed many times, and we have read the meaning of the parable as well so we understand what Jesus was saying. However, there are other parables such as the Workers in the Vineyard where everyone gets the same pay for very different amounts of work that sometimes make us shake our heads and wonder. The parables often speak of things we just don't have any experience with such as sowing seed, taking care of sheep, pruning vines, etc. Yes, those who live on farms understand, but those of us who are city-dwellers don't. However, we are meant to pay attention to the underlining truths. We learn from the sower, that we need to prepare our hearts to welcome God's word and continue to nurture it if we are to grow in our faith. From the workers, God is generous and sometimes we ...
