Devotion
You are my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased
David Jacobs
I spent a lot of my adult life trying to please my father. He is not the easiest man to please, or at least he says that he is not pleased much of the time. There have been moments when I really drove with all of the energy to please my father, only to receive little to no recognition for what I had done. Unfortunately, I lost my temper on one of these occasions, asking my father why he never could admit to being happy with what I had done. Fortunately, my father is a kind and patient person, giving me exactly what I needed. He told me that he thought that I knew he was pleased with him so much so that he didn't even need to say it. With that, my spirit was lifted, and I never felt this insecurity again.
Any son that has had a relationship with their father knows how much it means to be acceptable in good in the mind of your father. As a child, we look up to our parents so much, and although it may sound ridiculous considering Christ is God and God is Christ, I still believe that the human part of Christ looked up to his father the same way that I looked up to mine. He wanted His blessing; he wanted to be affirmed in his goodness; he wanted God to tell him that He loved him. That is exactly what God does.
Prayer
God doesn't just say it to Jesus; He says it so that the people that witnessed the baptism with John could hear it too. They would go from that place to tell the people about it, and the good news of Christ would begin to spread like a wildfire.
Devotion
Pray for Leaders
Frances Taylor
How often do you or I pray for government leaders? Paul doesn't say to pray just for the leaders we like, either. If we do want a tranquil and quiet life, we need all leaders to turn to God and work for justice for all their citizens. It's probably even more important to pray and intercede for those leaders who work against justice, than for those who are already doing the right thing. For those who are already on God's side, we should give thanks to God that they stay in leadership and continue to do God's will. The same goes for city, state, and even church leaders as well as our national and international leaders. Good leaders should be supported and others need to be held to account for their behavior. Obviously different countries have different forms of leadership, but that shouldn't stop us from praying for them. God does listen even if the answer doesn't come as quickly as we might like. In the case of democracies, we sometimes need a bad ...
Morning Prayer
Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.
Inspiration
We cannot allow ourselves envy, for it corrodes not only our relationships with others but also the things we already have. The end result is that we neglect to value and appreciate things already in our possession, and thus in turn, being ungrateful to the Lord himself for what he has provided. Rather, our energy would be better placed to focus on giving thanks to the Lord and his gifts, here and now.
Prayer
To my Lord above, my Creator and Heavenly Father, by your grace do I come to thank you for all I have. Teach me not to covet others and their lot, but grant me instead the ability to Love and see the blessings you have already bestowed upon me. In return for your grace, I thus offer up to you my humblest of gifts, my Lord -my heart in obedience, is yours. Amen.
