Devotion
Clean or Unclean
Frances Taylor
Mark's gospel continues with a list of those things that make defile the man: evil thoughts, sexual sins, thefts, murders, adulteries, coveting, wickedness, deceit, lustful desires, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride and foolishness.
Take a good look at the list. How many of these evils are now in vogue as opposed to being considered to be sins. The ads we see are designed to make us covet our neighbor's goods, lifestyle and often, his wife. People climb all over others to get to the top in business. Pride makes us think that we deserve more than our share and there's no point in talking about fornication or adultery because we are so past seeing the wrongdoing in either of those. Just listen to the music, watch a movie or television program, not to mention the ads, and we get the picture that this is just normal behavior. Jesus was quite specific in this teaching. Just because everyone is doing it, does that make it right? No wonder our world is in such a mess. Do today's Christians even read the Bible? If so, how do we justify our actions or turn a blind eye to the actions of others? Let us take a good look at what "comes out of us" and make sure that we eliminate anything that defiles us.
Prayer
Lord, we really need to take a better look at how we live. Let us keep our eyes on you and ask for your help to avoid giving in to temptation. Amen.
Devotion
My Refuge, My Fortress
Frances Taylor
When we are in trouble, where do we turn? Is God our first thought? Do we really believe that God is our fortress, and our refuge? From the beginning Scripture tells us to trust in God. From Adam and Eve, we find human beings want to trust in themselves first. When we fail, then we turn to God. Ever wonder what it might be like to turn to God first? If we turn to God and place our trust in him, it would save us a lot of unnecessary anxiety. The key is trust. We need to trust that God knows best, that he is with us through whatever is going on, that our prayers are being heard. The difficulty is that we think we know what's best and we can get upset when God has other plans. We pray and don't like the answer, or don't want to wait for the answer.
I remember a story once told me about how we can miss God's answer because it wasn't the answer we wanted. A woman had to work to pay her bills and her mother got sick and needed full time care. She ...
Morning Prayer
But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved; )
Inspiration
I must admit that in times of trouble I have demanded that God show me a sign, talk to me, anything to reinforce my faith in him. What an ego I have! We are blessed to be given the gift of life on earth and life everlasting. It is through his mercy that we have the opportunity to be saved at all. Seek this opportunity and ye shall find it.
Prayer
Father! My heart cries out to you for mercy! We are the clay, and you our potter and all of us are the work of Your hand. Our ancestors have praised you, and now it is our blessing to do the same. I pray that you will use me as a tool for good, and deliver me from sin. I wish to do all things in your holy name, as your son, Jesus Christ, did for us. In his name I pray, Amen.
