Devotion
Where and How Has God Made Himself Abundantly Present in Your Life?
Frances Taylor
It's an interesting question! First, you need to realize that God IS present in your life. Then you need to look for him. As I was thinking about this, I remembered the movie White Christmas and the wonderful song "Count Your Blessings." What were your blessings today? Do you have your health? Did you have a nice meal? Did you find that perfect gift, or make all the lights? Do you have people in your life who love you? What are your blessings? I count my friends, my family, my home, my job. I could go on, but you get the idea. There are also significant moments – the birth of a child, recovery from an illness or injury. The ability to deal with grief and moments of intense joy are signs of God's presence. And don't forget the gift of faith, the people that God puts in your way that say just the right thing at the right time, the song you hear or something you read that guides you when you need it. So many opportunities to feel God's presence, if you look! Tonight, before you go to bed, take the advice of Bing Crosby in the movie and "count your blessings instead of sheep" and you'll fall asleep wrapped in the arms of a loving and ever-present God.
Prayer
Loving God, you are with us all the time. You show yourself to us in so many ways both grand and small. The greatest sign of your love was sending your son to save us. Give us the grace to be witnesses of your love to all we meet. Amen.
Night Prayer
Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess.
Inspiration
We despise the thought of a pile of dirty dishes in the sink. The outside is easy to clean; it's the caked-up residue on the inside that's so difficult to remove. Jesus compares the scribes and Pharisees with dishes that have been wiped clean on the outside while dirty inside. The Pharisees took exceptional care of their outward appearance and neglected their inward spirits. We are guilty of allowing our hearts to be left filthy as well. We look and act as we should while our souls are full of darkness. We must continue to converse with the Holy Spirit daily and trust His guidance to cleanse our sinful nature.
Prayer
Dear God, Please forgive our sinful nature. We yearn for cleansing from within, so we are genuine witnesses to Your name. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
