Devotion
What God Requires
Frances Taylor
I love this passage from the prophet Micah. What does God require of me? The answer is simple yet profound. He wants us to work for justice, to love and to be humble, remembering that God is God and we are not. I remember many years ago when my mother was still alive, we both belonged to the same political party and there were two people running for a place on the ballot. We both wanted the same end result, but we voted for two different people because we believed our candidate was the best choice to bring about the justice we wanted to see. Working for justice isn't always an easy choice. Love seems easier, but we've already seen that not all are lovable and that we are called to love those we don't necessarily like and even to love our enemies. Maybe walking humbly with our God is the easiest. Well, what does it mean to be humble? True humility does not deny the gifts we have been given, in fact it means using our gifts to the best of our ability while all the time giving God the credit. To give yourself a quick humility check, think about how you react to a compliment. Do you just say "thank you" or do you play it down as if you don't deserve the compliment? The humble person says thank you and if another person also deserves credit as well, they mention it. But to put one's self down is to deny God's gift and is false humility. And just when we thought we had an easy answer.
Prayer
Loving God, you have blessed us so much. Help us to give you what you require, a loving heart that will work for justice knowing we owe everything we have to you. Amen.
Night Prayer
Let me not be ashamed, O Lord; for I have called upon thee: let the wicked be ashamed, and let them be silent in the grave.
Inspiration
We humble ourselves before the Lord when we come to Him with earthly burdens. We understand we do not have the power to control or fix our problems alone, so we lay our egos down and align our lives with the will of God. We are proud to be His servants and accept His help throughout our struggles. His love is unconditional, and His wisdom parallels none other.
Prayer
Dear Lord, we humble ourselves before You, seeking Your wisdom and guidance all the days of our lives. Thank You for Your presence and unfailing love. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Devotion
You are a Temple of The Holy Spirit
Frances Taylor
This is a hard saying in today's world. Sexual immorality is so rampant and public that few people believe it to be immoral! People no longer think of sexual behavior outside of marriage as wrong and, in fact, have no problem with going from one person to another quite publicly, broadcasting their behavior on social media and if you're famous enough, on twitter, on TV, in magazines, etc. What happened to "Thou shalt not commit adultery?" I guess I'm old fashioned. I'm not about to condemn anyone who truly loves another and is faithful to them regardless of marriage, but I don't understand and cannot condone random sexual encounters that are not based on love but lust, have no desire for permanency but are literally just to satisfy a sexual itch.
Sorry if I offend anyone, but if we believe that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit to be kept holy, how can we treat them as what – toys, prizes? I'm aware that women have often ...
Morning Prayer
For thou, Lord, art good, and ready to forgive; and plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon thee.
Inspiration
Think of a grudge that you held on for a long time. Did you feel better from holding this grudge? Now think about this deeper: what if God held a grudge against us? Wow, how blessed we are that he forgives our sins! He leads by example, forgiving those of us that do exactly what he asks us not to do. We all should all be more forgiving, like God is to us.
Prayer
You sent your only son to the world to die so that we may be forgiven, merciful God. Forgive me, once again, for being too selfish and proud to not forgive those that trespass against me. I wish that I can sin less and ask for forgiveness and guidance when I need it. I thank you for sending your son to us, Jesus Christ, my Lord and Savior. Amen.
