Morning Prayer
Make thy face to shine upon thy servant: save me for thy mercies' sake.
Inspiration
God is the only one we can turn to, who won't let us down. It is through Jesus Christ, the son of God, that we are saved, redeemed, and freed from all bondage and captivity. We can safely cry out to God, and be vulnerable in His presence, because He will never take advantage of it. He will only seek to help us, heal us, and guide us.
Prayer
Dear God, I am grateful that I can turn to you in every situation. Lord, it is very hard to find a person I can be totally open with; but I don't have such trouble when I am open with you. Thank you, Lord, for being the solid rock in my life. I don't know where I would be without you, Father. In Jesus' name, I pray. Amen.
Devotion
The First Fruits
Frances Taylor
In addition to the commandments, the Lord gave the people rules to live by that included dietary laws, laws concerning the various feasts that would offer blessings to God and ways of treating people that probably sound pretty strange to us today. But let's consider this one. Why do you think God is asking for the first fruits of the first harvest in the new land? To me, this is asking for a sign of gratitude for all that the Lord had done for them. He brought them out of slavery in Egypt, guided them through the desert, fed them during their journey, made sure they had water to drink and now is bringing them to a new land so that they can live in freedom. Think back to the story of Cain and Abel and their offerings. Abel offered the best of his harvest; Cain doesn't seem to have done the same. Offering sacrifice was a long-standing tradition at that time, in that culture. It would seem to be the natural thing to do. What are we asked to sacrifice ...
Morning Prayer
And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine:For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.
Inspiration
The scribes could only teach in the synagogue saying, "the Scripture says this or that" or "the rabbis say such and such, " but Jesus taught as one having personal authority. He was not a mere scribe, nor even only a prophet, but the very Son of God.
Prayer
Lord Jesus, you are the authoritative Son of God, and your Word is Law. You bring us the Words of the Father and you are the Word of the Father. We know that you have the Words of Life, and that salvation is to be found in no other. Help us to pay careful attention to your Words and teachings, knowing from whom they come. Amen.
