Scripture: Psalm 54:2 God! Hear my prayer; listen to the words of my mouth! Thought for the Day: Like many of you, I have been in conversation with God these last 48 hours. My heart aches as I think about everything people throughout southern Texas have experienced and will be facing in the weeks and months to come. At the same time, I have been awed by the
Scripture: Psalm 119:76 Please let your faithful love comfort me, according to what you’ve said to your servant. Thought for the Day: I chose this sermon text three months ago, and now it sounds to my ears more fitting and relevant than I could have ever imagined. Today and in the days to come, there will be so many who are yearning for the faithful love of God
Scripture: Isaiah 40:1 Comfort, comfort my people! says your God. Thought for the Day: I believe these words are too often read as God saying to the people, “I will comfort you.” This makes sense as most people would suggest that God is the source of comfort, yet who is God suggesting as the carrier or envoy of this comfort? The people to whom this passage is directed
Scripture: Matthew 8:7 Jesus responded, “I’ll come and heal him.” Thought for the Day: I recently came across a quote from St. Abrose of Milan. He wrote: No one heals himself by wounding another. Wow! That speaks volumes as the human race has tried countless times to find its health and wellbeing in the destruction of others. Whether it is in an abusive marriage or a boss taking
Scripture: Psalm 48:11-14 Let Mount Zion be glad; let the towns of Judah rejoice because of your acts of justice! Walk around Zion; go all the way around it; count its towers. Examine its defenses closely; tour its fortifications so that you may tell future generations: “This is God, our God, forever and always! He is the one who will lead us even to the very end.” Thought
Scripture: Psalm 48:8-10 Just like we had heard, now we’ve seen it for ourselves in the city of the LORD of heavenly forces, in the city of our God. May God make it secure forever! We dwell on your faithful love, God, in your temple. Your praise, God, just like your reputation, extends to the far corners of the earth. Your strong hand is filled with righteousness. Thought
Scripture: Psalm 48:4-7 Look: the kings assembled themselves, advancing all together—when they saw it, they were stunned; they panicked and ran away frightened. Trembling took hold of them right there— like a woman giving birth, or like the east wind when it smashes the ships of Tarshish. Thought for the Day: In yesterday’s devotional, I started with the opening verses of Psalm 48. I did this, in part,
Scripture: Psalm 48:1-3 In the city belonging to our God, the LORD is great and so worthy of praise! His holy mountain is a beautiful summit, the joy of the whole world. Mount Zion, in the far north, is the city of the great king. God is in its fortifications, revealing himself as a place of safety. Thought for the Day: Have you ever walked into a place
Scripture: John 11:1 A certain man, Lazarus, was ill. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Thought for the Day: People often speak of the climax or the surprising ending of a story, but how often have we never discovered the climax or the surprising ending because the opening didn’t catch our attention. I don’t want it to sound like John 11:1 is