Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is Daniel 12:3 (ESV).

And those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky above; and those who turn many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.

Daniel is an Old Testament vision of the saving of God’s people that has several references pointing to the Messiah and the coming of God’s kingdom. It sent a message of hope during a dark time in Israel’s history and shows us today the lesson of faithfulness. Scholars call this apocalyptic literature due to its references to the end times.

This passage occurs in the later chapters and details the vision given to Daniel of Heaven, much like the Book of Revelation recorded by John in the New Testament. While there are differences in the language and description, the love and awe they inspire in us is the same. Are either of these what it really looks like? We won’t know until we see for ourselves, but these are images we can try to understand.

We are told to be wise, learning the way God would have us go. It makes reference to living a good life through this, and the outreach we are called to make to everyone as His children. God has always been with us and wants only the best for us. Let us share His love and presence with the world.

Gracious God, we are grateful for all the gifts You have given to use for the good of Your children. Help us to grow and share our faith, that all may know You. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is John 14:6 (NRSV).

Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

John 13 -17 is sometimes called the Farewell Discourse, a series of final teachings from Jesus to His disciples. In that time and culture, it was customary for a patriarch or teacher to address those closest to them as they prepared to die. Jesus has spoken to them about what is to happen, but most did not understand or rejected the idea. Now they begin to see what Jesus will do for us, but they are still confounded by the circumstances.

In John 14:6 Jesus states plainly what He has taught all along: “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” This is what infuriated the religious leaders, the idea that everyone could come to God freely with no need for their “professional” intercession. Jesus is the ultimate Intercessor for all of humanity.

Jesus teaches us that we are all God’s children, worthy of love and salvation when we repent and claim Him as Lord. We are invited to a personal relationship with God through Jesus. There is no other way for us to be forgiven.

Heavenly Father, forgive us our disobedient pride, thinking there is some other way to be saved from our sins that we can accomplish. Only the blood of Christ can wash us clean and redeem us for You. Bless us to share Your love and care, telling the Good News everywhere. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is James 3:13 (NRSV).

Who is wise and understanding among you? Show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.

Proverbs 1:7 tells us “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Our problem is that we often strive to be wise in the ways of the world, not wise in the ways of the Word! James offers us a challenge, “show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.

Paul writes “Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel” (Philippians 1:27). It reminds us that we don’t live a life of faith in a vacuum – others see how we demonstrate the Gospel in action.

James is known for his focus on our works, and the faith that drives them. We can’t work to be saved, nothing we do will accomplish that. However, after repenting and accepting Jesus as our Savior, we can work to show others the joy of salvation.

Loving Lord, forgive us for thinking we can do anything apart from You. Bless us to be wise in our faith and share the love You brought us with everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Ephesians 2:18-19 (NRSV).

For through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God.

Paul speaks of a huge division in the world of his time, Jews and Gentiles. The children of Israel had been chosen by God, but to their surprise, His blessing is extended to all people. Paul is sometimes known as the Apostle to the Gentiles because of his extensive missionary work with communities that were mostly non-Jews.

God made a promise to Abraham that through his descendants the whole world would be blessed: “I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed” (Genesis 12:2-3). God chose to use a certain group of people to reach out to the world, but His promise is for all His children everywhere.

In Acts 15 we hear Peter, the head of the Jerusalem church say of the Gentiles: “And God, who knows the human heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us; and in cleansing their hearts by faith he has made no distinction between them and us” (Acts 15:8-9). May we have the same love for all His children!

Gracious God, we know You made us and You see us all in the same loving way. Bless us to heal our divisions and love one another as You first loved us. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Mark 9:23 (NRSV).

Jesus said to him, “If you are able!—All things can be done for the one who believes.”

Jesus has just come down the mountain where He appeared in His glory to Peter, John and James. They find the rest of the disciples struggling to heal a boy possessed by a demon. The boy’s father begs Jesus to help “if he is able” and we can hardly blame him for his doubt. Jesus tells him “All things can be done for the one who believes.”

Jesus says this to His disciples (and us!) in other lessons: “And he said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a dead calm” (Matthew 8:26). Jesus always seems amazed at our ability to panic, even when we know His presence.

Later Peter exhibits faith by getting out of the boat to walk on the water to Jesus. However, it wavers and he cries to Jesus for help as he begins to sink. “Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”” (Matthew 14:31). While Jesus may sound as if He is scolding us, even a little belief is enough to overcome unbelief. The tiny spark of faith can lead to the fire of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (Acts 2) and empower us to share our faith with the world.

Loving Lord, help us in our unbelief! Remind us of the promise we have in You and make us bold disciples to share Your love everywhere. Amen.

Our scripture today is Luke 16:10 (NRSV).

Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much; and whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.

Jesus tells a somewhat cryptic story about using our resources well for the kingdom, and the danger that lurks in the love of money. It is often known as the Parable of the Dishonest Manager (Luke 16:1-13). It has much to teach us about our relationship with money and one another.

Our key verse (Luke 16:10) speaks to the fact that with sin there is very little gray area. It warns us “whoever is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.” We tend to see sins as human crimes with different punishment severity according to the act. The real penalty for sin, all sin, is a separation from God. Evil can’t exist in His presence, that’s why we were banished from the garden.

God never gives up on us; if we repent and ask forgiveness, we can be reconnected to Him. He is always ready to welcome us back. By being “faithful in a very little”, we can grow to be “faithful also in much” and fulfill our charge to share His love with the world.

Generous and patient Lord, we are grateful for every gift You have given us and we ask Your forgiveness for the times we have wasted our gifts. Help us to be good stewards in Your name, bringing the joy of a relationship with You to all Your children. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Philippians 2:5-8 (NRSV).

Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, assuming human likeness. And being found in appearance as a human, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross.

Think like Jesus? That sounds hard, but Paul tells us that if we want a relationship with Jesus, we must be of the same mind. If we want to be like Jesus, we have to want what He wants for us as individuals and the world.

This was the original problem that led to our fall into sin. We had a relationship with God, but we were not of the same mind. Humans chose to follow our own minds on the advice of one who did not have our best interests at heart. This lack of trust and disobedience broke the relationship with God for which we were created.

However, God didn’t give up on us. While things were different than at first, God still loved and wanted the best for us. He already knew we would need help, and in the time He determined, Jesus came to show us what we needed to be saved. Now we get to pass that blessing on to others, inviting them to know the love of God.

Loving Lord, we are grateful You still reach out to us with mercy and forgiveness. Bless us to be good stewards of all Your gifts and share the Gospel with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Matthew 28:19 (NASB).

“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

These are the words of the risen Christ to each and every one of us. It is known as the Great Commission, Jesus passing His earthly ministry to us. Now we are responsible for spreading God’s love to the world.

In Acts 2 we read of the coming of the Holy Spirit, God’s presence with us always. This enables us to be in constant contact with our Creator and to speak His truth. We are not merely things He made but beloved children, and part of His plan.

In the beginning God gave us responsibility for all earthly things, to act as His representatives here. Through the Great Commission we are made responsible to Him for the spread of the Good News, and to each other that all hear of His love and care for us. Each one of us must accept Christ as our savior, and each one of us must tell His story through how we live.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your love and forgiveness demonstrated through Christ’s sacrifice for us. Help us to be bold and loving voices for You always. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Psalm 23:4 (ESV).

Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

This verse from Psalm 23 expresses our faith in the Lord in all circumstances. It doesn’t matter where we go or what we face, God has promised to be with us. We remember Moses’ plea to God “If your presence will not go with me, do not bring us up from here” (Exodus 33:15). David, the author of this psalm, knew that promise not just from scripture, but from experience.

We know that as followers of Jesus there will be obstacles on our journey and opposition to the message we bring. David had a hard path to becoming king, and although he was not perfect, he knew about asking God’s forgiveness when he stumbled. He counted on God to be with him always, not just when things were rough.

This is our major problem as humans – we are more than willing to cry out for God to be with us when things are challenging, but do we also crave His presence when things are good? He is not the God of good times or bad times but the Creator of time itself and all things that exist. He is always there, it is up to us to recognize His presence and accept His blessing.

Heavenly Father, forgive us when we ignore You and the love You have for us. Help us to see You in all our brothers and sisters, and may they see you in us. Amen.

Our scripture today is Micah 6:8 (ESV).

He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?

We’ve looked at this scripture before, but it was up again today on Bible.com, perhaps a sign we need to hear it again. I like using their scripture reading because it’s a surprise each day and makes me think about what I’m studying each morning. I found when I picked my own passages I would sometimes avoid difficult sections, and tended to only choose “happy” scriptures.

Unfortunately, life isn’t always the happy experience we hope for. The prophet Micah met resistance to his call for repentance and care for one another. Even though the people didn’t heed his words, he still preached that there was hope for the future. In Micah 5:2 we read “But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days.” 

Micah reminds the people (and us) that God has told us what is necessary – be honest with Him and each other, love and care for all things, and always follow His path, not our own. We will always encounter obstacles and resistance to our discipleship, but with His help we will share the Good News with everyone.

Gracious God, we are sorry for the times we fail to love each other as You have taught us. Forgive us, and send us to be Your messengers everywhere. Amen.