Daily Devotion 1 2 2015

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer to Use Our Gifts Wisely
Lord, give me each day the wisdom to see which things are important, and which things are not. Show me how best to use the time and talents you have given me. Help me to use all my opportunities wisely, that I may share, through service to others, the good gifts I have received from you.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer:

Jesus, God’s beloved Son, by taking on the shame of our sin, you have made us God’s children. Help us today to please you and the Father, to your glory. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer for All People
O God, the creator and preserver of all mankind, I humbly pray to you for all sorts and conditions of humanity; that it might please you to make your Word known to them and bring your saving health to all nations. In particular I pray for the entirety of your church, in all of its many forms; that it may be guided and governed by your Holy Spirit, and that all who profess your name and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth. May all of us live in that unity of spirit which our faith in Christ provides to us, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life.
Finally, I commend to your fatherly goodness all those who are ill or in distress, in their mind, body, or circumstances. May it please you to comfort and relieve them in accordance with their needs, giving them patience during their suffering, and a fortunate outcome to all of their problems. And this I ask in the name of Jesus Christ, who was always pleased to relieve the suffering of those he encountered.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer for Morning
In the morning when I rise, I give praise to my God, who shows His glory in the sun. O Lord God, you are the source of all warmth, all light, all sustenance. You bring us out of the darkness of ignorance and the blindness of death every day, that we might remember who made us and who sustains us. Your sun is a promise, that the night of death will end and you will rise again, and with you, all who confess the name of your blessed Son, Christ Jesus.
Let me remember you when I rise and all the day, my God, every waking moment; and let me sleep each night in peace, confident that I will rise with your sun once again, in the time you have chosen for me.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

This is for yesterday...sorry I was busy with celebrating Mardi Gras

Song of Praise
Lord my God, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, who am I that you are mindful of me, who are any of us that you should guide and protect us?
Yet you have made us in your image, a little lower than the angels, and crowned us with glory and honor we do not deserve. You have given us dominion over the works of your hands and put the earth beneath our feet; you have given us dominion over the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea. O Lord my God, I praise you for your gifts to me. How majestic is your name in all the earth!
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Dedication (from St. Teresa of Avila)
May it please you, my good Lord, that there may come a day when I can repay a little of my great debt to you. O Jesus, strengthen my soul, you who are good above all good; and since you have inclined my soul in this way, show me how I may act for you, whatever it may cost, O Lord. Here is my life, my honor and my will; I have given them all to you and they are yours: use me to do whatever you want.
Amen

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer:

Jesus, you are the resurrection and the life, and in you we have new life and the hope of eternal life. Work in our hearts and lives today as we serve you and look forward to spending eternity with you. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

After a military victory, Julius Caesar boasted, “I came, I saw, I conquered.” In the sixth of his “I am” statements, Jesus says something even more outrageous, except that it’s true: “I am the way and the truth and the life. ”

On the eve of his betrayal, Jesus told his disciples that he would soon be leaving them. We can sense the disciples’ deep fear. They had given up everything to follow him, believing he was the Messiah who would deliver God’s people. At one point, Thomas interrupted Jesus and asked, “We don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?” Condensing his teaching into one phrase, Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

Here Jesus claims beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is the only way to know God the Father. No other path can bring us to the throne of the King of creation. Only in and through Jesus can we know the spiritual truth about our lives and our world—and have abundant life.

Do you accept Jesus’ outrageous claim to be “the way and the truth and the life”? Live today with the blessing and confidence of knowing God’s truth deep in your heart and enjoying full life in him.

Prayer:

Holy Spirit, work in our hearts today. Help us to trust in Jesus as “the way and the truth and the life.” Help us to live with confidence because of who he is. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer to Change to Better Serve God
Holy God, I believe that you will change people and many things, if asked and if it is your will. Change me Lord, if it is your will, for I would lead a better life. Touch me, I pray, great God whose touch transforms. Reach out your mighty hand to me, and to all who seek you in the name of your Son. Heal us, transform us, and make us whole; reach out your mighty hand to lift us up to serve you; touch me and all of us this very day, O Lord, that our own hands may bring your hope and healing to this broken world.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Sometimes after a summer storm, I notice downed branches along the sidewalks in our neighborhood. If they lie there for several days, the leaves on those fallen branches fade from green to brown. Separated from the tree, branches die.

Jesus uses the image of a vine and its branches to describe life in him. In this seventh “I am” statement, Jesus declares, “I am the true vine.” Like branches that depend on a tree or vine, we only have true life when we are connected to Jesus. Only when we are attached to him are we “tapped into” God. Jesus provides our sustenance for the daily challenges of living.

But being connected to Jesus is not merely an end in itself. Branches produce leaves and fruit. Only by remaining connected to him, as a branch is connected to a tree or vine, can we bear the fruit of Christlike living. By the power of God’s Spirit in us, we can bear the spiritual fruit of “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). When we are connected to the true vine, to Jesus himself, we produce fruit, glorifying God and drawing others to his love and mercy.

Like a branch attached to the vine, are you connected to Jesus and bearing fruit?

Prayer:

Jesus, you are the true vine, and we are your branches. By your grace and through the Holy Spirit, keep us connected to you so that we produce fruit that glorifies your Father. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

In the last chapter of the Bible, Jesus calls himself an unusual name, “the bright Morning Star.”

At first glance, this image may seem puzzling. Today we know that what ancient people called the morning star, shining brightly before dawn, is the planet Venus. And because the Romans referred to the morning star as Lucifer, and Bible translators used this as a name for the devil, Jesus’ self-description seems confusing. Our Scripture reading for today, however, helps shed light on this image.

King Balak of Moab had hired the prophet Balaam to curse Israel. Compelled to speak for God, however, Balaam could only bless the Israelites. In the blessing we have read today, Balaam prophesies, “A star will come out of Jacob; a scepter will rise out of Israel.” By calling himself the “bright Morning Star,” Jesus links himself with Balaam’s prophecy, declaring that he is the Messiah from the line of David. Jesus will one day defeat all of God’s enemies.

Jesus has ushered in the kingdom of God, but we still wait for the kingdom to come fully when he returns. Then God’s peace—shalom—will reign in the new heavens and earth.

As you watch and wait for Jesus’ return, take comfort and act to bring the glory of the Morning Star to all that God has given you to do today.

Prayer:

Jesus, bright Morning Star, shine in our lives. By your Spirit’s power, help us to shine for you in the world till you come again. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

In our passage today we meet Simeon, a righteous, devout man waiting for the “consolation of Israel.” Isaiah 40:1-2 speaks about this consolation with these words, “Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for.” Isaiah indicated that this would be the work of the Messiah, the promised deliverer of God’s people.

Now, the Holy Spirit had promised Simeon that he would see “the Lord’s Messiah” before he died. And when Joseph and Mary brought Jesus to the temple, the Spirit moved Simeon to go there. Simeon recognized Israel’s consolation in the baby Jesus, and he praised God, announcing that the comfort of Israel had come as “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of [God’s] people Israel.” This child, Jesus, would save God’s people everywhere from their sins.

In Jesus, we have God’s consolation, his comfort, that we have been forgiven. Let the consolation of Jesus dwell in your heart today as you bring his comfort to the world around you.

Prayer:

Jesus, our consolation, only you can provide true comfort. Through your life and death, you have made us alive. Help us to live in such way that we draw the world to you. In your name, Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer of Trust When We Feel Lost
Lord God, sometimes I feel like a lost child, alone in the woods or on a strange street. I cannot see the road ahead of me. I fear what lies in the shadows.
I have no idea where I am going. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself. And even though I am trying to follow your will, sometimes I can't be sure whether I am or not. Sometimes, I think, I am fooling myself. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you and that you will direct me, even if sometimes I get it wrong.
I hope and pray that I will at least not do anything today that I am certain will displease you, and I know that if I do this, you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always. Though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death, I will not fear, for you are ever with me and you will never leave me to face my troubles alone.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

“From start to finish,” “from top to bottom,” “from first to last”—each of these phrases expresses completeness, thoroughness, totality. In our passage today, Jesus asserts his totality using the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet: “I am the Alpha and the Omega.” And then, to make sure we get it, he adds, “… the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” Jesus uses this name for himself nine times in the book of Revelation.

As “the Alpha and the Omega,” Jesus declares his divinity, being one with God the Father; he announces his preexistence for all time and eternity; and he asserts his sovereignty as Lord of heaven and earth, the Creator and the final Judge to whom every knee shall bow.

Jesus also links the claim “I am the Alpha and the Omega” with his declaration “I am coming soon.” With pain and suffering so rampant in our world, the promise of his return to make all things right is a great comfort. As with many of Jesus’ words, however, his coming again presents challenges too.

Will the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, find us faithful when he returns? Be comforted but also challenged today, as you serve the Lord of the ages.

Prayer:

Jesus, we worship and adore you as Alpha and Omega. By your Spirit’s power, help us to lay our lives before you and serve you today and every day. Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

On a shelf in our home, we have a bowl of rocks collected from around the world. They vary in shape and size and color and texture. Though they mean something to us, they probably would not mean much to anyone else.

Paul’s image of Jesus as a rock may seem a bit confusing at first. We can understand Jesus as a rock of dependability, but as a “spiritual rock”?

In calling Jesus a spiritual rock, Paul reminds believers that just as God provided water from the rock for his people in the wilderness (see Exodus 17), God continues to provide for his people today. Just as the sustenance in the wilderness came through Jesus, the spiritual rock, so Jesus sustains us today.

Jesus as our spiritual rock is a great comfort indeed. But there’s also a challenge in this image of the spiritual rock. Despite the food and drink provided in the wilderness, the Israelites failed to trust and obey God. Paul uses their failure as a warning and a challenge to the Corinthians and to us. God provides, but we must trust and obey.

Today, as you go about your life, keep your mind and heart focused on the spiritual food and drink that Jesus provides, and then, step by step, trust and obey.

Prayer:

Lord Jesus, our spiritual rock, help us to trust you as our only source of strength and to follow you in loving service today and always. Amen.

Kurt Selles

[Suzuki Johnny]

Always on the frontier of the future, we strain to peer through the veil to see what’s coming—but, of course, we can’t. Cell phones, laptops, tablets: even the best technology cannot help us see what will happen next. The path ahead is shrouded in the fog of the future.

God’s people have always been prone to wander from the path he prescribes (see Exodus 20:1-17; Mark 12:30-31). Lent calls us back to “the ancient paths,” to the good life of learning to love God and live together (Deuteronomy 6:1-9; Leviticus 19:18). God’s “ancient paths” point the way to salvation.

God’s way also leads to what the writer of Hebrews called: “a Sabbath-rest for the people of God” (see Hebrews 3:1-4:11). Lent calls us to give up life on our terms and to receive with gratitude what cannot be earned—God’s grace, which is “rest for [our] souls.”

Jesus says, “I am the way and the truth and the life” (John 14:6). God’s way began in the Garden of Eden, before Adam and Eve went astray, and it leads all the way to heaven. Jesus died at Calvary and rose from his tomb to put us back on track. He’s given us a way to stay there and, when we wander, to correct our course, with his help through the Holy Spirit. This is the life of a spiritually disciplined disciple.

Prayer:

Lord, show us the ancient paths, the way back to you, and how to follow your leading to eternal life, through Christ and by your Spirit. In the name of Jesus we pray. Amen.

Norman F. Brown

[Suzuki Johnny]

Compassionate Lord, give me a thankful sense of the Blessings in which I live, of the many comforts of my lot; that I may not deserve to lose them by Discontent or Indifference.
Be gracious to my Necessities, and guard me, and all I love, from Evil this day. May the sick and afflicted, be now, and ever thy care; and heartily do I pray for the safety of all that travel by Land or by Sea, for the comfort & protection of the Orphan and Widow and that thy pity may be shewn upon all Captives and Prisoners.
Above all other blessings Oh! God, for myself, and my fellow-creatures, I implore Thee to quicken our sense of thy Mercy in the redemption of the World, of the Value of that Holy Religion in which we have been brought up, that we may not, by our own neglect, throw away the salvation thou hast given us, nor be Christians only in name. Hear me Almighty God, for His sake who has redeemed me, and taught me thus to pray.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer for the Morning
Heavenly Father, let me live this day as the gift it is, for You have truly blessed me to live it. And if I may suffer, I will carry with me the certainty that one day I will see You face to face, a day when all things will become clear and my pain will be made whole through the grace of Christ, my God. Blessed be you, oh Lord my God, and blessed be the day you have given me.
Amen.
A Prayer for Fasting
Holy Lord God, who by your word reminds us of all who have offered you the gift of fasting as a symbol of contrition; Guide me in my denial of worldly pleasure during this season of repentance, that I may always be reminded of the sin that Christ died to overcome; and accept, I pray, the offering I give you with my body in memory of Christ's suffering.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

Prayer for This Day
Holy God, I pray in the name of Christ that you will this day increase my faith in the promises of the Gospel. Give me repentance from dead works. Pardon my wanderings, & direct my thoughts unto thyself, the God of my salvation. Teach me how to live in thy fear, labor in thy service, and ever to run in the ways of thy commandments.
Make me always watchful over my heart, that neither the terrors of conscience, the loathing of holy duties, the love of sin, nor an unwillingness to depart this life, may cast me into a spiritual slumber. But daily frame me more and more into the likeness of thy son Jesus Christ, that living in thy fear, and dying in thy favor, I may in thy appointed time attain the resurrection of the just unto eternal life.
Bless my family, friends & kindred; unite us all in praising & glorifying thee in all our works begun, continued, and ended, when we shall come to make our last account before thee blessed Saviour, who hath taught us thus to pray, our Father.
Amen.

[Suzuki Johnny]

It goes without saying that the head is the most important part of the body. A body can keep living and functioning without many parts, but not without its head.

Paul uses the image of a body to describe Jesus Christ as the head of the church. Christ provides the direction and the coordination of his body. Most significant in this imagery, though, is Christ’s authority over his church.

Paul’s purpose here is to help us see the nature of our relationship to Jesus and what that means for our relationship with others as parts of Christ’s body. The image of the head and the body vividly shows that in a way like flesh and bone, joined together by supporting ligaments, we are growing and being built up in love, under Jesus, the head of the body.

As we can see from this image of Christ as the head of the body, his church, the names and titles of Jesus are not mere abstract images but vivid descriptions of spiritual truth. And with this vivid image, Paul reminds us that we are under Christ’s authority and that we belong to each other.

What will you do today to build up Jesus’ body in love?

Prayer:

Dear Jesus, you are the head of your body, the church. Help each of us, wherever we are, scattered throughout the earth, to submit to your authority and to cherish and support all of your parts, our brothers and sisters in Christ. In your name, Amen.

Kurt Selles