Day 12-Always have hope

My Prayer: Psalm 71:14 (New International Version)
14 But as for me, I will always have hope;
I will praise you more and more.

The Reading: Mark 4-5
Mark 4:13-20 (New International Version)
13Then Jesus said to them, "Don't you understand this parable? How then will you understand any parable? 14The farmer sows the word. 15Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown. As soon as they hear it, Satan comes and takes away the word that was sown in them. 16Others, like seed sown on rocky places, hear the word and at once receive it with joy. 17But since they have no root, they last only a short time. When trouble or persecution comes because of the word, they quickly fall away. 18Still others, like seed sown among thorns, hear the word; 19but the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 20Others, like seed sown on good soil, hear the word, accept it, and produce a crop—thirty, sixty or even a hundred times what was sown."


My Thoughts: I know some people who've claimed a certain verse as their own, it's a life verse, something that sums up their belief. I don't really have one, but I like the Psalm above. I want to be filled with hope. I want to be like the seed sown on good soil, not the on the rocks or thorny soil. And right now, I think I'm getting hung up in the rocks. So, what do I do? Build roots. To hold on, I need roots. Or to mix my parables, I need to be a stronger branch...by staying closer to the vine...or something like that. Anyway, God doesn't change...Jesus doesn't change. But I do. Or I can change if I want to. Maybe this Psalm can be mine "But as for me, I will always have hope; I will praise you more and more."

Check out the Chris Tomlin song...How Great is Our God.

Look what I did!

I managed to add some music to the sidebar. The only song that I've mentioned here that's actually over there right now is What If by Nichole Nordeman from days ago. If you'd like to actually hear it, you can check it out over there. I think it's working...

Day 11-Burdened by good things

My Prayer: Psalm 16:5-6 (New International Version)
New International Version (NIV)
5 LORD, you have assigned me my portion and my cup;
you have made my lot secure.
6 The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places;
surely I have a delightful inheritance.

The Reading: Mark 1-3
Mark 2:27-28 (New International Version)
27Then he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28So the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."

My thoughts: There are still Pharisees in today's Christian world, people who pride themselves on knowing the rules so that they can watch for people to step out of line to be judged. And the world knows that they are Christians because they're like perfect poster children, doing the right things, saying the right things, in the door every time the church is open, so the world sees and rejects this judgement (and the hypocrisy that can almost certainly follow). The Pharisees were objecting to the disciples pulling heads of grain as they walked through a field on the Sabbath when they weren't supposed to work. And Jesus says the Sabbath was created for man to have an opportunity to take a break from work. It was a good thing for men, not meant to be just another burden. I think that happens too much in the Christian life. We take things that were meant to be blessings (worship, fellowship with others, service) and make them burdens on ourselves...and others. We lose that joy, we fight about it amongst ourselves, and can fall into the trap of looking down on others who don't do what we do. So is this hypocrisy because Christ's people are supposed to love their neighbors, right? Well, they're also human which means they're not perfect. But...the world sees it.

Day 10-In all the earth

My Prayer: Psalm 8:1 (New International Version)
1 O LORD, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
above the heavens.

The Reading: Matthew 27-28
Matthew 28:18-20 (New International Version)

18Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in[a] the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

My thoughts: Immanuel, God with us...always, to the very end. In the first chapter, we're told he'll be called Immanuel or "God with us" and here Jesus says that he'll be with us forever. We've got work to do, difficult work sometimes, but we're not alone and in 27 chapters we've seen what having Jesus with us means: power, mercy, kindness, discipline, compassion, wisdom...good things to have with us always.

Day 9-Only human

My Prayer: Psalm 118
1 Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good;
his love endures forever.


The Reading: Matthew 25-26
Matthew 26:31-36 (New International Version)
Jesus Predicts Peter's Denial
31Then Jesus told them, "This very night you will all fall away on account of me, for it is written:
" 'I will strike the shepherd,
and the sheep of the flock will be scattered.'[a] 32But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee."
33Peter replied, "Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will."
34"I tell you the truth," Jesus answered, "this very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times."
35But Peter declared, "Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you." And all the other disciples said the same.

My Thoughts: They all failed. These are the original disciples we're talking about and they all failed to claim Jesus when it came right down to it. Judas was the one who betrayed him for silver and Peter is the one who denied Jesus repeatedly, but the rest just ran away in fear. And these were the disciples! They failed in a big way, but then...they accomplished the work that Jesus must have known they could do. It would be tough to pick friends if you already knew how they would let you down, wouldn't it? It's good that we don't have that problem. And that Jesus also knew what these men could do, would do, to change the world. And he chose them anyway. Just like he knows how I'm going to fail, to stumble, but there must be something in me, in you if he's picked you, that's he's going to use to change the world. The world? That seems impossible, but I know he can use my life accomplish his work in this world. And yours, too. If we let him.

And a song (I have to figure out how to add mp3's to this...anyone?) I had a very serious song by Michael W. Smith here that matches the Psalm...but then, I decided to go with theology by Billy Joel brought to mind by my heading.

Day 8-Ready?

My Prayer: Psalm 27:1 (New International Version)
1 The LORD is my light and my salvation—
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life—
of whom shall I be afraid?

The Reading: Matthew 22-24
Matthew 24:36-40 (New International Version)

The Day and Hour Unknown
36"No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. 37As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 38For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; 39and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man. 40Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.

My Thoughts: I was joking (sort of) with someone a week or two ago about the only solution to one of my problems being for Jesus to just come on back. I was going to start praying for that. Of course, I have thought about it, but it doesn't really seem like a practical solution so I'm back to thinking about others (I had a slightly heated discussion with another somebody about how I shouldn't "worry" about anything but it's OK to think a lot about and try to come up with solutions which seems a little like the definition of worry but that's just this other person for you.) When I read this, I started thinking about what would happen if today were the day Jesus came back. What if today were the day? Would I be ready? No more time. This is what I've done with my life. This is what I have to show. Would I be ready? Would you?

Day 7-Trees

My Prayer: Psalm 1:1-3 (New International Version)
1 Blessed is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked
or stand in the way of sinners
or sit in the seat of mockers.
2 But his delight is in the law of the LORD,
and on his law he meditates day and night.

3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.

The Reading: Matthew 19-21
Matthew 21:21-22 (New International Version)
21Jesus replied, "I tell you the truth, if you have faith and do not doubt, not only can you do what was done to the fig tree, but also you can say to this mountain, 'Go, throw yourself into the sea,' and it will be done. 22If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer."


My Thoughts: This last verse is the source of one of my struggles with my Christian faith and growth. I believed it and I prayed for good things...and they didn't come. Of course, I've heard over and over that I have to understand God's will and pray for the right things, but sometimes that seems like a loophole to a fairly clear promise. So what do I do when I'm disappointed in the answer? The answer depends on the day. Sometimes I think I've gained more wisdom with the passing of time and can see the reasons why I should have prayed for a different outcome or reasons why God's answer was better. But sometimes I'm just disappointed and angry. I think those times are becoming fewer as I mature, and I hope that someday, when I can see what my life became thanks to the change Jesus made, that it's all going to be clear. Until then, I have to battle those doubts and disappointments...my Father wants to give me the best in life, better things than I even know to ask for. And He has a plan for that life, a plan far above what I can plan. And He's going to take every bad thing that happens to me and turn it into something good.

Here's another translation that seems a little more believable to me...I believe that God does care about the insignificant parts of my life as well as the big decisions. And, thanks to prayer, I've already successfully done things in my life that felt like telling the mountain to go jump in a lake. I have to remember these when I'm confronted by the disappointments.

Matthew 21:21-22 (The Message)
21-22But Jesus was matter-of-fact: "Yes—and if you embrace this kingdom life and don't doubt God, you'll not only do minor feats like I did to the fig tree, but also triumph over huge obstacles. This mountain, for instance, you'll tell, 'Go jump in the lake,' and it will jump. Absolutely everything, ranging from small to large, as you make it a part of your believing prayer, gets included as you lay hold of God."