Today’s Community Scripture – 2/16/2023

– Scripture:

(37) “’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’”

                             Matthew 22: 34 – 40

– Reflection:

 I am the oldest of four children in the home – and so, alliances would often shift between my brother, our two sisters, and myself depending upon who we could team up with. Brother in trouble? Join my sister! Childhood squabbles are often innocent and silly, but I wonder if we tend to “team up” with others to highlight our priorities and values, especially when those we disagree with are on the receiving side of criticism. The text for today is in the middle of a back and forth between the Pharisees and Sadducees. Jesus had gotten on to the Pharisees earlier, it was the Sadducees turn next being corrected. The Pharisee’s saw the correction of their opposing group as a way to prove they were right. When both of them were arguing about things that were silly, and childlike. They were focusing on who small things that I would have focused on as a boy, like I have done more chores proving that I was in the right space for honoring our parents; when I should have been focused on loving GOD with all of me, and loving friends as well as myself. Being a group of educated adult men talking scripture all day did not allow them the headspace of what was important at all.

Where do we go from here?

Make it a point to get into right fights with others, I have seen on YouTube, or even television christian people speaking on rules and not the heart of GOD. Still on the sacrificial life instead of the blessing that Jesus died for us all. If being write or being more successful is the point you are trying to make then you are missing the entire reason for Jesus dying and being resurrected.

Our Prayer for Today

Father God, thank you for bringing us back, for grounding us, for reminding us of what is truly important in life. For the times that we allow our attention to stray and the squabbling starts – may your grace ever so persistently remind us that we are loved and that we are called to love you and others. Amen.

Father, thank You that You are the sovereign God who alone knows what is best for us. We’re not going to let a secret frustration sour our lives. We declare that Your grace is sufficient for us. Whether it ever changes or not, we declare that we’re still going to be our best and stay in faith. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

– Scripture:

And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me…

                        2 Corinthians 12:7, NKJV

– Reflection:

Only God Knows

Scholars have speculated about what the apostle Paul’s “thorn in the flesh” was, but what we know is that it was a secret frustration that bothered him so much that he prayed three times for God to remove it. Paul says that he thought the thorn in his flesh was to keep him from getting proud, to keep him from getting puffed up because of the great revelations he had been given. Only God knows the reason He allows thorns to remain in our lives, but nothing happens by accident. That secret frustration may just be for a time of testing. It may be for a time when you have to prove to God that you’re going to be content and do your best when things are not going your way. You’re going to keep giving even when you’re not receiving. You’re going to keep trying when every door is closing. You’re going to keep doing the right thing even when you’re not seeing right results. You’re simply going to stay in faith.

Our Prayer for Today

Father, thank You for the dreams and promises and relationships You put in our hearts. Thank You that we can shovel the dirt off them and know that You can wake up what we thought was dead. We declare that it is never too late to see our dreams come to pass. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

 – Scripture:

Then he walked over to the coffin and touched it, and the bearers stopped. “Young man,” he said, “I tell you, get up.” Then the dead boy sat up and began to talk!

                               Luke 7:14–15, NLT

– Reflection:

Shovel the Dirt Off

I wonder how many times we’ve buried things alive. We tried, but the door to our dream didn’t open, and now we’re convinced it’s dead. We bury relationships. “Our marriage is done. We don’t get along.” We bury God’s promises. “I’ll never get well. I’ll never break the addiction.” At one time we believed, but now we don’t see any signs of life, so we buried it. But the good news is that God is going to wake up some things you thought were dead.

Those dreams you’ve buried, you need to dig them back up. Start believing again. Every circumstance may say, “You’ll never get well.” But when you say, “Father, thank You that You’re restoring health to me,” you’re shoveling the dirt off. When thoughts tell you, “You’ve gone as far as you can,” turn it around and say, “Father, You say my latter days will be greater than my former days.” That’s how you remove the dirt, and you’ll se e a dream that you’ve buried come to pass.

Our Prayer for Today

Father, thank You for the dreams and promises and relationships You put in our hearts. Thank You that we can shovel the dirt off them and know that You can wake up what we thought was dead. We declare that it is never too late to see our dreams come to pass. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.