tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-69727008164571282352024-03-08T03:33:36.913-08:00room to flourishdaily space to be with God.Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.comBlogger2273125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-52498433236862098072024-03-07T13:15:00.000-08:002024-03-07T13:16:21.317-08:00a pure heart<p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;"> “Create in me a pure heart, O God; and renew
a right spirit within me.” For unless
you cleanse </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;">me, I will never be clean; unless you wash me, I will never be
pure.</span></span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;">Read:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;"> Psalm 51:1-10</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;">Reflect:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; line-height: 107%;"> In the life of the Spirit, we see through the eyes
of the heart. Therefore, if our hearts
are not pure and clean, our seeing is twisted and distorted. The mess within us skews our vision and keeps
us from seeing things—our world, ourselves, and our God—as they really are.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">That’s
why the words of this ancient prayer are so important: “Create in me a pure
heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.”</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">It’s also why Jesus tells us: “Blessed are
the pure in heart, for they will see God.” (Mt. 5:8) For only when our hearts
are pure, will our eyes be clear enough to see him accurately.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Thus,
a daily purifying is necessary.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">“Cleanse
me with hyssop and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than snow.”</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Each day we must confess and repent.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Each day we must turn from our sinful,
broken, and self-consumed ways of being and seeing, and ask God, once again, to
create in us a pure heart.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">He is the
only one who can do that.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">We can’t clean
it up ourselves.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">God is the only one who
can rid us of all that distorts, hinders, and deforms us, so that we can be
made clean, whole, and new.</span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: medium; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><b style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Closing Prayer: </b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">“Cleanse
me with hyssop, O God, and I will be clean; wash me and I will be whiter than
snow.”</span></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-17181007994863320442024-02-19T08:08:00.000-08:002024-02-19T10:54:02.113-08:00it's time<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> O
God, what will you do to conquer the fearful hardness of our hearts? Lord, you must give us new hearts, tender
hearts, sensitive hearts, to replace hearts that are made of marble and of
bronze. You must give us your own Heart,
Jesus. Come, lovable Heart of Jesus. Place your Heart deep in the
center of our hearts and enkindle in each heart a flame of love as strong, as
great, as the sum of all the reasons that I have for loving you. O holy
Heart of Jesus, dwell hidden in my heart, so that I may live only in you and
only for you, so that, in the end, I may live with you eternally in
heaven. Amen. ~St. Claude La Colombière</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Mark 1:15-16</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What does “It’s time” mean to you right now? What is God calling you to? What is your response? What does repent and believe look like for
you these days?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <i>“The time has come. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe the good news.” (Mark
1:15)</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">O God, I sense that you are calling me
deeper and deeper into the heart of Jesus these days, to become more and more
like him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not exactly sure what I’ve
been waiting for, but it’s time!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
time to surrender to you in a whole new/deeper way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s time to know your love and affection at
levels I’ve only dreamt about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s time
to take another step toward you and away from me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Give me the strength and the courage and the
grace to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Help me, O Lord, to not delay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s time!<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Forgive me, O Lord, that my
life is still mostly about me rather than about you. It’s time to change that</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">. It’s time to truly repent and believe the
good news. Help me to take that step. </span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-34016555308898342212024-02-09T08:26:00.000-08:002024-02-09T08:26:32.085-08:00a severe companion<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Lord Jesus, forgive me when I
resist, or run away from, sharing in your sufferings. If it was through your sufferings that you
were “made perfect” (Heb. 2:10), why would I expect it to be any different for
me? Help me to be willing to do, or to go
through, whatever it takes to become more like you.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Philippians 3:10-11</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">What does it do within you to see pain and anguish
as a severe companion, which God uses to make you more like himself?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> “I am still quite anxious; I still have real
attacks of anguish and sleeping is still a real problem. But I am quite, quite
aware that this pain is given to me to purify my heart, to deepen my love for
Jesus and to give Him every inch of my being. Whereas in the past the anguish seemed
quite disruptive and often paralyzing, now I experience it a little more as a
severe companion who wants to show me the narrow road. Once I have found that
road and walk safely on it, the anguish might leave me, but right now I am
trying simply to accept what the Lord gives me and trust that He knows when,
how and where to give me new peace and new joy.” ―<i>Love, Henri </i>by Henri
Nouwen</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Lord Jesus, thank you for the
severe companion of suffering and anguish; they form and mold me like nothing
else can. Give me the strength and the
courage and the grace to be willing to do, or to endure, whatever it takes in
order to become more like you.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-75827713553259312892024-02-08T07:22:00.000-08:002024-02-08T07:22:40.800-08:00lent is coming<p> </p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="background-color: white; clear: both; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFoV0lSv51t9NDp-tkcLlBuN-jP5PLJPnEWRzrKi1PT0Umdk4oRGJDKG9f9aGA-ZrXxu5H5FhMIM1VTTGGhhY606nqUI_7ES1eAOqyeKFhpVUR_jEiVGZ5BntxGPWLrFhsEmJk6f7Sofg/s1600/Journey+to+the+Cross+.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="color: #2288bb; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration-line: none;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFoV0lSv51t9NDp-tkcLlBuN-jP5PLJPnEWRzrKi1PT0Umdk4oRGJDKG9f9aGA-ZrXxu5H5FhMIM1VTTGGhhY606nqUI_7ES1eAOqyeKFhpVUR_jEiVGZ5BntxGPWLrFhsEmJk6f7Sofg/s320/Journey+to+the+Cross+.JPG" style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.1) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="240" /></a></div><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"><b></b><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;"></span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 13.2px;"><b>If you are looking for a companion for Lent</b> (for yourself, your family, your friends, your staff, etc.), m</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial; font-size: 13.2px;">y Lenten devotional guide <a href="https://www.amazon.com/dp/1532807686/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1487260514&sr=8-1&keywords=journey+to+the+cross+by+jim+branch" style="color: #2288bb; text-decoration-line: none;" target="_blank">Journey to the Cross</a><i> </i>is available on Amazon. Spread the word. This year, Lent begins on February 14 (Ash Wednesday).</span>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-50319010740860070112024-02-04T10:54:00.000-08:002024-02-04T10:54:54.059-08:00you prepare a table before me<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> <i>“You prepare a table before
me in the presence of my enemies, you anoint my head with oil, my cup
overflows.” (Psalm 23:5)<o:p></o:p></i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Psalm 23:5-6</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">What do these two verses stir up in you today? How does it make you feel that God has
prepared this specific place (day) for you?
How does that impact the way you live it?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:
</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">“I have prepared this table before you in the
presence of your enemies. It is no
surprise to me that you find yourself here.
It is as intentional as it is purposeful. I am doing a beautiful work in you. I will use it all—even the work of your
enemies—to invite you into a more intimate friendship with me. I anoint your head with oil because you are
my dearly loved and greatly honored guest.
I have been saving you a place right beside me all along. Come to my table, be with me, and enjoy me as
I enjoy you. Come to the place where
your cup will always be filled to overflowing with my goodness and my unfailing
love.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">“You prepare a feast for me in
the presence of my enemies. You honor me
by anointing my head with oil. My cup overflows
with blessings. Surely your goodness and
unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the
house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23:5-6, NLT)</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-73077696171258136132024-01-30T11:51:00.000-08:002024-01-30T11:51:54.839-08:00the illusion of control<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"> Lord Jesus, thank you that you
are in control, and I am not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Help me to
surrender to your will and your way, to your plans and your agendas, rather
than clinging to my own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Empty me of
everything that is not you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Luke 18:22-25</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> In what ways do you try to control your life? What would it look like to operate out of
surrender rather than control? What do
you need to be emptied of in order for that to happen?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <i>“One thing you still lack. Sell all that you have and give it to the poor,
and you will have treasure in heaven.
Then come, follow me.” (Luke 18:22)</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Control is an illusion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which makes it absurd that we spend so much
time and energy trying to achieve it or maintain it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Oh sure, we might think at times when things
are going along well that we are steering the car, but nothing could be further
from the truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re merely wearing
ourselves out trying to manage, manipulate, and control that which is
unmanageable, impervious, and uncontrollable.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">It’s like one of those rides at the
amusement park where the car is on rails and the steering wheel is not even
connected to anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yet we keep
turning the wheel, trying to convince ourselves that our futile efforts are somehow
influencing our direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why not just
let go and enjoy the ride?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why fight it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why not embrace it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is in control, and we are not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We just need to trust him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Following Jesus is about surrender, not
control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And surrender always involves
an emptying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Emptying myself of whatever
it is that I may be full of at the moment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Because when I am too full of me, there is no room for Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A cup that’s already full can receive no
more; it first must be emptied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I am
preoccupied with myself, it is impossible to then be occupied by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">That’s probably why the rich young ruler </span><i style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">walked
away sad</i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s also probably why
it’s so </span><i style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">hard for the rich to enter the kingdom of God</i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">; they have so much
more to let go of.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Lord Jesus, forgive me when my
life becomes full of me and leaves no room for you. Help me, O Lord, to surrender my plans and
agendas, my hopes and my dreams, my hurts and my pains, and even my need for
control.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-77890964783794271732024-01-27T08:43:00.000-08:002024-01-27T08:43:13.475-08:00storms<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Forgive me, Lord Jesus, for
letting the storms overwhelm me when you have promised to take care of me. Help me to have a deep trust in your
unfailing love.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Matthew 14:32-33</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What storms are in your life right now? How is God asking you to trust him? How can you not let circumstances get the
best of you?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“And
when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down.” (Mt. 14:32)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></i></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><b style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span><span> </span>storms</span></b></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; text-indent: 0.5in;">at
the mercy of the wind and waves</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">is
not how you intended this life to be</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">circumstances
were never meant to dictate</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">only
a deep trust in an unfailing love</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">can
give us a firm place to set our feet</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">even
when everything around us is in chaos</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“But
I have stilled and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a
weaned child is my soul within me.” (Ps. 131:2)</span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Let
actual circumstances be what they may, keep recognizing Jesus, maintain
complete reliance on Him.” ~Oswald Chambers</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Leave us in awestruck, joyful
wonder, Lord Jesus, at the way you work in our lives—even amid the storms. You alone can turn them from fearful, chaotic
places, into sources of life and beauty and amazement. But, in the meantime, while the storm
continues to rage, give us a deep faith in your unfailing love, so that can be
certain that you will take care of us as the waves continue to batter and the
winds continue to blow.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-41090746201715631052024-01-18T07:39:00.000-08:002024-01-18T07:39:54.402-08:00dwelling<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">“He
who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the
Almighty.” (Psalm 91:1)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Psalm
91:1-2</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Who or what are you dwelling in these days? How can you dwell in the shelter of the Most
High so you can rest in the shadow of the Almighty? Will you?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Dwelling is super important. That’s because it does not just involve a physical
activity but is a state of being. When
you dwell somewhere—or with someone—you are not just physically present, but you
are also mentally present, emotionally present, and spiritually present as
well.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">The
Hebrew word for “dwell” is <i>yāša</i></span><i><span style="font-family: "Cambria",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-family: Cambria; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">ḇ</span></i><span style="font-family: Cambria, serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">, which </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">means
<i>to sit down</i> or <i>to reside in.</i>
Thus, dwelling is about staying.
It is about living with and in.
It is a word that’s used over a thousand times in the Old Testament, which
shows us how important it is. That’s
because who or what you dwell in determines so much about the state of your
existence. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">If
you dwell in the shelter of the Most High, you will find rest in the shadow of
the Almighty.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Dwelling in God always results
in a soul at rest, regardless of your circumstances.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And a soul at rest is a soul that’s the very
best, God-breathed, version of itself.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But
if you dwell in someone or something else, you are in for a rocky ride.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">You will always live at the mercy of who or
what you are dwelling in.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">If I have a
tendency to dwell in my fears, anxieties, and insecurities—which I do—then it
will have a horrible effect on my quality of life, not to mention the quality
of my relationships.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But if I am able to
dwell in the shelter of the Most High, I am able to live out of his love rather
than out of my need. </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Who
or what I’m choosing to dwell in at any given moment is what matters most.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But dwelling in the shelter of the Most High
does not come easily, it takes practice.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It doesn’t just happen automatically.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">We must learn how to arrange and cultivate our lives in such a way that
we are continually turning and returning to our God.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Praying the words to this ancient and
beautiful prayer is a good place to start.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> “He who dwells in the shelter
of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.” (Psalm 91:1)</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-9964624815046398392024-01-17T08:31:00.000-08:002024-01-17T08:31:59.187-08:00the work of God<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> O
God, help me to trust you, even when things don’t work out quite like I’d planned.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">John
9:1-5</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What
is using these days to display his work in your life? What is he up to? How is he (or could he) use that work to
transform your life? </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <i>“But
this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.” (John
9:3)</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">We are a people who continually
ask, “Why?”</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Whenever something goes
wrong—or right, for that matter—we want to understand the reason for it.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">We are hell-bent on assigning blame or taking
credit, whichever it may be.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Who knows,
maybe that makes us feel more in control somehow.</span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The problem is that life is
not always that cut and dried.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It is not
always as black and white as we want it to be.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Therefore, in the absence of a compelling cause and effect, we make up reasons
for why certain things have happened.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Someone has to take the blame when things don’t turn out the way we
think they should.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Who sinned, this man or his
parents, that he was born blind?”</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">There
must be a reason, right?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Someone must’ve
done something to someone for this situation to have turned out this way.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">All the while, scared to death that if this
can happen to him or her, it could happen to anyone—even me.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Tell me how to avoid these things happening in
my life, please!</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But Jesus doesn’t appease
the crowd.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">He doesn’t offer an easy
solution.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">He simply tells them to trust
that in all things God is at work.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“Horrible
things are going to happen in this life, things that cannot be explained by a simple
cause and effect relationship.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">They are simply
the result of living in a fallen, broken world.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But know this: I am always at work.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The things that happen in this life can serve to display the work of God
if you are willing and open and receptive to them.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">So, the next time something
happens in your life that you don’t understand, the next time something unwanted
or unwelcomed crashes into your neatly ordered existence, do not look for
someone to blame, but hold onto the fact that God can use whatever it is to
display his work in your life and in his world.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Just remember these words: </span><i style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">“This happened so that the work of God
might be displayed in your life.”</i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">O Lord,
my God, you are Lord and I am not. You
can, and will, use all the things of this life to mold and shape and transform
me into the person you dreamt me to be, even the hard things. Help me to trust in you.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-67518367776469838492024-01-07T07:43:00.000-08:002024-01-07T07:43:21.248-08:00you anoint my head with oil<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Only you, O God, can anoint us
with the oil we need to make our cup overflow.
Help us to come to your table rather than the table of the world.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Psalm 23:5</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What “table” do you typically go to in order to
have your head anointed and your cup overflowing? How is that working for you? Will you let the Lord anoint your head today?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <i>“You prepare a table before me in the presence
of my enemies, you anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows.” (Psalm 23:5)</i>
What a beautiful invitation! God, our Good
Shepherd, invites us to his table, the table he has prepared for us, to join
him in an intimate and soul-nourishing meal.
It is a table of love, it is a table of joy, it is a table of
abundance. It is a table where our cup
constantly overflows with the goodness and life and love of God.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And
whenever we come to this table, he does something incredible.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">He anoints our head with oil.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This anointing is one of great love and
affection.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">To anoint someone’s head was
a gesture of hospitality and esteem, of honor and respect.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">When someone’s head was anointed, it meant
that they were a special guest at the table.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Anointing was a symbol of joy, abundance, and refreshment of heart—which
all leads to an overflowing cup. That is the life God wants for us and with us.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Unfortunately,
many of us run to other tables to try and find the life and the love and the
worth and the value that only the Lord can give.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">The result of this is not abundance, but
scarcity.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Human honor and affection has
its limits; God’s does not.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">So
don’t run around from table to table trying to find the love and the value that
only God can give.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Instead, come to his
table, the one he prepared for you.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Taste
of his great affection.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Receive his
fragrant anointing and allow your cup to overflow with his life and his love.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> O Lord, anoint my head with
oil today, so that I can know my true value and worth. Then I can be an instrument in inviting others
to the table that overflows with your life and your love.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-73764473077172090892024-01-06T07:17:00.000-08:002024-01-06T07:17:22.283-08:00epiphany, 2024<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Lord,
you are always showing up in our lives and our world; give us eyes to see it
and a heart to receive it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Matthew 2:1-11</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What is consuming your heart and mind these
days? How is that hindering your life with
God? Is your life too full of other
things to actually be able to see God when he appears? How will you go about being sure that when
God shows up in your life, you will be able to see him?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Did you ever wonder why the Magi and the shepherds were
able to notice God showing up in the world, and the kings and rulers and
leaders were not? Is it because the people
in positions of power and influence were just too busy to notice? Were they too consumed with their own
kingdoms to pay attention to God’s? Were
they too distracted by what they were up to, to care about what God was up to?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess the moral of the story is: Don’t
get so consumed with your life and your world and your struggles that you lose
sight of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That is the surest way to
miss what he is up to.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Lord Jesus, epiphany is all
about seeing you. Help us to do just
that. Help us to live our lives in such
a way that when you do show up, we notice.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-50513590347959156372024-01-05T08:20:00.000-08:002024-01-05T08:20:42.335-08:00the yes of the soul<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Yes,
Father! Yes! And always Yes! ~Francis de Sales</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> 2
Corinthians 1:17-22</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
What is your “yes” these days? Where are
you sensing God’s yes?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> <i>"Whatever
God has promised gets stamped with the Yes of Jesus. In him, this is what
we preach and pray, the great Amen, God's Yes and our Yes together, gloriously
evident. God affirms us, making us a sure thing in Christ,
putting his Yes within us. By his Spirit he has stamped us with his
eternal pledge--a sure beginning of what he is destined to
complete." </i>(2 Corinthians 1:20-22, MSG)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">There is a <i>yes </i>deep in your soul,
planted there by Love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is in this
place that you are invited to live.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
is a place of beautiful harmony, deep resonance, and holy communion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is where the yes of your soul meets the
yes of its Maker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Live in that yes
today.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Lord
Jesus, help me to find the yes of my soul and live in it.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-26540495214751890522024-01-01T07:30:00.000-08:002024-01-01T07:30:41.900-08:00a new year's prayer, 2024 edition<p><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It’s been a crazy year.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lots and lots of emptying: physical, spiritual,
relational, and vocational. Thank you, Lord Jesus, for always meeting me where
I am and always leading me where I need to be.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">It hasn’t always been fun, but it has always been good.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Here’s my New Year’s Prayer,
2024 edition:</span></p>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me, O Lord, for not
being all you made me to be.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me for being about
me rather than about you.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me for being driven
by need rather than by love.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me for trying to be
the point rather than making you the point.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me when I have let
my fears and insecurities get the best of me.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me when I have been
a wounder rather than a healer.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me when I have allowed,
mood, whim, and circumstance to determine my life.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Forgive me when I’ve sought
the praise of others before I’ve sought you.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"><br />Make me more like you, Lord
Jesus, in this new year.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Empty me of everything that
is not you.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">And fill me with your wholeness,
your life, and your love.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Fill me with your kindness,
your goodness, and your humility.</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0in; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Make me into the husband,
father, grandfather, friend, servant, and man you want me to be.</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This is my New Year’s
Prayer.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">What’s yours?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-85941232787791804522023-12-31T08:24:00.000-08:002023-12-31T08:24:16.433-08:00embrace the new that lies ahead<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Thank
you, Lord Jesus, for the new year that lies ahead. You have much you want to do both in and
through us, so help us to be open and receptive to whatever that may be—your
work and your word and your will. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Isaiah 42:8-9</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> How
is God asking you to embrace the new year?
How is that requiring you to let go of the old?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> You
can’t embrace the new, without letting go of the old. Will you?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Lord Jesus, give me the courage and the strength and the grace to let go of the
old, so that I might be able to be receptive to the new.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-12080859871995405002023-12-30T07:09:00.000-08:002023-12-30T07:09:56.095-08:00god alone<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> “Find rest, O
my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be
shaken.” (Psalm 62:5-6)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Psalm 62:5-6</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> What is your sense of well-being
dependent upon? What does that tell you
about your life and your faith? What
would it look like for you to put your hope in God alone?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> <a name="_Hlk154823168">“Find rest, O
my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him.
He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be
shaken.” (Psalm 62:5-6)</a></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Until my sense of well-being depends on </span><i style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">God
alone</i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">, I will always be at the mercy of mood, whim, and circumstance.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">He alone is my rock and fortress.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">He alone will allow my soul to find rest and
peace.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">He alone is my hope.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">If my hope is in anyone or anything else, I am
in for a rocky ride.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><a name="_Hlk154823198"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">“Trust in him, O people, pour out your
hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” (Psalm 62:8)</span></a></p>
<span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk154823198;"></span>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> “Trust in
him, O people, pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” (Psalm 62:8)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-42801883589508775182023-12-19T08:05:00.000-08:002023-12-19T08:05:03.356-08:00how can i be sure of this<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Forgive us, O Lord, when we doubt the goodness of your heart and the power of
your love. Give us confidence that you
do, indeed, hear our prayers and are committed to giving us the deepest desires
of our hearts—yourself.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Luke 1:5-25</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> What
is <i>your prayer </i>these days? How
are you asking him to answer it? Where
are you asking, “How can I be sure of this?”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> “How
can I be sure of this?” (Luke 1:18) It’s a simple enough question, I
suppose. And not terribly out of line,
at least on the surface, given the circumstances. Except when you consider that
the being standing before Zechariah was actually and angel, who had just told him
that “your prayer has been heard.” It
certainly echoes the sentiments of a man who would come before Jesus years
later: “Lord, I believe. Help me
overcome my unbelief.” (Mark 9:24)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">What caused Zechariah to
doubt?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Was it that the miracle seemed
too hard to perform, given his age, or that he didn’t really believe God loved
him enough to perform it?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">In other
words, did Zechariah have a hard time believing that God could answer his
prayer, or that God would answer his prayer?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Julian of Norwich once
wrote: “For some of us believe that God is all power and able to do all, and
that he is all wisdom and knows how to do all.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">But that he is all love and will do all, there we stop.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">This ignorance is that which most hinders God’s
lovers.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">So, what is it for you?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">What makes it hard to believe that God wants
to answer your prayers?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">What makes it
hard for you to believe that he wants to turn your mess into a miracle?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Do you believe he can?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Do you believe he will?</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Just pay careful attention, because sometimes
the miracle he is performing is not the exact one we are asking him for.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt;">Sometimes he is doing a bigger, deeper work.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> “Lord,
I believe. Help me overcome my unbelief.”</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;"><o:p> </o:p></span></b></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-78931385140872356412023-12-18T07:19:00.000-08:002023-12-18T07:19:53.669-08:00low<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Opening Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">
Lord Jesus, the way you chose to enter this world tells us so much about who
you are, and about who you aren’t. Help
us to have the courage and the strength and the grace to see your example and
to follow it. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">Luke 2:7</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Journal: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;">How
did Jesus enter this world? Why? What does that say to you? How does it call you to be more like him?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Reflection: </span></b><i><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">“And
she gave birth to her firstborn, a son. She
wrapped him in cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for
them at the inn.” (Luke 2:7)</span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Talk about humble beginnings!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Creator of the universe, God in the
flesh, came into the world as a newborn baby, was wrapped in cloths, and was
laid in a manger.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All because there was
no room for him in the inn!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are you
kidding me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How much lower can you
get?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And yet, this is how God chose to enter
his creation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It certainly tells us something about the
character of our God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it certainly
sets an example for those of us who follow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The very birth of Jesus invites us to the low places.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It invites us to enter the world with a hush
rather than a flash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It invites us to make
our home among the low rather than the high.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">The temptation to try and make a place for
ourselves in this world is so strong, and yet Jesus did the very opposite.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And he invites us to join him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which means that whenever we find that there
is no room for us, we are most likely following in his footsteps.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rejoice and be glad! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Closing Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif; font-size: 12pt; line-height: 107%;"> Lord
Jesus, give me the courage to follow you, no matter how low it may lead.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-59598902800316351112023-12-09T08:54:00.000-08:002023-12-09T08:57:00.667-08:00 my newest book<p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSTGpr2F2LT4Q5NFinYb1FvH2shQRplQiCcIOo7JABWKZ1LfL_lRSAqJ630uqpxuSZ2ImM6LH8_qZVzMZPGS_rlIIkavDoOXULsw6k0Wy3x4NLXrBKgiyQekU3Y62vKOHjyxbUTfFF6yymYNa4iAOUqFXcNI1xZPsjy1jrbClw6Wlo1yJi9dgpVpkZ59o" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1500" data-original-width="1000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhSTGpr2F2LT4Q5NFinYb1FvH2shQRplQiCcIOo7JABWKZ1LfL_lRSAqJ630uqpxuSZ2ImM6LH8_qZVzMZPGS_rlIIkavDoOXULsw6k0Wy3x4NLXrBKgiyQekU3Y62vKOHjyxbUTfFF6yymYNa4iAOUqFXcNI1xZPsjy1jrbClw6Wlo1yJi9dgpVpkZ59o" width="160" /></a></div><br /><p></p><p>If you are looking for a good companion for the journey from Epiphany to Lent, this book could be for you. It's the second book in the Order My Steps series: <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Season-Beholding-Journey-Epiphany-Order/dp/B0CHL7RXQ1?ref_=ast_author_dp&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5CodHPVKFBHn1xHm5r5mLQ0qtWvz44wD3fPfgI0b9ozMjO4U5R6wmw2O-k-CAr-TkitfpUn1DbtzcCCvg9zfZ-f5n1XFihvG_UK7L_t_DrkHSYUhCFbxwZ8QmmKpGYgxF1Z0DqudOcduPaYy5gEJdF5a1kJL3AnrXysRb21xW6IN8dzX9BZ3XmHLla0jteIDaoNv0m8zau0JXA0PkZi9QN1DYuFQ-1d8qmdFY4MUwtY.7lMBvWeFQsaB_s3n57l9C2Dr92In4Gk6quQjAyO2rhk&dib_tag=AUTHOR" target="_blank">Available now on Amazon</a></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-71650995016912808672023-11-29T07:40:00.000-08:002023-11-29T07:53:32.468-08:00stay in the struggle<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Give me the courage and the strength and the
grace to wrestle with you, O Lord, whatever that may look like. For it is only through the wrestling that the
blessing arrives.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Genesis 32:1-31</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Where and how are you wrestling with God these days? What is that struggle accomplishing in
you? Will you stay in the struggle long
enough to receive the blessing it holds?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> <i>“But Jacob replied, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’”
(Genesis 32:26)</i></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">You’ve got to admire Jacob’s tenacity.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">
</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">While most of us would probably have been saying, “Let me go, this is
exhausting, painful, and incredibly uncomfortable,” Jacob was saying, “I will not let you
go until you bless me."</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">The truth is that
most of us probably do not stay in the struggle long enough to get the
blessing.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">We tap out.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">But Jacob was determined.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">He knew this wrestling would eventually bring
a blessing, s</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">o he stayed in it.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">And although he left with a limp, he also
left with a new name.</span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">From that moment
on, Jacob’s life would be forever changed.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">“Enable me to stay in the struggle until the
blessing arrives. I will allow myself to
be vulnerable. That very vulnerability
is my limp, but it is also my blessing.
O Transforming One, you have wounded me, yet you have not disappointed
me. I am grateful for the blessing of
all my new names. Thank you for your
presence in the beautiful struggle of daily life.” (<i>Abide </i>by Macrina
Wiederkehr)</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-19542683541733232292023-11-20T14:43:00.000-08:002023-11-20T14:43:55.244-08:00the depths of woe<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord! O Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to my pleas for
mercy! (Psalm 130:1-2)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Psalm 130:1-8</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">When were you last in the depths of woe? What impact did it have on your life? How are knowing the depths of our own sin and
the knowing the depths of God’s love tied together? Do you have the courage to ask God to take
you to the depths of woe, so that you can know the depths of his unfailing
love?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> In the Scriptures, I normally think of an invitation into the depths of
God as a positive and inviting thing.
But what about when he invites us—or ushers us—into the depths of
woe? What about when God leads us—or
takes us—to a place of coming face to face with our own sinfulness, brokenness,
and desperation? What about when he
invites us not just to take a look at his beauty, but to take a good long look
at our own inner ugliness? That’s a
whole different story. I guess that’s
why most of us refuse to go there on our own, we have to be <i>taken</i> there.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Well, God has <i>taken </i>me
there<i> </i>recently, and I have to say it is not a place I enjoy being.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To be taken to the depths of woe is to be
taken to the depths of your own neediness, brokenness, and insecurity, which is
painful, humiliating, and incredibly dark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It involves wave after wave of sorrow, sadness, and shame, with absolutely
nothing you can do about it, except sit in it, cry out for mercy, and wait for
God to show up in it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">But you know what I found at
the bottom of these depths of woe?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
found Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I guess that’s why the
words of the ancient prayer (Psalm 139:8) remind us that even “if I make my bed
in the depths, you are there.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
right there with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His goodness, his unfailing
love, and his full redemption (Psalm 130:7-8) even reach to the bottom of the
depths of woe, and beyond.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, it
is impossible to know the true depths of the unfailing love of God apart from a
journey to the bottom of the depths of woe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For these depths are meant not only to mark you deeply, but also to
change you completely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus meets us
there and makes us more into the people, and the lovers, he dreamt us to be.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">So if you are currently in
the depths, like me, don’t fight it but embrace it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is bigger than your sorrow and your sadness
and your pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is even bigger than
your sin.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Trust him; he is doing a great
work in you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wants to show you the
depths of your sin, so that he can help you to better understand the enormity
and extravagance of his unfailing love, as well as the beauty and power of his
full redemption. <o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer: <i>“</i></span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"><i>From the depths of woe I raise to Thee the
voice of lamentation. Lord, turn a
gracious ear to me and hear my supplication.
If Thou iniquities dost mark, our secret sins and misdeeds dark, O who
shall stand before Thee?</i></span></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><i>To wash away the crimson stain, grace, grace alone, availeth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our works, alas! are all in vain;<br />
in much the best life faileth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No man
can glory in thy sight, all must alike confess thy might,<br />
and live alone by mercy.”</i> ~Martin Luther<o:p></o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-3203487962117526362023-11-09T07:56:00.000-08:002023-11-09T07:56:05.074-08:00advent is coming<p> Advent begins on Sunday, December 3. If you are looking for a good companion for the season for yourself, your family, your friends, your staff, your small group, or your church, here are two options.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjS6Ih9z8IbZLhDxCj9gXr1YO0bSGLDBfOHp3IIPhDsMlKFtOdznSdzw4FJCeTZX3GmsuQJEiE9ZVjzzsiDhqwr2uZU3N9UmDOCQQ6oud6DFzX_KYtgOFQwccMwJ5QHcfd4TtuAqJGuXAyFNgrXOluaFoZSBkuo4IpTEhOOsXbBF_-DzKITxOwSicnl_3Y" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="500" data-original-width="333" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjS6Ih9z8IbZLhDxCj9gXr1YO0bSGLDBfOHp3IIPhDsMlKFtOdznSdzw4FJCeTZX3GmsuQJEiE9ZVjzzsiDhqwr2uZU3N9UmDOCQQ6oud6DFzX_KYtgOFQwccMwJ5QHcfd4TtuAqJGuXAyFNgrXOluaFoZSBkuo4IpTEhOOsXbBF_-DzKITxOwSicnl_3Y" width="160" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Order-My-Steps-Journey-Christmas/dp/B0BKCG2P28?ref_=ast_author_dp" target="_blank">Order My Steps</a><br /><p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjro7Cr3lWPx1UMVn3lNsNWGf0OPbWvA8hZtlRIziw-DO78uhi3AVkyxsnRonfBETP07zOmj3pHfk2Qf-y8ghUEgNipnjmDfOsU8RtdYlnljFqwCYNSM0xXt6RXbIUTj-TNl2ajPjP_Z6aGngvdKCMlwR1xO0H6zqVHp_r4YW3RxEgm0i5njhVjLAA_Yeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="208" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjro7Cr3lWPx1UMVn3lNsNWGf0OPbWvA8hZtlRIziw-DO78uhi3AVkyxsnRonfBETP07zOmj3pHfk2Qf-y8ghUEgNipnjmDfOsU8RtdYlnljFqwCYNSM0xXt6RXbIUTj-TNl2ajPjP_Z6aGngvdKCMlwR1xO0H6zqVHp_r4YW3RxEgm0i5njhVjLAA_Yeg" width="156" /></a></div><br /><a href="https://www.amazon.com/Watch-Wait-Guide-Advent-Christmas/dp/1514710579?ref_=ast_author_dp" target="_blank">Watch and Wait</a><br /><p></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-6875428439612175052023-10-21T07:41:00.002-07:002023-10-21T07:41:12.798-07:00everything<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">“My heart is not proud, O Lord, my eyes are
not haughty. I do not concern myself
with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul, like a
weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, both now
and forevermore.” (Psalm 131:1-3, NIV)</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Psalm 131:1-3</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">What does this ancient and wonderful prayer stir up in your heart
today? How can you move from trying to
be something, to becoming nothing, so that God can be everything?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b></p><p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">prayer involves</span></p><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">the movement from</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">trying to be something</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">to realizing we are nothing</span></div><div style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">so that God can be everything</span></div>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">“O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes
are raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and marvelous
for me. But I have calmed and quieted my
soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within
me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this
time forth and forevermore.” (Psalm 131:1-3, ESV)</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-18049224005112592312023-09-18T08:00:00.006-07:002023-09-18T08:00:26.004-07:00through the sea<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> O Lord, your path always seems to lead
through the sea and not around it.
Forgive me when I get so comfortable with the familiar that I fail to
trust you to lead me out of my slavery and dysfunction. Give me the courage and the strength and the
grace to follow you, wherever it may lead.
Because following you always leads to freedom.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Psalm 77:19-20</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> How has God brought you out of slavery? How is God trying to get slavery out of
you? How does the process of <i>going
through the sea </i>play into that?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> “<i>Your path led through the sea, your way through the mighty waters,
though you footprints were not seen.”</i> (Psalm 77:19) A very wise man once
said that there are actually two exodus stories in the book of Exodus. The first is God getting Israel out of
slavery and the second is God getting slavery out of Israel. The first happened one day, as God led his
people out of Egypt and <i>through</i> the Red Sea. The second took forty years of wandering in
the wilderness. It seems that the comfortable
and familiar, no matter how hard and dysfunctional, don’t loosen their grip on
us easily. The problem is that following
Jesus almost never involves what is easy, comfortable, or familiar.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I’m coming to realize more
and more that God’s way always leads <i>through</i> the sea—and then through
the wilderness—not around it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is only
by going through the sea, and then the wilderness, that God gets slavery out of
us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a long and arduous
journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The life of slavery runs
deep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Its roots have dug way down into
us and it will take some time and effort to pull them out.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">“Freedom cannot abide in a
heart dominated by desire, in a slave’s heart,” wrote John of the Cross.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It abides in a liberated heart, in a child’s
heart.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Going <i>through</i>, not
around, is how God brings that liberation about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“There is no way out, only through,” wrote
Gerald May.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And he was so right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is something about going through,
instead of around, that is transforming.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">But the bottom line is that
until we love our liberation more than we love our captivity, we will always be
slaves.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Forgive me, O God when I love my captivity
more than I love the freedom you are offering me. Don’t just get me out of slavery, but also
get slavery out of me.</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-42750602861594163762023-09-16T08:46:00.000-07:002023-09-16T08:46:18.687-07:00rule #1<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> My heart is not lifted up, O Lord, my eyes
are not raised too high. I do not occupy
myself with great matters, or thing too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul, like
a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, both now
and forevermore. (Psalm 131:1-3)</span></p><p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Psalm 131:1-3</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> What is prayer? How does this
psalm invite you to pray?</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Be still. Be quiet. Drop your list. Abandon your agenda. Stop your anxious spinning. Listen to God. Let him guide you. Wean yourself off of the need to be
everything to everyone. Still and quiet
your soul and just see what happens.
This is the first lesson in the school of prayer.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Speak, Lord, your servant is listening. (1 Sam. 3:9)</span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6972700816457128235.post-36691916697193735042023-09-12T10:10:00.000-07:002023-09-12T10:10:32.597-07:00functional atheism<p><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Opening
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"> Lord Jesus, help us to hear your knock during
this time and open the door. Come in and
be with us and allow us to fully be with you. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Scripture: </span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;">Revelation 3:14-22</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Journal:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Where and how do self-sufficiency, productivity, and performance
dominate your life</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Reflection:</span></b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua", serif;"> Functional atheism. What an
interesting phrase. It is <i>the belief
that ultimate responsibility for everything rests with me.</i> Thus, it is not so
much atheism in theological terms, but atheism in practical, functional
terms. Which makes it very subtle and
hard to spot. In fact, most functional
atheists would probably not consider themselves atheists at all, they just live
like they are. The telltale signs of
functional atheism are self-sufficiency, productivity, and performance—three things
that are highly valued by the culture around us. But three things that can also leave us
spiritually dead and impoverished. </span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Just look at the letter
Jesus wrote to the church at Laodicea, for example. (Rev. 3:14-22) These were
folks who professed that they both knew Jesus and sought to follow him, and yet
the way they lived their lives said something much different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, Jesus described their love for him
as tepid and lukewarm, which made him want to vomit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was no passion or zeal for God, only a falsely
satisfied sense of self-sufficiency: “I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do
not need a thing.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So much so that they
had left him out of their daily lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus was on the outside looking in; knocking continually on the door of
their hearts, longing for deep, vibrant, intimate relationship with them, and
yet they left him outside.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Thus, the “believers”
at the church of Laodicea were functional atheists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They said they loved God, but they lived like
he didn’t exist.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">The admonition Jesus gave them
was to stop relying on themselves and their own resources to manage life, to
realize their poverty and their helplessness, and to turn to him to give them
what they could not possibly provide for themselves: to be rich in spiritual treasure,
to be clothed in his holiness and righteousness, and to be healed and made
whole.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only Jesus could give them those
things, if only they would be willing to open the door.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The very life of their souls depended on it.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Pray</span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><b><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic;">Closing
Prayer:</span></b><span style="font-family: Book Antiqua, serif;"> Lord Jesus, forgive us when we say that we
love you, when our lives tell a much different story. We know all too well our tendency to plow
right through life on our own without inviting you in or asking for your
guidance and direction. To live
according to our plans and agendas, rather than yours. Forgive us, Lord Jesus. Help us to have the courage and the strength and
the grace to give every area of our lives totally and completely to you, with
no holding back.</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin-bottom: 0in;"><span style="font-family: "Book Antiqua",serif; mso-bidi-font-style: italic; mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>Jim Branchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00304194929839617826noreply@blogger.com0