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Read. Philippians 3:17-21
17 Brothers and sisters, become imitators of me and watch those who live this way—you can use us as models. 18 As I have told you many times and now say with deep sadness, many people live as enemies of the cross. 19 Their lives end with destruction. Their god is their stomach, and they take pride in their disgrace because their thoughts focus on earthly things. 20 Our citizenship is in heaven. We look forward to a savior that comes from there—the Lord Jesus Christ.21 He will transform our humble bodies so that they are like his glorious body, by the power that also makes him able to subject all things to himself. Reflect. Citizenship defines identity and determines belonging. When one is a citizen (or becomes a citizen) in the United States she or he can vote, run for office, be eligible for many federal jobs, bring family to the United States, and not worry about being deported. In the ancient Roman world in which Paul wrote these words, Roman citizenship was prized because it too offered many privileges and protections. Roman citizens had the right to vote, to own property, to be exempt from some taxes, to a legal trial with an appeal process, to get married, and to be spared from extreme forms of punishment.
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Read. Matthew 5:14-16
14 You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can’t be hidden.15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on top of a lampstand, and it shines on all who are in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so they can see the good things you do and praise your Father who is in heaven. Reflect. John Winthrop left England in 1630 and would later become the governor fo the Massachusetts Bay Colony. He famously stated: “We shall be as a city upon a hill.” Future leaders in America have called upon this language as an ideal for the United States. Perhaps, most famously, Ronald Reagan spoke these words after being elected as president in 1980:
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Read. 2 Corinthians 5:17-20
17 So then, if anyone is in Christ, that person is part of the new creation. The old things have gone away, and look, new things have arrived! 18 All of these new things are from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and who gave us the ministry of reconciliation. 19 In other words, God was reconciling the world to himself through Christ, by not counting people’s sins against them. He has trusted us with this message of reconciliation. 20 So we are ambassadors who represent Christ. God is negotiating with you through us. We beg you as Christ’s representatives, “Be reconciled to God!” Reflect. When we think about the role of Jesus followers in sharing the love of Jesus and making this a better place, you are not just an American, you are an ambassador from God. What this means is that you actually come from a heavenly nation, or the kingdom of God. Your primary home is not in America or any other early place, but is in the nation of God.
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & Family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Read. Acts 10:34-35
34 Peter said, “I really am learning that God doesn’t show partiality to one group of people over another. 35 Rather, in every nation, whoever worships him and does what is right is acceptable to him. Reflect. God led Peter to the home of Cornelius. By all accounts of this world, Peter and Cornelius should have been enemies. Peter was a poor Jewish man. Cornelius was a Roman centurion. As such Cornelius was a Roman military commander. Additionally, the story in Acts 10 shows us that Cornelius had wealth. Cornelius represented the empire to Peter, the same empire that was often hostile to the Jews. Additionally, regardless of Cornelius’s status with the Roman Imperial Army, he was a Gentile. Good Jews did not associate with Gentiles. From all outward appearances, Peter and Cornelius should not be associated together.
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy R Read. Mark 10:42-45
42 Jesus called them over and said, “You know that the ones who are considered the rulers by the Gentiles show off their authority over them and their high-ranking officials order them around. 43 But that’s not the way it will be with you. Whoever wants to be great among you will be your servant. 44 Whoever wants to be first among you will be the slave of all, 45 for the Human One[a] didn’t come to be served but rather to serve and to give his life to liberate many people.” Reflect. Jesus said that “the ones who are considered the rulers by the Gentiles show off their authority over them.” This same thing could be written about our leaders today. You would believe it if you read Jesus’ words and they said the rulers and leaders of this world show off their authority. They throw parties and only invite the most “important” people. They get special healthcare that is not available to “regular” people. They have access to security and safety measures that nobody else get. They can skirt around and often break laws that everyone else must obey. They enter a room and expect people to applaud or want to get their picture taken with them. For American presidents, you expect to hear: “Hail to the Chief.” This type of pomp and circumstance is expected.
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Read. Matthew 17:1-6
Six days later Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them to the top of a very high mountain. 2 He was transformed in front of them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became as white as light. 3 Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Jesus. 4 Peter reacted to all of this by saying to Jesus, “Lord, it’s good that we’re here. If you want, I’ll make three shrines: one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.” 5 While he was still speaking, look, a bright cloud overshadowed them. A voice from the cloud said, “This is my Son whom I dearly love. I am very pleased with him. Listen to him!” 6 Hearing this, the disciples fell on their faces, filled with awe. Reflect. Although there are always dimensions that remain mysterious, we serve a God who desires to be known. God’s self-revelation, God’s word, comes to us in various ways—through nature (cf. Psalm 19), through inner messages (cf. 1 Kings 19:11-13), through the sweeping story of the Bible (cf. Hebrews 4:12). But most of all, God spoke through Jesus, saying to us as to the disciples on the mount, “Listen to him.” • Matthew seems to have written his gospel in terms that would speak particularly to Christ- followers with Hebrew backgrounds. Moses, the great lawgiver, and Elijah, the prototypical prophet, were two people the Hebrews saw as especially reliable. What symbolic point might Matthew have had in mind in reporting God saying of Jesus, in the presence of those two great leaders, “Listen to him”?
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Sonny Bulloch. Bobby and Joyce Reed. Jerry Plaster. Julie. Acknowledgement: Our current teaching series, The Power of Words, was adapted from a series developed by our partners at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection and used with permission. Many of the resources and graphics are provided by our partners. During this series, our Read.Reflect.Pray. guide publishes the daily devotional guide (called Grow, Pray, Study) from our partners with minor adaptation. Read. Ephesians 6:10-20
10 Finally, be strengthened by the Lord and his powerful strength. 11 Put on God’s armor so that you can make a stand against the tricks of the devil. 12 We aren’t fighting against human enemies but against rulers, authorities, forces of cosmic darkness, and spiritual powers of evil in the heavens. 13 Therefore, pick up the full armor of God so that you can stand your ground on the evil day and after you have done everything possible to still stand. 14 So stand with the belt of truth around your waist, justice as your breastplate, 15 and put shoes on your feet so that you are ready to spread the good news of peace. 16 Above all, carry the shield of faith so that you can extinguish the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word. 18 Offer prayers and petitions in the Spirit all the time. Stay alert by hanging in there and praying for all believers. 19 As for me, pray that when I open my mouth, I’ll get a message that confidently makes this secret plan[a] of the gospel known. 20 I’m an ambassador in chains for the sake of the gospel. Pray so that the Lord will give me the confidence to say what I have to say. Reflect. We might think the letter to the Ephesians, written from a prison cell (cf. Ephesians 3:1), would call the Romans the great force opposing Christians. But the apostle Paul’s vision was far more cosmic. “We aren’t fighting against human enemies but against rulers, authorities, forces of cosmic darkness, and spiritual powers of evil in the heavens,” he wrote. He used the image of soldier’s armor, but the actual spiritual armor he used came into view in verse 18: “Offer prayers ... all the time.” • To the Ephesians, Paul wrote, “Offer prayers and petitions in the Spirit all the time.” To Christians in Thessalonica, he wrote, “Pray continually” (1 Thessalonians 5:17). But Paul clearly led a very active life—he didn’t kneel by his bed all day, every day. What have you found that helps you to go through even busy days in a spirit and attitude of prayer? What value do you see in nurturing a continual connection with God?
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Sonny Bulloch. Bobby and Joyce Reed. Jerry Plaster. Julie. Acknowledgement: Our current teaching series, The Power of Words, was adapted from a series developed by our partners at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection and used with permission. Many of the resources and graphics are provided by our partners. During this series, our Read.Reflect.Pray. guide publishes the daily devotional guide (called Grow, Pray, Study) from our partners with minor adaptation. Read. Matthew 6:5-15
5 “When you pray, don’t be like hypocrites. They love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners so that people will see them. I assure you, that’s the only reward they’ll get. 6 But when you pray, go to your room, shut the door, and pray to your Father who is present in that secret place. Your Father who sees what you do in secret will reward you. 7 “When you pray, don’t pour out a flood of empty words, as the Gentiles do. They think that by saying many words they’ll be heard. 8 Don’t be like them, because your Father knows what you need before you ask. 9 Pray like this: Our Father who is in heaven, uphold the holiness of your name. 10 Bring in your kingdom so that your will is done on earth as it’s done in heaven. 11 Give us the bread we need for today. 12 Forgive us for the ways we have wronged you, just as we also forgive those who have wronged us. 13 And don’t lead us into temptation, but rescue us from the evil one. 14 “If you forgive others their sins, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you don’t forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your sins. Reflect. We want all our words, and the meditations of our heart, to be acceptable to God. Perhaps nowhere is that more so than when it comes to the words we speak directly to God, the words we use in prayer. Jesus’ teaching about prayer makes it plain that he did not intend the Lord’s Prayer to be a magic formula recited by rote. Instead, it was a model to guide us into personal, trusting prayer, done not to impress but simply to communicate with God. • As you think about the Lord’s Prayer as a model, set your typical prayers beside it and consider which elements of the Lord’s Prayer you often pray. Are there any of the aspects of the Lord’s Prayer that are almost always missing from your other prayers? What ways can you see in which using Jesus’ prayer as a model could deepen and enrich your prayer life?
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Sonny Bulloch. Bobby and Joyce Reed. Jerry Plaster. Julie. Acknowledgement: Our current teaching series, The Power of Words, was adapted from a series developed by our partners at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection and used with permission. Many of the resources and graphics are provided by our partners. During this series, our Read.Reflect.Pray. guide publishes the daily devotional guide (called Grow, Pray, Study) from our partners with minor adaptation. Read. 1 John 3:15-21
15 Everyone who hates a brother or sister is a murderer, and you know that murderers don’t have eternal life residing in them. 16 This is how we know love: Jesus laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. 17 But if someone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but refuses to help—how can the love of God dwell in a person like that? 18 Little children, let’s not love with words or speech but with action and truth. 19 This is how we will know that we belong to the truth and reassure our hearts in God’s presence. 20 Even if our hearts condemn us, God is greater than our hearts and knows all things. 21 Dear friends, if our hearts don’t condemn us, we have confidence in relationship to God. Reflect. John began this passage by echoing what Jesus taught: that feelings and words of hatred toward others are a form of murder (cf. Matthew 5:21-22). Jesus didn’t seek to kill his foes— he laid down his life for them. But then John extended the principle to the words so many of us speak against ourselves (“even if our hearts condemn us”). Those words, too, can kill our spirit, and there, too, God’s mercy is the answer (“God is greater than our hearts”). • What are the kinds of mistakes or habits that most often trigger self-criticism in you? When you are speaking negative, critical words about yourself, do you find them to be “useful for building up”? Do they “give grace” to you as you listen to your own critical thoughts or words? What better ways have you found to correct and build yourself up than being harshly self-critical? • Pastors or counselors fairly often hear a person say, “God may forgive me for that, but I can never forgive myself.” Christian counselor Bruce Narramore, in his book No Condemnation, noted that if we say that, we seem to think we have higher standards for ourselves than God does! How can you more fully internalize the reality that “God is greater than our hearts,” that you can trust God’s forgiveness more than your own self- condemning feelings? Pray. Loving God, help not only the words I speak to others, but also the words I speak internally to myself, to be acceptable to you, and in harmony with your gracious words. Amen. COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Sonny Bulloch. Bobby and Joyce Reed. Jerry Plaster. Julie. Acknowledgement: Our current teaching series, The Power of Words, was adapted from a series developed by our partners at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection and used with permission. Many of the resources and graphics are provided by our partners. During this series, our Read.Reflect.Pray. guide publishes the daily devotional guide (called Grow, Pray, Study) from our partners with minor adaptation. Read. Exodus 20:7
Do not use the Lord your God’s name as if it were of no significance; the Lord won’t forgive anyone who uses his name that way. Luke 6:46-49 “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and don’t do what I say? 47 I’ll show what it’s like when someone comes to me, hears my words, and puts them into practice. 48 It’s like a person building a house by digging deep and laying the foundation on bedrock. When the flood came, the rising water smashed against that house, but the water couldn’t shake the house because it was well built. 49 But those who don’t put into practice what they hear are like a person who built a house without a foundation. The floodwater smashed against it and it collapsed instantly. It was completely destroyed.” Reflect. Generations of children have grown up learning, at home or in Sunday School, that the third commandment forbids slang phrases that use the names of God or Jesus. Jesus surely didn’t endorse such careless uses of God’s name. He did make it plain, though, that he found it a far more serious sacrilege for a person to claim to follow Jesus while ignoring God’s plain directions for living a God-pleasing life. • Have you ever been in a community, workplace, school or other setting in which people who vocally claimed to be “Christians” lied, cheated, willfully hurt others or acted immorally? How did that kind of jarring behavior affect the response of non-religious people to those who claim to be Christ-followers? Since we all struggle to live flawless lives, how can we avoid being like the people Jesus described in Luke 6:46?
COMMUNITY PRAYER LIST Doug Lawson. Collier. Glenn Ethridge. Adam Funderburk. Mary Reber. Linda Harmon. Betty Carolyn Ward. Albert Rasanke. Lois Robinson. Ross Henley. Tiny & Donald Creasman. Bill and Barbara Buchanan. Bonnie Brenner. Baker Family. Robert McKenzie Family. Kibler family. Carolyn Harlow. Jeff Green. Earl Graves. Mickey Huff. Huff & Welch families. Helen Leigh. Paul Huffman. Schools, Teachers, Staff, Parents, Students. Church regathering plans. Layman family. Charlene Withrow. Brandon Casteel. Dirk Orr family. Smith family. Crowder family. Lillard family. Family of Floyd Eaton. Family of Eddie Rynes. Robertson Family. Harmon Family. Nancy Ryan & family. Bobby Roberts. Elizabeth May & family. Melvin Rinehart. Susan Rogers. Brandon Haugh. Sonny Bulloch. Bobby and Joyce Reed. Jerry Plaster. Julie. Acknowledgement: Our current teaching series, The Power of Words, was adapted from a series developed by our partners at The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection and used with permission. Many of the resources and graphics are provided by our partners. During this series, our Read.Reflect.Pray. guide publishes the daily devotional guide (called Grow, Pray, Study) from our partners with minor adaptation. |
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December 2020
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