Category: Daily Prayer

Our scripture this morning is John 15:1-4.

I am the true grapevine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch of mine that doesn’t produce fruit, and he prunes the branches that do bear fruit so they will produce even more. You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.

In Exodus 3:14 God tells Moses “I Am Who I Am.” This leads to the seven “I Am” statements Jesus makes in the Gospel of John, showing His connection to God. The people would have recognized this scripture and Jesus uses the vineyard as a symbol for God’s faithful people.

Pruning cuts off what is dead and encourages growth. We are fruitful when Jesus’ love and teachings are shown in our lives. We know we can’t do this alone. Only through connection to Jesus can we live as God intends, sharing His love with world.

Jesus tells us “You have already been pruned and purified by the message I have given you. Remain in Me, and I will remain in you.” This is His promise that we will not be alone, which He shared in John 14:16-17 and again in Acts 1:8. We can be fruitful only when we are faithful, and as He teaches us “you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in Me.”

Gracious God, You sent Your only son to love and save and free us. Help us to be the faithful, fruitful people You intend, sharing the Good News with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Romans 10:14-15.

But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? And how will anyone go and tell them without being sent? That is why the Scriptures say, “How beautiful are the feet of messengers who bring good news!”

Paul was well trained in rhetoric and debate as a Pharisee and now he uses that gift to share the joy of knowing God. This passage expresses our Great Commission from Christ to go and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:19). Paul leads us step by step to the call Jesus has placed on our lives.

Paul teaches us the path we must follow in order to share the Good News. If we don’t tell the world, who will? Jesus has entrusted His ministry to us, charging us to spread the Gospel everywhere. He told us it wouldn’t be easy but He has called us just the same.

How will we do this? We have been given a variety of different gifts to tell the story of Jesus. We don’t have to be rich, famous or well connected, we just need to be connected to Him. Sharing what Jesus has done for us makes the Gospel alive and personal to those we meet.

Loving Lord, thank You for coming to save us from our sin. Help us to be the disciples of today, energetic in our work for Your kingdom. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Matthew 7:8-11.

For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened. You parents—if your children ask for a loaf of bread, do you give them a stone instead? Or if they ask for a fish, do you give them a snake? Of course not! So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.

Jesus gives us this teaching about prayer and persistence. The parable of the Unjust Judge in Luke 18 shares the same wisdom. If we go to our Father in heaven with honest requests, God will honor them, but remember, the Lord will only give us good gifts.

Jesus uses our sadly human tendency to fall prey to evil in both of these examples, saying “So if you sinful people know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good gifts to those who ask him.” He doesn’t compare us to shame us, but to highlight the goodness of God.

As we continue to ask God for good gifts, our lives become more focused on Him and the good gifts we have to share with each other. God calls us to be His answer to the prayers of those in need. When we ask, seek and knock, the door opens for us to be part of His work in our world.

Gracious God, You are the giver of all good gifts. Bless us to share in Your name. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Luke 1:45.

You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.

This verse is spoken by Elizabeth, mother-to-be of John the Baptist, to Mary, mother-to-be of Jesus Christ our Lord. These two women had been chosen by God for very special and similar purposes. John would be the first prophet of God to Israel in over 400 years, the forerunner of Jesus, preparing the way. Jesus would complete the earthly part of God’s plan of salvation. On this Mother’s Day we remember the women who brought all of us into this world and these two special women who said “yes” to God’s call on their lives. May we all believe the Lord will do what He said.

Loving Lord, in Your mercy You sent Jesus to show us the way to be reconciled to You. Thank You for all the nurturers who have taught us how to love You and one another. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Ruth 1:16-17.

But Ruth replied, “Don’t ask me to leave you and turn back. Wherever you go, I will go; wherever you live, I will live. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the Lord punish me severely if I allow anything but death to separate us!”

Hard times make for hard decisions. Naomi has lost her husband and two sons and has decided to return to Israel. She advises her widowed daughters-in-law to return to their families. One does, but Ruth is attached to Naomi by love and makes the vow “your people will be my people and your God will be my God.” Even in the midst of grief, God is reaching Ruth who did not grow up worshipping Him but has learned something wonderful through a trying time. We too need to see His love and provision for us, especially in difficult situations.

Gracious God, we know that Your love is there for us in good times and bad. Help us to be there for those who suffer, and to know that Your love for us never ends. Amen.

I’m traveling again this weekend, this time for our son’s college graduation in Illinois. Back home and back to regular format on Monday.

Our scripture this morning is 2 Thessalonians 3:3-5.

But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one. And we are confident in the Lord that you are doing and will continue to do the things we commanded you. May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ.

Like many Christians in the early days, the Thessalonians faced opposition on several fronts. Paul tells them that God “will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.” When we encounter resistance in the world, we turn to Him for shelter and the courage to continue in the task we have been given. He is there for us, and we can know His love and “the patient endurance that comes from Christ.” This is the way to bring the Gospel to the world.

Loving Lord, we are often overcome by the enormity of evil and the harm it brings to Your children. Help us to stand firm in faith, ready to share Your love no matter what the situation. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Hebrews 13:6-8.

So we can say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” Remember your leaders who taught you the word of God. Think of all the good that has come from their lives, and follow the example of their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

Does the rate of change in our world amaze or confuse you? Sometimes it seems I just get a handle on something when it changes again! Thankfully, as this passage of Hebrews tells us “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today and forever” and we can always depend on His love.

The author of this letter quotes Psalms 118:6 “The Lord is for me, so I will have no fear. What can mere people do to me?” We must remember that if God didn’t care, we would never have heard any of this. God loves us so much He was willing to come in human form to make sure we got the message.

We are reminded to follow those who lead wisely according to God’s word. Jesus set the example for our lives, caring for all our brothers and sisters regardless of who they are. God’s love for us is eternal and by giving up our selfish behavior we can be part of the mission Christ left us to share His love with the world.

Gracious God, in Your mercy You sent Jesus to save us from our sin. Help us to see Your face in all who need our help and be Your face to them. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Isaiah 53:5-6.

But he was pierced for our rebellion, crushed for our sins. He was beaten so we could be whole. He was whipped so we could be healed. All of us, like sheep, have strayed away. We have left God’s paths to follow our own. Yet the Lord laid on him the sins of us all.

The prophet Isaiah wrote many things about the Messiah almost 700 years before the birth of Jesus. God gave Isaiah the message then so that later people would understand the significance of what Jesus had done for us. It is a hard thing for humans to accept that our Lord would be willing to die for us.

Jesus took our sin away, punished for our wrongdoing. He suffered physical wounds to heal our spiritual wounds. Theologians call this substitutionary penal atonement, that He gave Himself up in our place.

Following our own path instead of God’s leads to sin and death. Jesus showed us a better way, that we could be reconnected to God and live new lives through Him. God wants all His wayward children to return to His love.

Heavenly Father, forgive us for the selfish way we often live and help us to be the children You intend. May we go to share Your love with the world. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is Galatians 6:8-10.

Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.

Paul closes his letter to the Galatians with a warning about sin and encouragement for their work in Jesus’ name. We know that we will tire on our own and need God’s help to keep doing good. We must use the opportunities we are given to share the Good News.

We are an extension of God’s love in the world and “we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.” Jesus taught that we must love others as God’s children, regardless of our situation or theirs. We all belong to God and we all bear His image.

This is not justifying ourselves through works (which is impossible) but being energized by the Spirit to respond to God’s love and do the work we have been called to accomplish. Paul tells us “those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.” Salvation is offered to all who choose to follow Christ.

Gracious God, help us when we feel weak or tired of our calling. Show us the joy of a life spent in serving You, sharing Your love and the blessing of everlasting life with everyone. Amen.

Our scripture this morning is 1 John 4:9-11.

God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. This is real love—not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as a sacrifice to take away our sins. Dear friends, since God loved us that much, we surely ought to love each other.

John wrote in his Gospel “God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him might have eternal life” (John 3:16). He phrases it slightly differently here in his letter, but the message is the same: God loves us so much He was willing to give up a part of Himself in order to save us. All life is precious to God, but we were created specifically in His image. We have been given a special responsibility to care for His creation. May we accept and fulfill the charge He has given us, loving Him and one another as Jesus taught.

Gracious God, when we fell into sin You made a way for us to be redeemed through Your Son. Bless us to go in Your name to share that love with the world. Amen.