verseoftheday

Jesus stopped in his tracks and called to them.  "What do you want me to do for you?" he asked.   Matthew 20:32 CEB Jesus is heading out of town and two blind men heard that Jesus was passing by so they start calling out.  They won't know just where Jesus is, there's a crowd, lots of noise, so it seems they're just calling out, hopeful that Jesus will hear.  The crowd tries to shut them down, shut them up.  Two blind men who survive on the outskirts of town, on the edge of society, two blind men the community think should have no voice, should just be quiet and let the more respected, more important, more normal, more whole, get close to Jesus.  But Jesus stops in his tracks (the word used is "histemi", to make a stand, to stand steadfast). Jesus is standing against the tide, against the pull of the crowd for the voiceless, marginalised, poor, unseen.  If your voice has been taken, if you've been marginalised, unseen, been left poor by the actions of

Friday! Proverbs! O God,  I beg two favors from you;  let me have them before I die. First, help me never to tell a lie.  Second, give me neither poverty nor riches!  Give me just enough to satisfy my needs. For if I grow rich, I may deny you and say, "Who is the Lord?" And if I am too poor, I may steal and thus insult God's holy name. Proverbs 30:7-9 NLT Agur wants these 2 things from God - not sure if he is unwell, contemplating dying, or whether this "before I die" is just a way of putting things, but it does make you wonder what's going on in Agur's life that these 2 things are top of mind for him. I wonder how old Agur is.  What his life has been. What experiences he has had. What has been his experience of telling lies, or being told lies. What has been his experience of wealth and poverty in his life and in the community around him. Is there some implied injustice in poverty that would force someone to have to steal to survive?  Is there a connect

Everyone with me greets you;  greet those who love us faithfully.  Grace be with all of you. Titus 3:15 CEB  We're at the end of this short letter from Paul to Titus and the people in the church in Crete.  And Paul wraps everybody in. This is from "us" to "you all". The culture I was raised in, the world view, was quite individualistic. Faith is personal. Over the last couple of decades I've been exposed to different world views in Melanesian, Maori, paskifika ideas of being, and I've noticed this more corporate "us" and "you all" in the Biblical view of people more and more.  And here Paul brings everyone in.  And declares, prescribes, in the same way he started this letter, with Grace to You (all). This bookending the letter with Grace makes me wonder about how well I reflect that, how we reflect that in the way we live in this world. Do we start and end with Grace to You? May God's grace and peace be yours today.  May this bles

Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way and see that they have everything they need. Our people must learn to devote themselves to doing what is good, in order to provide for urgent needs and not live unproductive lives. Titus 3:13-14 NIV Paul is encouraging Titus to encourage the Christians in Crete to have an otherness orientation, to look out, to see the needs around them. Both the specific needs of Zenas and Apollos, and this mindset shift towards doing what is good. I wonder what was going on in the culture of the church that this was necessary?  I wonder what Paul would write to my church, my community, to me? This is not an individual, "You should do more" telling off, but a community encouragement to shift the communal mindset, to together support Zenas and Apollos as a catalyst for seeing and responding to the needs around them. Together. Let's bring our gifts and skills and experience and resources together to bear one another'

But - When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit. He generously poured out the Spirit upon us through Jesus Christ our Savior. Because of his grace he made us right in his sight and gave us confidence that we will inherit eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying, and I want you to insist on these teachings so that all who trust in God will devote themselves to doing good. These teachings are good and beneficial for everyone. Titus 3:4-8 NLT Paul then goes on to warn Titus about some of the distractions people get caught up in when it comes to teaching about God. Focus here Paul is saying. There's enough here to change a life, to change our behaviour, our choices, our direction, to change how we stand in the world in relation to God, to others, and to ourselves: God revealed Himself in Jesus. He is kind

Now rescue your beloved people. Answer and save us by your power. ... Who will bring me into the fortified city?  Who will bring me victory over Edom? Have you rejected us, O God?  Will you no longer march with our armies?Oh, please help us against our enemies,  for all human help is useless. With God's help we will do mighty things, for he will trample down our foes. Psalm 108 6, 10-13 NLT After the most beautiful and uplifting worshipful first half to this song, David takes us somewhere completely different in the second half.  It's all about victory, power, winning, it's all about him. The "mighty things" he wants God to do are all on the outside, all about power, and David's writing sounds like he's a bit lost in his quest to win. And I do the same thing. Praise God and ask him to fix my problems. Fix the classroom/online/workplace bully, fix my finances, fix my relationships, fix my problems. So as I sit with this psalm of 2 halves, its a bit of a mir

Sunday psalms: My heart is confident in you,  O God;  no wonder I can sing your praises with all my heart! Wake up,  lyre and harp!  I will wake the dawn with my song. I will thank you,  Lord,  among all the people.  I will sing your praises among the nations.  For your unfailing love is higher than the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. Be exalted,  O God,  above the highest heavens.  May your glory shine over all the earth. Psalms 108 1-5 NLT This is a song of David  and has a different feel to the last few psalms.  This half of the song is all about our God and it starts in his heart, moves to his body, then out loud, to the people, to all nations, to the heavens. It's almost like as David has started considering and writing about who God is, He became more. Bigger. All encompassing. As we allow our heart to expand our God's Unfailing Love, His faithfulness can bind up our hurt, overwhelm our despair, change and shift our thoughts and speak life into the parts

Once we, too, were foolish and disobedient. We were misled and became slaves to many lusts and pleasures. Our lives were full of evil and envy, and we hated each other. But - When God our Savior revealed his kindness and love, he saved us,  not because of the righteous things we had done,  but because of his mercy.  Titus 3:3-5a NLT Envy. The word here is "phthonos", to be glad at someone else's misfortune, it means a heart in decay. Hatred. The word here is "miseo" which means to "love less".  Desires driving our choices, misleading us. This is what Paul is telling Titus to remind the Christians in Crete that they have been saved from. It's not about "hell" or some future thing, but saved from the things in us that lead to destruction and decay. That left to ourselves will lead to slavery. Saved from the things that damage us in the here and now.  But God. But God loves us. And stepped in and made a way, because He loves us.  Maybe we ne

Friday! Proverbs! All God's words are tried and true;  a shield for those who take refuge in him. Don't add to his words, or he will correct you and show you to be a liar.   Proverbs 30:5-6 CEB These are the writings of Agur, who starts in v1 with; "I'm tired, God. I'm tired, God, and exhausted" We don't know why he feels at the end if what he can do. Maybe he's old, unwell, the weight of the world feels too much, things have happened in his life, loss, grief, or maybe it's fear of the future, but it all seems too much. And this part of his proverbs seems like he's reminding himself of some truth: When you're tired, God's words are true, they're enough, wrap yourself in His Truth as a refuge, stand behind God's Truth as a shield. And while you're there don't go making stuff up, don't go believing the accusations, the lies, what the world might say about God, or about you. Trust His Word as that place of refuge. What&

Remind them to submit to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, to slander no one, to avoid fighting, and to be kind, always showing gentleness to all people.  Titus 3:1-2 CSB Paul is giving some instruction to Titus to pass on to the Christians in Crete. There must've been some stuff going on if people in the church needed reminding to be gentle, kind, stop fighting, stop slandering, to do good work, and to stop working against the government. I wonder what Paul would write to my church about? I wonder what reminders he would want to give me? It might well be one or more of the things on this list: To show gentleness to all people. That requires a heart attitude of listening, understanding, not judging the outside or behaviour. To show gentleness to all people requires a heart that loves others first, that says the other person has worth and value and is worth caring for (even of I can't see that right now).  Or maybe Paul would remind me to be kind.

We should live in this evil world with wisdom, righteousness, and devotion to God, while we look forward with hope to that wonderful day when the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, will be revealed. He gave his life to free us from every kind of sin, to cleanse us, and to make us his very own people, totally committed to doing good deeds. You must teach these things and encourage the believers to do them.  Titus 2:12-15 NLT  Paul's prescription for Titus, and to the people in Crete 2000 years ago, and to us today: - Be realistic about the world we live in. - lean into God's wisdom - hold on to the hope we have in Jesus. - keep reminding ourselves of just what Jesus did for us, and our status now as his own people. Connected to him. - do good in this world. Whether that's big and spectacular or small ordinary doesn't seem to matter. - teach and encourage others somehow. Titus was being instructed in a particular ministry, but we can speak about what we have

In the same way, encourage the young men to live wisely. And you yourself must be an example to them by doing good works of every kind.  Let everything you do reflect the integrity and seriousness of your teaching.  Titus 2:6-7 NLT Maybe it's an author, a Bible teacher, a pastor, a parent, grandparent, older person telling us what's right and wrong, what we should or shouldn't do, how we should live. Paul is letting Titus know that the way to teach is by doing.  Don't talk about what's right, live it.  And this encouragement finds its way from Paul's letter to us, to keep moving in the direction of integrity, to do good, to live out our values in the world.  One small step at a time. And this passage gives us an idea about who we should follow, who we should take notice of, who's pattern we should copy...those who are living in integrity with their values, those who are "doing good works of every kind". Let's pattern ourselves after them. #titu

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever. ... Some sat in darkness and deepest gloom, imprisoned in iron chains of misery. ... "Lord, help!" they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. Psalms 107:1,10,13 NLT I don't think anyone chooses to sit in darkness. In gloom. Imprisoned in chains of misery. But there are times when it can seem like the safest place to be, when we can't see an alternative, when our circumstances tell us, when the things we tell ourselves, that in gloom is where we belong, what we deserve.  And there may be times when all we can muster, all we have is "Lord help!" The writer of this song gets us. And helps us even in the gloom to keep hold of the glimmers of Hope: Our God is Good. His Faithful Love endures forever. He is for us. For you. "Lord help!" Not only is our God Good, but we are the object of His Faithful Love. You are, in fact, Beloved.  When we're singing,

Sunday Psalms: Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!  His faithful love endures forever. Has the Lord redeemed you?  Then speak out!  Tell others he has redeemed you from your enemies. Some wandered in the wilderness, lost and homeless. Hungry and thirsty, they nearly died. "Lord, help!" they cried in their trouble, and he rescued them from their distress. Psalm 107:1-6 NLT This is the first song from Book 5 of Psalms that includes 107 to the end at 150. I'm calling this the "Lord help" song. The phrase "Lord help" is repeated several times as circumstances and stories are unpacked in this song. It's a reminder to start where the psalmist starts even when we're facing difficult times, trying to take our thoughts captive, whatever is going on: "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!  His faithful love endures forever." This can be really difficult when we want to blame God, complain, are angry about something that's wrong, but

As for you, Titus, promote the kind of living that reflects wholesome teaching. Teach the older men to exercise self-control, to be worthy of respect, and to live wisely. They must have sound faith and be filled with love and patience. Titus 2:1-2 NLT Paul has listed some of the problems it would seem are creeping into the church in Crete. And here he starts encouraging Titus to show and to teach the antidote: This life of self-control, being worthy of respect, and living wisely comes from a simple foundation that we can all build our lives on: Sound faith. Patience. & Love. Sound faith is built over time in community, ongoing learning, and living it out in the world that we live in, growing love for God and our neighbor. Patience. Waiting for others, slowing down, stopping, giving space.  Listening. Patience is an act of grace (towards others, and towards all the things in us that we're impatient about). And to love.  "Agape" which according to Biblehub means to pref

Friday! Proverbs! I am weary,  O God;  I am weary and worn out,  O God. I am too stupid to be human,  and I lack common sense.  I have not mastered human wisdom,  nor do I know the Holy One. Who but God goes up to heaven and comes back down? Who holds the wind in his fists? Who wraps up the oceans in his cloak? Who has created the whole wide world? What is his name - and his son's name? Tell me if you know! Proverbs 30:1-4 NLT I was a bit worried about Agur (son of Jakeh, the author of this chapter) at the start. The inward looking inner critic at work giving himself a hard time. But then it seems he is looking at himself, and  looking up and out at the world, he just wants to know God more personally.  And what's this little gem he drops in at the end - "and his son's name"? Agur has had some insight it seems into the nature of God and from centuries before Jesus arrival somehow is pointing towards him. Proverbs is about the heart, and Agur is sharing his heart w

Instead, they should show hospitality, love what is good, and be reasonable, ethical, godly, and self-controlled. They must pay attention to the reliable message as it has been taught to them so that they can encourage people with healthy instruction and refute those who speak against it.    Titus 1:8-9 CEB Paul has left Titus on the island of Crete, this is a big island in the Mediterranean that is now part of Greece.  Titus task it seems is to appoint Elders in communities throughout the island, and Paul gives a bit of a list of things these Elders shouldn't be, and this list of things they should be.  Maybe there's something here for us in the earlier verses where we can put boundaries around our choices, and perhaps there's something in this list where our boundaries can be extended. For example, the word for "hospitality" is "philoxenos" which is 2 words, philos, to be a friend, and xenos, to strangers, foreigners, guests. To love those who are not

To Titus,  my true child in a common faith.  Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our saviour. Titus 1:4 CEB While we may or may not have anyone who we might describe as our "true child in the faith," standing with another person with the stance that Paul has here is something we can do: Grace and peace. We're invited to be conduits of Grace and Peace, holders and dispensers, givers. How does that look? Perhaps it's not rushing. Taking time, lingering with another person, being attentive, listening more than speaking, gently inquiring.  Maybe it's seeking out another even when they're not responding. Maybe it's giving space to another. Being Grace and Peace is not a tick list, but a way of being towards others. And Paul is passing it on from God the Father, and from Jesus his saviour. That's the source of his Grace and Peace. And our God, our saviour Jesus, is the source we get to tap into, lean into, draw from, commune with. Take the

This letter is from Paul, a slave of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ.  I have been sent to proclaim faith to those God has chosen and to teach them to know the truth that shows them how to live godly lives.  This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God - who does not lie - promised them before the world began. And now at just the right time he has revealed this message, which we announce to everyone. It is by the command of God our Savior that I have been entrusted with this work for him. Titus 1:1-3 NLT Boom! What an opening from this letter! What stands out for you? What does your spirit need from Paul's introduction to us? Perhaps it's his complete confidence in who he is. Given his life story, he is immovable in his faith in Jesus. Perhaps it's his complete confidence in the Story, the Eternal God, committed to His people from before time, that no matter what our day-to-day life holds, we're held in this Bigger Story. And because we'

Over and over God rescued them, but they never learned - until finally their sins destroyed them. Still,  when God saw the trouble they were in and heard their cries for help, He remembered his Covenant with them, and,  immense with love,  took them by the hand. He poured out his mercy on them while their captors looked on, amazed. Save us, God, our God! Gather us back out of exile So we can give thanks to your holy name and join in the glory when you are praised!  Blessed be God, Israel's God!  Bless now, bless always! Oh!  Let everyone say Amen! Hallelujah! Psalms 106:40-48 The Message. This song is about our God who never gives up on His people.  The people He loves.  He never gives up on us. He never gives up on you.  This psalm also repeats again and again how one person stood for the people, stood in the gap, all previews of Jesus, who stood in the gap for all of us. Our God never gives up. And He made a way. That's why He is worthy of all praise. "Let everyone say A

Sunday Psalms; Praise the Lord! Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good!  His faithful love endures forever. Who can list the glorious miracles of the Lord? Who can ever praise him enough? Psalms 106:1-2 NLT This psalm starts with the same theme as the previous few... Give thanks. God is good. His love endures forever. Reminders.  Reminders because we need them, some days our circumstances seem to tell us something else.  The psalmist says to look up, because our God is good, He is Love, and to look back, back to times when it's been unmistakable that God has been grace filled towards his people. This psalm then goes on to list in detail God's grace towards his people. Every time we have a baptism at church its a time to remember God's grace to us. Every time we share communion is a time to remember God's grace to us. And the invitation today is to reflect on our own life story and God's grace in that story. #psalms  #psalms106 #Sunday #worship #thisisourGod 

But Jesus called them together and said,  "You know that the rulers in this world lord it over their people, and officials flaunt their authority over those under them.  But among you it will be different.  Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many." Matthew 20:25-28 NLT James & John's Mum has just come to Jesus wanting her boys to be the head guys in The Kingdom. Since they couldn't convince Jesus, Mum has jumped in to make their case.  Maybe she could see that something important was going on with the Rabbi her boys were following, but she didn't get what. And the sons didn't get it either. This feels like Jesus being quite stern and trying again to make it crystal clear that the Kingdom is Upside-down, it's not following the power structures of the world, it'

Friday! Proverbs! The sayings of Agur son of Jakeh contain this message.  I am weary, O God;  I am weary and worn out, O God. Proverbs 30:1 NLT Agur, son of Jakeh, gets straight to how he is today.  Weary. And worn out. It's OK not to be OK. It's OK to say so. It's OK to be upfront and honest with God.  (Sometimes at church a person with a microphone who is happy to be there, excited, asks everyone if we are all happy and excited. Not everyone will be. Some will be inquisitive, some will be sad, some, like Agur, weary and worn out. It's OK not to be OK and be in church.) Agur is very deliberate in communicating with God, and it seems like there's an invitation here for God to commune with him in his weariness and despair. He isn't asking God to fix anything, but be with him in what he is experiencing.  Perhaps that's our opportunity today, whether worn out, weary, discouraged, joyful, content, productive, excited, wherever we are at, is to let our God know,

Epaphras, my fellow prisoner in Christ Jesus, sends you his greetings. So do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my co-workers. May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Philemon 1:23-25 NLT Changing something in our lives can be not only daunting, but it can feel lonely.  Philemon may well be wondering as he gets to the end of this letter "what happens if I make this stand?  What happens of I go against what is expected? Will I be left out, left alone, kicked out of relationships that I have?" Perhaps Paul is letting Philemon know there's another community, there's like-minded people here who get it, get you, and are here for you. And  no matter what, we stand in the grace of Jesus, we stand in communion with Jesus, and that is what Paul seems to be encouraging Philemon with as he leaves him to weigh up his next step. At our church over the last few months "take the next step" or "what is your next step" has been a theme. This le

I, PAUL, WRITE THIS WITH MY OWN HAND: I WILL REPAY IT. AND I WON'T MENTION THAT YOU OWE ME YOUR VERY SOUL! Philemon 1:19 NLT Yes in the NLT they have this verse in CAPS! I used to wonder if this verse was Paul being manipulative, using his friendship with Philemon, using his spiritual authority to pressure Philemon into doing what he wants.  However, it's possible, likely, that Onesimus, the  slave of, the property of Philemon has carried this letter and given it to Philemon, and it really is a matter of life and desth for Philemon. Paul is using EVERYTHING that he has to save Philemon. Becuase that's what love does.  Onesimus is not a burden, he is a person who is loved. And Paul is spiritually and morally and relationally standing with Onesimus. Paul is aligned, associated with, connected to, giving his power to Onesimus (the one without power), and is connected to whatever decision Philemon makes. Just like Jesus stands with us, aligns himself with the powerless, connect

He always stands by his covenant - the commitment he made to a thousand generations. Psalms 105:8 NLT This song then goes into a long account of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses & Aaron, slavery, plagues, and freedom, all as reminders that our God stands by his covenant.  It's intergenerational, His timing is not ours, the story is full of suffering and goodness, and the Psalmist writes it to remind himself and his listeners of our God's faithfulness. Why? Because in the midst of the capitivity or the plagues or the loss of their land it must have been easy to lose sight of not only God's promises, but of God himself. In the midst of our trouble, despair, losses, grief it can be easy to lose sight of God's promises, even as they were personified in Jesus.  So we need psalms, songs, stories, reminders, baptisms, communion, community. We need one another to see and exoerience and hold the goodness and grace and promises and hope we have in Jesus. We get to lean in

Give thanks to the Lord and proclaim his greatness.  Let the whole world know what he has done. Sing to him;  yes,  sing his praises.  Tell everyone about his wonderful deeds. Exult in his holy name; rejoice,  you who worship the Lord.  Search for the Lord and for his strength; continually seek him. Psalm 105:1-4 NLT What a cracker psalm, calling, encouraging his people to share their stories of who God is and their experience of him. Sharing our stories and experiences just because.  Just because God is, just because. And at the same time there's a searching for Him, a seeking Him even as we praise and sing and share stories.  When we need our God's strength, seek it out.  When our circumstances are difficult, when we're feeling depleted, seek His strength.  Seek His strength in community, in the praise, in the singing, and in the stories of who God is and His Goodness.  #psalms #psalm105 #sing #seekHisstrength