verseoftheday

(A letter from Paul to the church community in Rome) We who are strong must be considerate of those who are sensitive about things like this.  We must not just please ourselves.  We should help others do what is right and build them up in the Lord.  For even Christ didn't live to please himself. As the Scriptures say, "The insults of those who insult you, O God, have fallen on me." Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God's promises to be fulfilled. May God, who gives this patience and encouragement, help you live in complete harmony with each other, as is fitting for followers of Christ Jesus. Romans 15:1-5 NLT What do you hear of Paul's heart that resonates with you today? The otherness orientation? The call to those "strong" in their faith and practices? The encouragement to be patient with one another? That we can all be followers of Jesus and see s...

But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,  and through each night I sing his songs,  praying to God who gives me life.  "O God my rock," I cry,  "why have you forgotten me?  Why must I wander around in grief, oppressed by my enemies?" ... Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God!  I will praise him again - my Savior and my God! Psalms 42:8-9, 11 NLT Sadness and distress held at the same time as hope and praise. Crying out to God and crying at what is going on at the same time. Feeling lost, and hopeful, at the same time. The writer of this psalm does not allow their circumstances to shift their faith in our God one inch. Trusting in the redemptive story in circumstances that are sad and distressing can be a tough ask. Perhaps that is why this Psalm is here, to show us it can be done, that it is part of being human, and has been for thousands of years, and to remind us that we can trust in the Redemptive Story, we...

As the deer longs for streams of water,  so I long for you,  O God.  I thirst for God, the living God.  When can I go and stand before him?  Day and night I have only tears for food,  while my enemies continually taunt me, saying,  "Where is this God of yours?" Psalms 42:1-3 NLT If you've ever tried to find words for God's silence in suffering then it's OK to borrow this song... The redemptive strand is here though, that even in the distress, the waiting, the tears, the writer has not lost sight of who our God is, has not lost hope in the Big Story.  My prayers are often focussed around changing my circumstances, this psalm, this song, invites me to cry to God in my circumstances.  This might seem a small shift, but this is what we're invited towards...to express our raw honest heart towards our God... He saw it fitting to publish this cry in the middle of our Bible, so my cry, your cry, our cries are OK too... Because? Because we are in fact...

Sunday Psalms; Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad? I will put my hope in God!  I will praise him again -  my Savior and my God! Now I am deeply discouraged,  but I will remember you - even from distant Mount Hermon, the source of the Jordan, from the land of Mount Mizar. Psalms 42:5-6 NLT This psalm, this song, is either written by or for the descendants of Korah - who's story of rebellion against Moses  & Aaron is found in Numbers 16 - as a result the earth opened up and many of them died in that event.  When we have deep grief and loss it's OK to ask those big questions: 'Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad?" It's OK to feel depleted, defeated.  And at the same time this song points us forward, choosing to put hope in our God, choosing to praise Him anyway. Our grief and loss need a Bigger Story to hold on to as we refind our moorings, and to do that we can't shy away from the questions: "Why am I discouraged?" "Why is my...

What the righteous hope for will end in joy;  what the wicked expect will come to nothing. Mishlei (Pro) 10:28 CJB When we look for Jesus in this Proverb he jumps off the page! He is the righteous one. And his hope will end in joy - the joy of being united with people! The pictures we are given of Jesus as the the bridegroom, the Good Shepherd, reconnecting to what he has been separated from - us.  We are Beloved. And the end, the outcome, the next thing, is joy. A new heaven, new earth, tears wiped away, justice, restoration, reconnection, all things made new.  Jesus is the Righteous Hope that ends in joy, and He is our Hope, because, crazy at it seems, we are Beloved.  #proverbs  #wisdom #somethingtochewon #hopeishere #weareBeloved 

Friday! Proverbs! What the righteous hope for will end in joy;  what the wicked expect will come to nothing. Mishlei (Pro) 10:28 CJB Easy to apply this Proverb to others and put myself in the "righteous" category, but if Proverbs is an invitation to look at my heart and my motivations, then it gets me thinking about the range of motivations that float around in me...and how some of the things I put worth on, value, work for, won't last. "Hopes that end in joy" is an invitation to a deeper reflection on what really matters. It seems that I can have both sides of this Proverb at work in me, so today I'm wondering about my trajectory...is my heart, where I put my time, effort, resources, love, increasing on the side of expectations that will come to nothing, or increasing little by little in hope that ends in joy... What are you sitting with today from this Proverb? #proverbs  #wisdom #somethingtochewon #itsaheartthing  #trajectory  #takethenextstep 

I know and am convinced on the authority of the Lord Jesus that no food, in and of itself, is wrong to eat.  But if someone believes it is wrong,  then for that person it is wrong.  And if another believer is distressed by what you eat,  you are not acting in love if you eat it.  Don't let your eating ruin someone for whom Christ died. ... For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too.  So then,  let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up. Romans 14:14-19 NLT Paul is still going on about the food - this must've been a hot topic in the church community at the time! When we peel that topic back though, we hear Paul's heart for his community: 1. Be others oriented.  Notice what is important to others, consider others, make choices that take ot...

So why do you condemn another believer?  Why do you look down on another believer? Remember,  we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For the Scriptures say, "'As surely as I live,' says the Lord, 'every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will declare allegiance to God.'" Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God. So let's stop condemning each other. Decide instead to live in such a way that you will not cause another believer to stumble and fall. Romans 14:10-13 NLT Don't know what was going on in the church in Rome but Paul spends a lot of time on this "looking down" on others, seeing other believers as "less than" and tells them to just stop it. Stop it because we all get to stand in the same way before God. Stop it, and choose to live in ways that don't trip others up - now that's a bit of a challenge in our increasingly individualistic culture - that I might need to look at my lifestyle and choi...

Accept other believers who are weak in faith, and don't argue with them about what they think is right or wrong.  ... So why do you condemn another believer?  Why do you look down on another believer? Romans 14:1, 10 NLT When I read this my mind immediately went to "I don't do that" and then "what about that person who..." Paul's examples in the verses between 1-10 seem to be about preferences (meat v vegetables, what people eat, what holy days they recognise) not about actions that harm others. But something in me doesn't like being told to "not look down" on another person, another believer, not to judge them, like I have some kind of right to do that.  Learning to put down that response is tough work. Fortunately, Paul gives us the mechanism a little earlier in his letter to the church in Rome:   "Don't just pretend to love others.  Really love them.  Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good.  Love each other with genuin...

But my enemies say nothing but evil about me.  "How soon will he die and be forgotten?" they ask.  They visit me as if they were my friends,  but all the while they gather gossip,  and when they leave, they spread it everywhere.  All who hate me whisper about me... Even my best friend,  the one I trusted completely,  the one who shared my food,  has turned against me.  Lord,  have mercy on me. Make me well again,  so I can pay them back! Psalms 41:5-10 NLT This psalm was written 1000 years before Jesus, but from our place in history can you see Jesus in this poem? Betrayed. Gossiped about. Lied about. Rejected. Betrayed even by those closest to him. Jesus knows what all these things are like, how betrayal feels.  It's impact. The difference is in the last sentence - David wants to get well to get even, with Jesus it's all open arms, wanting to forgive, to give another opportunity, and that is how much we are loved. The times I ...

Sunday Psalms: But my enemies say nothing but evil about me.  "How soon will he die and be forgotten?" they ask.  They visit me as if they were my friends,  but all the while they gather gossip,  and when they leave, they spread it everywhere.  All who hate me whisper about me,  imagining the worst.  "He has some fatal disease," they say.  "He will never get out of that bed!" Even my best friend,  the one I trusted completely,  the one who shared my food,  has turned against me.  Lord,  have mercy on me. Make me well again,  so I can pay them back! Psalms 41:5-10 NLT Betrayal. Deceit. Gossip. Illness. Loss of relationship. Maybe there is something familiar in David's story, maybe something comforting that even something as ugly as betrayal finds it's expression in the Bible. And guess what? This psalm doesn't end with forgiveness or some kind of resolution, David gives honest voice to his heart in the moment: "Lord,...

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you.  Let them be a living and holy sacrifice - the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.  Dont copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think... ... Owe nothing to anyone - except for your obligation to love one another. ... The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here.  So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see.  ... Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ.  Romans 12:1,13:8, 12-14 NLT Our thinking matters. Our heart orientation to love matters. And our choices, our actions matter. Paul encourages his readers to move with urgency...to "put on the shining armour of right living".  T...

Friday! Proverbs! Fear of the Lord lengthens one's life,  but the years of the wicked are cut short. Proverbs 10:27 NLT Easy to read this as some kind of promise about how long different groups of people will live  - and then it can be weaponised to guilt people into living to some standard...but if Proverbs is more about the heart, my heart, then maybe this Proverb is about something a little different... Biblehub shares this meaning of the word translated "cut short" here: "(qatsar) spans the concrete act of cutting grain and the figurative idea of being "shortened" or "impatient." Found about forty-nine times, it moves from fields of barley and wheat to the inner life of the soul..." The Message captures it this way: The Fear-of-God expands your life; a wicked life is a puny life. Proverbs 10:27 MSG This is the opposite of what our culture says, which tries to tell me that following Jesus leads to a small, a "puny" life. What abo...

Owe nothing to anyone - except for your obligation to love one another.  If you love your neighbor,  you will fulfill the requirements of God's law.  For the commandments say,  "You must not commit adultery.  You must not murder. You must not steal.  You must not covet." These - and other such commandments - are summed up in this one commandment:  "Love your neighbor as yourself." Love does no wrong to others,  so love fulfills the requirements of God's law. Romans 13:8-10 NLT If we want a simple guide to our choices, our actions, our way of being in the world, a one line summary of what being a Christian is, perhaps it's here, as Paul  ties in all that he has been talking about in his letter so far into this: Love does no wrong to others,  Love your neighbour as yourself. As I step into this day, how can I make my choices, my responses, based on this: Love does no wrong to others,  Love your neighbour as yourself. As I go about all...

May those who try to destroy me be humiliated and put to shame.  May those who take delight in my trouble be turned back in disgrace. Let them be horrified by their shame,  for they said,  Aha!  "We've got him now!" But may all who search for you be filled with joy and gladness in you. May those who love your salvation repeatedly shout,  "The Lord is great!" As for me,  since I am poor and needy,  let the Lord keep me in his thoughts.  You are my helper and my savior.  O my God,  do not delay. Psalms 40:14-17 NLT I appreciate that we get to hear David's inner thoughts here, the ones we have but usually don't share with anyone - we want justice! "May those who try to destroy me be humiliated and put to shame." David wants justice. If we have those thoughts it's OK to express them. David just doesn't leave it there tho - he expresses his hurt and turns again and again towards God. Nothing in his story is resolved, yet he steps  again ...

Lord, don't hold back your tender mercies from me.  Let your unfailing love and faithfulness always protect me.  For troubles surround me - too many to count! My sins pile up so high I cant see my way out. They outnumber the hairs on my head.  I have lost all courage. Please,  Lord,  rescue me!  Come quickly,  Lord,  and help me. Psalms 40:11-13 NLT When we've run out of courage, when it all seems too much, when the "pile" is so high it's overwhelming, we can find voice for that in this psalm. David wrote a lot more songs than this one, more lament and sadness, and more praise and thanksgiving too.  When we're in the middle of whatever "it" is, this song gives us voice, gives us an invitation to express our hearts too, and a reminder that that the middle is not the end. #psalms #songs  #voice #yourvoicematters

You take no delight in sacrifices or offerings. Now that you have made me listen, I finally understand - you don't require burnt offerings or sin offerings.  Then I said,  "Look, I have come. As is written about me in the Scriptures: I take joy in doing your will, my God, for your instructions are written on my heart." I have told all your people about your justice.  I have not been afraid to speak out,  as you,  O Lord,  well know.  I have not kept the good news of your justice hidden in my heart;  I have talked about your faithfulness and saving power.  I have told everyone in the great assembly of your unfailing love and faithfulness. Psalms 40:6-10 NLT At the heart of this song is this characteristic of our God: Justice Not only will His Unfailing Love and Faithfulness make everything new, He will somehow, make everything Right. Justice. We all know somewhere in our lives the sting, the hurt, the wounds of injustice, and David invites us ...

Sunday Psalms; I waited patiently for the Lord to help me, and he turned to me  and heard my cry.  He lifted me out of the pit of despair,  out of the mud  and the mire.  He set my feet on solid ground  and steadied me  as I walked along.  He has given me a new song to sing,  a hymn of praise to our God... Psalms 40:1-3 NLT We don't like waiting. Or is it just me? Waiting in queues. Waiting for my laptop to startup. Saving, waiting to buy something. It's like our culture is telling us there's something bad about waiting. Waiting on God. Somehow David found a way to wait for God.  To trust Him enough to be patient. Where was David? In a place where the ground didn't feel solid. A place where there's uncertainty. He felt stuck.  In mud.  In a pit of despair. Stuck in a place that he didn't want to be, didn't ask for, and it's awful.  And he's crying out. Crying for help. To God, who it seemed had turned away. If some or all ...

Let no debt remain outstanding,  except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. Romans 13:8 NIV Paul has just told his readers to pay their taxes, and uses money - the owing of money - again as a metaphor - a debt to pay, which at the same time doesn't get paid...a lot like taxes it seems... Does it connect with our Big Ideas from earlier in the letter? "...I urge you...to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice...this is your true and proper worship.  Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind." Romans 12:1-2 Could this transforming worship, this non conformity to the patterns of the world be as simple as loving others? Could it be that all of The Law is fulfilled by simply loving others? Could it all be that simple? (Not that loving others is an easy or simple thing to do) What changes when we love people - not as a transaction but as a way of being? Simply loving people t...

Friday! Proverbs! As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so are sluggards to those who send them. Proverbs 10:26 NIV Can you feel the irritation of the smoke in your eyes, teeth on edge? And "sluggard" is not a word I'd use but gets me thinking...and who is sending this "sluggard" and where are they going in a way that is so irritating? If Proverbs is an invitation to check on my own heart and motivations, where am I a sluggard? And how does that irritate me? Can the "smoke in the eyes" motivate me to change or shift something? Am I characterised by making a lazy choice? (& does that lazy choice feel like vinegar on my teeth? Or am I now immune to that?) What does this Proverb invite us towards, to consider, to think on, in our own story? #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon #itsaheartthing  #invitation 

Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind Romans 12:2 NIV Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.  ... For rulers hold no terror for those who do right, but for those who do wrong. Do you want to be free from fear of the one in authority? Then do what is right and you will be commended.  ... Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience. Romans 13:1, 3, 5 NIV Paul is writing to the Christian church in Rome, where the Romans are in charge- but this would have been a tough read for communities oppressed by the Romans, and by oppressed communities through the centuries. There seems to be a moral code embedded in governing authorities that Paul is looking to that says if you do what is right you'll be treated fai...