verseoftheday

Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lord's command. Now Nineveh was an extremely great city, a three-day walk. Jonah 3:3-4 CSB Not surprising that Jonah did not want to face going to Nineveh. It was massive.  Apparently took 3 days to walk around its circumference. Ever felt like what you're facing is too big? Too much? Sometimes it's our calling, our circumstances, situations involving others, work, health, study, and sometimes it's our feelings that seem so big.  Or our thoughts. In our humanness we can relate to Jonah. It's too big, too much, too scary, I'm going to fail, I can't do it...so I'm avoiding, hiding, running away.  When Jonah was tucked away inside the fish he had time to pray, and his prayer brought him back to God.  Second time around the calling hasn't changed, Ninevah hasn't got any smaller or less scary, but Jonah has changed.  He knows more of who God is, that he's not alone in this, that he can face what it...

The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time:  "Get up!  Go to the great city of Nineveh and preach the message that I tell you." Jonah got up and went to Nineveh according to the Lords command. Jonah 3:1-2 CSB Was Jonah lying on the beach having just been vomited up? Was it the next morning? The next month? The next year? Five years later? Ten? The story doesn't seem to indicate, so were left with a gap that maybe we fill with how we'd like it to be. I wonder what I'd like the gap to be? And why? One thing we do know is that after this experience with the running away, the storm, the getting biffed overboard, the 3 days inside and the depositing back on the beach, the story doesn't say "and Jonah headed to Ninevah as God told him earlier". Jonah needed to be told again.  And God's call to Jonah had no threats of more big fish, no "I told you last time", or any drama.  God is Grace. God is patient. And His timing is His timing. #jon...

God,  brilliant Lord,  yours is a household name.  Nursing infants gurgle choruses about you; toddlers shout the songs That drown out enemy talk,  and silence atheist babble.  I look up at your macro-skies,  dark and enormous,  your handmade sky-jewelry,  Moon and stars mounted in their settings.  Then I look at my micro-self and wonder, Why do you bother with us?  Why take a second look our way?  Yet we've so narrowly missed being gods, bright with Eden's dawn light.  You put us in charge of your handcrafted world, repeated to us your Genesis-charge,  Made us Lords of sheep and cattle,  even animals out in the wild,  Birds flying and fish swimming,  whales singing in the ocean deeps.  God,  brilliant Lord,  your name echoes around the world. Psalm 8:1-9 MSG This is Eugene Petersen's version of Psalm 8 from The Message. Today, read this whole Psalm in as many versions as you can, let it speak ...

Even before he made the world, God loved us and chose us in Christ to be holy and without fault in his eyes. Ephesians 1:4 NLT Somehow, before any of what we know existed, God knew us. Knew you. You and I were seen and held in God's imagination and we were loved. And chosen. In all that we were meant to be.  Seen. Known. Chosen. Loved. Since before time. I don't know how that works, but it tells us something about our identity that cannot be lost.  Seen. Known. Chosen. Loved. An identity found in the very heart of God.  It tells us something about our worth. Worth that flows from Who Loves Us, from who He sees us as, and who we are in Jesus.  Seen. Known. Chosen. Loved. #somethingtorestin #youareenough #youareenoughevenwhenyoudontfeelit #dearlyloved

Friday! Proverbs! To those who send him, a trustworthy envoy is like the coolness of snow on a harvest day; he refreshes the life of his masters. Proverbs 25:13 CSB Ah that cool drink when the weather is hot and the work has been long... something to be savoured, that brings refreshment, that's what having trusted people is like.  And that's what being a trusted person is like. Being someone who does what they say they will, turns up when they say they will...and why is the writer saying that's like a cold drink after a long day working in the heat? Because even then, 3,000 or so years ago when this was written, people you could rely on must have been rare.  This proverb is a gentle encouragement to be that reliable person, (to let others know if there's been a change or a problem,) and to be that coolness of snow on harvest day in the lives of others.  #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon

See  how very much  our Father loves us,  for he calls us  his children,  and that is what we are! 1 John 3:1 NLT God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.  This is what he wanted to do, and it gave him great pleasure. Ephesians 1:5 NLT We have this strand now that weaves all the way back through the Bible and through time to Creation. Maybe even before time itself.  This picture of family, of belonging, of God seeing and knowing us, and choosing us is what Love is, and it's a marker of who we are, our identity.  We belong. You belong. And more than that, you're wanted.  When our family let us down, when we don't feel we fit or belong or have any value, when we're not sure of who we are, what we're about, we can follow this strand all the way back to our God who made us to commune with him, with the world He made, and with one another.  Seen  Known Chosen Adopted Loved #de...

Then the Lord commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. Jonah 2:10 CSB Do you have a favourite Bible verse? Maybe this is a good one! If Peter Jackson made the movie "Jonah" you can see the fun he would have with this! I love to see me in the centre of the story, running away from God, He intervenes in a miraculous way, and my life is changed forever. But if this story is a teaching us something, pointing us somewhere, it's pointing us to Jesus.  Jesus who entered the story, was thrown overboard for us, spent 3 days absorbing our sin, somehow came back from the dead, and ended up on a beach (cooking breakfast for his team). Jesus is at the centre of the story. And I'm in Nineveh, in need of a saviour.  A saviour who was vomited back from Death. Death could not stomach Life, Light, Justice, Love. Jonah was as far away from anyone, from help, as he could possibly get. One man sacrificed for many, entombed in the fish, in the ocean, alone.  Jesus was as far...

My shield  is with God,  who saves  the upright in heart.  I will  thank the Lord  for his righteousness;  I will  sing  about the name  of the Lord Most High. Psalms 7:10, 17 CSB In the middle of David's calls for justice is this gem; "My shield is with God" No matter what is going on, whatever is pressing in, this is where David's hope resides, firmly in our God.  And at the very end if his song he ends with thankfulness and singing. Not just singing, but singing about Who God Is.  I wonder if David knows that when we are under pressure those are two key things that we stop and lose sight of... Gratitude. Gratitude for what He has done, is doing, will do.  Gratitude for what we have in spite of what's lost or what we face.  Gratitude for who God is. And singing.  When we hold the truth as songs we can recall them and sing them when we need them.  And David encourages us to hold songs in our hearts about th...

Rise up,  Lord, in your anger;  lift yourself up against the fury of my adversaries;  awake for me;  you have ordained a judgment.  ... Let the evil  of the wicked  come to an end,  but establish the righteous.  Psalms 7:6,9 CSB Sometimes this is just what we want, God to smash those who have caused us hurt or injustice. David is right there with us wanting God to just hurl Himself against those who are against us.  If you ever feel that way, your voice is here, in the Bible. (My biggest enemy is usually my own thoughts. I wonder what God smashing into those would do?) But David doesn't just stick with his enemies, but is concerned about the bigger picture, the systems of injustice, and wants wrong righted for everyone.  Justice for himself Justice for others Righting what is wrong Restoration of shalom, of peace.  Glimpses of heaven.  David's song gives us permission to express how things really are. He says it out loud, ...

Sunday Psalms Lord my God,  I seek refuge in you;  save me  from all my pursuers  and rescue me,  or they will tear me like a lion,  ripping me apart  with no one to rescue me. Psalms 7:1-2 CSB If there's a theme in these early Psalms it's David under pressure, feeling alone, seeking refuge in God.  Needing that place of refuge.  Lord my God,  if I have done this,  if there is injustice on my hands,  if I have done harm to one at peace with me  or have plundered my adversary without cause, may an enemy pursue and overtake me;  may he trample me to the ground  and leave my honor  in the dust. Selah Psalms 7:3-5 CSB And in this Psalm he cries out to God of his innocence, and if he's missed something, he lets God know in quite a flowery way what should happen.  Why? Because he is being unjustly accused of something.  And he feels alone in it.  Feels like he's under attack, going to be torn apart....

A word spoken at the right time  is like gold apples in silver settings.  A wise correction to a receptive ear  is like a gold ring or an ornament of gold. Proverbs 25:11-12 CSB Gold.  Just give me the gold! The communication gold according to this Proverb seems to be: Timing.  When we speak matters. Waiting, considering, listening, knowing the person and where they are at.  Wisdom. Actually having wisdom to share is gold.  Having a receptive ear.  Waiting, checking, listening and looking to see if the other person is receptive. That's where the gold is. And. Do I have a receptive ear? How often have I not been ready or willing or even want to be receptive to the wisdom of others, the wisdom of God? I want everyone to have a receptive ear to me, but how receptive am I? This is a challenge to my heart to be humble enough to listen, to choose to have a receptive ear, to want to hear, to hear you. Maybe that's where the real gold is to be found... #p...

Friday! Proverbs! A wise correction  to a receptive ear  is like a gold ring  or an ornament of gold. Proverbs 25:12 CSB Ah yes some permission to speak wisdom, to do some correcting, to tell someone (probably a child or someone with less power) "see the Bible says it's good to listen to the wisdom of others, so you need to listen to me...". Which may well be true.  But for a wise correction to be "gold" it needs a receptive ear.  I can't make someone have a receptive ear, they either choose that by asking, or it comes through relationship. When my life and my words reflect the same thing in the other person's life is when it's gold. Having a heart connection first.  A wise correction waits. Waits for the ear to be receptive. #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon

"As my life was slipping away, I remembered the Lord.  And my earnest prayer went out to you in your holy Temple.  Those who worship false gods turn their backs on all God's mercies.  But I will offer sacrifices to you with songs of praise, and I will fulfill all my vows.  For my salvation comes from the Lord alone." Jonah 2:7-9 NLT This is the end of Jonah's prayer...he thought he was going to die.  He didn't plead to be free from where he was (I think that's what I'd be doing - get me out of here and I'll do what you want) but took things up a level, and his prayer is more about who God is, and Jonah's need for God. It also gives us a clue that Jonah had not been fully in God's camp.  It can be so easy to be swept along by what our culture values, does, says is important.  Jonah has been pulled out of his normal life for a bit and had some time to think, and this is his response... "For my salvation comes from the Lord alone" May th...

Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish:  I called to the Lord in my distress,  and he answered me.  I cried out for help from deep inside Sheol;  you heard my voice. Jonah 2:1-2 CSB I was taught Jonah's story as a children's story, and that's not really very helpful. No one in Sunday School said that Jonah thought he was dead, in the land of the dead, or even in distress at all.  Yet he was.  And the opportunity is for us to relate to Jonah and do what he did: Cry out to God. And this story tells us that our God hears.  Jonah ran from God, did his best to put as much distance as he could. He then ended up insulated inside the fish at the bottom of the ocean, discarded and alone. That's the picture we're supposed to get.  No matter how disconnected we might feel, how far away we (think we) are, how horrible our circumstances are, how isolated or insulated from God, He hears our cry.  Paul talks of this at the end of Romans...

Now the Lord provided a huge fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the belly of the fish three days and three nights. Jonah 1:17 NIV Jonah is in "time out". God had asked him to go to Nineveh and he chose to head to the beach.  Jonah was doing what I do and seeking something more comfortable. Something easier.  We don't know what it was about Nineveh and the task God had that caused Jonah to head to Tarshish, and he's probably just like us in that it can be complicated. There can be lots going on.  And God arranged a quiet spot with no distractions for Jonah.  Sometimes that's what we need.  No cell coverage, no distractions in the big fish. What's with the 3 days & 3 nights though?  From our vantage point it does bring Jesus to mind. Jesus who did not run from God's call, but stepped into it, who went to Nineveh, to where the need was, where we are.  Jesus who spent 3 days in the dark, not for his sake, but for ours.  Jesus didn't run from ...

Then they cried out to the Lord, Jonah's God.  "O Lord, they pleaded, don't make us die for this man's sin.  And don't hold us responsible for his death. O Lord, you have sent this storm upon him for your own good reasons." Then the sailors picked Jonah up and threw him into the raging sea, and the storm stopped at once!  The sailors were awestruck by the Lord's great power, and they offered him a sacrifice and vowed to serve him. Jonah 1:14-16 NLT This part of the story seems outrageous!  God brings a storm, forces people to act against not only their culture and their profession, but also their humanity, and biff Jonah to his death.  This can't be about what it seems on the surface because that's not who God is. God doesn't ask us to biff people to their death and then our lives will be calm, the storms will stop.  If we read this as a story, a parable, what is it saying? Maybe this:  - that God is at work, that we don't always understand...

Sunday Psalms Be merciful to me,  O Lord,  for I am frail;  heal me,  O Lord,  for my bones are in agony.  My soul is deeply distressed.  How long,  O Lord,  how long?  I am weary from groaning;  all night I flood my bed with weeping  and drench my couch with tears.  My eyes fail from grief;  Psalms 6:2-3, 6-7 BSB If we ever think we need permission to cry, then here it is.  Situations and circumstances that seem unbearable, that do not appear to have and end, wounds that never seem to heal, reopened again and again... David's song says; "I hear you,  I've been there too." There's no hiding his emotions here, or putting on a brave face, there's noise.  Lots of noise. Unmissable. It's OK not to be OK. There's questions. It's OK to bring our questions to God.  When you face grief, loss, hurt, maybe David's voice here will resonate with you, tuck it away for when you need it. If you're facing grief, l...

A word spoken  at the right time  is like  gold apples  in silver settings. Proverbs 25:11 CSB For at just the right time, while we were still powerless,  Christ died for the ungodly.  Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die.  But God proves His love for us in this:  While we were still sinners,  Christ died for us. Romans 5:6-8 BSB At just the right time the Word spoke creation into existence... At just the right time, the Word became one of us, and at just the right time, he proves his love for us. So that we can become all our Heavenly Father intended us to be.  Maybe this big cosmic story of love is what the writer of proverbs had a glimpse of when writing of golden apples in settings of silver...he was trying to grasp something so good. This is the story that we are in, where Yahweh's love for us compels Him to move.  It's this love that our hope resides in....

Friday! Proverbs! A word spoken  at the right time  is like  gold apples  in silver settings. Proverbs 25:11 CSB Not sure if your favourite jewelry is fruit, but it does speak of life giving food, growth, flourishing, starting with a small seed, trees that give shelter...lots of good things wrapped up in that image.  And to cast it in gold and set it in silver is all about how valuable something is.  And that something is our words. And it's more than what we say, but when we speak, and when we choose to not to speak.  It's all about "at the right time". If we are afraid to speak, this Proverb can give you courage because your words may well be golden fruit for someone. If we have something to say, let's take a moment to consider is this the right time.  The implication here is that this golden-fruit-jewelry-word is not about me getting out something, but about the other person.  The timing of my words can speak life and flourishing and plant...

But let all  who take refuge in You rejoice;  let them ever  shout for joy.  May You shelter them, that those  who love Your name  may rejoice in You.  For surely You,  O Lord,  bless the righteous;  You surround them  with the shield  of Your favor. Psalms 5:11-12 BSB All, you, them.  Refuge, shelter, shield. Rejoice, shout for joy, blessed. The end of this Psalm is about all of us, together, experiencing what it's like to be in God's care, and responding together. A glimpse of heaven. Community. A community of people who love God, made up of people from all ages, of all ages, from all places, from all kinds of backgrounds and stories and experiences, with all kinds of language...I wonder what that rejoicing will sound like? Sometimes we need that glimpse, because this world is not always a place of community or refuge or shelter.  This is a picture of God's heart for people, and we can reflect that in the way we liv...

Lead me, O Lord,  in Your righteousness because of my enemies; make straight Your way before me.  For not a word they speak can be trusted; destruction lies within them.  Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.  Declare them guilty,  O God;  let them fall by their own devices.  Drive them out for their many transgressions,  for they have rebelled against You. Psalms 5:8-10 BSB Have you ever wanted some words to speak about injustice in your own life or the lives of others, then here are some that you may connect with and use. Even though David has these enemies coming against him, he chooses to position God at the centre of it.  Because of my enemies, You lead, You make a way, keep me on a righteous path. It's almost like David doesn't trust himself in his desire for accountability and justice, and needs God's guidance, His justice, His putting things right.  Sometimes the enemy that can't be trusted are the lies th...

But I will enter  Your house  by the abundance  of Your  loving devotion;  in reverence  I will bow down  toward Your holy temple. Psalms 5:7 BSB What a beautiful, invitational, grace filled reality that we are part of! It's by the abundance of Yahweh's loving devotion that I get to, you get to, we get to enter into communion with God.  And David's response is to bow down.  May we allow the reality of our God's love and goodness rest on us, seep in to our core today.  May we allow ourselves to live in this truth today, no matter what we face, what we fear, allow the abundant invitation of Yahweh speak to our deepest hurts, needs, and desires.  #psalms #psalm5 #youaredearlyloved  

For you are not  a God who delights  in wickedness;  no evil can dwell with You.  The boastful cannot stand in your presence; You hate all workers of iniquity.  You destroy those who tell lies;  The Lord abhors the man of bloodshed and deceit. Psalms 5:4-6 BSB I'm not sure what it would be like singing this song, but it's hard to miss David's take on God's holiness and justice.  And there are days when I just want to see God's justice worked out, to see His holiness hit hard. And then I know that I have the seeds of all of the things David highlights in my heart, and from time to time they've been in my thoughts and actions too, and I find that I am in need of Grace, that there is no way that I can stand before a holy God in my own righteousness. So while I love God's holiness, when I consider it, I guess that is an aspect of "fearing God".  And I'm grateful for Grace.  #psalms #psalm5 #holiness #grace #gratitude

Give ear to my words,  O Lord;  consider my groaning.  Attend to the sound of my cry,  my King and my God,  for to You I pray.  In the morning,  O Lord,  You hear my voice;  at daybreak  I lay my plea  before You  and wait  in expectation. Psalms 5:1-3 BSB This Psalm, this song, opens by giving us permission. Permission to speak. For those whose voice has been silenced, who's words have been disregarded, who's crying has gone unheard, this song gives permission to speak.  To cry out to God. To lay it all out. It's OK to speak. David comes with words, groans, crying, and prayer.  It's OK to have all of those, to express them out loud. And as the 'church', when we represent our God well, we can hear the words, groans, crying and prayers of others and be with them, join with them, and wait together. This song gives you permission to find your voice. #sundaypsalms #psalm5 #itsOKtocryout #findyourvoice

Argue your case with your neighbor  without betraying another's confidence, lest the one who hears may disgrace you,  and your infamy never go away. Proverbs 25:8-10 "and your infamy never go away". Sometimes that's a good thing that a reputation sticks. This person has broken a confidence and that can cause harm to another. If that's been their pattern of behaviour then quite rightly that reputation should stick. And this proverb seems to give us the freedom to keep distance from those who would cause harm. You don't have to put yourself in harm's way.  And we want to be people who don't cause others harm. Right? I'm sure I've done that. Maybe this proverb will help us see a little more the impact our words and actions can have on others.  My words. My actions. May our words and actions speak grace, bring life, and give hope. #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon

Friday! Proverbs! Argue your case with your neighbor  without betraying another's confidence, lest the one who hears may disgrace you,  and your infamy never go away. Proverbs 25:8-10 BSB There's three people here in this: Me My neighbor (which could also be translated friend) And the person who's story I hold.  Who's the most vulnerable person here? The person who's story I hold. Maybe we could rewrite this as: Better to lose an argument (or not even have a discussion) if the story, the things that you hold in trust of others is at risk of being exposed.  Your reputation as a safe and trustworthy person depends on it People matter, their stories matter, and that might that mean that I lose an argument, don't make a point, look small, unknowing, but others are more important than my discussion, my sermon, my message. This is what loving people well looks like.  Let's press on in loving one another well. #proverbs #wisdom #somethingtochewon #lovepeople

So they called out to the Lord,  "Please, Lord, don't let us perish because of this man's life, and don't charge us with innocent blood! For you, Lord, have done just as you pleased." Then they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea... Jonah 1:14-16 CSB Something shifted for the sailors. They believed Jonah that Yahweh was responsible for the life threatening storm, and that somehow it was about him. And they already knew a few things about Yahweh; That He could hear them in the storm. That He could change things. That He is just.  They also believed that Jonah was innocent.  An innocent man. An innocent man sacrificed to save many.  What can we take away from this part of the story? Yahweh can hear us in the storm. He can change things. He is just.  An innocent person was sacrificed to save us.  #jonah #somethingtochewon

He answered them,  "Pick me up and throw me into the sea so that it will calm down for you, for I know that I'm to blame for this great storm that is against you." Nevertheless, the men rowed hard to get back to dry land, but they couldn't because the sea was raging against them more and more. Jonah 1:12-13 CSB This is a wonderful passage because it speaks to the character and heart of the sailors.  They were going to do everything in their power to save Jonah. He wasn't even family, or their friend, he was a fare paying passenger when claimed to be the cause of all their trouble, yet they weren't OK with tossing him overboard. They worked as hard as they could to do what they could to save Jonah. How hard am I prepared to work to do what I can to save others?  Who is in my waka who needs help? These guys were also doing their job, and for many fighting for others, advocating for others, caring for others is part of your job. Maybe there's some inspiratio...

You have put  more joy in my heart than they have when their grain  and new wine abound. I will both lie down  and sleep in peace,  for you alone,  Lord,  make me live in safety. Psalms 4:7-8 CSB The end of this Psalm, this song, is about peace of mind.  He is comparing the joy that comes from prosperity in his culture with the joy he has from knowing God. There's something more solid, more peace giving, more permanent that comes from peace in Yahweh. There is a place of true safety. A place of true rest.  And at the same time his circumstances don't seem to have changed, but knowing God changes the meaning he gives to his circumstances. Sometimes I get that, and sometimes that peace seems so far away, and maybe that's why this heart korero from David is written as a Psalm, a song, a song of both reality and of hope. #psalms #psalm4 #ourhopeisinyahweh

Offer sacrifices in righteousness  and trust in the Lord. Many are asking,  "Who can show us anything good?" Let the light of your face  shine on us,  Lord. Psalms 4:5-6 CSB One theme of this Psalm, this song, is David's orientation towards God, and at the same time, acknowledging the realities of life.  At the same time as he is bringing his offering to God people are saying "there's nothing good going on here,  we're suffering,  God is silent,  I'm hurting". And David asks God to be seen again. David is holding God in one hand, doing what is right before Him, and at the same time holding suffering in the other hand. And does just what we would do, and can do, when it seems like, feels like God has turned away, to is ask Him, who is light, to let His light shine on us, on whatever is going on. If you need permission to tell God how things really are for you, this Psalm gives it.  If you are holding on to God in one hand, and hurt in the oth...