St. John's United
Methodist Church - A Place to Believe....Belong....Become
         
DAILY MEDITATION
SOUL
FOOD
June 28, 2009
I Don’t Believe It!
Romans 3:21-26
Nine-year-old
Danny came bursting out of Sunday school like a wild stallion. His eyes were
darting in every direction as he tried to locate either mom or dad. Finally,
after a quick search, he grabbed his Daddy by the leg and yelled, "Man, that
story of Moses and all those people crossing the Red Sea was great!" His father
looked down, smiled, and asked the boy to tell him about it.
"Well, the
Israelites got out of Egypt, but Pharaoh and his army chased after them. So the
Jews ran as fast as they could until they got to the Red Sea. The Egyptian Army
was gettin' closer and closer. So Moses got on his walkie-talkie and told the
Israeli Air Force to bomb the Egyptians. While that was happening, the Israeli
Navy built a pontoon bridge so the people could cross over. They made it! By now
old dad was shocked. "Is THAT the way they taught you the story?" Well, no, not
exactly," Danny admitted, "but if I told you the way they told it to us, you'd
never believe it, Dad."
With
childlike innocence the little guy put his finger on the pulse of our
sophisticated adult world where cool skepticism reigns supreme. It's becoming
increasing more popular to operate in the black-and-white world of facts. .
.and, of course, to leave no space for the miraculous. It's really not a new
mentality. Peter mentions it in one of his letters: “. . .I want to remind you
that in the last days there will come scoffers who will. . .laugh at the truth.
This will be their line of argument: "So Jesus promised to come back, did he?
Then where is he? He'll never come! Why, as far back as I can remember
everything has remained exactly as it was since the first day of creation" (2
Peter 3:3-4, TLB).
Skeptics
think like that. Nothing ever changes. TAKE GRAVITY. Heavy objects fall toward
the earth. Always. So a builder can construct a house and never worry about his
materials floating away. Count on it. We operate strictly on the basis of facts.
Hard, immutable, stubborn facts. Reliable as the sunset. Real as a toothache.
Absolute, unbending, undeniable.
Faith is the
doorway to God. Faith is inviting God’s Holy Spirit to live within us. It is not
just an act of the mind, but it taps us into the very resources of God so that
we have the power to live in an entirely new way. If God himself is living
within us, our lives should be dramatically changed.
Prayer of the Week
Awesome God, your creative power, your glory and holiness are beyond our
imagining, yet, you chose to reveal yourself in the person of Jesus Christ, who
graciously showed us the human face of your love. He stretched our imaginations
once more over the lengths he was prepared go to demonstrate the depth of your
love for us. And, as if that was not enough, you breathe new and everlasting
life into our very beings, through the power of your Spirit. Triune God,
Source of our lives, we worship and adore you . Amen
Scripture Reading for the Week of June 28, 2009
Sunday, June 28 - Mark 6:30-44
Today’s Thought
God seems to do nothing of Himself which He can possibly delegate to His
creatures. He commands us to do slowly and blunderingly what He could do
perfectly and in the twinkling of an eye.
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Monday, June 29 - Matthew 15:1-9
Today’s Thought
The devil is content to let us profess Christianity as long as we do not
practice it.
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Tuesday, June 30 - Psalm 107:1-16
Today’s Thought
The person who abandons herself to God will never be abandoned by God.
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Wednesday, July 1 - Romans 8:31-39
Today’s Thought
God’s love still stands when all else has fallen.
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Thursday, July 2 - Matthew 6:25-34
Today’s Thought
Those who lay up treasures in heaven are the richest people on earth.
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Friday, July 3 - 1 Peter 5:1-11
Today’s Thought
Satan’s ploys are no match for the Savior’s power.
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Saturday, July 4 - Deuteronomy 31:1-8
Today’s Thought
First make sure you are with Jesus, then you can be sure Jesus will be with
you.
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