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Spiritual Practices for Going Back to School
School is back in session! Although you may be ready for the academic routine, young people Read More
Willie James Jennings | Read Psalm 107:17-22
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Sign Up TodayGod redeems; God pulls us from the pits of despair, destruction, and death. We may find ourselves in dark places either through our own sin or the sins of others or simply because life has taken a difficult or tragic turn. This passage reminds us that our God takes pleasure...
Today, great God, remind me of your redeeming power found in your faithfulness to me and others in moments of despair and trouble. Amen.
Sometimes we get ourselves into trouble by our words and actions. It’s okay to admit it. It happens to all of us. The Israelites experienced this when their constant grumbling provoked God’s wrath in Numbers 21. Yet even in this story, God provides the means of salvation. The psalmist echoes the refrain that when we put ourselves in bad positions, we may cry out to the Lord for deliverance. We read in Ephesians that all of us were living in disobedience to God, but God has done all the work of reconciliation by grace given through Christ Jesus. John ties all this together, gesturing to the story in Numbers 21 to teach us that Christ is the means of restoration and salvation for all who believe in him.
• Read Numbers 21:4-9. When has your complaining distorted your sense of reality? How do you maintain a sense of God’s presence?
• Read Psalm 107:1-3, 17-22. Consider implementing a practice of rising from sleep to give God thanks and to call to mind the many ways God works in your life.
• Read Ephesians 2:1-10. Does your sense of God’s salvation engender a sense of grace within you and a desire to do good? Why or why not?
• Read John 3:14-21. Do you consider yourself a creature of light or darkness? Why?
Respond by posting a prayer.
"This is absolutely lovely! How I wish I had been exposed or otherwise taught this beautiful lesson exactly as it is written here when I was a child. Going on 60 years old now, I am just coming to believe the words contained in this piece. As I look back on my life now, I suspect that my feelings of unworthiness of God’s love began at a very young age. Not explicitly, by which I mean to say that I was never told that I was not worthy of God’s love and mercy, but rather implicitly, through my experiences with simple human error and a constant focus on perfection and pleasing others. I cannot express to you how beautiful this piece is to me; I can only tell you that it touches me very deeply. Thank you!" Read more about Pockets.
