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The Upper Room International Editions: Changing Hearts and Lives
Not long after the first issue of The Upper Room daily devotional rolled off the press Read More
L. Roger Owens | Read Exodus 17:1-7
Sometimes when we read a passage of scripture, we have to fill in the gaps, noticing what’s not said. In this passage, I think something is missing: a celebration.
After the Israelites complained of their thirst, accusing Moses of bringing them to the desert to kill them, Moses himself complained...
God, thank you for the gift of your refreshing presence in every season of our lives. Amen.
Three of the passages this week connect water and faith. In Exodus and the psalm, we read about the Israelites grumbling in the desert. Although they have seen God’s mighty deeds in Egypt, they have begun to question God’s provision for them. God provides water through Moses, but the place is remembered (and named) as a site where the faith of the people fails. In John, however, a place to draw water becomes a site of salvation for the Samaritan woman and eventually for the people in her village through her faith. The reading in Romans goes a different direction. Paul emphasizes the importance of faith in the face of trials and the fact that God brings salvation through Christ when fallen humanity has no other hope.
Read Exodus 17:1-7. How do your memories of God’s provision sustain you through tough stages of your spiritual journey?Read Psalm 95. What object, image, or memory serves for you as a symbol of God’s faithfulness?Read Romans 5:1-11. How have you found hope in stages of life when God is forming your character through suffering and endurance?Read John 4:5-42. When has letting go of your expectations or rules allowed God to work freely in your life or in the lives of others around you?
Respond by posting a prayer.
