Daily Devotional

We have two big, beautiful trees in our front yard. They provide shade in the summer. We hang Christmas lights on them in the winter. We enjoy watching the birds build their nests in the spring. Our trees have been home to several baby birds in the past few years. Throughout the year, our trees offer so much. In the fall, they, of course, offer us leaves to rake!

I love football! I love watching my favorite teams play. I will be in the stands this week to watch high school football, and on Saturday, I will be cheering on my favorite college team. The game of football is filled with many wonderful moments of triumph, joy, and excitement.

As Jesus traveled through different towns and villages, he encountered a large variety of people. Some people wanted to see him as he passed through their community simply. They followed him like a modern-day celebrity. Others sought after Jesus because they wanted to hear his intimate religious knowledge. Often, when Jesus entered a community, he would encounter people eagerly waiting on him because they needed healing, and they had heard that Jesus was capable of incredible miracles.

Losing something can ruin your day. Misplacing your keys, wallet, or cell phone will have you question everything and every place you have been. We will go to great lengths to find one of these lost items. Can you imagine what you would do if you misplaced $12,000.00 in cash?

I have enjoyed reading the Psalms as we read through the Bible this year. The Psalms were written for several occasions. Some were songs written to express the deepest of emotions, such as fear, worry, shame, and joy. Others were written to help the faithful worship God in the temple or while on pilgrimage to Jerusalem. Psalm 9 was written to express thanksgiving to God. The purpose of this Psalm is to express praise to a God who has done marvelous things for God’s children.

From Troas we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day we went on to Neapolis. From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia.

I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever;
with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known
through all generations.

In the book of Matthew, we read one of the great stories of our faith. Jesus and the disciples are in a boat on the Sea of Galilee when a storm suddenly appears. Jesus was resting, and it did not seem to bother him. The disciples, on the other hand, were starting to worry. (This story always caught my attention as the fishermen from Galilee were more nervous than the carpenter from Nazareth.) As their fear grew, the disciples went to Jesus and said, “Lord save us! We’re going to drown!” (Matthew 8:25)

The Apostle Paul is responsible for most of the books that make up the New Testament. Throughout these 11 books, Paul articulates his deep understanding of the Christian faith. These writings give the church much of its theological and practical foundation. Paul takes on topics such as the meaning of the law, salvation, death, the sacraments, grace, and so many more. His teachings influenced the church then and now.

In his recent sermon, Rev. Josh Attaway taught us about Koinonia Farm. This farm was founded in Georgia by Clarence and Florence Jordan. The purpose of Koinonia Farm was to bring people together and live under the teachings of Jesus, just as the early church did in the Book of Acts. Koinonia Farm has been doing ministry since 1942.