Month: October 2023

John 17:24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.

Precious Savior, Today I just want to say Thank You–for blue skies and sunshine, for the fall season, which shows me that change can be incredibly beautiful (even though I still don’t love change), for the people You have placed in my life whom I love so deeply, who love me deeply, too.

John 17:25 “Righteous Father, though the world does not know you, I know you, and they know that you have sent me. 

Dearest Father, Thank You that when we are slogging through valleys, when difficult times come, and they always do, You use them to draw Your children closer in ways that aren’t possible when we are on the mountain tops. I don’t like the hard times, but I am so thankful for the closeness to You that results.

John 17:26a I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known…

Loving God, Thank You that You created me to praise You and to encourage others. Thank You that words matter and that I can use them to edify others. Thank You that I can lift others, encourage others, even when I am struggling, and that I am always encouraged in return. Thank You, Lord. Thank You. Amen.

John 17:26b …in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them.”

Have a blessed day.

John 17:20 “My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, 

“I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message….” What an incredibly powerful prayer. Jesus, as He was preparing to give His life for us, prayed for His disciples and for “those who will believe in me through their message.” That’s us and everyone whose lives we touch as we tell about our mighty Savior.

John 17:21 that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. 

This is why we can’t discount people. This is why we can’t ostracize others. We have no idea who will come to believe in Jesus because of our words. None. And as He neared the hour of His death, Jesus not only prayed for His disciples AND for us, He prayed for them, too. All of those folks who will eventually come to believe in Him, no matter how long it might take.

John 17:22 I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— 

Precious Savior, Thank You for seeing the value in all of us. Thank You for Your prayers in the time leading up to Your death. Thank You for the hope of heaven, the hope of You. Help us recognize that hope in all whom we encounter. Always. Amen.

John 17:23 I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.

Have a blessed day.

John 17:13 “I am coming to you now, but I say these things while I am still in the world, so that they may have the full measure of my joy within them.  

This world is not my home. And there are times when I feel so strongly out of place in this world that the pain is almost physical. But there are other times when I am truly thankful that I feel so out of sync because it is easy to turn my back on the pull of the world.

John 17:14a I have given them your word and the world has hated them, 

I find it interesting in today’s scripture that Jesus says specifically that His prayer is not that God take us out of the world–even though we don’t belong, even though it’s not our home–His prayer is that God protect us from “the evil one.” Perhaps that feeling of not belonging here, of longing for our true home is important for our spiritual journey.

John 17:14b …for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world.

Precious Savior, Thank You for Your fierce, compassionate love and for Your prayers long before we were born. Thank You for the reminder that this world is not our home. Help us to accomplish Your will for us while we are here. But help us never forget that we don’t belong here. There is a better place for us, an eternal home with You. Amen.

John 17:15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one.

Have a blessed day.

John 17:9 I pray for them. I am not praying for the world, but for those you have given me, for they are yours. 

Verse 9 really strikes me this morning. Jesus prayed for us. JESUS prayed for us. Jesus PRAYED for us. Jesus prayed for US. Let that sink in a moment.

John 17:10 All I have is yours, and all you have is mine. And glory has come to me through them. 

The image of Jesus as parent is really strong for me today. Jesus prayed for His children. He knew he would not remain in the world but His children would stay without Him. He prayed God would protect His children by the power of His name.

John 17:11 I will remain in the world no longer, but they are still in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name, the name you gave me, so that they may be one as we are one. 

Lord, There’s so much spinning in my head this morning: You prayed for me. You see me as Your child. You knew You would not be physically in this world with me so You prayed God’s protection on me. You are Immanuel, God with us. Thank You. Help me to love others as well as You have always loved me. Amen.

John 17:12 While I was with them, I protected them and kept them safe by that name you gave me. None has been lost except the one doomed to destruction so that Scripture would be fulfilled.

Have a blessed day.

John 17:5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.    

I am agitated this morning about a situation. I feel like I need to defend myself and my actions. I have to keep reminding myself that my goal is to glorify God. Always. I have to take to heart that Jesus is talking about me in this scripture.

John 17:6 “I have revealed you to those whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours; you gave them to me and they have obeyed your word.

Jesus, His life, His truth, reveals God to me. I am His. I have obeyed His word….OK, I’m trying to obey His word. Sometimes, like today as I try to stay focused, I keep straying and have to remind myself to stay true to who I am and who I am in Christ. Thankfully, my Savior gets that.

John 17:7 Now they know that everything you have given me comes from you.

Precious Savior, Thank You for who You are and who You are to me. Thank You for who I am to You and in You. When life gets loud, chaotic, and unfair, help me to cling to You, to trust You, to glorify You. Always. Amen.

John 17:8 For I gave them the words you gave me and they accepted them. They knew with certainty that I came from you, and they believed that you sent me.

Have a blessed day.

John 17:1 After Jesus said this, he looked toward heaven and prayed: “Father, the hour has come. Glorify your Son, that your Son may glorify you.    

Verse 3 is what catches my attention this morning: “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” The verse doesn’t say, “Now this is the SECRET to eternal life” or “Now this is the KEY to eternal life….” “Now THIS is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”

John 17:2 For you granted him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you have given him.

My morning reading, prayer, and devotional time is spent daily trying to know God, to know Jesus better. I feel like every day I know Him a little bit more. I think the nature of this relationship is that there is always more to know, more to understand. With every year of experience I gain, I am able to understand His word that much better.

John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.

Precious Savior, I think of eternal life as something that happens after this life on earth, but your word says, “Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” Does that mean that eternal life is something that we can have on earth as well as in heaven? Help me to understand the implications, Lord. Help me to glorify You. Amen.

John 17:4 I have brought you glory on earth by finishing the work you gave me to do.

Have a blessed day.