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Jesus makes us a promise…. (devo reflection)

Mark 4:35-36 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.

Commentary gave me a new perspective of this section today. It posited that Jesus’s comment in verse 35 was a promise that they would make it safely to the other side. (After all, He didn’t say, “Let’s *try* to make it.”) And it is because He promises them that He questions their faith. (“I said we would make it. Why do you not believe?”)

Mark 4:37-38 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”

In Matthew 28:20 Jesus makes us a promise: “…And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” And as I was reading and studying this morning, I was also fretting about things, worrying, being anxious. My precious Savior spoke directly to my heart with today’s scripture. God has made me a promise. He is with me, no matter the storm. I do not need to fear.

Mark 4:39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

Precious Savior, You know I have always had an affinity for this passage in Mark. Thank You for using Your word to comfort my soul this morning. Thank You for Your promise to be with me always. I believe You, Lord. Help my unbelief. Amen.

Mark 4:40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”

Have a blessed day.

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Stubborn hearts and soft openings…. (devo reflection)

Mark 3:5 He looked around at them in anger and, deeply distressed at their stubborn hearts, said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was completely restored.

What strikes me here is the fact that Jesus is distressed by the stubborn hearts of the Pharisees and Herodians, but He was crowded by those who were trying to touch Him so they could be healed (v9).

Mark 3:8 When they heard about all he was doing, many people came to him from Judea, Jerusalem, Idumea, and the regions across the Jordan and around Tyre and Sidon.

Was Jesus also distressed by the hearts of those people? Did they want healing from Him because of Who He was (or Whose He was) or did they just want to be healed and knew He could do it? Was the fact that they believed in His power to heal them a soft opening for God’s love whereas the Pharisees and Herodians had no such softness and Jesus knew it?

Mark 3:9 Because of the crowd he told his disciples to have a small boat ready for him, to keep the people from crowding him.

Lord, There is so much I don’t know, so much I don’t understand. Thank You for the absolute certainty of Who You are and Who You are to me. Help me never lose sight of those truths. Amen.

Mark 3:10 For he had healed many, so that those with diseases were pushing forward to touch him.

Have a blessed day.

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Sticky emotions…. (devo reflection)

Mark 2:6-7 Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

I talked before about a poem I teach to my students called “The Guy in the Glass.” It’s about how you can fool the whole world, but you can’t fool yourself. I always think of that poem here because we can’t fool God either. He knows our hearts.

Mark 2:8a Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts….

For me, that fact involves being incredibly honest with God, especially when I am angry or scared. There’s no need to try to fool God because He knows my heart, so I fess up and try to work through whatever sticky emotions are keeping me from Him.

Mark 2:8b-9 …and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’?”

Lord, Thank You that You know my heart and You love me anyway. Thank You that You are big enough, strong enough, compassionate enough to help me work through my base human emotions. Help me always to be honest with You and to lay my emotions at Your feet so that I can draw closer to You. Amen.

Mark 2:10-11 “But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

Have a blessed day.

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Understanding unequivocally…. (devo reflection)

Mark 1:8 “I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

What fascinates me in this first chapter of Mark is who understands Jesus’s power and authority and who does not. John the Baptist recognizes and preaches who Jesus is. God, in verses 9-11, clearly claims His Son. The impure spirits and those suffering from disease clearly understand His power and authority.

Mark 1:9 At that time Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan.

Interestingly, the disciples, who follow Him without hesitation, will question repeatedly “Who is this man.” The Pharisees and Sadducees will question both who He is and who He thinks He is. So many people who should understand unequivocally who Jesus is spend a lot of time questioning who He is.

Mark 1:10 Just as Jesus was coming up out of the water, he saw heaven being torn open and the Spirit descending on him like a dove.

Lord, You are Jesus, Son of God, Creator of Heaven and earth, Savior of the world and Savior of my soul. Help me never to lose sight of who You are and who You are to me. Help me never to doubt Your love, mercy, compassion, sovereignty. Help me to speak Your truth and shine Your light. Always. Amen.

Mark 1:11 And a voice came from heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased.”

Have a blessed day.

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The Sovereign Lord who helps me…. (devo reflection)

Isaiah 50:2a …Was my arm too short to deliver you? Do I lack the strength to rescue you?…
I am guilty of doubting. If I’m honest, I’m guilty of it much more often than I’d care to admit. Mark 9:24, “I do believe; help my unbelief” is a verse I feel deeply.
Isaiah 50:2b …By a mere rebuke I dry up the sea, I turn rivers into a desert; their fish rot for lack of water and die of thirst.
But as I ponder the what and the why of my struggles with belief and trust, I see my issue comes down to control again. It’s not that I don’t trust God to act, it is that I want Him to act in a very specific way. I want Him to fix it according to my plans. That’s where my problem lies.
Isaiah 50:7 Because the Sovereign Lord helps me, I will not be disgraced….
Lord, Forgive me for my insane need to micromanage the God of all creation. Forgive me that I don’t just want You to make a way where I see no way, but I want You to follow my step-by-step guide. Thank You that You are with me always, that You are making a way, even if it looks nothing like I had planned or imagined. Draw me closer. Help me to trust unconditionally, even when I don’t understand, even when it is not what I would have planned. Thank You for Your sovereignty and love. Amen.
Isaiah 50:9 It is the Sovereign Lord who helps me. Who will condemn me?
Have a blessed day.
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Reasoning together…. (devo reflection)

Isaiah 1:18a “Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord….
Several translations use the wording “let us reason together” instead of “let us settle the matter.” That seems an important distinction to me. God wants us to make the best choice for our lives, but He has given us the free will to choose and the reason and intellect to make the right choice. So why do we often still choose wrong? Are we idiots? Gluttons for punishment? So wrapped up in hedonistic pleasure that even when God is the obvious choice, we still choose vice?
Isaiah 1:18b …“Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.”
I wonder if part of the problem is disbelief (which boils down to lack of trust. Jesus, Help me.) It is difficult to fathom that a garment dripping scarlet could ever be white as snow again. But this offer is given to all—Saint and sinner, rich and poor, worldly and sheltered. We just have to trust and believe. Such simple concepts. So difficult to put into practice.
Isaiah 1:19 If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the land…
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for Your mercy and compassion. Your offer seems too good to be true. You seem too compassionate to be real. “I believe, Lord. Help my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). Draw me closer. Amen.
Isaiah 1:20 …but if you resist and rebel, you will be devoured by the sword.”
Have a blessed day.
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And what does the LORD require of you? (devo reflection)

1 Chron 9:1 …and Judah was carried away captive to Babylon for their disobedience. (WEB)
God is pretty clear in His word about how we are to act and how we are to treat others. Mark 12:30-31 states the greatest commandment as: “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength…and…Love your neighbor as yourself.” Micah 6:8 adds: And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
1 Chron 9:1 …and, behold, they were written in the book of the kings of Israel and Judah, who were carried away to Babylon for their transgressions. (AKJV)
Can you imagine if we fully put these verses into practice, if we were fully obedient to God’s commands for living? In one of the most prolific “me first” places in the world, can you imagine if we treated our neighbors as we treat ourselves? Sadly, it is much easier to see disobedience to theses commands, and with the stress of teaching in a global pandemic, I’m looking squarely at myself when I say that. I’m absolutely guilty. So many are.
1 Chron 9:1 …and Judah was carried away to Babylon because of their unfaithfulness. (NHEB)
Lord, Thank You for this day and this scripture. Thank You for the reminder of Your commands. Help us to turn our selfishness into Your selflessness. Help us to champion others with the same vigor with which we claim our own rights and privileges. Help us to live first for You, then to be Your hands and feet to others. Help us to turn from our disobedience. Draw us closer. Amen.
1 Chron 9:1 …And Judah was taken into exile to Babylon because of their breach of faith. (ESV)
Have a blessed day

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An interesting opportunity during this pandemic…. (devo reflection)

Deut 17:1 Do not sacrifice to the LORD your God an ox or a sheep that had any defect or flaw in it, for that would be detestable to Him.
A sacrifice is not a sacrifice if it doesn’t cost you anything on a personal level. If I am cleaning out and giving things to charity, then my giving them to you instead does not constitute sacrifice. God wants our best. It’s got to cost us something to be a worthy sacrifice.
Mark 12:41-42 …Many rich people threw in large amounts. But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.
I think we are afforded an interesting opportunity during this pandemic to offer to God a sacrifice of praise (Heb 13:15). Times are tough, there is no disputing that fact. So to earnestly praise God, to rejoice in Him in the midst of the chaos and confusion, that is a worthy sacrifice. 
Mark 12:43 Calling His disciples to Him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this reminder that You don’t want our excesses, You want our best, our first fruits, and You are so worthy, Lord. Help us, especially now, to offer You a sacrifice of praise. Draw us closer. Amen.
Mark 12:44 “They gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”
Have a blessed day.

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Perfect love…. (devo reflection)

Deut 6:5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.
I am a deeply, fiercely, unconditionally loved child of God. He loves me as much on my worse day as He does on my best day. His love, His presence, His mercy and grace are limitless and without condition. I am unwaveringly thankful.
Deut 4:29 But if from there you will seek the LORD your God, you will find Him if you seek Him with all your heart and with all your soul.
He asks that same deep, fierce, unconditional love of me for Him. He wants me to love Him, to seek Him, with all that I am and all that I have. He wants me to be as steadfast in my devotion to Him in my trials as I am in my praise of Him in my triumphs. Some days I do pretty well at unwavering love. Some days I have to give myself plenty of grace, remind myself of His unconditional love, and try again to love Him without limits, without whining, without fear.
Matt 22:37 Jesus declared, “Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.”
Lord, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for Your clear example of perfect love. Thank You that You understand my flawed humanity, that You show me such undeserved grace and mercy as I fumble through this life. Thank You for loving me as completely on my worse day as You do on my best day. Thank You for understanding my deep love for You, even when I am bitter or afraid. Draw me closer. Always. Amen.
Mark 12:30 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.
Have a blessed day.

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Nothing is too hard…. (devo reflection)

Numbers 17:1-2 The LORD said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and get twelve staffs from them, one from the leader of each of their ancestral tribes.”
The Lord not only made dead wood bud in this chapter, a feat in and of itself, but he took a staff, dead wood, and made it sprout, bud, blossom, AND produce almonds. He brought forth life from death. This chapter brought to mind Jeremiah 32:17 “Ah, Sovereign LORD, You have made the heavens and the earth by Your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for You.”
Numbers 17:5 “The staff belonging to the man I choose will sprout, and I will rid myself of this constant grumbling against you by the Israelites.”
“Nothing is too hard for You.” I say it. I see it. But do I really live that belief? When I think about all that I am praying about, praying for, worrying about, do I put the trust in God that I profess? Do I leave my burdens at His feet, in His care, not worrying about the outcome because I know without a doubt that NOTHING is too hard for Him?
Numbers 17:7 Moses placed the staffs before the LORD in the tent of the covenant law.
Precious Savior, Thank You for this day, for this scripture, for this reminder of Your sovereignty. You know my heart, Lord. You know that I trust You, that I believe You, that I believe IN You. I don’t know why I struggle so to leave my burdens at Your feet but I KNOW I can trust You with them. “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:24). Amen.
Numbers 17:8 The next day Moses entered the tent and saw that Aaron’s staff, which represented the tribe of Levi, had not only sprouted but had budded, blossomed and produced almonds.
Have a blessed day.