A Work in Progress….

Luke 6:34 And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full.

Today I want to focus on verse 36: “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” Some days I feel like I need to write this verse in marker all over my house, my car, my classroom, so that I will be more mindful of it.

Luke 6:35 But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked. 

I want my Savior to be merciful to me. I want others to be merciful to me. Anger, bitterness, judgment are often abundant, but sometimes, mercy is in short supply on my end. Jesus, help me!

Luke 6:36 Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

Precious Savior, I want to be merciful, just as You are merciful. I don’t want to be angry, bitter, or judgmental, but sometimes, those emotions feel like my default. Jesus, Help me. Amen.

Luke 6:37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.

Have a blessed day. I love you.

Luke 6:30 Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. 

Luke 6:31 is also known as the Golden Rule. It’s a pretty good life philosophy, but as with many things in my life, I make it far more complicated than it needs to be.

Luke 6:31 Do to others as you would have them do to you.

All the complicated thought processes make me feel like I’m “closed-fisted” living. Instead of open palms for giving and receiving blessings, I’m closed-fisted, afraid. My heart feels closed, too. I don’t want to live that way.

Luke 6:32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. 

Precious Savior, I know that You don’t call me to closed-fisted living. You don’t want that for me because it not only keeps me from blessing others, it keeps me from Your blessings as well. I don’t want that. Teach me how to let go so I can live fully in you. Amen.

Luke 6:33 And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that.

Have a blessed day. I love you.

Luke 6:26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

Today’s verses are difficult—to read, to live, to parse out the meaning. At first glance, it almost feels like Jesus is saying to be a doormat, to let folks walk all over you. However, we all know that is not what He is saying.

Luke 6:27 “But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 

Jesus prayed for the Roman soldiers who persecuted Him *while* He was dying. That is what He wants us to emulate—His love, His compassion, His mercy. He doesn’t want  us to get sucked into bitterness and anger.

Luke 6:28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 

Precious Savior, Thank You for Your deep love for us. Thank You that You do not want our hearts to be consumed by hatred and bitterness. Help us to love like You love, especially when anger feels like a more natural option. Amen.

Luke 6:29 If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them.

Have a blessed day. I love you.

Luke 6:23 “Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets.

I am a big fan of the Ram Dass quote, “We are all just walking each other home,” and the Bible reminds us many times that this world is not our home, but I think that many of us, myself included, often suffer from a lack of imagination because this world is all we know. It’s easy to forget that even though this is all we know, this isn’t all that there is.

Luke 6:24 “But woe to you who are rich, for you have already received your comfort.

For me, for many, it’s not even a conscious mindset, it is just that the ways of the world are so pervasive that I….forget? lose sight of the fact?….that this world is not my home, that the ways of this world are not the ways of my loving Savior. Help me, Jesus.

Luke 6:25 Woe to you who are well fed now, for you will go hungry. Woe to you who laugh now, for you will mourn and weep.

Precious Savior, Thank You that this world is not my home, that the ways of this world, the hate and division and struggle of this world, are not the ways of Your eternal glory. Thank You that You have overcome this world, that I am more than a conqueror because of You. When the noise of this world gets overwhelming, help me to root myself in Your peace. Amen.

Luke 6:26 Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets.

Have a blessed day.

Luke 6:12 One of those days Jesus went out to a mountainside to pray, and spent the night praying to God.   

I truly believe that nothing surprises God. Today’s verses begin with Jesus and time spent praying to God and end with “Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.” This was not a surprise to God. This was not an accident, not an “Oops! How did that happen?!?”

Luke 6:13 When morning came, he called his disciples to him and chose twelve of them, whom he also designated apostles:

God knew what was coming (I don’t think He caused it, but that’s a devo for another day), Jesus knew He needed to stay rooted in God in order to stay in His will, stay intimately connected to Him, Judas probably had no idea what was coming, but he eventually he gave up fighting the good fight against his negative impulses, and here we are.

Luke 6:14 Simon (whom he named Peter), his brother Andrew, James, John, Philip, Bartholomew,

Precious Savior, I can learn a lot from today’s verses: First, You are sovereign and loving. You can be trusted. No matter the chaos in my life, these things are true. Second, I must stay rooted in You by establishing time daily to read and study Your word, sitting with You, communicating in a way that allows me to feel connected to You, staying connected to Your people. Third, I can never give up fighting the good fight to conquer those traits within me that do not bring You glory. Help me, Jesus. Always. Amen.

Luke 6:15-16 Matthew, Thomas, James son of Alphaeus, Simon who was called the Zealot, Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Have a blessed day.

Luke 6:9 Then Jesus said to them, “I ask you, which is lawful on the Sabbath: to do good or to do evil, to save life or to destroy it?”

I recently saw a post on social media that said, “Christ invited everyone to the banquet. Get people to the table. God will do the rest.” That reminds me so much of the billboard I saw once that has stuck with me for years: “Just love everyone. I’ll sort them out later. ~God.” These two ideas are light years away from where the Pharisees and the teachers of the law are in today’s scripture.

Luke 6:10a He looked around at them all, and then said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.”  

Here’s the truth. It’s easy to be offended. It’s easy to be angry. It’s easier to handle anger, bitterness, offense than it is to handle fear and uncertainty. I think that’s what the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were battling. They had a certain idea of who the Messiah would be, what He would do. Jesus didn’t fit that idea–and they were terrified, so they needed Him gone. Unfortunately, sometimes I’m not so different in my attitudes.

Luke 6:10b He did so, and his hand was completely restored.

Precious Savior, when I am afraid, when I am uncertain, it is so much easier for me to react with anger and bitterness. Forgive me. Help me to love as You love. Help me remember that the goal is to love You, first and foremost, and to love people, all people, to get them to the banquet so that You can show them Your eternal love. Help me, Jesus, not to get in Your way. Amen.

Luke 6:11 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were furious and began to discuss with one another what they might do to Jesus.

Have a blessed day.

Luke 6:5 Then Jesus said to them, “The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath.”

I have lived long enough to know that I will find whatever I look for in each day. If I am looking for reasons to be angry, I’ll find them everywhere. If I am spoiling for a fight, opportunity for one will be around every corner. If I am looking for reasons to be grateful, reasons to praise my Savior, I’ll find them everywhere I look, too.

Luke 6:6 On another Sabbath he went into the synagogue and was teaching, and a man was there whose right hand was shriveled.

The Pharisees and the teachers didn’t like Jesus, didn’t trust Jesus, felt threatened by Jesus. They were looking for reasons to accuse Him. How many times have I been guilty of something similar? Feeling threatened in my comfort zone by someone and spoiling for a fight because of it? Looking for reasons to not like the person so that I can justify my feelings? Jesus, Help me.

Luke 6:7 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were looking for a reason to accuse Jesus, so they watched him closely to see if he would heal on the Sabbath.

Precious Savior, Thank You that we find what we look for in life. Help me to look for reasons to be grateful, for reasons to praise You. I know when that’s what I look for, I’ll find them everywhere I turn. Thank You for Your abundant blessings. Amen.

Luke 6:8 But Jesus knew what they were thinking and said to the man with the shriveled hand, “Get up and stand in front of everyone.” So he got up and stood there.

Have a blessed day.

Luke 6:1 One Sabbath Jesus was going through the grainfields, and his disciples began to pick some heads of grain, rub them in their hands and eat the kernels. 

As a rule follower, part of me really feels I understand the Pharisees. As someone who loves Jesus, part of me definitely does not understand them at all. But I am, essentially, an “armchair quarterback,” assessing the game from the replay videos after it’s over. I know how it ends. Jesus IS God. He IS sovereign. The Pharisees didn’t trust that, didn’t believe that.

Luke 6:2 Some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?”

Or maybe they were just so tied to their religious customs and rules and “the way things have always been,” that they can’t see clearly who Jesus is. Or maybe they got caught up in the notion that the Messiah would be a warrior, dominating battles, defeating the Roman rulers to win the ultimate battle *on earth.* That’s not who Jesus is. And the Pharisees missed knowing Him because they couldn’t let go of what they thought *should* be.

Luke 6:3 Jesus answered them, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? 

Precious Savior, You know that I am so bad for falling into what I think *should* be, what I think *should* happen, what I think I *should* do, You *should* do, others *should* do. The Pharisees missed You entirely because they could not get past the *shoulds*. I do not want that to be my fate. Help me lay aside all of my *shoulds* and focus solely on You. Help me, Jesus. Amen.

Luke 6:4 He entered the house of God, and taking the consecrated bread, he ate what is lawful only for priests to eat. And he also gave some to his companions.” 

Have a blessed day.