Today’s reading is Mark 9:1-10:52.

Twice this year already, I’ve had opportunity to travel with some other preachers to hear a series of lectures by multiple preachers. On the way home, I noticed how easy it was for us (the preachers who had not been asked to be in these series) to talk about the mistakes the presenters had made. (To be fair, we also talked about the great lessons we heard and learned.)

One of the fellows traveling with us on both occasions was a young man who has just started working in a training capacity with a friend. Recognizing how much we were talking about the supposed mistakes of our brethren, I turned to the young brother and said, “Don’t mind us, this is the part of the trip in which we try to make ourselves feel better about our preaching.”

Sad, but that is often the way it works. Fortunately, on one of those trips we got to hear a great lesson on envy. That helped keep us in our own skin a bit.

However, I can’t help but think of this when I read of Jesus’ disciples arguing about who is the greatest in Mark 9:33-37. I still seem to get that backwards. Too often, I want to be the greatest, the greatest preacher, the greatest teacher, the greatest pray-er, the greatest song leader, the greatest whatever. That is not what being God’s child is about. God isn’t looking for the greatest. He’s looking for servants. He’s not looking for people who can prove how amazing they are. He’s looking for people who are asking, “What can I do next for others?”

The fact is, the preachers we heard in those two series did a great job. They didn’t do everything the way I would, but then why should they? God didn’t put us here to compete with each other. He put us here to serve as best we can. That’s what I need to do today.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

A dear friend and brother called today and asked me to peruse the titles of my posts. He was afraid that my titles make it seem like the only person I ever think about is me. When he first said something, I thought, “Well, that’s crazy.” But then I looked at the post titles. More than 2/3 of the first two pages contained the words I, me, my in them. Yikes!

I have two defenses and then a plea for your input.

First, I want this website to be a forum for each of us to share what strikes us in the day’s reading. I try to keep it personal. How good would it be if everyday what strikes me in the text the most is what I think you need to get out of it? I really am reading to see what I need to do. That means my posts are very often self-centered, but I hope in a good way. That’s why I always end with the request to learn how the passage struck you. Second, I’m trying to live by the mantra to lead with my weaknesses. I know when people advise me from a position of their strength, I usually think they don’t know what it’s like to deal with what I deal with. So as I strive to offer help and encouragement, I  offer my experience and hope that come from overcoming my weaknesses through Jesus instead of acting like I’ve got it all together and am passing on my wisdom to folks like you who really need some work. That often means talking about where the text shows that I messed up. 

Having said all of that, as I looked at the titles, I could see what my friend was saying. So, I have a request. With as much kindness and gentleness as you possibly can, let me know if you have gotten the same idea from the posts on here. If so, please let me know what you think will be the most positive and helpful way to write these daily devotions. 

If you disagree with my friend, I’d like to hear that as well, but please be very nice about it as the fellow is one of my best friends.

And thanks to the brother who pointed this out to me. I don’t want to do anything that will detract from the Scriptures we’re reading on here each day.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. Go back to today’s reading and let us know what struck you in it?

Today’s reading is Mark 7:1-8:38.

The healing of the blind man in two stages has often puzzled me. Jesus clearly had the power to heal the man in one shot. Why go through this two step process? The only reason I can see is as an object lesson for the apostles who continually had trouble seeing and understanding Jesus.

They had just had trouble seeing how Jesus would feed the 4000 despite having experienced the feeding of the 5000. They had just had trouble understanding Jesus when He spoke of the leaven of the Pharisees. With the blind man of Mark 8:22-26, Jesus let’s the disciples know they will see and understand in time. They are like this blind man. They are beginning to get a broad outline of Jesus and His teaching. In time, they will come to see clearly. They will grow.

This comforts me. I often feel like I only have a broad outline of what Jesus and HIs teaching are all about. That’s okay. I’m growing. As I continue in Christ, I will understand more and more. That is what being in Christ is all about: Growth. I don’t have to be perfect today. I don’t have to know everything today. Jesus is still working on me. He will conform me to His image as I continue in Him (cf. Romans 8:28-30).

Thus, my goal today is not to be absolutely perfect. My goal is to stay in Christ and draw closer to Him. He will perfect me in His time.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What did you get out of today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Mark 5:1-6:56.

We speak and preach so much about self-sacrifice, that we often miss the need to take care of ourselves as well. We should be kind to ourselves and make sure we do the things that take care of us physically, emotionally, mentally, spiritually. Sadly, as Stephen Covey taught, we often kill the goose in order to get to the golden eggs. We claim we are just sacrificing ourselves for others but then we work ourselves into the ground so that we can’t actually serve others anymore. Yes, there is a time for self-sacrifice in the service of others, but there is also a time to take care of ourselves in the service of others. 

I’m amazed at what Jesus did with the disciples as they struggled to cross the Galilee. Notice in Mark 6:47 that Jesus sent the apostles across the sea at evening time. Then He went up on to the mountain alone to pray. He needed some spiritual renewal time. He needed to connect with God on His own for a time. He was taking care of Himself spiritually. According to Mark 6:48, He saw the apostles making headway with difficulty. I don’t know if this is a reference to his omniscience or if it means He literally could see their boat from his vantage point on the mountain. What I do know is Jesus wasn’t oblivious to their plight. Yet, He didn’t simply drop what He was doing and go their aid. Instead, He let them struggle for hours. They left at evening time, that is around sunset (cf. Deuteronomy 16: 6; Deuteronom 23:11; Joshua 8:29). However, it wasn’t until the fourth watch, that is 3 am, that Jesus finally went to the apostles and helped them. 

Jesus needed some time to take care of himself spiritually and he left the apostles to toil on their own while He did that. There is a time to take care of ourselves. I think this applies spiritually, mentally, emotionally, physically. The fact is, God didn’t create us to burn the candle at both ends. When your body needs rest, let it sleep. God did create us to eat. When your body needs food, eat. I know of some who are hypoglycemic that feel themselves pulled by others and think they need to sacrifice, they put off eating until they are in a terrible place physically and emotionally. Take care of yourselves physically. Sometimes we need alone time with God. Sometimes we need together time with other people. Sometimes we need to simply take a quiet walk through nature to meditate. Sometimes we need time to just curl up with a good book. Sometimes we need to pursue education. Sometimes we need to tell our friends that we simply can’t go a certain place or be involved in a certain activity because we know it will lead us to sin. There is no shame in taking care of ourselves. 

The world is not going to come completely apart because we take some time to take care of ourselves. In fact, sometimes our over zealous need to sacrifice ourselves stems from an overdeveloped sense of how important we are. We become convinced that we have to be at the center of everything or it will all fall apart. We have to be the ones to help, or it won’t be done properly. We have to be there or someone else may die or go to hell because of us. The fact is, while God uses us in ways we cannot even imagine, none of us is so important to the world that taking a few minutes or hours to take care of ourselves will cause the world, our families, or our congregations to fall apart.

Yes, we need to put others ahead of ourselves. Yes, we need to sacrifice for and serve others. But there is a very real sense in which we need to take care of ourselves. Jesus did it. We can. What do you need to do today to be kind to yourself and take care of yourself?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Mark 3:1-4:41.

After Jesus told the parable of the sower, the disciples asked about them and Jesus gave the explanation. However, His first statement was, “To you has been given the secret of the kingdom of God, but for those outside everything is in parables” (Mark 4:11).

What struck me today is this statement and the explanation of the parable was preserved for me and you. We get to read Jesus’ explanation as well. That means we don’t have to be outsiders. We get to hear the secret of the kingdom. It has been given to us. We don’t have to hear and not understand or see and not perceive. We can read, study and be one of Jesus’ insiders.

How awesome is that?

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Mark 1:1-2:28.

I was struck pretty early in today’s reading. When the Jews were going out to see John the Baptist, they were being baptized and confessing their sins.

I recognize, of course, that the confession that is part of becoming God’s child is not the confession of sin, but the confession of faith in Christ (Romans 10:9-10). However, this confession caught my attention. Perhaps it caught my attention because of something a friend said to me recently.

“I didn’t really grasp God’s grace, until I actually started confessing my sins.” It was when he began to list out what he was forgiven for that he began to realize exactly how much God had done for him and exactly how much God must love him.

By the way, notice they did more than simply confess that they were sinners. They confessed their sins. Let’s not argue about how necessary this is in order to be saved. Instead, let’s simply recognize how beneficial it is to see God’s love and forgiveness. I’m going to spend some time today considering what God has done for me, what God has forgiven me and be reminded of how much He loves me.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Colossians 3:1-4:18.

Motivation. That’s what hit me the most in today’s reading.

Paul offers great motivation for all the changes he directs in our lives. He taught us to focus on heavenly things, not earthly. He said to put to death what is earthly in us. He said we should stop lying, get rid of wrath and anger, put away slander and malice. He said we should put on compassionate hearts, humility, meekness, patience, forbearance, forgiveness and love.

But why?

Should we do this so we can be raised with Christ? Should we do this so we can die with Christ and our life be hidden in His? Should we do this so Christ can become our life? Should we do this so we can put off the old self?

No.

Paul says we should do these things because we have already been raised with Christ, because we have already died and our lives are already hidden in Christ, because Christ is already our life, because we have already put off the old self. We are God’s children. These things have already happened, now we need to live like it.

Don’t get me wrong, I know that if we continue to live in sin we won’t be reconciled to God (Colossians 1:23). However, once again I am reminded that a motivation of me trying to be good enough to get all these promises from Christ always ends in failure for me. If I’m trying to get into Christ by stopping my sin and being good enough, I won’t make it. But Paul is saying, I’m in Christ. I have Christ’s life. I’m not trying to get it. Today I simply need to live like it. I can focus on heaven. I can focus on Christ. I can draw near to Him and overcome. That helps me. I hope it helps you.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Colossians 1:1-2:23.

Colossians 2:18-19 caught my attention today: “Let no one disqualify you, insisting on asceticism and worship of angels, going on in detail about visions, puffed up without reason by his sensuous mind, and not holding fast to the Head, from whom the whole body, nourished and knit together through its joints and ligaments, grows with a growth that is from God.”

I’m thankful for the focus reminder again today. If I let go of the Head, I’ll be disqualified. I can come up with all kinds of great rules for how I should be religious. I can establish a daily regimen of Bible reading and prayer time. I can make a decision to deprive myself of all kinds of things in an attempt to show God how great I am. No doubt, study, prayer, fasting, looking to the spiritual instead of the physical are all good things when done properly. However, when my asceticism is me in my strength trying to prove I’m spiritual, it never works. 

I have to hold fast to the Head, that is Jesus Christ. My number one goal today must be to connect with Him, to know Him, to be in Him, to let Him guide and direct me. When I’m doing that, the rest will take care of itself. Actually, He will take care of the rest.

God, please let me know Jesus better today and give me the strength to carry out His will.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Philippians 3:1-4:23.

I’m glad to read Philippians 3:7-11 today. It reminds me of what is most important for me today. It is not most important that I make money today or that I sell any books today. It is not most important that I rub elbows with some important person today. It is not most important that I pass on some great knowledge and education to my children today. It is not most important that I solve some great problem facing our world. What is most important is that I get to know Jesus just a little bit better today. If that means I have to give up something else, then so be it. 

Only by knowing Jesus will I attain the resurrection and have my lowly body transformed to be like his glorious body. 

I think I’ll go spend a little bit more time reading His word and praying. Perhaps I should spend some time with His other brethren. I will probably also take some time to do some meditating on what I learn of Him through the word. All of these things can help me know Him better and draw me closer to Him. That is what is most important today. Maybe God will use me to do some other things today as well, but most importantly, I need to know Jesus.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?

Today’s reading is Philippians 1:1-2:30.

Sometimes, I learn that the chapter and verse breaks were simply unfortunate. In today’s reading, I noticed a pattern from Philippians 1:27-2:18. Prior to that section, Paul was talking about his own circumstances and how he was able to find joy despite what was going on his life. After that section, he wrote about the companions he hoped to send to Philippi. It would have been easier to notice this if this section had been a chapter all by itself.

In this section, he has two parallel movements. Notice in Philippians 1:27 his statement about how the Philippians should walk whether he is present or absent. Then in Philippians 2:12, he spoke again about how they should live whether he was present or absent. The first occurrence says they should stand firm, striving side by side for the faith of gospel. Fighting as a team, they should not be frightened by the opponents who will cause them to suffer just as Paul suffered. In the second occurrence, Paul encourages them to obey God and work out their salvation with fear and trembling because they are not alone, God is working with them.

However, the parallels do not stop here. In the first movement, Paul moves from talking about how they should behave whether he is present or absent to say in Philippians 2:3, “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit.” In the second movement, he moves from talking about how to live whether he is present or absent to saying in Philippians 2:14, “Do all things without grumbling or questioning.”

Both sections are talking about our relationships with one another. We need to view each other as more important. Instead of being like those erring brethren in Philippians 1:15-18, who preach out of rivalry with Paul wishing to cause him affliction, we must seek good for each other. We must not grumble and complain against each other. The terms translated “grumbling” and “questioning” often carry the idea of an internal complaint or questioning that is not voiced, but can also refer to private quarrels and complaints. I think the point is twofold. We shouldn’t “go along” with our brethren externally while muttering under our breath against them. At the same time, we must not clump together in secret groups forming up party lines and complaining secretly among ourselves against others.

This entire section is about our relationships with one another. In contrast with the conceited rivals of Paul, we must learn to get along. The “one mind” of Philippians 2:2 is not saying we must have 100% agreement on every detail, but that we must all have Jesus’ mind that puts others first.

We have enemies in the world that will attack and make us suffer. We shouldn’t act like enemies within the body, competing, politicizing, complaining, and grumbling. We must learn to love each other and lift each other up, working out our own salvation while strengthening our brethren to face the struggles Satan will launch our way.

Keep the faith and keep reading,

ELC

P.S. What struck you in today’s reading?