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1If
then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any
sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, 2make my joy
complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and
of one mind. 3Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in
humility regard others as better than yourselves. 4Let each of you
look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 5Let
the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, 6who, though he
was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited,
7but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in
human likeness. And being found in human form, 8he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. 9Therefore
God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, 10so
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and
under the earth, 11and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ
is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
12Therefore,
my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but
much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling; 13for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both
to will and to work for his good pleasure.
14Do
all things without murmuring and arguing, 15so that you may be
blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a
crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in the world. 16It
is by your holding fast to the word of life that I can boast on the day of
Christ that I did not run in vain or labor in vain. 17But even if I
am being poured out as a libation over the sacrifice and the offering of your
faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you— 18and in the same way
you also must be glad and rejoice with me.
Tuesday April 8th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 1If
then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any
sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy,
Observation: It doesn’t take much to find encouragement in the
Lord. Our God has so much to offer us
whether we are in formation individually or apart; the GRACE & Love of God
shapes us.
Application: The GRACE & Love of God is both what fuels us with
building our faith to naturally begin to express loving both God and our
neighbor. Spiritual formation is an
intentional commitment to grow and build upon all that God has to offer. The gifts received and the fruit we bear in
response to GRACE is the beauty of being a disciple of Christ Jesus!
Prayer: Gracious & Loving God,
Help us to shine the light of your
GRACE as compassion, encouragement, sympathy and care to our neighbor
May our faith being nurtured and
guided by the Holy Spirit example the beauty of Christ Jesus
In community and individually as we
grow in our discipleship to love and serve you
May our lives begin to be
missionally shaped to realize your will
In your Most Holy & Blessed Name
we pray—
AMEN
For
Thursday April 10th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 2make
my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full
accord and of one mind.
Observation: Being in full accord in the original Greek means “united in
soul.” One of the theologies I recently
studied in class was the notion of reflecting upon “union with Christ,” as St.
Paul and Luther have understood it. We
don’t take enough time to fathom that reality—what does it or could it mean to
us personally?
Application: If we merely are “going through the motions” of realizing
this in our own lives... How can we save Faith? We need to literally
(spiritually) Put on Christ, live into the lifestyle of GRACE, who’s ironic
story begins this coming Sunday with Jesus’ triumphant entry into
Jerusalem. Jesus needs to have a
triumphant entry into our hearts breaking away the hardened plaque of sin,
death and the evil one’s empty promises...
Joy is an existential reality before it is empirically and naturally
realized.
Prayer: Heavenly Father,
Let our hearts hear deeply, St.
Paul’s plea for us to be in true Union with you
In body, mind and spirit
Regenerate and re-clothe us with
Christ Jesus
Let us make “real” the reality of
the Cross on our walks of discipleship
May we become missional in our lives
LIVED centered in, with and through you—in the Unity of the Holy Spirit!
For you are Our Lord and Savior—One
God
Now and Forever—
AMEN
For
Friday April 11th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 3Do
nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as
better than yourselves.
Observation: Being and becoming selfless or altruistic is the beautiful
path Jesus tried to teach us through his treatise in the Sermon on the
Mount. St. Paul is capturing the same
elemental personal quality that we must strive to live into: Humility and selflessness. These traits are the fruit of living into the
lifestyle of GRACE. They are an aspect
of being/becoming in union with Christ.
Application: The ego is the greatest vulnerability of our humanity. It is the place that Satan has greatly
influenced to divide, place stumbling blocks and harden our hearts away from
God and neighbor. A Priori or the
realization of the self needs to be broken into and filled with the Holy
Spirit—truthfully, realistically & holistically... The ego must die to
Christ and our lives need to be reconstructed into being/ becoming the New
Creation. To love beyond the self
because you know in your transformed heart that God loves you, enables you to begin
“being” the New Adam/ Eve and becoming light, spirit and leaven to all in your
path!
Prayer: Most Gracious Lord,
Your example of humility and
selflessness is a radical challenge to our saint/sinner selves.
You know how the Evil One torments
us into being wound up in ourselves
It is your profound GRACE that flows
all around us
Beckoning us to fight what seems so
natural for us to cave into
Being and becoming is our daily cost
of discipleship and our daily task
To grow in union with you and begin
bearing gracious fruit
Whether or not we spend our lives
struggling with spiritually growing to love you and our neighbor
Away from ourselves in true humility
May our hearts always know
Your love and light in our lives!
AMEN
For Sunday April 13th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 4Let
each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.
Observation: Simple enough statement but of course very unnatural and
difficult for us to intentionally commit to DO.
Just “being” has made us become oversaturated with the world of the
self. A beautiful part of the Christian
journey is losing yourself in another person for their sake out of love.
Application: The natural fruit of ministry is being and doing out of
love for another. Many things are left
unnoticed and often thankless things but that’s not why they are done. The fruit of GRACE we do for others out of
love from God is a natural aspect of living into the lifestyle of Grace as
daily bread. Feed the faith with prayer,
study and fellowship—being centered in Christ IS easy once it becomes a
spiritual formation discipline for servant leadership.
Prayer: Heavenly Father,
There is a whole world beyond
ourselves that your love opens us up to see
Help guide us into being
compassionate beacons of light and peace in this world
Help guard our hearts from what
Satan paints as “natural and logical...”
We must live into your radical
discipleship call
For as your servant Paul once
said—“the Cross is foolishness to those who are perishing...
But to those who believe, it is the
very power of God!”
Help us to lead in love, bear
cross-shaped lives
For Your Most Holy Name’s sake—
AMEN
For Monday April 14th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 5Let
the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
Observation: Have in Mind, think, judge BE with the Messiah Jesus—this
is how the Greek actually reads which basically says be spiritually attuned to,
in union with Christ in all that you perceive.
Application: Most often we read many of St. Paul’s letters hearing the
beautiful poetry of putting on, clothing, being in, with and through Christ
Jesus. This is important because of what
St. Paul gleaned from his conversion experience. Being radically changed from a persecutor of
Christians into the 1st pastor of the early church... Takes radical
transformation and intentionality. I
think he literally spiritually wants us to have Christ at the center of our
hearts—the place of judgment, the soul and the place where the Holy Spirit
guides us and builds our convictions. It
is by building our convictions aligned to Christ that impart, “Christ-like”
action—living into the lifestyle of GRACE.
Prayer: Gracious & Loving God,
You are always challenging us to
radically transform our hearts to realize gracious actions
Help us to continually reflect,
confess, repent and renew daily
To become attuned, aligned to
you—like second nature
May the mercy seat of our souls become
Holy and acceptable to you
You are our fount of GRACE washing
our lives with your love and shalom
May all we do BE truly a reflection
of You
For Your Most Holy Name’s sake—
AMEN
For Tuesday April 15th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 6who,
though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something
to be exploited,
Observation: The reality of Jesus incarnation and His humility is
profound for us to fathom for it exampled the perfection of selflessness,
obedience and full commitment.
Application: So much of the magnitude of the Gospels is in the radical
calling of the Gospels for us to be, respond non-instinctually, beyond
ourselves for a much greater purpose.
The love and GRACE of God through Jesus commitment is just the tip of
the iceberg of the Good News he would have to bring to our lives.
Prayer: Dear Lord and Father,
Help us to be humble down into the
very depths of our Spiritual selves
Help us to grow in living beyond
ourselves as a reflection of realizing in our hearts
The magnitude your Love and GRACE
have had upon our lives
You are the center of our lives
May we grow up into your radical
call to servant Leadership
For we are your children and commit
our hearts to you
In Your Most Holy and Blessed Name,
We Pray—
AMEN
For Wednesday April 16th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 7but
emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And
being found in human form,
Observation: With profound humility comes profound sacrifice again
radical, and unnatural to human instinct to fathom yet alone replicate... But
we are called and challenged to.
Application: There are many scriptures that naturally have us putting
the comfort word of try before the words, to do. For how could we be that humble or that
selfless? What seems logical to us is
alien to God. The reality of Christ
Jesus is something we must always hold in profound tension to place belief over
doubt, confidence over fear and Love, GRACE and compassion above idolatry,
indifference and lawlessness. We are
slaves rationalizing our imprisonment to the Evil One’s delight and empty
promises.
Prayer: Dear Jesus,
Could we but for one moment
radically open our eyes above, and beyond ourselves?
For we must learn to grow to say
deeply in our transforming hearts: I
will not try but DO!
I will not try but BE what your
profound Love and GRACE has set me free to see!
Help us to set away from the
chrysalis of our idolatries, indifferences and lawlessness
In order that we may freely grow to
realize your Kingdom here and now, in our midst
Shape our hearts to yours—
You are our freedom.
AMEN
For Good Friday April 18th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 8he
humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a
cross.
Observation: Our Lord’s cross exampled something we can only be in awe
of; complete emptiness of the fleshy self—the ego and being made low to the
point of profound selflessness. St. Paul
was the one in another letter to beckon us to die and as well to rise with
Christ!
Application: Obedience unto the Lord of GRACE—How do we contemplate
this? What can we do should begin more as what can we become? Conversion is the initial spark of
faith—realizing your point to coming to the Lord is where you begin to
build. You begin to build by willingly,
intentionally changing—striving to BE like Christ in all you are, do and
say. It is fruit born of the heart
shaped, regenerated and reborn to faith.
We must allow the Old nature within us to truly die to the point of
where the New Creation within us can flourish.
Prayer: We pray to you now at your hour, Our Crucified Lord
The love you impart at the foot of
the Cross is a sacred commissioning to us
Our challenge to answer your servant
Paul’s beckoning us to come and die
Help us to continue to fight the
Evil One’s seductive empty promises
Help us to trample down the Old self
and its temptations and darkness
To become lights in the world out of
true compassion, true humility
When we drop serving the unholy
trinity of I, Me, Mine and obediently love and serve you and our neighbor
We will become truly the children of
GRACE
Embracing your heavenly Kingdom with
our New, Holy selves
May our hearts feel deeply your
Cross—Daily
AMEN
For Easter Monday April 21st, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 9Therefore
God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name,
Observation: This is the beginning of the very first creed. It is the beginning of the hymn to our
understanding of Jesus’ Lordship; a sovereignty we must spiritually grow to
serve.
Application: The landscape of GRACE is humility lived in perpetual
thanksgiving for all we see, do and be/ become.
The name above every name is Jesus who needs to be Lord at the center of
our lives. Our love and obedience are to be lifted to God as the fruits of
faith.
Prayer: Dear Jesus,
You are Our Crucified Lord
Your Name is both a Blessing of
GRACE in our humbled lives
Your reign is to be the center of
our hearts
Dedicated in Loving service to you
May we continue to strive as your
faith-filled children
To Be—become the servant leaders Your
will desires us to be
In, With and Through Your very
Precious Name
We Pray—
AMEN
For
Wednesday April 23rd, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 10so
that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and
under the earth,
Observation: Every knee should bend to the Lord especially if we profess
Christ Jesus to be the very center of our lives. Obedience to the Lord of GRACE is joyfully
being accountable.
Application: Knowing where you are in the great and glorious landscape
of GRACE as well as knowing whose you are bears the beautiful fruit of faith:
willing, intentional obedience—being accountable out of Love.
Prayer: Dear Jesus,
It is your very Name which creates
hope within us
It is also at your very Name we know
who has a true hold upon our hearts
It is at your very Name being felt
within the center of our very lives
That we grow to love you full of
GRACE
Being fountains of beautiful fruit
born in Your Name
For the sake of loving you and
neighbor
Help us to continue to battle Satan
and His lawless temptations
May we always be accountable,
grateful and humble for everything you have given us!
May our will and knees bend to kiss
your feet on that final day
We join you in the Kingdom of
heaven—the land of eternal GRACE
AMEN
For Tuesday April 29th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 11and
every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the
Father.
Observation: The most beautiful calling and confession a disciple of
Jesus Christ is say and DO!
Application: We are in an age of new Christian persecution where the
current cultural trend and political trend tries to oppress the voice of conviction—religious
freedom. We need to continue to carry on
the battle to defend our faith, to openly evangelize the Gospel without
repercussions. We are not to be
chaplains to culture but Pastors, laity, and servants to Christ!
Prayer: Dear Jesus,
May we continue to confess that you
are Lord for all the world to hear
May we stand against cultural
oppression as well as persecution being directed by the Evil One
Help us to continue living into your
great commission
May we continue to turn the other
cheek and go to make disciples of all nations
To your Glory, honor and Blessing
It is your love and GRACE which
fuels us for the rocky road ahead.
In your Name we Pray
AMEN
For
Wednesday April 30th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 12Therefore,
my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but
much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and
trembling;
Observation: Coming to that point of responding is our discipleship
challenge. Bowing down with great
humility in realizing the power and sovereignty of God helps us to begin.
Application: A part of the reception of GRACE is in responding to
it. The kind of response God is seeking
is one that is not born of the fruit of works righteousness but born of faith
and the motivation of the Holy Spirit.
It is realizing and reconciling our relationship with the Lord as we
grow into lifestyle of GRACE.
Prayer: Heavenly Father,
We need to confess to you that we
often do not come to you with fear and trembling
We come to you puffed up with our
ideas and intentions
We have forgotten how to glory in
your creation yet alone know your magnificence
We have turned away from your GRACE
through our indifference and lawlessness
Help us to restore and truly make
right our faith
Helps us to preach it, teach it and
live it!
We ask these things of you Our
Gracious Lord and giver of life—Christ Jesus
Impart upon our hearts your
ever-knowing wisdom
AMEN
For Friday May 2nd, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 13for
it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his
good pleasure.
Observation: Enabling God to work within us is the great spiritual
warfare battleground between God’s Will to harbor fruits of the spirit and The
Evil One’s temptations and empty promises... Child of God you were made for the
Lord—rejoice and be glad in all that you DO through your faith!
Application: Pleasure and will have become a Pandora’s box of
misunderstanding where the greatest sins of greed & indifference prey. Perseverance and the willingness to carry
forth in your faith is the beauty of God’s Holy Spirit transforming you to KNOW
what living the lifestyle of GRACE really is: Joy—the good pleasure of being
grounded in the Lord loving Him and neighbor with the fruit of your lives.
Prayer: Gracious and Loving God,
We need to be reminded of how you
truly carry us
You empower our hearts with your
Love and GRACE to be confident, to be strong
When all around us withers to sin,
death and the Evil One’s stumbling blocks
Your Holy Spirit carries us guiding
our footsteps
To glean the Truth of our
discipleship journey
To suffer BUT persevere for the
greater Good of the world
May we continue in being intentionally
committed to carrying your will through
May our lives be great witnesses to
your GRACE for your good pleasure
In Your Most Precious Name We Pray—
AMEN
For Saturday May 3rd, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 14Do
all things without murmuring and arguing,
Observation: Responding to a loving and Gracious God takes being
gracious and grateful.
Application: I have a saying for the reality of GRACE & the reality
of hell. Essentially the reality of hell
is a graceless wilderness. When we turn
our hearts away from God and indulge in the two greatest sins—greed and
indifference; the world becomes an empty, dead and cold place—the reality of
hell enacted and “lived” on earth. It takes 26 muscles to smile as well as it
takes 43 to frown. Where do you put your
energies into?
Prayer: Dear Lord of GRACE,
The Christian life is one to be
guided and lived according to Your Word and Will
May we continue to be obedient to
the lifestyle of Grace
Help our lives strive to be
compassionate, grateful and loving in all that we do and say
For our lives need to be simple and
beautiful
May our hearts be, become aligned to
yours in the fullness of time
A life lived for Your Gospel!
In Your Most Holy Name We Pray—
AMEN
For
Sunday May 4th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 15so
that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the
midst of a crooked and perverse generation, in which you shine like stars in
the world.
Observation: True innocence is not possible without Christ but through
faith Grace imparts an aspiration for true holiness where our love shines forth
for the world to see in our example.
Application: Innocence is a beatific goal gleaned from the beauty
imparted by the life and ministry of Christ.
When he is truly at the center of our lives; we are naturally motivated
to great acts of graciousness which impart a new Holy innocence. This holy innocence is the beautiful fruit of
faith exampled in love, kindness, compassion, mercy, etc. All of which shine a brilliant light of hope
and confidence in the world for the world to see!
Prayer: Gracious and Merciful Lord,
You need to continue your gentle
nudging upon our hearts to bend towards yours
We need to tap into the beatific
mind of the New Creature within us
Whom you have planted from
imperishable seed
Once we truly live into Grace
We be and become lights to the world
for your sake through Love
May we continue to grow in humility,
patience and confidence—perseverance
That Your Will holds sovereignty
above our own
In Your Most Holy & Precious Name
We Pray—
AMEN
For Monday May 5th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 16It
is by your holding fast to the word of life that I can boast on the day of
Christ that I did not run in vain or labor in vain.
Observation: It is by your attentiveness and obedience to the Word of
God that those who pastor us on our faith journeys don’t feel they’re mentoring
of us has been useless.
Application: Whether pastor or peer in your faith community, growing
together with God’s Word as the solid foundation is critical to our serious
commission to spread the Gospel—preach it, teach it & live it!
Prayer: Heavenly Father,
May Your Word always take precedence
in our hearts and in our actions
Help us to grow here, continue in
our formation to be obedient to Your Living Word
May we come to cherish our pastors
and mentors as great encouragers
May we come to nurture and empower
our peers working through their own journeys
It is together, truly in perfect
unity as both the people of God and through our growing unity with you
That nothing we do when built upon
Your Word and done through Grace
Would ever been in vain or make
others feel worthless
You help to humble our hearts to be,
become the servant leaders you truly need us to be!
AMEN
For Tuesday May 6th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 17But
even if I am being poured out as a libation over the sacrifice and the offering
of your faith, I am glad and rejoice with all of you—
Observation: A part of my pastoral calling says St. Paul is to be
self-sacrificial in order to encourage, empower and impart compassion upon
those whom you serve. Servant Leadership
done from a truly humbled heart is something to celebrate as Christ’s love
becomes ever more present when we operate from this place.
Application: Being or becoming a disciple of Christ is servant leadership. Servant Leadership is a calling given
directly by and for God. It is a
vocation, it is a living sacrifice built upon the foundation of love and grace.
We don’t call one another more than nurture each other to grow and go with
Christ!
Prayer: Heavenly Father,
Continue to teach us to be, become
sacrificial when it comes leadership
Continue to humble us to operate
from a transformed heart empowered by your Love and Grace
May we stop seeking lens to see you
or hear you but BE obedient to Your Word
And calling alone—planted within our
hearts
Not by human hands but through you
and for you
May we never not be grateful for all
you have sacrificed for our undeserving selves!
May our lives be shared for Your
sake and our neighbors
In Your Ever Precious Name We Pray—
AMEN
For Wednesday May 7th, 2014
Today’s Verses Scripture: 18and
in the same way you also must be glad and rejoice with me.
Observation: True joy is created in the heart when it is shared with
others.
Application: The Pandora’s box of potential meaning for Joy, rejoicing,
gladness makes it hard to perhaps clearly see St. Paul’s message to us of
sharing. Unity as the Body—family of
Christ as well as being in Spiritual unity with Christ enacts pure joy or the
“beautiful” aspects of being alive and living into the lifestyle of Grace. These things need to be restored and we must
fight for a restoration of innocence and beauty in the midst of a clearly dark
age.
Prayer: Gracious and Loving God,
Teach our hearts to share truly and
truthfully with others
Help us to spiritually grow to know
and encourage unity within the family of the Body
Satan has worked very hard to tear
down our innocence and hopefulness
Empower our hearts to rejoice and
shed light into the darkness
So that in true unity both as the
Body and in our relationship with you
We can experience the beautiful
fruit of the lifestyle of Grace: joy, gladness, love, peace, unity...
You are our motivation and great
strength!
AMEN
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