Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Church meeting devotions: I Like Bread - Luke 11:3


Luke 11:3 Give us each day our daily bread.

I like bread. I like it a lot. Whether it’s the bread that I toast in the morning, the sandwich that I eat for lunch or in the roll that I may have with dinner, my conclusion is the same: Bread Rules! When I was growing as a teenager, I could sometimes eat half a loaf loaf at night with butter and jam. I don’t know how my folks afforded it, but there was always bread in the pantry for all of us hungry Stuart kids.

In Scotland, there is something called a plain loaf which is a doughy loaf of sliced white bread. At each end of the loaf is a thick slice which is either called the ‘heel’ or the ‘outsider’. In our house, getting the outsider was an extra helping, so we took it turns to receive it. Whenever it was toasted, covered in butter, and put on a plate, I felt as though I was feasting like a king. As I am writing this, I can still experience crunching through the dark crust and tasting the texture of the bread. As a poor kid, from a large family, living in a deprived area, white bread was my staple diet. Eating the thick crunchy heel was a wonderful blessing that meant a lot to me.

When the disciples ask Jesus to teach them how to pray, He instructs them to ask God to give them their daily bread before they ask Him to forgive their sins. He wants them to rely upon God to sustain them first and then forgive them second. It’s not that forgiveness is less important than meeting their needs; it’s just that Jesus wants them to be grateful first and then seek God’s mercy.

Sometimes I need to remember that lesson. Frequently I feel guilty about my mistakes, so that when I talk to God in prayer, I reel off a list of sins in order to seek His mercy first. I forget to be grateful and thank God for His daily goodness; instead I focus on being forgiven in order to make me feel good. Perhaps if I changed my prayers to concentrate on thanking God first, then I would not dwell upon how much I disappointed Him again.

Questions for personal reflection

What are the daily gifts in my life for which I should be grateful to God? Are my prayers more about me or God?

Prayer:            Lord Jesus, thank You for teaching us how to pray and for drawing our attention to the daily blessings and needs that God provides. Keep us from being self-centered or ungrateful. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is a bulletin cover design for Communion drawn by John based upon Christ’s own words, “I am the Bread of Life.” If you would like to view a larger version, please click on the following link: http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3560/3770073328_9c57843113_b.jpg

Monday, August 6, 2012

Church Stewardship devotions: Their Own Means - Luke 8:3

Luke 8:3         Joanna the wife of Cuza, the manager of Herod's household; Susanna; and many others. These women were helping to support them out of their own means. 

            We tend to forget that there were on-going costs involved with Christ’s ministry. After all, when He traveled around the Galilean region with an entourage of at least a dozen others, someone had to foot the bill for their lodging, food, and clothing. A three year itinerant ministry would cost a lot in sandals and sandwiches, even if you could every now and then feed a multitude of five thousand people.

            From Luke’s Gospel, we get an idea of those who supported Christ financially – they were women who had been healed miraculously. They were grateful for Christ’s compassion and His holiness which completely restored them to their personal domestic lives. Whatever they had suffered from, Jesus cured them. Whatever pain, isolation, depression, or sickness they had had in the past, Christ healed them.

            Their gratitude was expressed in financial terms. Whatever they had to give from their own means, they gave cheerfully and willingly to support Jesus. His ministry meant everything to them, so they wanted to help Him financially. Whenever we think about the effective support that was given to Christ’s work, we tend to think in terms of the number of disciples; however, without the quantity of money that was given for His ministry, even Jesus would not have been able to complete His work across the Galilean region.

            Perhaps the main lesson that we all can learn from this passage is one of cheerful stewardship. After all, Christ still depends upon how gratefully we give to the work of His church, in order to continue His ministry in our world today.

Questions for personal reflection

Why do I give money to the church? How do my contributions help to fulfill Christ’s ministry in my community and around the world?

Prayer:            Lord Jesus, without financial support Your Church, in local communities and throughout the world, could never function or flourish, or even fulfill the Great Commission. Your ministry on Earth still needs our resources and money to effectively accomplish Your work around the globe. Help us to reflect upon what and how we give of our means to You. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is one of John’s latest digital glass designs. It’s called “Common Cup.” If you would like to view a larger version, please click the following link: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8424/7713499924_2648e0ed42_b.jpg

Thursday, August 2, 2012

Short devotions: Sticks and stones - Luke 7:32


Luke 7:32       Jesus said: “They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling out to each other: 'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not cry.'”

The street I lived on as a child was the greatest playground I have ever known. My brothers and I played with the other kids at football, hide and seek, rounders, dodgie ball, best man fall, kick the can, red rover, hopscotch (known as ‘peever’ in Glasgow) and were even known to play skipping ropes with the girls or challenge them to a hula hoop contest (which the girls always won). The street was always full of excitement and laughter, cheers and songs.

Sometimes we all fell out with each other and formed cliques. We would then yell at each other across the street and call one another names. At some point, both groups would end up singing “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me.” We would sing it as loudly as we could until one of the homeowners on the street would come outside to tell us kids that we were making too much noise. This was immediately met with peals of laughter, at which point, we forgot our dispute and gathered together again to play a new game.

In Christ’s time, the children also played on the street and sang derisive songs to one another. Today’s verse includes one of them which must have been well known to Jesus, as well as His listeners. He used the song as an example of people always finding fault with others, whose narrow-minded ways or bitterness precluded them from enjoying the wonders of God’s Kingdom and Christ’s ministry. Usually, His veiled comments were meant for the religious authorities who were displeased with, and displaced by, His ministry. Their callous hearts could not comprehend the compassion of His work. Their self-righteousness severed them from God’s love.

As Christians, we can be smug at times and spiritually aloof. Our pride can damage our effective witness and our religious arrogance can undermine Christ’s great work. It’s never easy to be a Christian, but sometimes we are our own worst enemies. Perhaps, instead of scornfully singing dirges of derision at the world, we should cheerfully give voice to the songs of salvation for the healing of God’s Creation.

Question for personal reflection

What kind of song of faith do I sing to the world with my life and Christian beliefs?

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, there are times when we read the Gospels that
we find it easy to delude ourselves into thinking that we would never have complained against You or derided Your ministry. However, when we honestly reflect upon those divisive events in Your past, we know that we are guilty of the same excesses of religious self-righteousness and damaging witness of our faith. Forgive us and help us to change our lives according to Your ways. In Your Holy Name, we humbly pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Today’s image is the book cover of my latest e-book of devotions called “Challenges to Change Us.” You can view a larger version of the cover at the following link: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7279/7607634816_62514d3bd0_b.jpg

You can also view samples of the book online at the following Amazon link: amzn.to/MOztlR