Refreshing Our Spirits With Scripture

Heavenly Sunlight Flooding My Soul With Glory Divine Most Sunday mornings as I was growing up mother was making breakfast of fried eggs, fried bacon with biscuits and gravy.  If we had ham we sometimes had what she called "red gravy".   If there were no biscuits there would be toast and jelly to go with the eggs and bacon.  Sometimes there was a change and we had scrambled eggs and sausage.  She would be standing the whole time as I remember it.  While cooking, washing the dishes and cleaning up she was humming a song called, "Heavenly Sunlight." After breakfast she would read her worn out Bible.  It was crinkled up the last ten years of her life because she left it out on the porch where she was reading and it got rained on.   I cannot remember a day when she didn't read her Bible.  She wrote a short note every day of her life of what happened and often included the weather and how many eggs she gathered.  It seemed ...

Matthew 19. 19  When Jesus had finished saying these things, he left Galilee and went into the region of Judea to the other side of the Jordan. 2  Large crowds followed him, and he healed them there. 3  Some Pharisees came to him to test him. They asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife for any and every reason?” 4  “Haven’t you read,” he replied, “that at the beginning the Creator ‘made them male and female,’ [ a ] 5  and said, ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh’ [ b ] ? 6  So they are no longer two, but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let no one separate.” 7  “Why then,” they asked, “did Moses command that a man give his wife a certificate of divorce and send her away?” 8  Jesus replied, “Moses permitted you to divorce your wives because your hearts were hard. But it was not this way from the beginning. 9  I tell you...

Matthew 19. 13  Then people brought little children to Jesus for him to place his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples rebuked them. 14  Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 15  When he had placed his hands on them, he went on from there.

Matthew 19. 16  Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?” 17  “Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.” 18  “Which ones?” he inquired. Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, 19  honor your father and mother,’ [ c ] and ‘love your neighbor as yourself.’ [ d ] ” 20  “All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?” 21  Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” 22  When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. 23  Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly I tell you, it is hard for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of heaven. 24...

Luke 4. 4  Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, 2  where for forty days he was tempted [ a ] by the devil. He ate nothing during those days, and at the end of them he was hungry. 3  The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, tell this stone to become bread.” 4  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone.’ [ b ] ” 5  The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. 6  And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. 7  If you worship me, it will all be yours.” 8  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’ [ c ] ” 9  The devil led him to Jerusalem and had him stand on the highest point of the temple. “If you are the Son of God,” he said, “throw yourself down from here. 10...

Luke 3. 21  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened. 22  And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, “You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased.”

Luke 3. 18  And with many other exhortations he preached to the people. 19  But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, [ c ] and for all the evils which Herod had done, 20  also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison.

Matthew 4. 4  Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted [ a ] by the devil. 2  After fasting forty days and forty nights, he was hungry. 3  The tempter came to him and said, “If you are the Son of God, tell these stones to become bread.” 4  Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘ Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’ [ b ] ” Through his disciple Paul. Romans 14. 2 0  Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. 21  It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall. 1 Corinthians 9. 27  No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. Phillipians   3 7  But whatever were gains to me I now consi...

Luke 3. 15  The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Messiah. 16  John answered them all, “I baptize you with [ b ] water. But one who is more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with [ c ] the Holy Spirit and fire.

Psalm 103. 1  Praise the Lord , my soul;      all my inmost being, praise his holy name. 2  Praise the Lord , my soul,      and forget not all his benefits— 3  who forgives all your sins      and heals all your diseases, 4  who redeems your life from the pit      and crowns you with love and compassion, 5  who satisfies your desires with good things      so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Luke 3 7  John said to the crowds coming out to be baptized by him, “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? 8  Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not begin to say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. 9  The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10  “What should we do then?” the crowd asked. 11  John answered, “Anyone who has two shirts should share with the one who has none, and anyone who has food should do the same.” 12  Even tax collectors came to be baptized. “Teacher,” they asked, “what should we do?” 13  “Don’t collect any more than you are required to,” he told them. 14  Then some soldiers asked him, “And what should we do?” He replied, “Don’t extort money and don’t accuse people falsely—be content with you...

Baltimore Thoughts I had some hard introduction to the problem of police being tied too closely to the district attorney office. A young man in our church was killed by an off duty police officer.  His body laid in the street for hours while the police met with the D.A. office in his home.  Finally, after a long time they went to his mother's house across the street to inform her that her son was dead.  Nothing came of the case.  I spent the next ten years working with clergy and city people in Denver to try to improve the conditions related to deaths at the hands of police officers.  I am personally thankful that the DA in Baltimore has come out  with a full report and an indictment. She reminded everyone that justice requires peace. Jesus teaches that taxes should be paid to your government. The followers of Jesus Peter and Paul reiterated that governments are established by God for the purpose of "justice" which is to punish the disobedient and to reward...

Jesus showed the character of the Father in heaven as one who wants to give you the very best gifts. Luke 11. 11  One day Jesus was praying in a certain place. When he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, just as John taught his disciples.” 2  He said to them, “ When you pray, say: “‘Father, [ a ] hallowed be your name, your kingdom come. [ b ] 3  Give us each day our daily bread. 4  Forgive us our sins,      for we also forgive everyone who sins against us. [ c ] And lead us not into temptation. [ d ] ’” 5  Then Jesus said to them, “Suppose you have a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; 6  a friend of mine on a journey has come to me, and I have no food to offer him.’ 7  And suppose the one inside answers, ‘Don’t bother me. The door is already locked, and my children and I are in bed. I can’t get up and give you anything.’ 8...

Matthew 11 28  “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30  For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”

Luke 2. 41  Every year Jesus’ parents went to Jerusalem for the Festival of the Passover. 42  When he was twelve years old, they went up to the festival, according to the custom. 43  After the festival was over, while his parents were returning home, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but they were unaware of it. 44  Thinking he was in their company, they traveled on for a day. Then they began looking for him among their relatives and friends. 45  When they did not find him, they went back to Jerusalem to look for him. 46  After three days they found him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47  Everyone who heard him was amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48  When his parents saw him, they were astonished. His mother said to him, “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.” 49  “Why were you searching for...

Luke 2. 39  When Joseph and Mary had done everything required by the Law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee to their own town of Nazareth. 40  And the child grew and became strong; he was filled with wisdom, and the grace of God was on him.

Luke 2. 25  Now there was a man in Jerusalem called Simeon, who was righteous and devout. He was waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was on him. 26  It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not die before he had seen the Lord’s Messiah. 27  Moved by the Spirit, he went into the temple courts. When the parents brought in the child Jesus to do for him what the custom of the Law required, 28  Simeon took him in his arms and praised God, saying: 29  “Sovereign Lord, as you have promised,      you may now dismiss [ d ] your servant in peace. 30  For my eyes have seen your salvation, 31       which you have prepared in the sight of all nations: 32  a light for revelation to the Gentiles,      and the glory of your people Israel.” 33  The child’s father and mother marveled at what was said about him. 34  Then Simeon blessed them...

Luke 2. 13  Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, 14  “Glory to God in the highest heaven,      and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.” 15  When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” 16  So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. 17  When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, 18  and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. 19  But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. 20  The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. 21  On the eighth day, when it was time ...

July 20, 2012 Details of this long day in Aurora, Colorado. Probably many of us get up in the morning to workout on exercise bikes and watch the news. Usually nothing much on a normal day. I watch business news. Big news, market up. Big news, market down. Not really anything big, just a distraction from my workout. Today at 4:00 am, it was different. Aurora Theatre shooting, 50 shot 14 killed. I'm ashamed to admit my thought, “I hope it’s not my town, hopefully Aurora, Ill?” No. It’s my town.                                                                                   ...

Matthew 6.5-15, Luke 11.1-13 Get in a secret, private place and pray a short focused prayer. Praising God for who He is.  Agreeing with Him about the logical consequences of my choices that help give me direction. Asking that His will be done on earth and especially in my life. Asking for what I need and want. Asking for forgiveness equal to what I give to others. Asking for leadership away from temptations. Asking for deliverance from evil in my life. Matthew 7.7-12 Ask with confidence in our Father giving us what we need and want and more. Matthew 11.25-30 Asking the Father's help and Jesus' help with being weary and burdened and expecting His relief. Mark 11.20-26 When there is something fruitless in our lives it helps to name it and agree with God that this is not "fruitful".  Expect God to desire to bless us with changing the situation for our benefit.  Do not doubt. Ask, believe and receive.  Forgive all people that we might hold anything a...