Shiny Gods Pt 4

   This week we talked about leaving rooms in our lives and our budgets to minister to those in need. One of the ways I have done this in my own life is to create a list of charities that are important to me because of the work they are doing restoring people's lives and sharing hope. Each month I give money to one of these organizations. For me this list includes:
Spiritual Directors International
To Write Love on Her Arms
Thistle Farms
Drew Theological School
UMCOR
The Young Clergywomen Project
Joyful Hearts
But that's just my list. Then in addition, I set aside money for special offerings that bless the local community through the local church. What is your plan to create a margin to bless those who are hurting in the world? How are you creating room in your budget to bless others above and beyond your tithe?

Shiny Gods 3 Devo

October 23rd, 2016

Devotional

“Shiny Gods: Heart Giving”  - Matthew 7: 7-12, Lev. 19:9-10

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Ask, Seek, Knock” - Matthew 7: 7-8

Familiar words. Ask and it shall be given to you. What have you asked God for lately? Did you get exactly what you asked for? Why not? That’s what the scripture says doesn’t it? Not quite. Many in the church have taken this piece of scripture to mean that God will give you whatever you ask for, when in fact, that is not what it says. Instead, this scripture is beckoning us to ask for the things of the Kingdom of God. To search for what’s close to God’s heart, and knock of the door of eternal life. 

Friends, what a difference it could make if we shift what we think this verse means - meeting our wants, needs, and desires, and instead see it as seeking after the heart of God. I once had a women in a Bible study comment how she was struck by the fact that I often prayed in church “God’s will be done.” She stated that she found comfort in the fact that we were seeking God’s will together instead of simply a list of individual wants and concerns.

Let pray this week that God’s will be done. Let us seek after the Kingdom of God and let it reign in our lives. Let us ask for the things that are close to the heart of God and ask that our heart love those things and people as well. Amen! 

How could praying for God’s will and Kingdom change your prayer life? If you already pray for these things, how has it changed your prayer life? 

Prayer: Lord, sometimes we get in our own way. We think that everything is all about us, instead of focusing on your Kingdom and reign. Help us this week to refocus on you. Seeking after your heart and proclaiming your Kingdom! Amen. 

Tuesday: “Good Gifts” - Matthew 7: 9-11

I love to give gifts. But I must admit that often I give things that are not on folks lists. I hand stitch something for them, or find something in a store that reminds me of them or that I think they will like. I am not very good at waiting for the birthday or Christmas list and sticking to it.

When I give people gifts, especially my nieces, I want to give them good things. Things they will treasure and enjoy. Another interpretation of this scripture passage could be - if I as an aunt want to give good gifts to my nieces, how much more so will God lavish good things upon us.

The problem is, all too often our wants and desires get in the way of appreciating all that God has given us. Have you ever taken time to pick out the perfect gift only to have the receiver complain that its not what they wanted? How did that make you feel? Yet, we seem to have no problem rejecting the good gifts God has given us. 

What makes something a good gift?

What are the gifts God has lavished upon you that you have taken for granted? 

Prayer: Lord, we confess that we are not always joyful recipients of your gifts and love. All too often we fail to notice your gifts or have complained that they are not what we wanted, when we wanted it. Forgive us, O Lord. Open up our eyes and ears and hearts so we can see the blessings of each and every day. Amen. 

Wednesday: “Do Unto Others” - Matthew 7:12

A lot of folks don’t realize that the teaching to do unto others as you would have them do unto others is Biblical. Yes, the Golden Rule is found in God’s Holy Word, in several different places. 

Right after Jesus teaches his disciples about seeking after the heart of God and reminding them that God gives good gifts, we find this teaching about doing unto others. There is a link between what is in God’s heart and loving other people. One of the first verses that we often teach children to memorize is “For God so loved the world that he gave his only son.” God loves the world. God has not forgotten us or abandon us or given up on us. God made a way for the world to come and know the love of God through Jesus on the cross. It is our job to share that good news because our Heavenly Father loves the world. 

What do you find challenging about the Golden Rule?

How is the Golden Rule connected to the heart of God? 

Prayer: Lord, help us to share the good news of Jesus every day because you love the people we are to share it with. Help us to treat other people as we would want to be treated - with kindness and respect - because they are your children. Help us to uphold the Golden Rule in our daily lives. Amen. 

Thursday: “Leave Them” - Lev 19:9-10

Have you ever witnessed people gathering what they don’t really need in a store because there is a good sale? You may have even overheard someone saying “I don’t need this now, but its a good price.” I like to believe that people are picking those thing up for the needy in their communities, but I also know that often is not the case.

It is as if there is something deep within us that fears scarcity. Perhaps there was a time in our life when we didn’t have everything we thought we needed. Or maybe we just learn to fear not having enough from the TV, but too many people live in constant fear of not having enough. Today’s scripture speaks against that - not only reminding folks that they will have enough in their fields, but telling them not to pick it clean. Instead, they are to leave a margin around the field where those in need can come and glean. We are all in need of a margin in our lives. A margin in our budgets and calendars where we can minister to those who are in need - with those for whom scarcity isn’t a fear, its a reality.

What would it look like for you to leave a margin in your life for the poor and needy? What could God do with this margin for the sake of the Kingdom of God?

Prayer: O God, help us to trust you. To trust that we do have enough. That we are enough. Encourage us to leave a margin in our lives for the work of the Kingdom of God in and through us - especially in the lives of the poor and needy. Use us, we pray. Amen. 

Friday: “You” - Matthew 25: 35-36

Christ tells us in scripture that when we arrive at heaven we are going to be asked what we did for those whom Christ deeply cares about. Did we feed people? Give them something to drink? Welcome the stranger? Give clothes? Care for the sick and visit those in prison?

Our salvation is meant to be lived out. We are not meant simply to make a decision to love Christ and then sit back and wait to be taken into heaven. No - our faith is meant to be embraced, lived, and shared. How can you share you faith in Jesus this week with someone in need? 

How can you live out your faith in a tangible way?

How has your faith impacted people before?

Prayer: God, thank you for calling us to an active faith. A faith that isn’t about sitting still and waiting for you to return, but instead a faith that ministers to the world around us. Thank you for inviting us all to be part of this mission. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

Pray over next week’s text and sermon: “Exploring Ephesians: Lavishing Grace” - Eph 1: 3-14

Family Activity: Pick one way to live out your faith as a family. How can you serve together? After serving talk about what you experienced and how this reflected the love of Jesus. 

Shiny Gods Part 3

   Pastor, I need financial help. These are words that come through my office several times a year due to unforeseen circumstances and great needs. The truth is, when these requests come in, I also find myself thinking about how many other people around me are in need of financial help, are in need of financial advice.
   We live in a world where many folks are spending more than they are bringing in each month. They are living paycheck to paycheck at best, and so when extraordinary circumstances come up, they don't know what to do. I am happy that we are a generous church that can help folks, but I also think we, as a society, need to rethink our relationship to money. The best advice I can give is 10-10-80. Give ten percent to God. Put ten percent into savings for needs that will come in the future, and then live on the remaining 80 percent (or in an ideal world less than that). We need to stop seeing every cent earned as ours to spend here and now as we like and instead think about what our relationship with money should look like and more importantly, what it means.
   Will 10-10-80 solve all our problems? No. But it does help keep our heart and wallet in check. What financial practices do you find best help you focus on God and reflect your faith?

Shiny Gods 2 Devo

October 16th, 2016  

Devotional

“Shiny Gods: Be Faithful, Save, and Give ” - 2 Cor 9: 6-12

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “What are You Sowing?” - 2 Cor 9: 6

If someone ask you what you are sowing in your life, how would you answer? People who plant gardens and farm land can tell you what they plant every year. They can tell you because they were intentional - they picked out their crop, they tended to it, and if all went well, they saw the fruits of their labors. While we may not see the fruits in this life of all of our labors, we should still be very intentional about what we are sowing. 

Do you want to sow peace? Then are you intentional about choosing words that reflect this? Do you want to sow joy? Then how is your attitude towards others, even when they disagree with you? Do you want to sow Christ’s love? Then how are you going about sharing that blessed love with others? 

We are only put on this earth for a short while - what are we going to do with that time in order to be intentional about what we want to leave behind in terms of fruit for the harvest? 

What do you want to be more intentional about sowing with your life? What is one step you could take in order to make this happen?

Would you describe yourself as someone who sows sparingly or bountifully? Why? 

Prayer: Jesus, we desire to be people who sow seeds for your Kingdom. We don’t know when the fruit of the harvest of these seeds may come, but you simply call us to be faithful in the planting. Help us sow bountifully for the sake of your honor and glory. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Make Up Your Mind” - 2 Cor 9: 7

I was once at an event with Rev. Dr. Ed Zeiders where he described how he and his wife approached their tithe. He said that they made up their minds, at the beginning of their life in ministry, to work towards a progressive tithe. They started off working towards being able to tithe their net salary - what their take home pay was. They they formed a plan to be intentional about working towards tithing their gross salary - their salary before all of the deductions for health insurance, taxes, etc. Then they choose to work towards tithing off of the additional parts of their salary package - things like health insurance and pension. They made this plan for their life and made up their minds to how they wanted to give.

Now, I am not saying that we should all be working towards a progressive tithe. But, I am encouraging us to think about how we give. To make up our minds to an amount and cheerfully give that unto the Lord, not as a last resort or only after all of the bills are paid, but instead as the first fruits of our labors. 

Tithing is hard because it is an act of trust, especially when we don’t know what financial concerns may come. But today’s scripture encourages us to be intentional about deciding what we will give and instructs us to give it willingly and cheerfully, as an act of trusting our Lord. 

How would your describe your heart when you give to the Lord? Reluctant? Cheerful? Spiteful? Why?

How can you be more intentional about what you give back to the Lord?

Prayer: Lord, we confess that we do not always offer our first fruits - often we give you the leftovers. Then we complain that we do not have enough. Lord, help us to trust you and see that what you have provided us is more than enough. Amen. 

Wednesday: “ Increase the Harvest” - 2 Cor 9: 8-10

I was once at a church service where the pastor prayed that God increase the harvest of their offering by ten times. I was impressed by how bold the prayer was. How many of us, after giving to the Lord, pray that God increase the yield of what we are providing, not for our sakes, but for the sake of the Kingdom of God?

We give back to God and ask for an increase in the harvest as a reminder that all we have been provided is by the hand of God alone. God gives us the ability to work. God help us have the skills and gifts to receive a paycheck. God makes sure that we are provided for. And yet, all too often, we act as if we have achieved these things alone, therefore we forget to thank God for this good provision. God gives us the opportunity to give back to the Kingdom of God, so that we can share in the work of the Kingdom. What an honor and a privilege!

However, it becomes hard to give back to the Kingdom when we are living beyond our means. When we need every cent to pay our bills because the credit card bill is so high. We need to remember that God asks us only to return 10 percent of what has been earned back to the work of the Kingdom, and entrusts the other 90 (90!) percent to us for our good use. Let us be faithful in living within our means so that we can continue to return to God what is rightfully his. 

How have you seen God increase the harvest in your life? 

Prayer: Lord, we are afraid that if we give you our tithe that we will not have enough. Help us, O Lord, to give so that the increase of your harvest may come ten-fold! Empower us to live within our means so that we can be faithful to return to you what you have gifted us with in the first place. Help us, we pray. Amen. 

Thursday: “Enriched” - 2 Cor 9: 10-11

I once had a congregation member tell me that it is fun to give unto the Lord! A few years ago, the church he was a part of was struggling financially, not even able to pay their bills. But in the face of that struggle the council made a decision, to tithe whatever came in from the fundraisers they were having to pay those bills to a mission that God had placed on their hearts, and they have continued this commitment for years. Every council meeting they had the joy of praying about where the tithe from their next fundraiser would go. Soon, they were adding money on top of the tithe in order to bless the ministries they were supporting. Along the way, quietly and without much notice, they were finding they were no longer in debt, were able to pay their bills, and started to have a surplus in the bank. As they trusted God and were generous, their own ministries and faith walks were enriched as well. Praise be to God! It is fun to give to the Lord!

If anyone should be generous with what they have, it should be Christians. For we claim that it is our God who made the heavens and the earth and provided everything we need. Yet, sometimes we get sucked into the financial concerns around us in such a way that we become paralyzed and forget that it is fun to give. Let us regain that spirit of fun in our generosity and giving, so that others may be blessed in God’s name. 

When do you find yourself struggling with generosity? When do you find yourself to be most generous? What could help you increased your spirit of generosity in your life?

Prayer: Lord, sometimes we lose the fun in our faith. We forget that you are a creative God who wants us to have a sense of joy in following you, serving you. Help us regain that spirit of joy and generosity in our own lives so that we can have a faith that blesses others in a powerful way! Amen. 

Friday: “Pay Attention” - Proverbs 27: 23-24

Proverbs is concerned a book of practical wisdom about faith and living. In today’s scripture we find that this wisdom is to pay attention, for no treasure will last forever. The author is telling folks to take account of what they have and put it to good use, because nothing lasts forever.

While I agree with the practical part of this passage, I also disagree. There are some treasures that last forever - chiefly the treasures of heaven. I think we need to take account and pay attention to see if we are living our lives and using our earthly treasures in such a way that have eternal significance, which brings us back to the scripture passage from the beginning of our week - what are you sowing for the Kingdom?

What treasures do you have and share with others that will last forever?

How are you using your earthly treasures for eternal significance? 

Prayer: Lord, thank you for giving us all that we need here and now, and all we will need in the future. Help us to use what we have for you and the glory of your name, so that what we do here and now will impact this community for the Kingdom for years to come! Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Shiny Gods: Heart Giving ” - Matthew 7: 7-12, Lev 19:9-10

Family Activity: Pick a charity that matters to your and your family. Set a jar somewhere in your house to collect money for this charity. Pray for them. Visit them (or their website). Talk about why it matters to be generous with our money and how this reflects how our God is generous to us. 

Shiny Gods - Part 2

   I am blessed to have a job that I love. Now that doesn't mean that every day is smooth or easy. But I can't imagine doing anything else, because this is a call upon my life. However, I know a lot of people who jump from job to job, not for better opportunities or because they are looking for a calling on their live, but rather because work is just work - something to do to earn a paycheck.
   When we chase after a paycheck instead of work that serves God and fulfills us, I think we lose something in our lives. We lose the blessing of knowing that we are doing what we are created to do. We live in a culture where far too many people are just working for a paycheck - we proclaim Wednesday that we are over the hump - half way through the week, that we have a case of the Mondays when we have to go back to work, and thank God its Friday so we can enjoy our weekends. We have a broken relationship to work that needs to be restored - first and foremost by praying to God about what is the meaning of work and what we are called to do in terms of working in our lives.
   I invite you, if you are simply working to be paid not because you feel fulfilled, to intentionally pray over the next week that God reveal to you what work looks like for you. I invite you to pray about volunteer opportunities that feed your soul and use your gifts. May we be a people of prayer.

Shiny Gods Pt 2 Devotional

   October 9th, 2016  

Devotional

“Shiny Gods: Money, Work, and Debt” -Deut 28: 12-14

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Greed” - Luke 12: 13-15

“Be on your guard against all kinds of greed.” We often think about greed that comes like the green-eyed monster - suddenly and with lots of emotion tied to it. I still remember reading the Bernstein Bears book about greed when I was little and being struck by how quickly the characters felt greed in the story. But greed can also come upon us gently, gradually, as we look at what our neighbor has and start to covet it. Or as commercial after commercial comes at us on the TV, radio, and even on billboards telling us that what we have is not the best, is not enough.

We need to be on the lookout for all kinds of greed - the kind the creeps upon us slowly, the type that comes upon us suddenly, and everything in between. Note what Jesus says next after warning folks to be on the look out against greed - “for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” All too often we measure our worth off of what we have and how it compares to others, but for Christians our worth in firmly planted in being a child of God, and that knowledge alone. 

What does greed look like in your life? How can you be on the lookout/ guard against greed?

Prayer: Jesus, sometimes we get caught up in the advertisements and media hype that tell us that we are what we own. Free us from this belief and break us from the bondage that comes from trying to own more than our neighbor in order to prove how good we are. Help us be secure in the fact that we are you children and remember that is what matters most. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Building Bigger Barns” - Luke 12: 16-21

I recently heard a sermon on this parable that compared building bigger barns to owning a storage unit. Storage units are billion dollar a year industries, with one out of every ten Americans renting one. When we run out of room for our possessions in our attics and basements and closets, we start to look for extra space through storage units - most of which we never actually go and use throughout the year, once the items are safely boxed up.

In this parable the foolish man was given an abundance of crops - so much so that he could no longer fit them in his current barns. So his first thought was not to share, but rather to knock down in current barns, rendering them useless, and build bigger ones. How often are we like the man in this parable? First and foremost, not being thankful for the abundance of what we have or thinking of ways to share it, but rather coming up with better ways to protect it for our own future use? What will happen to all that we have accumulated when we are gone? 

Do you consider yourself a “bigger barns” person or someone who shares? How so?

What will happen to all you have accumulated when you are no longer on this earth? How is this a reflection of your faith life? 

Prayer: Lord, we confess that at times we love to accumulate. We have accumulated more than we could ever use, and some which we no longer even have room to store. Prompt us to be generous in our abundance, O Lord, sharing it with those who have need so that your name may be proclaimed and glorified. Amen. 

Wednesday: “ Will Open” - Deut 28: 12-14

Sometimes when we are reading scripture we get so caught up in the promise that we forget the context and the timeframe. In Deuteronomy, God is talking to a people who have been owned for years as slaves. God is addressing a people who never had anything of their own and is promising them abundance in the promised land - promising them that they will not return to their previous circumstances if they are faithful to the commandments.

But this promise is also based on the natural seasons. When it is the rainy season they will have rain, when it is the season of harvest they will have much to gather. One of the problems today is that we try to rush past the seasons. We want what we want now. And when we don’t get it immediately we jump from one job to another or one place to another, instead of waiting upon the season of blessing. We try to rush the hand of God and as a result, we lose out on the promised blessings. 

Have you ever tried to rush God? What was the result? 

Prayer: Lord, sometimes we are an impatient people. Sometime we get so caught up in our needs, wants, and desires, that we miss the beauty of your perfect timing. Help us be patient, O Lord, for the seasons of blessing and harvest in our own lives and be faithful in the times in between. Amen. 

Thursday: “Every Seven Years” - Deut 15:1

In the scriptures there are two wonderful concepts concerning debts that we cannot quite fathom in modern America. The first was the sabbatical year. Every seven years there was to be a remission of debts and some of the land was to lay fallow - be at rest - in order to have an abundance of crops the following years. Then every fifty years there was to be a year of Jubilee - when everything was to be returned to the original owners - especially the land that was sold to pay off previous debts.

What would it look like if we had a plan to pay off our debts in seven years or less? For many of us that is unfathomable, just as someone forgiving our debts every seven years would be. The problem is that we give into our impulses to have what we want now without ever really coming up with a plan as to how we are to pay for it. Debt is not meant to be the standard for living or rule over us to the point where we worry about it. We are to live free of debt. 

What debt do you have in your life? What is your plan for paying off this debt?

Prayer: Lord, we are a people of impulse instead of planning. We see something that strikes our eye and we decide that we need it now instead of waiting and saving for it. Then we don’t have a plan as to how to pay for all that catches our eyes. Help us, Lord, break the cycle of debt in our lives and bring freedom. Amen!

Friday: “Slave to the Lender” - Proverbs 22:7

Proverbs tell us that the borrower is a slave to the lender, and for many people in modern America that lender is our credit card company. We don’t read the fine print concerning credit cards that says we will pay a 14+ percent interest on our purchases that will jump to 24+ percent if we miss a payment, even by accident. Rev. Mike Slaughter asks why we would give the credit card company that much interest willingly, when our savings accounts generates less than 1 percent interest.

The problem with being a slave to the lender is that we order what we do in order to deal with our debt instead of seeking first and foremost to serve God with our time, money, and work. When we wake up paralyzed about how to address the debt crushing us we are not free to go whoever God made send us. Instead, we need to live within our means and borrow as little as possible, even if it seems countercultural. 

How do you deal with the debt you carry from the money you have borrowed? Do you feel this does or does not make you a slave to the lender as Proverbs states?

Prayer: Lord, make us a slave to none but you. Help us to live our lives with as little baggage as possible so we can swiftly respond t your call upon our lives. Use us, Lord, we pray. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “Shiny Gods: Be Faithful, Save, and Give” - 2 Cor 9: 6-12

Family Activity: Talk to your children about how to save for what they want to buy. What is hard about saving? What does it feel like when you can finally get something you saved a long time for? 

Shiny Gods Pt 1

    Sometimes I wish we would go back to a society where we didn't have money - paper and coins - but instead traded what we have made or grown. I wish we would go back to a society where we didn't try to define the worth of our jobs by the money we make or the worth of our lives by how many things we have accumulated. Yet, here we find ourselves, paper money and all.
     Rev. Mike Slaughter once said that most of us don't seek after the will of God, instead we want God to bless our will. I think thats one of the things that makes having discussion about stewardship in churches so hard. We want to be told that its okay to be in tremendous amounts of debt and not tithe, because thats the society we live in. Yet, its not scriptural. Its not the plan God has for us. And we've let our will of accumulating things, get in the way of following God's will for us for God's kingdom.
    We need to start thinking of plan to get out of debt. We need to stop defining our worth by our paychecks. We need to start living within our means. And we need to start giving our very best to the Kingdom of God. Church, we need to rethink our relationship to money and live in an intentional way that honors God with our resources, even it its hard and takes a lot of steps to get there. Lets renounce the idols of this world, so that we can proclaim the Kingdom of God, both in this world and the world to come.

Stewardship Pt 1 Devo

 October 2nd, 2016  

Devotional

“Shiny Gods: Naming Our Idols” - Exodus 32: 2-4, Psalm 135: 15-18, Luke 10:27

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Naming Our Idols” - Exodus 32: 2-4

If Aaron, brother of Moses and second in command as the Israelites were led through the wilderness, could give into the temptation of worshipping idols, it could happen to any of us. Aaron is left alone as his brother goes up the mountain to receive a word from God. Not long after he left, the people began to complain and kept complaining, until Aaron gave in. Not only was he the one who collected their gold he was the the one who told them it was the golden calf lead them out of the land of Egypt! What a big change in attitude from one of the leaders of the people!

Perhaps the most dangerous thing we could ever do is convince ourselves that we would never give into the temptation of putting idols before God. While I hope that it is true that you never put anything or anyone before God, all too often we become blind to what we are doing when we start to worship idols in our lives, because we have convinced ourselves that surely that is something we would never do. As a result, we have stumbled into sin without even realizing what we are doing is a sin! Instead, let us ask God to search our hearts and reveal to us those places were idols have taken root, so that we can confess and ask God to free us from them. 

What are some common idols that you could start to put before God if you are not careful?

Why do you think Aaron changed so quickly in the Exodus passage? What warning can this be for our lives today?

Prayer: Jesus, we confess that sometimes we think that we are above sin. We act as if we can get by life on our own power, instead of asking you to reveal to us any unconfessed sin so we can bring it to your throne of grace. Search us today, O Lord, and point out to us any idols that have taken root in our lives, so that you may remove them by your grace and power! Amen. 

Tuesday: “The Work of Human Hands” - Psalm 135: 15-18

There are two very dangerous types of idols that can crop up in out lives if we are not in check. The first idol is the type revealed by the Psalmist in today’s reading. The work of human hands. While the Psalmist is speaking about silver and gold, which were literally made by people, today a similar way to express this type of idol would be the things that you think you have earned and deserve by your own power. 

It is hard for people to let go of their money, and even give it to God from whom all things come, if they believe that it is “theirs”. That they earned it and thus, they have the right to do with it what they please. One way to keep this idol in check is to remember that all work is a gift from God and that all we receive because of that work is truly God’s in the first place. Having a different perspective can do a lot to combat this particular type of idol when it crops up in our lives. 

What does “the work of human hands” look like in your life? Do you struggle with this type of idol? Why or why not?

Prayer: Lord, we confess that at times we think we are the ones who have achieved something - the ones who have earned our paycheck or the ones who deserve to spend money as we wish, even if it is outside of your will. Lord, help us keep in perspective that all we have is truly yours and should be used to glorify your name. Amen. 

Wednesday: “Good Gifts” - Matthew 8: 21-22

The second type of problematic idols, I believe is much more common amongst believers. These are the idols that we have made out of the good gifts that God has given us. God has blessed us so richly, with friends, family, shelter, food, etc. But these things can become an idol if we put them before God in our lives. We may not realize what we are doing at first, because we simply believe that we are enjoying what God has gifted us with, but if we are not careful, we can start to put the desire of our friends and family, and our passion for food, shelter, etc, ahead of following Jesus.

I have shared before that today’s scripture passage is one that troubles me. For years I could not wrap my mind around why Jesus would not let this man bury his father. But what if the man was putting his allegiance to his father, even his deceased father, ahead of following Christ? We need to thank God for the abundant blessings in our lives, but we cannot use them as an excuse not to follow where our Savior leads. 

Have you ever taken a good gift God has given you and turned it into an idol? What was the result? How can we face this struggle?

Prayer: Lord, first and foremost, we want to thank you for the abundant blessings in our lives. We have more good gifts by your hand than we can even begin to count. But, Lord, we confess that at times we have turned these blessings into idols, as we have looked to them for fulfillment instead of to the one who gave the gift in the first place. Forgive us, Lord, we pray. Amen. 

Thursday: “Do Not Worship Other Gods” - 2 Kings 17: 38-41

The problem with idols, is even when we do not mean to, we start to worship them. We start to think about the next time we can be with them. The next time we can buy more. We can even begin to structure our very lives around them.

2 Kings reminds us that we are to worship God alone. Loving God and seeking the Kingdom of God should be the first priority in our lives. We are to worship God for who God is and what God has done in our lives - which is unmatched by any other person or thing. 

The issue in this passage is that the people tried to worship God, not because they loved God but in order to appease God, while still having their idols on the side. Sound familiar? The truth is we cannot love God and have idols. We need to ask God to come and free us from any idols that are preventing us from giving our lives and hearts fully to Christ. 

What are some ways we try to worship God and keep our idols? What happens when we do this?

What idols do you need to hand over to God in your own life?

Prayer: Lord, we are a fickle people. We think that we can have everything we want, including you and our idols. Lord, remove those things we have turned into idols in our lives, so we can solely be focused on you. We pray this is the mighty name of Jesus the Christ. Amen.  

Friday: “Love” - Luke 10:27

Jesus was asked what the greatest commands was in the law of God - and Jesus gave two different ones that are related, love God with all you are and all you have and love your neighbor as yourself. This seems to be what Jesus is pointing his followers to, both those who walked this earth with him and us today, to love.

But love isn’t easy. Sometimes our love of God gets displaced by the love of other people and things. Sometimes we don’t quite now how to express or show our love to God. Sometimes it may be difficult to feel the love of God, yet that is what the Lord commanded. To keep pointing our lives back to God, to keep returning our hearts to God, even when we slip into sin. Let us intentionally do this in the days and weeks to come. 

What is one way that you express your love to God?

What is one way that you show your love for your neighbors? 

Prayer: Lord, you have invited us to love. To love you, O Lord. To love our neighbors. To love those we never thought we would associate with, let alone love. To love with all we are and all we have. To love even when it is hard. Thank you, O God, for inviting us into your realm of love and encouraging us to share this love with others. Amen.