Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere. On this cold winter day, the tree that I have seen so often beautiful and full of leaves, stands bare. Only a single deer stands close by. The horses that usually gather under the shade of the tree in summer were far away boarded in their winter home. It seemed so lonely. In this story from Mark’s gospel we learn that after the healing of a leper, Jesus was forced to stay outside towns in lonely places. Lonely places, Jesus needed lonely places. I don’t often think of Jesus as being lonely. The lonely places were important to him in order for him to carry on his ministry and fulfill his purpose. Sometimes we must also seek lonely places, places far away from distractions and think only of him.
Prayer Lord of Lonely Places, Teach us to discern when we need to seek a lonely place. And in that lonely place help us to focus on you and find strength to fulfill the purpose you have for us. Amen
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But the path of the righteous is like the light of dawn, which shines brighter and brighter until full day. Photographers call the hour before sunrise the golden hour. The light at dawn is soft and golden and the sun is beautiful when it is so low on the horizon. I love being out with my camera at dawn, to see the change from night to day. When we begin our day with the Lord it is much easier to find the right path to walk during our daily activities. We stumble less when we begin the day walking in his light.
Prayer Lord of Light Light our path today with your perfect light. Help us to walk in your ways. Amen Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children. I love those days when my hard work is productive. And it is even better when the reward at the end of a day of hard work is a beautiful sunset. I have found that productive days are more likely to happen when I begin the day by committing my way to the Lord. It is then that I have a strength beyond myself. I need to remember to begin each day seeking the work God has me to do with this prayer of Moses, “establish the work of our hands.”
Prayer Lord God Show us your handiwork and the work that you would have us to do this day. Establish the work of our hands and give us the strength to accomplish the task you set before us. Amen I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord Seeing a beautiful sunrise is hard, especially in summer when the days are long. Many times it means not just getting up early but getting up in the middle of the night to get to a good location and driving and/or walking in the dark. When you see the sky begin to fill with color then you know it was worth the work. To photograph sunrises takes discipline and desire. Waiting on the Lord also requires discipline and desire. But it is in discipline of studying his word that we find hope like the colors that fill the sky of a beautiful sunrise.
Prayer Lord, Renew our desire to seek you in your word. Fill us with hope that only you can give. Amen Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. Do you have a quiet place that you love to visit - one you go to again and again, a place you will never forget? This is one of mine. I have walking on this trail many times - . in the early morning, in rain, in the fall, at night, and even this year in snow. It is forever etched in my heart.
When Moses shared God’s law with the children of Israel God wanted it to be more than just written on the stone tablets. He wanted his people to write it on their hearts, He wants it to consume them. Spend time in God’s word. Open your heart to his presence. Let his Word fill your life and etch his law and love on your heart. Prayer Great God, Quicken our spirits and open our hearts to your presence. Etch your words on our hearts. Amen Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. As you can tell from many of my posts recently, I enjoy taking macro images like this one of the hydrangea in my front yard. From the sidewalk you just see clumps of white flowers, but draw nearer and you see that each clump is made up of many small white flowers.
When we draw nearer to God, he will reveal so many wonderful things to us. The more we move our focus away from distractions toward God, the more we see into our own hearts. Take time today to draw nearer to God. Prayer Great God, Draw near to me, cleanse my heart and make it pure white. Amen It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; There is something so special about the golden light of morning. In morning light things that we don’t even notice in the harsh light of day are made beautiful. There is a special kind of quiet in the mornings, too, especially if you are in nature. It is a good thing to make the effort to get up early and watch the night gradually turn to day. God has kept us safe through another night and the golden light of morning reveals his wonderful world. Now is the time to give praise, to begin our day with gratitude for the steadfast love of our Lord, to see the joy in his works.
Prayer O Most High, We humbly bow in gratitude for your steadfast love. We rejoice at the beauty of the works of your hands. Help us walk through this day remembering your steadfast love and to share the joy of the morning with all we meet. Amen Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. The door handle is something that can be easily missed in Ogle cabin built in the late 1800’s. If you take the time to look closely you will see an intricately carved design made with only hand tools. It served its purpose well - it kept the door closed and opened it when needed.
In this letter to Timothy, Paul encouraged him to work hard to know the truth of God. We, too, must work hard to know God’s word. When we know his word then we can more easily share the word of truth. Study God’s word, learn of him. Give it more than just a quick read each day, but work hard to study and you will be able to serve the purpose God has for you. Prayer Great King, Open our hearts to your word and teach us your ways of truth. May our work always bring you glory. Amen Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing. Flowers are beautiful but the interesting thing is that their beauty is a by-product of their purpose. Their colors and shapes help in pollination and the spreading of seeds. The real purpose of the flower is to convey the seed for new plants. A flower’s purpose is rooted in its connection to a plant without which it wouldn’t exist.
When our lives are connected to Christ he gives us a mission and purpose to fulfill. When we abide in that purpose, in the love of Jesus Christ, our lives become beautiful as a by-product of his love. It is that beauty that draws people to him and it is our purpose to share the love of Christ. Prayer Jesus Christ, Source of Our Being, Teach me to abide in you, to dwell in your presence. Open my eyes to the mission you have for me and remind me that I can only fulfill that purpose when I abide in you. Make my life a beautiful reflection of your glory. Amen A voice cries: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord; Each day is a new day, a new chance to follow God’s leading. Each day we need to let God’s light shine into our lives like the sun shines into this valley. We must prepare our hearts to follow him even on the days when we are in the wilderness. We must make straight the road into our hearts clearing out the clutter that twists us away from him.
Prayer Lord Shine your light in our hearts today. Help us to clear the twisting path of sin and prepare a way for you straight into our hearts. Amen On the glorious splendor of your majesty, and on your wondrous works, I will meditate. I had stopped at this spot many times and had never noticed these trees before. Maybe it was because the golden leaves stood out so strongly against the clear blue sky or that they seem so large against split rail fence that day, but it was like I saw them for the first time. These strong, straight trees with their golden leaves remind me of the majesty of God that I almost missed seeing that day. Sometimes we can get so busy that we can miss the splendor and majesty of God. We will see God’s majesty and beauty mo re clearly and more often when we take time to meditate on God’s awesome deeds.
Prayer O Great King, Slow us down and show us your majesty today. Open our eyes to your majesty that we so often overlook. Remind us to bow in humble praise at your greatness. Amen For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it. Without the spring rains we would not have the beautiful flowers of spring - and after a long, dark winter we need the beauty of the flowers to bring joy and hope. Just like the rain that provides nourishment for the spring flowers, God’s word provides nourishment for our lives. The beauty of God’s word will bring forth beauty in our lives. Without a knowledge and love of God’s word we will not accomplish the purpose he has for us.
Prayer Giver of Rain, Water our lives with your word so that we will grow in you. Make our lives beautiful to those we meet today that need to see your beauty. Amen I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you. In the days of the Missionary Baptist Church, printed bibles were a luxury, The way most people learned God’s word was from hearing it read in church. Today God’s word can come to us in many forms. We can read it on an iPad or listen to it read from apps on our phones. One of the forms of God’s word that I have come to love recently is really an old form, the Saint John’s Bible (Read more about it here). This wonderful work of art is a hand copied and illuminated Bible created the way the bibles 500 years ago were made. While I haven’t seen the original copy, I have seen a limited edition facsimile of the original. When I saw it for the first time, I cried at its beauty. My husband and family have given me several of the smaller printed volumes and I took one of them with me to Cades Cove. I wanted to see the beauty of God’s word in the beauty of his world. God’s word is both ancient and new. Every time we go to it with open hearts, God changes us. It is truly a treasure for us to store in our hearts.
Prayer, Great God of Ancient Words, We come to you with open hearts. Show us your beauty. Change us with your word. Amen May my meditation be pleasing to him, for I rejoice in the Lord. I haven’t always started my day with a time with the Lord and honestly there have been many days in my life when I didn’t have any time at all with the Lord. I have learned that the more days that I set aside a time centered on reading God’s word, praying, and listening to beautiful music the more joy I find in my day. The most beautiful time of the day is the early morning, especially if you have beautiful weather. When I think about the joy of an early morning time spent with God, I remember this early morning walk along the lake one morning when the light was truly golden. Take time to remember some times of golden light in your life and thank God for those times. Prayer O Great King of Light, Make our meditations focused on you. Help us to clear away distractions and think only of you. Give us joy in your word and make the time we spend with you change the way we spend our day. Amen Scripture:
Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer. Psalm 19:14 About The Image: I love this place above the Cascades at Fall Creek Falls State Park. I have seen it quiet and serene like this image early in the morning and filled with many people playing in the water on a hot summer afternoon. I have also seen it churning with rapids after days of heavy rain. The meditations of my heart can be like this place. Sometimes I am focused and calm, sometimes distracted, and sometimes my heart churns with worry. Remind me today, Lord, of your redeeming love so that the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart will be calm and focused like this image of my special place. |
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Soli Deo Gloria,
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan