Thursday 14th Ps 61 verses 8-12 Bless our God O peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard, who has kept us among the living, and has not let our feet slip. For you O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You have brought us into the net; … Read more
Thursday 7th Matthew Ch 1 verse 18 ‘This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about: His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit.’ We live in a world where scientists infer that we can and … Read more
Thursday 31st Ephesians 5:14 “…Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.” Have you ever missed out because you got so comfortable in bed? I have. Particularly when younger, I have chosen to stay warm rather than step out from under the covers onto the cold floor, and stayed … Read more
Thursday 24th Christmas Eve Luke Ch 1 verse 11 – 13 Then an angel of the Lord appeared to him, standing at the right side of the altar of incense. 12 When Zechariah saw him, he was startled and was gripped with fear. 13 But the angel said to him: “Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard. Your … Read more
Thursday 17th John Ch 15 verse 5 I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing This is the 7th of the ‘I am’ sayings in the Gospel of John [can you remember the other 6?], … Read more
Thursday 10th Isaiah Ch 45 verse 23 ‘Before me every knee will bow; by me every tongue will swear.’ Isaiah is here writing possibly in about 681BC to give hope to God’s people. They had rebelled, sinned greatly and suffered the wrath of God Almighty in the form of being exiled and separated from the … Read more
Thursday 3rd Micah Ch 6 verse 8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly[a] with your God. The Bible is full of narrative, direction, encouragement, challenge and mystery, that at times it can be difficult to ‘see the wood … Read more
Thursday 26th Amos Ch 4 verse 1 Hear this word, you cows of Bashan on Mount Samaria, you women who oppress the poor and crush the needy and say to your husbands, “Bring us some drinks!” You might consider this a strange verse for a daily thought? The prophet Amos is addressing the wealthy women who oppress … Read more
Thursday 19th Matt Ch 8 verse 2 ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.’ Satan loves to convict us and drag us down with condemnation and accusation as we recall past failings and times we’ve messed up and hurt other people. As well as reminding us all that when we’ve surrendered our … Read more
Thursday 12th 1 Peter Ch 4 verse 12 Dear friends, do not be surprised at the painful trial that has come on you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you The words that jump out at me from this verse are ‘do not be surprised’. In fact what surprises me is the … Read more
