Wellspring. Karen Moore

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СКАЧАТЬ 6:24-26

      Charles Dickens commented that we should "Reflect upon our present blessings—of which every man has many—not on our past misfortunes, of which all men have some."

      As human beings, it's sometimes too easy to slip into a pattern of rewinding our past, telling old stories to the point where most people could fill in the blanks for us and letting those hardships become the face we bring to the world. We can slip back to yesterday, but is it wise?

      The Dickens quotation defines another option. It says we can reflect on our blessings, those things that are good in our lives and offer opportunities to speak of God's love and grace.

      As we go forward today, let us reflect on all that God has given us and count the blessings he has bestowed that are without number. Splash your face with his morning light and refresh your mind with the joy of all that he has done. You are his workmanship, not carved from stone, but created by love to enjoy the blessings of his handiwork. Live today in the present light of his grace.

      In the Flow

       Lord, thank you for the blessings you have brought into my life. Let me count the blessings without end you have given me today and shine your light for others. Amen.

      March 5

      Like a Watered Garden

       The Lord will guide you continually and provide for you, even in parched places. He will rescue your bones. You will be like a watered garden, like a spring of water that won't run dry.

      —Isaiah 58:11

      Have you ever been really thirsty? You know the kind of thirst that chugging a big glass of water or slamming down a soda just won't cure? It's easy to take getting a glass of water to quench our thirst for granted, even though much of the world struggles to find good drinking water. Many people are thirsty. Many people are parched. Yet even in those places, God offers to be a spring of water that won't run dry.

      He parted the waters of the Red Sea and brought his children safely across to dry land. He guided every step and refreshed their spirits with manna and birds. He opened up veins of water from solid rocks to relieve their thirst. God continues to guide and to refresh us wherever we are. He still offers to be our living water if we reach out to him.

      If you're feeling a little dry today, needing a bigger splash of his love, then take your little cup and put it out to him. He'll fill it and then he'll keep filling every cup you are willing to put in his hand. Go and get refreshed and renewed in his love today.

      In the Flow

       Lord, I am thirsty. Sometimes I don't even realize that I've gotten away from you, but when I do, I know I want to leave the desert I've put myself in and draw from your wellspring of living waters. Renew my heart and my life in you today. Amen.

      March 6

      The One and Only Mediator

       There is one God and one mediator between God and humanity, the human Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a payment to set all people free.

      —1 Timothy 2:5-6

      Timothy tells us here that Christ himself is our mediator with God. He stepped in on our behalf to negotiate a place for us in Heaven. As John Calvin put it, "Christ's work as Mediator was unique: it was to restore us to divine favor and to make us sons [and daughters] of God, instead of sons of men. We became heirs to a heavenly kingdom."

      So, okay, you may not stop to realize your life is on trial or that you need someone to go stand in the gaps, but the truth is you do, we all do, because God alone is Holy. We're on a finite path and only God himself could devise a way to bring us back home again from this journey. That's the work God did through our Mediator, Jesus.

      Today, let's give thanks for our path and remember the one who gives us life . . . life eternal. Then, let's step out in faith and see what we can do to encourage a few more of God's children to step into the fold. Bring a little bit of heaven to everyone you meet today.

      In the Flow

       Lord, I thank you for the great sacrifice you made on my behalf. I thank you for loving me before I was even born. Thank you for the great Mediator, our one and only way back to you . . . Jesus Christ. Amen.

      March 7

      The Lord Is Near!

      The Lord is near. Don't be anxious about anything; rather bring up all of your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks. Then the peace of God that exceeds all understanding will keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus.

      —Philippians 4:5-7

      Do you remember a moment in your childhood, perhaps when there was a big thunder and lightning storm, and your daddy wasn't yet home? You may have cuddled up by your mom, just wishing your dad would return because somehow things would be okay then.

      Since then, you've weathered a lot of the storms of life and you haven't always had someone by your side to hold you and help you through. Yet, we're reminded in this Scripture that the Lord is near. Because he's near, we don't have to worry. He'll calm the storms and lead the way. He'll bring us safely back to himself and he only asks us to do one thing.

      Pray. Put everything that weighs on your heart into words. Without any concern for how those words get to him, simply tell him your story. Talk to him about your life, what you feel concerned about, what you think is missing. He will hear you because the Lord is near. He's always near. It's a new day. Draw near to the Lord and he will most assuredly draw near to you.

      In the Flow

       Lord, thank you for being with me today. I believe that you have my life in your hands and that you know all the things that bring me stress or cause me to worry. I ask you to stand by me again and bring me your gift of peace. Amen.

      March 8

      Come Into the Light

       Hence, I will also appoint you as light to the nations so that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.

      —Isaiah 49:6

      One frequent theme of the Bible is the effect of light and what it does to illuminate truth. God spoke the light into being, making it possible for us to see his world in the backdrop of the darkness. He made it possible for us to see him and to feel the light of his face upon us. Light then serves as an intentional metaphor for guidance and the gift of his presence.

      So what happens when we slip into the shadows? Sometimes we step aside from the path, take the lead away from God and walk alone. We stubbornly hold independence as a valuable asset, perhaps the best asset we have. СКАЧАТЬ