BV: Matthew 26:41

"Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak.” Matthew 26:41

Jesus said these words to his disciples as he went off to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane just before his arrest. We tend to look at these words as simply his admonishment for them to stay awake and to keep guard. But when we look further into the passage we see how they weren’t just words. This was something on his mind. He was sharing his own real struggle. He was fully God and yet fully human. I believe at this moment Jesus understood far to well the temptations of the body – how our human emotions can interfere with our spirit’s desire. He knew what God’s plan was for him. He knew he was about to be arrested, tried and crucified (a horribly painful death). The human in him pleaded desperately for God to take away “this cup”. Had he been an ordinary man maybe he would have run. Fortunately for us, he was fully God and the Spirit in him prevailed. “Thy will be done.”

But you and I are not fully God. Our bodies are weak. Jesus gave us some much needed advice that night in the garden. “Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.” If Jesus understood the necessity of prayer in combatting temptations, we would do well to follow the same example. He understood that the more we focus on God, the stronger we are. The better able we are to see and to fight off the things that tempt us.

Encouragement of the day: Take time and pray. Prayer isn’t simply a tool of communication but a tool for strengthening our souls.

Question of the day: Has there been a time when you saw how focusing on prayer kept you out of temptation’s snare?

BV: Jeremiah 29:11

For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11

This is one of those verses that is quoted a lot. We like to keep it close to us because it’s so reassuring. When the world around us gets chaotic and seemingly out of control we can look at this verse and be reminded that God has a plan. The world is not out of control – at least not to Him. But even so I have been confused by the part of the verse that says God has “plans to prosper us and not to harm us”. Although it sounds good, I still face times when the opposite is true. To say that we will never experience pain is clearly not the case (because who among us hasn’t). Maybe this verse speaks to how God views our lives in their totality as opposed to our own daily observations and scrutiny.

Think of it like this: a train traveling through a mountainous region will have uphill moments (the “I don’t have enough strength for this.” moments) and its downhill moments (the “Wheee!! – This is fun! Life is good!” moments). Like the train’s journey, our journey through life isn’t always easy but God’s “plan” is about getting us to our destination. When we get there, we can look back at our journey and see that overall it was prosperous and no harm was truly done. Where we end our journey is more important to God than the bumps and bruises along the way.

It’s likely Abraham, when he left everything he knew simply because God said “Go”, had to reassure himself along his journey that God had a plan. Joseph had dreams of authority but certainly must have questioned God’s plan when he was sold into slavery and later thrown into prison. These Biblical examples show real men who had their uphill moments and yet the verse still rang true for them. They persevered because God gave them hope and a future. In the end they could see their lives in totality were richly blessed.

Encouragement of the Day: Cling to the hope you have in Jesus and know that God does have a plan. He does want you to be richly blessed. If you are in an “uphill” moment, have hope in knowing the “downhill” can’t be far ahead.

Question of the day: How have you maintained your hope through the “uphill” moments?

BV: Proverbs 15:1

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1

This verse is particularly hard for me. It’s hard because it sends me a message I know is true. It highlights one of my major faults (and no one likes to look at their faults). All too often I speak through annoyance (whether I’m annoyed at myself or someone else). I know my daughter or husband (and sadly maybe some innocent bystanders) get shortness in my responses instead of patience and loving kindness. Nothing good can come from my tone. I only succeed in stirring up frustrations. Then everyone is feeling frustrated and/or devalued. No one likes to ask a simple question only to be snarled at. I don’t like it. Why should they? I know I would be better off looking into the eyes of the person in front of me before I spoke. Maybe then I would see the heart of the one speaking. Maybe then I would be reminded of what my words and actions say about me. Maybe then I would speak in the gentle way they deserve.

Today’s Encouragement: Take a breath before answering. Be calm and remember the heart of the person in front of you.

Question of the day: I know, for me, my busyness tends to make me less patient with loved ones. What makes you short with others and how have you learned to combat the situation?

BV: I Thessalonians. 5:11

Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just in fact as you are doing.

I Thess. 5:11

We all love compliments and encouragement and yet strangely they seem to be a rarity. We don’t often receive them and we don’t often give them. I always find it surprisingly nice, in particularly, when I receive a compliment from a total stranger. Maybe it’s the fact that there is no hidden motive behind the message. It’s simply nice being nice (out loud). It’s a genuine act of kindness. But it also means a lot to me to have a friend or family member do the same. Sometimes we take it for granted that those closest to us know how we feel. I mean, we assume for example that our spouse loves us but it’s still nice to hear it (to be reminded). There have been many times I think something nice about someone else’s actions, appearance, etc and never say anything. I’m not sure why the hesitation. I know the feeling I get when I get a compliment or encouragement from someone. It builds me up. It’s a warm fuzzy. I would love to be in the habit of making someone else feel the same. It’s nice that I have the thoughts of encouragement but it would be better to share them. What good is a compliment or encouragement if it’s never uttered? To me it’s like a prompting by the Holy Spirit that, if unspoken, gets thrown into a pile of wasted opportunity.

Today’s Encouragement: Try, with me, to practice building each other up. Speak the compliments you think. Don’t hold them inside. Look for ways to encourage others. It’s quite possible our compliments or encouragement may be the lone bright spot in someone else’s bad day.

Question of the day: Can you think of a compliment you received that really affected you or your day?

BV: Starting With Praise

I'm starting a new endeavor with this blog.  My goal is to do daily "blogvotionals" (Monday through Friday).  They will be shorter than my usual posts (which I plan to continue writing once a week).  My hope is that these blogvotionals will be a time-friendly way to turn our hearts and minds to Christ.  To make them easier to receive on a daily basis you can click on the "Subscribe by email" link on the left.  The daily posts will be automatically sent to your email address.  You won't have to go searching for them.  I'm starting off with a simple praise from the Bible.  May 2011 be a blessed year as we look to God and thank Him for our lives, His love and our salvation.

Psalm 100

Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.

Worship the Lord with gladness;

come before him with joyful songs.

Know that the Lord is God.

It is He who made us, and we are His;

we are His people, the sheep of His pasture.

Enter His gates with thanksgiving

and His courts with praise;

give thanks to Him and praise His name.

For the Lord is good and His love endures forever;

His faithfulness continues through all generations.

Encouragement for the day:  Take a moment to reflect on the greatness of God.  Take another moment to let Him know how great you think He is.

Question of the day:  What does "praising God" mean to you?