Daily Devotions for

July 2024

Monday, July 1, 2024. Prayer 1858. With A Green Flourish

In the news we see that evil acts sprout like grass.  Do we fear destruction?  In the Psalms we are consoled to know that evil will be scattered by the Lord and that righteousness will flourish.  Psalm 92:14 sings of God’s praise, “The righteous flourish like the palm tree and grow like the cedar in Lebanon.  They are planted in the house of the Lord; they flourish in the courts of our God.  They still bear fruit in old age; they are ever full of sap and green, to declare that the Lord is upright, there is no unrighteousness in our God!”  God provides our growth.  With a green flourish we stand strong!

Dear God, thanks for bringing us into the season of summer green. Make our spirits to flourish under your care! Amen.  

Tuesday, July 2, 2024. Prayer 1859. Like A Green Leaf

Faith convinces us that the more blessings we give, the more blessings are returned to us.  In Proverbs 11:24 we hear, “One gives freely, yet grows all the richer; another withholds what should be given and only suffers want.  Whoever brings blessing will be enriched, and one who waters will be watered.  The righteous will flourish like the green leaf.  The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life, whoever captures souls is wise.”  Our souls flourish by faith as surely as an oak tree in deep summer.  We do well to remember “The Giving Tree.”  Life is giving others shade, shelter, and a place to be.

Dear God, energize me that I may give without hesitation. Renew my strength that I may provide for others. Amen.

Wednesday, July 3, 2024. Prayer 1860. We Remain Green

Faith compels us to know that when we stray from God we wither.  When we remain connected to God we thrive.  We can overcome hard times relying on God’s strength.  In Jeremiah 17:8 we hear, “Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord.  They are like a tree planted by water that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”  When we lean on human wisdom, we grow parched and filled with worry.  When we seek the gifts of the Spirit, we survive dry times.

Dear God, grant me the faith to find your fountain of living water even in thin times of drought and despair.  Amen.

Thursday, July 4, 2024. Prayer 1861. Green Pastures Return

The prophets spoke truth to power and consolation to the oppressed.  The prophets keep us on our toes.  At times of wealth, we worship and serve the Lord.  At times of poverty and struggle, we worship and serve the Lord.  In Joel 2:22 we hear hope in the days of darkness and gloom, “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice, for the Lord has done great things!  Fear not for the pastures of the wilderness are green; the tree bears its fruit; figs and vines give their full yield.”  God’s children are planted as vines and tree, inhabiting the land with righteousness, and bearing the fruits of the Spirit.

Dear God, show us the way to return to your green fields and dwell in the fruits of gentleness, kindness and care. Amen.

Friday, July 5, 2024. Prayer 1862. The Green Grass to Sit

Our Lord looks upon us as a great crowd in need as if we were sheep without a shepherd.  We need divine leadership to remind us that compassion makes miracles possible.  In Mark 6:39, Jesus instructs all the crowd “to sit down in groups on the green grass.”  Meanwhile the disciples prepare the loaves and fish to be distributed.  See what happens here?  Sitting settles the need to push.  Green grass cools the body and soothes the mind.  To be in small groups gives intimate listening and story telling to happen.  We think the meal was a miracle.  The crowd being satisfied in soul is the thing!

Dear God, let me take every anxious circumstance to be the occasion to sit, speak, and soothe the hungry soul. Amen.

PRAYERS WITH THANKFUL HEARTS

Monday, July 8, 2024. Prayer 1863. Thankful to be Home Again

The people’s exile into Babylon ended in 538 B.C.  They rejoiced in returning home again.  1 Chronicles retells the history of the great time under King David and how he emphasized worship at the center of their identity as a people.  In 1 Chronicles 16:8 David had just returned to Jerusalem and sings, “Oh give thanks to the Lord, remember the wonderful works, remember God’s splendor, for there is strength and joy in this place.”  The people had been few in number and sojourners, wandering from nation to nation.  Now God gathered them and delivered them home again.

Dear God, we pray for all people everywhere that they may be returned home again to a place of joy and peace. Amen.

Tuesday, July 9, 2024. Prayer 1864. Thankful to be Heard

The cry of history is that the needs of the people be heard.  King David has us look first to the Lord.  In Psalm 145:18 comes our consolation, “The Lord is near to all who call on the Lord in truth.”  David is convinced that good is merciful, kind, and good to all.  “All your works shall give thanks to you, O Lord, and all your saints shall bless!”  The Lord upholds the falling.  The Lord hears their cries and saves them.  The Lord is gracious and slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love.  “The eyes of all look to you, you open your hand, you satisfy the desire of every living thing.”  God is good.

Dear God, grant me the faith to be thankful in troubled times. I am thankful you receive me in kindness. Amen.

Wednesday, July 10, 2024. Prayer 1865. Thankful Requests

Gratitude is a great way to begin a prayer request.  Right at the start your thankfulness before God reconnects you to a thought that brings peace into your inner being.  The Apostle Paul encourages us to be thankful at all times.  In Philippians 4:6 he says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”  We may begin by thanking God for receiving our prayer.  We thank God for the loved one we are praying for.  We thank God for guidance in whatever circumstance we are facing.

Dear God, thank you for gathering my thoughts in your mercy. I am grateful for this occasion to call upon you. Amen.

Thursday, July 11, 2024. Prayer 1866. Thankful for Community

Giving thanks helps to create community.  The Apostle Paul would take the time in his letters to the churches to thank them.  In Ephesians 1:15 he writes, “Because I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, I do not cease to give thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.”  The faith community is a place of hope.  We look to God for wisdom.  Our hearts are enlightened by all we inherit as God’s people.  Because the power of Christ is immeasurable, the community in God’s name is at its best when it remains thankful for compassion and grace.

Dear God, I am thankful for the ways your church has strengthened me. May I do my part in faith and service. Amen.   

Friday, July 12, 2024. Prayer 1867. Enter with Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is the way we enter into the Lord’s House.  At church services, we hear the call to worship as in Psalm 100:4 “Enter the gates of the Lord with thanksgiving.  Enter God’s courts with praise.”  The psalm tells us that God is good.  God’s steadfast love endures forever.  God’s faithfulness is to all generations.  This happens whenever we enter the gates of prayer with thankful hearts.  The world is a noisy place.  Faith is tested.  How do we return?  We return to God in reverence by naming that for which we are most grateful.  God’s living water is a river of grateful tears.

Dear God, even when I am sad about the state of things let my love flow in tears of gratitude for all you’ve given. Amen.

FISHING PRAYERS

Monday, July 15, 2024. Prayer 1868. The Parable of the Net

Faith is expansive.  Although through history we see the combination of culture, class and church often focus on definitions inclusion and exclusion, this is not the heart of the matter at all.  In Matthew 13:47 we hear the parable of the net.  Jesus says, “The kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind.”  He goes on to say angels will discern and remove the evil from the good.  The good are sorted into containers.  This is the work of every seafood seller.  The key is to let the angels do the work.  God is looking to keep us healthy.

Dear God, the public realm is so divisive. Grant us to discern the right and may our common bonds remain healthy. Amen.

Tuesday, July 16, 2024. Prayer 1869. Fishing with Words

Faith is a calling.  A calling comes with words and deeds focused on the other’s well-being.  In Mark 1:17 we hear Jesus calling out to those casting their net into the sea saying, “Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of people.”  To follow Jesus is to use the sacrifice of our time and heart to reach out and inspire others in the faith.  This can involve deeds of service and healing, and mostly is accomplished using words of discernment, sorting out, active listening, and reflecting upon God’s Word applied to the situation at hand.  A beautiful blessing is always called for.

Dear God, let me use my words to fish for beautiful moments, transformative memories, amazing results. Amen.

Wednesday, July 17, 2024. Prayer 1870. The Big Catch

Fish do not generally jump into the boat, although it has happened in times of frenzy.  When Jesus calls the first disciples, he meets them out on the lake.  In Luke 5:4 he says to them, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”

They respond with excuses.  They had worked all night with no result.  They listened to Jesus and followed his message.  Then, trying again, they caught so many fish in their nets the boats began to sink!  The whole village would eat that day!  The lesson is simple: Don’t say no to faith before giving it another try.  God knows where the fish are.

Dear God, despite my best efforts to resist, and to come up with great excuses, inspire me to keep on fishing! Amen.

Thursday, July 18, 2024. Prayer 1871. Fishing for Good Gifts of the Spirit

Faith is nurturing.  Faith is providing.  Faith is kind.  Faith never stops asking.  In Luke 11:11 Jesus is giving a lesson on how to pray to God for our daily needs and asks, “What parent among you wouldn’t give your child a fish when they ask for it?”  We are called to care for one another as we can.  Jesus teaches us that faith is about asking God daily for all the good gifts of the Spirit.  God, like a loving parent, rejoices in providing what a child needs to live, thrive and survive.  Faith has an aspect to it that never tires of doing the right thing, which is often the caring thing.  Never stop asking!

Dear God, grant me the faith to ask you daily for my needs, and for the needs of others to be fulfilled. Amen.

Friday, July 19, 2024. Prayer 1872. Cast on the Right Side

Faith has a way of having us come around right.  The risen Jesus appears to the disciples and invites them to go fishing together just like when they first met.  They were so filled with grief they did not recognize who Jesus was.  When they catch no fish, Jesus tells them in John 21:6 “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.”  When the net filled with fish, they realized it was Jesus.  Our Lord cannot do all our fishing for us, but the Lord continually goes beside us and calls us to keep fishing.  By faith, it is not so much grilled Tilapia, as it is calling community together.

Dear God, fill us with the kind of faith that never stops seeking the right way to reach others and bring them in. Amen.

PRAYING WITH PAUL with Eugene Peterson

Monday, July 22, 2024. Prayer 1873. Holy and Sacred

Anytime one is presented with a health crisis we are reminded just how difficult it is to inhabit our God given bodies.  Chronic back pain, a cancer diagnosis, teeth that need to be crowned, a knee that flairs up every time you try to exercise.  In Corinthians 3:16 we hear, “You realize, don’t you, that you are the temple of God, and God is present to you?” The Apostle Paul has us view our bodies as holy and set apart for sacred use.  Without the body, how do we inhabit a space in which to feel love, to be forgiven or to experience God’s incredible grace?  The physical and spiritual come together.

Dear God, when I am really frustrated at how my body is working or not working right, bless me in holiness. Amen.

Tuesday, July 23, 2024. Prayer 1874. Getting Along

If there is anything we know for sure about our current events in our nation’s election season is that significant differences and great division exists in our public discourse and those who inhabit our institutions.  Whenever an institution is established including houses of faith and religions, the goal to see all as sacred children of God is imperative.  Paul says in Romans 14:19 “So let’s agree to use all our energy in getting along with each other.”  Christ is about God’s passion to bring us together as one in the Spirit.  A divisive spirit is a human spirit, not God’s.

Dear God, let me not be discouraged by all the division in the world, but rather be encouraged to get along! Amen.

Wednesday, July 24, 2024. Prayer 1875. A Sweet Scent

Along my walk is a Mimosa tree.  In late July it blossoms out with feather pink puffs which give off a scent that is like a natural fabric softener along the auto lanes of exhaust.  In 2 Corinthians 2:15-16 Paul writes, “Because of Christ, we give off a sweet scent rising to God, which is recognized by those on the way to salvation.”  But those who do not recognize it are naturally put off by it.  Nature can inspire the sublime in one, and cause a severe allergic reaction in another.  In Spirit terms, our souls are sweet when they ready to be generous with compassion for God and each other.

Dear God, make me to be as one who is like a tree in flower, holding on to the ground, giving life through the air. Amen.

Thursday, July 25, 2024. Prayer 1876. Limitations.

Clint Eastwood rose to great Hollywood fame saying, “You’ve got to know your limitations.”  You overreach by hubris to your peril.  Without humility in what we are capable of can cause great vexation.  Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 12:10 “Now I take limitations in stride, and with good cheer, these limitations that cut me down to size, abuse, accidents, opposition, bad breaks, I just let Christ take over.”  Our weakness becomes our strength by faith.  Limitations properly examined, reviewed, and understood lead to greater capacity for outreach, service and sharing life wisdom.

Dear God, help me to accept my limitation and also to accept what they show me about how strong I am in you. Amen.

Friday, July 26, 2024. Prayer 1877. The Spirit Beckons

There are so many voices competing for our attention.  Marketers have us buy products that promote health but that’s not what happens.  Real estate scammers act like they are your friends but want to rip you off.  God doesn’t talk to us like that.  God restores our health.  God has us dwell in goodness and mercy.  Paul tells us in Romans 8:14 “God’s Spirit beckons.  There are things to do and places to go.”  What is the God voice calling you to do?  What is the God voice shaping you to be?  Maybe, just maybe there is more in store for us, and we have great things up ahead!

Dear God, help me to hear your voice above the din and that I may trust in what you see in my future! Amen.