Weekly Devotion

Grace is not love. It is so much more. Grace and love are related but reside on different levels. I see Grace as an explosion compared to a spark. Love is often rewarded to people because of circumstances or merit.

When I was a child, I was taught to pray, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the LORD, my soul to keep, if I should die before I wake, I pray the LORD, my soul to take.” On the one hand, it showed me the authority of God, but it left me empty in terms of a loving relationship between a father and child.

Nothing happens outside of His knowledge or control, whether in nature, human events, or our lives. Those who believe in God’s sovereignty trust that everything happens according to a divine plan, even if it isn’t always clear in our limited understanding.

“For me, it started as a way to see what my body was capable of, and I needed to make changes to survive,” (T) told me. “The moment I realized that it was healing me and helping me get through things was when I realized I could use it for more.

(M) should have leadership emeritus status for her service at her church. “I get pleasure out of serving,” she mentioned. With sincere humility, she added, “Thirty years in the choir, twenty years doing hospitality for fellowship, and twenty years for Dutch Picnic.”

At the heart of this passage is a powerful message about humility. Paul reminded his readers that Christ, though fully God, could have, but did not cling to His divine privileges. Instead, He humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant and even submitting to death on the cross.

The word group joy/rejoice is found 16 times in this short letter, and the keyword ‘gospel’ and phrase ‘in Christ’ are found more proportionately in this letter than any other Pauline letter.

It’s reasonable to conclude that no one else can take our place when it comes to the struggles in life, but is it accurate? With the best of friends, there are always ups and downs. At some time, we all let each other down. All relationships are prone to temporary failures.

I heard the news of our friend’s daughter the morning before I heard Joby Martin’s sermon. I thought about them all day, especially while listening to the message.

You might find this hard to read but we are all saved by works. There, I said it. For much of my life, I believed that if I was good enough, followed the rules of my parents and society well enough, I could go to Heaven.