NOT ASHAMED
2 Timothy 1:8-9
Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me His prisoner, but share with me in the sufferings for the gospel according to the power of God, who has saved us and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given to us in Christ Jesus before time began,
Personal Challenge
My journey through life has been full of joys and sorrows, excitement and boring times, life and death, love and enmity. I do not regret that my Lord Jesus Christ has been the central figure throughout the majority of that journey. I choose to be His follower and am not ashamed to proclaim Him and His truths, I am also not afraid to stand up to those who pervert and misalign His teachings and who He is. As our world moves farther and farther down the path of embracing false statements and outright lies for personal gain and edification, the need to fight for the Truth is ramped up. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!
GLADNESS OF THE HEART
Sirach 30:21-24
Do not give yourself over to sorrow,
And do not distress yourself deliberately.
Gladness of the heart is the life of man,
And rejoicing by a man lengthens his life.
Love your soul and comfort your heart,
And put sorrow far away from you;
For sorrow has destroyed many,
And there is no profit in it.
Envy and anger will shorten your days,
And worry will bring premature old age.
Encouraging Words
We live in a world that is full of sadness and despair. Natural disasters are wreaking havoc on many innocent people. Wars and skirmishes are in full swing across the globe. Political systems and nations are quickly moving into fascism and authoritarianism. And yet, we each have the capability, and responsibility to control our own internal destiny. Sirach guides us to pursue a life of joy and peace. We can choose to not give ourselves over to sorrow. We must not distress ourselves deliberately. We can embrace a gladness in our hearts that will give us life and extend our days. We can love our soul and comfort our heart by putting sorrow far away. We can do all this through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Glory be to God!
OUR SPIRIT
2 Timothy 1:7
For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
ENCOURAGING WORDS
As followers of Christ, we have been promised a spirit within us that is free from fear and full of power, love, and a sound mind. Sometimes we must challenge those who proclaim to be Christians and yet abuse the power available from God, spewing hatred and demeaning rhetoric, and clearly not operating with a sound mind. It is time to stand up for the true nature of our Christ and confront those who besmirch His name. Lord, have Mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
REASONING
Sirach 27:4-7
When a sieve is shaken, the refuse remains;
So a man’s filth remains in the way he reasons.
As a furnace tests a potter’s vessels,
So the test of a man is in the way he reasons.
As fruit reveals how a tree is cultivated,
So a man’s reasoning process reveals his heart.
Do not praise a man before he reveals the way he reasons,
For this is the way a man is tested.
Personal Challenge
I am still amazed at how the passage that comes up for me to use for my daily journal is so perfect for the events of the moment. Sirach nails the issues that we are seeing related to reasoning today. Reasoning is not happening with what appears to be about 50% of our American population. What remains when you pour a mixture of stuff into a sieve and shake it? You get everything that you did not want left in the results. Sieves are so often used to let the good, that which we see as pure, filter through the sieve and the junk, the refuse, left behind. Sirach uses this imagery to articulate that when good, godly, and truthful reasoning has been sifted out, or eliminated, then all that you have left is filth. So much of today's "reasoning "is revealing the filth of peoples thoughts and the lack of their true ability to reason. Just read through these verses and you will see how Sirach nails today's dilemma. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!
Saint of the Week
St. Basil the Great
GUARD THE FAITH
1 Timothy 6:20-21
O Timothy! Guard what was committed to your trust, avoiding the profane and idle babblings and contradictions of what is falsely called knowledge—by professing it some have strayed concerning the faith. Grace be with you. Amen.
Personal Challenge
So many people who proclaim to be Christians act as if their version of the faith is for them to protect and defend. We do not follow a true Christian faith that meets only our personal definition or version. That is how heresy grows. True followers of Christ defend the faith that has been committed to our trust over the past 2,000 years of the church by the saints and martyrs that have gone before us. We do not yield to the whims of post-modern Christians that pervert the truths of the Gospel for their own gain. We do not submit to profane and idle babblings and contradictions like Christian nationalism because they have strayed from the true faith. Glory be to God and God alone!
BEAUTIFUL TO SEE
Sirach 25:1
There are three things beautiful to see,
And they are beautiful before the Lord and men:
The harmony of brothers, friendship between neighbors,
And a wife and husband well-adjusted together.
Encouraging Words
I love how the scriptures are full of truisms that give us encouragement in our daily lives. These truisms also give goals to strive for that impact our lives positively. This verse is one of those scriptures. Three things that are beautiful to see as well as delightful to have in our lives. Harmony of brothers. We are all one big family called humans. The more that we can live of harmony, one with another, regardless of our background, color, sex, religion, education, wealth, or any other earthly standard, the more peaceful and beautiful our lives will be. Friendship between neighbors. Who is my neighbor? Every single human being is my neighbor. Friendship between us leads to al more loving, caring, merciful, and gracious world. A wife and a husband well-adjusted together give us a home that thrives in love and compassion. All of these are worthy goals to pursue and embrace. Glory be to God!
