Author: astherainandsnow

“[Abigail] fell at his feet and said: ‘Please pay no attention to that wicked man Nabal… The Lord your God will certainly make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because you fight the Lord’s battles… Even though someone is pursuing you to take your life, the life of my lord will be bound securely in the bundle of the living by the Lord your God… When the Lord… has appointed him ruler over Israel,  my lord will not have on his conscience the staggering burden of needless bloodshed or of having avenged himself.’

“David said to Abigail, ‘Praise be to the Lord who has sent you today to meet me.  May you be blessed for your good judgment and for keeping me from bloodshed this day and from avenging myself with my own hands.’” 1 Samuel 25:24-25,28-33

God called David through the prophet Samuel, but he had already developed in David a mind that sought to know Him, and a heart inclined to worship and to listen. In mercy, when David encountered challenges that instigated high emotion, the Lord continued to send people with specific messages to guide him. David’s ongoing communion was the backdrop and foundation for his recognizing true, proper, wise counsel. (1 Samuel 16:1-13; 25:1-22; 2 Samuel 12:5-13; Psalm 8:1-4)

It is often and usual that the Lord speaks directly to us through his Word and by His Spirit. But He also speaks to us through others with whom we engage, and it is important that we listen well and be discerning. When we seek His wisdom, while fearing and trusting Him rightly, He gives us spiritual insight to know His voice wherever it originates.

One key to discernment is an intimate knowledge of God himself. The Bible reveals God’s character, how He deals with man, His high plan and how He incorporates His people in accomplishing it. How committed are we to know Him, how familiar with His word through regular reading, study, meditation, and application so we can trace His hand in our everyday?

Another key is not thinking of ourselves too highly, but approaching each day humbly, soberly, and surrendered. We might think we know better than He, or must inform and instruct Him as we ask His blessing on our plans, but only God is omniscient, and His will good and perfect. (Romans 12:1-3)

When we ask, God is faithful to answer and help and guide. Sometimes His silence is an important message for us to wait. When we do not know which way to go, we can trust what we know of Him, seek godly counsel, and wait for His word. (Psalm 32:8)

How are we cultivating relationships with trusted advisors or friends who will speak truth to us? How keenly are we developing discernment from regular reading of Scripture to know what comes from the mind of Christ and what is of man? (Matthew 22:29; Ephesians 4:15)

And for whom are we a trustworthy confidant and counselor? What are we doing to equip ourselves to speak truth, even if it stings? How clean, prayerful, and careful are we before confronting someone? (Matthew 7:3-5; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-15,19,23-24)

Father, teach me Your word so I recognize and welcome its truth, and readily share it for the good of others.

“Take my instruction instead of silver,
    and knowledge rather than choice gold,
for wisdom is better than jewels,
    and all that you may desire cannot compare with her.

“I, wisdom, dwell with prudence,
    and I find knowledge and discretion.
The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil…
I have counsel and sound wisdom;
    I have insight; I have strength.
By me kings reign,
    and rulers decree what is just;
by me princes rule,
    and nobles, all who govern justly.
I love those who love me,
    and those who seek me diligently find me.
Riches and honor are with me,
    enduring wealth and righteousness.
My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold,
    and my yield than choice silver…
an inheritance to those who love me,
    and filling their treasuries…

“For whoever finds me finds life
    and obtains favor from the Lord.” Proverbs 8:10-13a,14-19,21,35

“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places… In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,  who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.” Ephesians 1:3,13-14

The richest riches are not to be found in this world. No matter the sparkle, splendor, weight or measure, nothing on earth begins to compare with the unsearchable heavenly riches we own in Christ Jesus and His word. We want to hold and fondle, collect and clutch, when true riches are invisible, held by faith and conviction, and experienced in rich, wise, powerful living. (Ephesians 3:8; 14-19)

What do we desire in our heart of hearts? Where do we stake our significance and identity? What gives us pleasure and fulfillment? Anything or anyone short of Christ will leave us wanting. The Lord is near and available for the knowing, ordaining and maintaining our very circumstances so we would seek and enjoy communion with Him. How committed are we to discover His treasures of love and insight, eternal fruit and life? (Acts 17:25-28)

Tapping into the treasury of the Creator avails us of yield beyond imagining for every aspect of public and private life. To find Christ is to enjoy life everlasting. To know Him is to own His prudence, discretion, and righteousness. Would we take time to praise His attributes, to relish and give thanks for His grace-given riches?

“Immortal, invisible, God only wise,
in light inaccessible hid from our eyes,
most blessed, most glorious, the Ancient of Days,
almighty, victorious, thy great name we praise.

Unresting, unhasting, and silent as light,
nor wanting, nor wasting, thou rulest in might;
thy justice like mountains high soaring above
thy clouds, which are fountains of goodness and love.

Great Father of glory, pure Father of light,
thine angels adore thee, all veiling their sight;
all praise we would render, O help us to see
’tis only the splendor of light hideth thee.” ~Walter Chalmer Smith (1867)

Omniscient Father, may I daily desire and pursue Your wisdom, properly fearing and hungering for You above all else. May I know You and share Your wealth, to Your honor and praise.

“For behold, the Lord is coming out of his place,
    and will come down and tread upon the high places of the earth.
And the mountains will melt under him,
    and the valleys will split open,
like wax before the fire,
    like waters poured down a steep place.” Micah 1:3-4

“O Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.” Psalm 8:1

“Bow your heavens, O Lord, and come down!
    Touch the mountains so that they smoke!” Psalm 144:5

The highest heavens cannot contain the incomprehensible God. He inhabits eternity and condescends to the heavens to manifest His splendor, riding the skies to our aid. In Christ, He condescended to earth as Son of man to redeem us, and righteously rules today from invisible heights we cannot comprehend. God Himself calls us to behold Him there! (Deuteronomy 33:26-27a; 1 Kings 8:27; Psalm 68:32-33; Isaiah 57:15; John 3:13; 6:38)

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
    where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord,
    the Maker of heaven and earth.

He will not let your foot slip—
    he who watches over you will not slumber… nor sleep.

The Lord watches over you—
    the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
the sun will not harm you by day,
    nor the moon by night.

The Lord will keep you from all harm—
    he will watch over your life;
the Lord will watch over your coming and going
    both now and forevermore.” Psalm 121

The Lord treads the high places keeping watch over His own. Kings and kingdoms rise and fall, and His eye is on each one to perform His bidding. While we live in the lowlands, occupied by incessant conversation and comparison and consternation, we often fail to seek His higher thought, His long view for our circumstances, lofty desire. We get lost in the mundane and urgent when the high and holy hover for our grasping. What would change if we strode the ridges with the Almighty? (Proverbs 21:1; Daniel 2:21)

What areas of my life would I like to uplift? In what difficult situation do I need an eternal perspective? What gnarly conversations can I elevate? What expenditure of time and energy could become more significant, what use of resources more meaningful and lasting? Is it language, imagination, attitude toward colleagues or relatives that the Lord is saying needs an upward adjustment, a cleansing Spirit breeze, an infusion of the divine? What heavenly hope needs renewing?

“I’m pressing on the upward way,
New heights I’m gaining ev’ry day;
Still praying as I’m onward bound,
‘Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.’

My heart has no desire to stay
Where doubts arise and fears dismay;
Though some may dwell where these abound,
My prayer, my aim, is higher ground.

I want to live above the world,
Though Satan’s darts at me are hurled;
For faith has caught a joyful sound,
The song of saints on higher ground.

Lord, lift me up, and let me stand
By faith, on heaven’s tableland;
A higher plane than I have found,
Lord, plant my feet on higher ground.”  ~Johnson Oatman Jr. (1856-1922)

Lord, keep me alongside to tread the heights with You, above the madding world, seeing and seizing life with Your eternal perspective.

“For freedom Christ has set us free…

“For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love…

“For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself…’ So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 5:1a,5-6,13-14; 6:10

“We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin… So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.

“Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you.” Romans 6:6-7,11-14

Christ sets free from, and free to. He’s done away with the chains of a petulant imbroglio of sin in order that we might serve Him as new and gracious Master, and others in His name. We have been set free to love and serve with abandon, dead to sin and very fully alive in Christ and His power.

Trouble is, without understanding the scope of Christ’s forgiveness, we accept freedom from shackles in the flesh but immediately hop up, rub our wrists, and gear toward serving and indulging self: my time, my thrills, my wants. But the way of the new creation is selfless, more significant, and joyous. It is less narrow, now broad with possibility and opportunity. When we reckon ourselves truly free from sin’s slavery, Jesus opens wide the doors to lavish loving and boundless generosity, and sheds widely abroad His light in our hearts. (Romans 5:5; 2 Corinthians 5:17)

We’ve been cut loose from the penalty and power of sin and lavished in Christ with every spiritual blessing: heavenly purpose, eternal security, boundless grace, all wisdom and insight, unlimited inheritance, lasting hope. Why do we hoard such precious gifts? Or do we squander them? What are we doing in and with the freedom entrusted to us? Freely you have received; freely give. (Matthew 10:8b; Ephesians 1:2-8)

A glad heart will want to sing, a forgiven heart will want to love, a grateful heart will want to give. How often do we take time to be reminded of all the Lord has done for us, and then to turn to Him in thanksgiving? Would we seek those He wants us to serve, and go and do it eagerly and with cheer?

“Thus wholly mastered and possessed by God,
Forth from my life, spontaneous and free,
Shall flow a stream of tenderness and grace,
Loving, because God loved, eternally.” ~Emily May Grimes (1868-1927)

Lord, may I freely and extravagantly serve as You have served to saved me, to the praise of Your generosity and grace.

“Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord!
    O Lord, hear my voice!
Let your ears be attentive
    to the voice of my pleas for mercy!

If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities,
    O Lord, who could stand?
But with you there is forgiveness,
    that you may be feared.

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
    and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
    more than watchmen for the morning,
    more than watchmen for the morning.

O Israel, hope in the Lord!
    For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
    and with him is plentiful redemption.
And he will redeem Israel
    from all his iniquities.” Psalm 130:1-8

What does a watchman, sentry high, 
Fix eyes upon there in the sky? 
Pale blush of pink, 
First hint of light, 
In deepest heaven as day draws nigh?

To what does he listen with ears attuned? 
The quiet before dawn? Early chatter and swoon 
Of birds now awakened? 
Winged grace and glory 
Each praising the morn in personal croon?

He hears the march of coming day, 
He spies the armies of clouds at bay, 
He welcomes the warmth, the clear, the storm, 
Ready for every onslaught borne, 
In duty, drudgery, and fray.

If I be a watchman for what must I look? 
The menacing clouds, the pestering rook? 
Do I gaze at this or that 
And let distraction pull off track 
Or will I stay with the Book?

Watching and waiting in dread or fear? 
Stressed by enemies far and near? 
Nervous at now and 
worried at then, 
Or trusting the cause of my Savior dear?

Am I weighted with regret?
Has my sorrow no outlet? 
Remember the cross,
Nothing is lost, 
Jesus has fully paid my debt.

Would I an attentive watchman be 
Within the world of fright and flee 
At peace in heart and in my mind, 
Alert and keen, and grace-filled, kind, 
As I wait in hope for Thee.

And let my watching set each day 
In holy rhythm, without dismay, 
Of joyful song, anticipation, 
Good and lofty expectation, 
In all I do and say.

For all my days may it be true, 
I perch up high and set my view, 
Through every storm and drought and burn, 
With every task and lesson learned, 
More than a watchman I watch for You.

Amen.

“I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.  For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do… Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,  idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,  envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

“If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.” Galatians 5:16-17,19-25

“The Lord gives wisdom;
    from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;
he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
    he is a shield to those who walk in integrity,
guarding the paths of justice
    and watching over the way of his saints.
Then you will understand righteousness and justice
    and equity, every good path;
for wisdom will come into your heart,
    and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;
discretion will watch over you,
    understanding will guard you,
delivering you from the way of evil,
    from men of perverted speech,
who forsake the paths of uprightness
    to walk in the ways of darkness..,
men whose paths are crooked,
    and who are devious in their ways…

So you will walk in the way of the good
    and keep to the paths of the righteous.”

“Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise.” Proverbs 2:6-13,15,20; 13:20

To walk in the Spirit is a daily discipline begun in the mind and heart. Wayward desires and emotions bump us to limp and stumble and throw us off God’s course. Consulting the Lord and storing up His sound wisdom prepares us to recognize His paths and get alongside His Spirit. When we begin the day matching stride and pace with His, we walk the paths of righteousness, and every step with Him is one not astray.

What deters us from aligning our life tempo with the Lord’s? What passions, interruptions, or worldly distractions throw off healthy spiritual rhythms, and what will we do about them? What practical ways will we minimize or eliminate desires that compete with uprightness, and choose to exchange feelings of flesh for the fruit of the Spirit?

As for pace, am I running on empty, bereft of physical energy and spiritual vitality? What am I doing to refuel and partake of daily manna in order to hone divine discernment and strength? Am I lagging behind with slow obedience, hesitant to proceed in God’s commanded way? Am I racing ahead of the Lord, driven by selfish ambition or the compulsion to go, regardless of how the Lord might measure or direct my steps? What can I change to get in holy stride?

Lord, keep me steady, in step with Your Spirit on Your straight way, drawing others to come alongside and clearly focused on Your glory.

“Let not steadfast love and faithfulness forsake you;
    bind them around your neck;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.
So you will find favor and good success
    in the sight of God and man.

 Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
    and do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
    and he will make straight your paths.
Be not wise in your own eyes;
    fear the Lord, and turn away from evil.”

“My son, keep my words
    and treasure up my commandments with you;..
bind them on your fingers;
    write them on the tablet of your heart.” Proverbs 3:3-7; 7:1,3

“You shall make a breastpiece of judgment, in skilled work. In the style of the ephod you shall make it—of gold, blue and purple and scarlet yarns, and fine twined linen… You shall set in it four rows of stones. A row of sardius, topaz, and carbuncle shall be the first row;  and the second row an emerald, a sapphire, and a diamond;  and the third row a jacinth, an agate, and an amethyst;  and the fourth row a beryl, an onyx, and a jasper… set in gold filigree.  There shall be twelve stones with their names according to the names of the sons of Israel. They shall be like signets, each engraved with its name, for the twelve tribes… So Aaron shall bear the names of the sons of Israel in the breastpiece of judgment on his heart, when he goes into the Holy Place, to bring them to regular remembrance before the Lord.” Exodus 28:15,17-21,29

If the heart is the wellspring of life, then keeping the heart is vital to spiritual health and fruitfulness. Guarding it means imprinting it with God’s identity and protecting all it contains. There are certain things to write indelibly there as forever fuel for life. Israel’s priests wore the names of every tribe engraved over their hearts, bearing them before the Lord for remembrance of mercy effected by sacrifice. For the Christian under grace, God’s inscribed our hearts with His living word, both our salvation and lifeline for holy living. (Proverbs 4:23; Matthew 4:4; John 6:63; Romans 1:16; 1 Corinthians 1:18)

How often do I refer to and draw on God’s impression on my heart? Does the fact that He counts me as righteous compel right thinking and behaving? How readily do I apply the promises of His word for courage to stand up, wisdom to speak, discernment and compassion to meet others’ needs? (2 Corinthians 5:21)

What foreign messages and mantras have I allowed to be imprinted on my heart that confuse or distort truth, sully honest perception or deplete genuine selfless care for those around me? Have I slipped into an identity as superior judge over those whose belief systems are counter to mine, and fail to look for commonalities under God’s redemption? What daily evidence am I exhibiting that His name and Word are daily borne in my choices, countenance, and counsel?

“Thy nature, gracious Lord, impart,
come quickly from above;
write thy new name upon my heart,
thy new best name of Love.” ~Charles Wesley (1742)

Lord, imprint Yourself on my heart so indelibly that all I think, say, and do is under Your impression, with Your grace, by Your power, and for Your glory.

“You shall command the people of Israel that they bring to you pure beaten olive oil for the light, that a lamp may regularly be set up to burn. In the tent of meeting, outside the veil that is before the testimony, Aaron and his sons shall tend it from evening to morning before the Lord. It shall be a statute forever to be observed throughout their generations by the people of Israel.” Exodus 27:20-21

“Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 5:16

“Do all things without grumbling or disputing,  that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world.” Philippians 2:14-15

Many would resist an overnight responsibility, but what a privileged appointment for Aaron and his sons to tend the always-burning lamps. Pure beaten oil for regular ongoing flame would bring light to darkness at the tent of meeting, the place where man met with God. It was a visual reminder that the Lord was with them day and night, forever present among His people.

God’s people today are called to The light of the gospel is a reminder that the Lord is ever nigh, that no darkness can overcome Him, that He dispels it with hope and eventual victory.

The discipline of routine lamp-burning and close proximity to the altar is a worthy statute. We are all responsible to be filled with the holy oil of the Spirit so we can set spiritual flame burning, bringing light that is penetrating, mesmerizing, attractive, and necessary into the world’s brooding night. As God’s royal priesthood, called out of darkness to marvelous, holy light, we’re to contribute to round-the-clock witness, proclaiming His excellencies whatever our place or position. From morning devotion to daily duties, interactions to transactions, griefs to challenges to insights, we hold out light for a needy, watching people. (Ephesians 5:18; 1 Peter 2:9)

Are we such faithful tenders? Daily we navigate cultural waters dark with confusion, spiritual void, violence, and dissension. Many have no moorings, and are adrift in meaningless mantras, lost and lonely. Societies, organizations, workplaces, and governments are desperately in need of goodness and unwavering, righteous standards. Rather than abdicate spiritual responsibility only to leaders, or surrender helplessly to sloth or apathy, we must tend the lamps!

When are we taking our fill of the Spirit’s oil of truth and perspective through worship, Bible study, and concentrated prayer? How willing are we to head into the night of unbelief with the Lord’s light? With whom will we converse about how God’s light saves, guides, and helps? Who needs the balm of comfort and peace the Spirit offers? Where has the Lord placed us to shine specific light?

“Be thou my vision, O Lord of my heart;
naught be all else to me, save that thou art.
Thou my best thought, by day or by night,
waking or sleeping, thy presence my light.” ~Old Irish, translated by Mary Byrne (1905)

Lord, keep me faithful and steadfast, filled with You day and night to shine, spreading Your love, truth, and light to a needy world.

“If your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died.  So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil.  For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.  Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men.  So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding.

“Do not, for the sake of food, destroy the work of God. Everything is indeed clean, but it is wrong for anyone to make another stumble by what he eats.  It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.”

“We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves.  Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up.  For Christ did not please himself… For I tell you that Christ became a servant.”

“I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them.  For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.  For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil.” Romans 14:15-21; 15:1-3a,8a; 16:17-19

Whom we serve determines motivation, preferences, and actions, which over time determine longer-term outcomes. When we serve self, we are blind to Christ’s example and can’t be bothered by the weaknesses of others, often to the deterioration of relationships and the harm of nascent faith. Our willingness (and desire) to eat, drink, and do everything in order to serve Christ and His ends indicates a heart captivated by His sacrifice for us. (Matthew 20:28)

We cannot serve ourselves and the Lord and His people. Selfishly giving in to the lusts of eye and flesh is destructive to body and souls; greed and gluttony do not upbuild our neighbor. Why is it so important to get our way? What honor does it give Christ, what benefit to others, for us to boast our rights? Is it really more important for us to assert our freedoms in Christ than to love others and promote peace in Him? (Matthew 6:24; James 4:2-4; 1 John 2:16)

Where have we grown myopic in daily orientation and living, and calloused to the needs and fragile faith of those around us? Do we indulge and operate with an air of spiritual superiority, unable to recognize where we might cause another to stumble? What swagger or self-pleasing need we confess in order to be free to love, bear with, and upbuild our brothers? (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

My good Master, keep me serving You first, and others in Your name. May I follow Your example of laying down preferences, rights, and life for the sake of Your people and magnification of Your glory. (Philippians 2:2-8)

“On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  Jesus also was invited to the wedding with his disciples.  When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine…’ Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim.  And he said to them, ‘Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.’ So they took it.  When the master of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from… ‘You have kept the good wine until now.’ This… Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory. And his disciples believed in him.”

“Jacob’s well was there; so Jesus, wearied as he was from his journey, was sitting beside the well… A woman from Samaria came to draw water. Jesus said to her, ‘Give me a drink…’ The Samaritan woman said to him, ‘How is it that you, a Jew, ask for a drink from me, a woman of Samaria?’ (For Jews have no dealings with Samaritans.)  Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink,” you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.’ The woman said to him, ‘Sir, you have nothing to draw water with, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water?..’  Jesus said to her, ‘Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again,  but whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never be thirsty again. The water that I will give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.'” John 2:1-3,6-9a,10b-11; 4:6-7,9-11,13-14

When Jesus issued an everyday directive, He always had the supernatural in mind. Fully human, He could not help but act also as fully God, entwining the ordinary with holy purpose. Filling a practical and temporary need became at His command a display of His glory and a pathway to belief.

He always does the extraordinary with our ordinary, making significant and lasting what we see as mundane and temporal. He injects Himself into the very places of dearth, panic, loneliness, and thirst in our lives to make Himself and His power known. He elicits our involvement as He works the divine so we can know Him better and participate in His kingdom activity of transformation.

Are we in a spiritual rut in the mundane of routine? What responsibilities, duties, and even minuscule actions will we ask the Lord to make extraordinary and so reveal Himself through our best effort and excellence in their completion? What immediate or temporary pleasure will we trust Him to make rich, satisfying, and beautiful? Where do we need fresh filling in order to emanate His glory?

How intentionally do we draw from His well the inspiration, wisdom, love, patience, or joy needed for this day, then bless others from full jars? To whom are we offering soul-satiating living water?

Father, fill me with verve and joy in giving my best and all to You. Transform my ordinary human efforts into glorious and eternal offerings for your kingdom and praise.