God, the Center of Creation

February 12, 2012

Today’s Reflection

YOU ARE GOD — not me, not us;
help me to remember this simple fact each day.
You are the Center of creation — not me, not us;
help me to recognize my place within the orbit of your grace.
You are the Source of all life — not me, not us;
let me find in you my kinship with all creation.

- Sam Hamilton-Poore
Earth Gospel

From page 113 of Earth Gospel: A Guide to Prayer for God’s Creation by Sam Hamilton-Poore. Copyright © 2008 by Sam Hamilton-Poore. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Pray today’s prayer. Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

But he went out and began to proclaim it freely, and to spread the word, so that Jesus could no longer go into a town openly, but stayed out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.
Mark 1:45, NRSV

This Week: pray for older adults. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Eleven year-old Tanika Rodrigues brings hope to the people of Eldorado Park, South Africa. She delivers over 150 copies of every issue of The Upper Room daily devotional guide. To watch an inspiring video about Tanika, follow this link.

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Margaret Gaffney Haughery (February 9).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Sponsored by Upper Room Ministries ®. Copyright © 2012, a ministry of GBOD | PO Box 340004 | Nashville, TN 37203-0004 | USA

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Extending God’s Love

February 11, 2012

Today’s Reflection

WE TOUCH that very holy part of ourselves when we extend God’s love to anyone in need, touching God’s spirit within others. We distance ourselves from God when we withhold love. …

Treating others with compassion and mercy is our expression of love for God.

- Christopher Maricle
The Jesus Priorities

From pages 45 and 47 of The Jesus Priorities: 8 Essential Habits by Christopher Maricle. Copyright © 2007 by Christopher Maricle. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Think about people with whom you have interacted this week. Were there times when you showed compassion and mercy, thus extending God’s love? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

A leper came to him begging him, and kneeling he said to him, “If you choose, you can make me clean.” Moved with pity, Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, “I do choose. Be made clean!”
Mark 1:40-41, NRSV

This Week: pray for older adults. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Eleven year-old Tanika Rodrigues brings hope to the people of Eldorado Park, South Africa. She delivers over 150 copies of every issue of The Upper Room daily devotional guide. To watch an inspiring video about Tanika, follow this link.

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Margaret Gaffney Haughery (February 9).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Sponsored by Upper Room Ministries ®. Copyright © 2012, a ministry of GBOD | PO Box 340004 | Nashville, TN 37203-0004 | USA

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You Are God’s Beloved

February 10, 2012

Today’s Reflection SO OFTEN we go through the motions in our spiritual lives. We sing, we pray, we worship, we give the impression that we know that we are God’s beloved. But often in the deep places of our hearts, the assurance is not there; and we know it. We need to come home and [...]

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The Art of Spiritual Listening

February 9, 2012

Today’s Reflection SPIRITUAL FRIENDS accompany one another, and accompaniment takes practice. Just ask any pianist who has ever had to play along with a singer. Or ask any basketball player who relies on a teammate for an assist. … It’s easy to hang out together, but it takes practice to walk with another person so [...]

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Guided by God’s Spirit

February 8, 2012

Today’s Reflection THE SPIRITUAL LIFE is a life that is guided by God’s Spirit, the same Spirit that guided the life of Jesus. So how can we be in touch with the Spirit, hear the voice of the Spirit, and allow ourselves to be guided by the Spirit? This is not easy in a world [...]

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Christian Community

February 7, 2012

Today’s Reflection TODAY WE KNOW a great deal about fellowship and about psychological needs, but we have remarkably little experience of Christian community; that is, of being the body of Christ. In Christ, we care for one another in the context of awareness that God is doing more for each of us than any of [...]

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Called to Offer All That You Are

February 6, 2012

Today’s Reflection I AM CALLED to offer all that I am — my time and my talent, my work and my worship, my resources and my rituals — offer it all up to be broken and shared and given away and counted as but loss for the sake of the Christ. It is incumbent upon [...]

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When the World Events Seem Crazy

February 5, 2012

Today’s Reflection GOD, THE WORLD SEEMS CRAZY RIGHT NOW.It’s frightening how many things are going wrong:wars, natural disasters, economic crises.We see suffering all around.I worry for my friends and family,for our safety, for job security.I worry about our earth, what is going to happen next.Help me remember that you are present in everycircumstance, with every [...]

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Nothing To Do but Wait

February 4, 2012

Today’s Reflection WAITING MAY BE one of the most maddening and difficult moral and psychological challenges life presents. When all we can do is wait, we feel consigned to passivity, uncertainty, and powerlessness. To wait for housing or food or water or a blanket for a shivering child may rightly inspire outrage, not patience. And [...]

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The Fullness of God’s Hope

February 3, 2012

Today’s Reflection PRAYING THE SINNER’S PRAYER is not the end goal of the Christian life. Praying one prayer, or having one experience of God’s grace, is not the fullness of what God hopes for us. Please don’t misunderstand me: having an initial experience of God’s grace by faith is absolutely essential, but it does not [...]

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