We Saw God Today

May 16, 2012

Today’s Reflection

RECENTLY, my family suffered a tragedy and was faced with having to move at the same time. I wrote this poem to express my gratitude for church members who became God for us in a physical way.

We felt God’s eyes look down today,
when women brought the lunch buffet.
It was God’s kindness packed our things,
God’s words we felt in hope that springs.

We saw God’s hand of help today,
when trucks and trailers drove our way.
God moved us into our new home.
God hugged us there; we weren’t alone.

You were God’s hands; you were his feet.
You were God’s heart that knew our need,
God in flesh when life got tough.
We never can say thanks enough.

- Carolyn Caines

devozine, May/June 2012

“We Saw God Today” by Carolyn Caines, page 40 in devozine, the devotional lifestyle magazine for teens. Copyright © 2012 by The Upper Room. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Who has been God in the flesh for you, offering you help and showing you God’s kindness when life got tough? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture

1:3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper.
Psalm 1:3, NRSV

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

Did You Know?

SoulFeast is The Upper Room’s spiritual formation event for children, youth, and adults who seek deepening spirituality across a spectrum of experiences that nourish the soul. Learn more..

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Isidore the Farmer (May 15).

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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Living Godward

May 15, 2012

Today’s Reflection

LIVING GODWARD implies a sense of direction—and it involves the recognition that the journey continues. … Living Godward asserts the relationship of hope to discipleship. Hope is its motive, not its substitute. Like faith, hope without works is dead. … Thinking Godward without living Godward is wishy-washy.

-John Indermark
Hope: Our Longing for Home

From page 118 of Hope: Our Longing for Home by John Indermark. Copyright © 2007 by John Indermark. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Do you find the phrase “living Godward” helpful as you think of growing in your spiritual life? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture

Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; but their delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law they meditate day and night.
Psalm 1:1-2, NRSV

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

Did You Know?

SoulFeast is The Upper Room’s spiritual formation event for children, youth, and adults who seek deepening spirituality across a spectrum of experiences that nourish the soul. Learn more..

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Isidore the Farmer (May 15).

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

Share

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A Prayer of Surrender

May 14, 2012

Today’s Reflection DEAR CREATOR, I pray that I may be of service to you and your people. I ask for courage in times of uncertainty and self-doubt. I surrender to you my old notions of who I thought I should be or could be. May I trust in your plan. Lead me safely on this [...]

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At Home with God

May 13, 2012

Today’s Reflection OVER THE YEARS I collected many china dish patterns and interesting silver and copper serving pieces to make the dinner table feel special. Now I sometimes worry that I spent too much time polishing and scrubbing instead of coloring or playing games with the children. Even so, I feel confident that my children [...]

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God Holds Us Close

May 12, 2012

Today’s Reflection WHEN I WAS TWELVE, I was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease, an autoimmune disease that attacks the intestines and stomach. I had to grow up fast. I took twelve pills a day, one of which made my face and stomach swell. I dreaded going to school, knowing that all the stares, whispers, and questions [...]

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10 Ways to Disagree Without Fighting

May 11, 2012

Today’s Reflection 10 Ways to Disagree Without Fighting Listen first. Hear the other person’s viewpoint without interrupting or arguing. Try to see the other point of view How would you feel if you were in their shoes? Be patient as the other person expresses views. Think before you speak. Then state your view calmly. Be [...]

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Incarnation

May 10, 2012

Today’s Reflection YEARS AGO at a retreat one of the women told us a story that changed my spiritual life. I have so often told and written about this story. She had rescued an abandoned, frightened young dog who had not only been abused, but also half drowned. He desperately needed cleansing and medication for [...]

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The Decision To Be Christian

May 9, 2012

Today’s Reflection MOVING AWAY from part-time Christian status is not one decision but a series of decisions, sometimes several times a day. This journey is a cradle-to-grave adventure, an ongoing challenge, and the process likely didn’t begin in one definitive moment. Progress is driven by movement—forward and circling back—full of amazing possibility and the promise [...]

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The Ministry of All

May 8, 2012

Today’s Reflection JESUS HAD NO PROBLEM with the ministry of women. It was encounter with Jesus that empowered their ministry. The irony, and a cruel one at that, is that the community of Jesus has not always and everywhere honored the practices of the One we say we follow. To be sure, we are happy [...]

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Faithful in Prayer

May 7, 2012

Today’s Reflection AT ONE POINT in my prayer journey, I decided that I was going to sit on top of a hill for three days. I wasn’t going to bring any food, just some water and a sleeping bag. No tent, no books, nothing to write with. I was going to spend time in solitude [...]

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