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Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Jeremiah 15

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"Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Je...
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Unlucky mother—that you had me as a son,
   given the unhappy job of indicting the whole country!
I’ve never hurt or harmed a soul,
   and yet everyone is out to get me. Jeremiah 15:10 (MSG)

It isn’t easy swimming upstream. Jeremiah discovered that. Going against the grain of a community or a culture has all sorts of ripple effects. I doubt that, in many ways, there is much difference between Jeremiah’s community and ours. People are people. We tend to like others who go with the flow and don’t make waves.

Follow Jesus, however, and you’ll find that the path will often lead you against the stream of popular culture. When that happens, we may find ourselves identifying with Jeremiah’s self-pitied lament.

But, without contrast, how will people see any difference?

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Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Luke 14

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He went on to tell a story to the guests around the table. Noticing how each had tried to elbow into the place of honor, he said, “When someone invites you to dinner, don’t take the place of honor. Somebody more important than you might have been invited by the host. Then he’ll come and call out in front of everybody, ‘You’re in the wrong place. The place of honor belongs to this man.’ Red-faced, you’ll have to make your way to the very last table, the only place left. Luke 14:7-9 (MSG)

I consider stories, books, and films that seem timeless. There is a reason Shakespeare’s works are still staged for packed crowds around the world. There is something in them that resounds with our own core human experience and longing. Jesus was a great teacher because he spoke in stories, parables and spiritual lessons rooted in universal human experiences. He pointed us to eternal significance in everday occurrences.

Life lessons are all around us. They lurk in our daily conversations, in our every day relationships, and in the most mundane moments of our daily journey. God’s Spirit whispers to our spirit in a crowded shopping mall, in the quiet car ride home, and in the midst of our daily work.

For me, the crucial question is the one Jesus asked at the end of the chapter: “Are you listening to this? Really listening?”

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Chapter-a-Day

Chapter-a-Day Romans 10

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The Resurrection from Grünewald's Isenheim Alt...
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Say the welcoming word to God—”Jesus is my Master”—embracing, body and soul, God’s work of doing in us what he did in raising Jesus from the dead. That’s it. You’re not “doing” anything; you’re simply calling out to God, trusting him to do it for you. That’s salvation. Romans 10:9-10 (MSG)

I’m often intimidated by do-it-yourself projects. Convinced that it’s got to be infinitely complex, and further convinced I’m in no way good enough or qualified to do it, I shy away from starting the project in the first place. When I finally take the step of faith to launch into the project, I usually find that it was a lot simpler than I believed.

I find others response to God is a similar thing. Convinced that getting their lives right with God is a terribly complex process frought with all sorts of personal hardship, self-sacrifice and a religious to-do list for which they are not good enough – they simply avoid the issue altogether.

But, God’s Message makes it clear. Salvation is as simple as taking the step of faith to say “Jesus is my Lord & Master,” and believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead.

 Painting by Mattias Grunwald (part of the Isenheim Altarpiece)
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