Upper Room Daily Reflections

Generosity

Upper Room Administrator — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 06:01:14 +0000

Today’s Reflection

IN THE MID-1980s I was in college and volunteering with a church youth program to conduct retreats for high school students. About a dozen of us were finishing up a planning session one cold … night. As we stepped into the parking lot behind the offices, I could see my breath in the cold air. Each of us was bundled warmly in thick jackets, scarves, and gloves to ward off the chill.

As we stood debating in the parking lot about whether there was some place still open that might serve coffee and dessert, a man well beyond middle age approached us. He was dressed less protectively in loose-fitting, light clothes intended for a different season. His neck and head were bare. Despite the obvious cold, he whistled a happy tune. … When he was perhaps ten feet away, he regarded us and, in a very pleasant voice, said, “Pardon me, do you have any spare change for food?”

Our answers came quickly, “No.” “I’m sorry, no.” “Nope.”

He nodded, smiled, and gave us his blessing: “Have a nice evening.” He resumed his whistling and walked back toward the alley. Stopping at the dumpster, the man opened the lid and began to rummage through the garbage. How long this scene lasted … I really don’t know. Not one of us moved. We were frozen but not by the cold. Soon the man found a half-eaten sandwich and began to eat it as he walked away. Not one of us standing there commented on what we’d just seen and done. Not one of us went out for dessert.

All these years later I am still embarrassed when I recall this moment. As I reflect now on the things Jesus said and did, try as I might, I cannot find a single instance in the Gospels where Jesus said anything akin to, “Feed the hungry, unless you think they’re losers, lazy, or will use it to buy booze.” Jesus gave us no criteria for judging when not to give. He only called us to be generous.

-by Christopher Maricle
The Jesus Priorities

From page 82 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

How might you increase your capacity for giving generously to others? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

When Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said to him, “I am God Almighty; walk before me, and be blameless. And I will make my covenant between me and you, and will make you exceedingly numerous.”
Genesis 17:1-2, NRSV

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

For Your Spirit:

An estimated three million people around the world, in 100 countries and in 40 different languages, are reading The Upper Room daily devotional guide with you today. Consider a gift to grow this ministry as we reach around the globe.

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Gabriel Francis Possenti (February 27).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Prayer As Response To God

Upper Room Administrator — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 06:01:14 +0000

Today’s Reflection

HOW CAN WE LEARN to pray for our needs which our bodies signal to us? The first, deepest foundation of this prayer is the limitless love of God. We do not need to explain anything to God. We do not need to beg or to earn anything. We do not need to say “hear our prayer,” because God has heard our need before we ever spoke it. Indeed, our praying is a response to God already speaking within our hearts!

We do not need to beg God to have mercy on us, because we have already been told that God is love. From before the beginning of time, God has had mercy on us and longed for our response. These forms of prayer are, indeed, ancient liturgical phrases, still widely used in our liturgies as well as in our personal prayers. The problem with them, however, is that they imply that it is God who will change when we pray. … We do not need to search for God, because it is God who forever searches for us. It is God who says: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in” (Rev. 3:20).

-Flora Slosson Wuellner
Prayer and Our Bodies

From pages 38-39 of Prayer and Our Bodies by Flora Slosson Wuellner. Copyright © 1987 by Flora Slosson Wuellner. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

How does the image of God searching for you, for all of humanity, affect your spiritual formation? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

And a voice came from heaven, “You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.”
Mark 1:11, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Join Upper Room author Derek Maul in our Lenten eRetreat, Reaching Toward Easter. Log in anytime anywhere to this online retreat and find video, audio, and online conversation to keep you focused on Jesus through Lent. Learn more.

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Polycarp (February 23).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

You Are Loved

Upper Room Administrator — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 06:01:23 +0000

Today’s Reflection

IF YOU ARE UNSURE about your belovedness, I invite you to listen deeply to the Spirit of God. Listen to the Spirit whisper in your own depths that you are God’s beloved. And as you claim your own belovedness, begin to see others also as God’s beloved, so that we can participate in our belovedness together. We in the church are not God’s elite. God has no favorites. Remember that scripture says, “For God so loved the world.” Let us begin to see beyond race, beyond culture, beyond gender, beyond sexual orientation, beyond religion, beyond all these externals and see each other as God’s beloved. When we relate to others as God relates to us, our sense of being God’s beloved deepens even more.

-Trevor Hudson and Stephen D. Bryant

The Way of Transforming Discipleship

From page 25 of The Way of Transforming Discipleship by Trevor Hudson and Stephen D. Bryant. Copyright © 2005 by Upper Room Books. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

What keeps you from knowing you are loved? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, in order to bring you to God.
1 Peter 3:18, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Polycarp (February 23).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Breath Prayer for Fear

Upper Room Administrator — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 06:01:15 +0000

Today’s Reflection

When fear invades,
pervades,
paralyzes,
I remember Jesus’ love
and breathe a prayer.

I do not have to wait for courage;
courage is not a feeling,
but a response to Spirit.

I breathe out,
relinquish fear,
anxiety,
thank God for presence.

I breathe in,
receive peace,
and power in Spirit
to speak,
to move, to act,
to decide,
and to be courageous.

- Roberta Porter

Pocket Prayers for Courage

From page 14 of Pocket Prayers for Courage: Words of Faith for Difficult Times. Copyright © 2003 by The Upper Room. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Write your own breath prayer. Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

All the paths of the LORD are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his decrees.
Psalm 25:10, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Polycarp (February 23).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

The God Who Knows You

Upper Room Administrator — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 06:01:05 +0000

Today’s Reflection

GOD, YOU HAVE MADE ME and you know me.
I am empty and find myself in darkness so dark
that I am overwhelmed by its density. …
You alone know the thoughts that assault my mind.
You alone know my anxious ways.
You alone know the demands that haunt me unceasingly. …

God, where are you in all this?
You said that you would not leave me,
yet I feel abandoned and exposed.
Rescue me from me.
Quick, God, I can’t wait.
Send your Spirit to my rescue, in the name of love.
Amen.

-Juanita Campbell Rasmus
Alive Now, January/Feb 2012

From “Ash Wednesday” by Juanita Campbell Rasmus, page 43 in Alive Now, January/February 2012. Copyright © 2011 The Upper Room. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Are you observing a specific spiritual practice in preparation for Easter this year? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me.
Psalm 25:1-2, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Polycarp (February 23).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

A Meditation for Ash Wednesday

Upper Room Administrator — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 06:01:52 +0000

Today’s Reflection

Rebekah and I tell the following story from our epic trip “out West,” back when Andrew and Naomi were still snarky teens. We drove from Tampa all the way to Colorado and beyond, 6,800 miles over three weeks.

One day, in the middle of the Rocky Mountains, we signed up for one of those “abandoned gold mine” tours. The train took us a half-mile into the heart of the mountain. Eventually we came into contact with darkness on a level I had never experienced before. Our guide turned off all the lights until there was just one remaining. …

Close your eyes and put your hand two inches in front of your face,” the guide said. “Keep them closed. Now I’m going to turn out the single remaining light, and I want you to open your eyes after I count to three.”

The result was shocking. Not only could we not see our hands in front of our faces, we could see absolutely nothing at all. …

About thirty seconds later, our guide told us all to hold perfectly still and to be completely quite because he was going to light a small wooden match. When he did, the effect was amazing; we could see everything!…

My mind could not stop working as I thought about the effect that even one small spark of light will always have on darkness. As the Gospel of John says, “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it” (New Living Translation).

- Derek Maul
Reaching Toward Easter

From pages 14-15 of Reaching Toward Easter: Devotions for Lent by Derek Maul. Copyright © 2011 by Derek Maul. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Are you observing a specific spiritual practice in preparation for Easter this year? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; do not let me be put to shame; do not let my enemies exult over me.
Psalm 25:1-2, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Polycarp (February 23).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Transforming Discipleship

Upper Room Administrator — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 06:01:20 +0000

Today’s Reflection

JESUS’ GOSPEL is that life in the kingdom of God is now available, that we can live with God in the here and now and discover in God’s presence a radical new way of life. The gospel is not about getting into heaven so much as it is about getting heaven into us before we die. …

In Mark 1:17 Jesus says, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” On one hand, Jesus affirms the availability of the kingdom to everyone. On the other hand, Jesus, calls men and women into a journey of transforming discipleship. Both go together. …

We cannot experience the reality of the kingdom without becoming disciples. … Are you on the journey of transforming discipleship?

- Trevor Hudson & Stephen D. Bryant
The Way of Transforming Discipleship Participant’s Book

From page 33 of The Way of Transforming Discipleship Participant’s Book, A Companions in Christ resource, by Trevor Hudson and Stephen D. Bryant. Copyright © 2005 by Upper Room Books. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Where are you on the journey of transforming discipleship? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

God said, “This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth.
Genesis 9:12-13, NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Martin Luther (February 16).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

The Kingdom of God Is At Hand

Upper Room Administrator — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 06:01:03 +0000

Today’s Reflection

IN JESUS’ FIRST SERMON in Mark 1:14-20 he says to the disciples, “I’ve got good news for you: the kingdom of God is at hand.” He seems to say most simply that God is accessible and available to everyone. We are able to live with God in God’s kingdom even now. Can you imagine what this good news meant for people in Jesus’ time? They repeatedly had been told that only certain people were acceptable to God. Now they were hearing that God was accepting ordinary men and women into the kingdom, no matter who they were or where they were from. This was the gospel that Jesus preached.

Unfortunately, some of us grew up hearing a different gospel. The gospel I first heard went something like this: “Come to Jesus, get your sins forgiven, and get ready to go to heaven.” Please don’t misunderstand me. Getting our sins forgiven so that we can go to heaven is essential. But this is not the whole gospel that Jesus preached.

- Trevor Hudson & Stephen D. Bryant

The Way of Transforming Discipleship Participant’s Book

From pages 32-33 of The Way of Transforming Discipleship Participant’s Book, A Companions in Christ resource, by Trevor Hudson and Stephen D. Bryant. Copyright © 2005 by Upper Room Books. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

What does “the kingdom of God is at hand” mean to you? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

Then God said to Noah and to his sons with him, “As for me, I am establishing my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the domestic animals, and every animal of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark.
Genesis 9:8-10 NRSV

This Week: pray for those who are beginning a new spiritual discipline. Submit your prayer to The Upper Room Living Prayer Center or share it in the comment section below.

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Martin Luther (February 16).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Given to God

Upper Room Administrator — Sun, 19 Feb 2012 06:01:10 +0000

Today’s Reflection

I CAN STILL REMEMBER when I first gave myself to God. I was sixteen, wondering what life was all about and desperately looking for something that would give my life a sense of direction and purpose. … Just a few days before, a close school friend whose God-committed life had impressed me deeply, had told me about the Cross. He had explained to me that the crucifixion was Gods way of showing how much I mattered. I took my friend’s words seriously. Looking into the night sky, I remember saying something like this: “God, thank you for your love that I see on the Cross. I give my life to you. Please come into my life and do whatever you want with me.”

It was a profoundly significant moment for me. I did not see flashing lights, or hear voices, or feel goose bumps. But, from that moment on, I knew that in some deep way I had become different. No longer did I want to be at the center of my own life. I really wanted God to be God in my life.

- Trevor Hudson
One Day at a Time

From page 29 of One Day at a Time: Discovering the Freedom of 12-Step Spirituality. Copyright © 2007 by Trevor Hudson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Upper Room Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

Can you describe a point in time when you gave your life to God? Or would you describe your walk in faith differently? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

Then a cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud there came a voice, “This is my Son, the Beloved; listen to him!”
Mark 9:7, NRSV

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

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Martin Luther (February 16).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)

Spiritual Fast Food?

Upper Room Administrator — Sat, 18 Feb 2012 06:01:30 +0000

Today’s Reflection

AFTER FIVE MONTHS of my special needs baby girl being home from the neonatal intensive care unit, I found myself craving time alone with God. One morning, while in the midst of unending care-giving, I decided it was time to ask my mom to sit with her so I could find a moment of solitude.

It was a wet, chilly day. A light rain fell on my face as I stepped off the porch and walked up the hill into the middle of the woods. I stopped and stood there. The trees towered above. …

Holding out my arms, I said, “Here I am, God. All of me!” In that moment I realized just how broken I was. I was in desperate need of time alone with God. I sat down on a fallen log and God seemed to say, “Sit here and rest with me.” Fully available and undistracted, I opened myself to God — all of me, to all of God.

In our society today, we place such importance on convenience — from fast food to instant answers to devotionals on the go. Sometimes it seems like just another inconvenience to take time for solitude with God. But, I think, there is no such thing as spiritual fast food. There’s no substitute for the nourishment that comes from sitting alone with God in silent prayer, in reflection on scripture.

- Kristin Evans

Alive Now, July/August 2011

From “Spiritual Fast Food?,” pages 28-29 of Alive Now, July/August 2011. Copyright © 2011 by The Upper Room. All rights reserved. Used by permission. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.

Today’s Question

The season of Lent is fast approaching. Have you given any thought to what you might do for spiritual growth during its forty days? Share your thoughts.

Today’s Scripture Reading

And he was transfigured before them, and his clothes became dazzling white, such as no one on earth could bleach them. And there appeared to them Elijah with Moses, who were talking with Jesus.
Mark 9:2-4, NRSV

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

For Your Spirit:

Saints, Inc.:

This week we remember Martin Luther (February 16).

Lectionary Readings

(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)