Devotion - Thursday, May 2

After two decades of sending these devotions, today will be my last.  Finals end tomorrow, and over the summer I will be stepping down from my position with LCM.  

I want to thank you for allowing me to become part of your morning and your life.  Your replies and questions and sharing have kept my faith life full and meaningful.  I will miss talking with you.  I will continue to pray for you, and ask that you would remember me.

This morning I am leaning heavily on what my theology professor taught me.  In a study of The Beatitudes, he helped me to understand "Blessed are those who mourn."  "Only those who have had a meaningful relationship have reason to mourn."  There is sadness only as an aftermath of having been blessed.

Truly, this is what I am experiencing.  

God remains, regardless of what actions we take or the interactions we have.  God remains loving and caring and always at our side.  Why mourn?

Again, thank you.  And God bless you.

Devotion - Wednesday, May 1

Daniel is an old testament book known for a lion's den and seldom little more.  Daniel is placed in that den because of his dogged devotion to God.  In that den, he is protected.  He is also put into a fiery furnace, again without any harm coming his way.

The story which surrounds these two events involves Daniel's ability to listen to God and to make known God's will.  Daniel is able to tell the King the meaning of his dream without having been told the dream.  

I was reading this morning from Chapter 2 of Daniel.  And these words stuck with me:

"Blessed be the name of God......

he gives wisdom to the wise

and knowledge to those who have understanding."

You have been studying and working very hard to amass the information now being asked of you on final exams.  But I would encourage you to have a bit of Daniel's ability to see these things as a gift from God.  The wise are typically ready to admit their wisdom is not self-obtained.  Those with understanding see knowledge as a precious gift passed on to them from those who have gone before.  

You are wise and possess knowledge.  Use these as the gifts from God intended to aid you in serving God and God's people.  Be aware of the value of this gift and treat it as a sacred trust rather than a tool for personal advancement.

Continue to study and prepare for your exams.  But also give thanks to God for the wisdom and knowledge enabling you to move ever closer to being a college graduate.  Actively look for ways in which these gifts can be used by God to create the world which overflows with God's love and purpose.