Devotion: Being Family

 You will win! Amen!!!!!

Daily Bible Verse

But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD. ~Genesis 6:9

Daily Inspiration

God bestowed His grace upon Noah and his wife, and his sons, and his sons’ wives, and these 8 only were saved from the worldwide destruction of the Great Flood. Having found grace, Noah walked with God (verse 9).

Daily Prayer

O Lord, let us find grace in Your sight. Let us then walk in that grace wherein we stand. And even as Noah obeyed You and saved others in the ark he built, even so may You use to help others find refuge. Amen.

Lord, lead me to a successful life!!!!!

Being Family

By Frances Taylor

Being Family: Let us all pray for our families in a special way today. ~Luke 2:21-24

What does it take to be “Family?” For me, it means love, forgiveness, compassion, courage and sacrifice. Today we see Mary and Joseph bringing the baby Jesus to the temple to complete the purification rites according to the law of Moses. They are greeted there by Simeon, who realizes that he is in the presence of the promised Messiah, and by Anna, who has spent many years worshipping in the temple and also seems to recognize Jesus as the Messiah. What must Mary have thought when Simeon told her that a “sword would pierce her heart” even as this child was to do great things?

As a mother I am sure that every parent’s heart is pierced by a sword at some time or another. I am equally sure that every adult and child’s heart will at some time also b pierced by a sword because that is the price of love. The broader our definition of family, the more we are called to be open to suffering. We have our nuclear family, our extended family our friends, our neighborhoods, our parish, our community and also the all-inclusive family of God. Our hearts break when we hear of tragedies even when we don’t know the people involved. We work to end violence and discrimination even when we are not the victims.

The poet John Donne said it well in his poem, “No Man Is An Island.” We are all connected to each other. When Mary said, “Yes,” to the angel and Joseph welcomed Mary and the child yet to be born into his home, they both knew at some level that there would sacrifices to make. This did not stop them from accepting what was to come. Let us all pray for our families in a special way today – living and dead, far near, known and unknown to us, because God has called all families to “Holy.”

Prayer

Loving God, bless us and our families, both living and dead. Give us the grace to be forgiving and accepting of the faults and failings of those we love. Help us to reach out to other families who are in need. We thank You for giving us the example of Joseph and Mary as they nurtured Your Son, Jesus, Our Lord and Messiah. Amen.

God is my Provider, today, tomorrow, and always!!!!!

When You Are Lonely and Fearful

And the LORD God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. ~Genesis 2:18