Daily Devotionals
February 15, 2018
Walking through Lent as a Child of the Light
February 15, 2018
DAILY READING
This weekend’s reading: Luke 23:34
FIELD NOTES
In the past weeks Davis’s sermons on the Book of Daniel have enriched our lives. Now as we enter the season of Lent, we continue to find ways that Daniel speaks to our discipleship. First, we remember that what we do, how we live our lives every day makes a difference. The refusal of Daniel and his friends to take part in practices antithetical to their faith was an example and a sign of hope for their fellow exiles. They showed that God was still present with them in a strange land. Daniel 9 shows that prayer, acknowledging our sins, and understanding the Scriptures are what matters, even when all around us seems alien to God’s ways.
In Lent we renew our commitment to prayer and Bible study, and to walking in God’s paths, asking God’s forgiveness for the times we have not listened to and not heeded God’s words. The Gospel Song reminds us to pray, “Order my steps in your word, dear Lord. Lead me guide me every day.” Teach us your will, O Lord, because though hosts of evil may surround us, “God is real.”
The beautiful words in 1 John 1:3-10 assure us that we do not walk this way alone; indeed, we could not follow Jesus were it not for the Light of the One “in whom there is no darkness at all.” The writer makes clear that discipleship does not require abject sorrow or self-abnegation—not even during Lent. If we confess our sins, God is faithful and just to forgive. The good news of Jesus Christ “completes our joy” (v. 4). Therefore, let us wish each other a blessed Lent, and even a joyous one, as we learn again to “walk as a child of the Light.”
QUESTIONS FOR THE FIELD
- Daniel and his friends showed us what it is like to live as a child of God in an alien culture. What can we learn from them about living in our own culture, where a majority of people claim to be Christians?
- In what ways does our culture depart from Christian holiness?
- What does “walking in the light of God,” and “walking in the love of God” mean to you?
FAMILY FIELD TALK
- Sing or read together “I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light” from the Methodist Hymnal (#206) or online.
- How do we show God’s light to others?
PRAYER GUIDE
God our help, show us your presence that we may find – even in the wilderness places of our lives, even in the strangeness of a land that does not follow your ways – your springs of living water, your touch that makes us whole. In the name of Jesus our Savior. Amen.