Archive for January 2022

DAILY READING 2 Corinthians 2:12-17 FIELD NOTES Have you ever roasted garlic or onions on the stove or cooked bacon or fish in your house?  As these ingredients heat up, your whole house starts to smell of their pungent fragrance.  It permeates the whole kitchen and travels into nearby rooms.  In 2 Corinthians 2, Paul writes that “[Christ] through [Christians]…

DAILY READING Book of Job FIELD NOTES All of this talk about miracles raises some questions for me.  Job is one of my favorite books of the Bible because in it, Job asks some of the deepest, most challenging questions of God.  In the book, Job who is described as a blameless and righteous man loses everything-…

DAILY READING Acts 15:36-41 FIELD NOTES Yesterday our devotion was about some big, almost unbelievable miracles that happened in 2 Kings and Acts.  Today, what struck me in our readings, specifically in Acts is something smaller, really a minute detail.   Acts 15:36 says, “After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Come, let us return and visit the believers in every…

DAILY READING Psalm 102 2 Kings 4 Matthew 9:18-26 Acts 3:1-10 FIELD NOTES Have you ever had one of those days, or weeks, or months where you just find yourself constantly exhausted?  Constantly running on empty like you are just going around and around in a hamster wheel?  I found myself in just that spot this week…

DAILY READING Luke 19:41-44 FIELD NOTES This morning I glanced through some headlines in the news.  Far too many of them spoke of war, violence and genocide. In this passage in Luke, Jesus has just made his triumphant entrance into Jerusalem and as he looks around, he is moved to tears.  In the midst of his weeping, he…

DAILY READING Zechariah 7:9-10 FIELD NOTES Each of our daily readings this week focused on how to live out our Christian faith. We’ve learned that our faith grows hands and feet when we: respect legitimate authority include voices from all sides when we settle a dispute — especially those who feel wronged identify what belongs to…

DAILY READING Isaiah 1:17 FIELD NOTES Our reading for today is one short verse: “learn to do good; seek justice; rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.” In ancient times orphans and widows were among the most vulnerable members of society. Without a male head of household to provide for them and…

DAILY READING Psalm 72:12-14 FIELD NOTES Psalm 72 describes the reign of an ideal king and may have been originally used at a coronation or at the annual commemoration of a coronation. What are some characteristics of an ideal leader that this psalm describes? He or she employs justice and righteousness; and is a defender…

DAILY READING Matthew 22:15-22 FIELD NOTES In today’s reading, Jesus’ enemies sought to trip him up with a trick question, a question designed to make Jesus offend someone with his answer — either the supporters of Jewish independence or the Romans themselves. They cunningly asked him if it was “lawful” to pay taxes or not.…