seminarygal

My Vision of God’s Faithfulness-Lent 15, 2020

March 13, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: God’s faithfulness inspires confidence

How beautiful Father, that You are a God of covenants. You didn’t have to make a covenant between Yourself and all life on earth that never again would all life be destroyed by a flood. We praise You that there is nothing we add to this covenant and there’s nothing we could do to cause You to break it. You are faithful! May we go through each day aware of the confidence we can have in Your love, of Your grace, and in Your salvation through knowledge of Your faithfulness. This week, I’ve had cause to think about the fossil records of fish eating a reptile and fish eating fish fossils and animals giving birth fossils and how fish that die naturally float instead of sink and I’ve been prompted to consider how a Great Flood could bury fish and reptiles with sediment so quickly we could have a snapshot of these events in our fossil record. I believe in Your creative act in designing our world. I believe in Your judgment against sin during the Great Flood and promised at Your return. You are faithful! I believe in Your rescue planned before time began. Thank You for sending Jesus as our Deliverer. We praise You that He saves us from the wrath to come! I ask that the words I write and speak each day will draw others to acknowledge Your faithfulness and receive Your forgiveness and grace. You’re amazing, Lord. Be magnified today! Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of God as Preserver-Lent 14, 2020

March 12, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Ways in Which God Preserves Us

Lord God of all Wisdom, we praise You that it is not in Your nature to be wasteful and not in Your character to make mistakes. You are generous and perfect and holy and just. We thank You for patterns You give us in the Bible by Your design. That You could experience sorrow at having made man given what we did with Your gift of life. When I read that You regretted having made human beings on the earth, and Your heart was deeply troubled, it’s not Your character or design that was flawed. It was human sin that caused both. Yet we rejoice that instead of casting all of earthly creation into destruction, You decided to save some through the great flood. You saved man and You saved animals. Plants weathered the flood as did the fish by Your design. Indeed even Noah and his family found favor in Your eyes. Moreover, we praise You for the pattern of salvation that this established for the deliverance yet to come. We praise You for Your patience and not wanting any to perish. We praise You that Jesus has paved the way for us by faith in Him. You are good, Lord. And we praise You in Jesus’ Name. Amen

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of God’s Protection-Lent 13, 2020

March 11, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Protection, Not Punishment

Thank You, Father, for the protection You gave mankind, that You didn’t allow us to eat from the tree of life and live forever in a sinful state. Help me to see this as discipline and protection … and not as punishment. Living forever in a sinful state would be almost as bad as hell. Drive that point home to me. Strife. Forever. Crime. Forever. Pain. Forever. Misery. Forever. Divisions. Forever. Hatred. Forever. The only thing missing would have been death and replaced by living forever as a living hell. Therefore, in Your Wisdom, Lord, You gave us consequences and protection, gifts both, from Your hand of mercy. Yes, death has been a consequence that followed as “surely die” that You forewarned. But even so, death has always been in Your eyes, an enemy to be defeated with Your unassailable battle plan, defeating death Yourself. And for us, Lord, You have provided a way back to Yourself and to eternal life from the very beginning even as we experienced banishment from Your holy presence. We praise You that You are merciful and forgiving! We praise You for Your wise and wonderful plan for salvation! We praise You for the sinless perfection of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior in whose Name we pray. Amen

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Agreeing With God About Sin-Lent 12, 2020

March 10, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Gaining a more biblical view of my own sin

Holy Father, Almighty God, You have every right to be repulsed by human sin and to find sin offensive to Your holiness and perfection. You are always righteous in everything You do and I need Your help to see my sins as You see them. May Your Holy Spirit teach me the gravity of the sins which seem small on a human comparison level, but are amplified by my committing them against, not just man, but my eternal God and Savior. If my sins were not a big deal, Jesus wouldn’t need to have died for them. Help me to see this is the cost of even the tiniest transgression. In You is all Truth and Wisdom, all Love and Mercy, all Perfection now and forever more. Remind me that You are also forgiving when I condemn myself over my sins…and that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. I thank You for Your mercy and the forgiveness You purchased for me by the blood of Your Son Jesus. Thank You that Jesus bore all the wrath against sin, and I am forever grateful He forgives the sins I have committed. I’m sorry for the weight of sin I contributed to the wrath He bore for humankind. Thank You that even though my sins are like scarlet, they have been washed white as snow in the cleansing blood of Christ and by His forgiveness, my sins are removed as far as east is from the west. Thank You, Lord, for the assurance in Your Word. I praise You, Lord. I thank You for Your mercy. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of God’s Commands-Lent 11, 2020

March 9, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Why We Should Honor God’s Commands

Almighty God, Father in heaven, forgive me for those times when I view Your commands as being restrictive, limiting, and too hard to obey. Help me to see there is freedom in Your commands. There is peace with You and peace within as I obey them. Your commands are always worth honoring and all of mankind could save ourselves tremendous heartache and a world of problems by having obeyed them back in the Garden of Eden and today. Open my eyes to the life and light in obeying You. Give me a heart to know that Your commands are a discipline of love. Thank You, for forgiving me when I fail, for taking me back when I’ve wandered, and for seeking me when I was lost. There is no hiding from You when I’ve failed to live up to Your commands. There is no such thing as a secret sin. Help me to fear Your judgment, knowing all things of my life will be laid bare before You as they are already known by You. I deceive only myself when I try to hide. Please help me to keep short accounts with You, repenting quickly when Your Holy Spirit brings things to mind. I want to follow Jesus and to live as He did. Help me to find life in Your commands. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Sabbath-2-Lent 2020

March 8, 2020 No Comments

Meditation Focus: The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath

This year’s Lent Devotional Series: Be Thou My Vision resumes tomorrow after today’s Sabbath rest to meditate and worship.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Boundaries-Lent 10, 2020

March 7, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Boundaries are an act of love

Thank You, Father, for giving us boundaries for our health and our protection. May we never look at Your commands and requirements as being burdensome or feel a resentment over Your desire for our holiness. May we always see that Your holiness–and desire for us to be holy as well– are the loving reasons behind Your establishing boundaries for mankind. When we might feel tempted to listen to our adversary who points to Your boundaries and hints that You are withholding what is good, strengthen us in Your Word. By the power of Your Holy Spirit may we persevere in holiness, confident that You alone are good. Give us assurance that Your boundaries are an act of love. Be with us this day. Remind us of the consequences of breaking Your commands and the blessings that are ours in Christ. Nothing can separate us from Your love in Christ, and for that we praise You. Any boundaries You have established are for our safety and preservation. We thank You for this display of Your love! Preserve us in the power of Jesus Christ, in whose Name we pray. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Your Glory-Lent 9, 2020

March 6, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: God’s Glory in Creation

Lord Jesus, help me to see Your glory as it is reflected back to You in Your creation. It’s beautiful that You rested on the seventh day, that space and time for resting was blessed by You, and You called it holy. Your creation will be forever reflecting Your glory back to You. There is still so much good and beautiful in this world even though it must grieve You that it has been marred by human sin. As I admire the night sky filled with stars and a moon seeming to smile from the heavens, and as I shield my eyes from the brilliance of the sun that gives off light and heat even all these years since You created them, I’m filled with wonder at the work of Your hands. Help me to see that there’s beauty in work. Help me also to rest from my work so that I may have space to reflect on all that You have made and all that I can do by Your grace. I’m amazed how You designed mankind that way. You gave human beings minds and hands and You give us strength, innovation, and creativity. Forgive me for the times I take credit for my work as if I had ownership instead of stewardship responsibilities. Forgive me for the times I feel my work is too important or too critical to set it aside to honor Your Sabbath. Give me wisdom to know when to work, and when to rest. May all I do bring glory to You and may I set apart a time and space to rest and reflect on the glory which is Yours alone. In Christ’s Name. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Fatherly Love-Lent 8, 2020

March 5, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: A Father’s Love

Thank You Father, that I am deeply loved by You even though I don’t deserve it. I praise You Father, that You know my frame, You know my weakness, You know how much I can bear, and that You never give me more to bear then I can do with Your grace to carry me. So I thank You for Your Fatherly love and Your compassion that feels the pain of my circumstances every bit as much as if it were happening to Jesus. I thank You, that as the pioneer and author of our faith Jesus experienced everything just as we do and yet was without sin. We praise You for His sinless life. We praise You for His perfect sacrifice. We thank You that He is able to see us through life’s difficulties, giving us strength and power to endure. I praise You Lord that though I am as dust of the earth–my body destined to die once– I praise You that You still love me. Even though I am as insignificant as can be, I thank You Lord Jesus, for the love of the Father that compelled You to the Cross. Not anything I bring as dust of the earth, but for the love of God’s image in humanity displayed perfectly by You throughout Your earthly ministry. I ask, Father, that You would strengthen me for the journey ahead, that You would encourage my heart when I’m downcast, and that You would lift my head in heavenly hope and fatherly encouragement. Surround me by other members of the body of Christ whom You have placed in my life and let me encourage them in return. During difficult times I praise You. During good times I praise You. I thank You that Your mercies are new every morning and that You love us with a Fatherly love and compassion. We are blessed, Lord, as Your Word says when we persevere under trials because we will receive the crown of life that You promise. Night or day, Lord, we can come to You because Jesus opened the way through the curtain so that we could approach the most holy place in prayer. We praise You and thank You for Your Holy Spirit who guides and teaches us, who helps us in our difficulties, so much that we can consider it pure joy and take the trials that we’ve experienced and turn them into a ministry of comfort for others. Thank You Lord, that You never leave our side. I thank You Lord. May all thanks and praise return to You as glory. In the mighty Name of Jesus Christ Your Son and my Savior. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.

Articles and Devotionals, Devotionals

My Vision of Community-Lent 7, 2020

March 4, 2020 No Comments

Prayer Focus: Being Better Together

Lord God, forgive me. You know how often my heart prefers solitude. To go it alone. To be my own master without having to take into account anyone else. To long for the simple life of selfishness that seeks the satisfaction of only one person’s concerns: mine. The minute another person enters my arena, life becomes more complicated, more complex, and frankly, I have a tendency to see it as being less satisfying. The truth is You said that it’s not good for us to be alone. When we’re separated from the beauty of community, we’re like embers separated from the fire, we darken and cease to provide comfort and warmth in the presence of others. The truth is, Lord, I am always in community with You as I seek to follow Jesus Christ all day, every day. His concerns are supposed to be foremost in my mind and I do try to seek Your will continually. You are my Father in heaven. I want to bring glory to You through Your Holy Spirit as my ongoing advocate and counselor. I fall short. A lot. It’s hard to see clearly through the forest of personal preferences, preferred life styles, forged agendas, and layered objectives. Sometimes I can’t even see that I’m missing the mark of community. But You call me to see the beauty in it. The beauty in friendship. The beauty in the family of Christ. The beauty in relationship. It’s only sin that has broken what You designed to be perfect and harmonious. Help me, Lord, to know the way relationship can be when it’s without sin. When it’s all love and grace and holiness. When it’s perfection. Help me, Father, to see through and beyond all that is sin and instead to see You and others with Your eyes. Help me to know the value of community so great in Your eyes that You’ve made an eternity of its perfection possible through the sacrifice of Your Son Jesus. By His blood, You’ve created a kingdom and a priesthood from sinners. By His blood, You’ve made family from aliens and strangers. By His blood, You’ve washed away our sins. By His blood, we find forgiveness and restoration in Christ. Help me, Father, to live like Your child, bearing Your image, for my good and Your glory. Amen.

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If you’re already signed up on my Home Page sidebar to receive posts, you’ll get the 2020 Lent Devotionals automatically. Or you can “Like” Seminary Gal on Facebook and they’ll be delivered to your Facebook news feed. If you haven’t signed up, today is a great day to do so. Advent and Lenten devotionals remain among my most popular offerings. You don’t want to miss this encounter with God to prepare your heart for Easter! Understanding that prior years’ devotionals remain popular, you may want to have access to a full series ahead of time:

Lent 2013 looked at The Letter to the Romans: Paul’s Masterpiece to reclaim foundations of our Christian heritage and began February 13, 2013.
A very special and ever popular offering was Lent 2014’s Be Still and Know that I AM God which can be obtained through the archives beginning in March 2014.
Lent 2015 began on February 18, 2015 with a series entitled With Christ in the Upper Room: Final Preparations. We explored what is often called “The Upper Room Discourse” found in John chapters 13-17.
ReKindle, the Lent 2016 series, began on February 10, 2016 and encouraged us to rekindle our spiritual lives.
Light: There’s Nothing Like It was the 2017 Lent series and explored this metaphor often used to portray Christ. It is archived beginning March 1, 2017.
Lent 2018, we explored the questions of Pi and Chi (the Greek letter beginning the word Christos, which means Christ, Messiah, the Anointed One). We asked and answered the questions “Why?” from the movie Life of Pi as we discovered the uniqueness of Jesus Christ in a world of many faiths.
Lent 2019 gave us a deeper window into Easter “More to the Easter Story” since we miss so much when we rely only on a superficial understanding of the work of Christ. These devotionals are archived beginning March 6, 2019.