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  Genesis 37:29-36 Jealousy made Joseph's brothers want to kill him. But they decided, because "he is our brother," to just sell him off. That's interesting because, after they sell him, they dip his special robe in blood and take it home to their father. Then they tell him, “We found this; see now whether it is your son’s robe or not.” Your son. Not our brother. I wonder exactly when that choice of words came to mind. Joseph had stopped being their brother and become Jacob’s son. And maybe that’s how we learn to hurt people. The easiest way to mistreat someone, ignore them, dismiss them, or decide their suffering isn’t our concern, is to put some distance between us and them. We change the nouns. They’re no longer our neighbors. They’re those people. Not our children. Those kids. Not our community. That side of town. Not our brother or sister. Someone else’s problem. We've heard this already in Genesis. After Cain kills Abel, God asks, “Where is your brother Ab...

  John 13:12-17 Click here to listen to today’s devotional Jesus didn't just wash his disciples' feet. There's too much happening around the story for it to just be a lesson on humility. Before Jesus picked up a towel, John tells us something important that Jesus knew. He knew and understood that God "had given all things into his hands and that he had come from God and was going to God" (John 13:3). Secure in who he was and confident in what God had entrusted to him, Jesus took what had been placed in his hands and used those hands to wash dirty feet. The room must've been full of tension. Judas had begun to feel his betrayal. Peter was about to object. None of the disciples knew or understood what was unfolding. The Lord didn't explain what he was about to do. There was no leadership briefing. He simply stood up from the table, wrapped a towel around himself, poured water into a basin, and knelt before the first disciple. One by one, he washed every pair...

  Matthew 8:14-17 Listen to today's devotional This weekend, I'm going to become someone's in-law. So, today's reading has a little bit more connection for me. When Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law, the story moves along quickly. Almost too quickly. He touches her hand, the fever leaves, and Matthew tells us, “She got up and began to serve him.” I remember reading that the first time and feeling a little bad for her. At first glance, it can sound like Jesus healed her so she could get back to work. But Matthew isn’t describing an obligation she had, but a restoration Jesus gave her. Before the fever hit, she had a role. She had a place everyone knew and loved. A way of loving others through hospitality. So, as she lay in bed with a fever, her illness didn’t just take her strength. It took away her ability to participate in the life of her household. When Jesus heals her, he doesn’t simply make her comfortable again. He gives her life back. Service here is not some burd...

  Matthew 13:31–32 Listen to today's devotional This past Sunday was a busy one. I wasn't home for much of the day. Even in the evening, I had some things that I needed to get done. Before that, though, I took a little time to watch a bit of NFL football. Usually, I don't listen to the commentators, but I'm glad I had the volume up this time. A statistic that one commentator shared caught my attention. In the last five years, the player who has scored the most points might surprise you. It's not a highly-rated quarterback or wide receiver. It's not a powerful running back. I would've guessed it'd be one of those guys, since they score touchdowns every week to win games. But the highest scorer in the league is a kicker, someone who kicks field goals and extra points. That got me thinking about how the little things matter. Praying every day may not seem like much to you. Your Bible reading sometimes feels like it doesn't add up to much. Even the thing...

  Luke 12:41-48 Listen to today's devotional We all know how to think. We do it constantly. Ironically, without very much thought. A simple definition of thinking is "the action of using one's mind to produce thoughts." Your mind. Your thoughts. And isn't that where trouble can start? For the unfaithful slave in Jesus' parable, it was. Jesus first paints a picture of a master entrusting a servant to care for the others while he is away. Things turn when the slave "says to himself" things that don't reflect his master's will. Whereas the master wanted the slave to fulfill his concern for the others, the slave starting thinking more for himself. And, as the Internet world says today, he let his intrusive thoughts win. His thoughts are to neglect his responsibilities and abuse the others while he indulges himself. There was no prayer. No checking with the master's instructions. There was no accountability. That's what can happen when you...

  Luke 10:25-28 Listen to today's devotional There's no denying the totality of the greatest commandment. Keep praying and reflecting on what it means and you realize the weight of loving God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength and with all your mind. Now, if you give God your all, you might wonder what is leftover for anyone else. Thankfully, our  all  doesn't work like that. Your all isn't a measurement, but a posture. You give your all to God not so much in quantity but in devotion. Likewise, the love of God is not a reservoir that has the potential to run dry. It is a wellspring that always flows, pouring into us and through us, again and again. So, there is always something left to give to others. To be clear, establishing and protecting boundaries in your relationships is important. That, however, is a different conversation. Jesus once responded to a test from someone who already knew the right answer they were looking for. An expert of the law ...

Acts 11:27-30 Listen to today's devotional Many people have complaints about the church today. It surprises some that I share many of those same frustrations and critiques. And so some will wonder why I'd continue to be a part of such an imperfect institution. The answer is pretty simple. First, there are no perfect groups. If I left the church because of its imperfection, guess what I'd find anywhere else. Not even the first group Jesus started his church with was perfect. More importantly, I'm convinced the church is God's wisdom. Through our shared faith, the body of Christ lives and shares the peace of Christ with the world. We're not a non-profit organization. We're a prophetic people called to love and serve like Jesus. And we are at our best when we allow our love of God to guide how we care for others. Over the years, I've read a lot of church-growth literature. Often, it's business talk wrapped in a church banner. In all our focus on numbers...

  Acts 9:32-35 Admittedly, I should've waited longer to lead worship again after my transplant. Many of you were too nice to say it, but the videos prove it. I always struggle deciding where to put the line between persistence and stubbornness. I'm hopeful you can be faithful in both. Still, part of my healing was having agency again. Being able to do what I once did. That isn't always possible, of course. But in our helping and encouragement of others, don't we want people to have their lives back as much as they can? In Acts 9, Peter finds himself in Lydda. Some commentators suggest he has committed to searching for people in need as he travels. Whether that's accurate or not, in Lydda, Peter came across a man with a great need. Aeneas was his name, and for eight years his condition limited his life to his bed. When Peter saw him, he told him that Jesus healed him. Then he told him to make his bed. Such a simple thing to do. It takes me two minutes. I can't im...

  Isaiah 6:1-8 Click here to listen In Isaiah 6, the prophet doesn't just see a vision. He gets caught up in one, experiencing a glimpse of the majesty of God. In his vision, angels attend to the Lord. And they worship God. The atmosphere of their worship moves Isaiah. Initially, he's overcome with guilt. "I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips," he confessed. Then one of the angels flew to him, bringing a live coal to his lips. Some of our English translations may not capture exactly what the angel tells Isaiah. "Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out." That reads like a courtroom verdict. But the angel isn't just delivering a message. He was awakening a calling within Isaiah. What we might miss is how much the angel wants to get Isaiah's attention. The Message Bible offers one word that better communicates this: Look. Isaiah was to look what God had done. Look how grac...

  Luke 24:1-12 Listen to today's devotional I arrived at the church at 6pm for our Good Friday service. The service began at 7, so I wanted to be early. But I didn't know what early was. When we arrived, we noticed several chairs at the door to one of our buildings. People had already began lining up to enter. Except, they weren't there for Good Friday. They were there for the food pantry distribution we would do later. Like more than twelve hours later on Saturday morning. At our Easter sunrise service, I couldn't help myself. I had to make some corny joke about being at church so early in the morning. When I did, that line of people came to mind again. The women of Luke 24 went early to the tomb. I'm not sure if their timing had to do with proper ritual or their sense of urgency. Either way, they were drawn to the tomb at early dawn. That day, spices in hand, they went to serve Jesus in his death. Instead, they experienced firsthand the power of his resurrection. ...

  John 12:1-11 Listen to today's devotional My wife had a family member who sold perfume and cologne. He always had a good stock on hand. So, once, he gave me an entire box of cologne. I was set. When we left his house, I put the box in the trunk of our car. And then I forgot about it. Fast forward about a week or so later. I remembered the cologne. Not because it crossed my mind. But because the box had tipped over and several of the bottles busted. As I'm sure you know, there is such a thing as too much cologne. Way too much. Especially in a sedan. The smell lingered for weeks. At least weeks. When I read about the time Mary anointed Jesus, I remember that box of cologne. Of course, I see what she did for its beauty and prophetic insight. But there's one line in the story that gets me every time. After Mary brought her costly perfume, John 12 says, "The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume (12:3). My cologne wasn't an act of worship like Mary's....

  2 Kings 4:1-7 Listen to today's devotional When most people think of "the lectionary," they recognize it as a schedule of readings pastors use to order weekly worship. That’s true, but the Revised Common Lectionary (RCL) also includes daily Bible readings. Each morning, I reflect on these passages and choose one to share in our daily devotional. Often, common themes emerge, almost explicitly. Today is one of those days. Psalm 53 speaks of the fool who denies God and devours God’s people like bread. In Luke 9, Jesus feeds five thousand, telling his disciples, “You give them something to eat.” Then in 2 Kings 4, food appears again. But our focus is on the provision a widow receives from the prophet Elisha. She has lost her husband, and a creditor has come to collect. What can she do? Elisha even asks her, “What shall I do for you?” He instructs her to borrow "not just a few" jars from her neighbors and pour her remaining oil into them. Miraculously, the oil flow...