Luke 11:1-13

 Praying through the Lord's prayer. It is wonderful to think that the Lord gave us a model of how to pray and that we can use this as a way to guide our own thoughts and prayers. Sinclair Ferguson points on this reading for today that Martin Luther wrote a booklet for his barber when he inquired about how to pray. Luther told him he could turn each prayer into a praise and a petition. 

May we today take time to pause and pray and perhaps journal this out, that we could come before the Lord both in praise and petition! We read in Philippians 4:6-8 this exact truth. " DO not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."

Amen!

Luke 10:38-42

Today's study is incredibly powerful and convicting. Especially as women, many of us can not just relate but find ourselves in similar circumstances wearing the same shoes and attitude as Martha.

Sinclair Ferguson writes, " Martha has been 'Anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing was necessary,' (v41-42). Jesus wanted to deal with the way Martha had been distracted by the many things. The result was that she had lost her focus on Jesus himself. These things were vehicles for serving him. But in the process of Martha's serving, Jesus himself had been obscured. She had lost sight of the Savior in the service. Doing things for him had taken the place of being with him. That is after all the 'good portion' (v42)."

Truly remarkable. Even yet today, especially today it is easy to let service be what fills our cup rather than Christ himself. Our to-do list can become so big, we set aside reading the Word for a quick devotional because...we don't have time for that! We have things to get too! Or we wish the sermon on Sunday would hurry along because we have a roast in the oven and want to get home,or people are coming over and we aren't quite ready. The world tells us Jesus is not enough. It is a Jesus plus mentality. BUT God's word assures us that He is the perfect portion. He is our daily bread and water. He is our perfect peace. Jesus is not just more than enough; he is the reason we live and breathe! 

It can become almost habitual to not be satisfied with Christ. We look to the Word as dull and look to things and circumstances for our satisfaction and contentment. May we choose today to repent of these things! May we pray, that Jesus is our good portion all of the days of our lives, and that His Word is the daily bread our hearts desire and consume. 

The Road Less Traveled. (Luke 9:57-62)

 Luke 9:57-62

     In a very short passage we come across some very profound conversations. Ones that truly have eternal ramifications and ones that surely are worth us, 'pondering in our heart.' There are 3 conversations with Jesus as he is making his way to Jerusalem. Sinclair Ferguson does a remarkable job of laying out the 3 conversations. 1) Volunteers to come 2) One is called to come and  3) Volunteers. Each man is met with startling responses from the Lord. Ones that would not match what we make of Jesus today, this in itself is a huge reason to pause and think of these...do you make much of Christ, and do you know Him through His written word and not simply manifest emotionalism about how you feel about Jesus? I would like to focus on the first and third responses.

The first man rapidly says he will join, without thought to the consequences and hardship. Without weighing, considering or even knowing the cost he tries to jump in. Jesus tells him it will be hard. There will be no where to lay your head. As we consider the Lord's death and resurrection, we must honestly ask ourselves, "Am I in this for me or for Him?" Did I volunteer so I could add Jesus to my resume of good things I have done, do I serve a self made moralistic, therapeutic, deity, or do I serve the one true Almighty King?

The third man volunteers again. He would like to come but first say his goodbyes at home. Jesus responded quickly telling him that no one who puts their hand to the plough and looks back is fit for the kingdom. I love Sinclair Ferguson's explanation here. He immediately references when Elisha's response when Elijah called him to come work. (1 Kings 19:19-21) Elisha immediately sacrifices his bulls who he was plowing the field with and burns them as a sacrifice from the wood of the yokes they were attached too. His life changes immediately. He leaves everything for the sake of the Lord. 

Sinclair ends the reading with this wonderful question: What reservations do you have about Christ's Lordship in your own life? What gives you confidence that he is worth following?

Lentish

 Good morning! Welcome to our journey towards Goof Friday and Resurrection Sunday. 

I always hesitate to call this study a "lent" study, as I do not follow the practice in the way the word suggests. However, the thought and hope to set aside this time of 40 days to focus on the Lord is what we are defining it as. Lent...ish. 

During this time period, I pray that the scripture comes alive in our hearts, convicts us of sin, and draws us nearer to the Savior.

Sinclair Ferguson in the 1st two days of his book walks through Luke 9:51-56. He talks of Jesus setting his eyes on Jerusalem. May we observe Christ's journey closely as we read these verses. Write out 3 observations from the passage and examine closely your study notes in your Bible for context and clarification.