Sunday review: May 2-7

In addition to the special Mothers Day reflections written by Dean yesterday, all the posts this week point us to the challenging contrast between God’s ways and ours. Choose one or two for your own remembering and reflection today.

May 2
What about the times we may feel like a failure or, worse, become jealous when someone else has success and we don’t. The disciples were trying to figure out why they couldn’t cast out a demon. They certainly weren’t surprised that Jesus could. But I bet they didn’t like it much that someone they didn't know might have had success casting out demons when they couldn’t. And that guy wasn't even in the group Jesus called his disciples. Maybe we, like the disciples, get a little prickly when someone else might be seen as better, greater, smarter, more talented, or more spiritual. Humility does not always feel good.
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May 3
Paul said God is a God of comfort. Some in culture want to dismiss God altogether, claiming him to be some evil puppeteer who insists on controlling people. Some see him simply as a rule giver, unnecessary to a culture that is progressing. But Paul’s experience (and I suspect yours as well) testifies to the fact that God is always sending us comfort through his Word, by his Spirit, and through each other who believe in him and know his Son, Jesus.
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May 4
What the psalmist prays in Psalm 90 can help us not simply pass time with regret but rather embrace time, determined to use it for good and for God’s purposes rather than our own. We will naturally gravitate to using our allotment of time on the things we enjoy. There is nothing wrong with enjoying our days and the pleasures of life. But this prayer suggests that ultimate joy and satisfaction come when we choose to make wise use of our time and not simply go with whatever pleasant pastime comes along.
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May 5
What a great joy to know that our labor is not meaningless. When we offer our work to God, he ensures that it will prove meaningful. You may wonder some days how that is possible. How can the insignificant work I do in an Excel spreadsheet bring a blessing to someone? How can the customer service I provide make any eternal difference? Yet the promise of Scripture is that when we offer all of ourselves including our work to God, he blesses it, celebrates it, and makes it useful in ways we may never know or see until we get to Heaven.
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May 6
We must be careful with the temptation to make the gospel fit the never-ending progression of what is right, fair, and best from the view of the world’s wisdom. If we are to follow Jesus, then we must hold tight to what he said and modeled and avoid the tendency to evaluate his words through the filter of current culture. And this will not be easy or popular, but it is essential if we choose to follow Jesus.
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May 7
Only in eternity will we understand the full impact of prayers offered by all the mothers of the world. They may not be as poetic as Hannah’s, but every mother’s prayers stir the heart and compassion of God even to this day.
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Photo by Priscilla Du Preez at Unsplash

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