Month: March 2017

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PWTE Daily Devotion

Screen Time vs. Dream Time

Finding hope in the promises of God.

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“There is hope for your future, declares the LORD, and your children shall come back to their own country.”
Jeremiah 31:17 New Living Translation

If people gave me a nickel for every minute I’ve spent looking at my cell phone screen, I’d be a wealthy man. In fact most of us would be. Research suggests that we spend nearly one third of our day on our phones. Whether we spend more or less time on our phone, one thing is for sure:  smartphones have changed how we spend our time and how we see our world.

My six-year-old grandson, Eli, is already proficient at using a cell phone.

Janice and I had taken Eli and his brother, Nolan, to the sculpture park in Loveland, Colorado. We went there so that Eli could play Pokémon Go on his father’s phone. We walked the paths in the elusive quest for the Pokémon. Toward the end of our time, Eli sat underneath this sculpture of the Boy Shepherd; at least, I think that was its name. There was an obvious contrast between Eli and the sculpture. The shepherd boy is dreaming about his future, while Eli is focused on the here and now.

Are we losing the ability to look to the future with hope? Are we so focused on our screens, on what is in front of us, that we can’t see God’s promises for the future?

The nation of Israel had been taken captive by the Assyrians, the nation of Judah by Babylon. They might have lost hope in their captivity by focusing on the things their eyes could see instead of on God’s promises. However, God had a plan for his people to bring them back from exile.

God has plan for us that one day we will rest in peace in his presence. May we keep our eyes focused on that promise where we will find hope to dream.

Text and Photo Copyright Douglas P Brauner

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PWTE Daily Devotion

Going The Distance

It Is Finished!

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“When He had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With that, He bowed His head and gave up His spirit.”
John 19:30

It had been a long cold day with the wind blowing, and now the rain began to fall.  It was almost dark and my siding crew had been pushing to finish the last side of the house.  Up and up went the scaffold, up and up went the work. Finally, with one last piece, we were done.  Everyone sighed with relief and put the tools and equipment away.  It was good to be done!

The Lord Jesus had come to do the Father’s will.  He had set his face toward Jerusalem, the cross, and the saving of the world.  Through the arrest, the beatings, the mock trials, the mocking, and the Way of Sorrows…Jesus kept His face set toward the end goal.  Through the pain, the nailing, being forsaken, the forgiving, and the thirsting…Jesus kept His face set toward the end goal.

Then with one last breath, Jesus utters, “It is finished!” He sighs and dies.  It is so very, very good that it is done.

The Lord of heaven and earth has given up His life for the sins of the world, for your sins and mine.  Just as no job, no task, was ever so grueling, so no job was ever so important.  By His wounds we are healed.  By His blood we are cleansed.  By His pain we find rest.

On Calvary, the gory job of crucifixion is over.  However, the glory has just begun.  For the Son of Man has been lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.  It is so very, very good!

Photo and Text copyright Steve Nickodemus

Categories
PWTE Daily Devotion

Digging Deep for Hope and Encouragement

The blessings of scouting the Scriptures

You can listen to today’s devotion by clicking on this SoundCloud link.

“Such things were written in the Scriptures long ago to teach us. And the Scriptures give us hope and encouragement as we wait patiently for God’s promises to be fulfilled.”
Romans 15:4 New Living Translation

I believe that is a female Dark-eyed Junco, but I needed help to make that determination.

Our friends, Mark and Sarah, stopped by our house recently. I was scouting through pictures on my camera of birds feeding at our bird feeder when they arrived. Having positioned my camera on my tripod, I used an intervalometer set to take one picture every second (I took over 2,000). 99% of the pics didn’t include any birds. Then I saw this picture on my camera’s LCD. I didn’t know what this bird was.

Sarah retrieved her bird identification books out from her car and pulled up a couple of apps on her phone to try to identify the bird. Was it a sparrow, finch, grosbeak, or some other bird? It took us some digging but we finally discovered that it was a female Dark-eyed Junco.

We were determined to find the answer.

Would that we had the same determination to dig into God’s Word to discover what he desires for our lives! What does God want us to know about who he is? What does God want us to know about his mercy and grace in Christ. What does God want us to know about ourselves? All of these important questions are addressed in the Scriptures, but do we dig, do we really want to know the answers?

I know a number of people who do, and like Sarah, they constantly dig into God’s Word because they have experienced the hope and encouragement that comes from digging deeper. This doesn’t mean that they always like what they hear in the Bible, but it will always lead them to Christ.

In Christ we experience hope. In Christ we are encouraged.

Text and Picture Copyright Douglas P Brauner