Daily Readings at Southeast

Houses of Prayer; Houses of Light In anticipation of temple construction, David offers a remarkable prayer, a prayer that serves as a template or model for each of us as God's stewards. The prophet Isaiah later refers to that very temple as God's 'house of prayer' (Isa 56:7). And David himself anticipates that reality, declaring in Psalm 18:6, 'In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help. From his temple he heard my voice; my cry came before him, into his ears.' A house of prayer. In Psalm 18:28, David uses imagery that permeates Scripture, saying, 'My God turns my darkness into light.' An unmistakable message. A house of light. Pastor John Timmer relates a simple story about a house in need of light: “Once upon a time a man lived in a house without a window. Naturally, it was very dark inside his house. One day he said to himself, 'I'm sick and tired of living in a dark house. I want to get rid of the darkness. I want light i...

Living with the Consequences Repeated covenant-breaking has serious consequences. The flipside is that covenant-keeping has positive outcomes. Notice in this passage the central importance of Torah (law) and Israel's chronic recurrent problem of slipping back into all forms of idolatry. Modern Western society is permeated to its core with idolatry, with one particular ism extending its grasp beyond any other - materialism. Unchecked materialism has so infiltrated Christianity and other religious systems that it goes virtually unnoticed by the majority. Unless humanity, led by people of faith, can turn a corner quickly, the spiritual, interpersonal and societal consequences in today's interconnected world will hold us captive in ways ancient Israelites could have never conceived.  Following is a quotation from author, educator and environmentalist Bill McKibben's call for communities of faith to return God to the center of life: “Consumption is an issue uniquely suited for f...

  Equitable Distribution of Resources God told Moses that the promised land was to be distributed according to the relative size and needs of the various tribes: 'To a larger group give a larger inheritance, and to a smaller group a smaller one' (Nu 26:54). In this way, socioeconomic equity was ingrained in the DNA of Israel's agrarian economy. Biblical scholar Craig L. Blomberg observes, 'The ideal contrasts markedly with arrangements in other feudal kingdoms near Canaan in that day, in which by far the more common pattern was the concentration of vast tracts of land among the royal and aristocratic elites, leaving a majority of the people in considerable poverty.' Similarly, when we look to the New Testament, the book of Acts provides an outstanding example of how the equitable distribution of resources became an important characteristic of the early church (see Ac 2:42-47; 4:32-37). Today the same principle should govern our financial decisions. Second Corinthian...

   Day 21- Peace Instead of Strife   God’s Word Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.  Matthew 5:9 (NIV)   Today’s Thought Are you a peacekeeper or a peacemaker? Peacekeepers often avoid conflict to keep the peace. Usually, peacekeepers would rather avoid dealing with the issues rather than work through the issues. They would rather not stir the pot or create more problems. Their goal is to avoid the elephant in the room. On the other hand, peacemakers are committed to working through the issues to keep peace in their homes and in their relationships. The only way we can successfully do this is to look to Jesus, the "Prince of Peace."   One of the principles Jesus taught in his famous "Sermon on the Mount" was this truth, "blessed are the peacemakers." Notice he didn't say, "Blessed are the peacekeepers." As followers of Jesus, one of the greatest lessons we can learn from this "be attitude" is knowing ho...

Day 20- Peace Instead of Fear   God’s Word “I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.”  ‭‭John‬ ‭14:27‬ (‭NLT‬‬)   Today’s Thought In this passage, Jesus knew he was about to die, depart from this world, and ascend to be with the Father. It is so amazing that He says, "I'm leaving you a gift." This gift was peace of mind and heart. This was His Legacy. He was giving us peace with God and the ability to have peace in our minds. Anxiety and fear are very real things, and they are at an all-time high in our culture today. We've never had so many self-help tactics, workout programs, and pills at our disposal, but we still can't seem to find peace.   It's been said that FEAR stands for "false evidence appearing real!" The enemy of our souls has one thing in mind: to kill our hopes, steal our peace, and destroy our future. Jesus, the one who created peace and ...

Day 19- Peace Instead of Worry   God’s Word Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.  Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)   Today’s Thought What consumes our minds controls our lives. Nothing weighs heavier on our lives than fear, stress, anxiety, and worry. Have you ever stopped to think about what stress is? It's a response to pressure or a threat. Stress can negatively impact our lives spiritually, mentally, emotionally, relationally, and physically. Stress triggers a hormone called adrenaline that temporarily affects our nervous system. The number one source of stress in our lives is worry. Nothing good comes from worry. Jesus said we can't even add a single day to our lives by worrying  (Matthew 6:27) .   When you think about it, worry exagger...