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Written by Lisa Harper, a contemporary author.

A few years ago I went to church with a young friend named Laurie who I met while volunteering at a faith-based, addiction recovery program. Laurie had turned her life over to Jesus after experiencing horrific abuse, which led to drug addiction and ultimately being arrested for possession with intent to sell. And like most of my friends in recovery, she is refreshingly honest. Even in church! After listening to the pastor preach for a few minutes about what a motley crew the disciples were – how they were largely uneducated, coarse, and mistake-prone men – Laurie elbowed me in the ribs and whispered loud enough for most of the congregation to hear, “Hey Miss Lisa, Jesus has a thing for losers, doesn’t He?” Although it’s admittedly informal, “Jesus has a thing for losers” could be an apropos subtitle for the Gospel according to Luke because his narrative reads more like Jerry Springer than Shakespeare! It’s replete with stories about Jesus engaging with outliers and outcasts like Samaritans, tax collectors, and the poor – people that ancient culture would surely have labeled as losers – yet the King of all kings lavished them with unconditional love and what some regarded as scandalous grace. A great example of our Redeemer’s counter-cultural compassion is found in Luke 18, which Luke frames in verse 9: “Then He told this story to some who boasted of their virtue and scorned everyone else.” In other words, the audience Jesus told the following parable to was a haughty group of yahoos who had the double whammy of being self-righteous and judgmental…It wasn’t uncommon in the First Century to lump tax collectors with sinners because ancient tax collectors – also called “publicans” because they collected public revenue on behalf of the government – were about as well-loved as dinner-time telemarketers! And to add insult to injury, they were infamous for charging whatever the market would bear and then skimming off the top before turning the coffers over to Rome. Which meant Jewish tax collectors built their bank accounts on the backs of their fellow countrymen making them the worst kind of traitors because their Beemers and fancy Mediterranean homes came at the expense of their friends, family, and neighbors. Yet Luke makes one of those ancient Jewish IRS agents the unlikely star of this story! The takeaway is: being reconciled into a right relationship with God isn’t based on our deservedness, it’s based on His divine grace. Human nature presumes that we have to earn favor with God. That we have to justify ourselves by checking off all the boxes on some sort of spiritual “to do” list. But the tenor and tone of our Redeemer’s earthly life and ministry prove otherwise. Luke paints a compelling portrait of Jesus opening the restorative refuge of His arms wide to include mistake-prone misfits and that is the really, really good news of his gospel account!

Prayer:

Written by Lisa Mojica, a contemporary writer.

Heavenly Father, thank You for Your incredible, infinite, and unfailing love. Even though I don’t deserve it, You still love me. Lord, help me to love the unlovable and the forgotten. Help me to see the best in people and to forgive the worst. Lord, help me to share Your love with the lost. Amen.

Written by Dawn Wilson, a contemporary author, publisher,  and director of Heart Choices Today.

To change our future, we must address bad habits. Good intentions aren’t enough. Changing habits is an ongoing work of God’s grace and requires our humble obedience. We observe what holds us back from pleasing and honoring the Lord. We learn to align our choices and behavior with Scripture. We heed the conviction and nudging of the Holy Spirit. Essentially, as author Priscilla Shirer says in the book Gideon, with God’s help we can “choose to convert our good intentions into obedient actions.” Perhaps instead of “change,” it would be clearer to say “exchange.” Years ago, a teacher taught me the “Replacement Principle.” It is biblical, he said, to chuck things that are foolish, unhealthy, and unholy, then cultivate habits that are wise, healthy, and godly. In our ongoing sanctification—God making us more like Christ—our part is to “put off” and “put on,” to put off evidence of the old self and put on the character of the new self. Imagine experiencing peace by putting off anger and bitterness, and putting on kindness and learning to forgive (Ephesians 4:22-32). Imagine the freedom in putting off immoral behavior and harmful addictions, and putting on self-discipline and holiness (1 Corinthians 6:9-20). That surely would change our future!

Prayer:

Written by Joyce Meyer, a contemporary author, speaker, and head of Joyce Meyer Ministries.

“Father, You know everything about me, and I can only begin to develop healthy new habits with Your help and strength. Please show me where to start. I ask You to direct my steps and uncover the things that I need to see about myself. Thank you so much for Your grace to change and make good choices for my life. In Jesus’ name, amen.”

Written by Carey Nieuwhof, a contemporary author, pastor, speaker, and podcaster.

It’s possible, Marcus Aurelius said, to not have an opinion.  In other words, you don’t have to let this (whatever “this” is at the moment) upset you. You don’t have to think something about everything. And that makes perfect sense, especially when it comes to the trivial or relatively unimportant things everyone is worked up about these days.  To rage at traffic, or a flight delay, or at how your sister-in-law messes up the dynamics in your family, what another preacher said last Sunday, or whatever some social media influencer you don’t like is raging on about, rarely does any good.  Social justice aside, the amount of angst you have over many issues rarely changes the outcome. In fact, take it one step further. The amount of angst usually doesn’t change the long-term outcome – it ruins it. Because the other person or situation isn’t changed by your frustration. Most of the time, they don’t even know about it.  Often, you are the only one changed by your frustration, and not for the better. In a letter to a friend, C.S. Lewis wrote: “I doubt if it’s the duty of any private person to fix his mind on ills which he cannot help. This can even become an escape from the works of charity we really can do to those we know.”

Prayer:

Written by James Lowry, a contemporary retired pastor and author. This is from his book “Prayers for the Lord’s Day.”

Lord God, few of us misunderstand you all of the time, but all of us misunderstand you some of the time: Your thoughts on happiness; Your ideas on giving; Your way of making whole. These are not always our ready choices. Give us faith, we pray, to risk a dangerous hope, to be ready to think as you teach, and to act as you lead. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Written by John Stonestreet, a contemporary author and president of the Colson Center.

How did God draw this Oxford intellectual [C.S.Lewis]? Convinced of his atheistic beliefs and treasuring the autonomy they afforded him, what compelled Lewis on the path to Christianity? According to Os Guinness, it was joy. “At its heart, [Lewis’] life was about longing—‘an inconsolable longing’—for something beyond human experience. Such longing was ‘an unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction.’”  Rather than a singular experience or moment of awakening that led him to faith, Lewis’ signals were the innate longings for joy that returned to him throughout the course of his life, longings that were acknowledged, but never quite fulfilled, by the joys of earthly things. Lewis experienced hints of joy through nature, music, imagination, and relationship, but “the Joy was not in them; it only came through them.” These signals pointed Lewis to something beyond themselves, to a Source of joy that could satisfy his deep hunger for it. Of course, by God’s persistent grace, Lewis would find what his heart longed for, and it would compel him to surrender his autonomy and turn to the God he had denied for so long. From staunch atheist to one of the most influential evangelists in Christian history, Lewis’ story testifies to the power of God to redeem even the hardest of hearts.

Prayer:

Today’s prayer is from the Daily Prayers of the Church of England.

Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.

For you have redeemed me, Lord God of truth.

Keep me as the apple of your eye.

Hide me under the shadow of your wings.

Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit.

In peace we will lie down and sleep;

for you alone, Lord, make us dwell in safety.

Abide with us, Lord Jesus,

for the night is at hand and the day is now past.

As the night watch looks for the morning,

so do we look for you, O Christ.

Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;

as it was in the beginning is now and shall be for ever. Amen.

Written by Morgan Harper Nichols, a contemporary musician, songwriter, mixed-media artist, and writer.  This is an excerpt from her book “All Along You Were Blooming.”

Never underestimate the power of an exhale.

There will be some nights
where you will look up and lose track of all the stars you see,
and there will be some nights
you can’t lift your head,
but in both
of those nights
and every other
night in between,
you are strongest
when you take
the time to breathe.

It takes courage
to live through heartbreak. Breathing is no small feat.

When you find yourself falling into the pit of anxiety, remember the ladder of hope that reminds you there is no reason to be afraid. There is still a way out of this, and you are still capable — not perfect, but capable — and you have permission to try to climb again. Even if your hands shake, and your knees are weaker from the fall, you can still trade your fears of tomorrow with hope for today: the courageous decision to climb on anyway out of the pit of anxious thoughts.

There is no reason to live afraid.

To breathe is brave.

There will be times when the last thing you want to do is hear

that you have
to keep going.
The last thing
you will want to do is feel

you have to keep pushing.

Let the breaths leaving your body second by second remind you

how seconds soon turn into minutes, and these minutes soon turn into hours and hours

then turn into days
and even though you once thought
you were stagnant,
you have made it
a miraculously long way through the darkness.

Prayer:

Written by Augustine of Hippo (354-430), an early Christian theologian and philosopher. He was the bishop of Hippo Regius (modern day Annaba, Algeria) and is viewed as one of the most important church fathers in Western Christianity.

Breathe in me, O Holy Spirit, that my thoughts may all be holy.

Act in me, O Holy Spirit, that my work, too, may be holy.

Draw my heart, O Holy Spirit, that I may love only what is holy.

Strengthen me, O Holy Spirit, that I may defend all that is holy.

Guard me, O Holy Spirit, that I myself may always be holy. Amen.

Written by John Eldredge, a contemporary author and lecturer. This is an excerpt from his book “Resilient.”

The Shallows of our being are characterized and ruled by the distractions of life. In the Shallows we flit from thought to thought, distraction to distraction almost unpredictably. You know how this goes – you’re driving down the road listening to a podcast on the intelligence of dogs when the host makes a passing reference to his birthday. Your brain seizes on this little inconsequential remark, and you suddenly remember you forgot your mother’s birthday, which leads to some panicked thoughts about how to make up for it and where you can buy a birthday card today. You think of the store that might have a card, and you recall that it’s next to a great taco joint, which causes you to realize how much you love carnitas, and in a matter of a few nanoseconds you are miles from the actual topic of the podcast.

Prayer:

Written by Debbie McDaniel, a contemporary writer.

Dear God, We remember today, the pain and suffering of the cross, and all that Jesus was willing to endure, so we could be set free. He paid the price, such a great sacrifice, to offer us the gift of eternal life. Help us never to take for granted this huge gift of love on our behalf. Help us to be reminded of the cost of it all. Forgive us for being too busy, or distracted by other things, for not fully recognizing what you freely given, what you have done for us. Thank you, Lord, that by your wounds we are healed. Thank you that because of your huge sacrifice we can live free. Thank you that sin and death have been conquered and that your Power is everlasting. Thank you that we can say with great hope, “It is finished…” For we know what’s still to come. And death has lost its sting. We praise you for you are making all things new. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

Written by Lewis and Sarah Allen. Lewis is a contemporary pastor and Sarah a teacher and women’s ministry leader. This is an excerpt from their work: “Resilient Faith: Learning to Rely on Jesus in the Struggles of Life.”

The hardest thing for struggling Christians to recognize is that church is exactly the community they need. So often, they feel it isn’t. Church, they tell themselves, is for the strong, the confident, the “at peace with God and man” believers. When Christians who are finding the journey hard really need to be part of the church, they convince themselves they should be anywhere but church. Is it the tempter at work, or is it just the natural instincts of discouraged people to isolate themselves? It’s both, of course. But this can’t be the final answer for exhausted saints. All Christians always need one another. The church is God’s masterpiece, the community in which his glory in Jesus is displayed (John 17:22; 2 Cor. 3:18). If we’re struggling in our faith, we simply need to get ourselves to that glory display… We see glory in the gathering of the church. As Christians come to worship, God comes to meet with his people. We both really do mean that. Years of church involvement can lead us all to be skeptics. We all are skilled at detecting insincerity, mixed motives, fixed smiles hiding pain or sin (most likely both). We all inwardly groan at clumsy leading, bad music, and bad preaching. Maybe some are dealing with wounds of unkindness from leaders and people alike. Sundays can be stressful. This much is true. What is truer still, amid the failure, is that Jesus comes to shepherd his people. Sunday by Sunday, as we sing, pray, hear preaching, celebrate baptism and the Lord’s Supper, and open our lives to one another, we encounter the glorious love of the Good Shepherd by his Spirit. The Lord who has died to win his church to himself delights to walk in her midst. There is a substitute for our isolated struggles, and it is the corporate gathering of the church. The weary need to hear this and believe it.

Prayer:

Written by Candace Crabtree, a contemporary writer.

God, help our church body to walk in a manner worthy of the calling You have given us. Help us in all our interactions with one another to have humble and gentle hearts. Grant us patience for one another, bearing with one another in love. Grant the Body of Christ unity. May we walk humbly with You, God, allowing You to show us our wrongs.

Written by Sarah Young, a contemporary author. This is an excerpt from her book “Jesus Calling for Moms.”

Lean on Me as you face the circumstances of this day. Whether or not they realize it, all people lean on — depend on — something: physical strength, intelligence, beauty, wealth, achievements, family, friends, and so on. All of these are gifts from Me, to be enjoyed gratefully. However, relying on any of these things is risky, because every one of them can let you down. When your circumstances are challenging and you are feeling weak, you tend to obsess about how you are going to make it through the day. This wastes a lot of time and energy; it also distracts you from Me. Whenever this happens, ask Me to open your eyes so you can find Me in the moment. “See” Me standing nearby, with My strong arm extended toward you — offering you My help. Don’t try to pretend that you have it all together or that you’re stronger than you really are. Instead, lean hard on Me, letting Me bear most of your weight and help you with your problems.

Prayer:

Written by Hannah Heather, a contemporary pastor.

God, you know that deep down I like to be, or at least appear to be, self-sufficient. I find it easy to pretend that I don’t need others, or even You sometimes.  But I know this isn’t true. Lord, show me my utter need of You. Show me the poverty of my own heart. Show me how to make the cuase of the poor my own. I yield my heart, my all, to You now.

Written by G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936), an English writer, philosopher, Christian apologist, and literary and art critic.

Yet He [Jesus] restrained something. I say it with reverence; there was in that shattering personality a thread that must be called shyness. There was something that He hid from all men when He went up a mountain to pray. There was something that He covered constantly by abrupt silence or impetuous isolation. There was some one thing that was too great for God to show us when He walked upon our earth; and I have sometimes fancied that it was His mirth.

Prayer:

Today’s prayer is from the liturgy for the Fourth Sunday of Lent.

Good and gracious God, You are light for our eyes. Good and gracious God, You are the air we breathe. You give us the voice to speak and a joyful song to sing. You are, O Good and Gracious God, Our path to peace. Amen

Written by Joseph M. Stowell, a contemporary writer, university administrator and church leader. This is an excerpt from his book “Why It’s Hard to Love Jesus.”

Loving Christ is a response – a response to His enduring, unwarranted love for us. His amazing grace motivates us like nothing else to live out our lives in unique and courageous ways that express our deep affection and honor for Him before a watching and often critical world. Why have martyrs gladly died and others lived in terrible situations with bold, uncompromising spirits? Such rare selflessness does not arise out of a sense of obligation. Commitment to duty does not provide sufficient resolve. When the chips are down or the stakes are high, mere commitment rarely works.

Prayer:

Today’s prayer is from “The People’s Prayer Book.”

Gracious God, in Jesus words

we are invited to be partners in his work

of witnessing to your kingdom on earth.

Keep our hearts, eyes, and ears open,

so that daily we will respond to your call.

With courage and humility,

relying on your grace,

may we be agents of healing,

bearers of truth,

and messengers of hope.

We offer this prayer through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.