Day 353: Heb 1:1 - 6:20

I think in our modern society, the comparison of Jesus as our high priest has somewhat lost its meaning. But for the Hebrew people, that description of Him could not have been more specific. The Hebrews were not only familiar with concept of the high priest, but they were eternally indebted to him because of the fact that their eternal well-being lied primarily in his hands. The priest was not simply a pastor like we today are familiar with. The high priest was the only connection that the Hebrew people had with God. If they needed anything from God, they had no chance of even asking without the help of the high priest. If they had committed sins and needed to ask God for forgiveness, they had no other option but to go to the priest. When Jesus died on the cross, he didn't eliminate the office of high priest, He simply placed Himself in that office so that we no longer had to go through an imperfect person to commune with a perfect God. We now have the opportunity to commune and communicate with God directly because the one connection we have with God is God Himself!

- Lord, thank You for sending Your Son to be our High Priest. Father, thank You for giving us the opportunity to connect directly with You so that we no longer have to go through a man to speak to our Heavenly Father! -

Day 352: Titus 1:1 - Phil 1:25

The book of Titus appears to be all about "doing good." One would initially assume that doing good would be at the very top of the average Christians to do list, but sadly, alot of Christians are too preoccupied with their own plans and their own agendas that they fail to focus on the simple acts of doing good. Paul encourages us in the book of Titus to do good not for our own sakes or so that we can get some sort of recognition or thanks, but to do good because we are representatives of Jesus and we are called to show love to others just like God is love. Until we as believers can get to the place where we are living our entire lives motivated in love, we will never fully reach the potential that God has called us to. These lives we live are meant to be given away and lived for someone else. We see in the Bible that we are commanded to strive to live our lives just like Jesus did, and I think we can all agree that He not only lived His life for others, but He was willing to give it all up so that we could be saved.

- Father, help me to not get tired of doing good. I know that You have called me and commanded me to live a life focused on other people and not myself. Thank You for the opportunity to reach the lives of others so that they might know the love that You have for them. -

Day 351: II Tim 1:1 - 4:22

It's important for all of us regardless the size of our ministry to not take lightly the importance of keeping strong relationships with other believers. Sadly, it seems to be fairly common for those who are in charge of some ministries to think that they should just go through everything on their own and figure it all out by themselves. But we need to understand that communion with other believers and relationships with them will not only make things easier on all of us, but those are the types of relationships that truly honor our Father in Heaven. None of us were meant to try this walk of faith by ourselves and God certainly doesn't expect us to try. God has blessed each an every one of us with plenty of opportunities to connect and network with other believers who have the same passions and visions and goals that we do and when we will connect with them and walk hand-in-hand alongside them, there's no telling how far we can take this Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

- Lord, help me to not despise the relationships with other believers that You have made available to me. Help me to be willing and excited to walk hand-in-hand with them so that together we can accomplish all that You have called us to. -

Day 350: I Timothy 1:1 - 6:21

I believe that there's alot to be learned from the dynamic between Paul and Timothy. It's obviously safe to say that Timothy and his ministry would definitely not have been what it was without Paul, but I would also venture to say that Paul's life and ministry would not have been the same had he not had someone life Timothy to sow himself into. I think alot of times believers tend to view themselves as a Timothy needing a Paul in their lives so that they can get some good advice and direction and that's all they need to grow themselves and their ministries. I believe that as important as it is for each of us to have a mentor so that we can learn and be shown the correct way to live out this Christian life, it's also important for each of us to find people whose lives we personally can sow into. We all need to realize that there comes a point when the only way to continue to "fill out cup" is to empty out a little bit into someone else's. This life as a believer is not to simply get all we can, but it is to sow into the lives of other believers so that together we can take this city, state, nation, world, and generation for Christ!

-Father, help me to focus on sowing into someone else's life today. As much as I may desire to advance my own ministry and my own relationship with You, I know that there is someone else out there who needs my help in order to what You have called them to. -

Day 349: II Thes 1:1 - 3:18

Sometimes it's a little difficult to read a book like II Thessalonians and try to write something about it because it isn't exactly one of those huge books full of the spiritual meat and potatoes that make it easy to write about it. But what it may lack in excitement and deep spiritual theology, it makes up for in encouragement. This book is certainly one that contains simple, practical encouragement that we all need regardless of where we are in our spiritual lives. I think perhaps we should take this example of Paul writing to the Thessalonians a simple encouraging letter and practice it in our own lives with those around us. Sometimes we tend to think that when we get around other believers we need to have some sort of deep, theological, life-changing word for them to take and change their entire lives with, but sometimes all we need is a little encouraging word to remind us that God is still watching over us and that His desire is to take care of us and bless the work of our hands.

- Father, help me to remember to encourage those around me whenever I have the opportunity. Lord, we all need to be encouraged now and again and I want to help spread that encouragement across my community. -

Day 348: I Thes 1:1 - 5:28

The book of I Thessalonians is a good book to read to be reminded that it's important to regularly evaluate our lives as believers and make adjustments accordingly. In general, we could agree by Paul's letter to Thessolonica was a positive one commending them on their faithfulness and solidarity in the faith, but it's interesting that he was also sure to give them a few specific pointers of things that they need to work on and focus on. All too often, Christians tend to look at their faith and relationship with God and assume that since there aren't any huge problems, everything is perfect, but we need to understand that it's not only healthy, but also essential to be aware not only of the things that we're doing good, but also the things to work on in order to truly live the life that God has called us to.

- Lord, help me to be mindful of the things that I need to change and improve in my relationship with You. Help me to never get to the point where I think that there's nothing left for me to work on because I know that a relationship with You is a progression and it's all about learning and growing in You. -

Day 347: Col 1:1 - 4:18

The book of Colossians is an excellent reminder of the fact that Jesus doesn't simply intend for us to make Him a small part of our lives, He wants us to make Him the primary focus of our lives. It's very easy for believers to take Jesus and throw Him into the mix with all of the other influences and and emotionally stimulating things in our lives, but we have to learn how to exalt Him high above anything else in our lives. Jesus is not just one of the benefits to living this Christian life, He is the absolute reason we live and we will never truly live until we've made Him the paramount center of our lives. Some of us even have to be reminded each and every day that He is the only reason we exist and He is the one Who will truly make our lives worth living. If you're at a point right now where you feel like perhaps you've put God somewhere far down the list of priorities, I would encourage you to read this book another time or two and make a decision today to put God back where He belongs in your life.

- Lord, forgive us for oftentimes adding You to the list of focuses and obligations rather than placing You at the very top of the list. You are the only reason we're alive and we need Your strength daily to be able to keep that priority. Thank You for Your grace and for loving us no matter what! -