Day 95 Bible Readings – Luke 10: 40-42 (ESV)

 Deuteronomy 2: 24-37, Deuteronomy 3, Deuteronomy 4: 1-14, Luke 10: 25-42, Psalm 58

 Luke 10: 40-42 (ESV)

“But Martha was distracted with much serving. And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

I love the story of Mary and Martha which is shown in verses 40 through 42 from Luke 10. At certain times in my life, I was doing a lot of work in the churches I belonged to and I became resentful of the people who didn’t help out in the church. At those times I probably spent more time serving and doing the business of the church, than sitting and strengthening my relationship with Christ. When I look back at those times, I know I would not have been become resentful if I spent more time reading my Bible and spending time with Christ. So I understand Martha’s frustration with her sister Mary, since I felt that same frustration. But I also understand why Jesus said to Martha that Mary was doing the right thing. As people of faith, we must remember to always spend time with Christ to strengthen our relationship with him. Spending time with the Lord is the most important duty we have to God. If we do not do that, then everything else that we do for God will become a duty and not feel good. Our time with God gives meaning to everything we do, and if we forget that then we will become like Martha.

Day 94 Bible Readings – Luke 10: 2-3 (ESV)

Deuteronomy 1, Deuteronomy 2: 1-23, Luke 9: 57-62, Luke 10: 1-24, Psalm 57: 1-11

Luke 10: 2-3 (ESV)

“And he said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go your way; behold, I am sending you out as lambs in the midst of wolves.”

In verses 2 and 3 from Luke 10 Jesus tells the people he appointed to spread his teachings, to pray to the lord for help and to be a like a lamb. I love that Christ recommended that when we want talk to someone about our faith, we need to always pray to God and Holy Spirit and for other people to help us reach that person. It may take several people sharing or demonstrating their faith with someone before they can start their faith journey. Christ also recommended and we have the attitude of a lamb, which some Bible commentators have said means that we are meek and trusting of God like a lamb and that we do not try to abuse or manipulate the people with whom we are sharing our faith. I love these recommendations from Christ because it means that we can simply share our faith with people, without needing to have results or ever feel like we are a failure. Leading a person to Christ takes prayer, many people, and a trust in God that we are always doing the right thing, and God will use everything for his plans to achieve the results he wants in that particular person’s life.

Day 93 Bible Readings – Luke 9: 49-50 (ESV)

Numbers 35 & 36, Luke 9: 28-56, Psalm 57: 1-6

Luke 9: 49-50 (ESV)

“John answered, “Master, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he does not follow with us.” But Jesus said to him, “Do not stop him, for the one who is not against you is for you.”

I love the answer Christ gave to his disciples John when asked about someone who was casting out demons in his name but was not a disciple of Jesus. Jesus said they shouldn’t have stopped the man because he wasn’t against them. The authors of my study Bible noted that Jesus was reminding John that God has always used unexpected people to fulfill his purposes and his plans. We cannot judge people as bad just because they are not part of our group. This makes me wonder if Jesus had already seen the future and the many denominations that would spring up to spread his teachings. I loved that Jesus spoke of unity among his followers before he died. I see so many denominations fighting with each other, even though they all believe in teachings of Jesus.  At this point in time, I wish the followers of Christ would be more unified since popular culture seems to be so against the message of Christ and his teachings. All followers of Christ have a common enemy in popular culture, and now is the time for unity among the people who believe in Jesus and his message to the world.

Day 92 Bible Readings – Luke 9: 25 (ESV)

Numbers 33 & 34, Luke 9: 10-27, Psalm 56

Luke 9: 25 (ESV)

“For what does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses or forfeits himself?

Verse 25 from Luke 9 has been the subject of many book and movies since Jesus first uttered these word. Jesus asked what good is having wealth and power in the world, if it mean you will lose yourself and your soul. In my study Bible, the authors wrote that this is the same wisdom set forth in Ecclesiastes which questions the value of earthly wealth and pursuits. Sometimes I think it is the ultimate irony that our world preaches that to go after wealth and power saying that these pursuits will bring us all the happiness in the world. Yet we can read countless stories of people who have done just that and realized they needed more in their lives that their money and power couldn’t buy. Sometimes it’s been health. A person becomes the richest person in the world with lots of power and then they die early. Sometimes it’s been the happiness of a love relationship. There are many stories of people who have enormous wealth and power, and jump from one marriage to another, or who have kids who hate them. Sometimes it’s the feeling of trust. They are other stories of very wealthy powerful people who don’t trust anyone and live in a world of paranoia.

Human beings seem to need more than what the physical world can provide. Our souls seem to need a connection to God. If we deny that connection to pursue other things, our soul suffers. We might not be suffering from the effects of not having enough money and feeling like we have no power, but we will suffer from the emptiness of any connection to God. When the soul suffers inside of us, I think that suffering eventually spreads to the rest of our life. To have faith in Jesus Christ gives our soul a connection to God, and a way to daily feed and satisfy our soul.