Our Daily Bread -- The Beauty of Rome June 5, 2016

Read: John 17:1-5 Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 23-24; John 15 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God. —John 17:3 The glory of the Roman Empire offered an expansive backdrop for the birth of Jesus. In 27 bc Rome’s first emperor, Caesar Augustus, ended 200 years of civil war and began to replace rundown neighborhoods with monuments, temples, arenas, and government complexes. According to Roman historian Pliny the Elder, they were “the most beautiful buildings the world has ever seen.” Yet even with her beauty, the Eternal City and its empire had a history of brutality that continued until Rome fell. Thousands of slaves, foreigners, revolutionaries, and army deserters were crucified on roadside poles as a warning to anyone who dared to defy the power of Rome. What irony that Jesus’s death on a Roman cross turned out to reveal an eternal glory that made the pride of Rome look like the momentary beauty of a sunset! Who could have imagined that in the public curse and agony of the cross we would find the eternal glory of the love, presence, and kingdom of our God? Who could have foreseen that all heaven and earth would one day sing, “Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!” (Rev. 5:12). —Mart DeHaan Father in heaven, please help us to reflect the heart of Your sacrifice for the world. May Your love become our love, Your life our life, and Your glory our never-ending joy. Share this prayer from our Facebook page: Facebook.com/ourdailybread. The Lamb who died is the Lord who lives! INSIGHT: Jesus’s model for prayer in Matthew 6:9-13 is often referred to as “the Lord’s prayer.” However, these words form a pattern for our prayers. Jesus’s prayer in John 17 might better be called “the Lord’s prayer” because it is an expression of His heart to the Father about His mission (vv. 1-10), His followers (vv. 11-16), and His longing for His people to be one with Him and with each other (vv. 17-26). This prayer reaches its conclusion with the desire that we know the wonder of His love: “I have made you known to them, and will continue to make you known in order that the love you have for me may be in them and that I myself may be in them” (v. 26).  Bill Crowder Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Our mission is to make the life-changing wisdom of the Bible understandable and accessible to all. Our vision is to see people of all nations experiencing a personal relationship with Christ, growing to be more like Him, and serving in a local body of His family. To read today's Our Daily Bread online visit www.odb.org. Copyright © 2016, Our Daily Bread Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI 49555 USA. Written permission must be obtained from Our Daily Bread Ministries for any further posting or distribution. Scriptures taken from Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved.   Our Daily Bread Ministries | 3000 Kraft Ave | Grand Rapids, MI 49512 Manage Your Subscription.

Day 218 - Yielding to His Lordship

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Yielding to His Lordship Day 218 God is not a therapist; He is not just someone you approach to make it through a difficult time. He is Lord and Savior. Your greatest joy will come when you yield your whole life to Him. "Know that you have to leave it up to Him, and you have no control over life or death-that's what sustained me through it all," says Gretchen, whose husband died. When you honor Him as God, you are better able to accept the circumstances of life. "Woe is me for my hurt! My wound is grievous: but I said, Truly this is a grief, and I must bear it" (Jeremiah 10:19 KJV). Father, yielding to Your Lordship is difficult for me, but I want to give my every thought and effort to You, not just to get me through the rough times, but as an act of worship to You. Amen. Through a Season of Grief The daily email messages you are receiving are also available in a book format. Purchase as a gift for a friend or buy a print copy for yourself. Through a Season of Grief by Bill Dunn and Kathy Leonard is available at online and local bookstores or at griefshare.org/devotional. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Our Daily Bread -- You Have Purpose June 4, 2016

Read: 1 Peter 4:7-11 Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 21-22; John 14 If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. —1 Peter 4:11 On a hot day in western Texas, my niece Vania saw a woman standing by a stoplight and holding up a sign. As she drove closer, she tried to read what the sign said, assuming it was a request for food or money. Instead, she was surprised to see these three words: “You Have Purpose” God has created each of us for a specific purpose. Primarily that purpose is to bring honor to Him, and one way we do that is by meeting the needs of others (1 Peter 4:10-11). A mother of young children may find purpose in wiping runny noses and telling her kids about Jesus. An employee in an unsatisfying job might find his purpose in doing his work conscientiously, remembering it is the Lord he is serving (Col. 3:23-24). A woman who has lost her sight still finds purpose in praying for her children and grandchildren and influencing them to trust God. Psalm 139 says that before we were born “all the days ordained for [us] were written in [His] book" (v. 16). We are “fearfully and wonderfully made” to bring glory to our Creator (v. 14). Never forget: You have purpose! —Cindy Hess Kasper Lord, it often seems that our lives swing from drudgery to challenges we don’t want. Today help us to see You in the midst of whatever faces us. Show us a small glimpse of the purpose and meaning You bring to everything. Even when everything seems meaningless, God still has a purpose for your life. INSIGHT: The words translated “be alert” and “of sober mind” in verse seven of today’s passage are both imperatives. The verb tense indicates a time-specific action with ongoing effects. This means Peter is not asking his readers if they will be alert and sober-minded; he is commanding that they be (and continue to be) alert (use sensible judgment) and be sober-minded (have clear and rational thinking). They are to do this for a specific purpose—so that they can pray. Obeying this command to alertness and self-control can and will have a lasting effect because it empowers our prayers. Dennis Moles Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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Day 217 - Learning to Worship

365 daily emails to help you through the grieving process Grief support groups: Click here to find a GriefShare group near you. If you would like to find a group for a friend or relative, try our Search Page. Want to read ahead or resend a previous daily email? Click Here Learning to Worship Day 217 You were created to worship God. Worship means to honor or reverence; to regard with great or extravagant respect or devotion (Merriam-Webster). Do these words describe your response to God? Dr. Ray Pritchard says, "I would define worship in the broadest sense as the soul's response to God. It is anything that I do in my soul where I am truly aware of my heavenly Father, and I am turning to Him in the time of need. It might be with joy. It might be with praise. But very often it's with a broken heart. "I think that in those moments when you have lost someone very precious to you, God is honored when deep inside you turn to Him and cry out, 'Oh God, oh Lord, You are awesome. Your ways are beyond finding out. Lord, I do not understand, but I bow before You because You are an awesome God.' That to me is worship." Hezekiah was a king who trusted God with wholehearted devotion both in good times and in bad. The Bible records that "there was no one like him among all the kings of Judah, either before him or after him" (2 Kings 18:5). Even in the midst of bitter tears, Hezekiah approached God with a reverent, worshipful heart, and God heard his prayer: "'Remember, O Lord, how I have walked before you faithfully and with wholehearted devotion and have done what is good in your eyes.' And Hezekiah wept bitterly" (2 Kings 20:3). O Lord God, my heart cries out to You. I worship You with reverence. You are Lord of all. Amen. Grieving with Hope This GriefShare-based book contains short, topical chapters addressing issues that grieving people face but are often hesitant to mention to others; it gently guides people to determine whether they're grieving in a way that leads to hope and ultimate healing. Look for Grieving with Hope by Samuel Hodges and Kathy Leonard at a local or online bookstore or at griefshare.org/hope. If you would like to recommend these daily emails to a friend, please click here and choose one of the options under Share. For more information about GriefShare, including how to sign up for these daily emails, please click here. All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2003-2013 by The Church Initiative, Inc., All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without explicit permission in writing from Church Initiative. You subscribed to this daily email through www.griefshare.org. We value your privacy! We will never give, sell, rent, or otherwise share your email or personal information with any other organization — EVER. To remove this email address from further mailings Click Here while connected to the internet. If you have any problems or concerns, please contact dailyemailsupport@griefshare.org. GriefShare 250 S. Allen Rd. Wake Forest, NC 27587 (800) 395-5755

Our Daily Bread -- Strength for the Weary June 3, 2016

Read: Isaiah 40:27-31 Bible in a Year: 2 Chronicles 19-20; John 13:21-38 Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength.  —Isaiah 40:31 On a beautiful, sunny day, I was walking in a park and feeling very weary in spirit. It wasn’t just one thing weighing me down—it seemed to be everything. When I stopped to sit on a bench, I noticed a small plaque placed there in loving memory of a “devoted husband, father, brother, and friend.” Also on the plaque were these words, “But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not faint” (Isa. 40:31 esv). Those familiar words came to me as a personal touch from the Lord. Weariness—whether physical, emotional, or spiritual—comes to us all. Isaiah reminds us that although we become tired, the Lord, the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth “will not grow tired or weary” (v. 28). How easily I had forgotten that in every situation “[the Lord] gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak” (v. 29). What’s it like on your journey today? If fatigue has caused you to forget God’s presence and power, why not pause and recall His promise. “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength” (v. 31). Here. Now. Right where we are. —David McCasland Lord, thank You that You do not grow weary. Give me the strength to face whatever situation I am in today.   Share this prayer from our Facebook page: Facebook.com/ourdailybread. When life's struggles make you weary, find strength in the Lord. INSIGHT: After prophesying that God would use the Assyrians (Isa. 1-38) and Babylonians (Isa. 39) to punish Judah, Isaiah comforts Judah with the hope of future deliverance and restoration (Isa. 40-66). In chapter 40, Isaiah speaks of God’s sovereignty, majesty, and loving providential care. Addressing the Jews’ sense of abandonment (v. 27), Isaiah assures them that God has the power to restore them and will indeed do so. Isaiah reminds them that the everlasting, omnipotent, Creator God is the source of their strength (vv. 28-29) and calls on these despondent Jews to persevere in their faith, to rise to a new level of commitment, and to wait for God to bring His promises to fulfillment (vv. 30-31). Sim Kay Tee Share your thoughts on today’s devotional on Facebook or odb.org.

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