Dear Lord, open our hearts and our minds to the power of Your Word, which as we read, we may know, understand, and obey Your Word for us today. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen. (Author unknown)
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DAILY DEVOTIONAL – Sunday, May 26, 2024
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May you find comfort, encouragement, guidance, hope, inspiration, love, and peace – https://helpfulinspirationalblog.wordpress.com/. May you also find answers to your question(s) through the Scriptures that address every situation you face, and help with your problems. Deb ♥
Today’s daily reading:
[Confidently put our hope in Him in spite of our distress]
BEAUTY IN PLACE OF SOIL
Scripture reading:
Jesus Christ inaugurated His ministry by identifying Himself as this Servant. . . Poor also means “humble,” which like brokenhearted, indicates those who confidently hope in God in spite of their present distress. (NKJV)
Isaiah 61:1-3 – The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is upon me, for the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to comfort the brokenhearted and to proclaim that captives will be released and prisoners will be freed. He has sent me to tell those who mourn that the time of the Lord’s favor has come, and with it, the day of God’s anger against their enemies. To all who mourn in Israel, he will give a crown of beauty for ashes, a joyous blessing instead of mourning, festive praise instead of despair. In their righteousness, they will be like great oaks that the Lord has planted for his own glory. (NLT)
Today’s story is by: Katara Patton
Bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. –Isaiah 61:3
One evening, I noticed neat rows of soil in a vacant lot near my home. Each row contained small green leaves with tiny buds peeking out. The next morning, I stopped in my tracks when I saw a patch of beautiful red tulips sprouting in the lot.
The previous fall, a group had planted one hundred thousand bulbs in empty lots throughout the South Side of Chicago. They chose red to symbolize how redlining (lending discrimination by banks) had impacted neighborhoods where primarily minorities lived. The tulips symbolized the houses that could have been in those lots.
God’s people have endured many challenges—from being exiled from their homelands to discrimination like redlining. Yet, we can still find hope. Isaiah reminds Israel during a time of exile that God would not leave them. He’d give them a “crown of beauty” in place of ashes. Even the poor would receive “good news” (61:1). God promised to exchange despairing spirits with a “garment of praise.” All of these images evoke His splendor and would bring joy to the people, who would now be “oaks of righteousness” instead of dejected exiles (v. 3).
Those tulips also show that God can create splendor from dirt and discrimination. I look forward to seeing the tulips each spring, and more importantly renewed hope in my neighborhood and other communities.
[If you would like to journal, reflect, meditate, or pray on today’s reading:]
– Where in your community have you seen beauty replace despair?
– How can you help create beauty in places of despair?
Prayer: Thank You, God, for the beauty You allow me to see even when my circumstances seem dire.
https://odb.org/2024/05/26/beauty-in-place-of-soil
Here is the link for Our Daily Bread website: https://odb.org/
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