Sunday, February 28, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
Sundays are not counted
in the 40 days of Lent.
Worship well today.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Saturday, February 27, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten
Devotional Guide
anonymous
Do good to those who
hate you.
Luke 6:27
Doing good to those who hate you is, for me, one of the most difficult principles of the Christian life. I can pray for someone who doesn't like me but performing an actual act of kindness forces me to rely on God's Spirit and strength.
I undercut my intention to do good by wondering, "What if my kindness is rebuffed?" or "What if the person just dislikes me more?" Only by finally asking, "Do I want to disobey God?" do I get back to the real challenge facing me.
I say something kind to the person. Maybe I say something nice about the person to someone else. Or I offer to lend a book I've heard the person wants to read. I help meet a need, which I could have legitimately ignored. Usually doing good is a simple act that I would do joyfully for a friend. But little deeds become big acts of faith when I do them -- simply because the Lord asks me to do so -- for someone who dislikes me.
Jesus wants us to deal with others as he has dealt with us. Easter helps me remember that Christ gave his life for me while I was alienated from him. So I show his love by extending goodness to someone who is alienated from me. When doing good to an "enemy" seems an impossible assignment, it helps me to recall the encouragement from Philippians 4:13, "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." Then it is in his strength that I set out to obey.
God, help me demonstrate your love by doing good to those who don't like me. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Friday, February 26, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten
Devotional Guide
anonymous
O give thanks to the
Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love
endures forever.
O give thanks to the Lord, for he
is good,
for his steadfast love
endures forever.
O give thanks to the Lord, for he
is good,
for his steadfast love
endures forever.
Psalm 136: 1-3 RSV
I just love this Psalm! I have read it over and over, in every Bible that I have, and I always see something there that I have not seen before. And those good "new" tidbits are wonderful, but they are not the reason I love the Psalm.
I love this Psalm because it reassures me of the constancy of God. In this crazy, changing world, God never changes. The world reflects his absolute dependability as its sun rises in the morning and sets in the afternoon. Absolutely dependable. The stars appear at night and the ones I know are right there where they were when I saw them last. Absolutely dependable. The moon is a little sliver and grows in size until it is full, then decreases to a sliver again. Absolutely dependable. Pulled by that moon's gravity, the tides are so predictable that a good meteorologist can tell to the minute when the tide will be high and when it will be low. Absolutely dependable. God provides certain constants in this world to reveal what he is like. Absolutely dependable.
In another Psalm, we read, "The heavens declare the glory of God." (Psalm 19:1)
Steadfast is a lovely word! I am so grateful that my God is absolutely dependable! Absolutely steadfast! How beautifully Jesus portrays this to us as he moved toward the cross without a moment's wavering!
Lord I take great joy
in knowing that you are steadfast in your love of me, your needy child. Please
teach me to be like you, steadfast in my love for you. Amen
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Thursday, February 25, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
by Don Holcomb
In the beginning was
the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.
John 1:1 KJV
And God said, let
there be light, and there was light.
Genesis 1:3
Words are important -- especially God's words. John tells us that the Word became flesh and dwelt among us as the Son (second person of the Trinity).
Jesus could cast out demons, heal the sick and raise people from the dead with His words, and He passed on to us the ability to do greater things than He did through the Holy Spirit in us (third person of the Trinity).
Therefore, as possessors of the Holy Spirit, we must carry on the tradition and speak God's Words wherever we have opportunity. Billy Graham's message is very simple, but he has ministered to millions because he speaks God's Word of forgiveness and salvation for each person.
We do not have to be concerned with the results. We just have to stay true to God's Word and witness for Him whenever we have opportunity. We need to go forth as the Spirit-filled disciples did after Pentecost, boldly proclaiming God's Words of forgiveness and salvation for all. For if we do not, who will? As a result many may be lost.
God's Word, once proclaimed, will not return void.
Lord help us to understand the power you have granted us through the Holy Spirit, so we may boldly proclaim your Word and stand fast on that Word in our community. As children adopted into your family to be joint heirs with Jesus, open our understanding of the spiritual power you grant us to change the world through speaking your Word. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Wednesday, February 24, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
by Karen Christian
The thief comes only
to steal, and kill and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might
have it abundantly.
John 10:10
Last year I wrote in the devotional about the peace that I asked for from Jesus, and received for a nickel! Since then, God has worked a miracle in our lives that continues to bless me, my husband, and all who hear about it.
When I became a "new creation," Jesus moved in and began doing great works, just like He promised. Old things have passed away and all things have become new. And because all that God does for us are gifts, all I've had to do is receive, "that my joy may be in you." Now when I read the Bible, the Spirit of Truth reveals new understanding to me. I have eyes that see and ears that hear.
Our marriage is more than restored; our health is above and beyond all we could ask for. In other words, God has made us whole, just like He promised.
In James 1:17, it says that all good things come down from above, so even I could figure out all bad things must come from somewhere else. And once I identified the culprit, I threw him out of our lives with the power of the spoken Word.
His praise shall continually be in my mouth....
Father, Thank you for the abundance that life holds for us when we put our faith and trust in you. Thank you that you protect us from the thief who would come to take that away.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Tuesday, February 23, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
by Bill Gilbert
Jesus asked his
disciples, "Who do you say I am?"
Mark 8:30 NIV
Tracing that question in my own life is a pattern, I'm sure, many others have experienced.
Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible
tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong, they are weak but He is strong.
I remember Sunday School as a little boy singing this song every Sunday as our teacher told us stories about this man, Jesus. In my early years, my picture of this man was of someone who was tall and stately and had a light about Him that no one else ever had.
As I grew older, I have to confess I did not study this man's life to the extent I should have. Marriage and children brought me back to the realization I needed to have Jesus in my life. And seek Him I have.
As we look to more understanding during this Lenten period, let us all be reassured of the fact that we have the Son of God before us as a teacher and above all as our Savior. His dying on the cross for our sins takes us to our knees in reverence. Then He rose. He lives today and faithfully enriches the lives of all who trust and obey Him. Jesus said, "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in." Revelation 3:20
What does He ask of us? To love Him with all our heart and soul as He first loved us. Yes, "Jesus loves me, this I know."
Dearest God, you sent
your son to us as a teacher and redeemer. We know that the risen Christ has
altered our lives forever. He's given us reason for being and satisfies our
deepest longing for His love and security always. Amen
Monday, February 22, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
anonymous
As a result of this,
many of His disciples withdrew, and were not walking with Him anymore. Jesus
said therefore to the twelve, "You do not want to go away also, do
you?"
John 6:66-67 NAS
Jesus
had been talking about blood sacrifice, a practice not uncommon to the Jew to
whom he was speaking. The chief priest sacrificed animals on their behalf for
redemption from sin, so blood sacrifice did not seem as foreign to them as it
does to us today. However, when he spoke of it so personally, explained to them
that he was going to die, talked about himself as the "bread of
heaven" and his blood as the atoning blood, they actually cried out,
"This is a difficult statement; who can listen to it?" (John 6:60)
Many disciples had followed listening to his teaching, but the twelve whom he had specifically called were the ones he was teaching carefully to send out after his death to establish his church, the very church that we love today.
When he saw that many of the greater crowd walked away because his teaching was "too close for comfort," he turned to his little class of twelve learners and asked, "Are you leaving, too?" I think I can almost hear the pain in his voice. He had so little time, and he desperately wanted them to understand what he was saying.
I wonder if he doesn't say that to us today. In this country -- at least in recent years -- we have suffered little. Life has been easy -- perhaps too easy. We have heard much in church and we know a lot about what Jesus has said and about what he expects. But when we really hear Jesus say to love the one who hurts us, to give and not to hoard what he has given us, to study his Word that we might come to know him intimately, do we feel tempted to grumble that this is a "hard teaching?" Do we hear him saying to us, "Do you want to go away also?"
Father, I often take poor care of the wonderful relationship that you have established between us. Forgive me. Even when I must admit with the crowd that your teaching is sometimes difficult, help me not to go away but instead to say, "To whom shall I go? Only you have the words of eternal life." Amen
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Sunday, February 21, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
Sundays are not counted
in the 40 days of Lent.
Worship well today.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced
and edited by Patience Fort
Saturday, February 20, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
By Jack Eldridge
What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may
abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?... We know
that our old self was crucified with him so that the sinful body might be
destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For he who has died is
freed from sin. But if we have died with Christ we believe that we shall also
live with him. For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never
die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died he died to
sin, once for all but the life he lives he lives to God So you must consider
yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.
Romans 6:1-14
Open my eyes, Lord,
that I might see
The power of sin that
hangs over me.
Jesus, my Savior,
please show me the way,
To follow and serve
you every day.
Held tight in Your
arms, Lord, I belong.
Your Strength and
Power will make me strong.
To fight the battle
against Satan's power,
I need you with me
every hour.
I want to be my own
person, Lord, do it "my way."
Please show me
"Your Way," Lord, I pray.
I need your Spirit as
my guide,
Please keep Him ever
by my side.
Open my eyes, Lord,
that I may see,
How I was meant to
follow Thee.
Give me Your Love, so
I might feel,
Its Strength so bold,
its Power so real.
Lord, sin is a very
powerful source.
Please don't let it
force me from my course
Of following You and
accepting Your Love,
That will lead me to
You and Heaven above.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced
and edited by Patience Fort
Friday, February 19, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
By Marge Dilling
Give thanks in all circumstances; for
this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.
I Thessalonians 5:18
In the fall of 2000, Walt and I began our first Disciple studies. Having always been in some kind of a Bible study group, I thought this would be a snap. I was wrong! It was a challenge that changed my life.
Sandra Garner was our teacher.
She had one phrase, "Thank you, Jesus," that was heard during our
classes. I wouldn't know its impact until several years later. I started early
in the morning before sunrise, when I would take a walk and say, "Thank
you, Jesus, for my health and enthusiasm to take this walk.” It continued.
· Thank you, Jesus, when I trip over something in the
kitchen but don't fall.
· Thank you, Jesus, when my intestinal problems seem
to be improving.
· Thank you, Jesus, when our pastor delivers a sermon
I need to hear.
· Thank you, Jesus, when my headache disappears
without need of medication.
· Thank you, Jesus, when, after 3 days of searching, I
find my glasses in the freezer!
· Thank you, Jesus, when I recall mentoring a child in
Lakewood. We were helping Fran Graham up a slope on her way to her cabin. One
little boy asked if he could help us. Great! We needed help. Later I heard him
say to his friends, "We have to help these people; they're old!"
· Thank you, Jesus, when one of our precious Youth
Singers recalls something they have been told a week ago.
· Thank you, Jesus, when I see the love of
grandparents in our congregation who are raising their grandchildren.
· Thank you, Jesus, for Sandra, and thank you, Sandra,
for introducing us to Jesus and making Him an ever-present part of our lives.
· Thank you, Jesus, for Wallace Nave, for used to say,
“Lord, please guide me through this day in all that I think, all that I do, and
all that I say."
Thank you, Jesus!
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced
and edited by Patience Fort
Thursday, February 18, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
Author: Marsha Bader
The Revelation 3:20 MSG
"Here
I am Lord, it is I Lord, I heard you calling in the night." How glorious
is that refrain, knowing that Jesus wants to have a relationship with ME! From
earliest childhood, one of my favorite pictures is of Jesus knocking on the
door of my heart. I answered that knock and opened wide the door so He could
enter. For a long time it was a "parlor" relationship with me the hostess
and Jesus the guest. But gradually through the years I found that I wanted much
more than this. Little by little, I opened up all the rooms in my heart and
made Jesus a part of the family.
There is a wonderful book that is a lot like my relationship with Christ. The title is, “My Heart—Christ’s Home,” by Robert Boyd Munger. "The text speaks of the unbelievable good news, that the crucified and risen Lord will be at home in the heart through believing and will be available as Savior and Friend in all situations and conditions." As in most books, the final chapter is the best part. For years I was trying to keep this heart clean and available for Christ, and it was hard work. It wasn't until I let Him take over the deed and ownership of my heart and have the full responsibility of keeping this heart right that the atmosphere changed. From then on I have been His forever. He is the head of the household and I am His servant.
Dearest Lord, to think that you truly desire a relationship with me is almost too much to take in! You want to make my heart your dwelling place. Help me to keep it clean, full of love, and to share it with all who will listen and want to know you. I know that I can’t manage this Christian life without your strength. Thank you for being ever present in my life and making me your own. Amen
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced and edited by Patience Fort
Wednesday, February 17, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
Author: anonymous
And we know that God causes all things to work
together for good to those who love God – to those who are called according to
his purpose.
Romans 8:28 NAS
Our marriage was good and our children brought us a lot of joy. We did fun things together as a family: camping, swimming and skiing in the beautiful northeastern United States. We worked hard and were by most standards a good family that most people would want to have for neighbors.
All our lives we have been in the church. We sang in the choir and loved the church music. We listened to the pastor and tried to live in the way we thought we should. The natural thing was to take our children with us to church and so we faithfully did that. I worked when I was asked to do something and didn’t even complain much when I was asked to do more than I thought was my share! I believe that you would not have found much to criticize if you had known us back then. We were pretty decent. We thought that was enough!
But then something happened. I am not sure I could have told you then what it was but I know that everything began to look different. I seemed to hear God speaking to me in the sermons. I heard a clearer and more personal message to me in the music that I’d known and loved for so long.
When I look back, I realize that my faith in Jesus moved from my head to my heart and I have never been the same. All along, God had been “working together for good” the things in our lives, doing what He knew had to be done to bring us to Himself and to help me understand Him. Now Easter brings tears to my eyes as I realize what Jesus had to do to make things right between God and me. And at the same time Easter makes me want to shout for joy as I know that because He died I will not!
Father, thank you for coming, for living, for dying, and for rising again so that life for me could be filled with such abundance. Amen
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
reproduced by Patience Fort
Tuesday, February 16, 2021
Hallelujah! He is risen!
A Lenten Devotional Guide
Introduction
Written by Patience Fort
Many of my readers knew my mother, Patience Nave. When she was 50 years old, she graduated from Western Kentucky University with her Bachelor’s degree. She went on to earn her Masters in English and then taught in South America, China, and Florida. After serving for eight years on the Citrus County School Board in Homosassa, Florida, she began a short career as Education Coordinator/Minister in two churches: Homosassa First United Methodist Church and Rehobeth United Methodist Church in Greensboro, North Carolina (where, by the way, she celebrated her 80th birthday).
As a minister in church education, mother did all kinds of things. She went to Haiti I-don’t-know-how-many times. She wrote the curriculum for and directed vacation Bible schools. She discipled many. And she taught countless Bible study classes.
Some of the things that I cherish from Mother’s years at her churches in Florida and North Carolina are the devotional guides she developed for Advent and Lent. I have about six years of them. And now I am able to reproduce them on my blog for all to read and enjoy. Feel free to share them with others.
I think this particular devotional
guide is from the spring of 2011. She was still living in Florida and working
at First United Methodist Church of Homosassa. Here is an excerpt from her
introduction.
When I assumed my new
responsibilities at the church, I realized that I had only three weeks to
assemble this Lenten devotional booklet. Because you are such a wonderful
congregation, the daunting task became much less threatening, and we met our
deadline! Lyn Romano did a great job in organizing the volunteers (to write the
majority of the daily entries).
Faithful disciples at
Homosassa United Methodist Church have carefully and prayerfully prepared this
Lenten guide.
Many people submitted a
devotion; some are identified and others remain anonymous. I used almost every
one that was given to me. I edited some because of length. I believe you’ll
find words from people of serious faith.
We pray that our thoughts will challenge and encourage you, as you “set your face toward Jerusalem” and we celebrate the triumph of our Lord!
As you prepare for Easter 2021, my prayer is that this devotional guide will bless you beyond measure. Rejoice in the fact that Jesus Christ is alive. We do not worship a mere man. We worship the God who created life itself and who conquered death, himself.
Hallelujah! He is Risen!
prepared for First United Methodist Church of Homosassa, Florida
Spring 2011
compiled by Patience Nave, Christian Education Coordinator
