Today's Verse - 2 Corinthians 3:6

He has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant — not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

—2 Corinthians 3:6

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

God "has made us competent as ministers of a new covenant." God has willingly entered into a new covenant of love, grace, and purpose with us, his adopted children. He sealed that covenant with the blood of his Son Jesus and LORD. Jesus poured out the Holy Spirit to give us the power to live the life of this new covenant.* God has made a covenant of love and grace with us. The Almighty has then turned around and made us worthy and "competent" to share that covenant with others. God's covenant with us is life-giving because it brings life to us and life to others, through us!

And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate and reflect the Lord's glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)

My Prayer...

O holy and majestic God, thank you for your grace that has saved me from sin and has redeemed me from the law of sin and death. Thank you for sending the gift of your Son and for the Son giving me the gift of your Spirit so that I can live with you in a covenant of life, grace, and love. While I confess my weaknesses, I also commit to live to honor your sacrifice, love, and covenant with me. I pursue Jesus, knowing that he is at work through the Spirit to transform me to live under this new covenant. I trust that you will empower me to be what you are calling me to be as I live in covenant with you. In Jesus' name, I pray and give thanks. Amen.

Today's Verse - Romans 13:1

Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

—Romans 13:1

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

Yes, many of us don't like things about our governments, no matter where we may live. However, God has truly blessed many of us so that we can enjoy the protection of the authorities where we live. Paul is reminding believers to honor our governments and the laws under which we live. That said, like the first disciples, we also live in the time of some of the worst persecution ever known in the Christian era. Brothers and sisters in many parts of the world face opposition, persecution, and prejudice. In those cases, believers must honor God before their national and local laws. So, as we pray for our leaders and thank God for our freedoms, let's not forget the persecuted church all over the world. Let's pray for their deliverance, protection, and perseverance.

My Prayer...

O great Deliverer, God of the Exodus, we thank you for your intervention and protection of your people throughout history and today. We thank you for those of us whose Christian freedoms our governments and laws protect. We believe you have shown your power and deliverance to your people in the past, when the laws they lived under did not coincide with your will. So we ask for wisdom on how we should live, and we also ask that you intervene today and bless every believer persecuted for their faith in Jesus. Please bless these oppressed children with tenderness, healing, and love. Please tangibly assure them of your presence. In the powerful name of Jesus, we join together and ask this for believers all over the world. Amen.

Today's Verse - 1 Peter 2:10

Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

—1 Peter 2:10

Thoughts on Today's Verse...

Excluded. Rejected. Discarded. Abandoned. Forgotten. Pushed aside. Never picked. Each of these describes what it feels like to be a nobody. The evil one gives our sinful flesh the tools and the opportunities to speak these words of self-condemnation to ourselves. God, however, has extended his mercy and grace to us. "But now…" - two of the greatest words of hope when God is attached. "But now" we can trust that God has loved us in Christ, brought us into his family, and given us a purpose. We are now part of the people of God! We have been chosen to be part of the victorious team of teams. We have received mercy! Grace has washed over us, and God's love has adopted us into his family. Peter is reminding maligned and persecuted believers that they can choose to see themselves as "nobodies," or they can choose to see themselves by their new, God-shaped identity. Peter's words speak to our hearts, too. You, dear friend in Jesus, are God's child. You are part of his eternal and conquering people - like Moses, Esther, Paul, and Mary Magdalene. Mercy has reversed the power of sin and failure in your life and has graciously given you a new identity, empowered by the Holy Spirit's presence. Live today as you now are in Jesus: one of God's special people who "declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light" (1 Peter 2:9).

My Prayer...

O Father of mercy and God of all grace, thank you for making me part of your people, with a divine purpose for my life. In Jesus' name, I thank you. Amen.