Online Ministry for the Week 01/02 - 01/08/2017

PRAYER FOR ILLUMINATION

Guide us, O God, by your Word, and Holy Spirit, that in your light we may see light, in your truth find freedom, and in your will discover peace; through Christ our Lord, Amen.

DAILY READING

• Monday (January 2, 2017): Psalm 20; Genesis 12:1-7; Hebrews 11:1-12
• Tuesday (January 3, 2017): Psalm 72; Genesis 28:10-22; Hebrews 11:13-22
• Wednesday (January 4, 2017): Psalm 72; Exodus 3:1-5; Hebrews 11:23-31
• Thursday (January 5, 2017): Psalm 72; Joshua 1:1-9; Hebrews 11:32-12:2

• Epiphany of the Lord, January 6, 2017

• Saturday (January 7, 2017): Psalm 29; 1 Samuel 7:3-17; Acts 9:19b-31

• Baptism of the Lord, January 8, 2017

ABUNDANT HEALTH

Faith-Based Health

So here’s what I want you to do, God helping you: Take your everyday, ordinary life—your sleeping, eating, going-to-work, and walking-around life—and place it before God as an offering. Romans 12:1 (The Message)

To reach optimum health, you must pay attention to the spiritual dimensions of your life. You have a body, but you are far more than just a body. Every area of your life affects every other area. For instance, it’s hard to be spiritually strong and mentally alert when you are emotionally stressed or physically fatigued. If you are spiritually and emotionally weak or ill, your body cannot perform at its peak. So your health starts with your relationship to God—the Creator who designed you, knows best how your body was made to operate, and has the power to help you make the changes that you want to see.

—Pastor Rick Warren

—The Daniel Plan brief excerpt from The Daniel Plan: 40 Days to a Healthier Life by Rick Warren, DMin; Daniel Amen, MD; & Mark Hyman, MD (Zondervan). © 2013 by The Daniel Plan. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

NIV DAILY

How Can We Hope in a God Who Abandons Us? (Lamentations 3:25)

Jeremiah steadfastly recognized that the Lord had not abandoned his people, despite the pain of their situation. Rather, God’s people had abandoned him. Jeremiah, the weeping prophet, is also called the prophet of hope, because he foresaw a day when the Lord would reign in the midst of a restored, renewed and reconciled people—people who had finally returned to him.

Jesus knew this paradox between abandonment and hope. In the midst of his suffering and death on the cross, he cried, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? (Mt 27:46). Yet Jesus also knew that he would be resurrected on the third day, opening the gate of eternal life to all believers. The despair of the cross has now become the gift of life to perishing sinners.

Abandonment, sorrow, struggle and pain—all these are transitory. Wholeness, healing, joy and peace are permanent, for they are part of the very nature of God. That is what sustains the believer through difficult times. Although Jeremiah grieved over Jerusalem’s destruction, he knew God would prevail.

Taken from NIV Quest Study Bible ©2017 HarperCollins Christian Publishing

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING

Loving God, you sent Jesus in power to reconcile all people to right relationship with you. We rejoice that he continues to bring peace and healing to people who are oppressed through sin, sickness, addiction, or other struggles. Fill us with your Spirit to speak as faithful witnesses of Christ’s resurrecting power. Use our gifts and offerings to fulfill your mission in our wider community. We ask this through Jesus, your Beloved Son. Amen. (Acts 10:34-43)