Foursquare Gospel Church Igbosere (Chapel of Blessing)

OUR DAILY BREAD February 21, Sunday UNIMAGINABLE PROMISES Monica La Rose He has given us his very great and precious promises.  2 Peter 1:4 2 Peter 1:2–8 Numbers 1–3; Mark 3 In our moments of greatest failure, it can be easy to believe it’s too late for us, that we’ve lost our chance at a life of purpose and worth. That’s how Elias, a former inmate at a maximum-security prison in New York, described feeling as a prisoner. “I had broken . . . promises, the promise of my own future, the promise of what I could be.” It was Bard College’s “Prison Initiative” college degree program that began to transform Elias’ life. While in the program, he participated on a debate team, which in 2015 debated a team from Harvard—and won. For Elias, being “part of the team . . . [was] a way of proving that these promises weren’t completely lost.” A similar transformation happens in our hearts when we begin to understand that the good news of God’s love in Jesus is good news for us too.  ...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 20, Saturday STRENGTHENED BY GRACE Con Campbell You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus.  2 Timothy 2:1 2 Timothy 2:1–4 Leviticus 26–27; Mark 2 During the American Civil War, the penalty for desertion was execution. But the Union armies rarely executed deserters because their commander-in-chief, Abraham Lincoln, pardoned nearly all of them. This infuriated Edwin Stanton, the Secretary of War, who believed that Lincoln’s leniency only enticed would-be deserters. But Lincoln empathized with soldiers who had lost their nerve and who had given in to their fear in the heat of battle. And his empathy endeared him to his soldiers. They loved their “Father Abraham,” and their affection led the soldiers to want to serve Lincoln all the more. When Paul calls Timothy to join him in “suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 2:3), he calls him to a tough job description. A soldier is to be completely dedicated, hard-working, an...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 19, Friday WE’RE NOT GOD Amy Boucher Pye In the pride of your heart you say, “I am a god.”  Ezekiel 28:2 Ezekiel 28:1–10 Leviticus 25; Mark 1:23–45 In  Mere Christianity,  C. S. Lewis recommended asking ourselves some questions to find out if we’re proud: “How much do I dislike it when other people snub me, or refuse to take any notice of me, . . . or patronize me, or show off?” Lewis saw pride as a vice of the “utmost evil” and the chief cause of misery in homes and nations. He called it a “spiritual cancer” that eats up the very possibility of love, contentment, and even common sense. Pride has been a problem throughout the ages. Through the prophet Ezekiel, God warned the leader of the powerful coastal city of Tyre against his pride. He said the king’s pride would result in his downfall: “Because you think you are . . . as wise as a god, I am going to bring foreigners against you” (Ezekiel 28:6–7). Then he would know he wasn’t a god, but a mort...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 18, Thursday REMEMBER TO SING Patricia Raybon How good it is to sing praises to our God.  Psalm 147:1 Psalm 147:1–7 Leviticus 23–24; Mark 1:1–22 Nancy Gustafson, a retired opera singer, was devastated when she visited her mother and observed her decline from dementia. Her mom no longer recognized her and barely spoke. After several monthly visits, Nancy had an idea. She started singing to her. Her mother’s eyes lit up at the musical sounds, and she began singing too—for twenty minutes! Then Nancy’s mom laughed, joking they were “The Gustafson Family Singers!” The dramatic turnaround suggested the power of music, as some therapists conclude, to evoke lost memories. Singing “old favorites” has also been shown to boost mood, reduce falls, lessen visits to the emergency room, and decrease the need for sedative drugs. More research is underway on a music-memory link. Yet, as the Bible reveals, the joy that comes from singing is a gift from God—and it’s real...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 17, Wednesday DESPERATE SOLUTIONS Tim Gustafson You did not . . . have regard for the One who planned it long ago.  Isaiah 22:11 Isaiah 22:8–13 Leviticus 21–22; Matthew 28 In the late sixteenth century, William of Orange intentionally flooded much of his nation’s land. The Dutch monarch resorted to such a drastic measure in an attempt to drive out the invading Spaniards. It didn’t work, and a vast swath of prime farmland was lost to the sea. “Desperate times call for desperate measures,” they say. In Isaiah’s day, Jerusalem turned to desperate measures when the Assyrian army threatened them. Creating a water storage system to endure the siege, the people also tore down houses to shore up the city walls. Such tactics may have been prudent, but they neglected the most important step. “You built a reservoir between the two walls for the water of the Old Pool,” God said, “but you did not look to the One who made it, or have regard for the One who planned it lon...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 16, Tuesday THINKING DIFFERENTLY Winn Collier Do not conform to the pattern of this world.  Romans 12:2 Romans 12:1–3 Leviticus 19–20; Matthew 27:51–66 During college, I spent a good chunk of a summer in Venezuela. The food was astounding, the people delightful, the weather and hospitality beautiful. Within the first day or two, however, I recognized that my views on time management weren’t shared by my new friends. If we planned to have lunch at noon, this meant anywhere between 12:00 and 1:00 p.m. The same for meetings or travel: timeframes were approximations without rigid punctuality. I learned that my idea of “being on time” was far more culturally formed than I’d realized. All of us are shaped by the cultural values that surround us, usually without us ever noticing. Paul calls this cultural force the “world” (Romans 12:2). Here, “world” doesn’t mean the physical universe, but rather refers to the ways of thinking pervading our existence. It refe...

OUR DAILY BREAD February 15, Monday SPITTING IMAGE Xochitl Dixon The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.  Colossians 1:15 Colossians 1:15–23 Leviticus 17–18; Matthew 27:27–50 During an outing, we met a woman who had known my husband’s family since he was a child. She looked from Alan to our son, Xavier. “He’s the spitting image of his daddy,” she said. “Those eyes. That smile. Yep. Looks just like him.” As the woman delighted in acknowledging such a strong resemblance between father and son, she even noted similarities in their personalities. Still, though they are alike in many ways, my son doesn’t reflect his father perfectly. There’s only one Son—Jesus—who reflects His Father completely. Christ is the “image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15). In Him and through Him and for Him all things were created (v. 16). “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together” (v. 17). We can spend time in...