June 20

Luke 8:25 ESV
He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”

Luke 8:16-18 ESV
“No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.  Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.”

Psalms 128:2 ESV
You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you.

1Chronicles 11:20-21 ESV
Now Abishai, the brother of Joab, was chief of the thirty. And he wielded his spear against 300 men and killed them and won a name beside the three. He was the most renowned of the thirty and became their commander, but he did not attain to the three.

June 12

Luke 6:38 ESV
give, and it will be given to you. Good measure, pressed down, shaken together, running over, will be put into your lap. For with the measure you use it will be measured back to you.

Psalm120:2 ESV
Deliver me, O Lord , from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue.

Luke 22:1 - 46

Nine: I'm not sure Judas was under Satan's full control but if he was, it was not his fault he betrayed Jesus. But if he wasn't he'd have to pray for forgiveness to go to heaven. The disciples shouldn't have slept. They should have prayed not to fall into temptation.

Twelve: It is wonderful that Jesus sacrificed His life for us to forgive us of our sins. Even Judas could have been forgiven if he had repented to God. 

Forty-seven: Unlike my kids I am focused on communion in this passage. It's an amazing thing to continue to partake in now over 2000 years later. I understand the sleepy disciples too, but my youngest is right they should have prayed not to fall into temptation. 

Luke 9:1 - 36

Nine: Jesus has the power to give others power. Jesus is holy.

Twelve: Jesus i slowly starting to tell his disciples that He has to be killed. We should trust in Jesus and obey his commands because He is holy and all powerful.

Forty-seven: How difficult it is to step out in faith and trust in God. We always want to have some back up that we can see. 

Luke 15:1 - 32

Nine: The older brother if he wanted attention so badly should have done the same as the younger brother. We should listen to Jesus because there is more joy in heaven when one sinner turns to God and believe in Him than in the righteous doing the same.

Twelve: God is looking for people who do not believe in Him. We should help Him by showing through our actions that we are Christians. When someone ask why we act so nice, we can tell them we believe in God and He loves them.

Forty-seven: The mother in my can't help notice that my youngest is ready to put the older brother on the road. I wonder if he thinks his brother acts "nice." But in truth how often do I do the same? How often do I act like God hasn't forgiven me a boatload of sins?

Luke 10:25 - 37

Nine: We should be like the Samaritan who took care of the injured man and paid for his room at the inn. We should treat everyone like our neighbor and love our neighbor as our self.

Twelve: Everybody is our neighbor. We should be nice to everybody and tell them about Jesus.

Forty-seven: Both my boys obviously got the clear message from this parable that anyone you see is your neighbor. How often do I pass by on the other side because I'm too busy or don't believe the story I've been told?

Luke 3:1 - 20

Nine: John was right about all the things he said to the people. I should obey the words of John and do what is right.

Twelve: John was the forerunner of Jesus. He told the people to repent and prepare for the messiah. We should be ready for Jesus to come. He can come any day. 

Forty-seven: John certainly didn't pull any punches. In our world today he'd be thought of as being judgemental and politically incorrect. Yet, still people came out into the wilderness to hear him. Today we have that same need for repentance, but we have Jesus to turn to instead. 

Luke 2:1 - 40

Nine: I thought it was amazing that God let those shepherds know that Christ was born. They were the humblest of people. I kind of see why He did that because Jesus is the good shepherd.

Twelve: God had everything planned hundred of years in advance. Having the prophets at the temple amazed Joseph and Mary and showed them they had a very special child. 

Forty-seven: How wonderful that the humblest were told first! How wonderful to know that no matter how sinful I am that I am welcome in God's house because His son came for me. How wonderful to know that God had it all planned in advance. 

Luke 1:1 - 80

Nine: It was amazing that God made Elizabeth be able to have a baby when she was so old. It was amazing God mad a virgin pregnant.

Twelve: It was great that God paved the way for Jesus. It was good that Mary trusted in God even though it wasn't the best circumstances.

Forty-seven: For me the choice seems to be am I Mary or Zechariah? I wish I could say that I always respond like Mary, but I expect if Gabriel was around all the time, I'd be spending a lot of time not talking.