July 29 / Luke 16:19-31

Luke 16:19-31 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie too (coming home Wednesday)! “Notice what you notice.” This story is so familiar to me that it’s hard to see something new. But there is one thing that I’ve always wondered. Is Jesus telling us in this story of …

July 28 / Luke 16:9-18

Luke 16:9-18 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie too (coming home Wednesday)! “Notice what you notice.” “…unrighteous mammon…” (vv. 9, 11) is a confusing construction. The ESV notes say that the Greek word is “mammon”, which means money or possessions and is translated as money in verse …

July 27 / Luke 16:1-8

Luke 16:1-8 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! I wonder at why I truncated today’s reading at verse 8. It would have made more sense to read verses 1-13. But I’ll leave my comments to the first eight verses. “Notice what you notice.” I had the …

July 26 / Luke 15:20-32

Luke 15:20-32 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” All too often it seems that I can see the Pharisees’ perspectives when they have difficulties with Jesus. And now today I find myself sympathizing with the older brother. He was probably very angry …

July 25 / Luke 15:11-19

Luke 15:11-19 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” Yes, I intentionally split the story of the Prodigal Son into two parts. And yes, it was because I wanted to keep all our readings under twenty verses (even though we’ve already failed in …

July 24 / Luke 15:1-10

Luke 15:1-10 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear him. And the Pharisees and the scribes grumbled… (vv. 1-2a) I’m trying to picture the dynamic between these sinners and “saints”. I …

July 23 / Matthew 18:10-14

Matthew 18:10-14 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” So it is not the will of My Father Who is in heaven that one of these little ones should perish. (v. 14) This verse (along with John 6:39) always speaks to me. The …

July 22 / Luke 14:25-35

Luke 14:25-35 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. (v. 33) So, what does it mean to “renounce all that we have”? I can mostly …

July 21 / Luke 14:15-24

Luke 14:15-24 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” I’m sure that when most of us read these words that Jesus speaks, we expect that He is speaking to the lawyers and Pharisees without naming them by name. That is, in today’s Parable …

July 20 / Luke 14:7-14

Luke 14:7-14 Let’s continue to remember to pray for Jim and Marty – Debbie and Julie also! “Notice what you notice.” OK, I have to be careful here not to exalt myself in telling a story. For many years I have loved this incident in today’s reading – since Carol and I lived something of …