Daily devotion

The Gardener of Our Hearts

/ pastorpete51 / 4 Comments

And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east, and there he put the man whom he had formed. Genesis 2:8 ESV

What is a garden? Is it defined by rows of roses and peonies; or is it painted on canvas by the brushstrokes of pathways and fountains? The first garden we learn of was filled with all kinds of fruit trees, and the scriptures tell us that God planted it in Eden. Having spent more hours on my knees pulling weeds than kneeling at the altar in church I have learned that the secret of a garden’s beauty lies as much in the walls that surround it and the spaces between the flowers as in any blossom or leaf. Those boundaries say clearly, “This is my garden and that is the field.” Or “The primroses marching across the flower bed are lovely, but they must be pulled out in places, or they will overrun the foxglove and hollyhock. In his poem, “The Mending Wall” Robert Frost wrote, “Good fence make good neighbors.”. Though Frost himself was not in favor of boundaries, his neighbor was, and I have learned that God is also. God is the gardener of our hearts and the one in charge of order. He sets our limits, prunes our overgrowth and transplants us from time to time when He chooses. Like Jeremiah’s image of the potter and clay, we are all in the hands of the Master Gardener of the universe. It will not help us to whine about the gardening He is doing in us today. We must not only trust in His spiritual gardening skills, but we might want to spend some extra time on our knees next to Him in our garden bed of prayer!

Praying for Our Grandchildren

/ pastorpete51 / 10 Comments

Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when He finished, one of His disciples said to Him, “Lord teach us to pray as John as John taught his disciples.” Luke 11:1 ESV

Notice in today’s verse that learning to pray, was more the hallmark of being a disciple than learning to preach. Of course, we all know by heart the Lord’s prayer, which Jesus used to give us a pattern for our prayers. But if we could back up the bus just a bit, we would see that Jesus’ primary method of teaching prayer was by His example. Remember, that when Jesus went to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane and on the Mount of Transfiguration Jesus took His closest disciples with Him. He didn’t need them to help Him pray. He needed them to be with Him so that they could learn to pray. When I look at my grandchildren today and think of what heritage I will leave behind, I hope it will be that they remember I prayed for them. One of our grandsons is far away from God right now, but when we saw him last week, we put our arms around him and told him that we love him and are praying for him every day. Do I think he listened? Maybe not – but I do know that when God answers our prayers that he will remember. We must never give up praying for our children and grandchildren. We must not give up praying for our neighborhoods, our communities and our nation. If we leave nothing else behind let’s leave behind prayers so big that will be answered after we are with Jesus. This week’s video includes two of my favorite hymns on prayer – In the Garden and Sweet Hour of Prayer. Have a blessed weekend everybody!

Stop Your Fussing and Be still!

/ pastorpete51 / 7 Comments

Be Still

Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth! – Psalm 46:10 ESV

Our eight-day trip had been wonderful, yet anything but restful. Living out of suitcases, eating from the food we had packed or from various restaurants, left us with the constant reminder that we were neither at home nor at our destination. But God had a surprise planned and I almost missed it. After the first four days in our hotel room, just as I was packing for the next leg of our adventure, I just happened to look up and then I noticed for the first time a large, framed print. It hung on the wall just above my side of the bed but I had never seen it. There two large words on a white background told me all that God had been trying to tell me for days – “Be Still!”

Have you ever noticed that while we are looking for a detailed message from God about what we should be doing, where we need to be going or why things aren’t working out, that He often gives us something far simpler? While we are preoccupied with the geography of our destination, He is far more interested in the geography of our hearts. And so, I am hearing His answers to my questions –

“Be Still” - I have your family problems in my hands
“Be Still!” - I will be a spring in your dry places.
“Be Still!” - It is more important what I think than the acclaim of people who know you little
“Be Still!” I will be exalted in your life when you stop your fussing and simply know that I am God!