Sunday Devotions: Anxious Living

I was reading the other day that film director and actor Woody Allen cannot sleep at night because he suffers from an anxiety about death. He’s an atheist and he can’t come to terms with the fact that his death means the end of all his accomplishments. When asked about death, he says: “The trains all go to the same destination. They all go to the dump.”

I pity him because he’s such a talented and creative person, and you would think that such creativity would help him to see beyond himself. But he has chosen not to believe in God, so he walks around his apartment at night time fretting about death.

For me, faith is real wisdom because it gives us an understanding that we are not the center of everything and that there is a structure, order, and a plan for the universe. God’s creativity is all around me, so I can look at the Smokey Mountains and see His grandeur; I can listen to birdsong in the morning and hear God being praised; I can be in the company of good friends and Christian people and experience God’s presence. Life is good. Death may come, but life goes on eternally.

Proverbs 15: 24 The path of life leads upward for the wise to keep him from going down to the grave.  

The writer of Proverbs knew what he was expressing when he wrote today’s verse. Those who are faithfully wise go onward and upward in life; those who are foolishly miserable end up digging graves for themselves, or just get on board trains that are heading to the dump.

Prayer:                        Lord Jesus, thank You for the gift of eternal life and the hope of things to come. Thank You for sacrificing Yourself, so that we may live forever in the embracing love of God. Help us to help others discover this divine happiness. In Your Holy Name, we thankfully pray. Amen.

John Stuart is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. If you would like to comment on today’s message, please send him an email to pastor@erinpresbyterian.org.

Sunday Devotions: Lent 2 - Confrontation

Lectionary verse

Mark 8: 33 But when Jesus turned and looked at his disciples, he rebuked Peter. "Get behind me, Satan!" he said. "You do not have in mind the things of God, but the things of men." (NIV)

Peter was perhaps Jesus' greatest friend. The Big Fisherman probably prided himself in being such a key person in Christ's life. But even friends make mistakes. Peter oversteps his mark here and begins to meddle in Christ's ministry. He thinks that he can persuade Jesus not to go to Jerusalem to face his foes. Peter is trying to protect Jesus, but in actual fact, he is innocently placing a huge temptation on Christ's path.

It would have been easy for Jesus to say, "You know what, Peter? You are absolutely right. There's no need to head into trouble right now. We can spend a couple of more years travelling up and down the country, healing more people and preaching the Good news to more villages, towns and cities. In a couple of years time, all of this opposition will have been won over and we can make our move on Jerusalem then."

But Jesus didn't respond that way, instead He fiercely confronts Peter, calling his friend the Devil incarnate. Those words must have stung Peter and perhaps their friendship was soured for a while. But it had to be done. If Jesus hadn't called Peter to task then, He would have failed in His mission and the world would not have been saved.

Sometimes Jesus has to rebuke us too. There are things that we think is right and we choose to sincerely justify them. But we can sincerely wrong and when Jesus confronts us and challenges our choices, we need to be open to His guidance, His advice, His way of doing things.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, many things are going to happen to me today and I will have a lot of choices to make. Help me to be open to Your counsel, Your words and Your ways. In Your Holy Name, I pray. Amen.

John Stuart, aka Stushie, is the pastor of Erin Presbyterian Church in Knoxville, Tennessee. he writes the daily devotional Heaven's Highway, which he podcasts as "Stushie's Stuff."

Today's art is called "Sleep On, Simon Peter" - by Stushie

Sunday Devotions: Needing Forgiveness

Matthew 18:21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, "Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?"

Colossians 1:13-14 For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

You and I are going to make mistakes today. We’re going to say something we regret. We’re going to do something that will disappoint others. We’re going to let pride overtake our spirits and let impatience damage our souls.

It’s because we are human and far from being perfect. We can try our best to avoid these things with prayer, meditation and consideration, but just when we expect it the least, someone will say or do something to annoy us and, before we know it, we will follow down that road which leads to sin.

But God will not leave us there. He has rescued us from all of these things. We may make mistakes but God will forgive us. Jesus died for every wrong thing that we do or have done or have still to do. He will forgive us if we take time to sincerely come to Him to receive His pardon and blessings.

Prayer: Lord God, You returned Your people to Your presence and loved them continuously despite their faults and failings. We know that Christ sacrificed Himself for us and that we can be rescued from guilt and despair, mistakes and sins. Thank You for all these blessings of love and patience which mean so much to us everyday. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

Stushie is the writer of the Daily Devotional Heaven's Highway

Sunday Devotional - Saving

Titus 3:4, 5a But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. (NIV)

The most enduring moment in the movie, “Saving Private Ryan” comes at the very end. Ryan, now an old man, is visiting the graves of American troops in France. As he stands before the crosses of his rescuers, he bursts into tears and asks his family, “Have I been a good man?” He wants to know if he has lived a life worthy of being rescued; he needs to know that those who died to save him did not die in vain.

I guess the same question could be asked of ourselves, for we also have been rescued and we owe our faithful lives to the death of one man. Jesus died for our sins and we know that none of us are worthy of this grace. We may accomplish great things in our lives, we may do good things and fulfill lofty ambitions, but none of it counts against Christ’s sacrifice. We cannot do anything to make things even with Jesus. We cannot work our way out of needing His salvation. In the end, we will always owe more to Christ than we can ever possibly give. At the final moment of our lives, it will not be our goodness that will rescue us from oblivion; it will be Christ’s mercy and grace that will pull us through death to eternal life.

This is what being saved means. This is why we hope. This is why we have faith in Jesus.

Prayer: Lord Jesus, our lives are made eternal in the precious moment that we give them to You. Our souls are saved forever when we acknowledge You as the Savior of the World and the Lord of our lives. Help us to share this Good News, so that others may not worry about death, but instead they may also glorify Your goodness and experience Your mercy. In Your Holy Name, we pray. Amen.

Stushie writes the weekday devotional "Heaven's Highway" and also illustrates the political cartoon site "Pushing the Envelope."