Tag: Christian Emphasis

Day 9 :: Living Stone of HOPE

Join us for the 12 Day YMCA Devotion Series – LIVING STONES: LEAD, CARE AND SERVE LIKE JESUS

How can we be ‘like Living Stones’ used by God to strengthen the presence of Christ where we lead?

Recently, 24 YMCA leaders with the OnPrinciple program visited 12 places throughout the Holy Land where Jesus taught about how to live and lead in God’s kingdom.

From this experience comes 12 spiritual leadership principles – or Living Stones – (inspired by 1Peter 2:4-5) that Christ-followers can embody as we are being built up to lead, care and serve everyone, like Jesus.

by Norris Lineweaver, Board Secretary with Friends of the Jerusalem International YMCA

Over an early morning cup of coffee discussing the hope for peace in The Holy Land with a Palestinian friend from Ramallah, he said: “How can I have hope for peace with God if I do not have a relationship with my brother?”

Later that morning, we joined together in a worship service in the Oratory Chapel of the Jerusalem International YMCA, a landmark near the Old City, known as a ‘sermon in stone’.

On a wall at that Y near the altar composed of twelve stones, are sculpted bas-reliefs that tell the story of the twin brothers, Jacob and Esau, from the Book of Genesis. 

It is one of the most remarkable stories about hope and restorative justice in the Bible.

This sacred story shows just how difficult reconciliation is.

It involves devastation, it comes with sacrifice, great struggle, even injury; and requires hope and trust in God.

Through striving to achieve reconciliation with his brother Esau, Jacob saw the face of God.

He named the place of his struggle and hope “Peniel” – which means “face of God”.

At noon my Palestinian friend and I traveled north through the Jordan Valley of lush green fields to end the day’s journey in Tiberius at the beautiful YMCA Peniel by Galilee Retreat Center.

From the shoreline of Galilee at Peniel one can see Mount Beatitude and the foothills of Capernaum. 

Visitors come from around the world to rest from their struggles, to be reinvigorated spiritually.

Recently an unexpected fire raged up the Tiberius coast of Galilee severely damaging Peniel, leaving much of the property in ruins.

For many like me who have benefitted from coming “face to face” with God at YMCA Peniel, this devastation caused a loss of hope of it ever being restored to a place of reconciliation and spiritual renewal.

It’s easy to ask God why Peniel was not spared from the fires.

But in the struggle to rebuild the beloved retreat center God has come “face to face” with those in the YMCA working together as living stones in hope and trust: Jews, Muslims, and Palestinian Christians.

What are the fires in your life that have caused you to lose hope?

What are the struggles you experience that could be the place where God wants to meet you “face to face”?

How might you rebuild strained relationships in your life, like Jacob and Esau did, through trust and hope in God?

So Jacob was left alone, and a man wrestled with him till daybreak.

When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.

Then the man said, “Let me go, for it is daybreak.”

But Jacob replied, “I will not let you go unless you bless me.”

The man asked him, “What is your name?”

“Jacob,” he answered.

Then the man said, “Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, because you have struggled with God and with humans and have overcome.”

Jacob said, “Please tell me your name.”

But he replied, “Why do you ask my name?” Then he blessed him there.

So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, “It is because I saw God face to face, and yet my life was spared.””

Genesis 32.24-30

This YMCA devotion series brought to you by onPrinciple – click here to learn more about it – a new leadership development program to strengthen the presence of Christ in the YMCA

Click here for the entire devotion series as a downloadable PDF booklet.

Click here to access entire devotion series on YouVersion

Day One :: Beauty Is Being Loved By God / World YMCA Week of Prayer 2021

For over a hundred years now the World YMCA has been calling its members and leaders to a week of prayer, along side the World YWCA, and this year the theme is: Beauty from Brokenness

“Although we may be easily broken, the light of Christ within us can heal brokenness and burst through, reaching out to those around us.”

Join us for a week of prayer in your heart at noon each day this week!

“God’s love sees us, knows us and extends to us no matter how we feel or where we are.”

Psalm 139 ‘Oh Lord, you have examined my heart and know everything about me.’

“Whatever others say, each person is a special individual who is known and highly valued by God, with all their struggles, gifts and unique characteristics.

God has promised to walk with us through all the ups and downs of life.

Sometimes God helps us to overcome difficulties and at other times we are given strength and faith to keep walking on.”

QUESTIONS/REFLECTION POINTS

• When was the time you first felt loved by God?

• Have you felt closer or further away from God during the pandemic?

• Is it a good thing or a scary thing that God knows everything we do and think?

• Are we good at trusting God when life becomes hard?

• As you finish the study today, remember always that God loves you, no matter how broken you feel.

PRAYER OF BLESSING

Father God in Heaven, We thank you for the love you show us every day, even when it is us who have messed up.

We thank you for the amazing act of sending your son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins.

As we continue to move out of this pandemic we are so grateful for how you have provided for so many, and shown your love to us all, even while the world seems covered in darkness.

For we know the darkness is not dark to you, you see through it, you see us and our hearts and our struggles and our personal situations, giving us your light and guidance as we find our way through the dark.

And we’re thankful for the eternal hope we have in you that there is a way out of the darkness, and we pray we’d take the steps to get there and help make it even brighter for everyone else.

You are an awesome God, and we thank you for your love every day.

Amen.

Please share any thoughts, insights or recorded actions that come as a result of today’s devotions on social media using the hashtag: #WWOP21 Team of Writers: Matthew Malloch, Scotland; Edwin Mapurisa, Zimbabwe; Franklin Prashanth, India; Ivory Manio, Philippines; Seng Moon Pan Maji, Myanmar

If you are on Instagram, I highly recommend you follow @ymcairelandchaplaincy – they post inspiring content and are participating in the World Week of Prayer with daily posts and videos.

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Day 8 :: Living Stone of FORGIVENESS

Join us for the 12 Day YMCA Devotion Series – LIVING STONES: LEAD, CARE AND SERVE LIKE JESUS

How can we be ‘like Living Stones’ used by God to strengthen the presence of Christ where we lead?

Recently, 24 YMCA leaders with the OnPrinciple program visited 12 places throughout the Holy Land where Jesus taught about how to live and lead in God’s kingdom.

From this experience comes 12 spiritual leadership principles – or Living Stones – (inspired by 1Peter 2:4-5) that Christ-followers can embody as we are being built up to lead, care and serve everyone, like Jesus.

by Melissa Logan, CEO & President with the YMCA Blue Ridge Assembly in North Carolina

Have you ever felt judged? Have you ever been hurt? Have you ever hurt someone’s feelings?

If you are like me, your answer is yes to all of the above: judgment, shame, embarrassment, anger and hurt. 

The hurt replays in my head, and even worse, lays a heavy burden in my heart.

Unfortunately, I’m not without sin; my actions and words have wreaked the same havoc on someone else, too. 

And yes, those replay and cause great regret.

We aren’t always going to make the best choices or do the right thing.

Thankfully, we have a great model to look to; we can look to the life of Jesus.

Recently I walked through the temple court area and sat on the steps leading up to space where Jesus met a woman accused of sin.

The scene replays in my mind of Jesus facing the scared woman there, writing on the ground with a non-judgmental attitude towards her.

Jesus makes it seem so simple; don’t judge others – give grace.

Let’s pause on the words of grace and forgiveness. 

We might think these just happen in our minds when we say, “I forgive you.” 

However, it’s deeper than that. 

Grace and forgiveness are also heart issues. 

Hurt, shame, sin – these happen in the heart, are costly, harmful and so heavy.

I find that while I’m able to give grace to others, I’m not as generous with myself. I’m working on it. 

How about you? What forgiveness of sins do you need to give yourself?

Releasing the emotional heart-hurt is freeing; it’s uplifting in spirit, mind, and body. 

Our hearts and mind (and lives) were meant for joy, gratitude, love, and peace.

We have a choice on how we show up every day to ourselves, our family and friends, to the world, and most importantly to Jesus.

Choosing to show up with the grace of Christ allows you to shine the light of God’s forgiveness in the world.

May you be the light, like living stones who you drop the judge-stones, and may you choose grace every day.

At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them.

The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery.

They made her stand before the group and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?”

They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger.

When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.”

Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there.

Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

“No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

Jesus near steps to the temple court in Jerusalem [Gospel according to John, 8.2-11]

This YMCA devotion series brought to you by onPrinciple – click here to learn more about it – a new leadership development program to strengthen the presence of Christ in the YMCA

Click here for the entire devotion series as a downloadable PDF booklet.

Click here to access entire devotion series on YouVersion