Holy Week: Old and New

Posted on March 28, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

 

Today, Thursday, we remember how Jesus gathered with his disciples to celebrate the old and usher in the new:

 

Luke 22:20 (NLT)
After supper he took another cup of wine and said, “This cup is the new covenant between God and his people—an agreement confirmed with my blood, which is poured out as a sacrifice for you.”

The old, the Passover meal, recognized how in the past God brought His people out of slavery in Egypt. The new, confirmed through the blood of Christ, looked forward to our salvation.

 

 

 

Good morning, Lord. I thank You for all You have done for me in the past, what You are doing for me right now, and what You will do for me in the future. You saved me from my sin, You protect and lead me, You promise me eternity in heaven. All that is more than enough. 

And yet, You also hear my every prayer, You are always at my side, You call me friend. My cup runneth over!

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Holy Week: God and Man

Posted on March 27, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

God and man, the Creator and the created:

“Well might the sun in darkness hide,
and shut its glories in,
when God, the mighty maker, died
for his own creature’s sin.”
Isaac Watts, 1702

 

Good morning, Lord. You made me, You sustain me, You protect me, You provide for me. You died for me … how is that even possible? I cannot thank You enough. As the old hymn says, “All to You I owe.” And yet, hours go by when I don’t give You a thought or a prayer. I do what I want, when I want. I behave foolishly and recklessly.


Have mercy on me, Jesus, Messiah, Son of God and Son of Man.

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Holy Week Highs and Lows

Posted on March 26, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

 

As only God can do, Christ’s last week on earth turned things upside down.

 

 

        • He entered the city in a noisy and joyful parade
        • He chased the moneychangers out of the Temple
        • He celebrated the Passover with His dearest friends
        • He put up with a sham trial
        • He died on a cross

What were the high points? The lows? For whom?

As Joseph said to his brothers about their plan to sell him into slavery:

Genesis 50:20 (NLT)
God intended it all for good.

It’s a roller-coaster of a week. And in the end, it’s all good.

 

 

 

Good morning, Lord. How did You feel during the last week of Your earthly life? Did You want to hurry up and get it over and done? Or did You want to stretch it out, make it last? My time is in Your hands — how should I feel about time? Forgive me for thinking it is my enemy, for feeling like it’s not enough.


Teach me to accept it as a gift from You, to use it wisely and joyfully. Teach me to use it all for good.

 

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Holy Week: From Colt to Cross

Posted on March 25, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

 

Yesterday, we celebrated Palm Sunday, remembering how Jesus rode into Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey. On Friday, we’ll focus on His death on the cross. A few days, an extreme change.

 

What do I have planned for the same span of time? Work, cook, clean — routine stuff.

James 4:14-15 (MSG)
You don’t know the first thing about tomorrow …. make it a habit to say, “If the Master wills it and we’re still alive, we’ll do this or that.”

Extreme or routine, as “the Master wills it.”

 

 

 

Good morning, Lord. It’s Holy Week, when we focus on the events that led to the cross. In everything, You obeyed Your Father in heaven. This week, even more than usual, I should be willing and obedient. If (when) I stray, nudge me back on the path of righteousness. When I’m tempted, give me the strength to just say no.


When things don’t go my way, teach me to say, “Your will be done.”

 

 

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Remember and Stand Firm

Posted on March 22, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott


2 Peter 1:12 (NLT)
Therefore, I will always remind you about these things—even though you already know them and are standing firm in the truth you have been taught.

 

Nothing like an internet and cellphone outage to remind me that God’s Word in my heart is better than God’s Word on my phone.

 

Good morning, Lord. It’s shocking how much I missed the internet yesterday: how often I reached for my phone, how many times I wanted to look up something and didn’t, how many times I checked to see if access was restored.


Apparently, I’m more attached to technology than I thought–forgive me for holding anything other than You in such high esteem. Dear God, may I be as quick to notice a broken connection with You and as eager to get it fixed. Teach me to keep my line to You unobstructed by worldly desires.

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Morning Prayer: Never Forget

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

Good morning, Lord. You know everything, and I know so little. You never forget, and so much slips my mind. When I forget Your rules for living and do wrong, You remember the blood on the cross and forgive my sin. Amazing love! Awesome grace! May I never forget. May I never take grace for granted.


Let every step I take, everything I do be done in remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice on my behalf.

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Remember: God and Us

Posted on March 21, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

Luke 22:19 (NLT)
He [Jesus] took some bread and gave thanks to God for it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.”


Do and remember. Remember and do.

God remembered man’s hopelessness and gave His Son.
We remember our sin and repent.
God sees our sin and remembers the blood.
We do good in remembrance of Christ.

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Morning Prayer: God with Me

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

Good morning, Lord. Even after all these years, there are times when doubts sneak into my thoughts. I find myself in a pickle and the enemy whispers, “If God was real, you wouldn’t be in this mess.” Or the world seems chaotic and I think, “Obviously, there’s no Great Mind at work here.”


But then, like the psalmist, I remember all my personal God-moments — the rescues, the beauty, the comfort, the divine appointments, the peace — and I think “God has been with me every step.”

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Remember Your Ebenezers

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

 

After a miraculous victory over their enemy, Samuel gave the people of Israel a memorial to help them remember the day.

 

1 Samuel 7:12 (NLT)
Samuel then took a large stone and placed it between the towns of Mizpah and Jeshanah. He named it Ebenezer (which means “the stone of help”), for he said, “Up to this point the Lord has helped us!”

I have a few Ebenezer memorials of my own, treasures to remind me “thus far, the Lord has helped me.”

How about you? Any “stones of help” in your collection of treasured memories?

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Morning Prayer: Awe and Gratitude

Posted on March 19, 2024 by Shirlee Abbott

Good morning, Lord. I thank You for this Lenten season, when we remember Your sacrifice on the cross. It’s so easy, in the busyness of my daily routine, to forget the biggest event in human history. Engrave the truth of Your death and resurrection on my soul as a permanent reminder of my sinfulness and Your grace.

May every breath I take be filled with awe and humble gratitude.

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