Daily Devotions and Podcasts

SCRIPTURE Matthew 21:18–22 RSV  In the morning, as Jesus was returning to the city, he was hungry. And seeing a fig tree by the wayside he went to it and found nothing on it but leaves only. And he said to it, “May no fruit ever come from you again!” And the fig tree withered at once. When the disciples saw it, they marveled, saying, “How did the fig tree wither at once?” And Jesus answered them, “Truly, I say to you, if you have faith and never doubt, you will not only do what has been done to the fig tree, but even if you say to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ it will be done. And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith. WORDS OF HOPE Jesus encounters a fig tree that appeared to be alive because it had leaves, yet it had no figs. I suspect that like the fig tree, I may sometimes appear to be religiously alive on the outside while lacking the spiritual fruit God desires from me. The significance of this scripture reminds me that Jesus’ authority exposes what is truly genuine and what is outwardly superficial. Jesus came looking for fruit and found only appearance. The disciples ask about the withered tree, but Jesus turns their attention toward faith: “Whatever you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive.” Oh, heck yes, I’m ready! Today is the International Day to Protect Education from Attack. Being an educator for over thirty years, I’m ready to pray for several conservative groups across the country to wither like the fig tree. I have a long list of people and organizations that I pray will wilt and fade away taking their lists of books to ban, public schools and institutions to defund, their issues with CRT and DEI, and their insane desires to rewrite history to name a few… But here comes the cold hard truth! Jesus’ encounter with the fig tree isn’t a lesson about getting whatever we want if we believe hard enough. Unfortunately, the lesson isn’t that strong faith will give us the power to make anything happen. Rather, Jesus calls us, to trust God deeply enough to live faithfully before Him. True faith is not merely believing that God can do something. It is trusting God so completely that our lives begin to bear fruit—obedience, love, humility, mercy, perseverance, and righteousness. Today, I must ask myself: Do I have leaves without fruit? Is my faith primarily something others can see, or is my faith producing evidence of Christ's life within me? PRAYER God, keep me from having only the appearance of faith, and help my life bear the fruit of love. Give me the courage to trust you enough to release my desire to see others wither and fade away. I pray that your truth, justice, and grace will transform hearts and institutions of learning. AMEN DEVOTION AUTHOR David Sims, Deacon

SCRIPTURE John 21:25  Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written. WORDS OF HOPE Today is International Literacy Day, as designated by UNESCO in 1966. The purpose of this observance is to “remind policy-makers, practitioners, and the public of the critical importance of literacy for creating more literate, just, peaceful, and sustainable society. Literacy is a fundamental human right for all. It opens the door to the enjoyment of other human rights, greater freedoms, and global citizenship. Literacy is a foundation for people to acquire broader knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, and behaviors to foster a culture of lasting peace based on respect for equality and non-discrimination, the rule of law, solidarity, justice, diversity, and tolerance and to build harmonious relations with oneself, other people and the planet.” The goals of International Literacy Day emphasize the impact of literacy on human rights, understanding, diversity, tolerance, respect for all people and the planet. Working against these goals are the many groups, both citizens and lawmakers, who are tirelessly striving to ban any book from libraries and schools that focuses on diversity, tolerance, broader knowledge, and greater freedoms for all. Sadly, many of the strongest voices for banning books call themselves Christians. And yet, the Bible contains many of the same things as the books they deem undesirable—nudity, sex, death, violence, murder… What if the Bible is read as literature rather than as a tool to used against everything that International Literacy Day is striving to accomplish? How is reading the Bible as literature different from reading it as a holy and sacred text? Surprisingly, we tend to read literature more closely than we do the Bible. (Remember all those pop quizzes in English class about minute details of a story?). We look for symbolism, tone, vocabulary and structure. Noticing these things helps us to recognize such details as overarching themes and character development and growth. We thrust ourselves into the writing and see and feel the writing as something that envelops us, where we are a character in the story. We see a whole rather than many disjointed parts. This is not how the Bible is usually read. First of all, the Bible is not one book or even one genre. It is sixty-six books consisting of stories, poetry, letters, songs, and parables. Each of these genres asks its readers for a slightly different approach; however they share the common thread that assumes we come to receive the author’s words with an open mind. No preconceived notions. No expectations. And yet, it is with both preconceived notions and expectations that many approach their reading of the Bible, scouring its pages randomly in pursuit of justification for ideas already held. Think for a moment about how different our Bible reading experiences could be if we came with the primary intent to learn and acquire “broader knowledge, skills, values, attitudes, and behaviors to foster a culture of lasting peace based on respect for equality and non-discrimination, the rule of law, solidarity, justice, diversity, and tolerance and to build harmonious relations with oneself, other people and the planet!” Reading the Bible as literature provides the opportunity to receive its words as an offering of insight and an agent for changer and growth rather than as a confirmation of institutionalized idea. And, if we learn to read the Bible as literature, we might also learn to read literature in a more holy and sacred way, seeking insight and wisdom. We never know when that book we pick up on a whim at the bookstore might be one that leads us unexpectedly to discover something about ourselves, our faith, and our God. PRAYER Dear God, teacher of us all, open my mind so that I may read the many words around me in a way that nourishes and enriches my heart and soul. Remind me that learning often comes from unexpected places. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Kris Baker Order of Saint Francis and Saint Clare