2024-01-31 – Matthew 5:21-37

31 Wednesday Jan 2024

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A couple days ago I started reading Matthew’s account of Jesus’ Sermon On The Mount, and even though I have read through these passages numerous times, I don’t think I realized the Sermon On The Mount spread across the entirety of Matthew chapter 5 through the end of Chapter 7. There is so much to absorb from Jesus’ words in that sermon, and to be honest there is quite a bit of conviction from reading His words. Today, the two biggest topics that got my attention were Jesus speaking about Anger (Matthew 5:21-26) and His teaching about Vows (Matthew 5:33-37).

To be honest, I often struggle with anger (not that this is a surprise to anyone who truly knows me). It’s not that I run around breaking things, it’s that I allow my indignation and sense of justice to get the better of me. There are things I should be angry about, but I should not be blinded by the circumstances and miss the opportunity for correction and understanding. Moreover, it should not cause strife with friends or family for an extended period of time. The longer anger is allowed to marinate, the harder it is to move past the anger and move closer to reconciliation.

As for Vows, I don’t want anyone to think I have a commitment issue or that I cannot be trusted, but what struck me about Jesus’ words is how much our society feels the need for vows to project meaning. In Matthew 5:37 Jesus says, “Simply let your ‘Yes” be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ be ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” We have become such an untrustworthy people we feel the need to vow our trustworthiness in order to have our words believed as true. If we are trustworthy in our character and show integrity in all our actions, then the need for vows is not necessary. Let us remember what Jesus’ expectation is of us and strive to live at that level on a constant basis, not just when we “really” mean it!

2024-01-28 – Matthew 1-4

28 Sunday Jan 2024

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As we finish Matthew 4, we come to the beginning of Jesus’ ministry. Matthew clearly sets the stage for who Jesus is, where He came from, and why He was here. The Jews of that day were about to get something very different than what they expected out of the Messiah. What they wanted was a warrior like King David to free them from Roman oppression. But God knew exactly what they needed, which was a Savior who would free them from the oppression of religious leaders and their laws.

The same thing applies to us when we pray and ask things of God. For me, I often ask God to relieve me of some burden or affliction, but God already know what I actually need. The older I get the more I have come to realize that I live in an imperfect body, and the more I ask for healing, the more I realize this body will ultimately fail me. What I really need is for spiritual healing and preparation for eternity. Instead of spending my time worrying about my current existence, I need to spend more time worrying about what is to come in eternity, not just for me, but for those who God has put before me.

— Dino

Restarting – January 27, 2024

27 Saturday Jan 2024

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It’s been over four years since my last post on this site, but after multiple years of reading through the Bible each year I needed a break. It actually pains me to say I needed a break from scripture. To clarify, I didn’t need a break from scripture itself, what I needed was a break from the grind of reading through scripture with little to no desire to absorb what God wanted to say to me through His word. I learned that reading without study bears no fruit, and I was tired of reading words and not taking the time to study and try to understand what those words had to say to me.

So, I took a break… a 4 year break. To be honest, I have no plans to post every single day and I have no plans to try and cram reading every word in the Bible into a 365 (366 this year) day year. My plan is to simply pick a different books in the Bible (right now I am in Matthew) and spend real time each morning (most) and read and study the notes until I feel like stopping for the day. Some days I will read chapters, and some days I will read a few verses… and that will have to be enough.

I will also be honest about something. I was not planning on restarting this blog. I was planning on leaving it alone. It was originally intended as a way for me to connect with others as we worked our way through the Bible. But in the end, as others dropped off, I was left with filling daily devotionals (Daili “Daily” Devotion “D”… get it? 😉) on my own. I felt that if nothing else my kids could one day go back and read my rambling thoughts. But in the end, it was simply a grind as I input half-hearted posts just to get it done each day. It benefited no one, least of all me.

I hope it is different this time around. I have already read through the middle of Matthew 4 and I was tempted to go back and write devotional posts for each of the day’s readings so far, but instead, I won’t. This post will serve as a “catch-up” for the restart of DailiD (Daily Devotion), and hopefully that’s ok. For me, it is just a place to jot down thoughts about what I have read and understood, and if anyone comes along, feel free to drop a comment. I really enjoy the interactions about scriptures with others. Let’s see where it takes us.

That’s it for now. See you next time.

— Dino

2020 – Genesis 10-11, Psalm 4

07 Tuesday Jan 2020

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The story of the Tower of Babel is alway fascinating to me. Human nature is corrupt any way we slice it. And when two or more corrupt people come together, there is even more corruption. We see that in our governments (not just the USA, but in every government). I believe that our differences are what bring out the best in each other. Not just language, but in everything we do. When we are different from the person next to us, we can work to bring out the good. Our bigger issue is focus… what are we choosing to focus on? The good or the bad in each other and how are we encouraging the good to come out?

2020 – Genesis 6-9, Psalm 3

03 Friday Jan 2020

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The story of Noah is a powerful one of God’s strength, justice, mercy, and restraint. God is able to create and destroy all things. He is able to provide both justice and mercy. And because He loves us he shows mercy through it all. When God destroyed the earth He did it to cleanse the earth of the evil that had infested it. But man’s sinful nature still exists as shown in the example of Noah’s drunkenness and his youngest son’s sin. Evil will always exist in this world, but so will God’s judgement and mercy. We must all strive for righteousness and know that God has justice and mercy covered.

2020 – Genesis 3-5, Psalm 2

02 Thursday Jan 2020

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Let’s face it, we all make decisions that are not part of God’s plan for us. When Eve decided to take the forbidden fruit, she made it out of selfish ambition. In Genesis 3:6 it says that she saw that the fruit was “pleasing to the eye”, but she also found it to be “desirable for wisdom”, which was the ultimate deciding factor. There was no shortage of fruit that looked pleasing, but she wanted God’s knowledge and thus made her choice. We do the exact same thing. We make choices because we want more based on out limited scope, but if we truly trust in God who has the full picture, we make less missteps and live more fully in His will and be happier for it.

2020 – Genesis 1-2, Psalm 1

01 Wednesday Jan 2020

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The plan this year is to restart my daily Bible reading through this blog. I will post a copy of the plan as soon as I can. Today we are starting in Genesis 1-2 and Psalm 1. I love the first verse of Psalm 1 where it says, “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked or stand in the way of the sinner or sit in the seat of Mockers.” When we seek the counsel of God directly and forego the counsel of humans who are no better off than us, we will find a way to succeed. Seek God first in all things and we will find peace and wisdom that matters.

2019 – Genesis 16-18

19 Saturday Jan 2019

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It’s always interesting to see how God uses our disobedience to work in His plan. Even when we deliberately choose to go against God, He finds a way to make it all work. With Abraham, this was no exception. Though he and Sarah chose to make their own path in delivering an heir for Abraham, God still blessed them and Ishmael in the long run. There were still consequences, but God used it all for His purpose and managed to bless Abraham and his descendants. The same is true for all of us. We are all imperfect and mistakes neither define us or dictate our ultimate path in this world. The key is remembering that God’s plan is perfect, not necessarily our path.

2019 – Genesis 13-15

12 Saturday Jan 2019

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God’s promises can sometimes seem elusive. We don’t always understand the path God takes to bless us, but we must always remember that God’s plan is perfect. If you had told me that my journey would take all the twists and turns that led me to where I am today, I would not have believed you. My plan was a straight line to success, not the scribbled line representing the path I have taken. What is most comforting is that Abram seemed to take the same type of path to his success. And God’s plan proved to be perfect even then. We are all here because of God’s perfect plan. We may not always understand the twists and turns, but they are there for a reason. My time on this earth is nothing more than a blink in the light of eternity. But God uses me whether I realize it or not. Being a willing participant is simply a bonus.

2019 – Genesis 10-12

06 Sunday Jan 2019

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It never ceases to amaze me when men choose to trust in themselves more than they trust in God. Abraham, the father of Israel, was no exception. In Genesis 12, instead of trusting in God to keep him safe, he decides to lie about his wife to Pharaoh. Sadly, this is not the exception, but the rule in most instances for all of us. Instead of trusting God to deliver us, we make our own battle plans and then ask God to bless it. Maybe we should spend more time asking God to lead and guide us and less time trudging ahead down our own path and then wondering why things don’t work out as planned.