Jesus’ caution in today’s Gospel about only pouring new wine into fresh wineskins has proved itself to be wise in many ways I have seen. Lately, I was especially touched when a close friend shared with me something she has decided to do. She has written entries in journals for decades, pouring out her heart about all her fears, disappointments, anguish over what was happening in her life, our country and our world.
She showed me a new journal she just bought with a lovely flowered cover. “I have decided to record in this only what I am grateful for today, what has lifted my spirits, made me smile, given me hope.” To her, this was storing new wine, the special goodness of each day, in the new wineskin of her journal.
Patty N, I am gobsmacked by your filing system or memory. Either way WOW. I’m am going to have to look up that 2022 posting :-).
When Saul was confronted by Samuel for not keeping God’s command to completely destroy Amalek and all its inhabitants and livestock, Saul justified his actions by claiming he did it to please God by offering the best of the spoils as a sacrifice to the Lord. How often do I justify being less than totally obedient in following God’s commands in the name of being kind or sympathetic or presuming that he wouldn’t mind if I took a less strict approach to following his will. But “who can know the mind of God?” He has his reasons for what he asks of us. A perfect example is when God told Abraham to slay his beloved son Isaac, the fulfillment of the promise that God had made that Abraham would become “a great and populous nation and all the nations of the earth are to find blessings in him.” Gen. 18:19. It goes on to say that God specifically chose Abraham to teach his sons and their descendants to be obedient to the Lord so that the Lord could carry out the promises he made to Abraham. God needs people who will follow his commands unquestioningly in order to fulfill his plan for the future of all mankind. When Abraham was about to carry out God’s request to kill Isaac, the Lord stopped him from doing so. Abraham had fulfilled his duty by being willing to be obedient. Saul didn’t comprehend God’s reasoning for the total destruction of Amalek and therefore relied on and justified his own decision for what should be done. How far I am from giving God my total obedience to his will. I need to pray to do better in the coming days if I really mean it when I pray: “Here I am Lord, your servant. I come to do your will.”
Patricia thank you for your words and hopes for a current and new day to come. Larry S. Thank you for that great prayer yesterday. I have one I say everyday like that and I may add that one to it. Rita I have tried to look but my Shiloh is the hardest of all my struggles right now and she was my strength for 9 years. Maybe God will send me the another pillar of strength but for now my Shiloh is my heart. Jane you give me hope for the good to come I know this too will pass. As Patrick said, I need to find some quiet time. I believe that is the hardest part. Many other things have happened after my love, Shiloh passed that hit me hard also and I haven't had time to grieve. Thank you all so much for being there. LFF you are amazing people and my strength each morning. Blessings to all the LFF and those with special needs right now. May we all go out and spread the word and love of God to all.
Stormy, I can relate to your grief for your Shiloh. I have almost always had 2 cats, but on Nov 30, 2021, my senior cat, Skyler, died. I had him since he was 5 weeks old & he was 2 months short of 17 when he died. Thankfully I still have my Chatty who I adopted in 2020. Both of us felt lost after Skyler's death. I hope to adopt a second cat again in the summer. Pets have a way of showing us God's love & friendship.
I can relate to Anne in this article as I fell in love with Jesus through His Word at Bible Study Fellowship when I was at the pit bottom 23 years ago...Listening to His Voice - LEARNING TO HEAR GOD’S VOICE THROUGH SCRIPTURE https://www.bsfblog.org/listening-to-his-voice/ *** Try these mini studies at Bible Study Fellowship https://www.bsfinternational.org/trybsf/#isjesusgod *** Start a love affair with Jesus!!! *** You will never regret spending time with Jesus in His Word!!!
This is for Joe. Like Bill S. a few days ago, I have bad days where reading my daily meditations are not possible. But the Lord has always brought me back to my routine of devotions and meditations. For all that I read, Living Faith is my community and I go back to read the comments of the days I missed. This ensures I pray for the current intentions of our group and allows me to add names to my list that are in my daily prayers even if they have no requests or posts. Not sure how long you’ve been with us Joe but some of us have been praying and encouraging together for so many years we lose track of how old we all are! If you’ve been reading with us then you’ve been prayed for because when we pray for all of our LFF we may not know your name but God surely does! Anyone else out there who rarely or doesn’t comment, you are prayed for. Ken encourages us to pray for the souls who have no one to pray for them and we don’t know their names either but again God does. So be uplifted today everyone—-you are being prayed for and God is filling in your name!
Patricia, I love that your friend has entered into a new chapter in her journaling experience. Your message is such a relevant one for us. When I am feeling down or being tough on myself, I try to remember that each day is a renewal in moving forward, gratitude, new decisions, etc. We have new and different opportunities to become the best version of ourselves. May God give me the grace to become that.
Lord please hear our prayers and bring your light to those in the Middle East, Ukraine, Russia, the Sudan, and all those suffering around the world - also for their strength, courage and resilience to continue walking in faith. Send them your light. Father in Heaven, have mercy on us and on the whole world! You sent Your Son, the Prince of Peace, for the salvation of the world. We pray that the Peace of Christ will reign in the Middle East, Ukraine, Russia and Sudan. Please protect and send aid to those in need and all who are at-risk. We pray for peace and rebuilding– we who are working towards it and for all those who are suffering or in danger from conflicts. We pray for an end to violence and war – we pray for wisdom for all leaders who have a hand in this. Lord God please help those in most need of thy mercy. Amen.
Unless I treat people based on their character, I will continue to put new wine in old wine skins. And I will remain a CINO, Christian In Name Only.
Thank you for this wonderful reflection. This is a time we often make New Year’s resolutions with enthusiasm but know we will not see many of them through. This reading is a reminder that we need renewal, to continue to grow, to let go, to invite change.
What a wonderful reflection Patricia very clearly and succinctly written, packed with hope. What strikes me is that your friend has changed direction in how she thinks and views the circumstances she observes. This mirrors my own experience, the issues in my personal life, my family, parish, wider community my country indeed the whole world are ever present but in some ways ever changing. One thing is sure we will always have challenges to deal with. I, we all are part of the tapestry that makes up the world. So as I, we as individuals change it is a fact that we have changed the world in one tiny element. It starts within each of us and ripples out. If collectively we all change the one thing we can change, that is ourselves we will change the world. From the tiny acorn the mighty oak tree grows. Is that not what Jesus 3 year tour of duty was all about? He did a good job, he gave us example and left us His Spirit to supply all we need. Those who listened then and lived the message reaped the rewards. Today the ball is in our court, we have the same choice the people had back then. Often the way we see the problem, is the problem. We often see things not as they are but through the lens of who we are, of how we are feeling at the time, and our feelings change. Over the years I’ve collected scriptures to support me in my efforts to learn grow and change. None better than todays Alleluia (a new one for me). We never stop learning and growing, unless we choose to do so. R. Alleluia, alleluia. The word of God is living and effective, able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart. R. Alleluia, alleluia. 2 Corinthians 10:5 New International Version We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Ephesians 6:12 New International Version For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Philippians 4 6-7 Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus Proverbs 4:23. Above all else, guard your heart, for everything you do flows from it. God bless us all, or these days I prefer to say, God blesses us all. The first is a hopeful request, or even a doubting question, without the question mark. The second is a fact, a lived reality in all circumstances.
Patrick, this so eloquently and beautifully aligns with your posting of Sept 26, 2022 to a posting by Sr. Chris Koellhoffer entitled “Grateful Always”. Clearly, the emphasis on gratitude has had a profound impact on me, life altering. Thank you. Blessings and warm regards to the contributors to this site.
Needed prayers for healing double knee surgery going well Thanks God Bless all LFF family
Wow Patrick you cold be writing for the Living Faith staff. Great stuff will be thinking of it during the day. Ken
Gratitude by Brandon Lake https://youtu.be/dQdfs5S6jyA?si=vly3mZLlnXfZUMJY
Good morning LFF... thank you Patricia for your lovely reflection this morning...Patrick, your words resonate with me this morning...I am trying to change my ways through God's grace in order to make the world a better place
*** Why did Jesus use the example of new wine (God’s way) in old wineskins (people’s way) Because people asked Jesus in Mark 2:18, “John’s disciples and the Pharisees were going without eating. Some people came to Jesus. They said to Him, “John’s disciples are fasting. The disciples of the Pharisees are also fasting. But Your disciples are not. Why aren’t they?”” *** God’s way in 1 Samuel 15:18-19, “He sent you to do something for Him. He said, ‘Go and completely destroy the Amalekites. Go and destroy those evil people. Fight against them until you have wiped them out.’ Why didn’t you obey the Lord? Why did you keep for yourselves what you had taken from your enemies? Why did you do what is evil in the sight of the Lord?” *** People’s way in 1 Samuel 15:20-21, “But I did obey the Lord,” Saul said. “I went to do what He sent me to do. I completely destroyed the Amalekites. I brought back Agag, their king. The soldiers took sheep and cattle from what had been taken from our enemies. They took the best of what had been set apart to God. They wanted to sacrifice them to the Lord your God at Gilgal.” ******* I cannot mix God’s way with my own way…thinking I know better than God! So Saul kept king Agag alive and the kept the best sheep and cattle for themself :-( *** Who are the Amalekites? https://www.gotquestions.org/Amalekites.html *** God’s way in 1 Samuel 15:2-3, “The Lord who rules over all says, ‘I will punish the Amalekites because of what they did to Israel. As the Israelites came up from Egypt, the Amalekites attacked them. Now go. Attack the Amalekites. Completely destroy all that belongs to them. Do not spare the Amalekites. Put the men and women to death. Put the children and babies to death. Also kill the cattle, sheep, camels and donkeys.’ ” *** Saul’s reasoning of his way in 1 Samuel 15:24, “Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I’ve broken the Lord’s command. I haven’t done what you directed me to do. I was afraid of the men. So I did what they said I should do.” ******* Doesn’t it sound cruel to kill all including women, children and all animal to be God’s way? Yes, according to people’s way but not according to God’s way! I didn’t say that, God said it in His Word! Hebrews 4:12, “The Word of God is alive and active. It is sharper than any sword that has two edges. It cuts deep enough to separate soul from spirit. It can separate bones from joints. It judges the thoughts and purposes of the heart!” *** The Amalekites of today continues to destroy and kill Israelites (October 7, 2023) because Saul disobeyed God! *** Partial obedience (Saul’s way) is disobedience in 1 Samuel 15:23, “Refusing to obey the Lord is as sinful as using evil magic.Being proud is as evil as worshiping statues of gods. You have refused to do what the Lord told you to do. So He has refused to have you as king.” *** I cannot mix my way with God’s way in Mark 2:21, “No one sews a patch of new cloth on old clothes. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old. That will make the tear worse!” ******* What do I do or follow that is not in God’s Word (People’s way)? Even when it sounds good to the world? Cease fire? What do I do or follow that is in God’s Word (God’s way)? Even when it sounds cruel to the world? Destroy Hamas? P.S. If Saul obeyed God, we would not have the Hamas problem of today…….
Hi Salina, I just posted my comment and noticed your post. I read your comment with interest, as recently Benjamin Netanyahu referred to the Amalekites in relation to the current situation in Israel.
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I must begin new and fill my life with Jesus and His ways. Please help me. I ask this in Jesus Name Amen Amen Amen