PrayerBits for Tuesday

PrayerBits

A bite sized devotional program
produced by the West Side Presbyterian Church

Tuesday

Scripture lesson: Ecclesiastes 1:2, 12-14 Vanity of vanities

Time to reflect: The Hebrew word underlying “vanity” is a wisp of smoke, totally unsubstantial. Ecclesiastes is full of harsh, discouraging words about life. Many discouraged people actually find it comforting because they can relate to these words: “Yeah, I know what you mean.” Ecclesiastes, however, needs to be coupled with the Good News of Jesus Christ. It is not wisdom or anything else “under the sun” that saves us or makes like worthwhile, but rather the salvation afforded by Christ. This salvation, then, makes life worth living and our toils of value.

Moving through the day: Meditate on the difference of living a life that ends in the grave and a life that is leading toward the general resurrection.

Scripture:

 2 "Meaningless! Meaningless!"
       says the Teacher.
       "Utterly meaningless!
       Everything is meaningless."

 12 I, the Teacher, was king over Israel in Jerusalem. 13 I devoted myself to study and to explore by wisdom all that is done under heaven. What a heavy burden God has laid on men! 14 I have seen all the things that are done under the sun; all of them are meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

PrayerBits for Monday

PrayerBits

A bite sized devotional program
produced by the West Side Presbyterian Church

Monday

Scripture lesson: Matthew 6:24-33 The lilies of the field

Time to reflect: There is a difference between “worrying about” our lives and working to provide the necessities. Getting worked up about whether we can make ends meet does not help the situation and, inadvertently, displays the kind of lack of trust spoken of in this saying of Jesus. His point is that we can trust God that our efforts will be successful in gaining the necessities of life.

Moving Through the Day: Pray that you can have the faithful calm needed to go forward without debilitating worry.

Scripture:

 24"No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money.

Do Not Worry

 25"Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life[a]?

 28"And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.