Insightful Musings on the New Testament
by
Ray Sparre, NU class of '67

Ray has a wealth of experience as a Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, and student of the Word. He believes and practices his faith where the rubber meets the road. You'll find his writings to be practical, insightful, and grounded in a truly Christ-centered world view.

Below are links to a printable daily Bible reading guide which Ray is following, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010.

|  Daily Reading Guide  |  2010 Devotion Archives  |
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16 May 10
    Good morning, folks.
    My thinker switched on about 2:30am.  It was another case of not wanting to just lay there and waste time so I got up about 3:30am and carried on with my routine.  I haven't jogged in about a week.  But when I finish sending this, I'm going to do one.  It's a very pleasant Spring morning with a little bit of cloud cover...that looks like it should burn off soon.  After breakfast, we'll get ready and do our run to Woodburn where we host a regular mini-service and Gospel Sing with the residents at an assisted living center.  We have some great times there with those seniors who are not normally overloaded with attention during their final days.
    I move that you be blessed today.  Is there a second to that motion?  Motion carried.
        Love, Dad/Ray
 
16 May 2010
Passage: Luke 2:1-20
Focus: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.”  Luke 2:14,
            These were the lyrics of the new hit song in heaven as premiered by the angels before an audience of spell-bound shepherds.  Not only had they never heard an angelic choir before, very likely they’d never heard such words before.
            Think about it.  The strong implication of this message is that one gains God’s favor via the special One being born in Bethlehem that night.  And a wonderful benefit to winning God’s favor is that one also gains the most sought after commodity in the entire world—PEACE.  It is indeed in short supply.  Be assured that Jesus is still the “Prince of PEACE” (Isaiah 9:6).  I think that little quip says it well: “Know Christ, know peace; no Christ, no peace.”
            This is such a viable spiritual law that I believe you can use it as a kind of practical standard for determining whether or not you are walking within the borders of God’s favor.  Fear, anger, anxiety, and the like are indicators of territory outside the fence of God’s provision.  But peace, love, and confidence are qualities only found in Christ—only within the boundaries of God’s favor.  Colossians 3:15 puts it this way: “Let the PEACE of Christ rule (serve as a standard for guidance) in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to PEACE.  And be thankful.”
            Paul instructs the believers at Philippi to rejoice in the privilege of residing within the realm of Christ.  And take note of what he says about PEACE.  “Rejoice in the Lord always.  I will say it again: Rejoice!…and the PEACE of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:4-7).
            I think it really is a worthy question to ask: Is God’s favor resting on me?
 
            “When the believer stays his mind on Christ, he develops a wonderful CALM-PLEX.”