DAILY DEVOT IONAL 13

Pastor Bob Strauss, Tabernacle UMC – Erma

SCRIPTURE –

Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” And with that he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit…” - John 20:21-22 (NIV)

DEVOTIONAL THOUGHT –

There is so much brokenness and division in our world today. From ongoing wars, natural disasters, division within our nation, division within our denomination, sometimes it is difficult to know which way to turn.

My family’s personal journey of healing is a physical and emotional one. In 2016, my wife, Laurie, was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was a long journey that included surgery, chemotherapy, radiation…our family was broken and sometimes we did not know which way to turn. Laurie was so anxious at times that she needed to be reminded to breathe. She would take a deep breath and begin to relax.

One of the songs that was meaningful to her was Danny Gokey’s “Tell Your Heart to Beat Again,” which was written at time when his wife had passed away from complications during her third surgery to treat her congenital heart disease:

Tell your heart to beat again

Close your eyes and breathe it in

Let the shadows fall away

Step into the light of grace

Yesterday’s a closing door

You don’t live there anymore

Say goodbye to where you’ve been

And tell your heart to beat again

And just to let you know, Laurie’s journey of healing has been successful – she is a cancer survivor. But she sees life differently since cancer. She is now even more alive!

REFLECTION QUESTIONS –

1. Have you ever been in a situation where you needed to be reminded to breathe?

2. Can you allow God’s breath to guide you on a journey of healing?

CLOSING PRAYER –

Breathe on me, Breath of God,

Fill me with life anew,

That I may love what thou dost love,

And do what thou wouldst do. Amen

(Words by Edwin Hatch, 1835-1889)