Day 28: I Spent My Night Time Fighting Tears Back

[If you want to know how and why this devotional came into existence feel free to read this]

What you will need:

• A Bible
• This Devotional
• Some Coloring Utensils
• And a print out of this awesome coloring sheet designed by Owen Richard.

(Here is the week 1, week 2,  week 3 and week 4 sheets if you want them)

Theme: Healing the Wounds of the Broken Hearted

Passage for March 28th 2017: Luke 15:1-7

Bars from “How Great”

I was lost in the jungle like Simba after the death of Mufasa
No hog, no meerkat, hakuna matata by day
But I spent my night time fighting tears back

A Thought:

Even before taking up this project, it would be an understatement to say I was listening and reading about Chance the Rapper a lot. All of it has become familiar and mundane. Yesterday as I was writing this post, and my son pointed at the lyrics. So, I decided to put on the music video for “How Great.” Because the internet is at times a time pit, this obviously led to watching a few more videos. We finally landed on watching Chance’s Grammy performance. As I watched it again, and my son was dancing, it was like hearing all of his music again for the first time. And I remembered why started this whole project in the fist place. When beautiful and meaningful things become familiar to us the reasons we love them becomes obscured.

There have been thousands of words written on every verse of Luke 15. But there are reasons that these, like the best music, get played out. What is found in this chapter is so wonderful and revolutionary our familiarity robs us of how incredible it is. Jesus is a friend to sinners. These are the people the spiritually elite have placed outside the moral boundaries they have created. Jesus does not run away from any part of our life that does not fit into the religious status quo. The deepest and dark secrets each and every one of us hide from the world, God is loving enough to look at all of those at once and say, “I am not going anywhere.” Well before we have cleaned up our life Jesus calls us His friend. 

In addition, today’s scripture reminds us that the God revealed in Jesus searches for us. When we are lost and scared, having wandered either intentionally or unintentionally, God is looking for us. Our God does not sit in the heavenly places unaffected by our wanderings. Jesus is active, living and looking for to bring all of us into his loving embrace. 

Here are the thoughts I am contemplating today: How have I wandered away from God? How is the hurt or harmed me?

Mediation: Psalm: 147:1-3

Read the mediation passage today a few times through. As you read is there a passage or a word the sticks out to you. Meditate on that phrase allowing the Lord to speak to you as you color. What is he saying?