[Membersandfriends] Wednesday, August 11, 2004

Tue Aug 10 22:02:46 PDT 2004

The Upper Room Daily Devotional -- E-mail Edition
Brought to You by Upper Room Ministries
Wednesday, August 11, 2004

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SWEET AND BITTER
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John 16:16-24 (NRSV)

[Jesus said,] "A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me." Then some of his disciples said to one another, "What does he mean by saying to us, 'A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me'; and 'Because I am going to the Father'?" They said, "What does he mean by this 'a little while'? We do not know what he is talking about." Jesus knew that they wanted to ask him, so he said to them, "Are you discussing among yourselves what I meant when I said, 'A little while, and you will no longer see me, and again a little while, and you will see me'? Very truly, I tell you, you will weep and mourn, but the world will rejoice; you will have pain, but your pain will turn into joy. When a woman is in labor, she has pain, because her hour has come. But when her child is born, she no longer remembers the anguish because of the joy of having brought a human being into the world. So you have pain now; but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you. On that day you will ask nothing of me. Very truly, I tell you, if you ask anything of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete."

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The kingdom of God cometh not with observation: Neither shall they say, Lo here!  or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.
- Luke 17:20-21 (KJV)
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A man once told me that he loved crab apple jelly. He jokingly said that not knowing whether his next bite would be sweet or bitter kept his taste buds alive.

Like that jelly, life is sometimes sweet and sometimes bitter.  There are times when everything seems to be going well.  Our families are happy and healthy.  Friends support us.  We have rewarding tasks to do.  We feel secure and confident.  Then something happens, and we realize that life is not always sweet.  A family member faces a health issue.  A friend betrays us.  Cutbacks at work jar our economic security.  Wars and rumors of wars frighten us.  Life is bitter at times.  

Yet somehow the uncertainty also makes life more precious.  We cannot take life's sweetness for granted.  The kingdom of God is not waiting to be realized only in some perfect, future society.  God's realm is found here and now, with all life's ups and downs, with all life's uncertainty.  We can only live each moment, whether it is bitter or sweet, with as much faith and presence as we can muster, bringing our whole selves to whatever life holds.

Prayer:  Help us, O God, to embrace this day and to live it fully.  In Jesus' name.  Amen.

THOUGHT FOR THE DAY:
Whether today is sweet or bitter, life is a gift from God to be lived fully.

-- Jonathan E. Scott (Connecticut, U.S.A.)

PRAYER FOCUS: Someone facing a bitter time 

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RELATED READING ...

Do you allow the daily choices you make to open or close your eyes to God's presence? HOLY GROUND helps you to realize that God is constantly present in your life and active wherever you are.
http://www.upperroom.org/bookstore/desc.asp?ep_id=30&item_id=12649

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The scripture quotation is from the NEW REVISED STANDARD VERSION of the Bible, copyright (c) 1989, by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.