Here’s a portion of it:

Do we recognize the presence of the Holy Spirit in morally difficult situations today? When public opinion is strong, when personal reaction is intense, when the law of the land (or the doctrine of the church) defines the parameters of acceptable behavior – can we hear a call to higher righteousness? Absent an angel’s visit, how do we discern what God is calling us to do in situations that involve judgment and/or long-term consequences?

This is indeed a question to consider!

Here’s a portion of it:

In Paul’s letter to the Roman church, he calls for another kind of restoration, a regeneration through “obedience of faith,” an attitude that Paul describes as one completely devoted and willing to serve. God restores us by erasing our past errors and restoring us to wholeness. In turn, it is our responsibility to become living examples through our actions as well as words. Like it or not, Christians are called to be “set apart.” We must deliberately turn away from conflicting interests and strive to emulate the ministry of love and restoration the Jesus demonstrated throughout his life.

God can indeed restore us!

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Here’s a portion of it:

God is all about restoration. He knows we’re broken and he won’t leave us that way. With his grace and in his time, he is making all things new. When hope shines through and God brings beauty from ashes in someone’s life – yes, including my own – we glimpse what he has in mind for the whole creation.

Indeed, God is on a “mission of restoration” — and the world is His “restoration project”.

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Here’s a portion of it:

The long nights and chill of winter bring into question the reality of spring. While I enjoy all the seasons, there is a point in winter when I long for the signs of new growth – of green leaves and the flush of flowers blooming. The gray days and stark landscape become wearisome to the soul. A cry for hope emerges from within. The constancy of the cycles of the seasons – knowing that spring will come – reassures me of hope and restoration.

God indeed brings restoration and renewal — to nature and our lives!

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Here’s a portion of it:

I can’t help but think of my home and the restoration process it has been through over the past year. I wonder how she must feel – 87 years young! My husband and I purchased my “dream home” when we moved to Syracuse, Ind., last summer. This home was neglected, worn out and needed some major restoration. She certainly didn’t look like anyone’s “dream home.” However, I could somehow see the potential that was just beneath the chipped paint, holes in the floors and walls, and gaps in the windows. She was sad, depressed and uncared for. My husband has worked furiously to make this house our new home and what a wonderful blessing to be celebrating this Advent season in it.

God is indeed in the “restoration business”!

You can read the devotional here — and go here to read past devotions or subscurbe to have the devotionals delivered to your inbox via e-mails or an RSS feed.

Here’s a portion of it:

Through Jesus, God entered our world, taking on human vulnerability to death, and with it, all the ways bodies and human communities may fail. Through Jesus, God shouldered responsibility for a fragile creation, choosing to suffer alongside vulnerable human beings. The church, as a wounded human community redeemed by Christ, is a means of his continuing, imperfect embodiment on earth while humanity awaits the fulfillment yet to come. Here, transformed by the shared love of Jesus, we encounter God with us. Though human limitations are still a reality, they need not incapacitate us in the interdependent body of Christ. In this body, those once oppressed by various limitations truly are seeing, walking, hearing, finding life and receiving good news.

Indeed, God took on our wounded flesh through Christ — and through the Holy Spirit continues to work through our sometimes less-than-perfect efforts.

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As someone who grew up in a farming community, I have had the privilege of being exposed to a way of life that requires a certain level of patience. For me, it is from watching my parents, who are farmers, deal with the ups and downs of the weather conditions and the markets. Sometimes the mood in our house was tense, but in the end, worrying about whether the rain would come never changed anything.

You can read the devotional here or go here to read past devotionals or sign up for e-mail or RSS feed.