Hearing God’s Voice from His Word
James 4:8 says, “Come near to God and he will come near to you.”
Take a moment and turn your attention to God. Tell God that you desire to trust and obey Him. Ask God to speak to you from His word.
Psalm of the Day
Psalm 8
Lord, our Lord,
how magnificent is your name throughout the earth!
You have covered the heavens with your majesty.
2 From the mouths of infants and nursing babies,
you have established a stronghold
on account of your adversaries
in order to silence the enemy and the avenger.
3 When I observe your heavens,
the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars,
which you set in place,
4 what is a human being that you remember him,
a son of man that you look after him?
5 You made him little less than God
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands;
you put everything under his feet:
7 all the sheep and oxen,
as well as the animals in the wild,
8 the birds of the sky, and the fish of the sea
that pass through the currents of the seas.
9 Lord, our Lord,
how magnificent is your name throughout the earth!
This Psalm begins and ends with a proclamation of the Lord’s majesty. He is magnificent throughout all the earth. Think of your day today, beginning and ending with the majestic Lord. You wake up to the majestic Lord. You praise him. You walk outside, look up into the heavens and praise him. Throughout your day, think of his provision and care. Praise Him. He is majestic and mindful of you.
Scripture Reading
John 2:1-12 – New International Version
Jesus Changes Water Into Wine
2 On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, 2 and Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. 3 When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to him, “They have no more wine.”
4 “Woman, why do you involve me?” Jesus replied. “My hour has not yet come.”
5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”
6 Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons.
7 Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water”; so they filled them to the brim.
8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet.”
They did so, 9 and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside 10 and said, “Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now.”
11 What Jesus did here in Cana of Galilee was the first of the signs through which he revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.
12 After this he went down to Capernaum with his mother and brothers and his disciples. There they stayed for a few days.
Having God’s Ear through Prayer
- Express thanks to God.
- Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal sin to you.
- Confess your sin to Him and receive forgiveness.
(1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sin He is faithful and just and will forgive our sins.”) - Bring your personal requests to God.
(Psalm 62:8 “Pour out your heart before God”) - Pray for someone in your small group.
- Join with others from River and pray for Dalton and Hannah as they serve overseas. Ask God to encourage them and guide them as they settle into their new home in Thailand.
Living as God’s People by applying the Bible
Scripture Reflection from the Sermon
John takes us, in chapter one, from the cosmos creator to chapter two, the Lord’s attendance at a wedding. This can be a bit like taking a trip to see some majestic wonder like the Grand Canyon, then returning home and having to turn your attention to something mundane like doing the laundry. How do you hold the two things in your mind? One is amazing, the other is normal. We must be careful of splitting life this way. Of course, seeing something new and wonderful is to be marveled at. Of course, doing something over and over (like laundry) is going to become normal and even boring for us. However, we must do the hard work to see God in all of life. If we only marvel in the new and novel, then we will marvel at very little. As we grow in age and in faith in Christ, we should be learning to marvel at more and more, not less and less. Can you do laundry? Isn’t it amazing that your brain signals your arms to move, and they obey? Isn’t it amazing that you have access to water and the ability to live in a clean and healthy environment? Isn’t it amazing that your Father has clothed you like he clothes the flowers of the field? It is not that we are to try and make the Grand Canyon and laundry equivalent in our lives. It is rather that we must see the goodness and the glory of the Lord in every aspect of our lives.