Category Archives: Daily Bread Devotional

We Are One, We Are Many

[Excerpted from “We Are One, We Are Many,” Sharing in Community of Christ, 4th Edition, Herald House, 2018, pp. 70-71]

(This document was created during the 2004 International Leaders’ Meeting. It was read by a group at the 2004 World Conference as a reflection of the unity and diversity found within Community of Christ. It continues to offer a comprehensive view of the various expressions of the church throughout the world.)

You who are my disciples must be found continuing in the forefront of those organizations and movements which are recognizing the worth of persons and are committed to bringing the ministry of my Son to bear on their lives. -Doctrine and Covenants 151:9

Worth of Persons
We are one in our belief in the worth of every person and the value of every soul in God’s sight. All are called to develop their gifts for service to Christ and to others.

We value the cultures and languages of others, but we fight barriers that divide us along lines of caste, class, gender, race, nation, and age. We see all members of Community of Christ as brothers and sisters. Our names are known by God. We greet each other as family even if we have never been introduced.

We are free to think for ourselves, to strive for tolerance and acceptance of those who are different from us. We are included. We are not just another drop in the ocean of humanity, not just another face in the crowd. God has called us into unique relationships.

Worship and Sacraments
We are one in our belief in the power of the sacraments and our encounter with God through worship.

We are many in our practices. In some places, shoes are left at the doors and we worship with bare feet. In other places we wear polished loafers and high-heeled sandals. Men and women sometimes sit apart, sometimes together. Some sing their theology while others recite, read, and preach the gospel. Some pray in silence, some pray with partners, and others pray in a cacophony of voices that unify in praise and petition. We meet for exactly an hour, or until the Spirit tells us we are finished. The blood of Christ is grape juice, coconut milk, caramelized water, or orange soda. The body of Christ is wheat, rye, corn, and rice, but we all take upon ourselves the name of Christ and remember him, that we may have his Spirit to be with us.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

God of Miracles
Mikel Davis of Mesa, AZ, USA

But each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it is said, “When he ascended on high he made captivity itself a captive; he gave gifts to his people.”…The gifts he gave were that some would be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ. We must no longer be children, tossed to and fro and blown about by every wind of doctrine, by people’s trickery, by their craftiness in deceitful scheming. -Ephesians 4:7-8, 11-14

Is God still the God of miracles today? When we read the Bible, we learn of many awesome miracles that the prophets did. We read of the healings that Jesus did. We read of the miracles the apostles and disciples of Jesus did. Do we still hear about miracles today in the 21st century?

To answer my first question, yes, God is still a miracle worker. God is the same today as he was in Moses’ and Elijah’s time. God doesn’t change. God can still do miracles today, and miracles happen all the time. Many of you may be wondering if God has raised the dead or healed the sick or stopped the sun. I tell you I have seen some things that defy logic and science.

Now you might be asking yourself if God loves me more than you. No. I’m just a sinful man that is being helped by the Spirit to change his life. The reason I see these things all around me is because I pray for sight. I have asked God to let me see the things God is doing around me.

I didn’t pray that I could see miracles, but rather that God would open my eyes to the world around me so I could help others. When you ask for things that aren’t selfish, you sometimes end up with extraordinary blessings. God wants us to see what the Spirit is doing. God wants us not only to see, but also join God’s activity in the world. I wanted to see what God was doing so I could help others. God honored that in me, and in all those who ask.

Dear God, please show us the way to help those around us so we can see your goodness in all things. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Rest in Jesus
Carla Long of Eagle Mountain, UT, USA

“Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” -Matthew 11:28-30

Offering rest to someone who needs it is one of the greatest gifts we can give. Many times in my life I have found myself needing rest and someone has always been able to offer it.

When I first moved to the Philippines as a volunteer for World Service Corps, I was definitely in over my head. I didn’t speak the language, I didn’t look like other people who lived there, and I was feeling like a fish in a bowl. One day early in my stay, I felt confident enough in my language skills and sense of direction to walk to the post office on my own. I got lost; and not only did I get lost, I didn’t have water with me. It was a really hot day, and I was dragging, to say the least. Then a kind motorcycle taxi driver drove up next to me and asked me if I was okay. In the Philippines this is fairly normal, as everyone seemed to want to talk to me, but this driver was different. He very kindly offered me a ride, knew where I was staying when I mentioned the name of my host family, and drove me home. I had never been so grateful for rest in my life.

I also experienced this while volunteering in Australia, and working as a mission center financial officer in Northern California and in Western and Eastern Europe. People have gone out of their way to make sure I felt comfortable and happy. I am so grateful for their kindness and hospitality to me. I have never forgotten the warmth that brings.

Offer rest to someone.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Feasting on God’s Word
Amy Radford of Harford, PA, USA

May the Lord give strength to his people!
  May the Lord bless his people with peace! -Psalm 29:11

My daughter is a pure delight except when she is “hangry,” the state of hunger when she is grumpy. This happens often, as her stomach is a bottomless pit, and the phrase “I’m hungry” is on repeat.

She is a grazer. Her hobbit-like appetite requires breakfast, then second breakfast, and then third breakfast. Her metabolism is a high-speed machine, a trait she may get from me. I find myself grazing on so many things to fill that hungry void in my life, but none of them truly satisfy me for long.

Unfortunately, this goes for my time with God as well. I flip open my Bible before I get ready to head out the door, read a verse, a cute little saying, and hope it will carry me through the day. I’m sure this is just producing spiritual indigestion. I read God’s Word so fast I don’t give myself time to digest it. Yet, I think I am doing okay because at least I can check it off my to-do list. Then I wonder why I struggle to respond positively in the face of adversity, get irritated so easily, or battle feelings of mediocrity. I have taken in enough of God’s Word to help me not feel guilty but not enough to energize me for what lies ahead.

It may seem like my life is always in the fast lane, but I have learned that if I expect to walk in the Spirit, it may require more than just a hobbit-type appetite. If I make the time to sit down and enjoy the Word of God, I savor God’s rich blessings and find a fullness that will carry me through whatever I face. Psalm 119:16 reminds us, “I will delight in your statutes; I will not forget your word.”

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Let the Peace of Christ Rule

[Excerpted from The Journey of a People: The Era of Worldwide Community, 1946-2015, Mark A. Scherer, Community of Christ Seminary Press, 2016, pp. 233-238]

As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. …And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. -Colossian 3:12-17

Alfred Urban’s story begins in Berlin in the early 1960s-a time of crisis internationally as well as in the life of the German Church. The Soviet Union had dominated the German Democratic Republic since the close of the Second World War. The Berlin Wall went up almost overnight in August 1961 and stranded many church members in the East. The Soviets set up a repressive government regime in East Germany. Government officials arrested anyone they considered suspicious including Alfred Urban’s brother. He never returned.

For an entire generation Alfred Urban was the church’s voice and leadership presence in the German Democratic Republic. On many occasions he and his family could have defected easily to the West… But he refused to leave the church members in his charge. He mentored many church appointees in Germany.

Alfred Urban was a tireless advocate for those he served. At times he pushed the limits of the Communist government’s tolerance toward him and the church. The East German government discovered the great success church members had fleeing from the Eastern Sector into the West. The official reprisal was to deny the church’s public worship, especially in Urban’s Brandenburg home, so Urban protested the action. He went to the local police station to appeal the diktat. Amid the heated exchanges, one policeman threatened to hold Urban personally responsible for any more members that defected. Greatly frustrated, Urban slammed his fist on the policeman’s desk and charged back, “And I hold you responsible. If you would make life livable here, nobody would want to leave.”

The church missionary knew that people had disappeared for lesser offenses. He realized that he had just jeopardized his personal safety and future ministry, so he turned from the police desk and walked away hoping he would not be detained. Later he told…that as he left the office, “he felt a presence by his side and a comforting hand on his shoulder.” He left the police station unharmed. Urban shared that he had never felt such peace and assurance that God was near him.

On 30 June 1984, Urban died in Grossr\xc3\xa4schen, where he had given so many years of effective ministerial service.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Finding Peace
Cheryl Saur of Saint Charles, MO, USA

Collectively and individually, you are loved with an everlasting love that delights in each faithful step taken. God yearns to draw you close so that wounds may be healed, emptiness filled, and hope strengthened. Do not turn away in pride, fear, or guilt from the One who seeks only the best for you and your loved ones. Come before your Eternal Creator with open minds and hearts and discover the blessings of the gospel anew. Be vulnerable to divine grace. -Doctrine and Covenants 163:10

One of our beloved hymns is “Let There Be Peace on Earth.” The first verse says, “Let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me; let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be. With God our creator, we are family. Let us walk with each other in perfect harmony” (Sy Miller and Jill Jackson, \xc2\xa91983 Jan-Lee Music, CCS 307).

Today I had to search for our peace flag. It had been torn from our garden flagpole during last night’s storm. I located it down the road lying crumpled in the gutter. It was covered with leaves and thoroughly caked with mud. After brushing the leaves away, I picked it up and carried it back home where I put it in the kitchen sink filled with soapy water to try to wash it clean.

Peace is like that sometimes. It gets lost in the whirlwind of activities, challenges, and the storms of life. Cultivating peace and creating sacred space does take work. But this is work we can do if we are willing to try. We must pick ourselves up, brush off the dust and leaves that cling to us, and be cleansed in the living waters of Christ’s love. We must walk with each other as family to bring hope and peace to the lost and most vulnerable. We can live our lives with gratitude and savor the peace and healing that God creates in this space.

O God of hope, love, and peace. You are the warm center of all that is. May we be your voice of hope and peace even when peace appears to be lost, crumpled, or stained with mud. At this time, we pray that our vision be broadened, and our hearts deepened so that we will notice where you are already creating sacred space…space for a peace that is meant to be. Accept our humble offering, O Creator God, of all the muddy spaces in our lives. May these be the places where your seeds of hope, love, and peace come into full bloom. Help us to celebrate your grace…and live again! Amen.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

The Refiner’s Fire
Grace Andrews of Independence, MO, USA

Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord be with all of you. -2 Thessalonians 3:16

In both the Old and New Testaments, numerous references mention the refining of gold and silver…comparable to our God refining us. Malachi 3:1-3 is a good example: “I am sending my messenger to prepare the way before me…The messenger of the covenant in whom you delight…like a refiner’s fire…will purify and refine them like gold and silver.”

In biblical times a refiner began by breaking up rough ore-hardened rock mixed with common minerals such as tin, copper, and zinc. Experience taught them that within the rock was the promise of valuable, hidden rare metals of gold and silver. Breaking up the rock was necessary to begin the refining process by exposing these highly valuable metals to heat. The refiner placed a crucible into the furnace where the flames were hottest. The precise temperature burned away all impurities that would mar the quality of the gold or silver. He kept a close eye on the silver, because if the silver were left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed. As the ore melted, a layer of impurities formed on the surface. The refiner painstakingly skimmed off the impurities, turned up the heat, and placed the crucible back into the blistering furnace. Impurities rose to the surface up to seven times. The refiner skillfully removed the dross, leaving behind gleaming gold and shimmering silver, and he was able to see his image clearly in it.

Just so are we the rough rock in need of refining. Our Refiner patiently sits over the fire, his gaze continually fixed on our crucible. When our character is cleansed and our hearts purified, we become truly beautiful. Sometimes hanging on to hope amid trials, the heat seems well beyond what we think we can bear. But if we persevere by trusting our Refiner, God’s image will ultimately be seen in our countenance. Psalm 66:10 says, “For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried.”

We are assured our Lord will never leave us nor forsake us. While life purifies and refines us like gold and silver, the Holy Spirit works like fire to make us a people precious to God. How lovely is the promise that if we will but trust the Master Refiner to do his work, God’s image will be seen in us.

Prayer Phrase

Let your world of beauty capture me.

Spiritual Practice

Growing a Gracious, Generous Heart

Open your heart to God’s grace and generosity with a “breath prayer.” Let your breathing slow and deepen. Be aware of God’s breath moving in and out of your heart. Spend several minutes focusing on breathing in God’s generosity. With each breath, silently name one gift for which you are thankful. Let your heart expand to contain God’s gracious outpouring of love. With each breath out, name one gift you want to share from the overflow of your heart.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Nudged by the Spirit
Cheryl Saur of Saint Charles, MO, USA

When we spiritually connect to Jesus Christ and his community of disciples, our future becomes more than an extension of our past. New perspectives, possibilities, and networks of relationships emerge that alter the quality, direction, and priorities of our lives! -President Stephen M. Veazey, “Discover Your Future,”  World Conference, April 13, 2019

At the beginning of each day and after breakfast, we sit in our chairs sipping coffee or tea. At this time, we also put on gloves designed with special nubs for brushing our pets. These nubs capture any excess or loose hair as well as massage the skin of our pet. We have two cats who attempt to hurry us each morning from upstairs, down to the breakfast table, and then to our chairs for this most important ritual of brushing. This is truly the start of their day. In anticipation of this event, no matter where we are in our own morning preparations, they follow us, stare at us, meow insistently to nudge us toward the stairs for the trip down. This gentle nudging begins as soon as our feet touch the floor each morning.

During this time of physical separation and confinement to our homes for health and safety reasons with the COVID-19 pandemic, we must intentionally open ourselves to the gentle nudging of the Spirit. Breathe in God’s grace and love…feel it move through your lungs to the very core of your being. Notice what invitations surface with each intake and outflow of breath. Sit a while with the Spirit coursing through you…to those around you…and to those who are in your community. In this space you will discover new and refreshing ways to reconnect socially and spiritually, even during our separation. This awareness is what brings joy to my heart and soul when physical hugs are absent.

May we continue to rest in the grace and love of our God and continue to follow the example of Jesus, the peaceful one.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

A Story to Tell
Terry McDermid of Joplin, MO, USA

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. -Philippians 4:4-7

For as long as I can remember, I’ve told stories. My mom used to say that I was telling stories almost before I could talk. She could tell from my babbling that something was happening in my mind. But even more than telling stories, I like collecting stories from people. Stories of how they met their spouses, where they lived or traveled, what they did as a career, and how they spent their days.

Recently, I’ve been leading writing groups at several retirement homes. The purpose is to help the residents write their life stories. At first, they don’t think they have anything to share. After all, they think they’re too old. Or their lives have been ordinary. Who wants to hear about them?

The first day, it takes time to draw them out. A question about a holiday or their first house or their first car will get someone talking. As soon as one shares a memory, another one speaks up. That leads to more ideas, and soon each one is bringing an idea to life. Sometimes not much writing takes place except in my notebook as I jot down notes for later. Instead, the reminder that they are each important, that they each have a “story to tell,” becomes the focus for the day. By the end of group time, they’re sitting up straighter, smiling and laughing from stories they’ve heard, or wiping away tears from a poignant tale.

The Enduring Principle Worth of All Persons comes to mind most often when I’m listening to women and men share their memories and stories. No matter their age or what they’re doing, they want to be heard. Each one wants to be recognized as a person of worth. For me, that is the core of the message Jesus shared when he came to the world. Not for some people but for all people. Listening to their stories each month is one way I can share the love of God and Jesus. Plus, I have the added joy of gaining from them.

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.

Practice Radical Hospitality
Richard James, Council of Twelve Apostles

Whoever welcomes you welcomes me, and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me. -Matthew 10:40

I am fortunate and blessed to be able to travel to many nations and to receive incredible hospitality from many people. This kind of hospitality is not just a hallmark of our Christian discipleship, but it is a way of life. It extends beyond receiving people that we know and welcoming the stranger, the other, and someone who is different from us. So what can radical hospitality look like?

In Madrid, Spain, there is a restaurant called Restaurante Robin Hood. It is one of Spain’s most sought-after places to eat; it is always full of diners whether for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. This restaurant was started by \xc3\x81ngel Garc\xc3\xada Rodriguez, who is a Catholic priest and affectionately known as “Padre \xc3\x81ngel.” The restaurant is run by a charity called Mensajeros de la Paz, which means “messengers of peace.”

The restaurant is open to paying guests during the day, offering high-quality breakfasts and lunches (“menu del dia” and “a la carte”), and in the evening it is reserved for the homeless who are invited to the have the same high-quality meals free of charge. Celebrity chefs or chefs who have worked in luxury hotels are eager to give of their service. Padre \xc3\x81ngel says that “he wants homeless people to eat with the same dignity as any other customer with the same quality, with glasses made of crystal, not plastic, and in an atmosphere of friendship and conversation.” (https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/01/24/511267616/spains-robin-hood-restaurant-charges-the-rich-and-feeds-the-poor)

I am amazed at this wonderful example of radical hospitality. It is one that gives value to every person who eats at the restaurant and treats each person with dignity and grace.

With whom is God inviting you to share your table?

Prayer Phrase

God bless the spaces between us.

Spiritual Practice

Tears of Compassion

Offer a silent prayer for the gift of God’s compassion. Cup your hands and ask God to make you aware of the suffering that causes the Earth and its inhabitants to groan and weep. Be open to faces or places, sounds or voices, feelings of connection with those who suffer. Imagine catching the tears of those you see and holding them in your hands. Listen for prayer images or words God may give you. Discern any active responses of ministry or healing you sense invited to complete for those who weep.

Today’s Prayer for Peace

Engage in a daily practice of praying for peace in our world. Click here to read today’s prayer and be part of this practice of peace.

Click here to comment or read online.