Stress Test Devotional April 27
April 27, 2024
“The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then in those days they will fast.”
Mourning and celebrating are both key to the Christian life. Sorrow over the world’s brokenness and tragedy, and joy over our shared life in Christ are the two sides of our love for God and this world. We ache for others to know the peace of God’s love, to see them experience grace and find purpose beyond themselves. We long for the struggling and the ill and the impoverished to be healed and blessed, finding assurance that evil and death and disease will not have the final word. At the same time, we experience the daily joy of communion with God, the fun of serving him, the richness of life in his community, the excitement of his direction, the wonder of his work in ways great and small.
PRAYER
Gracious God, Tune my heart to mourn and to celebrate, to ache and to sing. Help me embrace the world’s needs with genuine concern, in concrete acts of love and mercy and generosity. Let me experience the blessings of life with you too, and to know the joy of your salvation this day. Amen.
