Contemplative Bible Reading

1 Peter 3:8-9 (English Standard Version) 8 Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. 9 Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing. Peter is […]

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Isaiah 29:13 (New Living Translation) And so the Lord says, “These people say they are mine. They honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. And their worship of me is nothing but man-made rules learned by rote. rote: noun – mechanical or habitual repetition of something to be learned. God’s […]

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Isaiah 29:10 (New Living Translation) For the Lord has poured out on you a spirit of deep sleep. He has closed the eyes of your prophets and visionaries. God the Creator is punishing the chosen people for their disobedience. The punishment? Deep sleep. Those who are supposed to see, hear, and envision are…well, their minds […]

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Acts 17:16-17 (New Living Translation) 16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was deeply troubled by all the idols he saw everywhere in the city. 17 He went to the synagogue to reason with the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles, and he spoke daily in the public square to all who happened […]

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Philippians 3:20 (New Living Translation) But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. I am a citizen of heaven. I am not a citizen of this place—earth. I am stuck here for a while. Jesus, the one anointed to […]

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Acts 10:1-4 (New Living Translation) In Caesarea there lived a Roman army officer named Cornelius…One afternoon about three o’clock, he had a vision in which he saw an angel of God coming toward him. “Cornelius!” the angel said. Cornelius stared at him in terror. “What is it, sir?” he asked the angel. Cornelius was one […]

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Isaiah 3:5 (New Living Translation) Young people will insult their elders, and vulgar people will sneer at the honorable. The is part of a passage about God judging and punishing the people. It is a long list including the scarcity of food and water—necessities for life. And here we have another punishing: youth disrespecting those […]

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Proverbs 15:29 (New Living Translation) The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears the prayers of the righteous. What a curse. Does God hear the prayers of the wicked? Does God only hear the prayers of the righteous? I believe God hears the prayers of all who call on the name of the […]

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