Forward Movement is an official, non-profit agency of the Episcopal Church whose mission is to create compelling content for Christian living. Since 1935 we have published the quarterly devotional Forward Day by Day, as well as pamphlets, booklets, and books that encourage and nourish people in their lives of prayer and faith.
FRIDAY, April 8
Romans 8:29-39. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
In addition to having lived my own story, I have worked with folks who have torn their own lives (and the lives of those close to them) to pieces through addiction and its accompanying clouds of fear. Coming out the other side with them to stand with our faces in the sun helps me feel the weight of this statement from Romans.
For me, the love of God in Christ Jesus doesn’t evoke mission statements or formulas for personal salvation, prosperity, or favor. Instead, it creates a place of radical inclusiveness embodied in Christ Jesus and seen in all of Creation.
I recently saw the movie Crazy Heart. In it, Jeff Bridges plays an alcoholic country singer whose self-destructive lifestyle has led to broken marriages and a failed career. When he finally hits bottom, he seeks help.
After the show, one of my friends asked me, “What’s the message?” I couldn’t even muster an answer. Later, he called me and said, “We don’t get back what we’ve lost; we get what we never had.”
PRAY for the Diocese of Muyinga (Burundi)
Ps 95 & 102 * 107:1-32; Jeremiah 23:1-8; John 6:52-59
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