Daily Devotional: Friday, Jan 22

Speaker: Ben Sigman

Theme: Reset Me

Weekend Music links on iTunes: Today is the Day by Lincoln Brewster; The Time Has Come by Hillsong United; How Can I Keep From Singing by Chris Tomlin; How He Loves by David Crowder Band.

Read: John 4: 4-10

Think:  Tonight I found myself desperately looking for a place to pull up and write the e-devotional for this Friday.  I drove to several Starbuck's in the Redmond area and much to my surprise I discovered an alternative universe to my usual routine.  My wife will tell you I am most definitely a morning person; she on the other hand is most definitely an evening person.  I frequent Seattle's famous coffee icon on many mornings, but rarely do I set foot there in there in the evening. 

I needed to go to several Starbucks this evening because much to my surprise I couldn't find a seat in the first two!!  Three's a charm...so here I am. The crowd was distinctly different, much younger than my morning comrades.  Much more lively too.  I suspect that has something to do with average age as well as the time of day.  But what caught my attention was how much I am missing when I stick to my routines.  It was like a small vacation tonight from my universe which usually begins around 5 am each morning.

Then I remembered how Jesus traveled to distinctly different places throughout his life on earth.  He disregarded traditions, and norms to see and experience many different aspects and peoples of the world.  The world was certainly made richer for it. We understand His grace and compassion because He was willing to go places others were not.  Ben spoke on Sunday about Jesus going to Jacob's Well to meet the disgraced Samaritan woman.  He ventured to a place, at a time that was not the norm.  Her life was changed forever.

My reset list expanded once again this evening.  If you are like me, we can often fall into routines that don't provide us with a full perspective of the world around us. We can become blind and deaf over time to a big part of God's universe.  Will I take time this year to go somewhere that is outside of my normal routine?  Will I engage people who aren't on my regular path of life?    Hopefully I'll take a few more chances this year to take a couple of exits from my daily routines and possibly have a divine appointment along the way.

Do:  Take a moment and think about where and when you might be just too comfortable in your routines.  Think about an off ramp for just a moment to see what God has for you on another road. 

Pray:  Dear Heavenly Father.  You have made a wonderfully rich and diverse world.  Help me to experience more of it. I pray that today I would experience it as you would.  See it as you would.  Walk it as you would.  In Jesus name I pray.

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