Devotionals

This week, we are looking at two different passages of scripture involving Jesus. The one in Mark is known as “Jesus Heals

Blind Bartimaeus” and the one in Luke is Jesus’ account of the “Good Samaritan”. When looking at the context in scripture

at when each of these accounts is given, the preceding verses give an indication that it is an answer to how we should conduct our

lives. Do this, instead of that. In a time of year where we just celebrated the coming of Jesus as a human baby, the reminders of

the season were all around us; shopping and neighborhoods were all decorated. January ushers in a time of stark contrast; there

aren’t any decorations, the sun sets early and there aren’t any lights that light up our neighborhood and homes – the contrast of

darkness is striking. Where does the light come from?

Application, Prayers and/or Thoughts: As we read through the Devotion this week, please pray that God stirs in your heart

that YOU are the light. Where can you be the light of Christ in your daily life? Read Mathew 5:14-16.

Mark 10:46-48 And they came to Jericho.  And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.  And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”  And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent.  But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

The scene – a big crowd leaving Jericho with Jesus and his disciples.  The crowd goes past the marginalized, people that are always there but many people don’t see any longer.  They are supposed to remain as the name implies – marginalized, or invisible.  But in this case, one of them speaks, shouting out to Jesus as He goes by. This account of Jesus is in all three of the synoptic gospels (Mathew, Mark and Luke) – each one of the accounts talks about the crowd rebuking the beggar for shouting out to Jesus.

Application,  Prayers and/or Thoughts:  Have you ever been in a situation where calling out to Jesus seemed awkward or against the cultural norm?  Is there a ‘way to be’ where you become more open to the leading of the Spirit?  Read Galatians 5:25.  How might you become more in step with the Spirit?

Mark 10:49-52  And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”  And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart.  Get up; he is calling you.”  And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.  And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”  And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.”  And Jesus said to him, “ Go your way; your faith has made you well.”  And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

Yesterday, we set the scene of the verse we are reviewing in the gospel of Mark.  Jesus with a crowd on the move, was passing by marginalized people.  A blind man calls out to Jesus, while the crowd tries to quiet him.  Today, we read that Jesus hears the man and calls him to come to him.  In a great exchange that reminds us of what the Word conveys to us, our Father in heaven is interested in each of our lives.  Jesus asks, “what do you want”?  The man responds and his request of restoring his sight is granted.  Jesus makes time for each of us, listening to our cares and desires.

Application,  Prayers and/or Thoughts:  If Jesus were to reach out to you today and clearly ask, “What do you want?”  How would you respond?  What did Jesus tell the blind man that made him well?  How did the blind man respond after Jesus healed him?  Do you often feel like the blind man as the entourage is passing you by?  Read Matthew 6:33 – who should we seek first? 

Luke 10:30-32 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead.  Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side.  So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

Today’s verse is a familiar story, the Good Samaritan.  To understand Israel’s history and culture, the Samaritans and Israelites are sworn enemies.  Once part of the same family, it became split due to the sin of Solomon when God tore the kingdom in two; Samaria became the northern kingdom and Judah the southern kingdom.  After many years, the differences grew into resentment and general dislike.  Jesus’ parable is more than just a story with a heavenly meaning.  This story hits to the core of who Jesus wants us to be.  He wants to put aside our backgrounds, complete with all of our bias, and treat a fellow human being with dignity and as the creation God intended us to be.

Application,  Prayers and/or Thoughts:  Is there a group of people that you have a hard time accepting?  Pray that God would soften your heart in this area.  What is a way that you can use your feet to represent Jesus and support the group of people that you have a hard time loving?

Luke 10:33-36  But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion.  He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring oil and wine.  Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him.  And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’  Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?”  

Three people – two were part of the religious establishment, one was part of the hated Samaritan people group.  Who was a neighbor?  Recall that Jesus told this parable when He was speaking and made the declaration that everyone should Love the Lord and Love your neighbor as yourself, the two most important commandments.  In response to this teaching, the question was asked to Jesus, “who is my neighbor”?  So, Jesus is telling him, “This is what a neighbor” does through the parable of the Good Samaritan.  He helps when he sees an issue, even when it is for a person that he has been taught to not like.

Application,  Prayers and/or Thoughts:  Lord, help me see the needs around me and respond in the manner that you would like me to that is honoring to you and the Kingdom of God.

Luke 10:37  He said, “The one who showed him mercy.”  And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”

At the beginning of the week, we read in Mark how Jesus, among a crowd of believers, stopped to address the needs of someone who was in need and asked for his assistance.  Today, we are finishing the story of the Good Samaritan with the answer to the question, “who is my neighbor?”  Jesus helps lead the man to the answer, “the one who shows him mercy”.  Jesus also ends the story with a command – go and do likewise – show mercy.  It is in this way; we can shine our light and be the representatives of Christ in our world

Application,  Prayers and/or Thoughts:  Read Micah 6:8.  What does this verse command us to do?  This verse has roots with Deuteronomy 10 starting in verse 12.  Many Bibles have a heading in Deuteronomy of “circumcising your heart”.  How do you circumcise your heart? 

19 The thought of my affliction and my homelessness
    is wormwood and gall!
20 My soul continually thinks of it
    and is bowed down within me.

These verses name the heaviness that settles into the human spirit when life feels overwhelming. The writer does not rush past sorrow or pretend it isn’t real. Instead, they acknowledge it honestly. This is the first step toward perceiving God in the mundane: telling the truth about where we actually are.

When we are bowed down, our vision narrows. We see only the ache. But even here—especially here—God is not absent. Divine presence is not dependent on our emotional clarity. God is present in the breath that still rises in our chest, in the ground that still holds our weight, in the quiet persistence of life around us.

Notice one small, sustaining thing today—a warm mug, a patch of sunlight, a steady breath. Let it be a reminder that even in heaviness, you are held.

21 But this I call to mind,    and therefore I have hope:

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases,[a]    his mercies never come to an end;23 they are new every morning;    great is your faithfulness.

Hope begins with remembering. Not remembering a dramatic miracle or a sudden rescue, but remembering the quiet truth that God’s love does not run out. The writer shifts from despair to hope not because circumstances change, but because perception changes.

Mercy arrives in the ordinary rhythm of morning. Sunrise is not spectacular most days—but it is faithful. And that faithfulness is its own miracle.

Pause at the start of your day. Notice the light, however dim or bright. Let it remind you that mercy renews itself without fanfare.

24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
    “therefore I will hope in him.”

25 The Lord is good to those who wait for him,
    to the soul that seeks him.
26 It is good that one should wait quietly
    for the salvation of the Lord.

To say “The Lord is my portion” is to say: God is enough. Not because life is easy, but because God’s presence is sustaining. Waiting quietly is not passive resignation—it is attentive presence. It is choosing to notice God in the slow, ordinary unfolding of the day.

Quiet waiting trains us to see the divine in the mundane: in the breath that fills us, in the kindness of a neighbor, in the resilience of creation.

Sit in silence for two minutes. Notice your breath. Notice the sounds around you. Let quiet waiting become a doorway to awareness.

12 Therefore, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. 13 Bear with one another and, if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other; just as the Lord[a] has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

Paul invites us to “clothe” ourselves with virtues that are lived out in ordinary interactions. Compassion is not abstract—it is practiced in the checkout line, in the kitchen, in the workplace. Love is not a grand gesture—it is the steady choice to show up with gentleness.

When we shift our perception, we begin to see that God’s presence is revealed through the way we treat one another. Every act of kindness becomes a small sacrament.

Choose one interaction today—just one—and approach it with intentional compassion. Notice how it changes your awareness of God’s presence.

15 And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body. And be thankful. 16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. 

Peace is not something we manufacture; it is something we allow. Gratitude is not something we force; it is something we notice. Paul invites us to cultivate an inner posture that makes room for Christ’s peace to settle in us like a gentle weight.

When Scripture “dwells richly” in us, it becomes part of our perception. We begin to see God’s presence not only in sacred spaces but in the ordinary rhythms of our day.

Name three small things you are grateful for today. Let gratitude sharpen your awareness of God’s nearness.

17 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.

“Whatever you do” includes the mundane: washing dishes, answering emails, walking the dog, sitting in traffic. Paul reframes ordinary life as sacred space. When we act with awareness of God’s presence, even the smallest task becomes an offering.

This is the heart of the everyday miracle: God is not waiting for us in the extraordinary. God is already here—in breath, in community, in creation, in the quiet work of daily life.

Choose one ordinary task today and perform it slowly, gratefully, and with awareness of God’s presence.