In these two parables, we read of the foolish, reckless lengths one would go to find something that was lost.

Only the wisdom of God would look at someone like Paul and see a vessel for the gospel.

The psalmist pictures God searching for someone who is a wise seeker of God, only to be disappointed. “There is no one who does good, no not one.”

Think about the landscape of our culture. What areas are desolate and scorched? Where can you see life and new growth?

In this reading, Jesus reminds his listeners that discipleship is not all about what Jesus can do for them.

In this letter, Paul is trying to convince Philemon to welcome back Onesimus, a runaway slave.

Here, God is imagined as an artist who knits and weaves us into who we are to become.

Unlike fired clay that is dry, hard, and often meant for one fixed purpose, we are soft and malleable in God’s hands.

Jesus calls us to extend welcome and grace to the ones who need it the most, rather than the ones who have something to offer back.

How often and in what ways do you offer a “sacrifice of praise”?