The Daily | Cypress Meadows Community Church

The Daily

Daily devotions and thoughts from Cypress Meadows

The Daily is a devotional sent out via text each morning. The Daily devotions are written by folks at Cypress Meadows, including Tribe members, elders and our Lead Pastor. There is a different theme each week and each devotional includes a prayer, a scripture verse, a brief reading from well-known authors, and a daily reflection.

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“But, in that final peace to which all our righteousness has reference, and for the sake of which it is maintained, as our nature shall enjoy a sound immortality and incorruption, and shall have no more vices, and as we shall experience no resistance either from ourselves or from others, it will not be necessary that reason should rule vices which no longer exist, but God shall rule the man, and the soul shall rule the body, with a sweetness and facility suitable to the felicity of a life which is done with bondage.” - from The City of God by St. Augustine

When I am with someone of unquestioned loyalty I feel like I just inhaled a deep breath of peace; gulped down a refreshing glass of hope; and stepped in a zone of safety where I can be authentically vulnerable. The scripture says the Lord will never, never ever, leave you nor forsake you. And as for what awaits you tomorrow…He has already gone before you into that space. So breathe dear child, breathe in His peace. Drink down hope to the last drop. And rest safely…for your God is a Loyal God.

In profession, I am a therapist. I still remember the day in my training when my mentor explained to me why the therapeutic relationship is unlike any other. This relationship is unbiased. As therapists, we’re not bringing in our own history with the client causing us to give recommendations or next steps with hopes of a certain goal or outcome. We don’t pretend to know what is in someone’s best interest or what their exact right next step should be….because we’ve not walked their walk and in ways we’re detached from it. Yes, their friends and parents and spouses likely all want what is best for them, but based on their history and relationship, the advice they offer is filtered through some sort of lens. They can’t “show up” without bringing some of that in to skew the perspective. On the smallest scale, this illustration helps me wrap my head around the beauty and blessing of our relationship with God. God is perfectly righteous and just. He knows the larger vision and the role we play within that. Only He is able to offer judgement because only He knows that which is truly just and unjust, without bias, without prejudice, without emotional ties.

The forty-year midbar* (wilderness) journey was intended as a difficult odyssey of self-understanding, a reconnaissance mission into the human heart. The manna is essential wilderness food, unknown, uncanny; but precisely in its unknowability it will open a new kind of knowledge: ‘that man does not live on bread alone but on what issues from God’s mouth.’ The sentence communicates the mystery of the manna: it stirs up the question—What is it that can sustain human life? Avivah Gottlieb Zornberg, Bewilderments: Reflections on the Book of Numbers, p. xvii.

*Hebrew for wilderness

I’ve come to realize that I want certainty in my understanding of the scriptures and how to live life. But, God wants me to trust without having certainty. He wants me to have my “daily bread” and trust His words and revelation even without certainty. He wants me to live in my midbar (wilderness) and trust Him. Jesus’ power came from His trust in the Father

and daily communication with Him for direction. All of His major decision followed a time of prayer. If your waiting for certainty, you may be waiting for quite some time. Instead, trust and move through your wilderness as God leads and directs. Get your daily bread from the Bread of Life.

“You know, the grain-to-bread process is a demanding one. Bread is the end result of planting, harvesting, and heating. Jesus endured an identical process. He was born into this world. And then He was cut down, bruised, and beaten on the threshing floor of Calvary. He passed through the fire of God’s wrath, for our sake. Jesus “suffered because of others’ sins…He went through it all—was put to death and then made alive—to bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18). Bread of Life? Jesus lived up to the title. But you know, an unopened loaf does a person no good. Have you received the bread? Have you received God’s forgiveness?” Max Lucado

I love the reminder here that in order to receive, we must first open. We must open our hearts and minds to receive, but I would also add that we must “dig in”. Not only do I want to smell the aroma of fresh baked bread, I want to indulge in it, savor it, and allow it to nourish my body. The same is true in my relationship with God. I don't simply know of Him, His word sprinkled throughout my day. I want to be in relationship with him, digging into His word, learning more about His ways and moving my life in that direction. I want to know Him in a way that it changes me.

Bread. Often bread is used in the scriptures to denote sustenance. It doesn’t take long to see that for better or worse what and how much we ingest and digest impacts the quality of our lives. What is true of the body is also true of the soul. The Psalmist speaks of “the bread of tears” (Ps. 80:5) and Solomon of “the bread of wickedness” (Proverbs 4:17) that people have fed their souls and thus shaped their realities. Jesus offers us a new reality…life that is defined by grace, purpose and love. A life that is ours as we ingest (learn His teachings) and digest (live His words out). Taste and see that the Lord is good.

This is a phenomenal statement! First, by equating Himself with bread, Jesus is saying he is essential for life. Second, the life Jesus is referring to is not only physical life, but also eternal life. He is contrasting what He brings as their Messiah with the bread He miraculously created the day before. That was physical bread that perishes. He is spiritual bread that brings eternal life.

Third, and very important, Jesus is making another claim to deity. This statement is the first of the “I AM” statements in John’s Gospel. The phrase “I AM” is the covenant name of God (Yahweh, or YHWH), revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Exodus 3:14). The phrase speaks of self-sufficient existence, which is an attribute only God possesses. It is also a phrase the Jews who were listening would have automatically understood as a claim to deity. -Got Questions Ministry

Jesus said, “I am the bread of life…” Five words that have more meaning and power than is evident at first listen or reading. Jesus is essential. He is with us in both this physical reality and the spiritual reality. Jesus is GOD...the Great I AM. All that we need now and forevermore. “I Am the Bread of Life.”

As you go through your day let this marinate in all you do. “I am the bread of life.” As you eat, drink, think and plan. As you interact with others, struggle to accomplish a task or wrestle with a relational challenge. Remember: Jesus. I Am the Bread of Life.

“But the reward of the saints is far different, who even here endured reproaches for that city of God which is hateful to the lovers of this world. That city is eternal. There none are born, for none die. There is true and full felicity,–not a goddess, but a gift of God. Thence we receive the pledge of faith whilst on our pilgrimage we sigh for its beauty. There rises not the sun on the good and the evil, but the Sun of Righteousness protects the good alone.” - from The City of God by St. Augustine

There is literally a requirement for light in our world. Our world is sustained by the sunlight for food, warmth and the health of our plants, animals and humankind. Jesus’s statement: “I am the LIght of the World” carries the reminder that our world does not exist without Him. Just like our world cannot exist without the sunlight, our world cannot exist without the Son’s light.

Take some time to notice the light that exists in your physical world. Recognize the power of life in the warmth of the sun and its light. Then notice how the light is a reflection of the love, life and light from Jesus.

Seek the light and live in it. You will find life sustenance from the Light of the World, Jesus.

God will return to us when we shall be willing to let Him in—into our banks and factories, into our Congress and clubs, into our courts and investigating committees, into our homes and theaters. For God is everywhere and nowhere, the Father of all men or no man, concerned with everything or nothing. Only in His presence shall we learn that the glory of man is not in his will to power, but in his power of compassion. Man reflects either the image of His presence or that of a beast. Dr Skip Moen

“This is what I know: God can make something beautiful out of anything, out of darkness and trash and broken bones. He can shine light into even the blackest night, and he leaves glimpses of hope all around us. An oyster, a sliver of moon, one new bud on a black branch, a perfect tender shoot of asparagus, fighting up through the dirt for the spring sun. New life and new beauty are all around us, waiting to be discovered, waiting to be seen.” Shauna Niequist

“Lighthouses don’t go running all over an island looking for boats to save; they just stand there shining.” Anne Lamott

When I think about the times that I’ve been closest to the Lord, I realize that it’s never during a season of harvest, or when I’m feeling an overwhelming abundance. Instead, it’s in those moments that have felt so hard and so dark and so full of desperation that I wasn’t quite sure how I might make it to the next moment. In that fear, in that uncertainty, feeling like I couldn’t breathe in midst of that darkness…Jesus was there. He didn’t send a floodlight or a flashing florescent billboard, but instead gave me the smallest glimpse of light to move me toward the next right thing. Like the smallest flicker of a votive, he lit the way only enough for me to see the next step, and to remind me that I wasn’t in it alone.

“When Jesus refers to himself as the door or gate of the sheep, he’s using a familiar metaphor for his listeners. It would’ve been commonplace to see shepherds and sheep wandering around. Jesus draws his metaphor from the imagery of a sheep pen, which was an enclosure usually made of stone walls. At night, the shepherds would bring the sheep in there to allow them to rest securely. The sheep would enter one at a time, while the shepherd would stop each sheep with his rod and check each one out for wounds. He would let them through one by one and drop his rod over the next one and when he had examined him, would let the sheep in. Shepherds would even share a sheep pen and put all their animals in this enclosure. All of the village sheep would be in one fold which was the place of protection. Historians have found evidence that when these shepherds put the sheep in the pen at night, the shepherds would lie across the front of the pen and would act as a guard. They were effectively a door or gate for the sheep pen. This was not only to prevent predators getting in but to prevent sheep getting out. The shepherds would lay across and fall asleep there or stay watch. The sheep would go in or out only with the shepherd’s care.” Robert Sang

Jesus told this simple story, but they had no idea what he was talking about. So he tried again. “I’ll be explicit, then. I am the Gate for the sheep. All those others are up to no good—sheep rustlers, every one of them. But the sheep didn’t listen to them. I am the Gate. Anyone who goes through me will be cared for—will freely go in and out, and find pasture. A thief is only there to steal and kill and destroy. I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of. John 10:6-9 MSG

And this is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. -John 17:3

When Jesus refers to himself as the door or gate of the sheep, he’s using a familiar metaphor for his listeners. It would’ve been commonplace to see shepherds and sheep wandering around.

Jesus draws his metaphor from the imagery of a sheep pen, which was an enclosure usually made of stone walls. At night, the shepherds would bring the sheep in there to allow them to rest securely. The sheep would enter one at a time, while the shepherd would stop each sheep with his rod and check each one out for wounds.

Shepherds would even share a sheep pen and put all their animals in this enclosure. All of the village sheep would be in one fold which was the place of protection.

Historians have found evidence that when these shepherds put the sheep in the pen at night, the shepherds would lie across the front of the pen and would act as a guard. They were effectively a door or gate for the sheep pen. This was not only to prevent predators getting in but to prevent sheep getting out. The shepherds would lay across and fall asleep there or stay watch. The sheep would go in or out only with the shepherd’s care. -Got Questions ministries

In Hebrew thinking, faith is not what I possess, but what I demonstrate in my daily walk. That is what James 2:20 is suggesting when he states, “…faith without works is useless.” (NASB). If we are following Jesus, He will give instructions like He did with His disciples. We can choose to follow them by passing through the doors that Jesus opens or we can choose to climb in places by other means and be “a thief and a robber.” Choosing other means than the doors Jesus opens may actually lead to wealth, power, and/or fame, but it never leads to the joy, peace and calm of abundant living.

I stand by the door.

I neither go too far in, nor stay too far out,

The door is the most important door in the world-

It is the door through which men walk when they find God.

So many are still outside and they, as much as I,

Crave to know where the door is.

And all that so many ever find

Is only a wall where a door ought to be.

They creep along the wall like blind men,

With outstretched, groping hands,

Feeling for a door, knowing there must be a door,

Yet never find it…

So I stand by the door.

-Samuel Moor Shoemaker

It seems to me that Paul sees Yeshua (Jesus) as 1) the first fruit of acceptability before God for all who will follow, and 2) the guarantee that there is something after death, something real as evidenced by the risen Messiah. What’s new is that this man came back from the grave to proclaim the victory of God over death itself. What’s new is that there really is a reason to push on; that this life is not the end. What’s new is the flesh and blood evidence of vindication, justice and resurrection. Because he lived this life in obedience, YHWH (GOD) raised him to be the final authority in this realm, and as his followers we have hope that we will participate in his eternal kingdom. Dr Skip Moen

Outside Bethany, Lazarus’s sister Martha went out to meet Jesus. “If you had been here,” she said, “my brother would not have died.” Such was her faith in Jesus’ power to heal. Jesus replied by assuring Martha that her brother would rise again. Martha responded again in faith: “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” At this point, Jesus makes His fifth “I Am” statement in John’s gospel, “I am the resurrection and the life,” and He follows it with a call to faith: “He who believes in me will live, even though he dies, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die” (John 11:21-24). Jesus’ statement that He is the resurrection and the life provides a godly perspective on several spiritual matters. Martha believed that the resurrection is an event; Jesus showed her (and us) that the resurrection is a Person. Martha’s knowledge of eternal life was an abstract idea; Jesus proved that knowledge of eternal life is a personal relationship. Martha thought victory over death was a future expectation; Jesus corrects her, showing that victory is a present reality.-Got Questions Ministries

As a 13 year old who had just lost her 42 year old dad to a heart attack, I did not have the faith of Martha. I gave up my faith and decided God didn’t exist, so I could avoid any thoughts of hell. Jesus’s statement, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die…” fills me with hope. Hope for today, hope for tomorrow. Hope for my dad and hope for so many others. The COVID-19 pandemic has brought death to many of us. The losses leave gaps in our hearts and in our souls. For me, I am thankful that Jesus is the resurrection and the life...and that it is a present reality. Today remind yourself that you have hope. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life…”

150 funerals. That is how many funerals I have officiated in my 40 years of being a Pastor. One of the things I have said in these moments of grief over words that were yet to be said, memories left unmade, and a chair that will sit unoccupied is this: “It doesn’t end here”. “It ends in the presence of the Heavenly Father where we will see our Jesus and reunite with those who put their faith in Him. And we will dance and dazzle through the ages in that bright eternal city where death can never, never come”. We Christians call this our hope, our blessed hope.

“The greatest enemy of hunger for God is not poison, but apple pie. It is not the banquet of the wicked that dulls our appetite for heaven, but the endless nibbling at the table of the world….The greatest adversary of love to God is not in his enemies but his gifts. And the most deadly appetites are not for the poison of evil, but for the simple pleasures of earth. For when these replace an appetite for God himself, the idolatry is scarcely recognizable, and almost incurable. ” John Piper

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875 Cypress St, Tarpon Springs, FL 34689875 Cypress St, Tarpon Springs, FL 34689