(Luke 23:39-43) Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit. Teach me to ask for heaven. Imagination: (Picture Jesus crucified with two thieves) Context: Luke portrays this special moment of faith. A thief looks at the crucified Jesus and sees a king. He even believes he has a kingdom. Jesus rewards his faith. “Today” …
(Luke 20:27-38) Prayer – O Lord, fill me with strong desires to live like the angels. Imagination – (Picture Jesus in confrontation with the Sadducees.) Context: The Sadducees (unlike the Pharisees) did not believe in the immortality of the soul nor the resurrection of the dead. They present to Jesus …
(Luke 17:7-10) Prayer – O Lord, let me serve you faithfully with a humble heart. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with His disciples.) Context: Jesus sees deeply into his disciples’ heart. He demands that they serve faithfully without any self-righteous feelings. Gospel Text: (Read slowly, possibly aloud) If a man has a …
(Luke 16:19-31) Prayer – O Lord, awaken me by this warning. Imagination – (Picture Jesus teaching the crowds.) Context: Judaism believed that riches showed God’s favor and that poverty showed sinfulness. Jesus reveals the true picture, which shocks his audience. The poor man, Lazarus, enjoys the highest honor of being …
(Luke 13:24-30) Prayer: O Jesus, you are my Lord and Saviour. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with His disciples.) Context: By these parables, Jesus confronts his hearers. They understand, (all too well), what He means. He comes to their villages, preaches in their streets and eats with them. Yet, they do not …
(Luke 12:49-53) Prayer: O Jesus, light your fire in my heart. Imagination: (Picture Jesus teaching his disciples.) Context: This text contains two separate sayings of Jesus. The first shows his greatest desire – to cast the fire of the Holy Spirit upon all believers. The second speaks about the problems …
(Luke 12:35-40) Prayer: O Jesus, may you find me watching when you return. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with His disciples.) Context: Jesus gives two crisis parables which emphasize the need for watchfulness. The master has many servants and all must keep watch. The second parable reverses the situation. The owner must …
(Luke 10:38-42) Prayer: Come, Holy Spirit. Make Jesus the center of my attention. Imagination: (Picture Mary sitting at Jesus’ feet.) Context: Luke places this story right after the Good Samaritan to emphasize that the disciple must first love Jesus. Serving others is important (like the Good Samaritan) but not enough …
(Luke 10:25-37) Prayer: O Jesus, you are my good Samaritan and I am wounded along the way. Imagination: (Picture Jesus gathered with his disciples and teaching the lawyer.) Context: The lawyer asked a common question in Judaism, “How far must my charity extend? Who is within that circle?” Jesus uses …
(Luke 10:1-12) Prayer – O Lord, choose me and send me wherever your word needs to be preached. Imagination – (Picture Jesus preparing seventy-two more disciples to go to the villages.) Context: Other gospels (Mark and Matthew) record Jesus sending the Twelve. Only Luke mentions this larger number of seventy-two. …
(Luke 9:18-22) Prayer: O Holy Spirit, open to my heart the mystery of Jesus Christ. Imagination – (Picture Jesus with his disciples) Context: At the synagogue in Nazareth, Jesus proclaimed what he would accomplish for Israel. This gospel reveals even more. Jesus is Israel’s Messiah. At this point, only the …
(Luke 7:11-17) Prayer – Lord, in your compassion, give me life. Imagination: (Picture Jesus standing with the widow by the funeral) Context: Naim is just 3 miles away from Nazareth. It still has a cemetery that has been used for centuries. Jesus stops death in its tracks and makes it …
(Luke 7:1-10) Prayer: O Jesus, fill me with faith in all that you can do. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with the Centurion.) Context: Since Christianity had spread to the Gentile world, Luke was extremely interested in Gentiles who experienced Jesus’ power. This Gentile centurion is a special person. He believed that …
(John 20:19-23) Prayer: Jesus, breathe upon me and send your Holy Spirit. Imagination: (Picture the Risen Jesus appearing to the fearful disciples.) Context: Jesus comes to the frightened disciples on Easter Sunday night. This is “John’s Pentecost”, because Jesus bestows the Holy Spirit. At Pentecost, Luke speaks of the disciples …
(John 17:20-23) Prayer: O Jesus, restore our oneness in your glory. Imagination: (Picture Jesus with the apostles at the Last Supper) Context: Jesus’ prayer is for us, the future believers. Two thousand years later, as the word reaches us, we receive the same glory given by the Father to Jesus, …
(Luke 24:47, Acts 1:8-11) Prayer: O Jesus, take my heart to heaven with you. Imagination: (Picture the disciples watching Jesus ascend into heaven.) Context: Luke describes the Ascension in two places – at the end of his gospel and at the beginning of the Acts of the Apostles. Here we …
(John 14:23-29) Prayer: O Jesus, I will abide in your word. Imagination: (Picture Jesus teaching his disciples at the Last Supper). Context: This text focuses on Jesus’ teaching – which enjoys a surprising power. A disciple who lives this teaching will enjoy the presence of the Father and Jesus. Then, …
(John 10:24-30) Prayer: O Jesus, I will hear your voice and follow you to eternal life. Imagination: (Picture Jesus teaching in the Temple) Context: Even this image of shepherd gets drawn into controversy. Not being Jesus’ sheep, the hearers do not believe that Jesus can give everlasting life to those …
(John 21:1-8) Prayer: O Jesus, make me aware of your presence. Imagination: (Picture Jesus standing on the shoe at the Sea of Galilee.) Context: Because Jesus promised to appear to his disciples in Galilee, the apostles return there and resume fishing. In John’s gospel, this is the third recorded vision …
(John 20:19-23) Prayer: O Jesus, breathe upon me and anoint me with your Spirit. Imagination: (Picture Jesus appearing to his disciples in the Upper Room.) Context: This vision occurs on Easter Sunday evening and reveals many truths. By coming through a closed door, Jesus clearly shows that he has a …
