Read To Me Daily Semester 2Sample

DEUTERONOMY 2-3:
Yesterday in the first chapter of Deuteronomy, we heard Moses preaching and confronting the people of Israel about their bickering and their incredible stubbornness in refusing to believe God's commands, and their refusal to believe God’s loving intent in his commands.

PSALM 50:
Our readings in Deuteronomy provide a great backdrop for today’s psalm, Psalm 50. This Psalm tells us what God wants most from his people.

ACTS 8:
Yesterday in Acts we heard the conclusion of Stephen's speech. He confronted the high council with the indisputable fact that the people of Israel had always refused to follow what God told them and killed the prophets. The final words of his defense would have been unforgettable and would have not erased by their angry shouts. He shouted, “They (our ancestors) even killed the ones who predicted the coming of the Righteous One—the Messiah whom you betrayed and murdered! You deliberately disobeyed God’s law, even though you received it from the hands of angels.” Shortly after saying that, Stephen died as Saul watched.

Let's pray together.
Our great and awesome God, the Holy Father, the creator of the universe, we bow before you. We can have no excuses, because we humans have been stubborn ever since the Garden of Eden. The people that You chose could not remember to worship You alone. Right from the beginning, they left you repeatedly— disobeying even your simplest commands. And whenever anyone tried to give a message to them from You they stoned them or killed them in other ways. You kept sending messengers to them. Oh Lord, help me and my listener to realize where we ourselves are stubborn, where we ourselves reject what you say and go our own way. The Psalmist’s words are so true. “We can never redeem ourselves. We cannot pay to you, God, the price of our lives. The payment would be too great for us. We could never have enough to pay.” And yet the psalmist could say, “God will rescue me. He will save me from the power of death.” That means that you would give a ransom that humans could not give. And the prophets foretold about the coming of your Righteous Servant (Jesus). But then the Jews fulfilled other prophecies by killing Him. Lord Jesus how awesome it was that You stood to receive Steven, who was coming to You. Today, Lord, we also will keep our eyes looking up to heaven.