Morning Manna by Rufus Parker: Morning Manna by Rufus Parker

Friday, June 30, 2017

Morning Manna by Rufus Parker - 2017 June 30

“And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise”
(Luke 10:30-37)

Today’s Morsel: Years ago, one of the early morning shows on television for kids was “Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood.” I personally think that the show was more for parents and adults than it was for the kids, to teach us how to treat each other because kids will only do what they see the parents and adults do. Listening to Pastor Frank Ritchie's devotion, Good Samaritan Church in Wisconsin, at Men’s Camp this year as he spoke of the story of “The Good Samaritan” was challenging to our ministry. Some of the points he stressed were:

· The Samaritan didn’t care who the man was

· He didn’t care where the beating took place

· He didn’t care about what road it happened on

· He didn’t care who beat him

· He didn’t care about what the Priest and the Levites did or did not do

· He didn’t care that the man was left for half-dead

He just saw a man in need and the Samaritan was willing to set aside whatever plans he had to help him. He was willing to forgo his own plans to help. Isn’t this what a good neighbor does? Are you a good neighbor? Isn’t this Jesus' answer to the lawyer's question when he asked Him who was his neighbor? Your neighbor is the person in need.

Sing: Change my heart, O’ God, make it ever true; change my heart, O’ God, may I be like You.

Thought For Today: Who’s your neighbor?

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About Morning Manna

And it came to pass, as Aaron spake unto the whole congregation of the children of Israel, that they looked toward the wilderness, and, behold, the glory of the LORD appeared in the cloud. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God. And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host. And when the dew that lay was gone up, behold, upon the face of the wilderness there lay a small round thing, as small as the hoar frost on the ground. And when the children of Israel saw it, they said one to another, It is manna: for they wist not what it was. And Moses said unto them, This is the bread which the LORD hath given you to eat (Exodus 16:10-15).

“Morning Manna” is a short daily devotion which began in 2002, with just a short note of encouragement to a friend who was facing difficulties at the time. Through their response, I was encouraged to begin a daily devotion via email and send it to people who asked to be put on the distribution list. It is now reaching around the globe. Its birth came about during Morning Prayer. The Lord revealed to me that I should forward my friend a word of encouragement, since it is through patience and comfort of the scripture that we find hope. Thus, I forwarded him the words the Lord had given to me for him, and he forwarded it on to someone else who was having difficulties in their life as well, and thus the original list began.

The goal of “Morning Manna” is to provide people with a quick, thought provoking Word from the Lord, as well as provide encouragement from His Word that can help them through the day and during unexpected trails and circumstances in their daily lives.

Several years ago, Jesus moved on my heart to start writing daily devotions; thus began “Morning Manna”. Today, many people are receiving these daily devotions and many of these people are forwarding it on to their family and friends. It is my hope to encourage even more through posting the devotions to this blog-page.

I pray that you, too, will enjoy reading the manna from this site.