Category Archives: Daily devotionals

Reading: Matthew 6,13 And lead us not into temptation Reflection: These days, the media is abuzz with the current pandemic of the “Corona” virus.* It seems to me that I have not read more speculation in the media in my forty years of literacy. The World Health Organization cannot keep up with all the false information that spreads rapidly on the internet. Everyone knows what to do. Everyone knows what is best, what is right. And yet, people write a bunch of nonsense. But the truth is, we don’t know what tomorrow will bring, and […]

Reading: Matthew 6,12 (and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors) Reflection: Every time my prayer comes to this point, I just feel like giving up. I feel so unworthy and trapped in an inner struggle, knowing that in the following verses of Matthew 6, verses 14 and 15, it says: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” And I often have a problem with forgiving. Often hurts […]

Reading: Matthew 6,12 And forgive us our debts… Reflection: A few years ago, I watched a documentary about a local actor who, in desperation to save his daughter’s life, borrowed money from a loan shark. He said that he went into a building, and met a very nice gentleman who loaned him the money without any problems. He couldn’t believe how easy it was to get the amount he needed. This encounter was the beginning of a downward spiral in his life. He took out a loan that he couldn’t repay. The interest rate was […]

Reading: Matthew 6,11 Give us this day our daily bread! Reflection: Very often, when I explain why I like someone, I say “I like that they’re normal.” Maybe for someone, that argument might sound weak, but by my standards, it’s crucial. Honestly, ever since I met God, I am constantly amazed by Him. His personality is incredibly and inexhaustibly rich. The combination of incompatible things in Him is fantastic. The supernaturality of His nature is fantastic. And yet, He is fantastically normal. I like that this “normality” makes Him close to us, humans. It’s normal […]

Photo by Avel Chuklanov on Unsplash Reading: Matthew 6,10 Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Reflection: There are people who choose to live in the Great Story that God has been telling since the beginning of the world. They leave this world to enter into the Great Story that continues in Heaven, which has no end. There are also those who live in their small stories. Their small story dies with them, and they die in their small stories. And that is the end. Of course, there’s a […]

Photo by Kelly Sikkema on Unsplash Reading: Matthew 6,10 Your will be done Reflection: I think one of the first words my son learned was “MINE.” If you tried to do something he wanted to do by himself, you would get aggressive, angry, demanding, loud, and insistent “MINE! MIIIIINE!” (he didn’t even know how to speak properly yet). It is inherent in us to want to have our lives in our hands. If someone tries to take that away from us, we feel worthless, diminished, and robbed. “I can do it all by myself.” “I […]

Reading: Matthew 6,10 Your kingdom come Reflection: It seems to me that the world is more eager for justice, peace, and joy than ever before. Wherever we look, we see injustice, war, suffering, and pain. Whenever I am overwhelmed by thoughts about this, I end up asking the same question: how did we get to this point? Why am I asking this question again today, as I try to write about this verse from the Lord’s Prayer? Like yesterday, I will say it again: I cannot escape the impression that the text of the Lord’s […]

Reading: Matthew 6,9 Reflection: Often people say of someone, “That person was someone you had to stand up for when their name was mentioned!” For me, there are truly people whose accomplishments, actions, or capacities I admire, and before whom I would gladly stand up, expressing my deep respect for them. However, it’s interesting what my brief internet search has yielded: “Don’t use and tarnish Tito’s name, when you mention it, you have to stand up.” “…and in the future, when you mention the name and deeds of Zorica Brunclik – YOU STAND UP AND […]

Reading: Matthew 6:9 …Our Father, who art in heaven… I recommend listening to the song “Our Father” by Hannah McClure: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzoNKuymO0U Reflection: I don’t like traveling by airplane. I get a mild panic attack when I think that I’m miles above the ground in a thin metal contraption that shakes, and I don’t feel safe. The only way for me to calm down is to look out the window. Every time I’m amazed by the view of the sky. The clouds look like huge icebergs stretching endlessly. Above them, the sun, in all its glory, […]

Reading: Matthew 6,9 Therefore, you should pray like this: “Our Father…” Reflection: One of my earliest memories of my dad is him crouching down with his arms wide open, waiting for me to run into his embrace. I remember feeling excited as I ran towards him because I knew it was a place of complete safety, and he would always lift me up and carry me to the door of our house. I would see the world from an unfamiliar, high perspective that I could only have in his arms. Jesus introduces us to a […]