The Cowboys are Winning the Super Bowl! (A Fantasy Football Devotional)

James 1:19-21

19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.

The Cowboys are Going to the Super Bowl!

The first week of the season is in the books and overreactions abound. While I don’t think that my Cowboy’s prediction is an overreaction, there are plenty of them to go around after just one game: “Mac Jones and Jordon Love will be top 5 QB’s”, “Tyler Allgeier will outscore Bijan Robinson in Fantasy points this year”, “I’m firing all my guys and for such a dismal showing”, or “I’m winning the Fantasy Football Super Bowl,” are just a few possible overreactions based on a limited amount of information.

As the weeks go on, we will have more data points on teams and players with which we can make informed decisions about who the best players and teams are. Being quick to listen and slow to speak is like that. Listening helps you gather more data points about a person or situation so you can make an informed decision on how you can minister to someone in their situation. Truly listening can help you understand and keep your anger in check.

Think about a time recently when you were quick to anger. If you are like me, listening and gathering more data points could have helped you produce the righteousness that God desires, instead of the raised-voice, over-the-top scolding I recently gave my son…confession is good for the soul! After an apology and an honest assessment of where things were, my anger was kept in check and I was closer to the humility needed to accept the word that had been planted in me.

Dear God,

Help me to be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger.

In Jesus Name, Amen!

I also pray the Cowboys will win the Super Bowl, but there is a lot of football to be played still!

Stay tuned for the return of our Commissioners’ Report Podcast next week.. You can catch up on old episodes here.

Pastor Ray is the Pastor of Worship and Administration at First Baptist Church Weslaco. He manages the Elisha’s Bears Fantasy Football team in the Baptist Ballers League. His 124 points were the second highest in the league this past week…an impressive feat being that his starting QB was Aaron Rodgers! He also apologized to his son, gave him a hug and told him he is really appreciative of the man he has become.

Jesus Heals, pt. 2 (Mark 5:35-43)

35 While Jesus was still speaking, some people came from the house of Jairus. He was the synagogue leader. “Your daughter is dead,” they said. “Why bother the teacher anymore?”

36 Jesus heard what they were saying. He told the synagogue leader, “Don’t be afraid. Just believe.”

37 He let only Peter, James, and John, the brother of James, follow him. 38 They came to the home of the synagogue leader. There Jesus saw a lot of confusion. People were crying and sobbing loudly. 39 He went inside. Then he said to them, “Why all this confusion and sobbing? The child is not dead. She is only sleeping.” 40 But they laughed at him.

He made them all go outside. He took only the child’s father and mother and the disciples who were with him. And he went in where the child was. 41 He took her by the hand. Then he said to her, “Talitha koum!” This means, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” 42 The girl was 12 years old. Right away she stood up and began to walk around. They were totally amazed at this. 43 Jesus gave strict orders not to let anyone know what had happened. And he told them to give her something to eat.

For the Adults:

This is the conclusion of the “Markan Sandwich.” The Jairus narrative is the bread and the bleeding woman of faith is the meat, or peanut butter and jelly, or cheese, or whatever your favorite sandwich middle is! Mark uses the sandwich as a literary device to show the grand healing power of Jesus…and of course we know the exciting conclusion: Jesus is the Messiah can raise the dead! Even as people laugh at him for telling them what is really going on, Jesus strolls in and commands her to get up!

“Talitha koum!” - Remember that when Mark writes his gospel, he is writing to a non-Jewish audience (much like us today). He puts in Aramaic phrases like this and then translates them for his Gentile (non-Jewish) audience. Try saying “Talitha Koum!” to your teenage daughter tomorrow morning…no guarantees it’ll work.

The Messianic Secret - at the end of this, Jesus gives strict orders not to tell anyone about this, but why? Throughout Mark, Jesus hides what we all know - that he is the Messiah - until it is time for him to fulfill God’s plan as savior of the world.

Jesus is the Messiah - Even as many in the world laugh at the idea that Jesus is in charge of every situation, we know the truth - Jesus is the Son of God who lived a perfect life, died on the cross as a sacrifice for our sins, rose again on the third day, and is one day coming back to heal the whole world! One day he will say, “get up” and all those who believe in Jesus will “get up” and spend all eternity with him. Until them, let’s live into Jesus’ great healing story by studying His word, worshiping together, fellowshipping (online for now, and serving one another. See you Sunday at our online worship service.

For the kids:

Enter:

Find a place where your family can sit comfortably together. You can ask questions like these!:

•       How was your day?

•       What did you enjoy about today? Was there anything you didn’t enjoy about today?

Hear:

Read the Bible Passage. For younger children, a picture Bible may be used. (Beginner's Bible - p. 347-350)

Pause:

This might be hard at first, but take a few seconds, or maybe a minute to sit with the scripture in silence. With little ones, it may be a ten count, but we can sit still and let God’s word work!

Wonder:

What was interesting about this story?

How do you think Jairus felt when his daughter died and Jesus hadn't made it to see her?

How do you feel when people laugh at you for something you believe?

How think Jesus felt when people laughed at him?

Why do you think Mark wrote this story down?

How does this story connect with our lives?

Bless:

Affirm what was discussed about the story.

Reaffirm God’s power in the world (from the story) and those parts where we long to see God’s power.

Pray together (you may ask kids what they are thankful for or things they want to pray for/confess before the prayer:

Praise God, Give thanks, Pray for others, confess sins, Praise God!

Example: Thank you God that you are the great healer. We know you are more powerful than the coronavirus because you can even raise those who have died. Forgive us when we do things that make you sad. Help us to remember your great healing story! Amen!

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Jesus Calms the Storm (Mark 4:35-41)

Jesus Calms the Storm (NIRV)

35 When evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s go over to the other side of the lake.” 36 They left the crowd behind. And they took him along in a boat, just as he was. There were also other boats with him. 37 A wild storm came up. Waves crashed over the boat. It was about to sink. 38 Jesus was in the back, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him up. They said, “Teacher! Don’t you care if we drown?”

39 He got up and ordered the wind to stop. He said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down. And it was completely calm.

40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Don’t you have any faith at all yet?”

41 They were terrified. They asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

For the Parents:

This is one of my favorite stories. The disciples had seen Jesus heal people; they had seen Jesus drive out unclean spirits; they had heard Jesus’ amazing teaching! Yet, they were still afraid. Does that sound like anyone we know? Might as well be me!

“Don’t you care [Jesus]?” It’s not just the disciples who felt that way. Even with all we know about God and what we have experienced in our lives, we might be there right now. Don’t you care that I’m losing my job? Don’t you care that I’m losing my 401K? Don’t you care that home schooling is costing me my sanity? Don’t you care that _________! Jesus is telling us even now, “Why are you so afraid? Don’t you have any faith at all yet?” The God who commands the wind and the waves was in charge before this pandemic, and will be in command long after! Still, there are times when we need to cry out to God. Join us this Sunday as Pastor Parker explores the language of prayer in tough times given to us in the Psalms…See you on our YouTube Channel this Sunday!

May be less like the faith deprived disciples and more like sleeping Jesus during this crazy COVID storm.

For the Children: (Use this only as a guide. The important thing here is to read the Bible and spend time together. Whatever works for your family will be ok!)

Enter:

Find a place where your family can sit comfortably together. You can ask questions like these (don’t feel the need to ask all of them!):

•       Where did you see God’s power today?

•       Where do you wish you could see God’s power today?

Hear:

Read the Bible Passage. For younger children, a picture Bible may be used. 

Pause:

This might be hard at first, but take a few seconds, or maybe a minute to sit with the scripture in silence. With little ones, it may be a ten count, but we can sit still and let God’s word work!

Wonder:

Have you ever been in a storm while in a small boat?

How would you feel if you were the disciples?

Why is this story in the Bible?

When would be a good time to remember this story?

Bless:

Affirm what was discussed about the story.

Reaffirm God’s power in the world (from the story) and those parts where we long to see God’s power.

Pray together (you may ask kids what they are thankful for or things they want to pray for/confess before the prayer:

Praise God, Give thanks, Pray for others, confess sins, Praise God!

Example: Thank you God that you control the wind and the waves. We praise you because you are in control even now. We ask you to bless those struggling with health and other things during this pandemic. Forgive us when we have been mean, or rude to one another. Help us to honor you in all we do! Amen!

Wrap-up with this video and subscribe below if you want daily updates via e mail.