Hi friends and welcome to today's encouragement from the Our Daily Bread Devotional.

Our reading entitled, Empowered for the Every Day, was written by Lisa M. Samra.

Every Moment Holy is a beautiful book of prayers for a variety of activities, including ordinary

ones like preparing a meal or doing the laundry, necessary tasks that can feel repetitive or

mundane. The book reminded me of the words of author G. K. Chesterton, who wrote,

You say grace before meals. All right, But I say grace before sketching, painting, swimming,

fencing, boxing, walking, playing, dancing, and grace before I dip the pen in the ink.

Such encouragement reorients my perspective on the activities of my day.

Sometimes I'm inclined to divide my activities into ones that appear to have spiritual value,

like reading devotions before a meal, and other activities, I think, have little spiritual

value, such as doing the dishes after the meal.

Paul erased that divide in a letter to the people

of Colossi, who had chosen to live for Jesus. He encouraged them with these words. Whatever you do,

whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus. Doing things in Jesus' name

means both honoring him as we do

them and having the assurance that His Spirit helps strengthen us to accomplish them. Whatever you do,

all the ordinary activities of our lives, every moment, can be empowered by God's Spirit

and done in a way that honors Jesus.

Today's our daily bread devotional scripture reading is from Colossians chapter 3

verses 12 through 17. Therefore, as God's chosen people holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves

with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with each other and forgive

one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you, and over all these

...