The Upper Room Devotional 28 December 2023
The Upper Room Devotional 28 December 2023, Thursday Message by Ann Stewart (South Australia, Australia)
TOPIC: The Rose
Please support 5dailydevotional.com so we can continue publishing impactful and uplifting content daily. GIVE HERE
TODAY’S READING
Psalm 67:1-7
The Lord make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up his face to you and grant you peace. – Numbers 6:25-26 (CEB)
While coping with the effects of chemotherapy one winter, I asked my son to purchase and plant a new rose bush in my garden. He went to the garden center and returned with a very spindly standard rose that had been the only one left. According to the label it was a white rose. I was grateful for his efforts but also a little disappointed. I had been hoping for a brightly colored rose.
My son planted the rose bush and come spring it looked healthy and started to thrive. When it flowered for the first time, I was amazed and surprised. It was a beautifully scented, dark pink rose! I was excited and felt blessed and full of praise for God’s goodness to me.
Through that pink rose bloom, I truly felt that God was smiling at me. It was a special blessing in a difficult time, reassuring me that I was loved and cared for. What a gracious, mighty, and generous God we have! God loves to bless us and reassure us in ways big and small.
TODAY’S PRAYER
Abba Father, thank you for smiling upon us. Open our eyes to recognize your generous blessings each day. Amen.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
No matter my situation, God offers comfort and reassurance.
PRAYER FOCUS
Praise for all God’s blessings
The Upper Room is a daily devotional magazine published in more than 30 languages and 100 countries around the world. The daily meditations are written by readers of the magazine and others interested in sharing their faith experiences through writing—both laity and clergy, published authors and new writers. The meditations are stories of real people working to live faithfully with the Bible as their touchstone. Every day, readers of The Upper Room around the world read the same story in many different languages and pray the same prayer together.
READ MORE TOPICS: OPEN HEAVENS, OUR DAILY BREAD, IN TOUCH, SEEDS OF DESTINY, STREAMS OF JOY, JOEL OSTEEN, MOUNTAIN TOP LIFE, DCLM DAILY MANNA, UCB WORD FOR TODAY