GPS: Grow, Pray & Study

GPS for the week of April 20th, 2025

“And We Are Witnesses To These Things”

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Dear Lord, “We are the ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven.

We flip off this series of words too readily; But they are

precious words to us because they tell the whole tale of our

life, and we savor them.

Ransomed… Healed… Restored… Forgiven…

Made new, made innocent, made possible. More than that,

these words that tell our truth bind us to you, and to your

passionate truthfulness. Amen. (From “Awed to heaven,

rooted in earth;” a prayer by Walter Bruggemann).

 

Monday 4.21 “The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus.”

Acts 5:27-32

“When they had brought them, they had them stand before the

council. The high priest questioned them, saying, ‘We gave you

strict orders not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled

Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this

man’s blood on us.’ But Peter and the apostles answered, ‘We

must obey God rather than any human authority. The God of our

ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him

on a tree. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and

Savior, so that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness

of sins. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy

Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him.’” Peter and

the apostles were in awe of the power of the living God that filled

them with new life.

 

Tuesday 4.22 “Praise him with tambourine and dance.”

Psalm 150

“Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his

mighty firmament! Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him

according to his surpassing greatness! Praise him with trumpet

sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine

and dance; praise him with strings and pipe! Praise him with

clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals! Let

everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!” This

loud and lively celebration is ours every day. Praise the Lord!

 

Wednesday 4.23 “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the

firstborn of the dead.”

Revelation 1:4-8

“John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and

peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and

from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus

Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler

of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and freed us from

our sins by his blood, and made us to be a kingdom, priests

serving his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion for ever

and ever. Amen. Look! He is coming with the clouds; every eye

will see him, even those who pierced him; and on his account all

the tribes of the earth will wail. So it is to be. Amen. ‘I am the

Alpha and the Omega’, says the Lord God, who is and who was

and who is to come, the Almighty.” Jesus loves us and has freed

us from our sins to be restored in new life.

 

Thursday 4.24 “Peace be with you.”

John 20:19-31

“When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and

the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked

for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said,

‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands

and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has

sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on

them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the

sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any,

they are retained.’” These simple words of peace from Jesus

brought rejoicing among his disciples.

 

Friday 4.25 “We have seen the Lord.”

John 20:19-31

“But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was

not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him,

‘We have seen the Lord.’ But he said to them, ‘Unless I see the

mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the

nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.’ A week later his

disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them.

Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them

and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your

finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in

my side. Do not doubt but believe.’ Thomas answered him, ‘My

Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have you believed

because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not

seen and yet have come to believe.’ Now Jesus did many other

signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this

book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that

Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing

you may have life in his name.” The disciples were filled with joy

and awe and excitedly told Thomas that they had seen their living

Lord.

 

Saturday 4.26 “It is marvelous in our eyes.”

Psalm 118:14-29

“The Lord is my strength and my might; he has become my

salvation. There are glad songs of victory in the tents of the

righteous: ‘The right hand of the Lord does valiantly; the right

hand of the Lord is exalted; the right hand of the Lord does

valiantly.’ I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of

the Lord. The Lord has punished me severely, but he did not give

me over to death. Open to me the gates of righteousness, that I

may enter through them and give thanks to the Lord. This is the

gate of the Lord; the righteous shall enter through it. I thank you

that you have answered me and have become my salvation. The

stone that the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.

This is the Lord’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes. This is the

day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it. Save

us, we beseech you, O Lord! O Lord, we beseech you, give us

success! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.

We bless you from the house of the Lord. The Lord is God, and

he has given us light. Bind the festal procession with branches,

up to the horns of the altar. You are my God, and I will give

thanks to you; you are my God, I will extol you. O give thanks to

the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures for ever.”

Praise God! et us rejoice!