Photo by...Photo by Rémi Walle on Unsplash
Paul’s in prison when he writes to Timothy, his young friend and co-worker. Acts 28 tells us Paul was in Rome at the time, under house-arrest guarded by a soldier. It wasn’t two weeks of quarantine in a hotel to wait for any signs of a virus but two years under house arrest.
During this time and close to the end of his life, Paul writes and describes some disappointment in those he considered friends.
16 When I was first put on trial, no one helped me. In fact, everyone deserted me. I hope it won’t be held against them. 17 But the Lord stood beside me. He gave me the strength to tell his full message, so that all Gentiles would hear it. And I was kept safe from hungry lions. 18 The Lord will always keep me from being harmed by evil, and he will bring me safely into his heavenly kingdom. Praise him forever and ever! Amen. 2 Timothy 4:16-18
I’ve highlighted the beautiful words of good news for Paul and for us. Jesus stood beside him.
Jesus’ disciples had a very interesting experience of the Lord standing beside them on the first Easter day. Jesus surprised them. Jesus came to bring peace and comfort to them in their fear.
But Thomas was missing and when they told him he wouldn’t believe it. Perhaps he thought it was too good to be true.
Many a sermon has been preached about Thomas and his doubting - with strong encouragement not to doubt like him. I wonder how many sceptic’s lives have been changed by those sermons.
It hit me this year (maybe it’s the isolation), Thomas isn’t the main character in this story, Jesus is. It’s about Jesus and his unending desire and determination to come alongside and help. He came and stood beside the group of disciples and they got it, he was alive. He came again, just for Thomas, and he got it.. Jesus didn’t want Thomas to be left in the dark of uncertainty. Jesus loved Thomas and wanted him to know the good news of his resurrection.
Jesus comes and stands beside us. He’s not satisfied till he knows that we know he’s alive, and that he loves us and is with us.
This is the good news of Easter!
Peace be with you
by Mark Lieschke
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Again Jesus said, ‘Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.’ And with that he breathed on them and said, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’ (John 20:21,22).
Read John 20:19–23
The Christian faith is rejected by most people in the world today. Its truths are no longer generally believed or followed. And it can seem to many, both outside and even to some within the church, that the Christian faith is no longer the power it once was or an effective force in the world.
Maybe, in the back of our minds, there’s the same nagging suspicion. We look around us and see the many other things in the world that influence people, and we can wonder just what kind of influence the church has today. Has it lost its power? Have we lost our way? Are we becoming more and more of a lost cause?
On the day Jesus rose from the grave, the disciples gathered behind closed doors, and there was a good deal of confusion in their minds.
Their hopes about participating in a glorious kingdom lay shattered; their Lord and friend had been put to death. The years they had spent following and listening to him may have seemed wasted.
But when Jesus appeared and stood in the middle of them and said, ‘Peace be with you’, their fear was changed into joy. Doubt and confusion were transformed into belief. Despair and anxiety were replaced by excitement and a desire to share what they had seen and heard.
A change took place within them that would have a lasting impact on their lives, and in turn, on the lives of millions of others.
That power is still at work – despite what we may see and experience. The Holy Spirit continues to come today to empower, encourage, equip, transform, strengthen and motivate us.
The peace of the Lord Jesus be with you today. May your life be enriched as you receive this peace. And may the Holy Spirit give you courage as Jesus sends you to share that peace.
Merciful God, your Son Jesus Christ is the resurrection and the life, who gives hope and joy even as we live and serve in a world that can seem to oppose us at every turn. Fill us with your Holy Spirit and empower us to share your peace with those around us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Mark Lieschke is a retired pastor living on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland and is a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church Buderim. He served in parishes in Adelaide SA, Palmerston North and Marton in New Zealand and Wagga Wagga NSW (school and congregation), before being elected as bishop of the LCANZ’s New South Wales District. He and his wife, Meredith, have four children (two of whom live in Canada) and two grandchildren. Mark enjoys spending time with family and friends, travelling, walking on the beach and resting.
Slow praise
by Jane Mueller
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures (Psalm 104:24).
Read Psalm 104:24–34,35b
Today is World Turtle Day.
It’s one of those observances that feels quietly charming. Turtles don’t rush. They don’t demand attention. They simply move at their own pace: slow, steady and unbothered by the noise around them. They have been doing this for a very long time.
Psalm 104 invites us into that same unhurried posture.
This psalm doesn’t argue for God’s existence or try to prove anything. It simply notices. The psalmist looks at the world – the seas and creatures within them, the cycles of life and breath, the rhythms of work and rest – and responds with awe. Creation is not frantic. It’s ordered and sustained. Held.
Again and again, the psalm returns to one thing: life depends on God’s ongoing care. When God gives breath, creatures live. When God sustains, creation flourishes. Nothing is self-made. Nothing is self-sustaining. And we rejoice knowing that God not only sustains creation now, he also promises its renewal – a future shaped by resurrection, a promise secured for us in Christ.
In a society that rewards speed, efficiency and constant output, Psalm 104 slows us down. It reminds us that wonder takes time. Praise requires attention. Trust grows through noticing what God is already doing.
Even creatures like turtles – ancient, steady and unremarkable by modern standards – bear quiet witness to our Creator, whose wisdom is deeper than our impatience.
To pause and delight in creation is not an abuse of precious time. It is faith. It is choosing to see the world as something sustained by God and worthy of praise, rather than something to be conquered or consumed.
And so, our week of devotions ends where it began: not with control or worldly certainty, but with lives quietly held by our Creator God.
Creator God, slow me down when I rush past wonder and overlook your care. Open my eyes to the beauty around me, my heart to praise and my spirit to trust your sustaining presence. In a world that demands speed and output, remind me again that, along with all creation, I am held by you. Amen.
Jane is a former Lutheran school principal and now serves as the Governance Leadership Director for Lutheran Education SA/NT/WA. Jane has a keen interest in psychology, hiking, learning new things and trying new things.
Essential lessons in Vegemite application
by Jane Mueller
Click here to download your printable verse to carry with you today.
Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you (1 John 2:24a).
Read 1 John 2:24–29
It’s taken me years to master the art of Vegemite application.
This is not a skill you acquire in childhood and then forget about. It requires discipline, focus and a surprising amount of self-control. It takes patience, restraint and a willingness to learn from mistakes. Too much Vegemite, and you’ve ruined perfectly good toast. Too little, and you’re left wondering whether you’re even trying. I’ve had seasons of confidence, moments of regret and the occasional identity crisis when I thought I’d finally nailed it, only to discover I’d drifted off course again.
But as a proud Australian, applying Vegemite to toast is an essential life skill. You don’t dabble with Vegemite. You don’t improvise wildly or freestyle your way to success. Vegemite doesn’t reward experimentation. It demands commitment. You learn the basics, you respect them and – crucially – you stick with them.
In today’s reading, John is writing to a community where sticking to the basics is becoming increasingly harder.
New ideas are circulating. New voices are claiming authority. Some teaching sounds impressive, even sophisticated. There’s no pressure to abandon faith altogether, but certainly to adjust it. Tweak it here, update it there. Make it fit more comfortably with what feels new or fashionable.
John’s advice is remarkably simple: ‘Let what you heard from the beginning abide in you.’
Stay. Remain. Stick.
This isn’t fear of change or resistance to growth. John isn’t warning against learning, reflection or being reshaped – he’s cautioning against forgetting Christ himself. Abiding means continually returning to Christ and trusting him to keep doing his work in us. It is not about clinging tightly but trusting that we are already being held.
Abiding takes patience. It means resisting the urge to constantly upgrade, rebrand or improve what was already given as a gift. It means trusting that God – who held us from the beginning – is still enough.
This brings us back to Vegemite. It doesn’t need experimentation or reinventing. Nor does it require upgrading or rebranding. Spread too thin, and it disappears. Tinker too much, and it loses its point. But used as it was intended, it does exactly what it’s meant to do: it nourishes. John’s advice is just as practical: stick with what you heard from the beginning. Stay. Abide. Don’t drift.
Faithful God, when I am tempted to chase what is new, impressive or fashionable, draw me back to the life you give. When I drift, help me return. When I complicate faith, remind me of the grace I first received in Christ. Hold me steady in your love and keep me grounded in you. Amen.
Jane is a former Lutheran school principal and now serves as the Governance Leadership Director for Lutheran Education SA/NT/WA. Jane has a keen interest in psychology, hiking, learning new things and trying new things.