April 12th 2025
God Fills the Earth with Land Creatures and Humans.
God made some of his creatures with fur and some with skin. He created some to be silent, some to roar, and some to squeak. The variety makes a living in His creation an adventure. The sheer number of creatures tells us that God is not interested in being in one place and staying there. God wants life to be exciting and fun to live. Take a few moments to delight in some of God's creativity. Do you recognize how fun He is?
Being made in God's image was uniquely assigned to humankind, and when God created us in His likeness, He gave us the ability to create. Being created in God's likeness does not mean we look exactly like Him; instead, we are "like" Him. We have emotions, a will, and a desire for relationships. It is easy to overlook our emotional health, regarding it as unimportant or "less" spiritual than other areas of our lives.
Question:
Which of these three areas need more permissions from you to find expression in your life?
• Your emotions
• Your will
• Your desire for authentic relationships with others
In his book, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Peter Scazzero writes, "It is impossible to become spiritually mature while remaining emotionally immature."
Prayer Focus:
Sometimes, all that is needed for God to begin working in our lives in new ways is permission from us to go ahead with it. Take a moment now to invite God to deepen your spiritual and emotional maturity.
God made some of his creatures with fur and some with skin. He created some to be silent, some to roar, and some to squeak. The variety makes a living in His creation an adventure. The sheer number of creatures tells us that God is not interested in being in one place and staying there. God wants life to be exciting and fun to live. Take a few moments to delight in some of God's creativity. Do you recognize how fun He is?
Being made in God's image was uniquely assigned to humankind, and when God created us in His likeness, He gave us the ability to create. Being created in God's likeness does not mean we look exactly like Him; instead, we are "like" Him. We have emotions, a will, and a desire for relationships. It is easy to overlook our emotional health, regarding it as unimportant or "less" spiritual than other areas of our lives.
Question:
Which of these three areas need more permissions from you to find expression in your life?
• Your emotions
• Your will
• Your desire for authentic relationships with others
In his book, Emotionally Healthy Spirituality, Peter Scazzero writes, "It is impossible to become spiritually mature while remaining emotionally immature."
Prayer Focus:
Sometimes, all that is needed for God to begin working in our lives in new ways is permission from us to go ahead with it. Take a moment now to invite God to deepen your spiritual and emotional maturity.
Genesis 1:24-31 New Living Translation
24 Then God said, “Let the earth produce every sort of animal, each producing offspring of the same kind—livestock, small animals that scurry along the ground, and wild animals.” And that is what happened. 25 God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind. And God saw that it was good.
26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings[a] in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth,[b] and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”
27 So God created human beings[c] in his own image.
In the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
28 Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
29 Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. 30 And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.
31 Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!
And evening passed and morning came, marking the sixth day.
26 Then God said, “Let us make human beings[a] in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth,[b] and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”
27 So God created human beings[c] in his own image.
In the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
28 Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”
29 Then God said, “Look! I have given you every seed-bearing plant throughout the earth and all the fruit trees for your food. 30 And I have given every green plant as food for all the wild animals, the birds in the sky, and the small animals that scurry along the ground—everything that has life.” And that is what happened.
31 Then God looked over all he had made, and he saw that it was very good!
And evening passed and morning came, marking the sixth day.