Weekly Devotion
Hi Faith Family,
Praying you are well and happy today. I trust you are not a Paraskevidekatriaphobic. Paraskevidekatriaphobics – those afflicted with a morbid, irrational fear of Friday the 13th.
That's right, today is Friday the 13th. Seriously, you aren’t superstitious, are you? Most people consider superstitions as silly or harmless, like the baseball player who pitches well, so he doesn’t wash his left sock as long as he keeps winning. (Phew!)
The manner in which you handle such events as today is significant, however. You can just laugh it off when someone makes a comment about “Freaky Friday” or you can use it as a moment to give glory to God. When someone makes a comment about something superstitious, you can share your faith. You could say something like, “I don’t give much thought to Friday the 13th because I trust God to protect me every day.” Perhaps you could help someone else re-think how they handle superstitions with a comment like, “Are you really superstitious? Do you believe that?” Sometimes such re-examinations are tremendously helpful.
Not just the superstitions of Friday the 13th, a broken mirror, opening an umbrella inside, walking under a ladder, or having a black cat cross your path are opportunities to show we place our trust in God, not in circumstance, the fates, or some sense of Christian karma. How about the way some people make a big deal about how many people are in a group when taking a picture? How about those who insist having one of these mounted above the door of their home or business: 
How about having 5 sons regarded as “bad luck?” Well, what about "luck" in the first place?
In all these areas, we should take care how we speak, act and live. Various circumstances couch our life events, but should we be speaking of such as “luck?” People who live and depend on the concept of “luck” become skilled at the use of this convenient crutch as an excuse. I believe we have something better. God has given you something more sure—your days are not at the whim of something so impersonal as luck or fate. God has given you the assurance that your times are in His hands. God has promised he will not forsake you—not even when Friday and the number 13 happen to end up on the same day of the calendar. God proved his dedication to you and all drawing breath when he sent his Son who breathed our air, then breathed his last, then breathed again. Jesus’ victory over death assures you that God’s love for you is genuine and Christ’s power is stronger than that of the devil and any superstitions the devil may try to spread.
May your assurance be the same as that of the Psalmist:
“We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you.”
Have a great Friday today, dear sister—dear brother in the faith—with the assurance that God will bless and keep you. Blessings on your weekend!
—Pastor Dan