BUMC Mini-Blast January 20, 2026
JesusTime Devotion
by Joey Capuano
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Scripture Inspiration: Isaiah 9:1 - 4, Psalm 27:1, 4 - 9, 1 Corinthians 1:10 - 18, and Matthew 4:12 - 23
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Isaiah 9:1-4
9 But there will be no gloom for those who were in anguish. In the former time he brought into contempt the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, but in the latter time he will make glorious the way of the sea, the land beyond the Jordan, Galilee of the nations.
2 The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light;
those who lived in a land of deep darkness
on them light has shined.
3 You have multiplied exultation;
you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
as with joy at the harvest,
as people exult when dividing plunder.
4 For the yoke of their burden
and the bar across their shoulders,
the rod of their oppressor,
you have broken as on the day of Midian.
Psalm 27:1, 4-9
1 The Lord is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?
4 One thing I asked of the Lord;
this I seek:
to live in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
to behold the beauty of the Lord,
and to inquire in his temple.
5 For he will hide me in his shelter
in the day of trouble;
he will conceal me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.
6 Now my head is lifted up
above my enemies all around me,
and I will offer in his tent
sacrifices with shouts of joy;
I will sing and make melody to the Lord.
7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud;
be gracious to me and answer me!
8 Come, my heart says, seek his face!
Your face, Lord, do I seek.
9 Do not hide your face from me.
Do not turn your servant away in anger,
you who have been my help.
Do not cast me off; do not forsake me,
O God of my salvation!
1 Corinthians 1:10-18
10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you be in agreement and that there be no divisions among you but that you be knit together in the same mind and the same purpose. 11 For it has been made clear to me by Chloes people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. 12 What I mean is that each of you says, I belong to Paul, or I belong to Apollos, or I belong to Cephas, or I belong to Christ. 13 Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? 14 I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, 15 so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. 16 I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else. 17 For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospeland not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power. 18 For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
Matthew 4:12-23
12 Now when Jesus heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew to Galilee. 13 He left Nazareth and made his home in Capernaum by the sea, in the territory of Zebulun and Naphtali, 14 so that what had been spoken through the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:
15 Land of Zebulun, land of Naphtali,
on the road by the sea, across the Jordan, Galilee of the gentiles
16 the people who sat in darkness
have seen a great light,
and for those who sat in the region and shadow of death
light has dawned.
17 From that time Jesus began to proclaim, Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.
18 As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the seafor they were fishers. 19 And he said to them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of people. 20 Immediately they left their nets and followed him. 21 As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. 22 Immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
23 Jesus went throughout all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom and curing every disease and every sickness among the people.
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The Lord Is Our Light and Our Salvation
by Joey Capuano
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The Readings for this week are so important and relevant in our lives today. What I like about the readings from the UMC Lectionary from the Discipleship Ministries organization is that many of them include subtitles that really call to mind the Message of the Passage. I want to go into all of them today:
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Isaiah 9: 1 - 4: "Light Shines for Those in Darkness."
Let's face it. The world at all times in history, and today, has dark things that happen. Many times, these things are outside of our control, but sometimes, we have to admit, we cause the issues because as humans, we are imperfect. We create divisions; we act hatefully towards people who we perceive as different than us; we let things like citizenship, politics, language barriers, religious differences, and differences in race and ethnicity drive us apart. But, just as God showed us in the Reading from Isaiah, He is the Light that shines for us in the darkness.
Psalm 27: 1, 4 - 9: "God Is Light and Salvation."
The very first part of this Psalm is one of my favorite Scripture Passages, ever since I was little. I am by no means a Biblical scholar, and I am rarely able to name what Book, Chapter, or Verse of the Bible certain Scriptures come from. But there are many Scriptures that I know from memory because I found connection to them through the Hymns that put them to music. This is one of them:
"The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?"
I can remember the tune of this Psalm that we used to sing at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church where I grew up. It has always provided me with comfort, and I believe that it will for all of us, especially at a time like this. Although there is darkness in the world, the Light that is God shines for all, and His Love welcomes everyone.
1 Corinthians 1: 10 - 18: "An Appeal for Unity in the Gospel"
Honestly, when I read the title of this Reading, it gave me chills. If we just listen to "people's news," we may feel like we cannot overcome the burdens of political, ethnic, racial, and religious hatred disunity that are all too common in our world. But we have the Perfect Teacher, the Perfect Shepherd, in Christ, to lead us to the unity that we all want, and that more importantly He wants for us and calls us to achieve. Even among the Christian Church, depending on which source you are consulting, there are more than 30,000 Christian Denominations. Some claim to be the "truest truth," some promote Christian nationalism, some pass judgement on other Denominations, and some even feel that they are the only ones who can achieve Salvation. But this reminds me of a line from a great movie called Rudy. In the scene, Father John Cavanaugh is talking to Rudy and says this beautiful TRUTH: "There is a God, and I am not Him." Wow! Plain and simple. We cannot decide who achieves Salvation because this Grace is not ours to give. It is God's. So, as Christians, and as a human family, we need to follow a Line from this Corinthians Scripture Reading. Instead of trying to be "holier than thou," and decide who we think are "truly good people," and "who really deserves Salvation," we need to be "knit together in the same mind and the same purpose" - Christ's Purpose! Only then can we achieve peace, and Faith, Hope, and Love.
Matthew 4: 12 - 23: "Christ Revealed as Prophet"
In this Reading from Matthew, we can gain inspiration from Christ, as our Prophet, Teacher, Brother, and Shepherd. He is all of these things for us, and we must remember, for ALL people on Earth. It is easy for us to forget what ALL truly means. Whoever we run into in any corner of the world, God has created them in His Own Likeness and Image. We all sometimes lose our ways, and we all fall into temptation. It is in times like these that we especially need to lean on each other to spread the Gospel and to treat everyone with the Love that Jesus does.
On this day, which is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I think it's important for us to remember one of his quotations, which also really goes along with the Scripture Readings from today. In the times of darkness, remember this truth: "Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only LIGHT can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only LOVE can do that." God is that Light and Love that Dr. King was talking about here.
Live in the Light!
Joey
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