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Day 289, or October the 16th. I just don't feel

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like it. Our thoughts today come from Luke chapter

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4, verse 16. He went to Nazareth, where he'd

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been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went

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into the synagogue, as was his custom. He stood

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up to read. And now the big picture surrounding this

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verse. After telling us about the birth of Jesus,

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Luke then lays out his genealogy, which, unlike

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Matthew's, goes all the way back to Adam rather

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than stopping at Abraham. Many explanations have

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been put forward to explain the big differences

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in the two lists, but I believe the most acceptable

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one is that Joseph, husband of Mary, had two

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fathers. Deuteronomy 25 tells us, when a man

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dies with no children, his brother has a responsibility

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to father an heir for him with his widow. The

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child is then accepted as the dead man's child,

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but biologically another man is the child's father.

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Matthew, writing primarily for the Jews, probably

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chose the traditional father, whilst Luke, a

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doctor, chooses the biological one. Luke also

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tells us much about John the Baptist as well

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as relating the baptism and temptation of Jesus.

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The calling of the early disciples is also recorded.

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Virtually all of these events in Jesus' life

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are rooted in the northern province of Galilee.

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And now today's action step. Doing things without

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thinking is often thought of as not a good principle.

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Actually, where breathing and pumping blood through

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vessels are concerned, I beg to differ. I still

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remember an old friend who would regularly ask

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at church meetings, Why? It annoyed some, but

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I often find it helpful to regularly question

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our motives. Many habits are very good, like

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Jesus' custom of attending synagogue each week,

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as we heard in today's verse. Linked to this

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are the good customs of Bible reading and prayer.

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Often the less you feel like doing the right

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thing the more you need to. Now what good habit

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will you be nurturing in your life today even

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if you don't feel like it?