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God speaks in advance of our need. He looks down the road and knows what we are going to face. He sees the challenges before we do. He experiences our pain before it ever comes to us. He understands our sorrows and frustrations. He anticipates our doubts and every temptation we will ever face.
He knows there will come a time when we need a word of comfort.
He knew such a time would come for His people and prompted Isaiah to comfort them. He knew that in the fullness of time that word of comfort would come as the Word made flesh and dwelling among us. Try to hear these words from Isaiah 40 sung by soloist in Handel’s “Messiah” as you read them and experience them as a love song from the Father.
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
It is God Himself who speaks the word of comfort through Jesus Christ. He speaks and we echo His Word to a world in turmoil,
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
His voice is gentle and comforting in Christ. We are to speak that same comfort to His people with gentle strength and quiet confidence.
… and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished,
It is the cessation of hostilities. The war is over. We don’t have to fight for our salvation. He has come in person and freely offers His peace.
that her iniquity is pardoned …
God has taken the initiative to forgive, to heal the breach, to restore His people. What a privilege it is to announce pardon to those who will receive the message.
… The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Let us join the company of those who proclaim His coming. Let us not miss the opportunity this Christmas season. The world is hurting and listening. Let us be speaking comfort.
God speaks in advance of our need. He looks down the road and knows what we are going to face. He sees the challenges before we do. He experiences our pain before it ever comes to us. He understands our sorrows and frustrations. He anticipates our doubts and every temptation we will ever face.
He knows there will come a time when we need a word of comfort.
He knew such a time would come for His people and prompted Isaiah to comfort them. He knew that in the fullness of time that word of comfort would come as the Word made flesh and dwelling among us. Try to hear these words from Isaiah 40 sung by soloist in Handel’s “Messiah” as you read them and experience them as a love song from the Father.
Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God.
It is God Himself who speaks the word of comfort through Jesus Christ. He speaks and we echo His Word to a world in turmoil,
Speak ye comfortably to Jerusalem,
His voice is gentle and comforting in Christ. We are to speak that same comfort to His people with gentle strength and quiet confidence.
… and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished,
It is the cessation of hostilities. The war is over. We don’t have to fight for our salvation. He has come in person and freely offers His peace.
that her iniquity is pardoned …
God has taken the initiative to forgive, to heal the breach, to restore His people. What a privilege it is to announce pardon to those who will receive the message.
… The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the LORD, make straight in the desert a highway for our God.
Let us join the company of those who proclaim His coming. Let us not miss the opportunity this Christmas season. The world is hurting and listening. Let us be speaking comfort.
"Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek ... to be loved as to love."
It seems easy, God, Until I try. Maybe I am not aware of how much I seek to be loved. Maybe I am not aware of how insecure I can be and vulnerable ... And needy: To be regarded, respected, and renowned ... To be chosen and cherished ... To be welcomed and warmed ... To be a friend ... But, Aha! Lord ... There is my choice: to BE a friend is to be and to act and to serve LIKE A FRIEND. If I seek it, I will be it. If I seek to love, I will love. Grant that I will reject reciprocity in this matter and think nothing of ... Quid Pro Quo ... Teach me to love by loving through me. Teach me to love by knowing again and again and again, how deep, How wide, How long, How long-suffering, How patient is Your love for me and that ... It is all I need. So, filled with love, I can give love. In the Name of the Lord of Love, Amen.
We are not on a roller-coaster ride into a predetermined future; we are laborers together with God, charting & implementing tomorrow.
As a leader, I do not have all the answers, just more questions, which I raise than most folks. That can be annoying.
We make up news & believe what fits our favorite narrative; we selectively read history & tirelessly reject logic. We are citizens.
Life is a gift from God - all life at all stages of life. Let us be consistent in our embrace of life and protection of life now and future.
We have entered a era when people are going to be mad at us from all sides if we speak truth. Let us continue to do so in love.
We are come to a time when, if we truly seek and speak truth, it will challenge all of our cliches and many of our core beliefs.
We have had days of lament and that may continue, but Advent cries out to us to introduce HOPE into the equation and that calls for action.
While the ultimate destination is in the hands of God, our proximate destinations are in our hands as we cooperate with His purposes.
The prophetic voice of the church is not in for a time of relaxation. We have much work to do. But the gospel is the power of God.
We have done and anticipate doing so many things that destroy life. Can these be done and we call ourselves pro-life?
Is it pro-life to destroy a life-giving environment for future generations of unborn children?
On this first Sunday of Advent, we start at the culmination of history to see where we are going. We emphasize the Second Coming.
We get very disappointed in our governments because we expect them to save us. There is much that they can do ... just not the most important things.
"Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation. When this breath departs, he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans perish." - Ps 146:3-4
In all these readings, when I read them together, I sense a thread, a theme, and a word of encouragement. All of these gather around a big idea of identity that is declared by God, shaped by God, flavored by our influences, and resistant to anything anyone else can say about it.
It is unrestricted and guided by an unseen hand.
It cannot be stifled or extinguished by external forces.
Trees are planted by rivers and deeply rooted.
Those who are rooted by God, take refuge in God and are undisturbed by the raging of nations.
Adversaries do not matter. They cannot change our essential identity in God, for, in God we rest.
When external forces challenge our calling and seek to oppress, as they did in Amos' day, the people of God stand fast and firm.
We respond, as Peter admonished us, by working on our inner lives and allowing what is spiritually real to be worked out in our lifestyles. We are assured of God's peace and our place in God's Kingdom in Christ.
And through it all, as an overriding vision, we still see the Messiah, riding through the streets of the City of God, on a donkey.
And we know that God's Kingdom has come.
Psalm 1
Beatus vir qui non abiit
Happy are they who have not walked in the counsel of the wicked, *
nor lingered in the way of sinners,
nor sat in the seats of the scornful!
Their delight is in the law of the Lord, *
and they meditate on his law day and night.
They are like trees planted by streams of water,
bearing fruit in due season, with leaves that do not wither; *
everything they do shall prosper.
It is not so with the wicked; *
they are like chaff which the wind blows away.
Therefore the wicked shall not stand upright when judgment comes, *
nor the sinner in the council of the righteous.
For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, *
but the way of the wicked is doomed.
Psalm 2
Quare fremuerunt gentes?
Why are the nations in an uproar? *
Why do the peoples mutter empty threats?
Why do the kings of the earth rise up in revolt,
and the princes plot together, *
against the Lord and against his Anointed?
“Let us break their yoke,” they say; *
“let us cast off their bonds from us.”
He whose throne is in heaven is laughing; *
the Lord has them in derision.
Then he speaks to them in his wrath, *
and his rage fills them with terror.
“I myself have set my king *
upon my holy hill of Zion.”
Let me announce the decree of the Lord: *
he said to me, “You are my Son;
this day have I begotten you.
Ask of me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance *
and the ends of the earth for your possession.
You shall crush them with an iron rod *
and shatter them like a piece of pottery.”
And now, you kings, be wise; *
be warned, you rulers of the earth.
Submit to the Lord with fear, *
and with trembling bow before him;
Lest he be angry and you perish; *
for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Happy are they all *
who take refuge in him!
Psalm 3
Domine, quid multiplicati
Lord, how many adversaries I have! *
how many there are who rise up against me!
How many there are who say of me, *
“There is no help for him in his God.”
But you, O Lord, are a shield about me; *
you are my glory, the one who lifts up my head.
I call aloud upon the Lord, *
and he answers me from his holy hill;
I lie down and go to sleep; *
I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.
I do not fear the multitudes of people *
who set themselves against me all around.
Rise up, O Lord; set me free, O my God; *
surely, you will strike all my enemies across the face,
you will break the teeth of the wicked.
Deliverance belongs to the Lord. *
Your blessing be upon your people!
Amos 2:6-16
Thus says the Lord: For three transgressions of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke the punishment; because they sell the righteous for silver, and the needy for a pair of sandals-- they who trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth, and push the afflicted out of the way; father and son go in to the same girl, so that my holy name is profaned; they lay themselves down beside every altar on garments taken in pledge; and in the house of their God they drink wine bought with fines they imposed. Yet I destroyed the Amorite before them, whose height was like the height of cedars, and who was as strong as oaks; I destroyed his fruit above, and his roots beneath. Also I brought you up out of the land of Egypt, and led you forty years in the wilderness, to possess the land of the Amorite. And I raised up some of your children to be prophets and some of your youths to be nazirites. Is it not indeed so, O people of Israel? says the Lord. But you made the nazirites drink wine, and commanded the prophets, saying, "You shall not prophesy." So, I will press you down in your place, just as a cart presses down when it is full of sheaves. Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong shall not retain their strength, nor shall the mighty save their lives; those who handle the bow shall not stand, and those who are swift of foot shall not save themselves, nor shall those who ride horses save their lives; and those who are stout of heart among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, says the Lord.
2 Peter 1:1-11
Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ: May grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything needed for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Thus he has given us, through these things, his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of lust, and may become participants of the divine nature. For this very reason, you must make every effort to support your faith with goodness, and goodness with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with endurance, and endurance with godliness, and godliness with mutual affection, and mutual affection with love. For if these things are yours and are increasing among you, they keep you from being ineffective and unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. For anyone who lacks these things is nearsighted and blind, and is forgetful of the cleansing of past sins. Therefore, brothers and sisters, be all the more eager to confirm your call and election, for if you do this, you will never stumble. For in this way, entry into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be richly provided for you.
Matthew 21:1-11
When they had come near Jerusalem and had reached Bethphage, at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, "Go into the village ahead of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her; untie them and bring them to me. If anyone says anything to you, just say this, 'The Lord needs them.' And he will send them immediately. " This took place to fulfill what had been spoken through the prophet, saying, "Tell the daughter of Zion, Look, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a donkey." The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them; they brought the donkey and the colt, and put their cloaks on them, and he sat on them. A very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. The crowds that went ahead of him and that followed were shouting, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!" When he entered Jerusalem, the whole city was in turmoil, asking, "Who is this?" The crowds were saying, "This is the prophet Jesus from Nazareth in Galilee."
“O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence-- as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil-- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence! When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.”- Isaiah 64:1-3
In some place deep in our hearts, we know that God’s will is best.
We understand that God knows more, and God knows best. We understand that we do not understand. We are settled on the idea that God is God, and we are not God, individually or collectively.
God is a potter fashioning the universe and us, within that universe, into something useful, usable, and beautiful.
We long for the divine will to be done in some ways that make us unsatisfied with anything less. We want it now; we want it in the resolution of history; we want it for eternity.
Isaiah’s heart longed for God’s presence to be known and acknowledged. With this movement of God, the prophet knew there would be justice, righteousness, and a rectification of wrongs.
For the Christian, this comes, in fullness in the Second appearing of Christ at the end of the present age. It is the hope that is the longing expressed every first Sunday of Advent.
It also comes whenever and however God shows up in our lives and circumstances.
It is a wonder beyond comprehension or description.
“From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.” – Isaiah 64:4 (NRSVU)
Sin is that part of our nature that resists the deepest desires for God’s will and purpose. Sin resists God’s love, God’s grace, God’s mercy, and God’s sovereignty.
It settles for less than the best. Sometimes, it gravitates toward that which is polar opposite of the best or even what it good.
Isaiah confessed collective sin and embraced the gift of salvation. He knew the hopelessness of those whose own righteousness is as filthy rags, who fade like leaves, and are blown away with the wind.
We are stained with iniquity, but we are covered by grace. For that reason, we pray for the Day of the LORD and we joyfully wait, even judgment because we have no terror of awesome revelation of God’s power.
Isaiah declared, “We are Thy people.” To be the people of God is to be a people of promise and hope.
We are God’s people. We are called to be that. We are desired for that. To the extent that we have heard and responded to God’s call, we are considered that and are moving toward the realization of that in our lives and behaviors.
But, still we struggle with the negative forces of sin and rebellion that drag us into the mud.
The prayer continues with verses 5-9:
You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid yourself we transgressed. We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
We are clay. God is the potter. God is making something out of us even as God is fashioning the divine purposes of history.
Psalm 80 echoes the theme:
Verses 1-7 and 17-19
Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might, and come to save us!
Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
O LORD God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors; our enemies laugh among themselves.
Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand, the one whom you made strong for yourself.
Then we will never turn back from you; give us life, and we will call on your name.
Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
God answers this prayer, as God answers so many prayers, in Jesus.
The coming of a child, born in Bethlehem, born to die and rise again, is a signal that the culmination of time has begun and that the glorious rule of God has been announced The Jesus event in Israel two thousand years ago, was God’s announcement that history has a meaning and is leading to a grand destination.
Let’s jump to Mark 13:24-37
"But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.”
"From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.”
“Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.”
“Therefore, keep awake--for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.”
“And what I say to you I say to all: ‘Keep awake.’"
Let’s extract some key ideas from Jesus’ discourse that go to the prayers of Isaiah and the Psalmist, but also support his admonition to stay awake.
"But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
He has been predicting a time of suffering. There were actually two stages all leading to a third.
The disciples would suffer after the passion for their testimony.
The people of Judea would suffer under the Romans when they came to destroy the temple.
Times of suffering will come and go, rise and subside until the end of history.
Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.”
God is going to show himself and the Son of Man will be revealed as victorious Messiah. God, who keeps track of all his people, will find us wherever we are scattered and will gather us together.
In the meantime, pay attention to time the way a farmer pays attention to his or her fig trees. There are indications of harvest. There are times for performing certain tasks. Each time of harvest reminds us that the great harvest is nearer than it has ever been and is coming.
From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.”
And yet, he says:
“Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.
What Jesus is telling us is that everything short of the actual end of time, judgment, and ultimate redemption would happen in the lives of the people present. We are all living in a generation where spiritual forces are vying for control of the hearts and minds of people. We are all living on the edge of our own time on earth. We are all and always living in a generation of crisis, decision, and revelation of God’s presence and power.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
No matter what changes or how dramatically those changes may come, one thing remains – God’s words, spoken, lived, acted out, and applied in Jesus Christ.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.”
Days and hours are a different matter. Specific circumstances vary. We are not given all the details. We just know that something big is going to happen. Redemption is coming. Judgment is coming. Everything is going to be set right.
In the meantime, we are in charge of the house and are to remain alert because the Master can show up any time.
“Therefore, keep awake--for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.”
God comes suddenly.
Like at Pentecost, the Spirit came suddenly like a mighty rushing wind.
God does not ease in. God speaks without ambiguity when the Day of the Lord arrives. It will not be subtle.
God is going to show up again in Christ and rectify all that is wrong. We, who have been saved from the penalty of sin and are being saved from the power of sin, will be saved from the very presence of sin. There will be no more forces to drag us down. There will be no more war between sin and righteousness in our lives or in the world.
God’s will shall be accomplished, done, and exalted.
The Potter will make the final evaluation and refinement and the pot will be ready to be displayed.
“And what I say to you I say to all: ‘Keep awake.’"
The first Sunday of Advent is about anticipating the Second Coming of Christ. His coming Incarnation was a preview and preparation for that final historical event.
We welcome the season by praying with the saints of the centuries, “Come Lord, Jesus, come.”
As our epistle readings often do today’s reading tells us how to live in the meantime. How to stay awake.
In this case, it is an iteration and reiteration of a prayer. In this prayer, we receive confidence, strength, and assurance that God has heard. God has called us. God has equipped us for anything we may ever need to face.
1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind-- just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you-- so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
We have been called into fellowship with the Son of God, Jesus Christ, our Lord. That fellowship is full of grace, forgiveness, joy, and love. Have you said “Yes” to that invitation?
You can. It is a one-word response:
Yes.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay. Mold me and make me after thy will, while I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Search me and try me, Savior today! Wash me just now, Lord, wash me just now, as in thy presence humbly I bow.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Wounded and weary, help me I pray! Power, all power, surely is thine! Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Hold o'er my being absolute sway. Fill with thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me!
“O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence-- as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil-- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence! When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down, the mountains quaked at your presence.”- Isaiah 64:1-3
In some place deep in our hearts, we know that God’s will is best.
We understand that God knows more, and God knows best. We understand that we do not understand. We are settled on the idea that God is God, and we are not God, individually or collectively.
God is a potter fashioning the universe and us, within that universe, into something useful, usable, and beautiful.
We long for the divine will to be done in some ways that make us unsatisfied with anything less. We want it now; we want it in the resolution of history; we want it for eternity.
Isaiah’s heart longed for God’s presence to be known and acknowledged. With this movement of God, the prophet knew there would be justice, righteousness, and a rectification of wrongs.
For the Christian, this comes, in fullness in the Second appearing of Christ at the end of the present age. It is the hope that is the longing expressed every first Sunday of Advent.
It also comes whenever and however God shows up in our lives and circumstances.
It is a wonder beyond comprehension or description.
“From ages past no one has heard, no ear has perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who works for those who wait for him.” – Isaiah 64:4 (NRSVU)
Sin is that part of our nature that resists the deepest desires for God’s will and purpose. Sin resists God’s love, God’s grace, God’s mercy, and God’s sovereignty.
It settles for less than the best. Sometimes, it gravitates toward that which is polar opposite of the best or even what it good.
Isaiah confessed collective sin and embraced the gift of salvation. He knew the hopelessness of those whose own righteousness is as filthy rags, who fade like leaves, and are blown away with the wind.
We are stained with iniquity, but we are covered by grace. For that reason, we pray for the Day of the LORD and we joyfully wait, even judgment because we have no terror of awesome revelation of God’s power.
Isaiah declared, “We are Thy people.” To be the people of God is to be a people of promise and hope.
We are God’s people. We are called to be that. We are desired for that. To the extent that we have heard and responded to God’s call, we are considered that and are moving toward the realization of that in our lives and behaviors.
But, still we struggle with the negative forces of sin and rebellion that drag us into the mud.
The prayer continues with verses 5-9:
You meet those who gladly do right, those who remember you in your ways. But you were angry, and we sinned; because you hid yourself we transgressed. We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a filthy cloth. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away. There is no one who calls on your name, or attempts to take hold of you; for you have hidden your face from us, and have delivered us into the hand of our iniquity.
Yet, O LORD, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand. Do not be exceedingly angry, O LORD, and do not remember iniquity forever. Now consider, we are all your people.
We are clay. God is the potter. God is making something out of us even as God is fashioning the divine purposes of history.
Psalm 80 echoes the theme:
Verses 1-7 and 17-19
Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock! You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth before Ephraim and Benjamin and Manasseh.
Stir up your might, and come to save us!
Restore us, O God; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
O LORD God of hosts, how long will you be angry with your people's prayers?
You have fed them with the bread of tears, and given them tears to drink in full measure.
You make us the scorn of our neighbors; our enemies laugh among themselves.
Restore us, O God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
But let your hand be upon the one at your right hand, the one whom you made strong for yourself.
Then we will never turn back from you; give us life, and we will call on your name.
Restore us, O LORD God of hosts; let your face shine, that we may be saved.
God answers this prayer, as God answers so many prayers, in Jesus.
The coming of a child, born in Bethlehem, born to die and rise again, is a signal that the culmination of time has begun and that the glorious rule of God has been announced The Jesus event in Israel two thousand years ago, was God’s announcement that history has a meaning and is leading to a grand destination.
Let’s jump to Mark 13:24-37
"But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken. Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.”
"From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.”
“Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.”
“Therefore, keep awake--for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.”
“And what I say to you I say to all: ‘Keep awake.’"
Let’s extract some key ideas from Jesus’ discourse that go to the prayers of Isaiah and the Psalmist, but also support his admonition to stay awake.
"But in those days, after that suffering, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers in the heavens will be shaken.
He has been predicting a time of suffering. There were actually two stages all leading to a third.
The disciples would suffer after the passion for their testimony.
The people of Judea would suffer under the Romans when they came to destroy the temple.
Times of suffering will come and go, rise and subside until the end of history.
Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in clouds' with great power and glory. Then he will send out the angels, and gather his elect from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of heaven.”
God is going to show himself and the Son of Man will be revealed as victorious Messiah. God, who keeps track of all his people, will find us wherever we are scattered and will gather us together.
In the meantime, pay attention to time the way a farmer pays attention to his or her fig trees. There are indications of harvest. There are times for performing certain tasks. Each time of harvest reminds us that the great harvest is nearer than it has ever been and is coming.
From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts forth its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that he is near, at the very gates.”
And yet, he says:
“Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place.
What Jesus is telling us is that everything short of the actual end of time, judgment, and ultimate redemption would happen in the lives of the people present. We are all living in a generation where spiritual forces are vying for control of the hearts and minds of people. We are all living on the edge of our own time on earth. We are all and always living in a generation of crisis, decision, and revelation of God’s presence and power.
“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
No matter what changes or how dramatically those changes may come, one thing remains – God’s words, spoken, lived, acted out, and applied in Jesus Christ.
"But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father. Beware, keep alert; for you do not know when the time will come. It is like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his slaves in charge, each with his work, and commands the doorkeeper to be on the watch.”
Days and hours are a different matter. Specific circumstances vary. We are not given all the details. We just know that something big is going to happen. Redemption is coming. Judgment is coming. Everything is going to be set right.
In the meantime, we are in charge of the house and are to remain alert because the Master can show up any time.
“Therefore, keep awake--for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep when he comes suddenly.”
God comes suddenly.
Like at Pentecost, the Spirit came suddenly like a mighty rushing wind.
God does not ease in. God speaks without ambiguity when the Day of the Lord arrives. It will not be subtle.
God is going to show up again in Christ and rectify all that is wrong. We, who have been saved from the penalty of sin and are being saved from the power of sin, will be saved from the very presence of sin. There will be no more forces to drag us down. There will be no more war between sin and righteousness in our lives or in the world.
God’s will shall be accomplished, done, and exalted.
The Potter will make the final evaluation and refinement and the pot will be ready to be displayed.
“And what I say to you I say to all: ‘Keep awake.’"
The first Sunday of Advent is about anticipating the Second Coming of Christ. His coming Incarnation was a preview and preparation for that final historical event.
We welcome the season by praying with the saints of the centuries, “Come Lord, Jesus, come.”
As our epistle readings often do today’s reading tells us how to live in the meantime. How to stay awake.
In this case, it is an iteration and reiteration of a prayer. In this prayer, we receive confidence, strength, and assurance that God has heard. God has called us. God has equipped us for anything we may ever need to face.
1 Corinthians 1:3-9
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. I give thanks to my God always for you because of the grace of God that has been given you in Christ Jesus, for in every way you have been enriched in him, in speech and knowledge of every kind-- just as the testimony of Christ has been strengthened among you-- so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ. He will also strengthen you to the end, so that you may be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is faithful; by him you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.
We have been called into fellowship with the Son of God, Jesus Christ, our Lord. That fellowship is full of grace, forgiveness, joy, and love. Have you said “Yes” to that invitation?
You can. It is a one-word response:
Yes.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Thou art the potter, I am the clay. Mold me and make me after thy will, while I am waiting, yielded and still.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Search me and try me, Savior today! Wash me just now, Lord, wash me just now, as in thy presence humbly I bow.
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Wounded and weary, help me I pray! Power, all power, surely is thine! Touch me and heal me, Savior divine!
Have thine own way, Lord! Have thine own way! Hold o'er my being absolute sway. Fill with thy Spirit till all shall see Christ only, always, living in me!
Maybe the dancers "get it" more than some of the rest of us who contemplate and pontificate.
God is inviting us to a dance and whether or not we are skilled or talented, we can join in and, as we do, He will teach us the steps.
After listening to Peter, Paul, and Mary singing, "Don't let the Light Go Out" in honor of Chanukah, which as I write this, is in a week, I was thinking about light and oil and miracles and how we gravitate toward celebration in singing, dance, and giving.
Every spark, every glimmer, every ray of light in my life has been a miracle and a gift from God.
In my tradition and faith, we celebrate Advent and Christmas. Though they are different and unique events from Chanukah, I have always appreciated that they come at close to the same time each year.
What is this human urge to celebrate with light and laughter and generosity of spirit?
There is gravity and solemnity in much of what we do religiously, but there is also celebration and joy.
Religions are different. If I were not convinced that God had spoken and visited us in Jesus, I would be something other than a Jesus follower. I state my beliefs, humbly, as truth because I am convinced of their truth. I don't apologize for that and never expect my friends who are convinced of their beliefs to apologize for them either.
However, my conviction that I am settled on Jesus does not negate the common elements of our experience. They are present because truth is universal and because the God who fashioned us in His image is always reaching out to us and touching that something in us that makes us want to stand up and dance.
We are made for something more, something "Other," something eternal. All of us! We are all created by and for God and with a deep urge to embrace what Nehemiah called, "The joy of the Lord," and described as "your strength."
The oil in the temple was just not in ample supply for the days of dedication when the first candle was lit. Yet, there kept being enough ... enough for each day. The description of the event was and remains, "A great miracle happened there."
Our lives are miracles. The oil of joy, healing, and anointing for significance does not seem to be ample for the demands we face. Yet, each day, if we will light the candle in faith and celebration, there seems to be just enough ... and enough ... and enough for each day.
And our hearts desire is to celebrate, to give gifts, to light candles, to be charitable and jolly and gracious.
This is a God-connector. It is a sign. It is a message through us and back to us that we are loved, have been visited by the God who made us, and are invited to join the song and the dance of time and eternity.
Jesus said, "seek and ye shall find." It is an open invitation to keep our hearts open to the One who loves us. Joy, grace, giving, and gratitude are all different facets of the same diamond in my faith and language in which it was expressed.
I am not a "Dancing With the Stars" fanatic like most of America and my own household, but I do "get it." We are made to sing and to dance. It is intrinsic and one of the ways God woos us.
Back to my own faith. There were Magi in the story of Jesus' coming. They did not practice the same faith as Jesus' family or my traditions. In fact, we might find some of their beliefs at real odds with our own - like astrology for instance. But they most likely lived in a place where the influence of the Jews had been strong and they were acquainted with Jewish scripture.
They longed for the divine moment and the appearing of One who would be worthy of their worship. The scriptures I embrace say that the Eternal One crossed the barriers of race and religion and drew them to the place where they could see and do what they longed to see and do.
There is this longing we share.
We can wish each other well in this common quest and encourage the seeking. If I believe my Master, and I do, seekers find. Those who knock get doors opened. Those who ask, receive.
Why do we share some common experiences when we have such differing beliefs? Without arguing for one universal religion or watering anything down, I can say with confidence that there really is only One God and whether we describe Him correctly or incorrectly or somewhere between, that God is always reaching out to all of us to supply the oil and light the candles within us,.
To the extent that we respond to that, it ignites something within us that wants more and more and more.
So, let's dance! As you dance, you might just learn the steps and get to know the Choreographer!
How can a statement be true and untrue at the same time?
Many a man or woman has echoed the psalmist’s cry in lonely and despairing hours. Many have passed though the dark tunnel of desolation “like sheep without a shepherd.”
In those times it is true that no one really knows the darkness within you and no human being cares at the level that caring is needed. The statement is true in that it expresses the essential emotions of the moment.
It is not true in the deeper, larger sense, for there is always One and often, others, who are ready to come to your aid – yes, you, for the psalmist’s story is your story and my story. It is also our challenge to be present, sensitive, and ready to respond to the heart cry of others.
Who might you see as you look around, wandering in a sea of ambiguity and hopelessness?
Who is within your reach that needs to know that he or she is not alone?
Who can be reminded of God’s love by your loving touch?
Who can learn of God’s care through your care?
Start with yourself, wounded, and battered by life. Be reminded that God cares for your soul, your life, and your deepest self. Receive his love at the point of your most profound pain. Then allow him to fashion you into an instrument of healing and grace.
Can God really use a wounded healer?
Can God take a broken soul and accomplish his purposes through that man or woman? I think of David, and I say, “Oh yes.”
I also think of great men such as Abraham Lincoln, a man often haunted by his own inadequacies, fears, and pain – yet a man who found himself, more and more, turning to God for help – just to cope with the burdens of responsibility, leadership, and the healing of a nation.
God cares for your soul and has called you to trust him and become an agent for his caring in the lives of other people.
But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it. – Micah 4:4
There is an empty bench under a tree somewhere with your name on it. It is waiting for you to stop running so hard and sit for a while.
Samuel Walter Foss wrote, “Let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend to man.”
You can sit and greet people as they pass by. You can watch the children playing. You can read a book. You can behold the beauty of the world. You can watch life go by.
You can meet God.
God invites you to a life beyond the rat race, a place of safety and solace, a moment of quiet and grace.
Can you imagine a park with no benches?
Can you imagine a life with no quiet moments?
Can you imagine a world without any hope of peace and fulfillment?
God could not and so He made a promise through Micah of an age to come when people would sit in the open, secure, studying war no more, and drinking from the fountain of grace.
Every promise of the future has it glimpses, hints, and previews in this life. In Christ we come to find rest. We take His yoke and find it easy. We sit with Him in Heavenly places. We take a break and behold Him.
But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it. – Micah 4:4
There is an empty bench under a tree somewhere with your name on it. It is waiting for you to stop running so hard and sit for a while.
Samuel Walter Foss wrote, “Let me live in a house by the side of the road and be a friend to man.”
You can sit and greet people as they pass by. You can watch the children playing. You can read a book. You can behold the beauty of the world. You can watch life go by.
You can meet God.
God invites you to a life beyond the rat race, a place of safety and solace, a moment of quiet and grace.
Can you imagine a park with no benches?
Can you imagine a life with no quiet moments?
Can you imagine a world without any hope of peace and fulfillment?
God could not and so He made a promise through Micah of an age to come when people would sit in the open, secure, studying war no more, and drinking from the fountain of grace.
Every promise of the future has it glimpses, hints, and previews in this life. In Christ we come to find rest. We take His yoke and find it easy. We sit with Him in Heavenly places. We take a break and behold Him.
Born this day in 1667 – Jonathan Swift, Irish satirist, essayist, and Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin.
He is remembered for "A Tale of a Tub," " An Argument Against Abolishing Christianity," Gulliver's Travels," and "A Modest Proposal."
His prose satire was and is considered among the best in the English language.
"Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own."
"Falsehood flies, and truth comes limping after it, so that when men come to be undeceived, it is too late; the jest is over, and the tale hath had its effect: like a man, who hath thought of a good repartee when the discourse is changed, or the company parted; or like a physician, who hath found out an infallible medicine, after the patient is dead."
"Conversation is but carving! Give no more to every guest Than he's able to digest. Give him always of the prime, And but little at a time. Carve to all but just enough, Let them neither starve nor stuff, And that you may have your due, Let your neighbor carve for you."
"And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats..." Matthew 25:32
This is a dramatic and overwhelming scene that Jesus describes. As far as the eye can see, the nations are gathered before the throne. There are sheep and there are goats at a time when only sheep are truly welcome in the flock. There has been considerable blending up until this point, but now the shepherd is dividing them.
And there is one criterion by which He judges the nations. How did you treat me when I was among you?
He is not talking about His incarnation here, but His presence among His people many of whom were the poor, the lowly, the imprisoned, the hungry, and so forth. He is identifying with the powerless that He described in Matthew 5 and, from their perspective, evaluating the powerful.
What did you do with all your influence to positively touch the people I love? That is His question. It is the test of a nation's greatness and the test of greatness for every institution or individual that has been entrusted with power. Were you just? Were you fair? Were you generous? Were you compassionate? Were you righteous? Were you aware that I was there in the midst of my brethren?
This is one dimension of judgment in the heavenly kingdom and Jesus gives us a preview. It is but a glimpse. We could not understand more, but we can understand this much: We must always be aware of Jesus and receive others as if we were receiving Him.
The greatness of America has always been in her central idea: the dignity of every human being under God. It is the basis for freedom, laws, and our system of government. For the Christian, that means looking for the image of God in every person we meet and treating that person as we would treat Jesus.
Another Thought on Verse 32
Seeing Jesus: Sheep and Goats
There is a question for self-examination emerging from this passage. Such examinations are painful, but the process is necessary for our growth.
Am I among the nation of sheep or the nation of goats? How do I align myself with what God values and those with whom Jesus identifies?
Leo Tolstoy spun a tale about a cobbler who was given to believe that Jesus would visit him on a particular day. He made simple but elegant preparations. One by one the poor came to his door and he served them, but he came to the end of the day without the visit for which he longed.
Then he realized what had happened and he heard the voice of Jesus with the words of this passage. So, the real question is this: Am I seeing Jesus where Jesus is? That question separates the sheep from the goats.|
"And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he shall separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats..." Matthew 25:32
This is a dramatic and overwhelming scene that Jesus describes. As far as the eye can see, the nations are gathered before the throne. There are sheep and there are goats at a time when only sheep are truly welcome in the flock. There has been considerable blending up until this point, but now the shepherd is dividing them.
And there is one criterion by which He judges the nations. How did you treat me when I was among you?
He is not talking about His incarnation here, but His presence among His people many of whom were the poor, the lowly, the imprisoned, the hungry, and so forth. He is identifying with the powerless that He described in Matthew 5 and, from their perspective, evaluating the powerful.
What did you do with all your influence to positively touch the people I love? That is His question. It is the test of a nation's greatness and the test of greatness for every institution or individual that has been entrusted with power. Were you just? Were you fair? Were you generous? Were you compassionate? Were you righteous? Were you aware that I was there in the midst of my brethren?
This is one dimension of judgment in the heavenly kingdom and Jesus gives us a preview. It is but a glimpse. We could not understand more, but we can understand this much: We must always be aware of Jesus and receive others as if we were receiving Him.
The greatness of America has always been in her central idea: the dignity of every human being under God. It is the basis for freedom, laws, and our system of government. For the Christian, that means looking for the image of God in every person we meet and treating that person as we would treat Jesus.
Another Thought on Verse 32
Seeing Jesus: Sheep and Goats
There is a question for self-examination emerging from this passage. Such examinations are painful, but the process is necessary for our growth.
Am I among the nation of sheep or the nation of goats? How do I align myself with what God values and those with whom Jesus identifies?
Leo Tolstoy spun a tale about a cobbler who was given to believe that Jesus would visit him on a particular day. He made simple but elegant preparations. One by one the poor came to his door and he served them, but he came to the end of the day without the visit for which he longed.
Then he realized what had happened and he heard the voice of Jesus with the words of this passage. So, the real question is this: Am I seeing Jesus where Jesus is? That question separates the sheep from the goats.|
“Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
F -Free yourself from the burden of retributive passion.
O-Orient your heart in the direction of joy and healing.
R -Release your need for vindication to the One who vindicates.
G -Give your pain and regret to God.
I -Invest in the future and resist the tug and anchor of the past.
V -Value the image of God in the one who offended and harmed you.
E -Energize your future with grace and mercy.
N -Nest yourself in God's love.
E - Exist the drama of victimization.
S - Surrender to God's best for your life.
S -Sing. It hardly matters what. Let the song move your forward.
----------------------- Matthew 18:21-35 New International Version
Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”
Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.
“Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand bags of gold was brought to him. Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt.
“At this the servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go.
“But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred silver coins. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded.
“His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay it back.’
“But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. When the other servants saw what had happened, they were outraged and went and told their master everything that had happened.
“Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ In anger his master handed him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed.
“This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”
The secret of endurance as discovered by Moses ...
"he endured as seeing Him who is invisible." (Hebrews 11:27b, NKJV)
Seeing the invisible God. It really goes to the heart of faith for people of faith.
We deal in that realm that an outsider might legitimately view as subjective ... and yet we see.
All people of vision, whether people of faith or not, see things that others do not see. Some see the future. Some see possibilities. Some see realities too small or far away for the naked eye to surround.
If it can be captured and perceived through the optical nerves, it may not be faith and it may not be enough to produce endurance.
If it requires a leap into the uncharted unknown, one has lengthened the distance of vision and shortened the gap between what is and what can be through the Eyes of the One Who Is.
"By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshiped, leaning on top of his staff." - Hebrews 11:21 (NKJV)
He worshiped, leaning ...
Faith, in itself, is a kind of leaning. Blessing others, we lean into them. Proclaiming the blessing as if already accomplished, is a leaning into the future with faith. Worshiping is leaning into God.
"Leaning on the everlasting arms," we need a bit of support. Jacob had a staff.
It worked, but still, he was dying.
But aren't we? We live with dying and we die with living.
Jacob chose faith in his dying days, he envisioned a future, and he fell upon his staff and found God supporting him. Thus he worshiped.
I am not exactly sure how this day will unfold, but I am leaning toward a faith that shall not falter with faith that cannot fail because it leans forward on a Father who receives my faith as an expression of worship.
"By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of the sons of Joseph and worshiped, leaning on top of his staff." - Hebrews 11:21 (NKJV)
He worshiped, leaning ...
Faith, in itself, is a kind of leaning. Blessing others, we lean into them. Proclaiming the blessing as if already accomplished, is a leaning into the future with faith. Worshiping is leaning into God.
"Leaning on the everlasting arms," we need a bit of support. Jacob had a staff.
It worked, but still, he was dying.
But aren't we? We live with dying and we die with living.
Jacob chose faith in his dying days, he envisioned a future, and he fell upon his staff and found God supporting him. Thus he worshiped.
I am not exactly sure how this day will unfold, but I am leaning toward a faith that shall not falter with faith that cannot fail because it leans forward on a Father who receives my faith as an expression of worship.
Thank you for the capacity to recognize that I did not get here alone.
Nor will I stay here on my own.
Nor do I wish to be alone.
But, alone with you, I find refreshment in my soul.
Thank you for the alone times that draw me out of myself toward others.
Thank you for the people who surround me with hope and promise.
Thank you for precious stones, promising seeds, and profound sentiments.
Thank you for the gift of wonder, the grief of waiting, the grace of all your ways.
Thank you for food and fulfillment and the hunger that causes me to appreciate them more.
Thank you for the slight pains I have endured on the path to healing that i might know your healing mercies.
Thank you for the hope that has always kept my eyes open for possibilities in the midst of despair.
Thank you for always providing, even when it was not on my schedule.
Thank you for a family that has grown into a community and is more than I deserve.
Thank you for a community that has grown into a family and is also more than I deserve.
Thank you for friends in real time and cyber time whose words and thoughts challenge and inspire me.
Thank you for the gift of words. Teach me to use them with gratitude and grace.
Thank you for a reason to get out of bed this morning.
Thank you for rest and for this day of rest.
Thank you for things to do and places to go and people to see.
Thank you that I may, from time to time, retreat from these activities.
Thank you for moments with you and for your listening ear, but also, your voice that speaks to my very heart.
Thank you for the bible. It has been one of the greatest treasures of my life and never grows old to me.
Thank you for the church, flawed as she is and yet, always lovely, always a home for me wherever I go.
Thank you for pastors who have been my brothers, and sometimes my sisters for so many years.
Thank you for parents and grandparents who helped to make me, guided me, loved me, and expected the best of me.
Thank you for a wife who has been an example to me, a rock, a reason, and a best friend for so many years.
I thank you for my sons and my grandchildren and their families, extended and creative.
Thank you for the tea I have been sipping and the honey that has sweetened it.
Thank you for renewed health. I am younger today than I was ten years ago. Anyone still reading this can scratch their heads at that.
Thank you for the warm socks on my feet and the clothes on my body ...
For this very computer upon which to type my prayer that is truly for you, but also a call to prayer for anyone who wishes to read.
This is my closet, but you are welcome. I pray that this will not be one of those long prayers on the corner designed to impress that Jesus warned us about.
But I am openly grateful, Lord and could and will go on and on and on all day.
I have nothing that you have not given me in some way.
Even what it seems I have acquired is because you gave me the gifts I have and placed me in the right places with the right people at the right times to
exercise them.
I have a head full of hair, albeit thin, a body full of energy, a mind full of thoughts and ideas, a heart full of love and joy, and enough challenges and irritations to keep me from ever getting complacent.
And thank you. You have given me a mission and a ministry and a passion to serve and a heart that breaks for the brokenness of the world with renewed energy to do something about it.
Thank you for forgiving my sins and giving me new life. For your great sacrifice, I thank you. For calling me to serve, I am grateful and humbled.
Thank you that you are teaching me even now how to pray and how to give thanks and I offer these thanksgivings to you in the name of Jesus. Amen.
"I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth; in the midst of the multitude will I praise him; Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, to save his life from those who would condemn him."
A vital element of theology is of be found in the word "theology" itself. It is a word about God and Word of God.
If we are to do genuine and life-changing theological reflection, it will be as the psalmists often did, a meditation on the nature, character, and acts of God.
The more we come to know the character of God and experience and practice the presence of God, the deeper our theology is established within us.
In these two psalms, we are enable to reflect upon a God who is just and merciful. These are not two sides of the nature of God; they are a perfect blend. God's justice is mercifully administered and God's mercy is always just and true.
Then, there is the next psalm of the day, 109 where we declare with the ancient singers, the God of our praise, Deus Laudem!,
This God acts in history, generally, specifically, broadly, and personally to redeem those in greatest need of God's advocacy and help.
The psalms enable us to contemplate God's character, presence, and power by observation of his mighty deeds among us, the Word spoken and written, and nature itself.
Let us enter into the Presence and do the real work of theology today.
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Psalm 101 Misericordiam ed judicium
I will sing of mercy and justice; * to you, O Lord, will I sing praises.
I will strive to follow a blameless course; oh, when will you come to me? * I will walk with sincerity of heart within my house.
I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; * I hate the doers of evil deeds; they shall not remain with me.
A crooked heart shall be far from me; * I will not know evil.
Those who in secret slander their neighbors I will destroy; * those who have a haughty look and a proud heart I cannot abide.
My eyes are upon the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me, * and only those who lead a blameless life shall be my servants.
Those who act deceitfully shall not dwell in my house, * and those who tell lies shall not continue in my sight.
I will soon destroy all the wicked in the land, * that I may root out all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
Psalm 109 Deus, laudem
Hold not your tongue, O God of my praise; * for the mouth of the wicked, the mouth of the deceitful, is opened against me.
They speak to me with a lying tongue; * they encompass me with hateful words and fight against me without a cause.
Despite my love, they accuse me; * but as for me, I pray for them.
They repay evil for good, * and hatred for my love.
[Set a wicked man against him, * and let an accuser stand at his right hand.
When he is judged, let him be found guilty, * and let his appeal be in vain.
Let his days be few, * and let another take his office.
Let his children be fatherless, * and his wife become a widow.
Let his children be waifs and beggars; * let them be driven from the ruins of their homes.
Let the creditor seize everything he has; * let strangers plunder his gains.
Let there be no one to show him kindness, * and none to pity his fatherless children.
Let his descendants be destroyed, * and his name be blotted out in the next generation.
Let the wickedness of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, * and his mother’s sin not be blotted out;
Let their sin be always before the Lord; * but let him root out their names from the earth;
Because he did not remember to show mercy, * but persecuted the poor and needy and sought to kill the brokenhearted.
He loved cursing, let it come upon him; * he took no delight in blessing, let it depart from him.
He put on cursing like a garment, * let it soak into his body like water and into his bones like oil;
Let it be to him like the cloak which he wraps around himself, * and like the belt that he wears continually.
Let this be the recompense from the Lord to my accusers, * and to those who speak evil against me.]
But you, O Lord my God, oh, deal with me according to your Name; * for your tender mercy’s sake, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy, * and my heart is wounded within me.
I have faded away like a shadow when it lengthens; * I am shaken off like a locust.
My knees are weak through fasting, * and my flesh is wasted and gaunt.
I have become a reproach to them; * they see and shake their heads.
Help me, O Lord my God; * save me for your mercy’s sake.
Let them know that this is your hand, * that you, O Lord, have done it.
They may curse, but you will bless; * let those who rise up against me be put to shame, and your servant will rejoice.
Let my accusers be clothed with disgrace * and wrap themselves in their shame as in a cloak.
I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth; * in the midst of the multitude will I praise him;
Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, * to save his life from those who would condemn him.
"I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth; in the midst of the multitude will I praise him; Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, to save his life from those who would condemn him."
A vital element of theology is of be found in the word "theology" itself. It is a word about God and Word of God.
If we are to do genuine and life-changing theological reflection, it will be as the psalmists often did, a meditation on the nature, character, and acts of God.
The more we come to know the character of God and experience and practice the presence of God, the deeper our theology is established within us.
In these two psalms, we are enable to reflect upon a God who is just and merciful. These are not two sides of the nature of God; they are a perfect blend. God's justice is mercifully administered and God's mercy is always just and true.
Then, there is the next psalm of the day, 109 where we declare with the ancient singers, the God of our praise, Deus Laudem!,
This God acts in history, generally, specifically, broadly, and personally to redeem those in greatest need of God's advocacy and help.
The psalms enable us to contemplate God's character, presence, and power by observation of his mighty deeds among us, the Word spoken and written, and nature itself.
Let us enter into the Presence and do the real work of theology today.
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Psalm 101 Misericordiam ed judicium
I will sing of mercy and justice; * to you, O Lord, will I sing praises.
I will strive to follow a blameless course; oh, when will you come to me? * I will walk with sincerity of heart within my house.
I will set no worthless thing before my eyes; * I hate the doers of evil deeds; they shall not remain with me.
A crooked heart shall be far from me; * I will not know evil.
Those who in secret slander their neighbors I will destroy; * those who have a haughty look and a proud heart I cannot abide.
My eyes are upon the faithful in the land, that they may dwell with me, * and only those who lead a blameless life shall be my servants.
Those who act deceitfully shall not dwell in my house, * and those who tell lies shall not continue in my sight.
I will soon destroy all the wicked in the land, * that I may root out all evildoers from the city of the Lord.
Psalm 109 Deus, laudem
Hold not your tongue, O God of my praise; * for the mouth of the wicked, the mouth of the deceitful, is opened against me.
They speak to me with a lying tongue; * they encompass me with hateful words and fight against me without a cause.
Despite my love, they accuse me; * but as for me, I pray for them.
They repay evil for good, * and hatred for my love.
[Set a wicked man against him, * and let an accuser stand at his right hand.
When he is judged, let him be found guilty, * and let his appeal be in vain.
Let his days be few, * and let another take his office.
Let his children be fatherless, * and his wife become a widow.
Let his children be waifs and beggars; * let them be driven from the ruins of their homes.
Let the creditor seize everything he has; * let strangers plunder his gains.
Let there be no one to show him kindness, * and none to pity his fatherless children.
Let his descendants be destroyed, * and his name be blotted out in the next generation.
Let the wickedness of his fathers be remembered before the Lord, * and his mother’s sin not be blotted out;
Let their sin be always before the Lord; * but let him root out their names from the earth;
Because he did not remember to show mercy, * but persecuted the poor and needy and sought to kill the brokenhearted.
He loved cursing, let it come upon him; * he took no delight in blessing, let it depart from him.
He put on cursing like a garment, * let it soak into his body like water and into his bones like oil;
Let it be to him like the cloak which he wraps around himself, * and like the belt that he wears continually.
Let this be the recompense from the Lord to my accusers, * and to those who speak evil against me.]
But you, O Lord my God, oh, deal with me according to your Name; * for your tender mercy’s sake, deliver me.
For I am poor and needy, * and my heart is wounded within me.
I have faded away like a shadow when it lengthens; * I am shaken off like a locust.
My knees are weak through fasting, * and my flesh is wasted and gaunt.
I have become a reproach to them; * they see and shake their heads.
Help me, O Lord my God; * save me for your mercy’s sake.
Let them know that this is your hand, * that you, O Lord, have done it.
They may curse, but you will bless; * let those who rise up against me be put to shame, and your servant will rejoice.
Let my accusers be clothed with disgrace * and wrap themselves in their shame as in a cloak.
I will give great thanks to the Lord with my mouth; * in the midst of the multitude will I praise him;
Because he stands at the right hand of the needy, * to save his life from those who would condemn him.
This is called, "A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the LORD."
Surely, many here have had days when the cry sounded something like this, first to be heart, and then to be answered:
" Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you! Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress! Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call!"
(Psalm 102:1-2 ESV)
"Do not hide ..."
How do you know that an invisible God who rarely manifests His presence directly and obviously in your life is really hearing and answering? Sometimes it is in the subtleties; often it is in the coincidences; frequently it is in the irrational peace or the unexplained strength and faith that arises in our hearts as we trust and follow.
So often, it is in joy and in the joyful reality of community that becomes the presence of God to us.
We experience God's presence as we brutally pour out our hearts to God in the full range of human emotion, despair, and frustration:
" For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like a furnace. My heart is struck down like grass and has withered; I forget to eat my bread. Because of my loud groaning my bones cling to my flesh. I am like a desert owl of the wilderness, like an owl of the waste places; I lie awake; I am like a lonely sparrow on the housetop. All the day my enemies taunt me; those who deride me use my name for a curse. For I eat ashes like bread and mingle tears with my drink, because of your indignation and anger; for you have taken me up and thrown me down. My days are like an evening shadow; I wither away like grass."
(Psalm 102:3-11 ESV)
You know through hope and you know through the acting on feeble faith. This God who regards and hears the prayers of the destitute will not despise your prayers:
"But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever; you are remembered throughout all generations. You will arise and have pity on Zion; it is the time to favor her; the appointed time has come. For your servants hold her stones dear and have pity on her dust. Nations will fear the name of the LORD, and all the kings of the earth will fear your glory. For the LORD builds up Zion; he appears in his glory; he regards the prayer of the destitute and does not despise their prayer."
(Psalm 102:12-17 ESV)
This God manifests Himself and, in due season, manifests Himself to you. He appears in His glory, even if only in glimpses and hints, even if only in flashing moments of self-disclosure, He lets you know.
Furthermore, He reveals Himself in worship as one who attends to our prayers and in the words of those who record His deeds and share together, in community, their experiences of grace:
" Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that a people yet to be created may praise the LORD: that he looked down from his holy height; from heaven the LORD looked at the earth, to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set free those who were doomed to die, that they may declare in Zion the name of the LORD, and in Jerusalem his praise, when peoples gather together, and kingdoms, to worship the LORD."
(Psalm 102:18-22 ESV)
It is our witness of one another of His witness to each of us.
Comparing our notes, we realize that there really are no coincidences.
" He has broken my strength in midcourse; he has shortened my days. “O my God,” I say, “take me not away in the midst of my days— you whose years endure throughout all generations!”"
(Psalm 102:23-24 ESV)
He has His ways of bring us to the place where we can experience His grace in healing ways, but they sometimes seem like the breaking of our strength in the middle of our lives. We are moving toward a grand goal and suddenly, we are interrupted.
Perhaps our interruptions are necessary for refocus - at least sometimes ....
But in the meantime, go ahead and register your complaint to God.
Our struggles with faith land on faith. Believers' doubts, fears, and frustrations are real, but they are differentiated from the ordinary because they land on faith. They settle on solid ground. They come to rest where they have always rested in that confidence that simply will not go away, that stubborn trust in the one who upholds all things including our own feeble lives:
" Of old you laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away, but you are the same, and your years have no end. The children of your servants shall dwell secure; their offspring shall be established before you."
I know it when I see and hear it. So do you. But what is it? I am not really sure.
The dictionary is not much help. In fact, it is rather circular:
"the action or sound of laughing."
That settles it - somewhere. I suppose.
Wikipedia offers more.
"Laughter is a pleasant physical reaction and emotion consisting usually of rhythmical, often audible contractions of the diaphragm and other parts of the respiratory system."
That helps. I suppose.
Of course, there are neurological studies that give us insight into the brain functions involved. There are chemical stimulants that provoke it and chemicals that are produced by it. Norman Cousins echoes, in the 80s, the wisdom of Solomon that laughter is very good medicine.
Even if it does not cure, you feel better.
I know very few people who do not agree that it is good to laugh. I do not seek out the company of those who never laugh. I enjoy people who contribute to the grace of laughter in my life.
So, here is my shot at an experiential definition of laughter in the form of an acronym:
LIFE
Life is absurd, silly, painful, perplexing, deep, and shallow. It is difficult to cope without learning to laugh at oneself. It is impossible to cope without laughing at all. If you are not laughing, you are not looking at life.
AFFECT
Affect, used as a noun, means to display emotion. If one does not harness the power of laughter and occasionally give in to it, one is stifling a significant emotion and not displaying the full range of affect. Dulling the senses locks out a great deal of potential.
UNDERSTANDING
When we can appreciate humor, it is often the result of a deeper understanding of the connection between ideas, circumstances, and other emotions in our life. Laughter both triggers and is triggered by self-understanding, insight into human nature, and appreciation of the realities of life.
GROWTH
Our senses of humor grow with us. As we mature, our laughter matures. As we become more sophisticated, so does our humor. Subtleties take on greater meaning in our lives. We can chuckle and grin at the complexities. We learn to laugh at ourselves with greater ease.
HOPE
If we can laugh, we can hope. Laughter that is not cruel can bring us onto common ground with others who might be natural adversaries. It enables us to see one another as part of a shared humanity. It reminds us that we are more alike than different. One wonders if there can be any real peace without shared laughter. But I hasten to add another "h" here. It is hopeful because it is healing to humans, to the emotions, to the body, and to relationships.
TERMINAL
We will stop laughing someday. We all will, in our bodies. Don't stop before you are dead. That is soon enough. When you terminate laughter, you terminate an important part of your living. Live until you die and then, go out with a chuckle.
ESSENTIAL
During the pandemic, I watched more late night comedy, told more jokes, and enjoyed more silliness than usual. Many people did. When all that could stay open were essential services, humorists broadcasted from home. It is essential because we need it and because it is intrinsic. i remember my grandchildren laughing at silly things without being taught to laugh. Early in life, they knew how to take food in, expel waste, cry when the wanted something, and laugh when they were happy.
RIGHT
For all these reasons, it is right to laugh. Red Skelton believed that God had put him on earth to make people laugh. And he did. Laughter is not always the right response, but it often is, even in the hardest of times, even when mingled with tears, even when our tasks are dead serious. It is right to laugh.
Billy Graham tells of a time early in his ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach a sermon. Wanting to mail a letter, he asked a young boy where the post office was.
When the boy had told him, Dr. Graham thanked him and said, "If you'll come to the Baptist Church this evening, you can hear me telling everyone how to get to heaven."
The boy replied, "I don't think I'll be there... You don't even know your way to the post office."
"For many years, Reader’s Digest magazine has published a monthly article called 'Laughter the Best Medicine.' But Reader’s Digest didn’t originate the idea..."
Come and speak.. Come and touch. Come and lead. Come and sit awhile among us. Come, instruct us. Come, teach us.
We have waited so long, Lord.
Come and correct the errors of our ways … including … Several misconceptions of You and how we have … Used you and taken your name in vain to promote our own views, Our prejudices … Our biases … Our desires … Our angry obsessions and our power plays.
We are so alone without you. We are lost, confused, and misguided. It is dark.
Come, Lord, by here and lovingly squeeze the meanness out of us. Hug us till all the hurt and anger and bitterness oozes out of our souls.
It has been too long wince we have asked with the sincerity we felt around the campfire. It is high time that we asked again.
Come and heal bodies, minds, souls and Rifts in the fabric of our communities, Tensions in the streets of our cities, Dissensions in our board rooms, Apathy in our churches, Venom in our national discourse.
We sing and pray as if it were a new song.
Kumbaya, Lord, Kumbaya. Now, we need Your Visitation! Come by here.
There was a certain rich man, which was clothed in purple … - Luke 16:19
Then came Jesus forth, wearing the crown of thorns, and the purple robe. And Pilate saith unto them, Behold the man! – John 19:5
When I see purple I think of Lydia who, in the book of Acts, was known as the dealer of purple.
Purple was a precious commodity, the garment of royalty, the symbol of wealth.
Purple is a featured color in the Lenten season as we meditate on the road to the cross that Jesus trod.
It is also an element of two of Jesus’ teachings, one that he spoke and another that he lived. One was a parable and the other was a reality.
Jesus spoke of a rich man, clothed in purple, who died and discovered that all he had valued and cherished in life was worthless in light of a Godless eternity. This man begged for a drop of water and someone to warn his brothers. He was simply called, “a certain rich man.”
Later, Jesus would also ask for a sip of water, from the cross. Just prior to that pivotal event in salvation history, Jesus was paraded before Pilate clothed in purple. The soldiers were mocking His message of a spiritual kingdom that transcended all human kingdoms.
Jesus wore the purple unwillingly on His willing path to bear the shame of the world for our salvation.
The rich man wore it with a prideful heart proclaiming his superiority and gaining nothing.
One exalted himself and was humbled. Jesus humbled Himself and was exalted.
There were ten bridesmaids waiting for the groom to show up and the festivities to begin. Five were wise. Five were foolish. Those we were wise were wakeful, waiting, and prepared for the long haul. They were ready.
(Luke 15:6 ) And when he cometh home, he calleth together his friends and neighbors, saying unto them, Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost… (Luke 15:9 ) And when she hath found it, she calleth her friends and her neighbors together, saying, Rejoice with me; for I have found the piece which I had lost… (Luke 15:23b-24 ) … Let us eat and be merry. For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found. And they began to be merry.
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“We have heard the joyful sound: Jesus saves! Jesus Saves! Spread the tidings all around. Jesus saves! Jesus saves!”
So that grand hymn of faith calls us to “give the winds a mighty voice.”
How sweet the sound? Oh yes. The lost has been found. It is the sound of laughter and merriment. It is the sound of praise. It is the sound that rings through the streets of Heaven and even the angels sing. It is the sound that warms the heart of God. It is the sound that ought to flow from our voices daily and throughout the day, the song of gratitude, of joy, and of love.
Whereas I was lost, I am now found. I am no longer lost, no longer hopeless, no longer guilty, alienated, or dispossessed. I am no longer unworthy, no longer useless, no longer an orphan. God no longer sees me as a sinner, but as a son. I have a hope. I have a future. As He did with Jeremiah of old, He knows the plans He has for me.
I am found.
Do you know the joy of being found? Or have you forgotten. The truth can be seen in your attitudes toward your brothers and sisters in Christ, whether you are patient and forgiving or irritable and judgmental? The truth is revealed in your attitudes toward people who are still lost.
Are you charitable and seeking or critical and aloof? The truth is seen in your attitudes toward new believers. Do you rejoice or rebuff? Do you step aside and move over or do you guard your established territory? Do you join the celebration, feasting with the friends of the father or do you stand afar off as the son who feels he never left home?
You will never be at home as long as you cling to the notion that you never left. You will never experience the full joy of redemption if you forget that you were lost in slavery to sin when grace found you. You will be unmoved at the singing of Amazing Grace if you forget that the wretch saved was you and the lost one who returned was also you.
Social media are defined and valued by how we use them.
Yes. “Media” is a plural word and “medium” is the singular form.
Media are means to an end. Social media are tools for communication.
We have a wide range of possibilities for using the tools. Two of mine are prayer and prayerful concern
Another is encouragement. I feel fulfilled when I can encourage people.
For me, online friends are real friends.
I find out what I need to be reading, listening to, and watching based upon friends’ recommendation.
We collaborate on big ideas.
Then, there are puppies, kittens, cute pictures, and jokes.
There is music
Then, there is education.
Of course, it is all communication. It is a bag of tools and every age has its tools for communication. If you want to meet people, you have to meet them where they are with the tools available.
What is your favorite social medium and why?
Sometimes these platforms give me a soapbox for my ideas and sometimes a conference table for collaboration. Out of that collaboration come bigger ideas, mutual understanding, and respect.
Sometimes people complain about mean-spirited postings on Facebook, too much drama, too much politics, inconsequential conversations, and wasted time.
That is not my experience.
I have built my platforms for the most part. I have had a hand in creating my communities. I set the tone for my on-line presence and pages.
It is largely up to me what I experience, with some exceptions.
Facebook is one of the best tools I have ever had at my disposal for intercessory prayer as well as the nurturing of community and friendship. I utilize others as well.
They keep me “in-the-know,” so that I can pray more effectively with my mind even as my spirit prays. Combine all the media into one singular entity and it connects us in a network of caring, even for people we have never met.
Like any “tool,” it can be misused.
It is neutral as a technology; but it is powerful as an instrument for potential good.
Writers enjoy instant gratification on the internet. We expect feedback within minutes of posting an idea. Without it, we feel crippled and dis-empowered unlike our fathers who secluded themselves for years, wrote only to God, and never had any assurance that anyone else would read what they were writing.
I wonder if they hit dry spells in the desert.
If you are a writer and you don’t write much for a while, you have to struggle with a certain measure of guilt mingled with fear. You feel you should be writing, that there are tens of people bereft of your wisdom and charming words.
The internet does not lend itself to seasons. It cries out for constancy.
On the other hand, despite all your advice to others to write something every day, you know that you have seasons in your life. You have times of intense productivity and times when something has to brew inside of you.
It is like one of our California rivers that rises and recedes with the flow of its water supply from the mountains.
Then comes the panic. Will I ever write again? Will I ever again be seized with a passion, desire, or creative urge?
Will I ever again have a creative idea?
Will I be forgotten? Will I lose all my readers who, as it is, cling by a thin thread?
Suddenly, we want to write whether or not we have something about which to write.
That season often arrives as a flash flood and often when ones life has been filled with things to do, places to go, and people to see. Life gets in the way of art.
… And we are far away from our computers hooked to the internet …
It raises an interesting question. Can a person still write offline?
I wonder what I would tell this kid if I met him in some time-warped, celestial vestibule during a meet and greet.
Could I tell him anything?
Or should I just play dumb and let him figure it out as best he could ... which ...
I suppose he did.
Would you actually try to tell your younger self anything if you had the chance?
"I would have lost heart, unless I had believed That I would see the goodness of the LORD In the land of the living. " -Psalm 27:13
I have a challenge for my young local heroes, so engaged in our cities and driven by the passion of gospel that has deep implications for the poor, marginalized, and oppressed: Start raising up some among you to run for office.
Build coalitions, raise funds, and speak at every meeting where kingdom issues are addressed.
We need your voices and your leadership. My generation is stuck in a rut of old ideas and biases. All we can come up with are clichés and repackaged prejudice. You think with fresh minds.
This is your day. Take it.
Today could be a turning point for you and for others.
Some Turning Points Are World-Changing.
On this day in 1983 – Bill Gates introduces Windows 1.0.
What will happen today that will change the world tomorrow?
How will you be part of that?
What if we started every day with that question.
What questions arise from that one question?
How might you strategize around that?
Some Turning Points Are Catastrophic.
On this day:
"The Wilmington insurrection of 1898, also known as the Wilmington massacre of 1898 or the Wilmington coup of 1898.
It was a turning point in post-Reconstruction North Carolina politics.
The results were
- more severe racial segregation - effective disenfranchisement of African Americans
"What happened in Wilmington became an affirmation of white supremacy not just in that one city, but in the South and in the nation as a whole ... " - Laura Edwards (Democracy Betrayed)
According to Wikipedia, it "affirmed that invoking 'whiteness' eclipsed the legal citizenship, individual rights, and equal protection under the law that blacks were guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment."
At first, the perpetrators sought to blame the black population for "precipitating a riot" and held themselves up as victims and heroes.
Beit She'an , Scythopolis (Σκυθόπολις in Ancient Greek) is a city in the Northern District of Israel, which has played an important role in history due to its geographical location at the junction of the Jordan River Valley and the Jezreel Valley. It was an amazing Roman outpost in its day.
The ancient city was destroyed in one day in the Golan earthquake of 749.
Many things can happen in one day or a single hour.
We cannot love our neighbors as ourselves if we refuse to take the effort to see the world through our neighbors' eyes or try to imagine life in his or her skin.
We cannot love our neighbor without learning to sing the songs of lament and the entire book of Lamentations.
We cannot love our neighbor by telling him or her what he or she should be or not be feeling.
We cannot love our neighbor without tears. We cannot love our neighbor by having an answer for every word our neighbor speaks in fear or frustration.
We love our neighbor more with our ears than our words. When we do use words, we love our neighbor more by what we speak on behalf of our neighbor than what we say to that neighbor.
We cannot love our neighbor by taking our scripts from Job's friends and having all the trite answers organized and ready to spout. We cannot love our neighbor without working at it and putting aside our own interests and opinions long enough to understand.
We cannot love our neighbor while belittling our neighbor. And ... we cannot love God without loving our neighbor.
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Loving our neighbor defines us as Jesus followers in a way that makes us oddballs.
This is not to be resisted or defended.
The world has always been indifferent and hostile to the values of those who center their core convictions in the prophetic and merciful Word of God.
That will continue and so will our mandate to speak truth to power, stand with the oppressed, be misunderstood, be in a minority, and be faithful to truth.
No political system represents us, We are sojourners, We are peculiar people. We pray for our leaders and pray with hope that hearts and policies can be shaped by truth.
We also must hold every system accountable for justice in unpopular causes and for marginalized people who are mistrusted and hated. Whoever you supported leading up to yesterday, you have a big job ahead if you will truly follow Jesus in the areas of His biases - to pray - act- speak - and sometimes resist. Our King is in the midst and He is King.
"God has taken his place in the divine council; in the midst of the gods he holds judgment: 'How long will you judge unjustly and show partiality to the wicked? Selah Give justice to the weak and the fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked.'" (Psalm 82:1-4 ESV)
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When I was still doing volunteer chaplaincy, I scribbled these notes:
On Thursdays, I put on a volunteer chaplain badge and walk the halls of one of our local hospitals visiting patients. I often walk in wondering how long I can keep doing it because of time constraints. I generally leave wondering how I could ever give it up. I learn lessons and receive more than I give:
1) Time becomes less relevant than living and serving in the moment. You go with the flow and find that the flow helps you go and God takes care of the timing.
2) It takes very little time and effort to connect with someone in pain if you come with open heart, open mind, open hands, and few words. A listening ear and a gentle touch communicate much love.
3) Compassion speaks and is reciprocal. People want to give and do give, even when they are utterly depleted in body and strength.
4) There is much gratitude in these rooms. I seldom find as much gratitude on the streets as I encounter in this context.
5) You do not have to speak the same language to connect. There are universal languages that often cross linguistic barriers: love, prayer, touch. When I come in the name of Jesus, there is often an unseen translator in the room because it is, after all, His voice that calms the storm.
6) You cannot fake genuine care, but even the coldest heart submitted to the grace and compassion of God can be taught to care -- quickly. On your worst days, God can use you if you place yourself at His disposal.
7) Where I go, my whole church goes. When I minister, it is because I have The Fellowship of Joy and 4141 Ministries with me. I carry them in my heart and they make it possible for me to give my time to the community. I do not push our church at the hospital or identify myself as its representative, but I know and others seem to find out. Where you go and serve, you are always part of a body of God's servants who have formed a community of support and equipping.
Ultimately, all we have to give is the presence of Jesus in us and through us. We have wonderful chaplains of other faiths who pray and care. My role is to be who I am and meet people where they are. I come in the name of Jesus, not to be pushy about my faith, but openly and honestly sharing His love.
9) I spoke with a deputy sheriff in the hall who was guarding a patient in custody. He was so moved by the caring of the nurses and the pain around him that he was considering becoming a nurse in his next career. He loves his work, but he wants to keep giving and serving. Everyone in that hospital needs a little pastoral care. The nurse and caregivers are ministers of God in ways that I can never be. They are so often grateful for our support.
10) I walk out with more energy than I come in with. That is what ministry does. That is how the Holy Spirit works. Perhaps you might consider being a chaplain if your heart resonates with this.
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Testing this statement:
The first job of politics is to tell the truth whether or not is supports our narrative.
At the end of the list is the real "cargo" of unscrupulous commerce in a marriage of convenience with illegitimate and oppressive power. It is the slavery of human souls.
"And the merchants of the earth weep and mourn for her, since no one buys their cargo anymore, cargo of gold, silver, jewels, pearls, fine linen, purple cloth, silk, scarlet cloth, all kinds of scented wood, all kinds of articles of ivory, all kinds of articles of costly wood, bronze, iron and marble, cinnamon, spice, incense, myrrh, frankincense, wine, oil, fine flour, wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and chariots, and slaves, that is, human souls." - Revelation 18:11-13
This subversive circular is calling out power for its tracking of humanity. The test of authenticity, legitimacy, and righteousness in any system of commerce and government with all their entanglements may well be --- Does it profit from the enslavement of human souls?
If it does, and that includes the enticements of systems of addiction, then red flags go up everywhere. This one is "Babylon" and it is going down.
Here is an angel, a messenger of God, speaking truth to power - power that you are either attracted to or that you resist --- or both.
What is your Babylon?
What is that seat of power that attracts those who also want power and hope to get it through association, conspiracy, and sinister collaboration that oppresses the weak and the righteous? We are attracted to that bright, beautiful, lively, ostentatious "city of influence," its sensual pleasures and its facade of wealth, luxury, and illegitimate power.
It intoxicates and it draws in those who are inclined to be drawn.
And lest we lift our own heads in pride, something in it is inclined to draw something in us and it can intoxicate us as well --- for a season or for a lifetime --- our choice if we remain conscious enough to make choices.
For Babylon is fallen. It is an eternal reality in Heaven where all is accomplished already.
Every false god and every pretender to every throne has eventually been vanquished and neutralized. It has been; it shall be. Ultimate rectification is reality, but in the meantime, the dance is repeated throughout history.
The only history that immediately matters for us is the one we are living, the choices we are making, the alignments we are activating, and the loyalties we are forming.
It is an angel, a messenger by definition, that has the authority to put power in check and glory gathers around the sound of his mighty voice.
That says that it is truth that brings powers to their knees. It is the voice of truth, the message of God that humbles the proud and pronounces judgment upon oppressors.
Let that be an encouragement to all of you who daily, and without apparent reward, consistently and faithfully, speak truth to power.
"After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was made bright with his glory. And he called out with a mighty voice,
“Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable beast. For all nations have drunk the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have grown rich from the power of her luxurious living.”" (Revelation 18:1-3 ESV)
There are several bald spots on my metaphorical head from metaphysical head scratching. Mind baffles have frequently made me drowsy to the point of stupor. Not everything adds up because, to embrace everything, one must also embrace unknowns and unknowns challenge our sense of control and self-sufficiency.
“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; it is high, I cannot attain unto it.” — Psalm 139:6
Sometimes, the right answer is, “I don’t know.”
“Yet in the midst of my madness, God had been making himself known to me in profound ways. In my drunken prayers, God’s presence was ever-captivating. My journal would reveal tears of desperation and longing for God. I couldn’t reconcile the fact that I was doing something wrong and the fact that God was showering me with love. I have a tendency to view life in terms of black and white, good and bad, happy and unhappy.. I was finding life to be filled with shades of grey and God ruled over it all. I was starting to come to terms with the fact that I didn’t have all the answers.” — Nathan Foster, “Wisdom Chaser — https://amzn.to/3u759hC
I was not prepared for turning the page to 105, chapter 13. You’ll have to read it yourself, but you may find your story there. You didn’t know anyone else had lived it. You were making such progress with God, in so many areas, but there was something, a drag, more than a drag, something yanking you down.
Not all progress is steady and it is seldom neat … usually very messy.
Mystery. What sort of God is this? Job thought he knew Him but realized he knew only OF Him. When they finally met “face to face,” it was not to impart all the answers to this faithful servant. The truth was in the encounter. The reconciliation was in the relationship.
Every day of our lives, we are surrounded on all sides by knowledge we do not possess, swimming in a sea of wonder, marinating in questions we do not know to ask. We possess less understanding than we will have tomorrow, but vastly less than the universe holds — much less the God of the universe.
We can skip some steps and slip through a spiritual wormhole emerging, through folds in space-time continua to that lace on the other side of the creation where we can meet the God who knows and bends reality to His own purpose.
But we still won’t know everything.
And climbing will still involve struggle.
And we will have some bad days, some very bad days … and some good days … and some that don’t seem to fit any category at all.
But if we keep climbing we will find we are going somewhere. Along the way, some of the answers will be clearer. At the summit, there willl be a very clear perspective.
I am convinced that the Somewhere and Someone of it all are worth the climb and I have chosen to continue. Who will go with me?
Fra Angelico (circa 1395–1455), The Forerunners of Christ with Saints and Martyrs
I Have Already Come
“Through many dangers, toils, and snares, I have already come.” — John Newton, “Amazing Grace”
We a tossed about and fraught with dangers, toils, and snares, but we have come through those over and over again.
“And I said unto him, Sir, thou knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” – Revelation 7:14
There are two powerful words joined together bounce off the page — two prepositions that together bring us hope in our trials and tribulations: out of.
We catch a glimpse of Heaven and behold the saints on display as examples of potential victory and ultimate triumph. These are they who have come out of tribulation. You might as well say, “through.”
Years back, my wife underwent surgery for breast cancer. The next day she was visited by a survivor. While she had already made up her mind to be more than that — even an “overcomer,” the visit was an encouragement. Someone had come out of the struggle, through the difficulties, and over the hurdles. And out of those tribulations, there emerged good.
“I have already come.”
When we hear those words and when we speak those words, we get courage. Whether it is our experience or someone else’s, there is precedent for victory. We affirm again with Paul that we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us.
We draw upon past victories to nurture belief for present and future challenges. We recognize the power of God’s grace in our lives up until this point. We see where we were, what we had to face, and how we emerged and we know that if we must, We can do it again.
We don’t want to do it again, but we can.
Then we think of the saints around the throne and know that we have really faced such little hardship compared to them. And from there we look to the cross and know that we have not even approached Christ’s suffering. Then we go back to our Bibles and underscore the words, “out of,” and back to our hymnals and highlight the word, “through.”
Margery Williams published The Velveteen Rabbit in 1922.
When Margery was seven, she lost her father in a sudden death. Throughout her life, there was a thread of pain, suffering, and sadness in her writing. Yet, she affirmed that through pain and adversity, hearts become more human.
Though English by birth, Margery moved to America with her family and became inspired by the innocence of children against the backdrop of the war to end all wars.
As she took her pen and began to write, she asked one of life's great questions: What is real?
"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit one day, when they were lying side by side near the nursery fender, before Nana came to tidy the room.
"Does it mean having things that buzz inside you and a stick-out handle?"
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse. "It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt." "Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse. "You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept. Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except to people who don't understand."
"I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be sensitive. But the skin horse only smiled. - Margery Williams, The Velveteen Rabbit (Read the whole illustrated story online!)
This is one of those stories from children's literature that is almost always sure to bring a tear to my eye. I have read it aloud many times to children and adults. It continues to touch me at the depth of my soul.
So many people stagger through life in an unreal shell of a persona. They struggle with fear of rejection or repulsion at the idea of the pain they might have to suffer in the process of becoming authentic. The pain is real and the risks are real.
However, the rewards are also real for being real.
The great theme of The Velveteen Rabbit is becoming real.
"...once you become real, you can't be ugly, except to those who don't understand."
And so it is among the battle scarred, war torn, life worn, lovelorn souls who face and embrace life. Being real is a thing of great value and a gift of great grace from God. To reject our authenticity is to reject wonder.
To reject wonder is to reject life.
To reject life is to reject God.
Someone said:
There was a very cautious man Who never laughed or played. He never risked, he never tried, He never sang or prayed.
And when he one day passed away, His insurance was denied. For since he never really lived, They claimed he never died.
Here is an acronym for what it might mean for us to bless others.
B = Being.
We first bless by being who and what we are. It is our lives that must be channels of blessing as we are authentic, vulnerable, and transparent.
L = Living Out.
We bless others by living out our lives, living out-loud, living in love, and letting who we are find expression in our actions toward others.
E = Expressing.
We can bless others by how we communicate with them, verbally and non-verbally. Expressions of grace, mercy, love, and peace can encourage and uplift if that is our intention.
S = Salt.
Jesus said, "You are the salt of the earth." For these purposes, that is the stewardship of our positive influence in the world. That is what Joseph exercised in Egypt and it resulted in a nation being saved from and through famine.
S = Sharing.
We bless by what and how we give as we use our resources for the good of others.
So, the call to bless is a call to authentic being, good deeds, gracious communication, positive influence, and generous giving.
What a difference those five things could make in our communities!
Social media are defined and valued by how we use them.
Yes. "Media" is a plural word and "medium" is the singular form.
Media are means to an end. Social media are tools for communication.
We have a wide range of possibilities for using the tools. Two of mine are prayer and prayerful concern.
Another is encouragement.
I feel fulfilled when I can encourage people.
For me, online friends are real friends.
Through social media, I find out what I need to be reading, listening to, and watching based upon friends' recommendation.
We collaborate on big ideas.
Then, there are puppies, kittens, cute pictures, and jokes.
There is music
Then, there is education.
Of course, it is all communication. It is a bag of tools and every age has its tools for communication. If you want to meet people, you have to meet them where they are with the tools available.
What is your favorite social medium and why?
Sometimes these platforms give me a soapbox for my ideas and sometimes a conference table for collaboration. Out of that collaboration come bigger ideas, mutual understanding, and respect.
Sometimes people complain about mean-spirited postings on Facebook, too much drama, too much politics, inconsequential conversations, and wasted time. That is not my experience.
I have built my platforms for the most part. I have had a hand in creating my communities. I set the tone for my on-line presence and pages.
It is largely up to me what I experience, with some exceptions.
Facebook is one of the best tools I have ever had at my disposal for intercessory prayer as well as the nurturing of community and friendship. I utilize others as well.
They keep me "in-the-know," so that I can pray more effectively with my mind even as my spirit prays. Combine all the media into one singular entity and it connects us in a network of caring, even for people we have never met. Like any "tool," it can be misused.
It is neutral as a technology; but it is powerful as an instrument for potential good.
“… he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.” From John 14:17
God is whispering in our ears, “Give me your hands and let me move them in my rhythm.”
God thinks of everything. God's purposes are complex, but not complicated. God's plan is to work in and through believers to accomplish God's work in the world. To do this, the Holy One intends to inhabit us.
The Holy Spirit is the very presence of Jesus among us today. It is by the Holy Spirit that we become the Body of Christ in the world and that the world is convicted of sin, righteousness, and judgment and hears the message of God’s love, grace, and forgiveness.
Jesus breathed on the disciples and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.”
Knowing that they might consider that a once and for all filling and forget the need for constant refreshment and refilling, he told them to tarry in Jerusalem until they received power from on high. As we celebrate Pentecost this year, let us focus on the necessity of the Spirit-filled life if we are to see God accomplish great things in and through us.
When Jesus called Paul, He had a plan for Him. But Paul needed the power of the Holy Spirit in his life to realize his calling and act upon it.
When Jesus restored Peter after breathing the Spirit into him, He questioned him about his love. Three times, he commissioned Peter to feed His sheep knowing that if Peter were to act upon his love and follow the Master, he would need the power of the Holy Spirit in his life.
By faith, allow the Spirit of God who dwells in you to overflow within you and spill out His blessings to the world.
Today, God is calling us to the next level of following, serving, and bearing witness in the world. We need the power of the Holy Spirit.
We have no choice but to rely on the Promise and Presence of the Spirit.
Both created great beauty, one with words, the other with visual art.
Both suffered from mental illness.
Neither took a gun and killed masses of people.
Their beauty lives on.
Born this day in 1932 – Sylvia Plath, American poet, novelist, and short story writer (d. 1963).
She died as a result of clinical depression at age 30.
So many of us! So many of us!
We are shelves, we are Tables, we are meek, We are edible,
Nudgers and shovers In spite of ourselves. Our kind multiplies:
We shall by morning Inherit the earth. Our foot's in the door.
________________________
The silence depressed me. It wasn't the silence of silence. It was my own silence. I knew perfectly well the cars were making a noise, and the people in them and behind the lit windows of the buildings were making a noise, and the river was making a noise, but I couldn't hear a thing. The city hung in my window, flat as a poster, glittering and blinking, but it might just as well not have been there at all, for the good it did me.
_________________________
Dying Is an art, like everything else. I do it exceptionally well.
I do it so it feels like hell. I do it so it feels real. I guess you could say I've a call.
_________________________
Born this day in 1885. Sigrid Hjertén was a Swedish modernist painter and major figure in Swedish modernism. Her periods of productivity were spasmodic since she also suffered from schizophrenia.
She worked for 30 years. After a botched lobotomy, she died.
This is anecdotal, but in nearly 50 years as a pastor, I have known many mentally ill people both on and off the streets. All that I have known on the streets have been victimized in some way. Many of those I have known who are housed have been.
One could almost look for old comments to repost, but I will neither say nothing nor dredge up old thoughts.
Same story - different locations and characters.
From New York to Maine to the Holy Land.
Murder, mayhem, heartbreak, fear.
Terrorism has a technical definition invented by lawyers and politicians, but ...
It is all terrorism, not matter who does it or for what reason.
If it evokes terror, it is terrorism.
If it kills innocent people, it is murder.
We want to know why, not to excuse it, but to prevent it before it happens.
It is never all about the individual perpetrators; it it never not about them at all.
It is never all about the individual victims; it it never not about them at all.
It is never solved by thoughts and prayers; it is not likely to be solved without them.
It is never solved by policy; it not likely to be solved without it.
Policy, police, and politics on one hand; prayer and commitment, goodwill, and transformation on the other. When they meet and intermingle, we have hope.
Get tough, get compassionate, get both, get on with something.
The fatalists say, "That's just the way it is."
The activists say, "We've got to do something."
They are all right.
Grit your teeth in anger or bitterly weep, but do not get numb. Blessed are those who mourn.
Life and this world are good and life is a mess. Things makes sense until they don't.
Thoughts are about thinking. That can never be bad unless thinking becomes the paralysis of analysis. Prayer is about presenting our problems, ourselves, and our time to the One who is Higher than we are.
Thoughts and prayers. Deeds and decisions. Engage.
Born this day in 1881 – Pablo Picasso, Spanish painter and sculptor (d. 1973).
His work was innovative and unprecedented.
Among his most famous works are the proto-Cubist Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907), and Guernica (1937), a dramatic portrayal of the bombing of Guernica by German and Italian air forces during the Spanish Civil War.
Guernica, Picasso's most important political painting, has remained relevant as a work of art and as a symbol of protest, and it kept the memory of the Basque town's nightmare alive. While Picasso was living in Nazi-occupied Paris during World War II, one German officer allegedly asked him, upon seeing a photo of Guernica in his apartment, "Did you do that?"
Picasso responded, "No, you did."
But Others Also
Deep thoughts ...
I have them ...
They are quite deep ...
And, they are covered with hard pan ...
Many pounds ... tons of hard pan ...
I need something stronger than a shovel to get to them ...
There is some truly well written material here in social media in the blogsphere.
It is fresh, immediate, and compelling. It is edgy and controversial. It is raw, real, and relevant.
Of course there is junk, untruth, half-truth, and trash. You have to sort it out. You have to explore the sources and verify, but the wealth of information from the ground and the collaborative power of thinking together is a gift of our times.
I don't agree with everything I read, but when I find something well thought with which I disagree,
I find it a lot easier to address what it is with which I truly disagree and not be sucked into a sinkhole of generalizations or a shooting match of talking point bullets.
I really love this medium for the potential it has for reading, thinking, responding.
It is the Luther-Erasmus correspondence -- only quicker!
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In the mutual search for truth, we are also seeking God for God is truth and there is nothing that varies, diverts, or strays from truth in the nature and character of God.
'"An equation for me has no meaning, unless it expresses a thought of God." - Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician
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Something I Wrote a While Back
to start some discussion
The Hated Hero
The Good Samaritan was a neighbor because he had compassion in his heart and acted upon He came to the rescue of one who had been reckless and careless in his travels and had suffered devastating loss.
He acted with mercy after the broken man had been ignored by one who put ritual before service and another who valued safety above caring.
He is held up as an example because he was the one considered least likely to be a neighbor. He was part of a culture, nation, and ethnicity that was held in suspicion. What we seldom emphasize is that he would have felt the same way about the man he helped if he were also given to the prejudice of his own countrymen.
"You've got to be taught ... to hate all the people your relatives hate. You've got to be carefully taught."
He was the neighbor because he broke out of the confining prison of bigotry and fear and stepped into the wide open space of love.
What might it be like if this were something more than just a nice Bible story told in Sunday School and actually applied and embodied by people of faith today? How radically might it change our behavior as followers of Jesus?
We could start every day with an attitude of compassion that says from the outset, "I am going to filter every impression I form through the pain of the people involved."
That would be a start.
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We struggle so often, so persistently (though often, intermittently), and so blindly with this polar pull of selfish gain that yanks us way from living purposefully against living joyfully and eternally in time and space. We have no remedy to the war except to check in with the Commander daily to recenter our focus.
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These are online conversations, correspondence, and collected thoughts. May they help us discover common ground and big ideas.
“Therefore my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.” — I Corinthians 15:58
We gathered in the shade of an old oak tree that stood sentinel over the neatly placed markers that signified the lives of ten or twelve souls whose earthly remains were interred beneath its shadows. We joined hands as we sang together, God be with you till we meet again … till we meet at Jesus feet.
Minnie had labored hard for many years in God’s vineyard. It was time to say goodbye and consign her to that sacred place of memory that occupies such precious real estate in every person’s heart. Her soul was safe. She had committed that decades before to the care of a redeeming Savior. Her body
Her body, beyond our care, we committed to the earth.
I opened her well worn Bible to a passage she loved.
“We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.”
Thoughts of her unsung heroism passed from one person to the next with memories of kind words and deeds, encouraging notes, and humble service. Minnie had achieved neither fame nor fortune in this life. She had written no books, created no fine art, or founded any great institutions. She had simply loved those who came across her path and lived a life of quiet devotion to God and others. This was her life’s work; this was her great contribution and even now, it was bearing fruit in the lives of those who would carry forth her legacy from this place.
God loses nothing. He wastes no effort, no labor, no tear. Not one moment of our lives. We who honored Minnie that day were reminded, by her example, to be steadfast, consistent, and abounding in God’s work.
Her labor in the Lord was not in vain; nor is yours.
People have differing views of work ranging from dread to excitement — but very view people relish working in vain. We want something to show for our efforts.
In the fifteenth chapter of his first letter to Corinth, the Apostle Paul admonishes his friends,
“Therefore my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as you know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.”
Perhaps the Corinthians suspected that it all might be for naught.
Everyone who uses a computer to communicate deeply felt convictions and intricate concepts has had the experience of seemingly working in vain. We have labored over thoughts and words for intense periods of time and have finally formulated those ideas into concrete sentences when the computer suddenly crashes, and all is lost.
All of that for nothing! But not really.
We have meditated, wrestled, and have been shaped by truth. We may have to step away, take a break, or lick our wounds. However, the next time we write the same thing, it comes out a bit differently, but it comes, nevertheless.
The process was about what was happening inside of us and not what was occurring on the screen or the page.
It is often that way.
The occasion for Paul’s encouraging words was twofold. It came in recognition of the people’s present concerns. All truth is wrapped in a veneer of present reality. We live in context and experience the full range of what it means to be human. We know pains and joys, satisfaction, and discouragement. It is all a part of life. Add to that the ever-present, looming threat of death that eventually will overtake us all and we may wonder, “What is it all about?”
The second occasion he addresses is the future conviction that people of faith are going somewhere, that the resurrection of Jesus Christ has something more than an historical significance to His followers. In the earlier verses of the chapter, he expresses the conviction that resurrection hope is shared among all who embrace Jesus and live in the power of His death and life.
Everything has meaning, even the mundane and tedious experiences of life.
What follows is a threefold admonition. The NIV uses the words:
“Stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourself to the work of the Lord.”
Stand
The first admonition is to STAND.
It is hard to stand when the ground is shaking. For that reason, people who intend to live forever must find deeper grounding for their lives. They (we) cannot be controlled by our circumstances or our emotions. These are a part of our reality; they are not the sum of it
“My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus’ blood and righteousness.”
Another way he could have said this might have been, “Don’t lose your footing.” Remember what you believe. Remember where you are going. Remember why you are doing what you are doing. Reconnect with what stabilizes you in your resolve and commitment.
Someone has said that if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for anything.
Withstand
The second admonition is to WITHSTAND. “Let nothing move you.”
We have some choices to make about what we will allow to move us. I choose God and God alone.
It is easy to place one’s life in neutral when bombarded by a cacophony of voices and a barrage of influences all vying for our attention and compliance. Everyone wants our ears and our acquiescence.
Political, social, peer, commercial, moral, and familial voices tantalize, rationalize, and intimidate us into uncertainty about our core values and commitments.
That is what Paul is saying when he encourages the folks not to be moved.
Of course, we need to challenge our presuppositions, prejudices, comfortable notions, and assumptions. He is not addressing these. He is talking about our life mission, or unchanging purpose for living, our devotion to God and His vision within us, and the work that we are called to do.
Keep on keeping on. Be not easily dissuaded from the cause. Persevere. Expect to be maligned, attacked, challenged, and inconvenienced, but stay with it.
Abound
The third admonition is to ABOUND.
He says we are to abound in the work of the Lord, always giving ourselves to it. The first admonition was abounded grounding; the second was about rebounding in the face of opposition. Now we are looking at the call to be abounding in work itself.
It is about full engagement, heart devotion, energy investment, and enthusiasm.
“Whatsoever your hand findeth to do, do it with thy might.”
You can stand with deep conviction and withstand with stubborn tenacity, but it takes the power of the Holy Spirit within you to abound. You must rely on a strength greater than your own to fully engage.
The word “enthusiasm” means “God within.”
The word “inspired” means “breathed upon,” as though by the very breath of God.
“Motivated” really means “moved to action.”
Abound. As you know in the physical world, the body requires rest, replenishment of energy through nutrition, and exercise to abound. The health system Kaiser calls it “thrive.”
In the realm of work that has abiding significance and eternal implications, the same is true. We must nourish ourselves spiritually, emotionally, intellectually, and physically to abound in our work. Paul says that our labor is in the Lord which means that He supplies the tasks as well as the ability to do them.
Some of the tools we have for abounding are true for ministry, business, and social endeavors:
READ — For me, part of the diet, the biggest part, is the Bible, but I also read instructive, encouraging, motivating, and challenging books and articles from many sources.
PRAY — Engage in an honest, ongoing, satisfying, and open relationship with the Source of your life. “Pray without ceasing.”
RELATE and PARTNER — In Christianity, we call this fellowship. In business and entrepreneurship, we call it networking. In any realm, it is the reality that we are not alone and the assurance that others are engaged in the mission that helps encourage us.
FOCUS -Christian words for this are obedience and faithfulness. We focus on what we are doing and let lesser things go. We keep eyes on the prize and invest our time, energy, and love in what produces lasting results and deep change.
Stand, withstand, and abound or, you could say, ground, rebound, and abound. That is the threefold admonition.
Finally, he gives a grand assurance —
Your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
God knows it is hard. You know it and God knows it. Sometimes you just don’t want to get up and have no idea where the energy will come from or how to muster the will, but you do in faith and it comes.
God knows it is discouraging. You will not always be complemented, appreciated, or affirmed. Stay with it. It is not in vain. There will come a day. The story has been told so many times that no one really knows the source or whether it is fiction or history. It may not be true, but it is truth:
This is the story of missionary Samuel Morrison’s return to the United States, as told in Ann Graham Lotz’s book, The Vision of His Glory:
The story is told of an old missionary named Samuel Morrison who, after twenty-five years in Africa, was returning to the United States to die. As it so happened, he traveled home on the same ocean liner that brought President Teddy Roosevelt back from a hunting expedition. When the great ship pulled into the New York harbor, the dock where it was to tie up was jammed with what looked like the entire population of New York City! Bands were playing, banners were waving, choirs of children were singing, multicolored balloons were floating in the air, flashbulbs were popping, and newsreel cameras were poised to record the return of the president.
Mr. Roosevelt stepped down the gangplank to thunderous cheers and applause, showered with confetti and ticker tape. If the crowd had not been restrained by ropes and police, he would have been mobbed!
At the same time, Samuel Morrison quietly walked off the boat. No one was there to greet him. He slipped alone through the crowd. Because of the crush of people there to welcome the president, he couldn’t even find a cab. Inside his heart, he began to complain, “Lord, the president has been in Africa for three weeks, killing animals, and the whole world turns out to welcome him home! I’ve given twenty-five years of my life in Africa, serving You, and no one has greeted me or even knows I’m here!”
In the quietness of his heart, a gentle, loving voice whispered, “But my dear child, you are not home yet!”
That is because God knows the outcome.
“Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard; neither hath it entered into the heart of man, the things that God hath prepared for them that love Him.”
You are going somewhere, and your labor is not in vain.
Sermon and musical stetting for Exodus 33 and Matthew 22.
Moses seeks to see the face of God.
Jesus is confronted with the face of Caesar.
One is the "I Am"; the other is a living symbol of idolatry, materialism, and empire.
Idolatry skims the surface; the call of God is to go deeper.
The sermon starts at the 3:24
Yesterday's sermon, edited and set to music
Exodus 33:12-23 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Moses said to the Lord, “See, you have said to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.’ Now if I have found favor in your sight, please show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider, too, that this nation is your people.” He said, “My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.” And he said to him, “If your presence will not go, do not bring us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.”
The Lord said to Moses, “I will also do this thing that you have asked, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.” Moses said, “Please show me your glory.” And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you the name, ‘The Lord,’ and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But,” he said, “you cannot see my face, for no one shall see me and live.” And the Lord continued, “See, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by; then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.”
Isaiah 45:1-7 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him and to strip kings of their robes, to open doors before him— and the gates shall not be closed: I will go before you and level the mountains; I will break in pieces the doors of bronze and cut through the bars of iron; I will give you the treasures of darkness and riches hidden in secret places, so that you may know that it is I, the Lord, the God of Israel, who call you by your name. For the sake of my servant Jacob and Israel my chosen, I call you by your name; I give you a title, though you do not know me. I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides me there is no god. I arm you, though you do not know me, so that they may know, from the rising of the sun and from the west, that there is no one besides me; I am the Lord, and there is no other. I form light and create darkness, I make weal and create woe; I the Lord do all these things.
Psalm 99 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
The Lord is king; let the peoples tremble! He sits enthroned upon the cherubim; let the earth quake! The Lord is great in Zion; he is exalted over all the peoples. Let them praise your great and awesome name. Holy is he! Mighty King, lover of justice, you have established equity; you have executed justice and righteousness in Jacob. Extol the Lord our God; worship at his footstool. Holy is he!
Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel also was among those who called on his name. They cried to the Lord, and he answered them. He spoke to them in the pillar of cloud; they kept his decrees and the statutes that he gave them.
O Lord our God, you answered them; you were a forgiving God to them but an avenger of their wrongdoings. Extol the Lord our God, and worship at his holy mountain, for the Lord our God is holy. e all gods. For all the gods of the peoples are idols, but the Lord made the heavens. Honor and majesty are before him; strength and beauty are in his sanctuary.
Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts. Worship the Lord in holy splendor; tremble before him, all the earth.
1 Thessalonians 1 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ: Grace to you and peace.
We always give thanks to God for all of you and mention you in our prayers, constantly remembering before our God and Father your work of faith and labor of love and steadfastness of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ. For we know, brothers and sisters beloved by God, that he has chosen you, because our message of the gospel came to you not in word only but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction; just as you know what kind of persons we proved to be among you for your sake. And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy from the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia but in every place your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. For they report about us what kind of welcome we had among you and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath.
Matthew 22:15-22 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Then the Pharisees went and plotted to entrap him in what he said. So they sent their disciples to him, along with the Herodians, saying, “Teacher, we know that you are sincere, and teach the way of God in accordance with truth, and show deference to no one, for you do not regard people with partiality. Tell us, then, what you think. Is it lawful to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, “Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.” And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, “Whose head is this and whose title?” They answered, “Caesar’s.” Then he said to them, “Give therefore to Caesar the things that are Caesar’s and to God the things that are God’s.” When they heard this, they were amazed, and they left him and went away.
Lately, I've been signing up for things - mostly free, but not always.
You have to sign up first; then you can sign-in whenever you like.
I have noticed that if I don't sign-in for a while, I sometimes have to sign-up again.
It is really nutty ... I am trying to find parallels to participation in the Kingdom of God here and the easy ones come easily ... but the really hard ones ... are really hard.
Something about the whole thing of an easy sign-up and a simple sign-in seems incongruent.
Something about that long list of affiliations sitting somewhere in my in-box and data-bases ... many forgotten, just strikes me as qualitatively different than the call to oddity that is the essence of holiness.
If being a disciple is nothing more than signing up and signing in, then I am reading a different four gospels
This makes most apologies and confessions seem sort of wimpy and half-hearted.
One thing you cannot say about the psalms is that they beat around the bush.
Nor can you accuse them of being cold and emotionless.
They are gut-wrenching and blatantly emotional. Poetry relies on hyperbole, but it goes to the heart of human expression, exposing every sentiments.
Psalm 38: "O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath! For your arrows have sunk into me, and your hand has come down on me. There is no soundness in my flesh because of your indignation; there is no health in my bones because of my sin. For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me. My wounds stink and fester because of my foolishness, I am utterly bowed down and prostrate; all the day I go about mourning. For my sides are filled with burning, and there is no soundness in my flesh. I am feeble and crushed; I groan because of the tumult of my heart. O Lord, all my longing is before you; my sighing is not hidden from you. My heart throbs; my strength fails me, and the light of my eyes—it also has gone from me. My friends and companions stand aloof from my plague, and my nearest kin stand far off. Those who seek my life lay their snares; those who seek my hurt speak of ruin and meditate treachery all day long. But I am like a deaf man; I do not hear, like a mute man who does not open his mouth. I have become like a man who does not hear, and in whose mouth are no rebukes. But for you, O LORD, do I wait; it is you, O Lord my God, who will answer. For I said, “Only let them not rejoice over me, who boast against me when my foot slips!” For I am ready to fall, and my pain is ever before me. I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin. But my foes are vigorous, they are mighty, and many are those who hate me wrongfully. Those who render me evil for good accuse me because I follow after good. Do not forsake me, O LORD! O my God, be not far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!" (Psalm 38 ESV)
