FOLLOW THE MASTER
“A word from your Creator will
enlarge your vision!” (PL)
This devotion post is based on Chapter/Month 2 of Patsy Lewis' book SIMPLY REJOICING,
Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City.
MONDAY,
June 2 HITTING
THE WALL
Mark
14:71-72 MSG
Now Peter got really nervous and swore, “I never laid eyes on
this man you’re talking about.” Just then the rooster crowed a second time.
Peter remembered how Jesus had said, “Before a rooster crows twice, you’ll deny
me three times.” He collapsed in tears.
At
some point we all lose it. We try so
hard, maintain a consistent effort, and in spite, hit the proverbial ‘wall’. Peter did.
He professed Jesus over and over, and yet in the wee hours of a morning,
denied him three times. Yet that wasn’t
the end for Peter. Jesus/God didn’t
erase him from the plan and think, ‘All that effort and he is worthless’! No, we are forgiven, provided the
opportunities to refresh and recharge, to reconnect the relationship, and
continue the work.
It’s
nice to know we can fail with forgiveness.
It’s nice to know that everything won’t always be roses, and in spite of
the thorns, we can persevere. The time
we spend with Jesus will refuel our engines and get us back up and
running.
SUNDAY, June 1 KNOWING GOD
2 Peter 1:3-4
Everything that
goes into a life of pleasing God has been miraculously given to us by getting
to know, personally and intimately, the One who invited us to God. (3:MSG)
Everything
we need to know we’ve been given! Oh,
that we would listen completely! Because
the catch is in the second half of the verse: ‘by getting to know, personally and
intimately, the One who invited us to God.’
We can’t figure out life if we don’t personally KNOW the source of
abundant life.
When
we meet someone new, how do we get to know them? We talk with them, we watch them in action,
we do things together, we share stories. This is how I will get to know my new CAV team tonight. This is also how we can get to know God. Prayer allows us to talk with God.
Jesus provides us with a view of God in action. Daily events, seen with
God-eyes, offer glimpses into God at work.
Service in God’s name means working side-by-side with God. Scripture is filled with God stories if we will but read it. EVERYTHING WE NEED TO KNOW WE’VE BEEN
GIVEN! May we attune our lives to the
many opportunities we have to intimately be in relationship with God and we
will grasp much of that ‘everything’.
FAST WITH EYES OPEN
“A fast may alert you to future
temptation.” (PL)
This devotion post is based on the
book SIMPLY REJOICING by Patsy Lewis,
Beacon Hill Press of Kansas City.
SATURDAY,
May 31 Temptation Buster
Luke
4:3-4; 8 MSG
“The Devil, playing on his hunger, gave the first test: ‘Since
you’re God’s Son, command this stone to turn into a loaf of bread.’ Jesus answered by quoting Deuteronomy: ‘It
takes more than bread to really live.”…. “Jesus refused, again backing his
refusal with Deuteronomy: ‘Worship the Lord your God and only the Lord your
God. Serve him with absolute
single-heartedness.”
What
is Jesus’s weapon against temptation?
Scripture. During his silent retreat,
Jesus fasted from food, but he feasted on Scripture. He digested it, he was strengthened by it, he
was fortified by it when temptation came.
Jesus could quote Scripture with a perfect response to whatever the
Temptor threw at him. He knew it inside
and out and it sustained him.
Now…if
I take this literally, I have to admit I can be irritated by someone who seems
to quote scripture by book and verse effortlessly. Often their response seems to be more for
show and to impress rather than a true regard for the words they spout. But since I am often tempted by food I
shouldn’t eat, perhaps to use Scripture as a ‘buster’ could be helpful. When tempted to eat for the wrong reasons, I
should find a verse that reminds me why I can better serve God without those
calories!
FRIDAY,
May 30 Silent Retreat
“A
silent retreat is not necessarily accompanied by fasting from food – neither of
mine was. It is a fast from talking and
noise and the hurry-scurry of distractions for the purpose of listening and
fellowship with your Maker and Redeemer.
It may include reading the Bible and other Christian literature, walking
and observing God’s handiwork, even sleeping and getting much needed rest.” (Patsy Lewis in Simply Rejoicing)
I
would like to think I have a mini retreat each morning, but no. The time is too short, too focused on the
‘end product’ rather than any fellowship or listening to God. I think a positive retreat experience should
last at least 2 hours. That’s enough
time to remove my compulsion to produce and allow me to let go and listen.
I
like Lewis’ thoughts, however, on how to retreat. It doesn’t have to be sitting with a candle
in a quiet corner. It can be. But it can also be a walk in the woods and
visiting with God as you immerse yourself in the glory of God’s creation. Rick probably experiences many more Silent
Retreats in this manner than I because he goes off hiking or snowshoeing alone
and always includes a time to have his “little chat” with God. (That’s what he calls them!)
A
retreat is time away….in solitude. My
morning devotion time is often sitting in the midst of conversation. Either I need to get up earlier or I need to
find a more personal space!
Everyone
likes to go on a retreat! May we ‘treat’
ourselves more often to the joy of the experience!
PS
Yesterday morning I took a break from this book and wrote a Habitat
devotion. You can find it under the
“Random Morning Thoughts” post in February.
WEDNESDAY, May 28 Fasting
Luke
4:1-2 MSG
 |
| Recycled, but the scripture is the same! |
“Now Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, left the Jordan and was led by
the Spirit into the wild. For forty
wilderness days and nights he was tested by the Devil. He ate nothing during those days, and when
the time was up he was hungry.”
There is a lot of scripture on
the topic of fasting. It was a common
practice among the legalistic rituals of the Jewish people, often done for ‘show
of holiness’. This isn’t the kind of
fasting that Jesus suggests. We usually
think of fasting as going without food, or partial fasting as withholding
certain foods. But the real point of the
practice is to enter into a time of conversation with God. Fasting allows us to focus on God while we
remove the more selfish distractions of food or busyness. If our motives are pure, a fast can be a real
spiritual experience, especially if done in solidarity with a group. (This
helps with the temptation to break the fast too soon!) Fasting helps us LISTEN better to what God has to say, what God wants us to do.
My
only real experience with fasting was during our PYG 30 Hour Famine
events. We went 30 hours without solid
food, consuming only water or a little fruit juice. We spent the time focused on community
service, simulations of hunger situations worldwide, in worship and fellowship. The fasts were a major bonding moment for our
group. I always finished the fast
thinking, ‘I should do this more often’, but I never carried through with that
promise!
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