3.7.16 Monday
Psalm 89:5 GNT
The
heavens sing of the wonderful things you do;
the holy ones sing of your faithfulness, Lord.
the holy ones sing of your faithfulness, Lord.
I find this
somewhat a ‘God-moment’ that today’s scripture and prayer match up with
yesterday’s sermon title, ‘You Can’t Be a Christian By Yourself’. We are not alone in this journey of faith,
this invitation to holiness. We keep one
another company as our relationships with each other and with God grow and
mature. We sing praises together as the company of ‘saints’. Saints need not be spelled with a capital and
indicate only certain people. It
literally means holy ones and it refers to ALL of us. What a comfort to know we are not alone. Others are here to help us, and we are
present to help others.
I am not alone….on this holy
journey. Amen.
3.8.16
Tuesday 1 Peter 2:5 MSG
Present yourselves as building stones
for the construction of a sanctuary vibrant with life, in which you’ll serve as
holy priests offering Christ-approved lives up to God.
What
beautiful prose…I am a building stone in a sanctuary vibrant with life, a holy gathering offering spiritual sacrifice to
God. In Lent we often sacrifice by
giving up. These stones are more of a
giving in, a surrender to the life God calls us to live. But a sanctuary is more than an individual
stone, it is a community of stones, a priesthood of believers working
together. How can I better serve the
other stones in the sanctuary? What must
I surrender (besides my pride, my arrogance, etc.) to be a HOLY piece of
construction material?
God in Christ…..I surrender to
you. Amen.
3.9.16
Wednesday 1
Corinthians 3:16 MSG
You realize, don’t you, that you are
the temple of God, and God himself is present in you?
Hmmm….am
I leading up to a Habitat build with all this talk of buildings? Perhaps I am getting some good reminders of
the teamwork involved, the relationships built, and the service offered within
these builds.
I
am a holy temple of God. So are
you. Just as our holy gifts vary, so do
our temples, but they are all expressions of the greater sanctuary of God. We are connected in relationship with one
another through our common temple, our mutual holiness as saints.
What
kind of residence does my temple provide?
What might I need do to offer more hospitality to the holy within me?
Holy Spirit…reside in me. Amen.
We are God’s beloved. What a beautiful reminder on this, my 62nd
birthday. I may be officially old enough
for social security and all senior discounts, but God still loves me and
considers me holy. Prone to error and
not as hale physically, I am loved by the Almighty. We all need that reminder at times, especially
when the times are tough and God seems distant. I belong to God.
3.10.16
Thursday Romans 1:7 GNT
And so I write to all of you in Rome whom God loves
and has called to be his own people: May God our Father and the
Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.
We are God’s beloved. What a beautiful reminder on this, my 62nd
birthday. I may be officially old enough
for social security and all senior discounts, but God still loves me and
considers me holy. Prone to error and
not as hale physically, I am loved by the Almighty. We all need that reminder at times, especially
when the times are tough and God seems distant. I belong to God.
Today may my birthday gift from God
be to feel God's loving arms wrapped around me.
May I take the opportunity to share that gift with others.
Abba, thank you… I am loved and
holy. Amen.
Love. So many emotions and feelings and thoughts
circle around in one’s head when the word is spoken. But love is more than feelings and emotions,
love is action. Love is something we
do. If we love God, we don’t just say
it, we show it.
Prayer. I like the subject for today. Pray in every way you know how. I love to draw my prayers. I love to ask folks for specific names so I
know what to write when I finish the picture.
Are there people in my prayers whom I have never met, people sometimes I
don’t even know by name? Yes. Do I often never know how God has answered
the prayer, or IF God has answered it….yet?
Yes. Do I sometimes forget to
pray for the big picture or an immediate need?
Yes. Pray. Pray always.
Spend your waking moments in a state of constant prayer….in one way or
another.
To whom is Paul talking? It is a very relevant question for our
society and nation today. Paul was
talking to the Gentiles – anyone who wasn’t of the Hebrew people. The Gentiles might be modern Muslims or
Hispanics or other ‘strangers’ and ‘outcasts’.
Yet God doesn’t draw lines between people. Christ erased those lines. Shel Silverstein wrote,
3.11.16
Friday Psalm
31:23-24
Love God, all you saints;…….Be brave. Be strong. Don’t give up.
Love. So many emotions and feelings and thoughts
circle around in one’s head when the word is spoken. But love is more than feelings and emotions,
love is action. Love is something we
do. If we love God, we don’t just say
it, we show it.
Today we are heading off to work on
a Habitat rehab project. The owners of a
mobile home suffered a major fire last winter.
Having replaced the roof and done all the demolition necessary to rebuild,
they ‘ran out of steam’ and asked Habitat for help. I’m not sure what we will be doing, but it
will be work that will help a family restore their home. It will be work that shows our love for God
and for others.
I love you, Lord…. I love with my actions. Amen.
3.12.16
Saturday Ephesians 6:18 GNT
Prayer. I like the subject for today. Pray in every way you know how. I love to draw my prayers. I love to ask folks for specific names so I
know what to write when I finish the picture.
Are there people in my prayers whom I have never met, people sometimes I
don’t even know by name? Yes. Do I often never know how God has answered
the prayer, or IF God has answered it….yet?
Yes. Do I sometimes forget to
pray for the big picture or an immediate need?
Yes. Pray. Pray always.
Spend your waking moments in a state of constant prayer….in one way or
another.
When I think of ‘constant’ prayer
and conversation with God, I always go back to Tevye in Fiddler on the
Roof. He could talk with God. Some would say his conversations weren’t
‘prayer’ as modern churches conceive it, but I believe the brutal honesty of
his chats were prayer in its most basic state.
We’ll be taking a hike in a
beautiful setting today. In the midst of
the conversations with one another, perhaps we can include some good
conversation with the Almighty.
Spirit, I pray… for all the
saints. Amen.
3.13.16
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Ephesians 2:19 VOICE
And so you are no longer called outcasts and wanderers, but citizens with God's people, members of God's family, and residents of His household.
To whom is Paul talking? It is a very relevant question for our
society and nation today. Paul was
talking to the Gentiles – anyone who wasn’t of the Hebrew people. The Gentiles might be modern Muslims or
Hispanics or other ‘strangers’ and ‘outcasts’.
Yet God doesn’t draw lines between people. Christ erased those lines. Shel Silverstein wrote,"He drew a circle that shut me out;
Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout.
But Love and I had the wit to win;
We drew a circle that took him in."
I have always loved
those four simple lines. Hebrew laws
and customs drew circles that kept them separate from the atheists and
polytheists. The Israelites sometimes
considered themselves ‘better’ than others.
But Christ (LOVE) and God had the final victory and encircled everyone
into the family of God. We ALL belong to
God, whether we know it or not. We all
are holy citizens in the household of God, sisters and brothers in the
sainthood.
God of this land, … I belong to
you. Amen.
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