LENT: d365.org - GLORIFIED

INVOCATION..... (D365.org - Mike Angell)
Everyone wants to be noticed.  Pretty much everybody desires to be seen as special, even extraordinary.  That kind of ambition can get in the way of the Christian walk, however.  If there is to be any glory gained from living our lives, its important to recognize that all the credit goes eventually to the One who made us and gifted us. 
Prepare now to yield your spirit to the Spirit in whom all true glory resides. 

SATURDAY, April 12 
Psalm 130:1-6
From the depths of my despair I call to you, Lord.
2 Hear my cry, O Lord;
    listen to my call for help!  (1-2, GNT)
If you, God, kept records on wrongdoings,
    who would stand a chance?
As it turns out, forgiveness is your habit,
    and that’s why you’re worshiped. 
I pray to God—my life a prayer—
    and wait for what he’ll say and do.
My life’s on the line before God. (3-5, MSG)
My soul waits for the Lord to break into the world
    more than night watchmen expect the break of day. (6, VOICE)
     So many lines from this passage call out to me .... from every translation!   Forgiveness is your habit -  My life a prayer -  Wait for the Lord to break into the world!  Great words!  Words of hope, grace, and anticipation.  Perhaps words of challenge. 
     Mike Angell, today's d365.org writer, pens "Our culture's sense of control sometimes prevents us from knowing how to rely on God."  Our technology keeps us 'wired' to current conditions.  We have a cultural mindset to manipulate our environment to our desires.  We've lost the patient ability to simply trust God, to wait for God's redemptive power, to allow God to 'break into the world'.  We've lost living a life of prayer with the constant connection to God as a daily lifestyle.  The prayer of Psalm 130 is perhaps still prayed, but only in dire emergencies! 
     The glorified God of Easter resurrection is coming.  The transformed world awaits.  Let us open our hearts and souls and be ready for God to break into our world.  


FRIDAY, April 11 Spirit-Alive!
Romans 8:11 MSG
It stands to reason, doesn’t it, that if the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself? When God lives and breathes in you (and he does, as surely as he did in Jesus), you are delivered from that dead life. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!
     The physical body is just a cardboard box to hold our organs and bones together.  It really is nothing important in the long run.  Physical beauty?  Unimportant.  Athletic prowess?  Doesn't matter.  What counts?  The Spirit-Alive within.  An 8 month pregnant woman usually isn't feeling at the peak of her physical beauty.  But don't we often comment on the 'glow' of her face, the 'life-beauty' pulsing from within her?  We all have that special radiance when the God-Spirit pours forth from our tired and worn physical selves.   We are alive in Christ!  We glorify God when we respond in proclamation, service, and praise.  
     Every day God is whispering love and grace into us.  How am I allowing that whisper to radiate to those around me?  How am I sharing that Spirit-Light?  Do my actions glorify the God who lives in me?  

THURSDAY, April 10   Stink!
John 11:38-45 VOICE  (This is a new translation of the Bible I just came across from Thomas Nelson publishers.)

Then Jesus, who was intensely troubled by all of this, approached the tomb—a small cave covered by a massive stone.

Jesus:  Remove the stone.

Martha: Lord, he has been dead four days; the stench will be unbearable.

Jesus:  Remember, I told you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God.

 They removed the stone, and Jesus lifted His eyes toward heaven.

Jesus: Father, I am grateful that You have heard Me.  I know that You are always listening, but I proclaim it loudly so that everyone here will believe You have sent Me.

 After these words, He called out in a thunderous voice.

Jesus: Lazarus, come out!

Then, the man who was dead walked out of his tomb bound from head to toe in a burial shroud.

Jesus: Untie him, and let him go.

 As a result, many of the Jews who had come with Mary saw what happened and believed in Him.

      STINK!  The King James version in verse 39 uses the word 'stinketh'!  The body will smell, it's been four days!  
      We all have a Lazarus within us; that part of our life that stinks!  The part for which we are ashamed, the log in our eye, the separation we have made with God.  For some the gap is wider, the smell worse, the STINK more profound.  
      But Jesus brings us out.  Out of the darkness, out into the light.  We aren't always sure where we are going (but it has to smell better than a tomb!)  Faith calls us forth; faith to enter into that new life of God's love and light.  
      Shroud stench to Light-Love.  What a difference belief can make.  The decision should be easy between stink and perfume.  Why do we fight it so much?  Why are we too proud to let go?
(Apology...using a previous scribble again today with a little different message!)

WEDNESDAY, April 9  Tears
John 11:32-37 CEB

When Mary arrived where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother wouldn’t have died.”

 When Jesus saw her crying and the Jews who had come with her crying also, he was deeply disturbed and troubled.   He asked, “Where have you laid him?”

They replied, “Lord, come and see.”

Jesus began to cry.  The Jews said, “See how much he loved him!”  But some of them said, “He healed the eyes of the man born blind. Couldn’t he have kept Lazarus from dying?”

    
Lord, if you had been here....
God where are you?
I've prayed and prayed
Asking for your intercession. 
Beseeching your healing.  
If you had only answered my prayers!
Why aren't you listening??

How often are these our prayers?
Our angry frustration for God's 
  apparent lack of action?
We are blinded to the tear that fall
  from God's loving eyes..
As the Almighty weeps with us
And holds us tightly in love and
   compassion.  

It isn't the strength of our prayers
That controls God's intercession.
It isn't God lack of concern or interest.
We lack the vision to see beyond
   the immediate.
To understand the glory the tears will ultimately bring
If we continue to pray, 
If we hold fast to the God-relationship
That will bring us comfort and strength
   In the midst of tears.  

TUESDAY, April 8  I Am Life
John 11:17, 21-27 MSG

When Jesus finally got there, he found Lazarus already four days dead. .....

 Martha said, “Master, if you’d been here, my brother wouldn’t have died. Even now, I know that whatever you ask God he will give you.”

 Jesus said, “Your brother will be raised up.”

 Martha replied, “I know that he will be raised up in the resurrection at the end of time.”

 “You don’t have to wait for the End. I am, right now, Resurrection and Life. The one who believes in me, even though he or she dies, will live. And everyone who lives believing in me does not ultimately die at all. Do you believe this?”

 “Yes, Master. All along I have believed that you are the Messiah, the Son of God who comes into the world.”

     I really like the way The Message puts this: I am the Life.. Right NOW!  You don't have to wait.  Do what I do.  Be what I am.  Act as I act.  That is the life you can live RIGHT NOW!  

     Do we live as if we believe it?  Jesus ties the afterlife and the living life together - resurrection and life.  We can't just wait for the glory at the end.  We can glorify God and live the glory now, IF we live as Jesus lived.  Powerful words.  Am I up to them? 

MONDAY, April 7  
John 11:7-13  CEB

[Jesus] said to his disciples, “Let’s return to Judea again.”

8 The disciples replied, “Rabbi, the Jewish opposition wants to stone you, but you want to go back?”

9 Jesus answered, “Aren’t there twelve hours in the day? Whoever walks in the day doesn’t stumble because they see the light of the world. 10 But whoever walks in the night does stumble because the light isn’t in them.”

11 He continued, “Our friend Lazarus is sleeping, but I am going in order to wake him up.”

12 The disciples said, “Lord, if he’s sleeping, he will get well.” 13 They thought Jesus meant that Lazarus was in a deep sleep, but Jesus had spoken about Lazarus’ death.

     When will the disciples learn how unpredictable Jesus is?  They warn him about the danger of Judea.  He responds with a question about the hours in a day!  And then says, he is going to wake Lazarus up!  That's all!  It doesn't make sense!  Especially in the Gospel of John, Jesus seems to talk another language at times!  (Is this a translation issue???  I think not!)  

     Jesus knows the dangers of going to Jerusalem.  Jesus knows the dangers of living his life.  Yet he persists in fulfilling his purpose in God.  Are we willing to make that same sacrifice for God's glory?  Are there people in Baker City 'sleeping' that are waiting to be stirred to new life?  Who is stumbling in the darkness that I can help?  Am I willing to take the risk?

SUNDAY, April 6

John 11:1, 3-6  MSG

 A man was sick, Lazarus of Bethany, the town of Mary and her sister Martha. ........ So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Master, the one you love so very much is sick.”

4 When Jesus got the message, he said, “This sickness is not fatal. It will become an occasion to show God’s glory by glorifying God’s Son.”

5-7 Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, but oddly, when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed on where he was for two more days. 

What is wrong with this picture?  A beloved friend is gravely ill.  This is two thousands years ago.  The sisters didn't just pick up a cell phone and give Jesus a ring.  They 'sent word' - where WAS Jesus?  How long did it take to contact him?  And Jesus' response?  Basically a 'No hurry.  If he is dying, it'll make me look REALLY good, so let wait a few days.'  Jesus comes across as almost callous!  Not 'Jesusy' at all.  Is he procrastinating?  What does Lazarus think about his role in this drama?  He is a pawn!  Jesus had to be aware of the severity of the illness or he wouldn't have made the strange statements in verse 4.  

     Yet verse 4 holds the key to the passage: God's glory.  This event will ultimately be an opportunity to gkorify God.  Credit will be granted where it is due in the long run.  

     Do I delay in meeting the needs of those around me?  Do I give God the glory for those actions I do take, for the gifts I have been given that allow me to take action?  A song is running through my head...."To God Be the Glory, Great Things He Hath Done!"

BENEDICTION BLESSINGS..... (D365.org - Mike Angell)

We all fall short of the glory of God.
But being a follower of Jesus means taking the risk
That the resurrection-informed life is the better way.

Take the risk that your prayers might be powerful,
That love may in fact be the strongest thing of all,
Worth giving all you have that it might be known.

The glory of God will light your way.

LENT - d365.org: HEALING

INVOCATION....(d365.org - Neil Myer)

To be touched, helped, lifted up along the way. To be made whole.

Everyone longs for these things, especially in seasons of darkness and self-doubt.

God’s intent is that all the world will be mended—every nation, every person. Let that healing begin now in you.

SATURDAY, April 5

Ephesians 5:10-14 MSG

Figure out what will please Christ, and then do it.  Don’t waste your time on useless work, mere busywork, the barren pursuits of darkness. Expose these things for the sham they are. It’s a scandal when people waste their lives on things they must do in the darkness where no one will see. Rip the cover off those frauds and see how attractive they look in the light of Christ.

Wake up from your sleep,
Climb out of your coffins;
Christ will show you the light!

BR-ring!  

    Shut that thing off.    

It's the God alarm.  

Time to get up. 

Pull off the covers. 

Arise to the light of a new day. 

    It's cold out there.

    People expect things of me.

    I have too much to do. 

    I don't want to deal with life.

    I don't want to deal with people.

    I want to hide here under the layers

       of warmth and self-pity. 

Throw off the covers of darkness. 

Arise!  It's a new day in the Lord!

Your covers blind you.  

You are wallowing under blankets of deceit. 

Quilts of apathy and excuses. 

You are are drowning in the darkness of stress and busyness. 

Wake up!  Arise! 

The light has come!

Shine! God is here with you!

FRIDAY, April 4 

Ephesians 5:8-9 CEB

You were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord, so live your life as children of Light.  Light produces fruit that consists of every sort of goodness, justice, and truth.

          Darkness to light.  Blindness to sight.  Healed.  But the process of our spiritual healing isn’t always quite so instantaneous.  Becoming a Child of Light might begin slowly, and as our understanding of the path lightens, so do we. 

          I built steps this week for CHRPA.  The current steps into the client’s mobile home, located in the midst of creosote bushes out in the desert were twisted metal, with one riser tied in place with wire, a gaping hole to one side.  They were steep steps, hard to climb, hard to descend.   All around the trailer was garbage and debris: cars, old campers, furniture, backyard climbing toys, sheds erupting with rotting fabrics, all covered with the wind-blown donations from neighboring yards.  Nestled amongst the debris was a pig and two dogs plus two pots with the green hope of freshly watered plants.  These steps led from the darkness of a dilapidated trailer into the darkness of her immediate surroundings.   The client was blind to the light.    

         We built what are called cascade steps, very short riser height of 4” to make the path from trailer to ground easier to navigate.  We built sturdy steps with a secure handrail on both sides.  As she descended for the first time, this Child of God, who has lived a life of physical, emotional and spiritual darkness beyond comprehension, brightened with joy, her gruff voice erupting with “Thank you.  This is so nice!” 

      God’s spiritual healing may lead us gradually, up cascading steps, to a full realization and revelation of who we are as Children of Light.  But the path is bright, the handrails of scripture and community strong.  And each step leads us to new levels of goodness, service, justice, truth, and righteousness. 

     We are in the process of healing.  May we climb ever higher, knowing God lights the way, knowing we hold the Light within us. 

THURSDAY, April 3

John 9:39-41  MSG

Jesus then said, “I came into the world to bring everything into the clear light of day, making all the distinctions clear, so that those who have never seen will see, and those who have made a great pretense of seeing will be exposed as blind.”

Some Pharisees overheard him and said, “Does that mean you’re calling us blind?”

Jesus said, “If you were really blind, you would be blameless, but since you claim to see everything so well, you’re accountable for every fault and failure.”

     Neil Myer, today's d365.org author, writes:

When we dig our heels in so deep that we refuse to be open to the work of God in our midst, we remain blind to the light of the world that has been with us since the very beginning.

       I couldn't put it any better.  We blind ourselves when we insist on being right, when we close ourselves to new revelations before us.  We don't have to have all the answers.  We don't have to explain everything.   We can take much on faith and the knowledge that God is at work, God loves us, and God wants what is best for us.  Isn't that enough? 

      Today is Thursday, CHRPA School!  (Breakfast treats!)  I am reminded that Dan started last week's lesson on electricity with the analogy, "Electricity is alot like faith in God.  We can't see it or God, but we know that it is there!  We can see the results of the activity!"  What morsel of truth will I glean from school today?

WEDNESDAY, April 2    Pharisee Mode

John 9:30-34 MSG

The man replied, “This is amazing! You claim to know nothing about him, but the fact is, he opened my eyes! It’s well known that God isn’t at the beck and call of sinners, but listens carefully to anyone who lives in reverence and does his will. That someone opened the eyes of a man born blind has never been heard of—ever. If this man didn’t come from God, he wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
They said, “You’re nothing but dirt! How dare you take that tone with us!” Then they threw him out in the street.

     Last Sunday Bryce Miller of Shalom Fellowship asked in his sermon, "If this were a one act play, what role would you like in the story?"  We all agreed to be the blind beggar and healed would be the most desired role, but in all honesty, most of us would have to be cast as the Pharisees.  This is the role to which we are accustomed.  

     It is so much easier to challenge new ideas, new revelations, the unexplained, with a 'That can't be right! That can't be God's doing' when it goes against everything we have formerly understood.  But if I have gained anything in the past few years of scripture searching, it is that God NEVER does what we expect or, how we expect it!!  God doesn't play by OUR rules - God has his own rules that always shake things up.  

     How did the Pharisees ultimately respond after rejecting the blind beggar's healing?  They threw him out!  They totally dismissed him as worthless.  How often do I dismiss that which I don't want to accept?  That which I don't understand?  How often do I take the role of Pharisee and keep my blinders firmly in place?  

      God is waiting and ready to heal.  May I open my heart and eyes to accept a new role in the drama.  

TUESDAY, April 1  Ask for a Story

John 9:13-17  MSG

They marched the man to the Pharisees. This day when Jesus made the paste and healed his blindness was the Sabbath. The Pharisees grilled him again on how he had come to see. He said, “He put a clay paste on my eyes, and I washed, and now I see.”

 Some of the Pharisees said, “Obviously, this man can’t be from God. He doesn’t keep the Sabbath.”

Others countered, “How can a bad man do miraculous, God-revealing things like this?” There was a split in their ranks.

 They came back at the blind man, “You’re the expert. He opened your eyes. What do you say about him?”

He said, “He is a prophet.”

     Multiple times the blind man is asked, "How were you healed.  Tell us the story AGAIN."  He retells it simply, not quite understanding the miracle himself, but knowing the path he took for it to occur.  Jesus acted, the man acted, God acted.  Each time he is asked to retell his story, he opens the eyes of his listeners to the reality of Jesus.  

     This reminds me somewhat of a reaction I had after a memorial service for a dear member of our church several years back.  I heard his stories told during the service and afterwards I asked myself, "Why didn't I ask him to share his story?  Wow!  What an impact it would have made!  Eyes might have been opened, including my own!"  So now I try to ask more....Why did you come to Baker?  Have you had an eye-opening experience with God?  The questions reveal God at work and bind our faith community tightly together.  

     As I work at CHRPA this week, are there questions I might ask?  I see some symbols of faith, especially in the homes of Hispanic Catholics we visit.  What is their story?  I might be amazed at my clarity of vision at day's end.  

(God at work.  Today CHRPA handed out a new little fundraising booklet of CHRPA stories.  Tales of an organization making a difference.  Stories of the individual people touched and healed through this hands-on ministry. It is their yearly report.  Not financial figures and statistics, but simply STORIES of God at work.)

MONDAY, March 31  Siloam 

John 9:6-7, 10-11 GNT

 After he said this, Jesus spat on the ground and made some mud with the spittle; he rubbed the mud on the man's eyes  and told him, “Go and wash your face in the Pool of Siloam.” (This name means “Sent.”) So the man went, washed his face, and came back seeing.....

“How is it that you can now see?” they asked him.

 He answered, “The man called Jesus made some mud, rubbed it on my eyes, and told me to go to Siloam and wash my face. So I went, and as soon as I washed, I could see.”

A touch and Siloam...

Healing from God. 

We know the value of the touch:

     The woman and the robe,

      A mother and newborn child,

      Even Michelangelo's 'Touch of Creation' 

            comes to mind.

Touch can heal,

Touch conveys compassion. 

Touch transfer heart and soul from one to another. 

But 'Siloam'??  

The word means sent. 

Dispatched.  Directed. Released.

Part two of the healing process, 

More comes after the touch. 

Siloam implies obedience,

A need to follow-through and go.

Siloam. 

God responds often with the touch. 

And then follows with the mission....

How well do we listen?

How often do we obey and go out?

     To complete the healing....

        ...in ourselves, in others?

     To share the miracle of God,

           the change in our life?

We are touched. 

We are sent. 

We are healed.

We are transformed.

Siloam. 

I have been touched by the people of CHRPA, by their passion for the struggling of this city.  Today I will once again be sent out to do God's work with them and among them.  Siloam.  May I be transformed and healed in the experience.  Amen.   

SUNDAY, March 30 Who Sinned? 

John 9:1-3 CEB

As Jesus walked along, he saw a man who was blind from birth. 2 Jesus’ disciples asked, “Rabbi, who sinned so that he was born blind, this man or his parents?”

3 Jesus answered, “Neither he nor his parents. This happened so that God’s mighty works might be displayed in him.
     

Our simple questions seek black and white answers.  Who sinned? Someone must be at fault!  Bad things don't happen to good people, do they?  I thought back to my cascading fountain and the first pool of water is Suffering and Difficulty.  God doesn't will it.  No one sinned to cause it.  But.... faith means being able to see the Hope that can spring forth from the bottom of the fountain if we allow God to tumble us down the cleansing and refreshing path of grace.  What amazing miracle, what common pinprick of Light, can come from God's healing in this situation?  
     When we seek black and white answers, we blind ourselves to the infinite possibilities that await in the midst of the gray.  God is present.  The Light is present. May we take off the blinders and see what is possible with God.  

****

Sunday Service at Shalom Mennonite Fellowship. The same scripture!  (Only the whole passage 1-34.)
Sermon by Bryce Miller, pastor 
KEY POINT:  For all our blindness, healing is offered if we are willing to receive it. 
**  Who sinned?  It happened so God would be revealed. 
**  The blind man has MUCH better vision of God than the Pharisees. 
**  We want answers and reasons so much that it is hard to face suffering with a simple, 'I'm sorry.'  We want the why, how, when!  Explain!  Often God questions are unanswerable.  
**  Ours is a culture of fault - we want to place responsibility.  If it is unexplainable, it must be wrong! 
**  Jesus works with the world as he finds it; not finding fault, but seeking justice. 
**  Our questions blind us to God at work among us!  Often God is where we least expect him.  
**  The Pharisees were sure of who God was:  he only speaks through the chosen, he doesn't work on Sundays, and he is in OUR image.....am I a Pharisee?
**  What blinds me to God?  (a comfortable, easy, middle class life, fear of the unknown, pride and egoism.....)

Shalom Mennonite Fellowship has a series of rock cairns in the chancel area symbolizing and reminding us that God has marked our way on the path to Him.  Similar to Joshua stones?  I liked the cairn reminder!  
BENEDICTION BLESSINGS...(d365.org - Neil Myer)

Go now with a willingness to see things as they are,
And imagine the world as it could be.

We all have a story to tell
And experiences that shape what we see.

But there is healing in the truth God brings
And enough light to see just ahead,
For God is already in the place where you are going.

GOSPEL OF LUKE - Chapter 13

Luke 13:1-3  Turn to God

About that time some people came up and told him about the Galileans Pilate had killed while they were at worship, mixing their blood with the blood of the sacrifices on the altar.  Jesus responded, ‘Do you think those murdered Galileans were worse sinners than all other Galileans?  Not at all.  Unless you turn to God, you, too, will die.  (MSG)

Luke 13:1-3

         Jesus debunks the theory that sin can be measured by severity and punishment falls accordingly.  The ‘bad things only happen to bad people’ theory, and REALLY bad things…likewise.  No!!  Sin is sin, death is death, and God is God.  All sin can be forgiven, regardless of nature, if God is put at the center of life, if repentance is genuine.   God does not punish with natural calamities.  Perhaps that was the mode of choice in the Old Testament, but Jesus came to change all that.  Bad things sometimes happen to good people too! That’s life, not God punishment!  No one is more deserving than anyone else.  Our punishment is often internal, of our own doing, when we turn away from the source of life: God.  We all have the opportunity to make and live that choice.  The sooner, the better.

       

LUKE 13:14-17  Sabbath Work

The meeting-place president, furious because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, said to the congregation, “Six days have been defined as work days. Come on one of the six if you want to be healed, but not on the seventh, the Sabbath.”

But Jesus shot back, “You frauds! Each Sabbath every one of you regularly unties your cow or donkey from its stall, leads it out for water, and thinks nothing of it. So why isn’t it all right for me to untie this daughter of Abraham and lead her from the stall where Satan has had her tied these eighteen years?”

Luke 13:14-17

When he put it that way, his critics were left looking quite silly and red-faced. The congregation was delighted and cheered him on.  (MSG)

            The Pharisees seemed to continually try and catch Jesus breaking the Jewish laws of Moses, in this case, the fourth commandment to honor the Sabbath Day.  But Jesus muddies the water of ‘work’.  Are not the Pharisees working on the Sabbath?  Does ‘work’ change when it is work in honor of God?  Perhaps the intention of the commandment is more ‘honor the Sabbath day’ and honor God!  What if we were to make a Sabbath time EVERY day?  What if our work is in service to God?  What if, just imagine,  we were to live Sabbath all the time?  What a way to honor and glorify our God! 

^{Luke 13:18-21   Parables of the Kingdom}

Luke 13:18-19

Then he said, “How can I picture God’s kingdom for you? What kind of story can I use? It’s like a pine nut that a man plants in his front yard. It grows into a huge pine tree with thick branches, and eagles build nests in it.”    He tried again. “How can I picture God’s kingdom? It’s like yeast that a woman works into enough dough for three loaves of bread—and waits while the dough rises.” (MSG)

        Everyone, no matter how insignificant, has the potential of the grain of yeast or tiny seed to grow the Kingdom of God.  With each act of kindness, service, or charity, our seeds grow, our yeast expands, God’s presence is made known.  Each time we honor one another, we honor God, and the Kingdom grows. 

        How well am I nurturing my seed of God’s Kingdom?  How warm and hospitable is the environment for the yeast of my Kingdom bread?  May the Spirit continue to work within me and grow.  

LENT d365.org: Revelations

INVOCATION.... (d365.org - Carol Harston)

Surprise. Even shock. These can be part of the experience when knowledge is suddenly discovered.

But revelations are also the source of wider and deeper understanding, resulting in personal challenge that leads to change.

Watch for new insights that result from taking these next few moments to listen for what God might have you know.

SATURDAY, March 29  Raise the Rafters!

Psalm 95:1-7a MSG

Come, let’s shout praises to God,
    raise the roof for the Rock who saved us!
Let’s march into his presence singing praises,
    lifting the rafters with our hymns!

 And why? Because God is the best,
    High King over all the gods.
In one hand he holds deep caves and caverns,
    in the other hand grasps the high mountains.
He made Ocean—he owns it!
    His hands sculpted Earth!

 So come, let us worship: bow before him,

  on your knees before God, who made us!

It's been a week of revelations.  A week of God revealing his presence through the living waters of hope and grace and abundant love.  And now, it is time to give thanks, to offer to God our grateful hearts in a celebration of praise and wonder.  God is present.  Raise the rafters!  Sing a song of the God revealed through Jesus, the God that can be revealed in me!  

FRIDAY, March 28  Cascade of Living Waters

Romans 5:3-5 MSG

There’s more to come: We continue to shout our praise even when we’re hemmed in with troubles, because we know how troubles can develop passionate patience in us, and how that patience in turn forges the tempered steel of virtue, keeping us alert for whatever God will do next. In alert expectancy such as this, we’re never left feeling shortchanged. Quite the contrary—we can’t round up enough containers to hold everything God generously pours into our lives through the Holy Spirit!

A cascading fountain of living water:
From one stage to another we grow. 
Suffering through troubled times
   tumbles down into patience,
   endurance tempers our souls. 
Patience bubbles up and then falls
   into a basin of character and virtue.
The bowl fills and flows forth into Hope.
And the pool of Hope?
The opportunities abound for
An infinity of containers cannot catch     the Living Waters of hope,
God flows into every aspect of our lives,
And Spirit-Love becomes a part of us.
Go forth this day expectant -
Patiently seeking God's abundant love
Poured forth into the pools of our lives.

THURSDAY, March 27  On the Threshold

Romans 5:1-2 MGS

 By entering through faith into what God has always wanted to do for us—set us right with him, make us fit for him—we have it all together with God because of our Master Jesus. And that’s not all: We throw open our doors to God and discover at the same moment that he has already thrown open his door to us. We find ourselves standing where we always hoped we might stand—out in the wide open spaces of God’s grace and glory, standing tall and shouting our praise. 

We stand on the threshold of revelation,
Of God revealed, Love enacted, 
Grace freely flowing. 
We stand freed from our expectations,
Our insecurities and limitations. 
Behind us linger our doubts and ignorance,
Our pride meshed with an egocentric idea of success.  
Beyond the threshold,
In a Spirit-empowered fountain of Living Water,
Lies opportunity, hope, 
Gifts of peace, joy, and faith. 
Stand on the threshold of glory, 
Feast on the face of God,
Prepare to leap into a new life!  
Hallelujah! 

WEDNESDAY, March 26  Knowing

John 4:41-42 GNT

Many more believed because of his [Jesus] message,  and they told the woman, “We believe now, not because of what you said, but because we ourselves have heard him, and we know that he really is the Savior of the world.”

What do I KNOW?
I say I believe.
I utter words of faith.
I try to walk the walk. 
But do I KNOW? 
With a depth of comprehension
That erupts from within 
  And shatters all previous perceptions. 
Do I KNOW with an awareness 
   of God at work in all I see around me?
Do I KNOW through experience,
 through  a witness of God-grace,
 and the revelation pf new life?

The sun is rising in my eyes,
Another day, another opportunity, presents itself. 
What will I learn this day of the God I proclaim?
What will I do that demonstrates this knowledge?
How can I share what I KNOW with others, 
   so all may know.
As the sun sets this evening,
   may such knowledge be revealed,
   in me and through me.  

TUESDAY, March 25  A-ha Moment

John 4: 28-30 GNT

Then the woman left her water jar, went back to the town, and said to the people there,  “Come and see the man who told me everything I have ever done. Could he be the Messiah?”  So they left the town and went to Jesus.

The light bulb turns on;

The mind explodes with awareness.

The student looks in wonder,

Somewhat grasping, but excited.

It's the 'Aha' moment in the classroom. 

When a morsel of truth is revealed,

And the student begins to nibble. 

For the woman at the well,

An 'Aha' of Truth has come. 

God is revealed; Grace abounds. 

In her excitement, she abandons her water jar.

She deserts her past, the guilt of sin,

And runs to exclaim, to shout her joy.

Uncertain where this revelation may lead,

She proclaims the truth she has seen.

Look for an 'Aha' moment today,
An opportunity to glimpse the revelation of God-grace,
And be freed to a new life.

MONDAY, March 24  Thirst

John 4:13-15  MSG

Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.”

 The woman said, “Sir, give me this water so I won’t ever get thirsty, won’t ever have to come back to this well again!”

We all thirst.

On hot, dry days, 

the thirst is physical. 

A yearning in our bodies for water -

Life-giving liquid.

The dehydration can kill.

Yet, we all thirst for more.

We thirst for acceptance,

respect, and love.

We thirst for relationships that build unity,

For the touch of one another in compassion. 

We thirst for worth, 

A sense that what we do counts ...and matters.

This thirst is spiritual;

Yet the dehydration can also kill.  

Come to the well. 

Drink of God's eternal waters.

Drink...

And thirst no more. 

SUNDAY, March 23  Well Encounter

John 4:7-10  MSG

A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, “Would you give me a drink of water?” (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)

9 The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, “How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” (Jews in those days wouldn’t be caught dead talking to Samaritans.)

10 Jesus answered, “If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water.”

Trapped in a self-proclaimed role.

Held captive by societal norms

Who am I to speak to the stranger?

Keep to my position,

Dare not not respond.

A man asking, not demanding!

A Jew no less!

But I hear a

Voice of compassion.  

Who is this man?

Who is this God?

What is this living water?

Dare I drink? 

His presence radiates peace,

His demeanor an echo of hope. 

His words fill me with worth.

A revelation of transformation.

Who IS this man?

Who is his God?

Dare I drink of this living water?

Dare I?

---

We worshipped today at Shalom Mennonite Fellowship, the parent church of CHRPA and our hosts for these two weeks.  I enjoy the informality of the services and especially the quality of the singing!  The regular minister was gone today, so my scribble is based on the Call to Worship, a short poem quote by Elizabeth Barrett Browning. 

BENEDICTION BLESSING....(d365.org - Carol Harston)

Go now, willing to be set free
By words that bring new life,
By grace that brings new light.

Prepare yourself for knowledge that brings peace
Which knows no limits.

God is giving you reasons to be hopeful
And a new song to sing.