Devotion.al

Tag: future

  • Ready! Set!

    Ready! Set!

    Luke 5:1–11; Luke 6:12–16; Luke 9:1–6; Luke 9:28–36; Luke 24:44-49; Acts 2:14 (read online ⧉)

    What’s your 6-month plan? What’s your 12-month plan? What’s your 3-year plan? What’s your 10-year plan?

    Some variation of this question is often asked of high school students, college students, recent graduates, job interviewees. In this particular time of COVID-19, it seems a little far-fetched to even make a plan.

    Depending on your personality and training/learning, you may have a plan laid out for even 10- or 20-years. Others look at their past and the , and say why bother? Who knows what the next monkey-wrench will be.

    Businesses have begun to learn, thanks to the start-up culture, that rigid plans are deadly. There is a term for it, agile. Businesses are now called to be agile by their stockholders. It’s a necessity as the next technological disruption is just around the corner. Other disruptions, like COVID-19, are much harder to be agile toward, however, companies that already had some agility were better able to respond.

    If you look at the verses from Luke in sequence and ending with Acts, you see a change in plans. Peter is a major focal point as he moves from fisherman, to acquaintance, to follower (i.e., disciple), to inner-circle follower, to faith healer and herald, to an even smaller inner-circle, to transformed (by the Spirit), to preacher and leader. This was not part of Peter’s plan.

    At the point we Peter, his lifetime plan is fisherman. Three years later he’s the leader (of leaders) of a religious movement! Peter met Jesus, and the plan…it was gone.

    It’s not that plans are bad. Jesus even praised (Luke 14:28-32). However, we have to be and willing to toss out our plans when Jesus calls.

    Plans are our way to control our circumstances. This is why we have planning departments. This is even how we have modern agriculture. Planning is good.

    Planning still has to yield to Jesus’ call. That’s where we often fail.

    There will be many churches, businesses, cities, and even families that will not recover from COVID-19. In many cases, no amount of planning will prevent that. On the other hand, churches (especially) chose to not be agile, because that is not the way we’ve done it before.

    Churches chose to die, rather than respond to Jesus Christ’s call for them to be agile in how they performed their . It could be, sadly, that they forgot the only mission that they had, “Go and make disciples…baptizing them…teaching them…”

    On a personal level, just like an organizational level, we need to be agile. Our plans (as much as we want them to be) cannot be rigid and inflexible.

    Whether it was the leaders (it was) or the people (it was) forgoing the mission for the sake of “the plan”, it means that “the plan” became the mission, and Jesus became a mascot.

    ※※

    Lord, give us your plans. Help us to release our plans. May we be the salt of the earth that you have called us to be. Amen.

    ※※

    1) What would be your if God were to turn your plans upside down? What in your current life would you be willing to give up to follow God’s plan?

    2) What are your plans right now? If you have none, why not? Should you? If you do have plans when was your last time to renew/refresh it?

    3) Why do you think churches have a hard time changing plans?

  • Oath Busting

    Oath Busting

    Genesis 13:1–18; Numbers 13:30–14:4; Numbers 14:36–45 (read online ⧉)

    God had made a promise to Abraham. As God is the make of the promise, following yesterday’s devotion, it was an oath. Abraham’s descendants would flourish in the land that Abraham would walk.

    At the time of Lot’s and Abraham’s separation, the land that Lot had was the better land. The lesser, more difficult land was Abraham’s. Yet, it was on this lesser more difficult land that God would build a with God’s name on it.

    After many years, Abraham’s descendants had finally arrived to “take” the land. The tribes that had flourished with the absence of Abraham’s descendants certainly weren’t going to be willing or eager to just hand the land over. As far as they, the current inhabitants, were concerned this was their gods’ land. The Israelites were nothing.

    Even those technically related were just as harsh to the Israelites. Yet, there was an oath made by God. Perhaps the oath was no longer valid. Perhaps God broke the oath.

    This is where it gets interesting for us, too. When God made the oath, there was no promise of easy living or being able to just get the land. The Israelites had to work for it, too.

    This is also the case for us. God calls us to be his people. God made an oath to always be with us. That doesn’t mean it’s going to be easy. In fact, part of being with us was part of telling us that things would be hard.

    The Israelites, just like us, weren’t going to have anything to do with this difficult stuff. They wanted the easy street. At one point, God tells the Israelites about when they will worship and with produce they didn’t plant, with labor they didn’t spend. They had to value the fulfillment of God’s oath.

    Instead, they decided that they were going to break the oath. It might sound a tad harsh. However, it wasn’t God that decided that the oath wouldn’t be . They decided it.

    So, God “accepted” their decision, and gave the consequences. And they decided to try to break that, too. Moses also makes a point to them, that is also for us. God wasn’t with them. They would fail. If only they hadn’t tried to break the oath (that wasn’t theirs to break) in the first place.

    ※ A of Billy Graham ※
    …, we thank You for the promise and hope of [the future], and we look to it with expectancy and . This [we] in the name of our Lord and Savior, who by His death and has given us hope both for this world and the world to come. [Amen]

    ※ Questions ※
    1) Have you ever had someone try to break the oath or promise of another person? What was the situation? How did it work out?
    2) Why would a person try to break the oath or promise of another person?
    3) What can the short-, medium-, and long-term consequences of promise- and oath-breaking?

  • Living Out Love

    Living Out Love

    1 Thessalonians 4:13–14; 1 Corinthians 13:4–13; James 1:22–25 (read online ⧉)

    The well-known atheist, Christopher Hitchens, had many debates (philosophical, scientific) with Christians. During at least one (and probably many) of the debates, he was asked what his hope was or what hope his view delivered, and he answered honestly…none.

    The world always needs hope. Sermons and devotionals are only to be the groundwork for Christians out their hope. How one lives out hope is therefore very important. Hope is not just a state of mind or state of being. If we state we have hope and yet live as if we have none, then our hope is a lie and we are hypocrites.

    states that is the greatest of the great three: , hope, love. However, love cannot just be said; it must be done. James’ concern was that people said a lot of things, but did little in response. Today is not that different. Christians say love a lot.

    One could say, especially in this day and , that hope is love lived out. Without love, hope is blind optimism for the . In love, hope finds its ultimate fulfillment in knowing and trusting God.

    How this often will work out is helping another person not out of obligation or expectation (especially of reciprocation), but out of hope that they will see Christ in and through you.

    This means that people who are different than us (especially in regards to motivations and situations) will still receive hope through the love we show them when we aid or even simply listen to their story.

    Through hope, honest and true hope in the Living God, we are able to be non-judgmental, not because we actually are, but because we trust in the loving and merciful judgment of God. This is also why phrases such as, “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” are often so dangerous, for people live out a hope-LESS response for they only know or of God’s anger, and never about the motivation of God’s anger…love.

    As we watch a slower than desired “return to normal”, and as friends, family, and some of us are experiencing financial struggles due to a weakening economy, being overcome by fear, hopelessness, pessimism, and cynicism is easy. Being the hope-filled people that God has made us to be is counter-cultural. This is a good thing.

    ※※ A Prayer of Augustine ※※
    Now it is you alone that I love,
    you alone that I follow,
    you alone that I seek,
    you alone that I feel ready to ,
    because you alone rule justly.
    It is to your authority alone that I want to submit.
    Command me, I pray, to do whatever you will,
    but heal and open my ears
    that I may hear your voice.
    Heal and open my eyes
    that I may see your will.
    Drive out from me
    all fickleness,
    that I may acknowledge you alone.
    Tell me where to look
    that I may see you,
    and I will place my hope in doing your will. Amen

    ※※ Questions ※※
    1) What can you point to in your living (rather than your words) that show you have hope?
    2) Is there a difference between optimism and living in hope? How do you tell the difference in a person’s life?
    3) How is hope counter-cultural?

  • At His Word

    At His Word

    Psalm 19; Proverbs 1:1–8; Romans 15:4–13 (read online ⧉)

    When you read the , are you reading words or are you reading the ?

    If you have been a for any length of time you know what the “right” answer is. That doesn’t mean that for you it is the true answer. Many people read the Bible because it is the “right” thing to do, or they’ve developed habits (which is good, too).

    The saddest situation is those that read the Bible but have lost the and wonder with reading. If you’ve never had any joy or wonder, then the opening question applies. If you’ve lost the joy and wonder…it might be time to pause and reflect.

    There are a lot of ways and methods and suggestions on how to read the Scriptures. It’s not that they don’t matter, they aren’t the first step. You need to know your reason for reading the Scriptures. One could say that the most you get out of it will be based on what you put into it. Yet, that really doesn’t fit with the Scriptures, at least not as a whole. What you might get out of Deuteronomy will likely be different then you get out of the Psalms which will be different than Proverbs.

    The closest description one can probably use regarding all of the Scriptures (other than “the Word of God”) is a love letter. Yes, it is a very long love letter. It also is filled with many hard things. We look around us, and the world is much the same. It is filled with beauty and love. It is filled with darkness.

    There are a few absolutes in the Scriptures about the Scriptures. The psalmist writes about the instructions. Solomon writes about God’s wisdom. Paul talks about how the past speaks to the now and the future.

    , somehow you are the Word of God and so are the Scriptures we have been given. Thank you for this , for it shows us time and time again the unfathomableness of God. Holy Spirit, guide as we read the Word. Help us to see the ‘s love to us. Amen

    1) What is your favorite book of the Bible (if it is a Psalm, which one)? Why? How does it tell you about God, and about you?

    2) How would you describe the Scriptures to another believer? How would describe them to a non-believer?

    3) If you were stuck on an island (or in your house), would the bible be enough for you? Would it be sufficient?

  • A Time of Distress

    A Time of Distress

    Deuteronomy 4:25–31; Jonah 2:1–10; Matthew 9:35–38 (read online ⧉)

    Moses is not all that optimistic about the future spiritual health of the people of Israel. He’s downright pessimistic about what paths they will follow away from God. There is something in today’s opening verse that is important, “When you…have been in the land a long time….” We often focus on the acting corruptly piece. It is the underlying comfort piece that we should be aware of. Being in a place for a long time breeds comfort. Comfort often produces contempt (which is seems to be the thrust of Moses’ concern). Moses continues with how their descendants would, instead of worshiping the God that rescued them from Egypt, worship lifeless idols of wood and metal. What a mess!

    And then…DISTRESS! Honestly, as we understand reading the story of the fall of Israel, we understand just how much distress they experienced. Reading the prophets we understand just how much contempt they had, as well. Yet, the distress was a refiners fire for the Israelites, and that was a good thing.

    Jonah’s distress was also self-inflicted. He ran away from his call from God. When he finally acknowledged his responsibility to the call, he was tossed into the sea and swallowed by a fish. Not quite a refiner’s fire, but perhaps the gastric juices of the fish served the same effect. Jonah, in his distress, approached the throne of God. DISTRESS! It was a good thing.

    After all the Israelites and then the Jews (the last known identifiable remnants of Israel) had been through, they were still in distress at the time of Jesus. The crowds that followed Jesus were adrift on a spiritual -tossed sea. They were abandoned (without a ). When Jesus had compassion on them, it was (in many respects) no different than God’s compassion on the lost Israelites. These people were in distress. The good news? That drew them to Jesus.

    Distress is not an uncommon thing. Sadly, it’s not uncommon at all. It is part of the condition. It is what we do in and with the distress that is important. Distress can refine us. The refiner’s fire can often be an uncomfortable thing. We are now at a time when we all need to embrace the distress and the fire. For some, it the endless activities that have ceased. For others, it could be the of the church that was, is, and is to come. Then there are the economic and stability that desperately need answers.

    For all of these things, and more, there are assumptions that need to be questioned. Some will be retained (and that’s okay). Others we may . There is a snarky comment directed at politicians…a good politician will never let a crisis go to waste. We shouldn’t either. In the case of a politician, it will usually be for . For us, it needs to be so that we are made, re-made, and continually re-made into the image of Jesus Christ.

    Almighty God, we surrender our desire to control this crisis. We surrender our fears and anxieties. Help us to, most of all, surrender ourselves to your will and way. We know that you will to take our bad and turn it into good for us. Help, Lord, to embrace, accept and pursue your loving hammer and chisel that shapes our hearts of stone. Give us new life that takes any part of us that is stone and unyielding to you, and turn it into flesh that brings you glory and . Amen.

    1) What is the biggest “obstacle” for you right now in the current situation? Is it an obstacle that is between you and God?

    2) How do you see the current COVID-19 situation being a “refiner’s fire”? How is it not a “refiner’s fire”?

    3) What other distress points are on your right now? What might God be using those to draw you to him?

  • HE IS RISEN!

    Psalm 118:1–24; John 20:1–23; Colossians 3:1–12 (read online ⧉)

    What a day!

    Most of us have lost a loved one. It is hard. Sometimes we have been present when they died, sometimes we weren’t. How deep the ache depends on the . Even with people we barely knew or lost touch with, there is still a feeling of loss when they die.

    All of them were still in shock. The women had a (culturally assigned) task to do, and that was perfume Jesus’ body so that his body wouldn’t smell as bad as it decomposed (yes, it is that basic and gruesome). They had a task which, as hard as it was, provided something to do and help process their loss. The male disciples didn’t have that. They got to and stare at each other, with each one probably more at a loss than the others.

    And then their whole world got turned upside down…again!

    HE IS NOT HERE!

    HE IS RISEN!

    Shock. . Shock. Disbelief.

    And then…now what? What does this mean?

    We often skip verses 19–23 on Easter. However, note the timing of the commissioning of the disciples. It’s still the Day of . Still. The day is not yet over. Doing something is not in the . It is now.

    Peace, sent, receive, forgive. Not quite the normal order that we think of when it comes to the disciples being commissioned, and perhaps the order isn’t quite as important as when they were commissioned. Everything thing has just been turned upside down…go and do likewise!

    This immediacy even translates later when writes to the Colossians. He calls on them to forego their ways of old, because they are saved (and with Christ) now. It’s not that we to be saved, or wait to go tell others, when we have it down, when we’re perfect. There is no step beyond our at which point we are free or commissioned to about Jesus. At the point of our salvation, no later, are we to start talking about Jesus.

    No matter how you feel about yourself, whether you are worthy of Christ (you aren’t), or whether he loves you fully (he does), go and talk about Jesus.

    1) Why do you think Jesus commissioned the disciples so soon after his resurrection? In today’s world we often provide “space” to “process”. Jesus didn’t do that. What does that tell us?

    2) Paul tells the Colossians that they are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of God they already have. Why is that an important concept and awareness for us?

    3) Jesus was killed by Jew and Gentile. Jesus came to save both Jew and Gentile. If there really is a both/and, why did the divide then, and why does it divide now?

  • Learn Deeply

    Mark 9:2–13, Mark 9:30–32 (read online ⧉)

    School could bring happiness to some, and great misery to . Often the refrain of children is, “what’s the point.” “This is useless.” “I’ll never use this.” Perhaps you’ve said it yourself. Learning can often be hard. Learning new concepts can be even harder. Learning things that shatter your self-perception or perception of the world are the hardest of all.

    With ‘ fame as extensive as it was and growing, he and the disciples were probably not often alone, although we don’t really know. Only 3 of the disciples witnessed the . Did the 3 really not tell the others? Can you imagine witnessing such a and having to keep quiet? Apparently, they did. Was it possibly just one of those amazing things among other amazing things that they experienced.

    Perhaps it was time to process all those events. Jesus seems to have set some focused time with the disciples. They experienced yet something else that didn’t fit. They had to understand at some point. What is interesting is that this particular time is framed in reference to the coming cross. The implication is that Jesus did some more extensive teaching of his disciples to understand what would happen. Based on responses, it is likely that Jesus was setting the foundation/groundwork for them to be able to understand in the future, even while they didn’t understand at that point.

    Was it frustrating to Jesus? Many would say, “of course not! He’s Jesus!” On the other hand, Jesus is man, so it makes sense that he would be quite frustrated with their thick-headedness. Teachers deal with this on a constant basis. Parents deal with this on a constant basis. Trying to pass on requires them the framework to build on future knowledge. In an often desperate attempt for the “them” to get it, though, there is this push to get information into them. Yet, that often results in frustration and setbacks.

    Jesus provides us a small example. space to process. However, in today’s world, everything is pushing information to us. We often don’t have time—and don’t make time—to process information. This means that the information we are given becomes a confused mess, and often our responses are the same. This leads to hard feelings and wall-building, which is not the intent at all.

    1) What is God calling on you to and process? What is one big thing/goal/learning that God has brought into your that you need God’s help to work through?

    2) Who do you have in your life do you have to help you process things, especially “God” sorts of things?

    3) How do you process things? Do you have another word for “process”?

  • Posture of Power

    1 Corinthians 2:1–5, Ephesians 3:14–19 (read online ⧉)

    makes a difference. We all acknowledge that. Whether it is political power, military power, law enforcement power, boss power, parental power, and even spouse power. Power is a part of every relationship. Even in relationships of equality, power will always be there.

    Often people will use the power of others to throw their weight around. This would be the concept of name-dropping, whether it’s saying you “know” a person, or you “work” for a person, both mean that you are “dropping” hints at the power you are associated with.

    It is well within the norms of human behavior to use power to convince people to listen and believe. While we suppose the gentle art of persuasion isn’t about power, it actually is. Persuasion is built around people giving someone the power to change their minds. Yes, this is an oversimplification. It is far more complicated than that, yet, the underlying truth that power is involved even there remains.

    When reminds the Corinthians of how he convinced them of the truth of the , he notes that he didn’t use rhetorical flourishes, great wit, or proof of his vast and/or intellect. He convinced them by his . Often (but historically inaccurate), St. Francis is attributed with the following, “preach the Gospel at all times, use words if necessary.” While it is a great pithy statement, it’s a horrible practice. Yet, as Paul demonstrates, there is truth in it. Paul didn’t stop preaching and speaking the Gospel or not live it out, he was just humble. He was a deliberate partner in the work of the , and did what Paul was to do, and left it to the Holy to do what the Holy Spirit would do.

    Paul often comes across as arrogant and demanding. However, perhaps we ought to see it as an earthly who seeks the best for his children, even if they don’t like it. Paul’s posture of is portrayed to the Ephesians as an almost begging position for his spiritual children in Ephesus (and all the places he went). He wanted them to be filled with the power of God, not the power of humankind. Do you see what he’s really praying for? The power that he’s praying for on their behalf is the power to fully comprehend how much God loves them, then they would be filled completely with and for God.

    1) How often have you experienced people using earthly power in the guise (or disguise) of Holy power?

    2) Often people will use false humility to convince or control. How would you tell the difference between false and true humility?

    3) Why is learning and recognizing the use of power critical to the future of the ?