Devotion.al

Tag: Lent

  • Chosen

    Chosen

    Psalm 107:1–3, 17–22; Genesis 9:8–17; Ephesians 1:3–6

    I don’t elementary school sports very much. I do know that while I was never picked first, I was rarely picked last. I was neither particularly good nor bad at sports, hence being a middle pick. I did have preferences for whose team I wanted to be on, though. While I didn’t, therefore, have the angst of being picked last, I certainly didn’t want to be on just any team. I wanted to be on my choice of team.

    In some ways, I think of both passages as God saying, “I choose you!”

    God chose you, too!

    In team sports, there is some sort of of performance. Every year, professional teams hold a draft, competing with each other for the “next best” young player. Big- colleges will scout and try to recruit high school players.

    The difference between God’s selection and a draft is God isn’t looking at performance (we already blew it), God is looking at the . God calls everyone. However, just like a draft, one can refuse.

    We often try to justify ourselves. Sometimes we try to justify our very existence. God just said, “I chose you. I you. That is the justification of your existence.”

    ※Reflection※

    • What does being by God mean to you?
    • Why is it hard to understand why a person would not want to be chosen by God?
    • Is being chosen by God a , a , both?

    ※Prayer※

    Thank you, Lord, for choosing me. May I continue to strive to the gift. Amen.

  • Missed A Spot

    Missed A Spot

    Psalm 84; Ezra 6:1–16; Mark 11:15–19

    If you are unaccustomed to the lectionary (again, what is being used this year for the passages), it can seem odd, annoying, and definitely repetitious to see the same Psalm for multiple days. As I, too, am reading it each day, I try to glean something new from it each time. This time I thought of a mess.

    I grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area. There is a rail system there (that was supposed to be for Seattle) called BART. As it was close, I could walk to the BART station and get to many places in the area.

    One of the things I didn’t like was all the pigeons. They had found hard to reach (for humans) places to nest and congregate. BART did try to put up barbs to keep them from landing there, but it didn’t really work. So, it could be a hazardous trip to get your ticket or even wait for the train. You had to to look on the pavement for the telltale droppings of pigeons so that you could usually avoid being hit.

    Even the sparrow found a place in the . If you’ve seen sparrow colonies, they’re not much better than pigeons. The sparrow lays eggs beside the altar.

    We read about temple purity laws. They were significant and had severe penalties for violation. The laws were almost impossible to bear. Yet the sparrow found and security in the Temple of God.

    cleansed the Temple, not because of sparrow dropping, but because the hearts of humanity had turned from God to , and from God’s to humanity’s . Although, if we think about it, if they were selling animals in the temple, it was probably much worse than a few sparrows.

    Of course, the Psalmist might be taking some poetic liberty. On the other hand, if you read the Law, the rules almost all apply to people. This means that there may have not been a “purity” concern regarding sparrows in the Temple.

    Sometimes our house is a mess. It could be your house. It could be God’s house. Truly, all of us recognize that at least something in our life is not as it should be, and it may be something completely out of our control…such as a sparrow in the Temple.

    This shouldn’t discourage us, however. We are called to come to God in good times and bad. We are called to come dirty and clean, with both being relative. Was there something about ritual purity? Yes. However, as Jesus displays through his actions, ritual purity is not necessarily the .

    ※Reflection※

    • What things/thoughts/so-called “dirtiness” keep you from approaching God?
    • How does being ritually pure (usually outside performance) differ from purity of heart regarding our with God? How do we confuse them?
    • What “sparrows” are nesting in your house?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, all of Creation praises you. Let us not be distracted from praising you and seeking fellowship with you, no matter what the world throws at us. Amen.

  • Repair and Refine

    Repair and Refine

    Psalm 84; 2 Chronicles 29:1–11, 16–19; Hebrews 9:23–28

    A few days ago, we read about Jesus cleansing the . As noted, then, prophets doing “over-the-top” things weren’t totally unexpected. Generally, it was uncomfortable, but God’s true prophets weren’t known to bring comfort without discomfort.

    Sometimes amid human depravity, a person bursts out of the decay and does something unexpected. Hezekiah was one of those. Hezekiah may be one of the few (yet significant) proof-texts for why the and the government should not be as separated as much as it seems to be called for in these modern days.

    Of course, Hezekiah it not the norm. The only time this really would work would be if the church and the government actually respected each other’s place, honored it, and behaved honorably themselves. Neither government nor church has a sterling record. They don’t even have a tin record.

    Hezekiah shaped up the Levites and called them to remember their heritage and duty. He directed them to get back Temple . As the king, this would also call the populace to also refocus on the Temple. However, part of Hezekiah’s speech isn’t about the Temple. The important part of Hezekiah’s speech is about God and the place that God should be having in the life of Israel.

    The filth and disrepair of the Temple were symbolic of the place God had in the life of the Israelites. God didn’t really have a place in their lives. The Temple and its rituals had cultural relevance, but there wasn’t much in the way of spiritual relevance. It was also a work of process.

    First, there had to be desire. Then the doors had to be repaired. Then the doors had to be opened. Then the filth had to be removed. Then the artifacts of practice ( grates, bowls for washing, and so on) had to be made. Then the work began.

    Sometimes it can be easy to dismiss much of the Temple talk. The writer of Hebrews saw the Temple as the foreshadowing of Jesus and the believers becoming the temples of God. The author, along with (1 Corinthians 3:10–23), sees God not doing a new work (as in unknown or unforeseen).

    They saw God as fulfilling what the Temple was promising.

    However, both understood from a historical and experiential view that the temple could be damaged, emptied, and/or corrupted. This is the beauty of a God of redemption. God is at work in the Temple, even when we aren’t.

    ※※

    Where do you see yourself on the walk in regard to getting the Temple (the list of things having been or to be done)? Are you at the point of the real work? If so, what does that look like for you?

     

    ※※

    Lord, we are called to be workers not just in the church. We are also called to be workers in the temples of believers. Help us to continue to work on ourselves and be ready to build each other up as we work. Amen.

  • Strange People

    Strange People

    Exodus 20:1–17; Psalm 19; 1 Corinthians 1:18–25; John 2:13–24

    Jesus’ “cleaning” of the Temple is often focused on how the Jews “corrupted” the House of God. There is in it. The scary part is that it often seems to be a, “look at them” moment, rather than what it should be, “look at us”. On top of that, the last 2 verses in this chapter of John are often skipped in the Lectionary (from which each day’s are determined). They, too, are “look at me”. In fact, these last 2 verses fit very well with the passage from 1 Corinthians, and even Exodus, so I added them to today’s readings.

    We usually look at the 10 Commandments as a list of don’ts. The 10 Commandments can also be looked at as a list that makes us different. Culturally, the commandments regarding the proper of God set the Israelites apart from those around them.

    This carried . What Jesus did? It was not totally outside of the norm for the Israelites, insofar as the history and heritage of prophets. The prophets were known to do odd and strange things, as we are told the disciples remembered.

    As Paul notes, the oddness of Christianity then goes beyond the oddness of Judaism, to the point where Jews and Gentiles struggle with it. For anyone with a for those who don’t Jesus, this is a hard and brutal truth.

    We US Christians have a particular struggle with this. We were so accustomed to a cultural majority (almost superiority) that we are only slowly beginning to see our “strangeness”.  Many of us are negatively responding to what we believe was “the way” of “our” country.

    We had “all” the cards. We had the opportunity to plant the seeds that would develop into a . Instead, we deceived ourselves with a masquerade. As we face our mortality in Lent, perhaps we should face the mortality of the Christian nation that we have held onto for so long.

    Also, it is hard to ignore the mortality of the as we have understood it for so long. The church—the bride of Christ—is just fine. Half of the US church is bedridden. The other half is prepping the fields for planting.

    ※Reflection※

    • What ways have you found being a Christian “strange” in comparison to non-Christians?
    • When you read the Scriptures, do you focus on “them” rather than “us”?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, you have called us to change from working in submission to and being the Spirit-infused influencers of the world. Amen.

  • Storms of Dust

    Storms of Dust

    Psalm 19; Exodus 19:16–25; Mark 9:2–8

    Heaven is declaring God’s glory;
    the sky is proclaiming his handiwork.
    One day gushes the news to the next,
    and one night informs another what needs to be known.
    Of course, there’s no , no words—
    their voices can’t be heard—
    but their sound extends throughout the world;
    their words reach the ends of the earth.

    Whether the story of God meeting the Israelites or the of , all of Creation proclaims the handiwork of God. While we look at Psalm 19 (or Psalm 148) and see the work of God celebrating God, there is quite a dark side to it. The bittersweet is that all the Creation that praises God today will die.

    Part of Ash Wednesday includes, “From you came and to dust you return,” from Genesis 3:19. It also includes a small phrase spoken during many graveside funerals, “Ashes to ashes; dust to dust.” Our mortality is central to , because is what led to , and sin was what Jesus’ death on the cross was to absolve.

    Sin leads to the death of Creation. Yes, Revelation expresses the concept of a new Heaven and a new Earth. New, however, indicates that the old is gone. The “old” Creation (the one in which we live) will go away.

    From an absolute sense, this isn’t a bad thing. No one in their right mind would want to bring into something new all the tattered, worn out, bloody, hateful stuff into something beautifully new. It’s good that the old will be gone.

    This long view of hope is unusual for the world. It is needed by the world. It is easy to conclude that much of the angst and anxiety of the world is that it does not have the hope that looks beyond the now and . The world knows it’s dying.

    ※Reflection※

    Scripture has humanity starting as dust. Why is it important to humanity’s humility to understand that, regardless of what science might say different?

    ※Prayer※

    You are the Lord of , Jesus. Help us to keep that in mind while we recall that we are dust. Amen.

  • What Holy Ground?

    What Holy Ground?

    Psalm 19; Exodus 19:9b–15; Acts 7:30–40

    “What ground,” isn’t a rhetorical question. It’s a real one. What is Holy ground?

    The land surrounding the “burning bush” was Holy…for a time. Notice that it wasn’t important to God or Moses what happened after that encounter. It was only important during that encounter.

    How about the mountain? Well, we’re pretty certain we know which mountain. There certainly are Muslims who are certain which mountain it was. There is no temple on it where people God or have “Holy” experiences.

    Holy ground isn’t a small question. The people of the church are trying to figure out a whole new reality to that question. Is digital Holy? If so, when? It’s also not that digital is forcing a new question to be asked. It is just so completely different to the understanding of church, , and gathering that it cannot help but be obviously different.

    Small groups have long been a staple in the church. The Wesleyan movement (of which we, the Church of the Nazarene, are a part) has high regard for the place of “” (groups of 8–20) and “” (groups of 3–6) for developing an understanding of being (classes) and as a Christian (bands). Both classes and bands had experiences of Holy encounters. They became Holy places.

    In other words, the church (or the Wesleyan expression of it) already has a place of Holy ground that isn’t “the church” (Sunday morning worship).

    As of late, I have discovered a new Holy ground for me and my encounters with God. Of all places, it’s in my living room. It is next to the gas fireplace I use to disregard as a pathetic excuse for a fireplace (i.e., it doesn’t burn wood). Yet, I have learned that flipping that switch I belittled is now a quickener to focused . I’m already dreading Summer and not turning it on.

    Another Holy place for me is now Google Meets (Google’s answer to Zoom). I with my band and I meet with my class on Google Meets. My band used to meet at Starbucks, but now half my band is out-of-state. We still have Holy ground together. My class started over Zoom then moved to Google Meets. We didn’t start in person, and probably never will meet as a class in person. We still have Holy ground together.

    Where you find Holy ground is not wholly irrelevant. However, if you are truly encountering God there, even in a garbage dump, then even the garbage dump is Holy Ground.

    Finding Holy ground is not (really) optional. As a follower of Jesus, we must find time and place to be with God. If we cannot find one, we must make the effort to do so.

    Susanna Wesley (the mother of John Wesley, the primary founder and of the Wesleyan movement) found her Holy ground underneath her apron in the kitchen. With a large number of children running (if they ran) around, it was there that she encountered God.

    Don’t look for that big or special place to encounter God. Look for that Holy ground in the everyday to encounter God.

  • In God We Trust?

    In God We Trust?

    Psalm 19; Exodus 19:1–9a; 1 Peter 2:4–10

    is a scarce commodity. True trust. You and I trust that the person approaching the intersection will stop, but we’ve all had enough experience to undermine that trust (we even might be the reason we are this way at intersections).

    All our actions operate on trust. In general, we “trust” for two reasons, (1) cultural training, (2) “enlightened” self-interest. We are culturally trained to trust people during transactions, though when lawyers are involved, maybe we don’t (no offense intended if you’re a lawyer). “Enlightened” self-interest really means that most people won’t do majorly wrong things out of of getting caught with the consequences.

    The sad is that often our trust in and of God is the same. We trust God insofar as we think of God’s “enlightened” self-interest. If you read that aloud, you might have detected a note of scorn or sarcasm. It certainly is there, but it is self-aimed rather than God-aimed.

    As we are and much of our interaction, trust, and of the world is based upon our experience, how could we not dangerously put God in the same spot as our fellow humans? Immediately, you might be saying, “not me!” Most of the time indeed it probably isn’t you.

    It is the times that it is you (or me or anyone) that we need to examine openly with . As much as we often want to overlook our weaknesses, it is those weaknesses that make Christ a stumbling block even for his followers.

    “…they refuse to believe in the .” The Word is . Jesus is God. Perhaps the harsher truth is that we trust the Word as much as we trust the world.

    ※Reflection※

    • Whom do you trust? Why? When have they betrayed the trust? How did you (and your with them) move beyond the ?
    • Do you trust God more than you trust the world?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, trust is endangered in and by the world. Help our trust in you to be strengthened beyond all measure and exceed our distrust so that it is no more. Amen.

  • Becoming Light

    Becoming Light

    Jeremiah 30:12–22; John 12:36–43

    Perhaps this has been said before, but an important lesson learned through Celebrate Recovery was, “hurt people hurt people.” When people are hurting, they lash out. Sometimes the is stress. Often it is thousands of little things (and sometimes only a few) that pile up all at once. Our emotional and spiritual history is full of small wounds. Most of the time, we function well despite them. Other times, we fall completely apart.

    God relays back to the Israelites all their woe and anguish. God explains how much of, really, is the accumulation of delayed consequences over the years. It is not that God is uncompassionate. It is that God is trying to retrain them to pursue God and not the world.

    We can safely that many Israelites said with their hearts and/or their mouths, “God, if you really loved us…” They judged God by the consequences of their actions. We are often no different, whether we blame God or .

    God acknowledges and identifies their pain. Many are lashing out at God because of their pain. Many, just like today, lash out at God for they cannot see clearly through their pain. God doesn’t leave it at that. God promises restoration.

    What should catch our attention in the promises is, “You will be my people…” The Israelites were declared God’s people in Exodus, yet here is a tense. The Israelites were no longer God’s people. It seems obvious, but for the Israelites, it wasn’t obvious that they were no longer God’s people.

    The other implication here is that the can be lost. For those of us in the Wesleyan-Arminian , this isn’t a shock, but we often choose to forget it. The Israelites had lost it. This should not be taken to an antisemitic extreme (“Christians” have done too much of that). It should be viewed as a warning.

    It is not that they didn’t regain the blessing, but one can look at the history that followed, and see that the blessing never returned to the way it had been. The rise and fall of Israel is a lesson for every believer.

    ‘ words are the guidelines to follow. If you have the light (Jesus), believe in the light. This is the full-hearted belief and in God. This is not a “statement of belief.” It is a life of belief.

    The CEB concludes with “that you might become people whose lives are determined by the light.” Other translations say something more familiar, “that you may become children of light.” Might is not coincidental. Might indicates that…you can lose it, or that you can walk away from it.

    Your trust and relationship with God may be such that you are not able to understand why anyone would “lose” or “walk away” from Jesus. The Israelites wandered away from God. Judas Iscariot (who was with him for nearly 3 years) betrayed Jesus. It can happen.

    ※Reflection※

    • Do you know anyone who “walked in the light” and then stopped? Do you know the pain of their story and/or why?
    • How do you deal with the pain of people who know Jesus? How do you deal with the pain of people who don’t know Jesus?

    ※Prayer※

    Jesus, help us to walk in the light and to others to your light, too. Amen.