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Devotion.al

Tag: pain

  • Flourishing Love

    Flourishing Love

    Psalm 36, Psalm 42, Psalm 52

    We see people all around us who do not believe in God. There are those who know of God, but do not have a relationship with God. There are those whose relationship with God has been confused by the world or others. There are those who knew God, and for many reasons walked away. God loves them all.

    In Psalm 36:5 we read, “…your faithful love reaches to heaven…” A love that reaches to the heavens does not abandon those not now in the fold of God. Also, God is faithful, and remains true to himself. The love of God is always there, even for those in full opposition to God. God’s love is faithful.

    In the midst of heartache, the Psalmist of Psalm 42 notes that God continually sends his faithful love (v. 8). This trust in God flows from the Psalmist’s recognition that he thirsts for the living God (v. 2). In many respects this is a key to understanding those inside the fold and those outside the fold of God. Searching and aching (or thirsting) for God is no weakness. It is recognition that we are not the masters of our domain, as we like to think. It is a realization that our pride is nothing in comparison to the glory and holiness of God.

    This is when we become the flourishing (not just surviving) olive tree in the house of God (Psalm 52:8). The flourishment is trusting in God’s eternally faithful love. This love praises God through storm and sun, through good times and bad, as it is not based upon situations, but a relationship with God.

    This understanding of flourishing helps us when we return to Psalm 42:8. “…[God’s] song will be with me in the night…” When we understand that night (lack of light) represents death and/or evil, we see that the Psalmist is not speaking/singing during a time of joy and freedom, but from the depths of pain. Yet, the Psalmist’s joy is based upon God, therefore it is a firm foundation.

    1) Why do you think flourishing is tied to God’s faithful love?

    2) Much of what we strive for is just for survival. How do we often confuse that with what we need to flourish?

    3/KD) There are many people near and far who are protecting us. Those in the Armed Services are away from their families, often in foreign countries. Police, Fire and EMTs are nearby. We don’t see them much of the time, unless 1 or 2 are family or friends. We trust them to protect us and we don’t know most of them. We can know (or do know) God, who we cannot see. Yet, we seem to often not trust God to help us flourish. Both are remote and/or invisible. Why is it often easier for people to trust the military and first responders and not God?

  • Beyond Hope

    Beyond Hope

    Luke:1:46b-55, James 5:7-10, Hebrews 12:1-2

    Mary’s song/poem of praise is often called the Magnificat in the Protestant/Roman Catholic tradition, or the Ode of the Theotokos (Bearer of God) in the Eastern Orthodox tradition. It is a joy-filled response to God by Mary that appears to be a response to Elizabeth’s joy-filled pronouncement of the Sprit-filled joy of John the Baptist (in utero, of all things) to hearing the voice of the Mother of God (Jesus).

    The double-meaning of Mary’s praise of “…my spirit rejoices in God my savior…” is the Jewish understanding of God (the Father) as the savior of their people, along side the coming salvation of Jew and Gentile through the death of Jesus (God the Son). There is the reality of God as past, present and future savior.

    The Jews knew many experiences of God as savior. The expectation for the coming Messiah was built upon an understanding of a God that was faithful and would fulfill promises made.

    As a Jew, James had the same Jewish understanding as pregnant Mary, and he had seen fulfillment of the Messiah’s coming and salvation. Now James is passing the hope on. It is the expectation based upon God’s faithfulness that the Messiah will come again and the hope that remains strong in the face of adversity.

    In Hebrews, the author notes that Jesus went to the cross joyfully, not because Jesus was looking forward to the pain, anguish, betrayal and death. Jesus was looking beyond the cross, beyond the grave, and even beyond the Resurrection. The author notes that Jesus’ prize was the throne of God. Though the author doesn’t say it here, the other prize was you and me before the throne of God, not in fear of judgement, but as Children of the Most High God.

    Elsewhere, the author of Hebrews notes that Jesus, our Savior, is continually interceding on our behalf and for all eternity. No matter how you feel about yourself being worthy, it doesn’t matter. As shirts and bumper stickers read, “I may not be perfect, but Jesus thinks I’m to die for.” That is our hope and joy.

    1) Are hope and joy the same thing?

    2) Why are having hope and joy important for a Christian?

    3) Why is it important to look at the Old Testament in regards to salvation?

    KD) Why does the author of Hebrews compare faith to running a race?

  • Quenching Our Light

    Quenching Our Light

    Isaiah 9:6-7, John 8:12-19, Philippians 4:4-9

    We are sheltered from the dark. For the most of us, light is but a moment away, whether it is the dining room light or a flashlight. If you’ve ever spent a night out in the wilderness with a new moon (i.e., completely shaded by the Earth, and not giving off light), you experienced a wild darkness. In darkness, even in the “safe” darkness of our homes, our hearing becomes more sensitive, and we have a tendency to jump at noises that we don’t even notice in the day.

    “It is better to light the candle than to curse the darkness,” said William L. Watkinson in his sermon, “The Invincible Strategy.” The Christian doesn’t turn a blind eye to the darkness that covers the world. Instead, the Christian chooses to bear the light of Christ into the world. In a dark room, a candle can shed enough light to make us feel more comfortable. When confronted by darkness, light brings us peace.

    In a similar way, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, brought light into the world, and our lives. The light of Christ, if we allow it, burns away the darkness inside of us that often seems to overtake us. When the light of Christ pushes away the dark, we can rest in the warmth of Christ and find peace. How this works is a spiritual mystery. That it works is testified to by generations of Christ followers.

    Yet, we often are the worst quenchers of Christ’s light in ourselves and others. Whether it’s through envy, greed, pain (physical/emotional/spiritual), accident, or error, many things can quench the light of Christ in others. We can quench our own light by putting too much emphasis on the ways (and errors) of the world and others, and continually looking left, right, backwards, forwards, instead of looking up to Christ.

    1) How is our comfort in the dark at home, similar to the struggles we have living a Christian life?

    2) We often compare ourselves to others, or hold ourselves to a very high standard, when carrying the light of Christ. How is that good? How is that bad? What is the dividing point between good and bad?

    3/KD) Being the light can be quite simple, but we often make it hard for ourselves, and for others. What is something simple that you will do today to be the light of Christ for someone else? What will you do tomorrow?