We'd appreciate you allowing the use of cookies. They are anonymized while allowing us to see how the site is used.

Devotion.al

Tag: peace

  • Have and Need

    Have and Need

    “For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and He is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
    – Isaiah 9:6 (NRSV)

    Okay. Be honest. Did you have your Christmas tree up at the beginning ofNovember? Anyonehave it up before Halloween this year? I mean, come on! We need the excitement and magic that Christmas brings. Right? After the yearwe have had?! We need Christmas. Maybe you are one of those who strictly doesn’t do the Christmas thing until after Thanksgiving is over…
    Did you still wait this year?

    I think we have all been anticipating this season. I know I have! We have been bogged down with COVID, killer bees, racial injustice, politics, and more. We need Christmas. We need hope. We need Jesus.

    As you probably well know – God made a promise well before Jesus came…that Jesus would come. That Jesus would be and bring the light that we needed so desperately. That Gods people needed so desperately. Do you feel like this year you need that light? You need to be reminded of God’s promises in your life? Do you need to be reminded of the hope that Jesus brings to us in all the different seasons of life?

    It’s been a hard year. For so many reasons for so many people. Many of us have had anxiety, frustrations, cried, yelled, laughed, cried some more probably… I am thankful that God is faithful. That God shows us His faithfulness through Jesus Christ. And that through Jesus and the promises that God keeps we can have hope. Because let’s face it. At the end of this year and as we move into the next year – we need hope.

    Where do you see hope in your life today? Thank God for those glimmers of hope. Thank God for His continued faithfulness.

  • A Promise

    A Promise

    Isaiah 44:21–28; Ezekiel 34:25–31; Mark 14:22–26

    Remember. We are called on to remember things every day. Some have become so ingrained (putting undergarments, I hope) that we don’t actually remember them; we just do them.

    Like many things that are ingrained, relationships aren’t. We might take them for granted, but that doesn’t make them ingrained.

    Isaiah’s call to the descendants of Jacob was REMEMBER! Remember God, who formed them, called them and redeemed them. They needed to be reminded…again.

    This time, they are called to celebrate. Celebrate freedom. Celebrate redemption. Celebrate a relationship with God.

    The unfolding of their redemption, eventually, results in a new covenant of peace. This new covenant was to change the very face of the Promised Land.

    The promise of this covenant was delivered while talking about their return from captivity and exile. This makes the promise sure, as they were indeed delivered. So, where was the fulfillment of this new covenant?

    We Christians say that of course, it is Jesus. Jesus’ life and death personified the concepts of relationship and redemption. The Resurrection is the exclamation point of the promise in Ezekiel.

    In the Kingdom of God, the lion and the lamb lie down together.

    ※Reflection※

    For you, what is the most important fact about God’s promises? Why?

    ※Prayer※

    God, you have been faithful to us, even when we wander. We give you praise, glory, and thanks for your grace-filled love. Amen.

  • Moneyed Futures

    Moneyed Futures

    2 Samuel 7:12–21; Matthew 6:33–34; James 4:13–5:6

    If you’ve ever listened to Dave Ramsey, you’ve probably heard of the “emergency” fund. When you start his Financial Peace University program, this is the first thing to be done. His point being that credit cards and payday loan “emergencies” become less so when you actually plan for them.

    Ramsey goes so far as to say each family ought to have available funds to cover 3-6 months of expenses. That is often a large pill to swallow. Yet, as many people are struggling to make ends meet, and are looking at losing their jobs, homes, and even health care much would have been easier if all were so prepared.

    In response to the 25%+ foreclosure rate during the Great Depression, the federal loan agent Fannie Mae was created in 1938. As homes and property were physical assets, there was some tolerance for it. Though one can look at the current housing market and wonder if Fannie Mae (and its “sibling” Freddie Mac) were a good idea.

    In 1950, Diner’s Club International created the credit card. American Express followed a few years later. Bank of America followed them (eventually creating Visa). Then came Master Charge (now MasterCard). People were now able to borrow themselves into oblivion.

    Then we add things like personal loans, auto loans, and student loans, it has become a real mess. The way the US tax code is, even companies are encouraged to do massive loans for tax benefits. The sad part is how much inflation all these loans (and the ability to get them) have probably caused.

    However, what is interesting is that Generation Z has experienced and witnessed this, and all the companies that make money off of loans may be in real trouble. Gen Z already (barely into the workforce) has the highest rate of savings since those who grew up during the Great Depression.

    The reality is that all these loans, and all that is spent, buys nothing in the eternal kingdom, at least not by itself. James’ words are rather harsh, but as we look around us, we can see that perhaps James wasn’t harsh enough.

    A certain aerospace company contractually forced its subtiers (and their subtiers) to continue production of a plane that was grounded internationally. The rate of manufacturing was elevated at such a rate that hundreds of planes are now sitting, unsold. All the contractually obligated subtiers are also sitting on what is now likely at least a year’s (and likely 2-3) worth of inventory, with no one to send it to.

    The arrogance of large corporations can be seen in James’ words. Also, as we look at all of our political leaders, we can see that arrogance regarding the future is just as much an issue for them as for companies.

    Normal folks encouraged to have loans they can’t afford, look at the corporations and politicians who, by and large, escape the consequences. Normal folks are the ones losing their jobs. The politicians are keeping theirs.

    ※Reflection※

    What are some lessons that we as Christians and as people of the US can learn from the economy and the COVID situation? How do we apply them to our Christian walk moving forward? How might the lessons how we treat others and even exercise our freedoms and responsibilities?

    ※Prayer※

    Lord, you are our hope and our firm foundation. May the Holy Spirit continue to guide us toward a holy view of money that we might be better citizens of the US and also the Kingdom of Heaven. Amen.

  • Moving Stone

    Moving Stone

    Mark 16:1-7; Ephesians 2:11–22

    The Resurrection was an event. Obviously. Yet, in many respects, we miss the extending power of the Resurrection. Yes, the Resurrection shows that there is something after. It also shows us that there is something more.

    The event itself begins with what cannot be done alone. The stone being rolled away. This is not a one-, two-, or even three-person job. The stone that would go in front were HEAVY.

    The first “witness” to the Resurrection event was actually the stone being moved. An obstacle beyond a single human’s ability to bear was removed. Perhaps it is a stretch. Yet, the biggest obstacle for the Marys and Salome to be faithful was removed by God.

    This truly might be reading too much into it. At the risk of that, though, think of Paul’s words to the Ephesians, “For he is our peace, who made both groups one and tore down the dividing wall of hostility” (Ephesians 2:14).

    The dividing wall is not a small obstacle between two very different people groups who view the other as scum or dirty. The grace, mercy, love, and redemption of the Gospel are able to not just remove what separates them; it is able to join them together.

    The significance is that while their obedience and work is part of the process, it is Jesus who has done the greater work. The primary effort is not that of humanity; it is of God.

    When we are divided by seemingly impossible walls, we either try to stay on “our side”, try to scale the wall, or even try to destroy the wall. We often do this in our own power.

    The secular world continues to try to do this by attempting to “adjust” thinking through programs, training, and peer pressure. However, this too is only a work of humanity. It is, as the secular world continues to learn and forget, doomed to fail.

    For those of us who claim Jesus as our Lord and Savior, however, we are called to something greater. Regardless of your political leaning, the church is to be an example of how to love. Currently, one of the biggest barriers in the US is political.

    ※Reflection※

    What is one specific thing YOU can do to help heal the divide? Why is it critical to know that the Gospel is the way to remove the divide? How does secular society try to emulate the Gospel?

    ※Prayer※

    Jesus, thank you for removing the wall that separates us from you, and us from each other. Help us to remember the grace, mercy, and love you have shown us, as we engage the world. Amen.

  • Peace-Filled Traditions

    Matthew 15:1–9; Luke 11:42–46

    Yesterday (or the weeks prior to it), all Americans had the opportunity to participate in a great tradition…voting. Regardless of whether your candidates won or lost, there is something great in this tradition. People choosing their leaders is a great gift, and should not be squandered.

    As Halloween and All Saints’ Day have passed, so to have the traditions that go with them. Next in our list of traditions are Thanksgiving (for Americans; for Canadians, it has passed), Advent, Christmas, and New Year.

    Many of the rules and traditions of the Jews were based upon the lunar calendar, or as observations of past significant events. Their traditions were formational. In other words, part of what made a person grow into being a Jew were the traditions. In many respects, despite the diaspora of the Jews, that is still the case around the world.

    The US acted, for a time, as if if were of a tradition. However, in the last few decades, the US has discovered that its identity and traditions are no longer what they were. Many are upset about this, and are grieving and angry.

    On the other hand, this is also the opportunity to develop new traditions and a new identity forged through the mutual pain of discontent, isolation, anger, and even despair. It doesn’t sound particularly pleasant. It hasn’t been, and probably won’t be for a while.

    For many, some “great” US traditions felt more like oppression and suppression. The traditions also felt disparaging. To others they were/are part of a past that they couldn’t support.

    At the time of Jesus, many Jews felt that they could not live under the traditions imposed by their leaders. Jesus indeed called the leaders out on this. The leaders had had a tradition passed down by Moses. In an attempt to “perfect” it, they made it worse. They made it unlivable.

    As we move forward (for that is the only direction we can go), the church has a huge opportunity to help shape the new traditions that are to be formed. Of course, many of our own traditions will have to be challenged, and that will be painful and hard.

     ※Prayer※

    Lord, help us to be healers and peacemakers. Help us to be bearers of peace that passes all understanding. Amen.

  • A Time To Sin

    A Time To Sin

    Job 1:9–22; Ecclesiastes 3:1–11; Ezekiel 18:5–18

    You are probably familiar with Pete Seeger’s Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season). Written in the late 50s, it was commercially via The Byrds in 1965. It takes Ecclesiastes verses 3:1–8 and puts them to music.

    Pete Seeger’s intent behind the song was to promote world peace. That’s a very laudable goal. The irony of that goal is that the lyrics are almost a fatalistic response to the fallen and unpeaceful ways of the world.

    There are a lot of things not specifically mentioned as having time for. Certainly, singing and learning were part of life at that point, but they aren’t specifically mentioned (though singing could be inferred with dancing). The internet and driving weren’t mentioned specifically (of course) but would be covered under “everything”.

    The “everything” is a pretty big catch-all. Does that mean, then, that there is a time to sin?

    That might seem to be a stupid question, yet, depending on one’s view of God, it isn’t stupid at all. The answer to that question may very well display what you think about God in several significant ways (though we won’t get them all).

    When you read the story of Job (whether allegorical or true) how do you “read” the conversation between Satan and God? Is God allowing or directing?

    Based on the end of this section of verses, Job did not assign wrongdoing to God (blame), and as such, did not sin. Then should we conclude that God allowed this to happen?

    For many, leaving it as “a mystery” is fine, except for the problem of blame. If God wills/desires it, and if God is omnipotent, then how can God be loving and full of grace and mercy. The rejoinder often is, we can’t know the mind of God. This is true, in so far as finite creatures (us) trying to fully understand the infinite (God).

    Yet, the Scriptures (given by God) also provide us insights into who God is, so the conclusions we draw from the Scriptures also deeply affect how we view and relate to God.

    Is this that important? Yes. When you sin, is it you sinning by your will, or is God willing you to do something then assigning the sin to you? That is the choice laid before us.

    Ezekiel’s words reinforce one answer. Your sin is a result of your will (or weakness in the face of temptation).

    What is also part of this is that your sin cannot be laid at another’s feet (God’s or human’s). It is yours. Own it. Yes, own your sin.

    This is not go and sin again. It is own your sin so as to repent and restore right relationship with God.

    “‘…For I take no pleasure in anyone’s death.’ This is the declaration of the Lord GOD. ‘So repent and live!’” (Ezekiel 18:32)

    ※Questions※

    1) Repent is based on the root of “turn from” or “turn around”. What do you need to repent from? If you cannot think of a “sin” (or even if you can), what is something else that you might need to turn from to improve or deepen your relationship with God?

    2) How do you define sin? How do you know/learn if something new (such as a behavior) is a sin, or not?

    3) What your current or past Job moments? How do/did they affect your relationship with God?

    ※Prayer※

    Heavenly Father, as we read your word, we learn about you. Help us to be stirred to read your word that we continue to grow in our knowledge of and relationship with you. Amen.

  • Ever Cleaning

    Ever Cleaning

    Matthew 12:43–45

    Have you ever had a guest (or guests) coming, and all of a sudden you realize your house is a mess? Maybe you go a little crazy cleaning the house up-and-down. You might even draft the spouse or kids to “help”.

    The guest(s) then come. The event/time comes and probably went just fine. Then you don’t clean the house until the next guest. You just leave it. The toilets and sinks turn foul. The dust and hair build on every surface and in every crevice. Food crumbs are being walked out of the house by ant trails. You just let it all go until the next guest, right?

    Of course not! Granted, you may not clean as minutely as when a guest comes. You won’t let it all go, though.

    This passage of Jesus is not quite the same as cleaning the house for the guest. It’s cleaning the house to get rid of the bad guest. It also about why one cleans the house.

    The “evil generation” wanted the Messiah to come and make everything better…without changing what they were doing. They wanted the Messiah to refresh, but they really didn’t want renewal.

    On the other hand, there are aspects to this parable that apply to our own lives.

    Often, when we first come to Jesus it seems as if a huge burden (the bad guest) had gone away. Yet, for many people what ends up happening is that for a short time things are great, but all of a sudden all the habits or addictions or struggles that appeared to be conquered all come back with a vengeance. Kind of like the 7 new spirits.

    The house in the parable is empty of presence. No spirits. No Jesus. No Holy Spirit. That means an unHoly party is quite possible.

    Once we accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we still need to keep the house somewhat clean. Yes, with Jesus and the Holy Spirit present we don’t get a complete unHoly party, but we certainly don’t have a peace-filled house if we allow the evil spirits to still live there.

    There is no “one time” cleansing of the house of our soul. There is passing the deed from the world to us, then to God. That doesn’t mean we can stop cleaning the house.

    Reading the Scriptures helps to fill the space with God’s word. Confessing our sins helps to fill the house with grace. At all times, God wants to fill the house with love…we just need to accept it.

    ※Questions※

    1) What do you do to regularly “clean” the house that is your soul?

    2) Have you ever been told that once you know Jesus, everything will be fine? What is the problem with that? What is the truth in that?

    3) Why is it important to recognize that all Christians need to be regularly “cleaning” their soul?

    ※Prayer※

    Holy Spirit, guide us to the corners and even the closets of our lives that need to be cleaned. Help us to regularly look to you and your people for guidance in that. Amen.

  • Sabbathing

    Sabbathing

    Sabbathing

    5 September 2020

    Luke 6:1–11; Romans 14:5–13

    During COVID, my employer has continued to be operational. Due to the nature of the business (manufacturing of civilian and military aerospace, along with medical), being an “essential business” meant that things continued as usual.

    Other than “essential” businesses, most people have stayed in their homes. Even one of the worst commutes in the country (here in the Puget Sound) has been almost reasonable (until recently) as people just weren’t commuting.

    Staying at home meant so little was occurring. Human activity was cut in half. What has been amazing is how quickly nature recognized it. For example, multiple times at my employer, we have seen a coyote wandering around in the middle of the day. This is down the hill from the Everett Boeing complex.

    Nature has taken notice and advantage of humanity’s absence. It is not just in the Puget Sound. It is many places. Humanity inside and nature was free to run.

    The land has received somewhat of a Sabbath. It is resting from the frenetic pace of humanity.

    For a brief moment, humanity also took a brief break. Now, however, the frenetic pace has found a few more notches to go up. Public people are now brazenly acting as bad as the “trolls” (internet term for people looking to cause trouble and pain) that used to be condemned. Online bullying is now encouraged so that people think and espouse the “correct” things.

    Humanity needs a Sabbath.

    There were arguments within the church about what day the Sabbath is. This denies the Lord of the Sabbath. Blue Laws (laws that closed almost all businesses on Sundays) were a legalistic attempt to enforce a Sabbath, but they could never fulfill the spiritual aspect of it.

    This was Paul’s point to the Romans. Already there were arguments over which day was correct to worship God (besides all of them). Part of this may be attributable to the days of the week being named after Roman gods. Just a conjecture.

    Paul’s and Jesus’ point was that the Sabbath was an act of worship, not a day of the week. Even today, that is still a discussion for many that don’t differentiate between cultural norms and spiritual needs.

    ※ Prayer ※

    Lord Jesus, help us to keep our Sabbath focus on you and to live out the Sabbath peace in our lives. Amen.

    ※ Questions ※

    1) What does Sabbath mean to you? How do you live out a Sabbath?

    2) How can you live out a Sabbath that will draw others to live out a Sabbath, too?

  • Good Bad Stuff

    Good Bad Stuff

    Good Bad Stuff

    30 August 2020

    Jeremiah 20:7–13; Ephesians 1:17–19

    Have you ever felt deceived by God? How so?

    Depending on the translation, Jeremiah opens today’s verses with deception. פָּתָה, פָּתָה [pathah /paw·thaw/] also means entice, persuade, flatter, allure. The non-deceptive understandings of the word better fit God’s character, though from Jeremiah’s point of view that may merely be semantics.

    Jeremiah is driven to deliver God’s words. He says that God seized him, and later says that God’s words are like a fire burning in his heart. No matter how much Jeremiah would prefer that he would deliver God’s word, he doesn’t seem to be able to help himself.

    If there is any sense of deception, it is the common assumption that following God’s words and speaking them means that only good things will occur. Jeremiah’s complaint is that he was faithful and a good steward, and yet nothing good is returned.

    The concept of exchange (I do something faithful; God does something good) is one of those issues that has long been a problem in the church. Some call it the “health and wealth gospel.” Jeremiah seemed to have some sense of that as well. Jeremiah is faithful and gets the short end of the stick.

    Do you think by doing something “good” you earn something from God? If you don’t believe it, do you ever act like it’s true? If you do believe it’s true, how do explain the bad?

    Being “driven” for God would seem to be a good thing. It doesn’t always work that way. There are plenty of people in the world who are faithful, but are endangered (e.g., persecuted Christians) or are not “blessed” by material things or even good health.

    The early church wondered these same things, too. Paul’s words about wisdom and revelation are not just to the Ephesians, but to all the church. Often it is only through wisdom and revelation do we see that the bad can bring God glory, and (over the long haul) bring us blessings.

    In our culture, we can be blinding be wealth and health blessings, and be unable to discern the greatest type of blessing…spiritual blessings. Spiritual blessings may be as simple as joy or a deep as peace (that surpasses all understanding).

    Think of a difficult time in your life. What was the spiritual result of that difficult time? Can you imagine a similar result through only positive things?

    ※ Prayer ※

    Holy Spirit, help us to look for your wisdom and revelation rather than our own understanding. Amen.

  • I Hate You

    I Hate You

    Luke 14:25–35; 1 John 3:14–18

    So, who do YOU hate? Your mom, dad, husband, wife, significant other, son, daughter, brother, sister, cousin, aunt, uncle…Really, who do you hate?

    Trump, Clinton, Bin Laden, and many others have been (or are) hated. It could be because of politics. It could be because they murdered people. It might be something that you think they may have done.

    This passage in Luke is a hard passage for many. Except in cases of abuse or other mistreatment, hating one’s family is out of the question. A religion that has long considered itself (especially in the West) a “family-centered” religion will struggle that which it says it is based upon. “Family values”, a decades-old purportedly Christian value, are questionable if we are to hate our family.

    Then John, a disciple of writes that we are to love our brothers and sisters, and that anyone who hates their brother or system is a murderer (even if said brother or sister still lives), and because of that they don’t have eternal life. Confused, yet?

    So, how does this work, exactly? Well, we’re back to the age-old problem of English versus Greek. Just like there are more words for love in Greek than in English, there’s the same problem with hate. Hate isn’t quite hate, sort of.

    When Jesus talks about hate, it refers more to loyalty that like, dislike, love, or hate. Jesus sought to shock people into an understanding that they may have to choose where their loyalty lay. Was their loyalty with family, or was their loyalty with Jesus?

    Hate may seem overly dramatic, however, in the cultural context, hate was the understanding. Only a hateful child, parent, spouse, and so forth would choose Jesus over family. In that time, the time shortly thereafter, and it appears now, family loyalty is against Jesus.

    Which brings us to John’s words. His hate is more along the lines of what we think of when we hear the word hate. The kind of hate that blindly rages and cares more about hurting another than blessing the enemy. This is the context of John’s hate.

    We are called to pray for the blessings of our adversaries. Even more so are we to seek the benefit of our brothers and sisters in Christ. John’s primary concern is not the family ties of blood and culture that Jesus brought to light. John’s concern was what we at Generations call framily (friends who are like family).

    This framily is found within the body of Christ. Because of its place within the body of Christ, it should not have divided loyalties. Of course, when it comes to human frailty, we all know that isn’t the case.

    As we work through our hopes and fears of COVID and elections, we will often be tempted to hate our brothers and sisters in Christ. We must strive against that, for a house divided against itself will not stand, and then what would we say to Jesus?

    ※Prayer※

    Jesus, you prayed to the Father that we would be one. Help us to be united in you, while we yet still remain individuals with different thoughts and experiences. Amen.

    ※Questions※

    1) Is there someone in the body of Christ with whom you are angry? Pray for them. Ask for the peace of the Holy Spirit to fall upon and fill both them and you.

    2) How can you work to be one with your brothers and sisters in Christ while you have differing opinions?

    3) How does the concept of Jesus before family still cause you and others trials?