Today’s Question: Have you had experiences of steadfast (”hesed“) love?
Question of the day: Why is the Christian worthiness contest unwinnable?
Current mantra: I am the temple of the Divine
SCRIPTURE READING: 2 Samuel 14:25-33
25-27 This Absalom! There wasn't a man in all Israel talked about so much for his handsome good looks—and not a blemish on him from head to toe! When he cut his hair—he always cut it short in the spring because it had grown so heavy—the weight of the hair from his head was over two pounds! Three sons were born to Absalom, and one daughter. Her name was Tamar—and she was a beauty.
28-31 Absalom lived in Jerusalem for two years, and not once did he see the king face-to-face. He sent for Joab to get him in to see the king, but Joab still wouldn't budge. He tried a second time and Joab still wouldn't. So he told his servants, "Listen. Joab's field adjoins mine, and he has a crop of barley in it. Go set fire to it." So Absalom's servants set fire to the field. That got him moving—Joab came to Absalom at home and said, "Why did your servants set my field on fire?"
32 Absalom answered him, "Listen, I sent for you saying, 'Come, and soon. I want to send you to the king to ask, "What's the point of my coming back from Geshur? I'd be better off still there!" Let me see the king face-to-face. If he finds me guilty, then he can put me to death.'"
33 Joab went to the king and told him what was going on. Absalom was then summoned—he came and bowed deeply in reverence before him. And the king kissed Absalom. (The Message)
KEY VERSE: Absalom lived two years in Jerusalem without seeing the king's face (2 Sam. 14:28).
The Face of the Father
David began well by sending for his wayward son, but was hesitant to forgive. He conceded that Absalom might return to Jerusalem, but he was not to come to the palace or see the king's face.
Absalom smoldered under this blow to his pride and to his station as the king's own son, but there is no hint that he was in the least repentant. Forcing Abner to engineer an audience with his father shows the arrogance and lawlessness of this handsome, prideful prince.
How different the story would have been had Absalom come humbly before his father, seeking restoration. Pride lay at the heart of Absalom's actions, and he was kept from seeing his father's face.
Pride keeps us from seeing our Heavenly Father's face. We are heirs to a throne through no righteousness of our own, but through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ whose blood covers our sin. We cannot coerce Him to accept us; we must fall upon our faces and accept His mercy if we are to be accepted.
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and . . . seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I . . . forgive" (2 Chron. 7:14).
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
Trusting only in Thy merit, Would I seek Thy face.
"Pass Me Not" by Fanny J. Crosby
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Many people in Liberia will come to know Christ and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice, An humble and a contrite heart (Rudyard Kipling).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Being Blessed
Jesus is the Blessed One. When Jesus was baptised in the Jordan river a voice came from heaven saying: "You are my Son, the Beloved; my favour rests on you" (Mark 1:11). This was the blessing that sustained Jesus during his life. Whatever happened to him - praise or blame - he clung to his blessing; he always remembered that he was the favourite child of God.
Jesus came into the world to share that blessing with us. He came to open our ears to the voice that also says to us, "You are my beloved son, you are my beloved daughter, my favour rests on you ." When we can hear that voice, trust in it, and always remember it, especially during dark times, we can live our lives as God's blessed children and find the strength to share that blessing with others.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 22-24
A Country of Cowards
1-3 A Message concerning the Valley of Vision:
What's going on here anyway?
All this partying and noisemaking,
Shouting and cheering in the streets,
the city noisy with celebrations!
You have no brave soldiers to honor,
no combat heroes to be proud of.
Your leaders were all cowards,
captured without even lifting a sword,
A country of cowards
captured escaping the battle.
You Looked, but You Never Looked to Him
4-8In the midst of the shouting, I said, "Let me alone.
Let me grieve by myself.
Don't tell me it's going to be all right.
These people are doomed. It's not all right."
For the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
is bringing a day noisy with mobs of people,
Jostling and stampeding in the Valley of Vision,
knocking down walls
and hollering to the mountains, "Attack! Attack!"
Old enemies Elam and Kir arrive armed to the teeth—
weapons and chariots and cavalry.
Your fine valleys are noisy with war,
chariots and cavalry charging this way and that.
God has left Judah exposed and defenseless.
8-11You assessed your defenses that Day, inspected your arsenal of weapons in the Forest Armory. You found the weak places in the city walls that needed repair. You secured the water supply at the Lower Pool. You took an inventory of the houses in Jerusalem and tore down some to get bricks to fortify the city wall. You built a large cistern to ensure plenty of water.
You looked and looked and looked, but you never looked to him who gave you this city, never once consulted the One who has long had plans for this city.
12-13The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
called out on that Day,
Called for a day of repentant tears,
called you to dress in somber clothes of mourning.
But what do you do? You throw a party!
Eating and drinking and dancing in the streets!
You barbecue bulls and sheep, and throw a huge feast—
slabs of meat, kegs of beer.
"Seize the day! Eat and drink!
Tomorrow we die!"
14God-of-the-Angel-Armies whispered to me his verdict on this frivolity: "You'll pay for this outrage until the day you die." The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says so.
The Key of the Davidic Heritage
15-19The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, spoke: "Come. Go to this steward, Shebna, who is in charge of all the king's affairs, and tell him: What's going on here? You're an outsider here and yet you act like you own the place, make a big, fancy tomb for yourself where everyone can see it, making sure everyone will think you're important. God is about to sack you, to throw you to the dogs. He'll grab you by the hair, swing you round and round dizzyingly, and then let you go, sailing through the air like a ball, until you're out of sight. Where you'll land, nobody knows. And there you'll die, and all the stuff you've collected heaped on your grave. You've disgraced your master's house! You're fired—and good riddance!
20-24"On that Day I'll replace Shebna. I will call my servant Eliakim son of Hilkiah. I'll dress him in your robe. I'll put your belt on him. I'll give him your authority. He'll be a father-leader to Jerusalem and the government of Judah. I'll give him the key of the Davidic heritage. He'll have the run of the place—open any door and keep it open, lock any door and keep it locked. I'll pound him like a nail into a solid wall. He'll secure the Davidic tradition. Everything will hang on him—not only the fate of Davidic descendants but also the detailed daily operations of the house, including cups and cutlery.
25"And then the Day will come," says God-of-the-Angel-Armies, "when that nail will come loose and fall out, break loose from that solid wall—and everything hanging on it will go with it." That's what will happen. God says so.
It Was All Numbers, Dead Numbers, Profit and Loss
1-4 Wail, ships of Tarshish, your strong seaports all in ruins!
When the ships returned from Cyprus,
they saw the destruction.
Hold your tongue, you who live on the seacoast,
merchants of Sidon.
Your people sailed the deep seas,
buying and selling,
Making money on wheat from Shihor,
grown along the Nile—
multinational broker in grains!
Hang your head in shame, Sidon. The Sea speaks up,
the powerhouse of the ocean says,
"I've never had labor pains, never had a baby,
never reared children to adulthood,
Never gave life, never worked with life.
It was all numbers, dead numbers, profit and loss."
5When Egypt gets the report on Tyre,
what wailing! what wringing of hands!
Nothing Left Here to Be Proud Of
6-12Visit Tarshish, you who live on the seacoast.
Take a good, long look and wail—yes, cry buckets of tears!
Is this the city you remember as energetic and alive,
bustling with activity, this historic old city,
Expanding throughout the globe,
buying and selling all over the world?
And who is behind the collapse of Tyre,
the Tyre that controlled the world markets?
Tyre's merchants were the business tycoons.
Tyre's traders called all the shots.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies ordered the crash
to show the sordid backside of pride
and puncture the inflated reputations.
Sail for home, O ships of Tarshish.
There are no docks left in this harbor.
God reached out to the sea and sea traders,
threw the sea kingdoms into turmoil.
God ordered the destruction
of the seacoast cities, the centers of commerce.
God said, "There's nothing left here to be proud of,
bankrupt and bereft Sidon.
Do you want to make a new start in Cyprus?
Don't count on it. Nothing there will work out for you either."
13Look at what happened to Babylon: There's nothing left of it. Assyria turned it into a desert, into a refuge for wild dogs and stray cats. They brought in their big siege engines, tore down the buildings, and left nothing behind but rubble.
14Wail, ships of Tarshish,
your strong seaports all in ruins!
15-16For the next seventy years, a king's lifetime, Tyre will be forgotten. At the end of the seventy years, Tyre will stage a comeback, but it will be the comeback of a worn-out whore, as in the song:
"Take a harp, circle the city,
unremembered whore.
Sing your old songs, your many old songs.
Maybe someone will remember."
17-18At the end of the seventy years, God will look in on Tyre. She'll go back to her old whoring trade, selling herself to the highest bidder, doing anything with anyone—promiscuous with all the kingdoms of earth—for a fee. But everything she gets, all the money she takes in, will be turned over to God. It will not be put in banks. Her profits will be put to the use of God-Aware, God-Serving-People, providing plenty of food and the best of clothing.
The Landscape Will Be a Moonscape
1-3 Danger ahead! God's about to ravish the earth and leave it in ruins,
Rip everything out by the roots
and send everyone scurrying:
priests and laypeople alike,
owners and workers alike,
celebrities and nobodies alike,
buyers and sellers alike,
bankers and beggars alike,
the haves and have-nots alike.
The landscape will be a moonscape,
totally wasted.
And why? Because God says so.
He's issued the orders.
4The earth turns gaunt and gray,
the world silent and sad,
sky and land lifeless, colorless.
Earth Polluted by Its Very Own People
5-13Earth is polluted by its very own people,
who have broken its laws,
Disrupted its order,
violated the sacred and eternal covenant.
Therefore a curse, like a cancer,
ravages the earth.
Its people pay the price of their sacrilege.
They dwindle away, dying out one by one.
No more wine, no more vineyards,
no more songs or singers.
The laughter of castanets is gone,
the shouts of celebrants, gone,
the laughter of fiddles, gone.
No more parties with toasts of champagne.
Serious drinkers gag on their drinks.
The chaotic cities are unlivable. Anarchy reigns.
Every house is boarded up, condemned.
People riot in the streets for wine,
but the good times are gone forever—
no more joy for this old world.
The city is dead and deserted,
bulldozed into piles of rubble.
That's the way it will be on this earth.
This is the fate of all nations:
An olive tree shaken clean of its olives,
a grapevine picked clean of its grapes.
14-16But there are some who will break into glad song.
Out of the west they'll shout of God's majesty.
Yes, from the east God's glory will ascend.
Every island of the sea
Will broadcast God's fame,
the fame of the God of Israel.
From the four winds and the seven seas we hear the singing:
"All praise to the Righteous One!"
16-20But I said, "That's all well and good for somebody,
but all I can see is doom, doom, and more doom."
All of them at one another's throats,
yes, all of them at one another's throats.
Terror and pits and booby traps
are everywhere, whoever you are.
If you run from the terror,
you'll fall into the pit.
If you climb out of the pit,
you'll get caught in the trap.
Chaos pours out of the skies.
The foundations of earth are crumbling.
Earth is smashed to pieces,
earth is ripped to shreds,
earth is wobbling out of control,
Earth staggers like a drunk,
sways like a shack in a high wind.
Its piled-up sins are too much for it.
It collapses and won't get up again.
21-23That's when God will call on the carpet
rebel powers in the skies and
Rebel kings on earth.
They'll be rounded up like prisoners in a jail,
Corralled and locked up in a jail,
and then sentenced and put to hard labor.
Shamefaced moon will cower, humiliated,
red-faced sun will skulk, disgraced,
Because God-of-the-Angel-Armies will take over,
ruling from Mount Zion and Jerusalem,
Splendid and glorious
before all his leaders. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
Dear God, many times I wish you would just write out in the clouds what you want me to do. Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that you don’t want me to be a passive robot, spinelessly following orders, but a fully alive human being choosing to walk with you each day. Thank you for that freedom. Guide me in that awesome responsibility. Amen.
They Also Serve
But Moses said to the LORD, "O my Lord, I have never been eloquent, neither in the past nor even now that you have spoken to your servant; but I am slow of speech and slow of tongue." Then the LORD said to him, "Who gives speech to mortals? Who makes them mute or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I, the LORD? Now go, and I will be with your mouth and teach you what you are to speak." But he said, "O my Lord, please send someone else." Then the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses and he said, "What of your brother Aaron the Levite? I know that he can speak fluently; even now he is coming out to meet you, and when he sees you his heart will be glad. You shall speak to him and put the words in his mouth; and I will be with your mouth and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. He indeed shall speak for you to the people; he shall serve as a mouth for you, and you shall serve as God for him.-Exodus 4:10-16 (NRSV)
Today's Scripture: Moses said unto the Lord, O my Lord, I am not eloquent, neither heretofore, nor since thou hast spoken unto thy servant: but I am slow of speech, and of a slow tongue.-Exodus 4:10 (KJV)
GOD would not allow Moses to use a handicap as an excuse to back away from what God asked him to do. After Moses reluctantly agreed, he found that with God's guidance, he was able to lead the people out of bondage.
Through the ages, God has strengthened and worked through those with impairments. Their accomplishments have been a witness to what is possible when we realize that God is with us. John Milton, the British poet who wrote Paradise Lost, was blind. Speaker and writer Helen Keller was both deaf and blind. Both are awesome examples of the power of God. When we have an emptiness, God fills it.
When I become despondent because of the physical impairments of my advancing years, I remember the nation that grew from Abraham and Sarah, who seemed too old to have a child. If I give myself to my church and community, God will still work through me. In whatever I do, I can serve as a witness that God will use my gifts and talents, despite the limitations that come with aging.
Raymond Bottom (Mississippi, USA)
Prayer: O Lord, help us to see our opportunities to help others. Amen.
Thought for the Day: At every stage of our lives, God can use our talents to serve others.
Prayer Focus: Those adjusting to physical impairments
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Reflecting God for Monday, July 13, 2009
Today’s Question
Who has guided you? Who have you been guiding?
SCRIPTURE READING: 2 Samuel 14:21-24
21 The king spoke to Joab. "All right, I'll do it. Go and bring the young man Absalom back."
22 Joab bowed deeply in reverence and blessed the king. "I'm reassured to know that I'm still in your good graces and have your confidence, since the king is taking the counsel of his servant."
23-24 Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. The king said, "He may return to his house, but he is not to see me face-to-face." So Absalom returned home, but was not permitted to see the king. (The Message)
KEY VERSE: "Go, bring back the young man Absalom" (2 Sam. 14:21b).
Like Father, Like Son
Nothing can break our hearts like our children's wrong behavior, especially when their failures mirror ours.
Absalom fled in disgrace after arranging the murder of his half-brother Amnon who had raped Tamar. David was torn between anger and love for his oldest son. He had lost a daughter and a son; now another son was banished in shame.
David must have experienced deep remorse, knowing that his children had committed the same sins of which he had been guilty. He apparently did not call Absalom to account for his actions. Perhaps if he had, his son and his kingdom would not have been jeopardized.
The Bible indicates that David mourned for Absalom but did nothing, leaving the initiative to Joab, who feared for the throne if David did not restore Absalom.
Once again, love won over anger. In this action, David is like our Heavenly Father who, though we have committed acts of rebellion against Him, calls for our restoration. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow," says the Lord through the prophet Isaiah. "Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool" (1:18).
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
Jesus is tenderly calling thee home.
"Jesus Is Calling" by Fanny J. Crosby
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Guinea
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
The farthest reach of God's love for us is loving us at our most unlovable and unlovely (Frederick Buechner).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Being Chosen
Jesus is taken by God or, better, chosen by God. Jesus is the Chosen One. From all eternity God has chosen his most precious Child to become the saviour of the world. Being chosen expresses a special relationship, being known and loved in a unique way, being singled out. In our society our being chosen always implies that others are not chosen. But this is not true for God. God chooses his Son to reveal to us our chosenness.
In the Kingdom of God there is no competition or rivalry. The Son of God shares his chosenness with us. In the Kingdom of God each person is precious and unique, and each person has been given eyes to see the chosenness of others and rejoice in it.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 19-21
Anarchy and Chaos and Killing!
1 A Message concerning Egypt: Watch this! God riding on a fast-moving cloud,
moving in on Egypt!
The god-idols of Egypt shudder and shake,
Egyptians paralyzed by panic.
2-4God says, "I'll make Egyptian fight Egyptian,
brother fight brother, neighbor fight neighbor,
City fight city, kingdom fight kingdom—
anarchy and chaos and killing!
I'll knock the wind out of the Egyptians.
They won't know coming from going.
They'll go to their god-idols for answers;
they'll conjure ghosts and hold séances, desperate for answers.
But I'll turn the Egyptians
over to a tyrant most cruel.
I'll put them under the rule of a mean, merciless king."
Decree of the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
5-10The River Nile will dry up,
the riverbed baked dry in the sun.
The canals will become stagnant and stink,
every stream touching the Nile dry up.
River vegetation will rot away
the banks of the Nile-baked clay,
The riverbed hard and smooth,
river grasses dried up and gone with the wind.
Fishermen will complain
that the fishing's been ruined.
Textile workers will be out of work, all weavers
and workers in linen and cotton and wool
Dispirited, depressed in their forced idleness—
everyone who works for a living, jobless.
11-15The princes of Zoan are fools,
the advisors of Pharaoh stupid.
How could any of you dare tell Pharaoh,
"Trust me: I'm wise. I know what's going on.
Why, I'm descended from the old wisdom of Egypt"?
There's not a wise man or woman left in the country.
If there were, one of them would tell you
what God-of-the-Angel-Armies has in mind for Egypt.
As it is, the princes of Zoan are all fools
and the princes of Memphis, dunces.
The honored pillars of your society
have led Egypt into detours and dead ends.
God has scrambled their brains,
Egypt's become a falling-down-in-his-own-vomit drunk.
Egypt's hopeless, past helping,
a senile, doddering old fool.
16-17On that Day, Egyptians will be like hysterical schoolgirls, screaming at the first hint of action from God-of-the-Angel-Armies. Little Judah will strike terror in Egyptians! Say "Judah" to an Egyptian and see panic. The word triggers fear of the God-of-the-Angel-Armies' plan against Egypt.
18On that Day, more than one city in Egypt will learn to speak the language of faith and promise to follow God-of-the-Angel-Armies. One of these cities will be honored with the title "City of the Sun."
19-22On that Day, there will be a place of worship to God in the center of Egypt and a monument to God at its border. It will show how the God-of-the-Angel-Armies has helped the Egyptians. When they cry out in prayer to God because of oppressors, he'll send them help, a savior who will keep them safe and take care of them. God will openly show himself to the Egyptians and they'll get to know him on that Day. They'll worship him seriously with sacrifices and burnt offerings. They'll make vows and keep them. God will wound Egypt, first hit and then heal. Egypt will come back to God, and God will listen to their prayers and heal them, heal them from head to toe.
23On that Day, there will be a highway all the way from Egypt to Assyria: Assyrians will have free range in Egypt and Egyptians in Assyria. No longer rivals, they'll worship together, Egyptians and Assyrians!
24-25On that Day, Israel will take its place alongside Egypt and Assyria, sharing the blessing from the center. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who blessed Israel, will generously bless them all: "Blessed be Egypt, my people!...Blessed be Assyria, work of my hands!...Blessed be Israel, my heritage!"
Exposed to Mockery and Jeers
1-2 In the year the field commander, sent by King Sargon of Assyria, came to Ashdod and fought and took it, God told Isaiah son of Amoz, "Go, take off your clothes and sandals," and Isaiah did it, going about naked and barefooted.
3-6Then God said, "Just as my servant Isaiah has walked around town naked and barefooted for three years as a warning sign to Egypt and Ethiopia, so the king of Assyria is going to come and take the Egyptians as captives and the Ethiopians as exiles. He'll take young and old alike and march them out of there naked and barefooted, exposed to mockery and jeers—the bared buttocks of Egypt on parade! Everyone who has put hope in Ethiopia and expected help from Egypt will be thrown into confusion. Everyone who lives along this coast will say, 'Look at them! Naked and barefooted, shuffling off to exile! And we thought they were our best hope, that they'd rescue us from the king of Assyria. Now what's going to happen to us? How are we going to get out of this?'"
The Betrayer Betrayed
1-4A Message concerning the desert at the sea: As tempests drive through the Negev Desert,
coming out of the desert, that terror-filled place,
A hard vision is given me:
The betrayer betrayed, the plunderer plundered.
Attack, Elam!
Lay siege, Media!
Persians, attack!
Attack, Babylon!
I'll put an end to
all the moaning and groaning.
Because of this news I'm doubled up in pain,
writhing in pain like a woman having a baby,
Baffled by what I hear,
undone by what I see.
Absolutely stunned,
horror-stricken,
I had hoped for a relaxed evening,
but it has turned into a nightmare.
5The banquet is spread,
the guests reclining in luxurious ease,
Eating and drinking, having a good time,
and then, "To arms, princes! The fight is on!"
6-9The Master told me, "Go, post a lookout.
Have him report whatever he spots.
When he sees horses and wagons in battle formation,
lines of donkeys and columns of camels,
Tell him to keep his ear to the ground,
note every whisper, every rumor."
Just then, the lookout shouted,
"I'm at my post, Master,
Sticking to my post day after day
and all through the night!
I watched them come,
the horses and wagons in battle formation.
I heard them call out the war news in headlines:
'Babylon fallen! Fallen!
And all its precious god-idols
smashed to pieces on the ground.'"
10Dear Israel, you've been through a lot,
you've been put through the mill.
The good news I get from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
the God of Israel, I now pass on to you.
11-12A Message concerning Edom:
A voice calls to me
from the Seir mountains in Edom,
"Night watchman! How long till daybreak?
How long will this night last?"
The night watchman calls back,
"Morning's coming,
But for now it's still night.
If you ask me again, I'll give the same answer."
13-15A Message concerning Arabia:
You'll have to camp out in the desert badlands,
you caravans of Dedanites.
Haul water to the thirsty,
greet fugitives with bread.
Show your desert hospitality,
you who live in Tema.
The desert's swarming with refugees
escaping the horrors of war.
16-17The Master told me, "Hang on. Within one year—I'll sign a contract on it!—the arrogant brutality of Kedar, those hooligans of the desert, will be over, nothing much left of the Kedar toughs." The God of Israel says so. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
Dear God, many times I wish you would just write out in the clouds what you want me to do. Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that you don’t want me to be a passive robot, spinelessly following orders, but a fully alive human being choosing to walk with you each day. Thank you for that freedom. Guide me in that awesome responsibility. Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Patrick (c.385-c.461), missionary monk, Bishop
Confession, 56-62 conclusion (trans. Philip Freeman; SC 249, p.129f. rev.)
"Whoever gives... one of these little ones a drink because he is a disciple... will surely not lose his reward."
So «I will entrust my soul to my most faithful God» 1Pt 4,19), whom I serve here as his «ambassador» (Eph 6,20) in spite of my shortcomings - but God doesn't use the world's standards in such matters. He chose me for this job - me, one of the least of his servants (Mt 25,40) - to be his assistant. «How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done to me?» (Ps 116[115],12). But what can I say or do for God? Everything I can do comes from him...
So may God never permit me to be separated from his people «whom he formed for himself» (Is 43,21), here at the end of the earth. I pray that God will give me perseverance and allow me to be a faithful witness for him until I die. If have ever done anything worthwhile for the God I love, I ask that I might be allowed to die here for his name with these converts and slaves... I know if that were to happen, I would gain my soul along with a new body on that day we will undoubtedly rise again like the sun in the morning, like the son, Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.
My final prayer is that all of you who believe in God and respect him, whoever you may be who read this letter that Patrick, the unlearned sinner, wrote from Ireland, that none of you will ever say that I, in my ignorance, did anything for God. You must understand - because it is the truth - that it was all the gift of God. And this is my confession before I die.
Who has guided you? Who have you been guiding?
SCRIPTURE READING: 2 Samuel 14:21-24
21 The king spoke to Joab. "All right, I'll do it. Go and bring the young man Absalom back."
22 Joab bowed deeply in reverence and blessed the king. "I'm reassured to know that I'm still in your good graces and have your confidence, since the king is taking the counsel of his servant."
23-24 Joab got up, went to Geshur, and brought Absalom to Jerusalem. The king said, "He may return to his house, but he is not to see me face-to-face." So Absalom returned home, but was not permitted to see the king. (The Message)
KEY VERSE: "Go, bring back the young man Absalom" (2 Sam. 14:21b).
Like Father, Like Son
Nothing can break our hearts like our children's wrong behavior, especially when their failures mirror ours.
Absalom fled in disgrace after arranging the murder of his half-brother Amnon who had raped Tamar. David was torn between anger and love for his oldest son. He had lost a daughter and a son; now another son was banished in shame.
David must have experienced deep remorse, knowing that his children had committed the same sins of which he had been guilty. He apparently did not call Absalom to account for his actions. Perhaps if he had, his son and his kingdom would not have been jeopardized.
The Bible indicates that David mourned for Absalom but did nothing, leaving the initiative to Joab, who feared for the throne if David did not restore Absalom.
Once again, love won over anger. In this action, David is like our Heavenly Father who, though we have committed acts of rebellion against Him, calls for our restoration. "Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow," says the Lord through the prophet Isaiah. "Though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool" (1:18).
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
Jesus is tenderly calling thee home.
"Jesus Is Calling" by Fanny J. Crosby
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Guinea
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
The farthest reach of God's love for us is loving us at our most unlovable and unlovely (Frederick Buechner).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Being Chosen
Jesus is taken by God or, better, chosen by God. Jesus is the Chosen One. From all eternity God has chosen his most precious Child to become the saviour of the world. Being chosen expresses a special relationship, being known and loved in a unique way, being singled out. In our society our being chosen always implies that others are not chosen. But this is not true for God. God chooses his Son to reveal to us our chosenness.
In the Kingdom of God there is no competition or rivalry. The Son of God shares his chosenness with us. In the Kingdom of God each person is precious and unique, and each person has been given eyes to see the chosenness of others and rejoice in it.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 19-21
Anarchy and Chaos and Killing!
1 A Message concerning Egypt: Watch this! God riding on a fast-moving cloud,
moving in on Egypt!
The god-idols of Egypt shudder and shake,
Egyptians paralyzed by panic.
2-4God says, "I'll make Egyptian fight Egyptian,
brother fight brother, neighbor fight neighbor,
City fight city, kingdom fight kingdom—
anarchy and chaos and killing!
I'll knock the wind out of the Egyptians.
They won't know coming from going.
They'll go to their god-idols for answers;
they'll conjure ghosts and hold séances, desperate for answers.
But I'll turn the Egyptians
over to a tyrant most cruel.
I'll put them under the rule of a mean, merciless king."
Decree of the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
5-10The River Nile will dry up,
the riverbed baked dry in the sun.
The canals will become stagnant and stink,
every stream touching the Nile dry up.
River vegetation will rot away
the banks of the Nile-baked clay,
The riverbed hard and smooth,
river grasses dried up and gone with the wind.
Fishermen will complain
that the fishing's been ruined.
Textile workers will be out of work, all weavers
and workers in linen and cotton and wool
Dispirited, depressed in their forced idleness—
everyone who works for a living, jobless.
11-15The princes of Zoan are fools,
the advisors of Pharaoh stupid.
How could any of you dare tell Pharaoh,
"Trust me: I'm wise. I know what's going on.
Why, I'm descended from the old wisdom of Egypt"?
There's not a wise man or woman left in the country.
If there were, one of them would tell you
what God-of-the-Angel-Armies has in mind for Egypt.
As it is, the princes of Zoan are all fools
and the princes of Memphis, dunces.
The honored pillars of your society
have led Egypt into detours and dead ends.
God has scrambled their brains,
Egypt's become a falling-down-in-his-own-vomit drunk.
Egypt's hopeless, past helping,
a senile, doddering old fool.
16-17On that Day, Egyptians will be like hysterical schoolgirls, screaming at the first hint of action from God-of-the-Angel-Armies. Little Judah will strike terror in Egyptians! Say "Judah" to an Egyptian and see panic. The word triggers fear of the God-of-the-Angel-Armies' plan against Egypt.
18On that Day, more than one city in Egypt will learn to speak the language of faith and promise to follow God-of-the-Angel-Armies. One of these cities will be honored with the title "City of the Sun."
19-22On that Day, there will be a place of worship to God in the center of Egypt and a monument to God at its border. It will show how the God-of-the-Angel-Armies has helped the Egyptians. When they cry out in prayer to God because of oppressors, he'll send them help, a savior who will keep them safe and take care of them. God will openly show himself to the Egyptians and they'll get to know him on that Day. They'll worship him seriously with sacrifices and burnt offerings. They'll make vows and keep them. God will wound Egypt, first hit and then heal. Egypt will come back to God, and God will listen to their prayers and heal them, heal them from head to toe.
23On that Day, there will be a highway all the way from Egypt to Assyria: Assyrians will have free range in Egypt and Egyptians in Assyria. No longer rivals, they'll worship together, Egyptians and Assyrians!
24-25On that Day, Israel will take its place alongside Egypt and Assyria, sharing the blessing from the center. God-of-the-Angel-Armies, who blessed Israel, will generously bless them all: "Blessed be Egypt, my people!...Blessed be Assyria, work of my hands!...Blessed be Israel, my heritage!"
Exposed to Mockery and Jeers
1-2 In the year the field commander, sent by King Sargon of Assyria, came to Ashdod and fought and took it, God told Isaiah son of Amoz, "Go, take off your clothes and sandals," and Isaiah did it, going about naked and barefooted.
3-6Then God said, "Just as my servant Isaiah has walked around town naked and barefooted for three years as a warning sign to Egypt and Ethiopia, so the king of Assyria is going to come and take the Egyptians as captives and the Ethiopians as exiles. He'll take young and old alike and march them out of there naked and barefooted, exposed to mockery and jeers—the bared buttocks of Egypt on parade! Everyone who has put hope in Ethiopia and expected help from Egypt will be thrown into confusion. Everyone who lives along this coast will say, 'Look at them! Naked and barefooted, shuffling off to exile! And we thought they were our best hope, that they'd rescue us from the king of Assyria. Now what's going to happen to us? How are we going to get out of this?'"
The Betrayer Betrayed
1-4A Message concerning the desert at the sea: As tempests drive through the Negev Desert,
coming out of the desert, that terror-filled place,
A hard vision is given me:
The betrayer betrayed, the plunderer plundered.
Attack, Elam!
Lay siege, Media!
Persians, attack!
Attack, Babylon!
I'll put an end to
all the moaning and groaning.
Because of this news I'm doubled up in pain,
writhing in pain like a woman having a baby,
Baffled by what I hear,
undone by what I see.
Absolutely stunned,
horror-stricken,
I had hoped for a relaxed evening,
but it has turned into a nightmare.
5The banquet is spread,
the guests reclining in luxurious ease,
Eating and drinking, having a good time,
and then, "To arms, princes! The fight is on!"
6-9The Master told me, "Go, post a lookout.
Have him report whatever he spots.
When he sees horses and wagons in battle formation,
lines of donkeys and columns of camels,
Tell him to keep his ear to the ground,
note every whisper, every rumor."
Just then, the lookout shouted,
"I'm at my post, Master,
Sticking to my post day after day
and all through the night!
I watched them come,
the horses and wagons in battle formation.
I heard them call out the war news in headlines:
'Babylon fallen! Fallen!
And all its precious god-idols
smashed to pieces on the ground.'"
10Dear Israel, you've been through a lot,
you've been put through the mill.
The good news I get from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
the God of Israel, I now pass on to you.
11-12A Message concerning Edom:
A voice calls to me
from the Seir mountains in Edom,
"Night watchman! How long till daybreak?
How long will this night last?"
The night watchman calls back,
"Morning's coming,
But for now it's still night.
If you ask me again, I'll give the same answer."
13-15A Message concerning Arabia:
You'll have to camp out in the desert badlands,
you caravans of Dedanites.
Haul water to the thirsty,
greet fugitives with bread.
Show your desert hospitality,
you who live in Tema.
The desert's swarming with refugees
escaping the horrors of war.
16-17The Master told me, "Hang on. Within one year—I'll sign a contract on it!—the arrogant brutality of Kedar, those hooligans of the desert, will be over, nothing much left of the Kedar toughs." The God of Israel says so. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
Dear God, many times I wish you would just write out in the clouds what you want me to do. Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that you don’t want me to be a passive robot, spinelessly following orders, but a fully alive human being choosing to walk with you each day. Thank you for that freedom. Guide me in that awesome responsibility. Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Patrick (c.385-c.461), missionary monk, Bishop
Confession, 56-62 conclusion (trans. Philip Freeman; SC 249, p.129f. rev.)
"Whoever gives... one of these little ones a drink because he is a disciple... will surely not lose his reward."
So «I will entrust my soul to my most faithful God» 1Pt 4,19), whom I serve here as his «ambassador» (Eph 6,20) in spite of my shortcomings - but God doesn't use the world's standards in such matters. He chose me for this job - me, one of the least of his servants (Mt 25,40) - to be his assistant. «How shall I make a return to the Lord for all the good he has done to me?» (Ps 116[115],12). But what can I say or do for God? Everything I can do comes from him...
So may God never permit me to be separated from his people «whom he formed for himself» (Is 43,21), here at the end of the earth. I pray that God will give me perseverance and allow me to be a faithful witness for him until I die. If have ever done anything worthwhile for the God I love, I ask that I might be allowed to die here for his name with these converts and slaves... I know if that were to happen, I would gain my soul along with a new body on that day we will undoubtedly rise again like the sun in the morning, like the son, Jesus Christ, our Redeemer.
My final prayer is that all of you who believe in God and respect him, whoever you may be who read this letter that Patrick, the unlearned sinner, wrote from Ireland, that none of you will ever say that I, in my ignorance, did anything for God. You must understand - because it is the truth - that it was all the gift of God. And this is my confession before I die.
Sunday, July 12, 2009
WEEK of JULY 13, 2009
Monday through Sunday--Please pray for the worship services, fellowship, Bible Study, and Prayer at the Upstate New York District Church of the Nazarene in Brooktondale, New York (the adult, youth, and children).
Monday—Pray for the adults in your church who are involved in children’s and teens’ ministries and activities this summer. Pray for God’s wisdom as they guide children and teens in developing their spiritual journey. Pray the children and teens will be open and receptive to the Spirit’s leading.
Tuesday—Pray for those who clean and maintain your church building. Pray God will bless them as they prepare the facilities for worship and ministry.
Wednesday—Pray for David and Lisa Frisbie, Family and Marriage Ministries coordinators. Pray for them as they counsel and administer God’s encouragement, hope, and healing to couples experiencing difficulty in their marriage.
Thursday—Pray for Derl Keefer, Prime Time coordinator, as he creates resources, plans events, and encourages district leadership who work with Prime Time adults. Pray his efforts will be effective in helping senior adults recognize and embrace the opportunities for significant ministry in their church and neighborhood.
Friday—Pray for Linda Hardin, Young Adult Ministries coordinator. Pray for her and the other members of the Young Ministry Partnership. Pray for God’s guidance as they discuss and plan strategies for reaching Christian young adults.
Saturday—Pray for your pastor and his or her family. Pray they will experience some refreshing, relationship-building time together this summer.
Sunday—Pray for your church family as it gathers for worship, inspiration, and instruction. Pray God will be honored and glorified and that you will receive encouragement and direction for your lives.
Monday—Pray for the adults in your church who are involved in children’s and teens’ ministries and activities this summer. Pray for God’s wisdom as they guide children and teens in developing their spiritual journey. Pray the children and teens will be open and receptive to the Spirit’s leading.
Tuesday—Pray for those who clean and maintain your church building. Pray God will bless them as they prepare the facilities for worship and ministry.
Wednesday—Pray for David and Lisa Frisbie, Family and Marriage Ministries coordinators. Pray for them as they counsel and administer God’s encouragement, hope, and healing to couples experiencing difficulty in their marriage.
Thursday—Pray for Derl Keefer, Prime Time coordinator, as he creates resources, plans events, and encourages district leadership who work with Prime Time adults. Pray his efforts will be effective in helping senior adults recognize and embrace the opportunities for significant ministry in their church and neighborhood.
Friday—Pray for Linda Hardin, Young Adult Ministries coordinator. Pray for her and the other members of the Young Ministry Partnership. Pray for God’s guidance as they discuss and plan strategies for reaching Christian young adults.
Saturday—Pray for your pastor and his or her family. Pray they will experience some refreshing, relationship-building time together this summer.
Sunday—Pray for your church family as it gathers for worship, inspiration, and instruction. Pray God will be honored and glorified and that you will receive encouragement and direction for your lives.
Reflecting God for Sunday, July 12, 2009
Today’s Question
Where are you in your life development?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:13-19
7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise.
16-17 Going through the motions doesn't please you,
a flawless performance is nothing to you.
I learned God-worship
when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love
don't for a moment escape God's notice.
18-19 Make Zion the place you delight in,
repair Jerusalem's broken-down walls.
Then you'll get real worship from us,
acts of worship small and large,
Including all the bulls
they can heave onto your altar! (The Message)
KEY VERSE: A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (Ps. 51:17).
Restoration and Forgiveness
Despise is a strong word full of loathing and hate, but it matches well David's deep contrition. When Job received a vision of the Almighty in the midst of his terrible suffering, he said, "I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes" (42:6). While David despised himself for what he had done, he prayed that God would not despise his broken heart, his contrite spirit.
Only God is able to separate the deed from the doer. When someone hurts us, it is natural for us to respond with disdain for that person. It is a supernatural grace to love someone who sins against us, a grace only God can give.
While God despises sin, He is the great lover of souls. He hates sin precisely because it separates Him from the object of His love. When we think we have sinned so greatly that God could never forgive us, we undercut the person of God himself and transfer our human limits to Him. "God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything" (1 John 3:20). "He remembers that we are dust [human]" (Ps. 103:14). How graciously He restores us; how patiently He forgives.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
And from my smitten heart, with tears,
These wonders I confess:
The wonder of His glorious love,
And my unworthiness.
"Beneath the Cross of Jesus" by Elizabeth C. Clephane
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Many people in Guinea Bissau will come to know Christ and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me; Spirit of the living God.
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Becoming Food For the World
When Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, he summarized in these gestures his own life. Jesus is chosen from all eternity, blessed at his baptism in the Jordan River, broken on the cross, and given as bread to the world. Being chosen, blessed, broken, and given is the sacred journey of the Son of God, Jesus the Christ.
When we take bread, bless it, break it, and give it with the words "This is the Body of Christ," we express our commitment to make our lives conform to the life of Christ. We too want to live as people chosen, blessed, and broken, and thus become food for the world.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 16-18
A New Government in the David Tradition
1-4 "Dispatch a gift of lambs," says Moab, "to the leaders in Jerusalem—
Lambs from Sela sent across the desert
to buy the goodwill of Jerusalem.
The towns and people of Moab
are at a loss,
New-hatched birds knocked from the nest,
fluttering helplessly
At the banks of the Arnon River,
unable to cross:
'Tell us what to do,
help us out!
Protect us,
hide us!
Give the refugees from Moab
sanctuary with you.
Be a safe place for those on the run
from the killing fields.'"
4-5"When this is all over," Judah answers,
"the tyrant toppled,
The killing at an end,
all signs of these cruelties long gone,
A new government of love will be established
in the venerable David tradition.
A Ruler you can depend upon
will head this government,
A Ruler passionate for justice,
a Ruler quick to set things right."
6-12We've heard—everyone's heard!—of Moab's pride,
world-famous for pride—
Arrogant, self-important, insufferable,
full of hot air.
So now let Moab lament for a change,
with antiphonal mock-laments from the neighbors!
What a shame! How terrible!
No more fine fruitcakes and Kir-hareseth candies!
All those lush Heshbon fields dried up,
the rich Sibmah vineyards withered!
Foreign thugs have crushed and torn out
the famous grapevines
That once reached all the way to Jazer,
right to the edge of the desert,
Ripped out the crops in every direction
as far as the eye can see.
I'll join the weeping. I'll weep right along with Jazer,
weep for the Sibmah vineyards.
And yes, Heshbon and Elealeh,
I'll mingle my tears with your tears!
The joyful shouting at harvest is gone.
Instead of song and celebration, dead silence.
No more boisterous laughter in the orchards,
no more hearty work songs in the vineyards.
Instead of the bustle and sound of good work in the fields,
silence—deathly and deadening silence.
My heartstrings throb like harp strings for Moab,
my soul in sympathy for sad Kir-heres.
When Moab trudges to the shrine to pray,
he wastes both time and energy.
Going to the sanctuary and praying for relief
is useless. Nothing ever happens.
13-14This is God's earlier Message on Moab. God's updated Message is, "In three years, no longer than the term of an enlisted soldier, Moab's impressive presence will be gone, that splendid hot-air balloon will be punctured, and instead of a vigorous population, just a few shuffling bums cadging handouts."
Damascus: A Pile of Dust and Rubble
1-3 A Message concerning Damascus: "Watch this: Damascus undone as a city,
a pile of dust and rubble!
Her towns emptied of people.
The sheep and goats will move in
And take over the towns
as if they owned them—which they will!
Not a sign of a fort is left in Ephraim,
not a trace of government left in Damascus.
What's left of Aram?
The same as what's left of Israel—not much."
Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
The Day Is Coming
4-6"The Day is coming when Jacob's robust splendor goes pale
and his well-fed body turns skinny.
The country will be left empty, picked clean
as a field harvested by field hands.
She'll be like a few stalks of barley left standing
in the lush Valley of Rephaim after harvest,
Or like the couple of ripe olives overlooked
in the top of the olive tree,
Or the four or five apples
that the pickers couldn't reach in the orchard."
Decree of the God of Israel.
7-8Yes, the Day is coming when people will notice The One Who Made Them, take a long hard look at The Holy of Israel. They'll lose interest in all the stuff they've made—altars and monuments and rituals, their homemade, handmade religion—however impressive it is.
9And yes, the Day is coming when their fortress cities will be abandoned —the very same cities that the Hivites and Amorites abandoned when Israel invaded! And the country will be empty, desolate.
You Have Forgotten God
10-11And why? Because you have forgotten God-Your-Salvation,
not remembered your Rock-of-Refuge.
And so, even though you are very religious,
planting all sorts of bushes and herbs and trees
to honor and influence your fertility gods,
And even though you make them grow so well,
bursting with buds and sprouts and blossoms,
Nothing will come of them. Instead of a harvest
you'll get nothing but grief and pain, pain, pain.
12-13Oh my! Thunder! A thundering herd of people!
Thunder like the crashing of ocean waves!
Nations roaring, roaring,
like the roar of a massive waterfall,
Roaring like a deafening Niagara!
But God will silence them with a word,
And then he'll blow them away like dead leaves off a tree,
like down from a thistle.
14At bedtime, terror fills the air.
By morning it's gone—not a sign of it anywhere!
This is what happens to those who would ruin us,
this is the fate of those out to get us.
People Mighty and Merciless
1-2 Doom to the land of flies and mosquitoes beyond the Ethiopian rivers,
Shipping emissaries all over the world,
down rivers and across seas.
Go, swift messengers,
go to this people tall and handsome,
This people held in respect everywhere,
this people mighty and merciless,
from the land crisscrossed with rivers.
3Everybody everywhere,
all earth-dwellers:
When you see a flag flying on the mountain, look!
When you hear the trumpet blown, listen!
4-6For here's what God told me:
"I'm not going to say anything,
but simply look on from where I live,
Quiet as warmth that comes from the sun,
silent as dew during harvest."
And then, just before harvest, after the blossom
has turned into a maturing grape,
He'll step in and prune back the new shoots,
ruthlessly hack off all the growing branches.
He'll leave them piled on the ground
for birds and animals to feed on—
Fodder for the summering birds,
fodder for the wintering animals.
7Then tribute will be brought to God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
brought from this people tall and handsome,
This people once held in respect everywhere,
this people once mighty and merciless,
From the land crisscrossed with rivers,
to Mount Zion, God's place. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
Dear God, many times I wish you would just write out in the clouds what you want me to do. Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that you don’t want me to be a passive robot, spinelessly following orders, but a fully alive human being choosing to walk with you each day. Thank you for that freedom. Guide me in that awesome responsibility. Amen.
Prayer Tip:
The words “mid-life crisis” can conjure up an endless examination of everything that has happened in our lives up until now, followed by another endless contemplation of the future stretched out before us. Seen that way, a “crisis” can bring us to a complete standstill, unable to leave the past, or move forward trusting God for the future.
A prayer exercise, called Examen, can help you review your life each day. It also reminds you that the best life examination focuses your attention on God and God’s movement in your life.
Examen is usually a reflection on the day just completed. It should not be a long process. About fifteen minutes is ideal, no more than thirty. Don’t overthink. Let the Holy Spirit lead. Writing in a journal or a pad of paper is helpful. Do this prayer exercise in a quiet, private place, if possible. There are five basic movements:
Celebrate and give thanks. Quiet yourself and give thanks to God for your life, and for anything from the day past that comes to mind. Reflect on God’s presence throughout the day, and how without God, no good thing could exist.
Pray for illumination – the grace to see clearly and understand God’s guidance in your life. Record the places you clearly saw God’s presence in the day past.
Inventory your day, beginning when you first woke and ending with at your prayer time. What happened? How did God work in you?
Repent. Review your spiritual health and asking for forgiveness and healing. Let God comfort you and show you what you need to see.
Ask for and accept forgiveness, and give thanks.
End with the Lord’s Prayer, as Jesus taught his disciples to pray in Matthew 6:9-13.
–Jennifer Creager, Resurrection Prayer Ministries
Where are you in your life development?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:13-19
7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise.
16-17 Going through the motions doesn't please you,
a flawless performance is nothing to you.
I learned God-worship
when my pride was shattered.
Heart-shattered lives ready for love
don't for a moment escape God's notice.
18-19 Make Zion the place you delight in,
repair Jerusalem's broken-down walls.
Then you'll get real worship from us,
acts of worship small and large,
Including all the bulls
they can heave onto your altar! (The Message)
KEY VERSE: A broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise (Ps. 51:17).
Restoration and Forgiveness
Despise is a strong word full of loathing and hate, but it matches well David's deep contrition. When Job received a vision of the Almighty in the midst of his terrible suffering, he said, "I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes" (42:6). While David despised himself for what he had done, he prayed that God would not despise his broken heart, his contrite spirit.
Only God is able to separate the deed from the doer. When someone hurts us, it is natural for us to respond with disdain for that person. It is a supernatural grace to love someone who sins against us, a grace only God can give.
While God despises sin, He is the great lover of souls. He hates sin precisely because it separates Him from the object of His love. When we think we have sinned so greatly that God could never forgive us, we undercut the person of God himself and transfer our human limits to Him. "God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything" (1 John 3:20). "He remembers that we are dust [human]" (Ps. 103:14). How graciously He restores us; how patiently He forgives.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
And from my smitten heart, with tears,
These wonders I confess:
The wonder of His glorious love,
And my unworthiness.
"Beneath the Cross of Jesus" by Elizabeth C. Clephane
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Many people in Guinea Bissau will come to know Christ and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Break me, melt me, mold me, fill me; Spirit of the living God.
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Becoming Food For the World
When Jesus took bread, blessed it, broke it, and gave it to his disciples, he summarized in these gestures his own life. Jesus is chosen from all eternity, blessed at his baptism in the Jordan River, broken on the cross, and given as bread to the world. Being chosen, blessed, broken, and given is the sacred journey of the Son of God, Jesus the Christ.
When we take bread, bless it, break it, and give it with the words "This is the Body of Christ," we express our commitment to make our lives conform to the life of Christ. We too want to live as people chosen, blessed, and broken, and thus become food for the world.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 16-18
A New Government in the David Tradition
1-4 "Dispatch a gift of lambs," says Moab, "to the leaders in Jerusalem—
Lambs from Sela sent across the desert
to buy the goodwill of Jerusalem.
The towns and people of Moab
are at a loss,
New-hatched birds knocked from the nest,
fluttering helplessly
At the banks of the Arnon River,
unable to cross:
'Tell us what to do,
help us out!
Protect us,
hide us!
Give the refugees from Moab
sanctuary with you.
Be a safe place for those on the run
from the killing fields.'"
4-5"When this is all over," Judah answers,
"the tyrant toppled,
The killing at an end,
all signs of these cruelties long gone,
A new government of love will be established
in the venerable David tradition.
A Ruler you can depend upon
will head this government,
A Ruler passionate for justice,
a Ruler quick to set things right."
6-12We've heard—everyone's heard!—of Moab's pride,
world-famous for pride—
Arrogant, self-important, insufferable,
full of hot air.
So now let Moab lament for a change,
with antiphonal mock-laments from the neighbors!
What a shame! How terrible!
No more fine fruitcakes and Kir-hareseth candies!
All those lush Heshbon fields dried up,
the rich Sibmah vineyards withered!
Foreign thugs have crushed and torn out
the famous grapevines
That once reached all the way to Jazer,
right to the edge of the desert,
Ripped out the crops in every direction
as far as the eye can see.
I'll join the weeping. I'll weep right along with Jazer,
weep for the Sibmah vineyards.
And yes, Heshbon and Elealeh,
I'll mingle my tears with your tears!
The joyful shouting at harvest is gone.
Instead of song and celebration, dead silence.
No more boisterous laughter in the orchards,
no more hearty work songs in the vineyards.
Instead of the bustle and sound of good work in the fields,
silence—deathly and deadening silence.
My heartstrings throb like harp strings for Moab,
my soul in sympathy for sad Kir-heres.
When Moab trudges to the shrine to pray,
he wastes both time and energy.
Going to the sanctuary and praying for relief
is useless. Nothing ever happens.
13-14This is God's earlier Message on Moab. God's updated Message is, "In three years, no longer than the term of an enlisted soldier, Moab's impressive presence will be gone, that splendid hot-air balloon will be punctured, and instead of a vigorous population, just a few shuffling bums cadging handouts."
Damascus: A Pile of Dust and Rubble
1-3 A Message concerning Damascus: "Watch this: Damascus undone as a city,
a pile of dust and rubble!
Her towns emptied of people.
The sheep and goats will move in
And take over the towns
as if they owned them—which they will!
Not a sign of a fort is left in Ephraim,
not a trace of government left in Damascus.
What's left of Aram?
The same as what's left of Israel—not much."
Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
The Day Is Coming
4-6"The Day is coming when Jacob's robust splendor goes pale
and his well-fed body turns skinny.
The country will be left empty, picked clean
as a field harvested by field hands.
She'll be like a few stalks of barley left standing
in the lush Valley of Rephaim after harvest,
Or like the couple of ripe olives overlooked
in the top of the olive tree,
Or the four or five apples
that the pickers couldn't reach in the orchard."
Decree of the God of Israel.
7-8Yes, the Day is coming when people will notice The One Who Made Them, take a long hard look at The Holy of Israel. They'll lose interest in all the stuff they've made—altars and monuments and rituals, their homemade, handmade religion—however impressive it is.
9And yes, the Day is coming when their fortress cities will be abandoned —the very same cities that the Hivites and Amorites abandoned when Israel invaded! And the country will be empty, desolate.
You Have Forgotten God
10-11And why? Because you have forgotten God-Your-Salvation,
not remembered your Rock-of-Refuge.
And so, even though you are very religious,
planting all sorts of bushes and herbs and trees
to honor and influence your fertility gods,
And even though you make them grow so well,
bursting with buds and sprouts and blossoms,
Nothing will come of them. Instead of a harvest
you'll get nothing but grief and pain, pain, pain.
12-13Oh my! Thunder! A thundering herd of people!
Thunder like the crashing of ocean waves!
Nations roaring, roaring,
like the roar of a massive waterfall,
Roaring like a deafening Niagara!
But God will silence them with a word,
And then he'll blow them away like dead leaves off a tree,
like down from a thistle.
14At bedtime, terror fills the air.
By morning it's gone—not a sign of it anywhere!
This is what happens to those who would ruin us,
this is the fate of those out to get us.
People Mighty and Merciless
1-2 Doom to the land of flies and mosquitoes beyond the Ethiopian rivers,
Shipping emissaries all over the world,
down rivers and across seas.
Go, swift messengers,
go to this people tall and handsome,
This people held in respect everywhere,
this people mighty and merciless,
from the land crisscrossed with rivers.
3Everybody everywhere,
all earth-dwellers:
When you see a flag flying on the mountain, look!
When you hear the trumpet blown, listen!
4-6For here's what God told me:
"I'm not going to say anything,
but simply look on from where I live,
Quiet as warmth that comes from the sun,
silent as dew during harvest."
And then, just before harvest, after the blossom
has turned into a maturing grape,
He'll step in and prune back the new shoots,
ruthlessly hack off all the growing branches.
He'll leave them piled on the ground
for birds and animals to feed on—
Fodder for the summering birds,
fodder for the wintering animals.
7Then tribute will be brought to God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
brought from this people tall and handsome,
This people once held in respect everywhere,
this people once mighty and merciless,
From the land crisscrossed with rivers,
to Mount Zion, God's place. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
Dear God, many times I wish you would just write out in the clouds what you want me to do. Wouldn’t that be easier? Then I realize that you don’t want me to be a passive robot, spinelessly following orders, but a fully alive human being choosing to walk with you each day. Thank you for that freedom. Guide me in that awesome responsibility. Amen.
Prayer Tip:
The words “mid-life crisis” can conjure up an endless examination of everything that has happened in our lives up until now, followed by another endless contemplation of the future stretched out before us. Seen that way, a “crisis” can bring us to a complete standstill, unable to leave the past, or move forward trusting God for the future.
A prayer exercise, called Examen, can help you review your life each day. It also reminds you that the best life examination focuses your attention on God and God’s movement in your life.
Examen is usually a reflection on the day just completed. It should not be a long process. About fifteen minutes is ideal, no more than thirty. Don’t overthink. Let the Holy Spirit lead. Writing in a journal or a pad of paper is helpful. Do this prayer exercise in a quiet, private place, if possible. There are five basic movements:
Celebrate and give thanks. Quiet yourself and give thanks to God for your life, and for anything from the day past that comes to mind. Reflect on God’s presence throughout the day, and how without God, no good thing could exist.
Pray for illumination – the grace to see clearly and understand God’s guidance in your life. Record the places you clearly saw God’s presence in the day past.
Inventory your day, beginning when you first woke and ending with at your prayer time. What happened? How did God work in you?
Repent. Review your spiritual health and asking for forgiveness and healing. Let God comfort you and show you what you need to see.
Ask for and accept forgiveness, and give thanks.
End with the Lord’s Prayer, as Jesus taught his disciples to pray in Matthew 6:9-13.
–Jennifer Creager, Resurrection Prayer Ministries
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Reflecting God for Saturday, July 11, 2009
Question of the day:
What aspect of Mary would I most like to imitate?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:7-12
7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise.(The Message)
KEY VERSE: Create in me a pure heart, O God (Ps. 51:10).
Winning a Losing Battle
Is it possible to have a pure heart in the midst of a culture deeply stained by evils our grandparents could barely imagine?
"When I was in high school," my mother used to say, "our lockers were searched for rouge and lipstick." Now full-time security guards and electronic devices monitor the halls for guns and illegal drugs.
We need only look within our own hearts to see that purity has waged a losing battle. Desperation followed David's recognition that he was born a sinner, for he knew that God required what he found impossible. "Surely you desire truth in the inner parts" (Ps. 51:6).
When John the Baptist pronounced judgment on sin, he pointed his desperate listeners to the only One who could help them. "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29, nkjv). The sinless Christ is the fulfillment of God's promise to "remove . . . their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws" (Ezek. 11:19-20).
Jesus is the "Word made flesh" who creates within us a clean heart and makes us pure, regardless of personal weakness or societal changes.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
Give me a holy life, Spotless and free
Cleansed by the crystal flow Coming from Thee.
"Give Me a Holy Life" by Leslie Taylor-Hunt
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Ghana.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
That risky act of rescue-the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world-lies at the heart of Christian belief (Philip Yancey).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
A Time to Receive and a Time to Give
It is important to know when we can give attention and when we need attention. Often we are inclined to give, give, and give without ever asking anything in return. We may think that this is a sign of generosity or even heroism. But it might be little else than a proud attitude that says: "I don't need help from others. I only want to give." When we keep giving without receiving we burn out quickly. Only when we pay careful attention to our own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs can we be, and remain, joyful givers.
There is a time to give and a time to receive. We need equal time for both if we want to live healthy lives.
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 13-15
Babylon Is Doomed!
1 The Message on Babylon. Isaiah son of Amoz saw it: 2-3"Run up a flag on an open hill. Yell loud. Get their attention.
Wave them into formation.
Direct them to the nerve center of power.
I've taken charge of my special forces,
called up my crack troops.
They're bursting with pride and passion
to carry out my angry judgment."
4-5Thunder rolls off the mountains
like a mob huge and noisy—
Thunder of kingdoms in an uproar,
nations assembling for war.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies is calling
his army into battle formation.
They come from far-off countries,
they pour in across the horizon.
It's God on the move with the weapons of his wrath,
ready to destroy the whole country.
6-8Wail! God's Day of Judgment is near—
an avalanche crashing down from the Strong God!
Everyone paralyzed in the panic,
hysterical and unstrung,
Doubled up in pain
like a woman giving birth to a baby.
Horrified—everyone they see
is like a face out of a nightmare.
9-16"Watch now. God's Judgment Day comes.
Cruel it is, a day of wrath and anger,
A day to waste the earth
and clean out all the sinners.
The stars in the sky, the great parade of constellations,
will be nothing but black holes.
The sun will come up as a black disk,
and the moon a blank nothing.
I'll put a full stop to the evil on earth,
terminate the dark acts of the wicked.
I'll gag all braggarts and boasters—not a peep anymore from them—
and trip strutting tyrants, leave them flat on their faces.
Proud humanity will disappear from the earth.
I'll make mortals rarer than hens' teeth.
And yes, I'll even make the sky shake,
and the earth quake to its roots
Under the wrath of God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
the Judgment Day of his raging anger.
Like a hunted white-tailed deer,
like lost sheep with no shepherd,
People will huddle with a few of their own kind,
run off to some makeshift shelter.
But tough luck to stragglers—they'll be killed on the spot,
throats cut, bellies ripped open,
Babies smashed on the rocks
while mothers and fathers watch,
Houses looted,
wives raped.
17-22"And now watch this:
Against Babylon, I'm inciting the Medes,
A ruthless bunch indifferent to bribes,
the kind of brutality that no one can blunt.
They massacre the young,
wantonly kick and kill even babies.
And Babylon, most glorious of all kingdoms,
the pride and joy of Chaldeans,
Will end up smoking and stinking like Sodom,
and, yes, like Gomorrah, when God had finished with them.
No one will live there anymore,
generation after generation a ghost town.
Not even Bedouins will pitch tents there.
Shepherds will give it a wide berth.
But strange and wild animals will like it just fine,
filling the vacant houses with eerie night sounds.
Skunks will make it their home,
and unspeakable night hags will haunt it.
Hyenas will curdle your blood with their laughing,
and the howling of coyotes will give you the shivers.
"Babylon is doomed.
It won't be long now."
Now You Are Nothing
1-2 But not so with Jacob. God will have compassion on Jacob. Once again he'll choose Israel. He'll establish them in their own country. Outsiders will be attracted and throw their lot in with Jacob. The nations among whom they lived will actually escort them back home, and then Israel will pay them back by making slaves of them, men and women alike, possessing them as slaves in God's country, capturing those who had captured them, ruling over those who had abused them.
3-4When God has given you time to recover from the abuse and trouble and harsh servitude that you had to endure, you can amuse yourselves by taking up this satire, a taunt against the king of Babylon:
4-6Can you believe it? The tyrant is gone!
The tyranny is over!
God has broken the rule of the wicked,
the power of the bully-rulers
That crushed many people.
A relentless rain of cruel outrage
Established a violent rule of anger
rife with torture and persecution.
7-10And now it's over, the whole earth quietly at rest.
Burst into song! Make the rafters ring!
Ponderosa pine trees are happy,
giant Lebanon cedars are relieved, saying,
"Since you've been cut down,
there's no one around to cut us down."
And the underworld dead are all excited,
preparing to welcome you when you come.
Getting ready to greet you are the ghostly dead,
all the famous names of earth.
All the buried kings of the nations
will stand up on their thrones
With well-prepared speeches,
royal invitations to death:
"Now you are as nothing as we are!
Make yourselves at home with us dead folks!"
11This is where your pomp and fine music led you, Babylon,
to your underworld private chambers,
A king-size mattress of maggots for repose
and a quilt of crawling worms for warmth.
12What a comedown this, O Babylon!
Daystar! Son of Dawn!
Flat on your face in the underworld mud,
you, famous for flattening nations!
13-14You said to yourself,
"I'll climb to heaven.
I'll set my throne
over the stars of God.
I'll run the assembly of angels
that meets on sacred Mount Zaphon.
I'll climb to the top of the clouds.
I'll take over as King of the Universe!"
15-17But you didn't make it, did you?
Instead of climbing up, you came down—
Down with the underground dead,
down to the abyss of the Pit.
People will stare and muse:
"Can this be the one
Who terrorized earth and its kingdoms,
turned earth to a moonscape,
Wasted its cities,
shut up his prisoners to a living death?"
18-20Other kings get a decent burial,
honored with eulogies and placed in a tomb.
But you're dumped in a ditch unburied,
like a stray dog or cat,
Covered with rotting bodies,
murdered and indigent corpses.
Your dead body desecrated, mutilated—
no state funeral for you!
You've left your land in ruins,
left a legacy of massacre.
The progeny of your evil life
will never be named. Oblivion!
21Get a place ready to slaughter the sons of the wicked
and wipe out their father's line.
Unthinkable that they should own a square foot of land
or desecrate the face of the world with their cities!
22-23"I will confront them"—Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies—"and strip Babylon of name and survivors, children and grandchildren." God's Decree. "I'll make it a worthless swamp and give it as a prize to the hedgehog. And then I'll bulldoze it out of existence." Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
Who Could Ever Cancel Such Plans?
24-27God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaks:
"Exactly as I planned,
it will happen.
Following my blueprints,
it will take shape.
I will shatter the Assyrian who trespasses my land
and stomp him into the dirt on my mountains.
I will ban his taking and making of slaves
and lift the weight of oppression from all shoulders."
This is the plan,
planned for the whole earth,
And this is the hand that will do it,
reaching into every nation.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies has planned it.
Who could ever cancel such plans?
His is the hand that's reached out.
Who could brush it aside?
28-31In the year King Ahaz died, this Message came:
Hold it, Philistines! It's too soon to celebrate
the defeat of your cruel oppressor.
From the death throes of that snake a worse snake will come,
and from that, one even worse.
The poor won't have to worry.
The needy will escape the terror.
But you Philistines will be plunged into famine,
and those who don't starve, God will kill.
Wail and howl, proud city!
Fall prostrate in fear, Philistia!
On the northern horizon, smoke from burned cities,
the wake of a brutal, disciplined destroyer.
32What does one say to
outsiders who ask questions?
Tell them, "God has established Zion.
Those in need and in trouble find refuge in her."
Poignant Cries Reverberate Through Moab
1-4 A Message concerning Moab:
Village Ar of Moab is in ruins,
destroyed in a night raid.
Village Kir of Moab is in ruins,
destroyed in a night raid.
Village Dibon climbs to its chapel in the hills,
goes up to lament.
Moab weeps and wails
over Nebo and Medba.
Every head is shaved bald,
every beard shaved clean.
They pour into the streets wearing black,
go up on the roofs, take to the town square,
Everyone in tears,
everyone in grief.
Towns Heshbon and Elealeh cry long and loud.
The sound carries as far as Jahaz.
Moab sobs, shaking in grief.
The soul of Moab trembles.
5-9Oh, how I grieve for Moab!
Refugees stream to Zoar
and then on to Eglath-shelishiyah.
Up the slopes of Luhith they weep;
on the road to Horonaim they cry their loss.
The springs of Nimrim are dried up—
grass brown, buds stunted, nothing grows.
They leave, carrying all their possessions
on their backs, everything they own,
Making their way as best they can
across Willow Creek to safety.
Poignant cries reverberate
all through Moab,
Gut-wrenching sobs as far as Eglaim,
heart-racking sobs all the way to Beer-elim.
The banks of the Dibon crest with blood,
but God has worse in store for Dibon:
A lion—a lion to finish off the fugitives,
to clean up whoever's left in the land. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Personal Application:
“When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long….Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin” (Psalm 32:3, 5). Confess your struggles with envy to God. Need help treasuring who you are and the life you’ve been given? Talk with your pastor or a counselor.
Family Activity:
Read Psalm 23:
A David Psalm
1-3 God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.
4 Even when the way goes through
Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.
5 You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.
6 Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life. (The Message)
Use the Internet, books and other resources to research shepherds and sheep. List what each is like, and discuss why David chose, in this psalm, to name the Lord his shepherd. As a “sheep,” what were David’s needs? When he wrote, “I shall not be in want,” what did he mean? As a family, create a list of your needs. Would any of them fit better in a list entitled “Wants”? Discuss the differences between David’s message and what today’s media and society say about needs and wants. How do you feel when friends have items on your “want” list? Are you able to look at the needs God meets for you and thank God for those? Pray, asking God for a spirit of gratitude and grace.
Prayer:
O God who gives us all we need and more, thank you for the blessings in my life. Forgive me for comparing the gifts you give me with those you give anyone else. Help me to love others with a love that delights in the good things in their lives and bless them with my prayers. In Jesus name, Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Patrick (around 385-around 461), missionary monk, bishop
The Confessions, § 43-47
«What you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops»
It is not I who undertook this work, but it is Christ the Lord who commanded me to come to be with these Irish pagans for the rest of my life, if the Lord shall will it and shield me from every evil... But I do not trust myself «as long as I am in this mortal body» (2P 1:13; Rm 7:24)... I did not lead a perfect life like other believers, but I confess to my Lord and do not blush in his sight, because I am not lying; from the time when I came to know him in my youth, the love of God and fear of him increased in me, and right up until now, by God's favour, «I have kept the faith» (2Tm 4:7).
What is more, let anyone laugh and taunt if he so wishes. I am not keeping silent, nor am I hiding «the signs and wonders» (Dn 6:27) that were shown to me by the Lord many years before they happened, he who knew everything, even before the beginning of time. Thus, I should give thanks unceasingly to God, who has frequently forgive my folly and my negligence, in more than one instance, and has never been angry with me, who am placed as his helper, though I did not easily assent to what had been revealed to me, as the Spirit was urging. The Lord «took pity» on me «thousands upon thousands» of times, (Ex 20:6) because he saw within me that I was prepared to serve him... Many were trying to prevent this mission; they were talking among themselves behind my back and saying, «Why is this fellow throwing himself into danger among enemies who do not know God?» Not from malice did they say this; as I myself can testify, they perceived my rusticity. And I was not quick to recognize the grace that was then in me; I now know that I should have done so earlier.
Now I have put it frankly to my brothers and co-workers, who have believed me because of what «I have proclaimed and still proclaim» (2Co 13:2) to strengthen and reinforce your faith. I wish only that you, too, would make greater and better efforts. This will be my pride, for "a wise son makes a proud father". (Pr 10:1)
What aspect of Mary would I most like to imitate?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:7-12
7-15 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean,
scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life.
Tune me in to foot-tapping songs,
set these once-broken bones to dancing.
Don't look too close for blemishes,
give me a clean bill of health.
God, make a fresh start in me,
shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life.
Don't throw me out with the trash,
or fail to breathe holiness in me.
Bring me back from gray exile,
put a fresh wind in my sails!
Give me a job teaching rebels your ways
so the lost can find their way home.
Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God,
and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways.
Unbutton my lips, dear God;
I'll let loose with your praise.(The Message)
KEY VERSE: Create in me a pure heart, O God (Ps. 51:10).
Winning a Losing Battle
Is it possible to have a pure heart in the midst of a culture deeply stained by evils our grandparents could barely imagine?
"When I was in high school," my mother used to say, "our lockers were searched for rouge and lipstick." Now full-time security guards and electronic devices monitor the halls for guns and illegal drugs.
We need only look within our own hearts to see that purity has waged a losing battle. Desperation followed David's recognition that he was born a sinner, for he knew that God required what he found impossible. "Surely you desire truth in the inner parts" (Ps. 51:6).
When John the Baptist pronounced judgment on sin, he pointed his desperate listeners to the only One who could help them. "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!" (John 1:29, nkjv). The sinless Christ is the fulfillment of God's promise to "remove . . . their heart of stone and give them a heart of flesh. Then they will follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws" (Ezek. 11:19-20).
Jesus is the "Word made flesh" who creates within us a clean heart and makes us pure, regardless of personal weakness or societal changes.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
Give me a holy life, Spotless and free
Cleansed by the crystal flow Coming from Thee.
"Give Me a Holy Life" by Leslie Taylor-Hunt
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Ghana.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
That risky act of rescue-the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world-lies at the heart of Christian belief (Philip Yancey).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
A Time to Receive and a Time to Give
It is important to know when we can give attention and when we need attention. Often we are inclined to give, give, and give without ever asking anything in return. We may think that this is a sign of generosity or even heroism. But it might be little else than a proud attitude that says: "I don't need help from others. I only want to give." When we keep giving without receiving we burn out quickly. Only when we pay careful attention to our own physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual needs can we be, and remain, joyful givers.
There is a time to give and a time to receive. We need equal time for both if we want to live healthy lives.
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 13-15
Babylon Is Doomed!
1 The Message on Babylon. Isaiah son of Amoz saw it: 2-3"Run up a flag on an open hill. Yell loud. Get their attention.
Wave them into formation.
Direct them to the nerve center of power.
I've taken charge of my special forces,
called up my crack troops.
They're bursting with pride and passion
to carry out my angry judgment."
4-5Thunder rolls off the mountains
like a mob huge and noisy—
Thunder of kingdoms in an uproar,
nations assembling for war.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies is calling
his army into battle formation.
They come from far-off countries,
they pour in across the horizon.
It's God on the move with the weapons of his wrath,
ready to destroy the whole country.
6-8Wail! God's Day of Judgment is near—
an avalanche crashing down from the Strong God!
Everyone paralyzed in the panic,
hysterical and unstrung,
Doubled up in pain
like a woman giving birth to a baby.
Horrified—everyone they see
is like a face out of a nightmare.
9-16"Watch now. God's Judgment Day comes.
Cruel it is, a day of wrath and anger,
A day to waste the earth
and clean out all the sinners.
The stars in the sky, the great parade of constellations,
will be nothing but black holes.
The sun will come up as a black disk,
and the moon a blank nothing.
I'll put a full stop to the evil on earth,
terminate the dark acts of the wicked.
I'll gag all braggarts and boasters—not a peep anymore from them—
and trip strutting tyrants, leave them flat on their faces.
Proud humanity will disappear from the earth.
I'll make mortals rarer than hens' teeth.
And yes, I'll even make the sky shake,
and the earth quake to its roots
Under the wrath of God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
the Judgment Day of his raging anger.
Like a hunted white-tailed deer,
like lost sheep with no shepherd,
People will huddle with a few of their own kind,
run off to some makeshift shelter.
But tough luck to stragglers—they'll be killed on the spot,
throats cut, bellies ripped open,
Babies smashed on the rocks
while mothers and fathers watch,
Houses looted,
wives raped.
17-22"And now watch this:
Against Babylon, I'm inciting the Medes,
A ruthless bunch indifferent to bribes,
the kind of brutality that no one can blunt.
They massacre the young,
wantonly kick and kill even babies.
And Babylon, most glorious of all kingdoms,
the pride and joy of Chaldeans,
Will end up smoking and stinking like Sodom,
and, yes, like Gomorrah, when God had finished with them.
No one will live there anymore,
generation after generation a ghost town.
Not even Bedouins will pitch tents there.
Shepherds will give it a wide berth.
But strange and wild animals will like it just fine,
filling the vacant houses with eerie night sounds.
Skunks will make it their home,
and unspeakable night hags will haunt it.
Hyenas will curdle your blood with their laughing,
and the howling of coyotes will give you the shivers.
"Babylon is doomed.
It won't be long now."
Now You Are Nothing
1-2 But not so with Jacob. God will have compassion on Jacob. Once again he'll choose Israel. He'll establish them in their own country. Outsiders will be attracted and throw their lot in with Jacob. The nations among whom they lived will actually escort them back home, and then Israel will pay them back by making slaves of them, men and women alike, possessing them as slaves in God's country, capturing those who had captured them, ruling over those who had abused them.
3-4When God has given you time to recover from the abuse and trouble and harsh servitude that you had to endure, you can amuse yourselves by taking up this satire, a taunt against the king of Babylon:
4-6Can you believe it? The tyrant is gone!
The tyranny is over!
God has broken the rule of the wicked,
the power of the bully-rulers
That crushed many people.
A relentless rain of cruel outrage
Established a violent rule of anger
rife with torture and persecution.
7-10And now it's over, the whole earth quietly at rest.
Burst into song! Make the rafters ring!
Ponderosa pine trees are happy,
giant Lebanon cedars are relieved, saying,
"Since you've been cut down,
there's no one around to cut us down."
And the underworld dead are all excited,
preparing to welcome you when you come.
Getting ready to greet you are the ghostly dead,
all the famous names of earth.
All the buried kings of the nations
will stand up on their thrones
With well-prepared speeches,
royal invitations to death:
"Now you are as nothing as we are!
Make yourselves at home with us dead folks!"
11This is where your pomp and fine music led you, Babylon,
to your underworld private chambers,
A king-size mattress of maggots for repose
and a quilt of crawling worms for warmth.
12What a comedown this, O Babylon!
Daystar! Son of Dawn!
Flat on your face in the underworld mud,
you, famous for flattening nations!
13-14You said to yourself,
"I'll climb to heaven.
I'll set my throne
over the stars of God.
I'll run the assembly of angels
that meets on sacred Mount Zaphon.
I'll climb to the top of the clouds.
I'll take over as King of the Universe!"
15-17But you didn't make it, did you?
Instead of climbing up, you came down—
Down with the underground dead,
down to the abyss of the Pit.
People will stare and muse:
"Can this be the one
Who terrorized earth and its kingdoms,
turned earth to a moonscape,
Wasted its cities,
shut up his prisoners to a living death?"
18-20Other kings get a decent burial,
honored with eulogies and placed in a tomb.
But you're dumped in a ditch unburied,
like a stray dog or cat,
Covered with rotting bodies,
murdered and indigent corpses.
Your dead body desecrated, mutilated—
no state funeral for you!
You've left your land in ruins,
left a legacy of massacre.
The progeny of your evil life
will never be named. Oblivion!
21Get a place ready to slaughter the sons of the wicked
and wipe out their father's line.
Unthinkable that they should own a square foot of land
or desecrate the face of the world with their cities!
22-23"I will confront them"—Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies—"and strip Babylon of name and survivors, children and grandchildren." God's Decree. "I'll make it a worthless swamp and give it as a prize to the hedgehog. And then I'll bulldoze it out of existence." Decree of God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
Who Could Ever Cancel Such Plans?
24-27God-of-the-Angel-Armies speaks:
"Exactly as I planned,
it will happen.
Following my blueprints,
it will take shape.
I will shatter the Assyrian who trespasses my land
and stomp him into the dirt on my mountains.
I will ban his taking and making of slaves
and lift the weight of oppression from all shoulders."
This is the plan,
planned for the whole earth,
And this is the hand that will do it,
reaching into every nation.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies has planned it.
Who could ever cancel such plans?
His is the hand that's reached out.
Who could brush it aside?
28-31In the year King Ahaz died, this Message came:
Hold it, Philistines! It's too soon to celebrate
the defeat of your cruel oppressor.
From the death throes of that snake a worse snake will come,
and from that, one even worse.
The poor won't have to worry.
The needy will escape the terror.
But you Philistines will be plunged into famine,
and those who don't starve, God will kill.
Wail and howl, proud city!
Fall prostrate in fear, Philistia!
On the northern horizon, smoke from burned cities,
the wake of a brutal, disciplined destroyer.
32What does one say to
outsiders who ask questions?
Tell them, "God has established Zion.
Those in need and in trouble find refuge in her."
Poignant Cries Reverberate Through Moab
1-4 A Message concerning Moab:
Village Ar of Moab is in ruins,
destroyed in a night raid.
Village Kir of Moab is in ruins,
destroyed in a night raid.
Village Dibon climbs to its chapel in the hills,
goes up to lament.
Moab weeps and wails
over Nebo and Medba.
Every head is shaved bald,
every beard shaved clean.
They pour into the streets wearing black,
go up on the roofs, take to the town square,
Everyone in tears,
everyone in grief.
Towns Heshbon and Elealeh cry long and loud.
The sound carries as far as Jahaz.
Moab sobs, shaking in grief.
The soul of Moab trembles.
5-9Oh, how I grieve for Moab!
Refugees stream to Zoar
and then on to Eglath-shelishiyah.
Up the slopes of Luhith they weep;
on the road to Horonaim they cry their loss.
The springs of Nimrim are dried up—
grass brown, buds stunted, nothing grows.
They leave, carrying all their possessions
on their backs, everything they own,
Making their way as best they can
across Willow Creek to safety.
Poignant cries reverberate
all through Moab,
Gut-wrenching sobs as far as Eglaim,
heart-racking sobs all the way to Beer-elim.
The banks of the Dibon crest with blood,
but God has worse in store for Dibon:
A lion—a lion to finish off the fugitives,
to clean up whoever's left in the land. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Personal Application:
“When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long….Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.’ And you forgave the guilt of my sin” (Psalm 32:3, 5). Confess your struggles with envy to God. Need help treasuring who you are and the life you’ve been given? Talk with your pastor or a counselor.
Family Activity:
Read Psalm 23:
A David Psalm
1-3 God, my shepherd! I don't need a thing.
You have bedded me down in lush meadows,
you find me quiet pools to drink from.
True to your word,
you let me catch my breath
and send me in the right direction.
4 Even when the way goes through
Death Valley,
I'm not afraid
when you walk at my side.
Your trusty shepherd's crook
makes me feel secure.
5 You serve me a six-course dinner
right in front of my enemies.
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.
6 Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I'm back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life. (The Message)
Use the Internet, books and other resources to research shepherds and sheep. List what each is like, and discuss why David chose, in this psalm, to name the Lord his shepherd. As a “sheep,” what were David’s needs? When he wrote, “I shall not be in want,” what did he mean? As a family, create a list of your needs. Would any of them fit better in a list entitled “Wants”? Discuss the differences between David’s message and what today’s media and society say about needs and wants. How do you feel when friends have items on your “want” list? Are you able to look at the needs God meets for you and thank God for those? Pray, asking God for a spirit of gratitude and grace.
Prayer:
O God who gives us all we need and more, thank you for the blessings in my life. Forgive me for comparing the gifts you give me with those you give anyone else. Help me to love others with a love that delights in the good things in their lives and bless them with my prayers. In Jesus name, Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Patrick (around 385-around 461), missionary monk, bishop
The Confessions, § 43-47
«What you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops»
It is not I who undertook this work, but it is Christ the Lord who commanded me to come to be with these Irish pagans for the rest of my life, if the Lord shall will it and shield me from every evil... But I do not trust myself «as long as I am in this mortal body» (2P 1:13; Rm 7:24)... I did not lead a perfect life like other believers, but I confess to my Lord and do not blush in his sight, because I am not lying; from the time when I came to know him in my youth, the love of God and fear of him increased in me, and right up until now, by God's favour, «I have kept the faith» (2Tm 4:7).
What is more, let anyone laugh and taunt if he so wishes. I am not keeping silent, nor am I hiding «the signs and wonders» (Dn 6:27) that were shown to me by the Lord many years before they happened, he who knew everything, even before the beginning of time. Thus, I should give thanks unceasingly to God, who has frequently forgive my folly and my negligence, in more than one instance, and has never been angry with me, who am placed as his helper, though I did not easily assent to what had been revealed to me, as the Spirit was urging. The Lord «took pity» on me «thousands upon thousands» of times, (Ex 20:6) because he saw within me that I was prepared to serve him... Many were trying to prevent this mission; they were talking among themselves behind my back and saying, «Why is this fellow throwing himself into danger among enemies who do not know God?» Not from malice did they say this; as I myself can testify, they perceived my rusticity. And I was not quick to recognize the grace that was then in me; I now know that I should have done so earlier.
Now I have put it frankly to my brothers and co-workers, who have believed me because of what «I have proclaimed and still proclaim» (2Co 13:2) to strengthen and reinforce your faith. I wish only that you, too, would make greater and better efforts. This will be my pride, for "a wise son makes a proud father". (Pr 10:1)
Friday, July 10, 2009
Reflecting God for Friday, July 10, 2009
Today’s Question
What are you leaving behind in a situation of change?
Question of the day:
How do I discover the maternal face of God?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:1-6
1-3Generous in love—God, give grace! Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record.
Scrub away my guilt,
soak out my sins in your laundry.
I know how bad I've been;
my sins are staring me down.
4-6 You're the One I've violated, and you've seen
it all, seen the full extent of my evil.
You have all the facts before you;
whatever you decide about me is fair.
I've been out of step with you for a long time,
in the wrong since before I was born.
What you're after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. (The Message)
KEY VERSE: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love (Ps. 51:1).
No Child's Play
I heard rowdy voices in the living room and went to investigate. My children stood nose to nose, feet rigid on the carpet, hands clasped together. Grimacing, each tried to force the other down to the ground. Finally my youngest bent to his knees, yelling, "Mercy, mercy!"
"What are you doing?" I asked.
The oldest, also the victor, smiled. "We're playing mercy."
"Excuse me?"
"Mercy," he repeated. "You know, I get him down, and he has to cry for mercy before I let him up."
God never plays at mercy. He takes no delight in seeing His children bent beneath the load of sin that overpowers them. He has made a way out.
"The Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust . . . From everlasting to everlasting, the Lord's love is with those who fear him" (Ps. 103:13-17). His mercy, pure and unconditional, is held out to every repentant person, even before they call.
We need not continually plead with Him for mercy; His grace pleads for acceptance. "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden," says Jesus, "and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28).
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
In loving kindness Jesus came,
My soul in mercy to reclaim;
"He Lifted Me" by Charles H. Gabriel
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Many people in Ghana will come to know Christ and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Depth of mercy! Can there be mercy still reserved for me? (Charles Wesley).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Listening With Our Wounds
To enter into solidarity with a suffering person does not mean that we have to talk with that person about our own suffering. Speaking about our own pain is seldom helpful for someone who is in pain. A wounded healer is someone who can listen to a person in pain without having to speak about his or her own wounds. When we have lived through a painful depression, we can listen with great attentiveness and love to a depressed friend without mentioning our experience. Mostly it is better not to direct a suffering person's attention to ourselves. We have to trust that our own bandaged wounds will allow us to listen to others with our whole beings. That is healing.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 10-12
You Who Legislate Evil
1-4 Doom to you who legislate evil, who make laws that make victims— Laws that make misery for the poor,
that rob my destitute people of dignity,
Exploiting defenseless widows,
taking advantage of homeless children.
What will you have to say on Judgment Day,
when Doomsday arrives out of the blue?
Who will you get to help you?
What good will your money do you?
A sorry sight you'll be then, huddled with the prisoners,
or just some corpses stacked in the street.
Even after all this, God is still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
Doom to Assyria!
5-11"Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger.
My wrath is a cudgel in his hands!
I send him against a godless nation,
against the people I'm angry with.
I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind,
and then push their faces in the mud and leave them.
But Assyria has another agenda;
he has something else in mind.
He's out to destroy utterly,
to stamp out as many nations as he can.
Assyria says, 'Aren't my commanders all kings?
Can't they do whatever they like?
Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish?
Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus?
I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods
far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria.
So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem
in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'"
12-13When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing, the way he goes around saying,
13-14"'I've done all this by myself.
I know more than anyone.
I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries.
I've walked in and taken anything I wanted.
I charged in like a bull
and toppled their kings from their thrones.
I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured
as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest.
Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse,
I gathered the world in my basket,
And no one so much as fluttered a wing
or squawked or even chirped.'"
15-19Does an ax take over from the one who swings it?
Does a saw act more important than the sawyer?
As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger!
As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails!
Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters.
Under the canopy of God's bright glory
a fierce fire will break out.
Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration.
The Holy will explode into a firestorm,
And in one day burn to cinders
every last Assyrian thornbush.
God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens.
The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing
like a disease-ridden invalid.
A child could count what's left of the trees
on the fingers of his two hands.
20-23And on that Day also, what's left of Israel, the ragtag survivors of Jacob, will no longer be fascinated by abusive, battering Assyria. They'll lean on God, The Holy—yes, truly. The ragtag remnant—what's left of Jacob—will come back to the Strong God. Your people Israel were once like the sand on the seashore, but only a scattered few will return. Destruction is ordered, brimming over with righteousness. For the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will finish here what he started all over the globe.
24-27Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says: "My dear, dear people who live in Zion, don't be terrorized by the Assyrians when they beat you with clubs and threaten you with rods like the Egyptians once did. In just a short time my anger against you will be spent and I'll turn my destroying anger on them. I, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will go after them with a cat-o'-nine-tails and finish them off decisively—as Gideon downed Midian at the rock Oreb, as Moses turned the tables on Egypt. On that day, Assyria will be pulled off your back, and the yoke of slavery lifted from your neck."
27-32Assyria's on the move: up from Rimmon,
on to Aiath,
through Migron,
with a bivouac at Micmash.
They've crossed the pass,
set camp at Geba for the night.
Ramah trembles with fright.
Gibeah of Saul has run off.
Cry for help, daughter of Gallim!
Listen to her, Laishah!
Do something, Anathoth!
Madmenah takes to the hills.
The people of Gebim flee in panic.
The enemy's soon at Nob—nearly there!
In sight of the city he shakes his fist
At the mount of dear daughter Zion,
the hill of Jerusalem.
33-34But now watch this: The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
swings his ax and lops the branches,
Chops down the giant trees,
lays flat the towering forest-on-the-march.
His ax will make toothpicks of that forest,
that Lebanon-like army reduced to kindling.
A Green Shoot from Jesse's Stump
1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse's stump, from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
will be all his joy and delight.
He won't judge by appearances,
won't decide on the basis of hearsay.
He'll judge the needy by what is right,
render decisions on earth's poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he'll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.
A Living Knowledge of God
6-9The wolf will romp with the lamb,
the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
their calves and cubs grow up together,
and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.
10On that day, Jesse's Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
11Also on that day, the Master for the second time will reach out to bring back what's left of his scattered people. He'll bring them back from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Sinar, Hamath, and the ocean islands.
12-16And he'll raise that rallying banner high, visible to all nations,
gather in all the scattered exiles of Israel,
Pull in all the dispersed refugees of Judah
from the four winds and the seven seas.
The jealousy of Ephraim will dissolve,
the hostility of Judah will vanish—
Ephraim no longer the jealous rival of Judah,
Judah no longer the hostile rival of Ephraim!
Blood brothers united, they'll pounce on the Philistines in the west,
join forces to plunder the people in the east.
They'll attack Edom and Moab.
The Ammonites will fall into line.
God will once again dry up Egypt's Red Sea,
making for an easy crossing.
He'll send a blistering wind
down on the great River Euphrates,
Reduce it to seven mere trickles.
None even need get their feet wet!
In the end there'll be a highway all the way from Assyria,
easy traveling for what's left of God's people—
A highway just like the one Israel had
when he marched up out of Egypt.
My Strength and Song
1 And you will say in that day,
"I thank you, God.
You were angry
but your anger wasn't forever.
You withdrew your anger
and moved in and comforted me.
2"Yes, indeed—God is my salvation.
I trust, I won't be afraid.
God—yes God!—is my strength and song,
best of all, my salvation!"
3-4Joyfully you'll pull up buckets of water
from the wells of salvation.
And as you do it, you'll say,
"Give thanks to God.
Call out his name.
Ask him anything!
Shout to the nations, tell them what he's done,
spread the news of his great reputation!
5-6"Sing praise-songs to God. He's done it all!
Let the whole earth know what he's done!
Raise the roof! Sing your hearts out, O Zion!
The Greatest lives among you: The Holy of Israel." (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
O God, thank you for valuing me, even when I struggle to value myself. Help me to love myself as you have loved me. Give me contentment in being the person you’ve made me to be, and in serving you and others the ways I am gifted to do. Then, help me to love my neighbor as I love myself. I thank you that your ways are so much higher and greater than mine. Amen.
Surprising Mercy
Suggested Bible Reading
The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you." So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: "By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish." When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it. But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. He prayed to the LORD and said, "O LORD! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live." And the LORD said, "Is it right for you to be angry?" Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city. The LORD God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, "It is better for me to die than to live." But God said to Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?" And he said, "Yes, angry enough to die." Then the LORD said, "You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?"
-Jonah 3-4 (NRSV)
Today's Scripture
The Lord said, "Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people ... . Should I not be concerned about that great city?"
-Jonah 4:11 (NIV)
GOD told Jonah to proclaim the destruction of Nineveh, Assyria's capital. When Jonah preached this, all of Nineveh fasted and prayed, even the king. Hearing of their repentance and God's mercy toward them, Jonah became angry because he wanted harsh judgment to fall on the Ninevites.
When people hear that I am Assyrian, some ask, "Like in the Bible?" Yes! The ancient Assyrians terrorized other nations, especially Israel. Though the empire fell around 625 B.C., God spared the people. Today we Assyrians are thousands strong, scattered around the world. Among the first nations to accept the gospel, we have endured countless persecutions through the centuries. Assyrians living in the Middle East today are still persecuted for following Christ. We Assyrians can thank God for pushing Jonah to overcome his judgment of the Ninevites and to warn them.
Is there anyone in our lives that we, like Jonah, want God to condemn? Instead, to our shock, God asks us to love them, to show grace and mercy, setting aside our feelings. Who knows? Maybe our obedient love is the very thing God will use to help someone find life in Christ.
Sabrina Savra (Illinois, USA)
Prayer
Lord, help us to love those we find hard to love. May we work together to spread your love all over the world. Amen.
Thought for the Day
God's love working through us can save the world.
Prayer Focus
Christians in the Middle East
What are you leaving behind in a situation of change?
Question of the day:
How do I discover the maternal face of God?
SCRIPTURE READING: Psalm 51:1-6
1-3Generous in love—God, give grace! Huge in mercy—wipe out my bad record.
Scrub away my guilt,
soak out my sins in your laundry.
I know how bad I've been;
my sins are staring me down.
4-6 You're the One I've violated, and you've seen
it all, seen the full extent of my evil.
You have all the facts before you;
whatever you decide about me is fair.
I've been out of step with you for a long time,
in the wrong since before I was born.
What you're after is truth from the inside out.
Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. (The Message)
KEY VERSE: Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love (Ps. 51:1).
No Child's Play
I heard rowdy voices in the living room and went to investigate. My children stood nose to nose, feet rigid on the carpet, hands clasped together. Grimacing, each tried to force the other down to the ground. Finally my youngest bent to his knees, yelling, "Mercy, mercy!"
"What are you doing?" I asked.
The oldest, also the victor, smiled. "We're playing mercy."
"Excuse me?"
"Mercy," he repeated. "You know, I get him down, and he has to cry for mercy before I let him up."
God never plays at mercy. He takes no delight in seeing His children bent beneath the load of sin that overpowers them. He has made a way out.
"The Lord has compassion on those who fear him; for he knows how we are formed, he remembers that we are dust . . . From everlasting to everlasting, the Lord's love is with those who fear him" (Ps. 103:13-17). His mercy, pure and unconditional, is held out to every repentant person, even before they call.
We need not continually plead with Him for mercy; His grace pleads for acceptance. "Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden," says Jesus, "and I will give you rest" (Matt. 11:28).
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
In loving kindness Jesus came,
My soul in mercy to reclaim;
"He Lifted Me" by Charles H. Gabriel
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Many people in Ghana will come to know Christ and receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Depth of mercy! Can there be mercy still reserved for me? (Charles Wesley).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Listening With Our Wounds
To enter into solidarity with a suffering person does not mean that we have to talk with that person about our own suffering. Speaking about our own pain is seldom helpful for someone who is in pain. A wounded healer is someone who can listen to a person in pain without having to speak about his or her own wounds. When we have lived through a painful depression, we can listen with great attentiveness and love to a depressed friend without mentioning our experience. Mostly it is better not to direct a suffering person's attention to ourselves. We have to trust that our own bandaged wounds will allow us to listen to others with our whole beings. That is healing.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 10-12
You Who Legislate Evil
1-4 Doom to you who legislate evil, who make laws that make victims— Laws that make misery for the poor,
that rob my destitute people of dignity,
Exploiting defenseless widows,
taking advantage of homeless children.
What will you have to say on Judgment Day,
when Doomsday arrives out of the blue?
Who will you get to help you?
What good will your money do you?
A sorry sight you'll be then, huddled with the prisoners,
or just some corpses stacked in the street.
Even after all this, God is still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
Doom to Assyria!
5-11"Doom to Assyria, weapon of my anger.
My wrath is a cudgel in his hands!
I send him against a godless nation,
against the people I'm angry with.
I command him to strip them clean, rob them blind,
and then push their faces in the mud and leave them.
But Assyria has another agenda;
he has something else in mind.
He's out to destroy utterly,
to stamp out as many nations as he can.
Assyria says, 'Aren't my commanders all kings?
Can't they do whatever they like?
Didn't I destroy Calno as well as Carchemish?
Hamath as well as Arpad? Level Samaria as I did Damascus?
I've eliminated kingdoms full of gods
far more impressive than anything in Jerusalem and Samaria.
So what's to keep me from destroying Jerusalem
in the same way I destroyed Samaria and all her god-idols?'"
12-13When the Master has finished dealing with Mount Zion and Jerusalem, he'll say, "Now it's Assyria's turn. I'll punish the bragging arrogance of the king of Assyria, his high and mighty posturing, the way he goes around saying,
13-14"'I've done all this by myself.
I know more than anyone.
I've wiped out the boundaries of whole countries.
I've walked in and taken anything I wanted.
I charged in like a bull
and toppled their kings from their thrones.
I reached out my hand and took all that they treasured
as easily as a boy taking a bird's eggs from a nest.
Like a farmer gathering eggs from the henhouse,
I gathered the world in my basket,
And no one so much as fluttered a wing
or squawked or even chirped.'"
15-19Does an ax take over from the one who swings it?
Does a saw act more important than the sawyer?
As if a shovel did its shoveling by using a ditch digger!
As if a hammer used the carpenter to pound nails!
Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
will send a debilitating disease on his robust Assyrian fighters.
Under the canopy of God's bright glory
a fierce fire will break out.
Israel's Light will burst into a conflagration.
The Holy will explode into a firestorm,
And in one day burn to cinders
every last Assyrian thornbush.
God will destroy the splendid trees and lush gardens.
The Assyrian body and soul will waste away to nothing
like a disease-ridden invalid.
A child could count what's left of the trees
on the fingers of his two hands.
20-23And on that Day also, what's left of Israel, the ragtag survivors of Jacob, will no longer be fascinated by abusive, battering Assyria. They'll lean on God, The Holy—yes, truly. The ragtag remnant—what's left of Jacob—will come back to the Strong God. Your people Israel were once like the sand on the seashore, but only a scattered few will return. Destruction is ordered, brimming over with righteousness. For the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will finish here what he started all over the globe.
24-27Therefore the Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, says: "My dear, dear people who live in Zion, don't be terrorized by the Assyrians when they beat you with clubs and threaten you with rods like the Egyptians once did. In just a short time my anger against you will be spent and I'll turn my destroying anger on them. I, God-of-the-Angel-Armies, will go after them with a cat-o'-nine-tails and finish them off decisively—as Gideon downed Midian at the rock Oreb, as Moses turned the tables on Egypt. On that day, Assyria will be pulled off your back, and the yoke of slavery lifted from your neck."
27-32Assyria's on the move: up from Rimmon,
on to Aiath,
through Migron,
with a bivouac at Micmash.
They've crossed the pass,
set camp at Geba for the night.
Ramah trembles with fright.
Gibeah of Saul has run off.
Cry for help, daughter of Gallim!
Listen to her, Laishah!
Do something, Anathoth!
Madmenah takes to the hills.
The people of Gebim flee in panic.
The enemy's soon at Nob—nearly there!
In sight of the city he shakes his fist
At the mount of dear daughter Zion,
the hill of Jerusalem.
33-34But now watch this: The Master, God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
swings his ax and lops the branches,
Chops down the giant trees,
lays flat the towering forest-on-the-march.
His ax will make toothpicks of that forest,
that Lebanon-like army reduced to kindling.
A Green Shoot from Jesse's Stump
1-5 A green Shoot will sprout from Jesse's stump, from his roots a budding Branch.
The life-giving Spirit of God will hover over him,
the Spirit that brings wisdom and understanding,
The Spirit that gives direction and builds strength,
the Spirit that instills knowledge and Fear-of-God.
Fear-of-God
will be all his joy and delight.
He won't judge by appearances,
won't decide on the basis of hearsay.
He'll judge the needy by what is right,
render decisions on earth's poor with justice.
His words will bring everyone to awed attention.
A mere breath from his lips will topple the wicked.
Each morning he'll pull on sturdy work clothes and boots,
and build righteousness and faithfulness in the land.
A Living Knowledge of God
6-9The wolf will romp with the lamb,
the leopard sleep with the kid.
Calf and lion will eat from the same trough,
and a little child will tend them.
Cow and bear will graze the same pasture,
their calves and cubs grow up together,
and the lion eat straw like the ox.
The nursing child will crawl over rattlesnake dens,
the toddler stick his hand down the hole of a serpent.
Neither animal nor human will hurt or kill
on my holy mountain.
The whole earth will be brimming with knowing God-Alive,
a living knowledge of God ocean-deep, ocean-wide.
10On that day, Jesse's Root will be raised high, posted as a rallying banner for the peoples. The nations will all come to him. His headquarters will be glorious.
11Also on that day, the Master for the second time will reach out to bring back what's left of his scattered people. He'll bring them back from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Ethiopia, Elam, Sinar, Hamath, and the ocean islands.
12-16And he'll raise that rallying banner high, visible to all nations,
gather in all the scattered exiles of Israel,
Pull in all the dispersed refugees of Judah
from the four winds and the seven seas.
The jealousy of Ephraim will dissolve,
the hostility of Judah will vanish—
Ephraim no longer the jealous rival of Judah,
Judah no longer the hostile rival of Ephraim!
Blood brothers united, they'll pounce on the Philistines in the west,
join forces to plunder the people in the east.
They'll attack Edom and Moab.
The Ammonites will fall into line.
God will once again dry up Egypt's Red Sea,
making for an easy crossing.
He'll send a blistering wind
down on the great River Euphrates,
Reduce it to seven mere trickles.
None even need get their feet wet!
In the end there'll be a highway all the way from Assyria,
easy traveling for what's left of God's people—
A highway just like the one Israel had
when he marched up out of Egypt.
My Strength and Song
1 And you will say in that day,
"I thank you, God.
You were angry
but your anger wasn't forever.
You withdrew your anger
and moved in and comforted me.
2"Yes, indeed—God is my salvation.
I trust, I won't be afraid.
God—yes God!—is my strength and song,
best of all, my salvation!"
3-4Joyfully you'll pull up buckets of water
from the wells of salvation.
And as you do it, you'll say,
"Give thanks to God.
Call out his name.
Ask him anything!
Shout to the nations, tell them what he's done,
spread the news of his great reputation!
5-6"Sing praise-songs to God. He's done it all!
Let the whole earth know what he's done!
Raise the roof! Sing your hearts out, O Zion!
The Greatest lives among you: The Holy of Israel." (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
O God, thank you for valuing me, even when I struggle to value myself. Help me to love myself as you have loved me. Give me contentment in being the person you’ve made me to be, and in serving you and others the ways I am gifted to do. Then, help me to love my neighbor as I love myself. I thank you that your ways are so much higher and greater than mine. Amen.
Surprising Mercy
Suggested Bible Reading
The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time, saying, "Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you." So Jonah set out and went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days' walk across. Jonah began to go into the city, going a day's walk. And he cried out, "Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!" And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth. When the news reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. Then he had a proclamation made in Nineveh: "By the decree of the king and his nobles: No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall taste anything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water. Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth, and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from their evil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. Who knows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turn from his fierce anger, so that we do not perish." When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it. But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. He prayed to the LORD and said, "O LORD! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. And now, O LORD, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live." And the LORD said, "Is it right for you to be angry?" Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city. The LORD God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, "It is better for me to die than to live." But God said to Jonah, "Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?" And he said, "Yes, angry enough to die." Then the LORD said, "You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?"
-Jonah 3-4 (NRSV)
Today's Scripture
The Lord said, "Nineveh has more than a hundred and twenty thousand people ... . Should I not be concerned about that great city?"
-Jonah 4:11 (NIV)
GOD told Jonah to proclaim the destruction of Nineveh, Assyria's capital. When Jonah preached this, all of Nineveh fasted and prayed, even the king. Hearing of their repentance and God's mercy toward them, Jonah became angry because he wanted harsh judgment to fall on the Ninevites.
When people hear that I am Assyrian, some ask, "Like in the Bible?" Yes! The ancient Assyrians terrorized other nations, especially Israel. Though the empire fell around 625 B.C., God spared the people. Today we Assyrians are thousands strong, scattered around the world. Among the first nations to accept the gospel, we have endured countless persecutions through the centuries. Assyrians living in the Middle East today are still persecuted for following Christ. We Assyrians can thank God for pushing Jonah to overcome his judgment of the Ninevites and to warn them.
Is there anyone in our lives that we, like Jonah, want God to condemn? Instead, to our shock, God asks us to love them, to show grace and mercy, setting aside our feelings. Who knows? Maybe our obedient love is the very thing God will use to help someone find life in Christ.
Sabrina Savra (Illinois, USA)
Prayer
Lord, help us to love those we find hard to love. May we work together to spread your love all over the world. Amen.
Thought for the Day
God's love working through us can save the world.
Prayer Focus
Christians in the Middle East
Thursday, July 9, 2009
Reflecting God for Thursday, July 9, 2009
Today’s Question
When someone has recently been Christ to you?
Question of the day:
How is Jesus’ Father like a mother?
SCRIPTURE READING: 2 Samuel 12:8-14
7-12 "You're the man!" said Nathan. "And here's what God, the God of Israel, has to say to you: I made you king over Israel. I freed you from the fist of Saul. I gave you your master's daughter and other wives to have and to hold. I gave you both Israel and Judah. And if that hadn't been enough, I'd have gladly thrown in much more. So why have you treated the word of God with brazen contempt, doing this great evil? You murdered Uriah the Hittite, then took his wife as your wife. Worse, you killed him with an Ammonite sword! And now, because you treated God with such contempt and took Uriah the Hittite's wife as your wife, killing and murder will continually plague your family. This is God speaking, remember! I'll make trouble for you out of your own family. I'll take your wives from right out in front of you. I'll give them to some neighbor, and he'll go to bed with them openly. You did your deed in secret; I'm doing mine with the whole country watching!"
13-14 Then David confessed to Nathan, "I've sinned against God."
Nathan pronounced, "Yes, but that's not the last word. God forgives your sin. You won't die for it. But because of your blasphemous behavior, the son born to you will die." (The Message)
KEY VERSE: David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord" (2 Sam. 12:13).
Sin Equals Guilty
When I confessed that I had stolen his toy airplane and crushed it under angry feet, mother made me apologize to my brother. Furthermore, she required that I give my allowance to him until restitution was made and he could buy another airplane.
But that was not enough. She told me that while I had sinned against my brother, I had truly sinned against God and needed to seek His forgiveness.
David had murdered and committed adultery, doing terrible harm to Bathsheba and Uriah, as well as the baby conceived in the illicit affair. The entire nation of Israel that looked to its king for moral leadership was wounded. But David acknowledged that his sin was preeminently against God. "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight" (Ps. 51:4).
All sin is violation of God's holy law. When we fail to do good, we are also guilty of sin. "Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins" (James 4:17). When we sin, we are guilty before God. We can only fall back on His mercy for forgiveness.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
I once was an outcast stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice and an alien by birth!
"A Child of the King" by Harriet E. Buell
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Cote d'Ivoire.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
When I have to appear before my Lord . . . I will only say one thing: "Lord, be merciful to me, a poor sinner" (Karl Barth).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Tending Our Own Wounds First
Our own experience with loneliness, depression, and fear can become a gift for others, especially when we have received good care. As long as our wounds are open and bleeding, we scare others away. But after someone has carefully tended to our wounds, they no longer frighten us or others.
When we experience the healing presence of another person, we can discover our own gifts of healing. Then our wounds allow us to enter into a deep solidarity with our wounded brothers and sisters.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 7-9
A Virgin Will Bear a Son
1-2 During the time that Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel attacked Jerusalem, but the attack sputtered out. When the Davidic government learned that Aram had joined forces with Ephraim (that is, Israel), Ahaz and his people were badly shaken. They shook like trees in the wind.
3-6Then God told Isaiah, "Go and meet Ahaz. Take your son Shear-jashub (A-Remnant-Will-Return) with you. Meet him south of the city at the end of the aqueduct where it empties into the upper pool on the road to the public laundry. Tell him, Listen, calm down. Don't be afraid. And don't panic over these two burnt-out cases, Rezin of Aram and the son of Remaliah. They talk big but there's nothing to them. Aram, along with Ephraim's son of Remaliah, have plotted to do you harm. They've conspired against you, saying, 'Let's go to war against Judah, dismember it, take it for ourselves, and set the son of Tabeel up as a puppet king over it.'
7-9But God, the Master, says,
"It won't happen.
Nothing will come of it
Because the capital of Aram is Damascus
and the king of Damascus is a mere man, Rezin.
As for Ephraim, in sixty-five years
it will be rubble, nothing left of it.
The capital of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the king of Samaria is the mere son of Remaliah.
If you don't take your stand in faith,
you won't have a leg to stand on."
10-11God spoke again to Ahaz. This time he said, "Ask for a sign from your God. Ask anything. Be extravagant. Ask for the moon!"
12But Ahaz said, "I'd never do that. I'd never make demands like that on God!"
13-17So Isaiah told him, "Then listen to this, government of David! It's bad enough that you make people tired with your pious, timid hypocrisies, but now you're making God tired. So the Master is going to give you a sign anyway. Watch for this: A girl who is presently a virgin will get pregnant. She'll bear a son and name him Immanuel (God-With-Us). By the time the child is twelve years old, able to make moral decisions, the threat of war will be over. Relax, those two kings that have you so worried will be out of the picture. But also be warned: God will bring on you and your people and your government a judgment worse than anything since the time the kingdom split, when Ephraim left Judah. The king of Assyria is coming!"
18-19That's when God will whistle for the flies at the headwaters of Egypt's Nile, and whistle for the bees in the land of Assyria. They'll come and infest every nook and cranny of this country. There'll be no getting away from them.
20And that's when the Master will take the razor rented from across the Euphrates—the king of Assyria no less!—and shave the hair off your heads and genitals, leaving you shamed, exposed, and denuded. He'll shave off your beards while he's at it.
21-22It will be a time when survivors will count themselves lucky to have a cow and a couple of sheep. At least they'll have plenty of milk! Whoever's left in the land will learn to make do with the simplest foods—curds, whey, and honey.
23-25But that's not the end of it. This country that used to be covered with fine vineyards—thousands of them, worth millions!—will revert to a weed patch. Weeds and thornbushes everywhere! Good for nothing except, perhaps, hunting rabbits. Cattle and sheep will forage as best they can in the fields of weeds—but there won't be a trace of all those fertile and well-tended gardens and fields.
1 Then God told me, "Get a big sheet of paper and write in indelible ink, 'This belongs to Maher-shalal-hash-baz (Spoil-Speeds-Plunder-Hurries).'"
2-3I got two honest men, Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah, to witness the document. Then I went home to my wife, the prophetess. She conceived and gave birth to a son.
3-4God told me, "Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz. Before that baby says 'Daddy' or 'Mamma' the king of Assyria will have plundered the wealth of Damascus and the riches of Samaria."
5-8God spoke to me again, saying:
"Because this people has turned its back
on the gently flowing stream of Shiloah
And gotten all excited over Rezin
and the son of Remaliah,
I'm stepping in and facing them with
the wild floodwaters of the Euphrates,
The king of Assyria and all his fanfare,
a river in flood, bursting its banks,
Pouring into Judah, sweeping everything before it,
water up to your necks,
A huge wingspan of a raging river,
O Immanuel, spreading across your land."
9-10But face the facts, all you oppressors, and then wring your hands.
Listen, all of you, far and near.
Prepare for the worst and wring your hands.
Yes, prepare for the worst and wring your hands!
Plan and plot all you want—nothing will come of it.
All your talk is mere talk, empty words,
Because when all is said and done,
the last word is Immanuel—God-With-Us.
A Boulder Blocking Your Way
11-15God spoke strongly to me, grabbed me with both hands and warned me not to go along with this people. He said:
"Don't be like this people,
always afraid somebody is plotting against them.
Don't fear what they fear.
Don't take on their worries.
If you're going to worry,
worry about The Holy. Fear God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
The Holy can be either a Hiding Place
or a Boulder blocking your way,
The Rock standing in the willful way
of both houses of Israel,
A barbed-wire Fence preventing trespass
to the citizens of Jerusalem.
Many of them are going to run into that Rock
and get their bones broken,
Get tangled up in that barbed wire
and not get free of it."
16-18Gather up the testimony,
preserve the teaching for my followers,
While I wait for God as long as he remains in hiding,
while I wait and hope for him.
I stand my ground and hope,
I and the children God gave me as signs to Israel,
Warning signs and hope signs from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
who makes his home in Mount Zion.
19-22When people tell you, "Try out the fortunetellers.
Consult the spiritualists.
Why not tap into the spirit-world,
get in touch with the dead?"
Tell them, "No, we're going to study the Scriptures."
People who try the other ways get nowhere—a dead end!
Frustrated and famished,
they try one thing after another.
When nothing works out they get angry,
cursing first this god and then that one,
Looking this way and that,
up, down, and sideways—and seeing nothing,
A blank wall, an empty hole.
They end up in the dark with nothing.
A Child Has Been Born—for Us!
1 But there'll be no darkness for those who were in trouble. Earlier he did bring the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali into disrepute, but the time is coming when he'll make that whole area glorious— the road along the Sea, the country past the Jordan, international Galilee.
2-7The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—
light! sunbursts of light!
You repopulated the nation,
you expanded its joy.
Oh, they're so glad in your presence!
Festival joy!
The joy of a great celebration,
sharing rich gifts and warm greetings.
The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants—
all their whips and cudgels and curses—
Is gone, done away with, a deliverance
as surprising and sudden as Gideon's old victory over Midian.
The boots of all those invading troops,
along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood,
Will be piled in a heap and burned,
a fire that will burn for days!
For a child has been born—for us!
the gift of a son—for us!
He'll take over
the running of the world.
His names will be: Amazing Counselor,
Strong God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Wholeness.
His ruling authority will grow,
and there'll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.
He'll rule from the historic David throne
over that promised kingdom.
He'll put that kingdom on a firm footing
and keep it going
With fair dealing and right living,
beginning now and lasting always.
The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies
will do all this.
God Answered Fire with Fire
8-10The Master sent a message against Jacob.
It landed right on Israel's doorstep.
All the people soon heard the message,
Ephraim and the citizens of Samaria.
But they were a proud and arrogant bunch.
They dismissed the message, saying,
"Things aren't that bad.
We can handle anything that comes.
If our buildings are knocked down,
we'll rebuild them bigger and finer.
If our forests are cut down,
we'll replant them with finer trees."
11-12So God incited their adversaries against them,
stirred up their enemies to attack:
From the east, Arameans; from the west, Philistines.
They made hash of Israel.
But even after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
13-17But the people paid no mind to him who hit them,
didn't seek God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
So God hacked off Israel's head and tail,
palm branch and reed, both on the same day.
The big-head elders were the head,
the lying prophets were the tail.
Those who were supposed to lead this people
led them down blind alleys,
And those who followed the leaders
ended up lost and confused.
That's why the Master lost interest in the young men,
had no feeling for their orphans and widows.
All of them were godless and evil,
talking filth and folly.
And even after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
18-21Their wicked lives raged like an out-of-control fire,
the kind that burns everything in its path—
Trees and bushes, weeds and grasses—
filling the skies with smoke.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies answered fire with fire,
set the whole country on fire,
Turned the people into consuming fires,
consuming one another in their lusts—
Appetites insatiable, stuffing and gorging
themselves left and right with people and things.
But still they starved. Not even their children
were safe from their rapacious hunger.
Manasseh ate Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh,
and then the two ganged up against Judah.
And after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
O God, thank you for valuing me, even when I struggle to value myself. Help me to love myself as you have loved me. Give me contentment in being the person you’ve made me to be, and in serving you and others the ways I am gifted to do. Then, help me to love my neighbor as I love myself. I thank you that your ways are so much higher and greater than mine. Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Ephrem (c.306-373), Deacon in Syria, Doctor of the Church
Diatesseron 8, 3-4 (cf SC 121, p.159)
"If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it"
«On entering any house, first say, 'Peace to this house,'» (Lk 10:5) so that the Lord himself might enter and remain there, like with Mary... This greeting is the mystery of faith, which shines forth in the world. Through it, enmity is stifled, war is stopped, and men acknowledge one another. The effect of that greeting was hidden by a veil, in spite of the fact that the mystery of the resurrection is prefigured... when the light rises and dawn chases away the night. From the moment when Christ sent his disciples, men began to give and to receive this greeting, a source of healing and of blessing...
This greeting with its hidden power... is amply sufficient for all men. That is why Our Lord sent it together with his disciples as a forerunner, so that it might bring about peace and that, carried by the voice of the apostles, whom he sent, it might prepare the way before them. It was sown into all the houses...; it entered into all who heard it, so as to separate and to put aside its children, whom it recognized. It remained in them, but it denounced those who were foreign to it, for they did not welcome it.
This greeting of peace did not dry up; it began in the apostles and then sprang up in their brothers, revealing the Lord's inexhaustible treasures... Present in those who greeted in this way and in those who welcomed the greeting, this announcement of peace was neither diminished nor divided. It announced that the Father is near and in everyone; it revealed that the Son's mission is entirely with everyone, even if its goal is to be with his Father. It will not cease to proclaim that the images are now fulfilled and that the truth will finally chase away all shadows.
CHILDREN’S SUNDAY
(BIRTH-AGE 12)
LECTIONARY COMMENTARY
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Herbert R. Marbury, Guest Lectionary Commentator
Assistant Professor of Hebrew Bible, Vanderbilt University Divinity School,
Nashville, TN
Lection – 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (New Revised Standard Version)
(v. 1) Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread. (v. 2) At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; (v. 3) the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. (v. 4) Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” (v. 5) and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. (v. 6) The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” (v. 7) Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. (v. 8) The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. (v. 9) Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. (v. 10) Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
I. Description of the Liturgical Moment
Cultures and faith communities around the world celebrate the gift that God offers to humanity through children. African American Christians are no different. In many black churches, Children’s Day is a time for recognizing the achievements of young congregants who have earned a place on the honor roll, recently graduated, or distinguished themselves by their athletic prowess or creative genius. Children’s Day is also a time for adults to offer children the space to display their gifts by leading worship. Many churches will encourage children to form a choir, serve as primary liturgists, and more on that Sunday. In these churches, children live out the biblical saying that “a child shall lead them.”1
II. Biblical Interpretation for Preaching and Worship: 1 Samuel 3:1-10
Part One: The Contemporary Context of the Interpreter
I remember as a young boy the annual bustle leading up to Children’s Day. The energy devoted to preparation rivaled the preparation given to any of the high holy days of the liturgical year. As kids, we planned for months in advance to conduct the perfect worship experience. I remember the children and youth director, along with mothers and fathers of the church, joining the effort to teach us the conventions of worship. It was also a day when the order of service juxtaposed the latest hip-hop with a baroque anthem and traditional liturgical dancers took notes from a teen step team. The sermon, preached by an older youth, resonated with all the cues of youth culture and held young people in rapt attention. Our children’s group, like many others, also involved children of the community whose families did not attend the church. So, on Children’s Day, both the congregation and kids leading worship reflected our neighborhood: churched and unchurched, Christian, Muslim and Hebrew Israelite. It was a marvelous exercise in interfaith fellowship because our church took seriously the challenge to “suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for such to the Kingdom of God belong.”2
Part Two: Biblical Commentary
I Samuel 3:1-9 inaugurates Samuel as a prophet of the Lord. What an exciting occurrence--a vision at a time when visions of the Lord were rare! One would expect such an auspicious event to be heralded by both Samuel and Eli’s celebration. But, ironically, the event passes almost unrecognized by God’s new prophet or by his ailing teacher. What happened? How could they miss God? How could Samuel mistake God’s voice for Eli’s? In verse seven, the text informs the reader that Samuel did not yet know the Lord. So, sadly, Samuel hears the voice but does not recognize his creator. In other words, in a society where children are not valued as gifts of God with their own agency and ability to hear from the Lord, why would they be taught to hear God for themselves? Both Samuel and Eli find themselves confused by the experience, because Samuel has not yet been given permission to hear God for himself.
In verse 2, we are told that Eli is ailing. With failing vision, he cannot see God as clearly as he might have during the height of his ministry. Although Eli could not see it, God had already called his student, Samuel, to lead Israel. With neither army nor political office, Samuel would join the tradition of prophets who would anoint and depose kings, such as Saul and David. Samuel’s word would send Israel to war, prophesy God’s vision, and admonish rulers to repent and return to the ways of the Lord. Today, black families, communities, and civic organizations find themselves plagued by ailing leadership who still have much to teach, but have not taught a younger generation to hear from the Lord for themselves. Thankfully, it took Eli only three attempts to recognize God’s voice. The omniscient narrator heightens the reader’s frustration by clueing the reader in to the identity of the voice before Eli identifies its source. Finally, Eli realizes the gift that God had given to Samuel.
Many black children live in a world where their gifts go unrecognized or live lives where their gifts are rejected. Black communities are replete with sad anecdotes of brilliant young kids, whose intellectual prowess surpasses fortune 500 CEOs, but who grow up to build empires in the drug trade because no one received and nurtured their gifts. Worse, when families and communities fail to recognize and cultivate their children’s gifts, others may do so for their own purposes. Black communities were late in claiming hip-hop as a worthy and legitimate music expression of black youth. Within a few years of hip-hop’s inception, the larger music industry exploited the creative energy of black youth for profit rather than cultivating God’s gift in them. For years, the market consumed the production of images and lyrics that degraded young people, only exacerbating the pathology in black communities.
However, God has not left our youth in silence or darkness. God persisted in the darkness of Samuel’s room until Samuel recognized God’s voice. Just as Samuel finally recognized God’s voice, God persists until we listen. God is still speaking to black children and youth and they are responding in marvelous ways.
In 1969, Weldon Irvine and Nina Simone collaborated to tell us that we must learn to teach our young that they are “Young, Gifted and Black . . . and that’s a fact!” Each one is endowed with agency, a calling, and a particular connection to the Creator. Our responsibility is to teach them to be available to God, and then to receive from them the good thing that God has for humanity.
Celebration
When we empower children by ensuring that they have healthcare and housing, quality education and safe environments, then they will hear a word from the Lord and heal our land! When we teach our children to be available to God, they will imagine themselves in the image of their Creator, not in the images developed by market-driven mass media. On that day, when no child is hungry or alone, naked or unloved, when each one has what she needs to respond, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,” then the blessings of the Lord will be revealed among us.
Descriptive Details
The descriptive details in this passage include:
Sights: Eli lying in his room, aged, blind, and weary (v. 2); a dark room lit only by dim candle light (v. 3); a young boy, startled, running into the next room and rousing an old man (v. 4); and
Sounds: An old man snoring; a voice piercing the darkness; Samuel, awakened abruptly, running toward Eli’s room, an annoyed Eli instructing Samuel to return to bed (vv. 4,6); and Samuel asking the Lord to speak as he listened (v. 10).
Notes
1. Isaiah 11:6b, NRSV
2. “Luke 18:16.” The Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books : New Revised Standard Version. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1989.
When someone has recently been Christ to you?
Question of the day:
How is Jesus’ Father like a mother?
SCRIPTURE READING: 2 Samuel 12:8-14
7-12 "You're the man!" said Nathan. "And here's what God, the God of Israel, has to say to you: I made you king over Israel. I freed you from the fist of Saul. I gave you your master's daughter and other wives to have and to hold. I gave you both Israel and Judah. And if that hadn't been enough, I'd have gladly thrown in much more. So why have you treated the word of God with brazen contempt, doing this great evil? You murdered Uriah the Hittite, then took his wife as your wife. Worse, you killed him with an Ammonite sword! And now, because you treated God with such contempt and took Uriah the Hittite's wife as your wife, killing and murder will continually plague your family. This is God speaking, remember! I'll make trouble for you out of your own family. I'll take your wives from right out in front of you. I'll give them to some neighbor, and he'll go to bed with them openly. You did your deed in secret; I'm doing mine with the whole country watching!"
13-14 Then David confessed to Nathan, "I've sinned against God."
Nathan pronounced, "Yes, but that's not the last word. God forgives your sin. You won't die for it. But because of your blasphemous behavior, the son born to you will die." (The Message)
KEY VERSE: David said to Nathan, "I have sinned against the Lord" (2 Sam. 12:13).
Sin Equals Guilty
When I confessed that I had stolen his toy airplane and crushed it under angry feet, mother made me apologize to my brother. Furthermore, she required that I give my allowance to him until restitution was made and he could buy another airplane.
But that was not enough. She told me that while I had sinned against my brother, I had truly sinned against God and needed to seek His forgiveness.
David had murdered and committed adultery, doing terrible harm to Bathsheba and Uriah, as well as the baby conceived in the illicit affair. The entire nation of Israel that looked to its king for moral leadership was wounded. But David acknowledged that his sin was preeminently against God. "Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight" (Ps. 51:4).
All sin is violation of God's holy law. When we fail to do good, we are also guilty of sin. "Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins" (James 4:17). When we sin, we are guilty before God. We can only fall back on His mercy for forgiveness.
-Marlene Chase
SING TO THE LORD
I once was an outcast stranger on earth,
A sinner by choice and an alien by birth!
"A Child of the King" by Harriet E. Buell
REACH OUT IN PRAYER
Developing Christian leaders in Cote d'Ivoire.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
When I have to appear before my Lord . . . I will only say one thing: "Lord, be merciful to me, a poor sinner" (Karl Barth).
SECOND THOUGHT FOR THE DAY
Tending Our Own Wounds First
Our own experience with loneliness, depression, and fear can become a gift for others, especially when we have received good care. As long as our wounds are open and bleeding, we scare others away. But after someone has carefully tended to our wounds, they no longer frighten us or others.
When we experience the healing presence of another person, we can discover our own gifts of healing. Then our wounds allow us to enter into a deep solidarity with our wounded brothers and sisters.--Henri J. M. Nouwen
THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Isaiah 7-9
A Virgin Will Bear a Son
1-2 During the time that Ahaz son of Jotham, son of Uzziah, was king of Judah, King Rezin of Aram and King Pekah son of Remaliah of Israel attacked Jerusalem, but the attack sputtered out. When the Davidic government learned that Aram had joined forces with Ephraim (that is, Israel), Ahaz and his people were badly shaken. They shook like trees in the wind.
3-6Then God told Isaiah, "Go and meet Ahaz. Take your son Shear-jashub (A-Remnant-Will-Return) with you. Meet him south of the city at the end of the aqueduct where it empties into the upper pool on the road to the public laundry. Tell him, Listen, calm down. Don't be afraid. And don't panic over these two burnt-out cases, Rezin of Aram and the son of Remaliah. They talk big but there's nothing to them. Aram, along with Ephraim's son of Remaliah, have plotted to do you harm. They've conspired against you, saying, 'Let's go to war against Judah, dismember it, take it for ourselves, and set the son of Tabeel up as a puppet king over it.'
7-9But God, the Master, says,
"It won't happen.
Nothing will come of it
Because the capital of Aram is Damascus
and the king of Damascus is a mere man, Rezin.
As for Ephraim, in sixty-five years
it will be rubble, nothing left of it.
The capital of Ephraim is Samaria,
and the king of Samaria is the mere son of Remaliah.
If you don't take your stand in faith,
you won't have a leg to stand on."
10-11God spoke again to Ahaz. This time he said, "Ask for a sign from your God. Ask anything. Be extravagant. Ask for the moon!"
12But Ahaz said, "I'd never do that. I'd never make demands like that on God!"
13-17So Isaiah told him, "Then listen to this, government of David! It's bad enough that you make people tired with your pious, timid hypocrisies, but now you're making God tired. So the Master is going to give you a sign anyway. Watch for this: A girl who is presently a virgin will get pregnant. She'll bear a son and name him Immanuel (God-With-Us). By the time the child is twelve years old, able to make moral decisions, the threat of war will be over. Relax, those two kings that have you so worried will be out of the picture. But also be warned: God will bring on you and your people and your government a judgment worse than anything since the time the kingdom split, when Ephraim left Judah. The king of Assyria is coming!"
18-19That's when God will whistle for the flies at the headwaters of Egypt's Nile, and whistle for the bees in the land of Assyria. They'll come and infest every nook and cranny of this country. There'll be no getting away from them.
20And that's when the Master will take the razor rented from across the Euphrates—the king of Assyria no less!—and shave the hair off your heads and genitals, leaving you shamed, exposed, and denuded. He'll shave off your beards while he's at it.
21-22It will be a time when survivors will count themselves lucky to have a cow and a couple of sheep. At least they'll have plenty of milk! Whoever's left in the land will learn to make do with the simplest foods—curds, whey, and honey.
23-25But that's not the end of it. This country that used to be covered with fine vineyards—thousands of them, worth millions!—will revert to a weed patch. Weeds and thornbushes everywhere! Good for nothing except, perhaps, hunting rabbits. Cattle and sheep will forage as best they can in the fields of weeds—but there won't be a trace of all those fertile and well-tended gardens and fields.
1 Then God told me, "Get a big sheet of paper and write in indelible ink, 'This belongs to Maher-shalal-hash-baz (Spoil-Speeds-Plunder-Hurries).'"
2-3I got two honest men, Uriah the priest and Zechariah son of Jeberekiah, to witness the document. Then I went home to my wife, the prophetess. She conceived and gave birth to a son.
3-4God told me, "Name him Maher-shalal-hash-baz. Before that baby says 'Daddy' or 'Mamma' the king of Assyria will have plundered the wealth of Damascus and the riches of Samaria."
5-8God spoke to me again, saying:
"Because this people has turned its back
on the gently flowing stream of Shiloah
And gotten all excited over Rezin
and the son of Remaliah,
I'm stepping in and facing them with
the wild floodwaters of the Euphrates,
The king of Assyria and all his fanfare,
a river in flood, bursting its banks,
Pouring into Judah, sweeping everything before it,
water up to your necks,
A huge wingspan of a raging river,
O Immanuel, spreading across your land."
9-10But face the facts, all you oppressors, and then wring your hands.
Listen, all of you, far and near.
Prepare for the worst and wring your hands.
Yes, prepare for the worst and wring your hands!
Plan and plot all you want—nothing will come of it.
All your talk is mere talk, empty words,
Because when all is said and done,
the last word is Immanuel—God-With-Us.
A Boulder Blocking Your Way
11-15God spoke strongly to me, grabbed me with both hands and warned me not to go along with this people. He said:
"Don't be like this people,
always afraid somebody is plotting against them.
Don't fear what they fear.
Don't take on their worries.
If you're going to worry,
worry about The Holy. Fear God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
The Holy can be either a Hiding Place
or a Boulder blocking your way,
The Rock standing in the willful way
of both houses of Israel,
A barbed-wire Fence preventing trespass
to the citizens of Jerusalem.
Many of them are going to run into that Rock
and get their bones broken,
Get tangled up in that barbed wire
and not get free of it."
16-18Gather up the testimony,
preserve the teaching for my followers,
While I wait for God as long as he remains in hiding,
while I wait and hope for him.
I stand my ground and hope,
I and the children God gave me as signs to Israel,
Warning signs and hope signs from God-of-the-Angel-Armies,
who makes his home in Mount Zion.
19-22When people tell you, "Try out the fortunetellers.
Consult the spiritualists.
Why not tap into the spirit-world,
get in touch with the dead?"
Tell them, "No, we're going to study the Scriptures."
People who try the other ways get nowhere—a dead end!
Frustrated and famished,
they try one thing after another.
When nothing works out they get angry,
cursing first this god and then that one,
Looking this way and that,
up, down, and sideways—and seeing nothing,
A blank wall, an empty hole.
They end up in the dark with nothing.
A Child Has Been Born—for Us!
1 But there'll be no darkness for those who were in trouble. Earlier he did bring the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali into disrepute, but the time is coming when he'll make that whole area glorious— the road along the Sea, the country past the Jordan, international Galilee.
2-7The people who walked in darkness
have seen a great light.
For those who lived in a land of deep shadows—
light! sunbursts of light!
You repopulated the nation,
you expanded its joy.
Oh, they're so glad in your presence!
Festival joy!
The joy of a great celebration,
sharing rich gifts and warm greetings.
The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants—
all their whips and cudgels and curses—
Is gone, done away with, a deliverance
as surprising and sudden as Gideon's old victory over Midian.
The boots of all those invading troops,
along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood,
Will be piled in a heap and burned,
a fire that will burn for days!
For a child has been born—for us!
the gift of a son—for us!
He'll take over
the running of the world.
His names will be: Amazing Counselor,
Strong God,
Eternal Father,
Prince of Wholeness.
His ruling authority will grow,
and there'll be no limits to the wholeness he brings.
He'll rule from the historic David throne
over that promised kingdom.
He'll put that kingdom on a firm footing
and keep it going
With fair dealing and right living,
beginning now and lasting always.
The zeal of God-of-the-Angel-Armies
will do all this.
God Answered Fire with Fire
8-10The Master sent a message against Jacob.
It landed right on Israel's doorstep.
All the people soon heard the message,
Ephraim and the citizens of Samaria.
But they were a proud and arrogant bunch.
They dismissed the message, saying,
"Things aren't that bad.
We can handle anything that comes.
If our buildings are knocked down,
we'll rebuild them bigger and finer.
If our forests are cut down,
we'll replant them with finer trees."
11-12So God incited their adversaries against them,
stirred up their enemies to attack:
From the east, Arameans; from the west, Philistines.
They made hash of Israel.
But even after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
13-17But the people paid no mind to him who hit them,
didn't seek God-of-the-Angel-Armies.
So God hacked off Israel's head and tail,
palm branch and reed, both on the same day.
The big-head elders were the head,
the lying prophets were the tail.
Those who were supposed to lead this people
led them down blind alleys,
And those who followed the leaders
ended up lost and confused.
That's why the Master lost interest in the young men,
had no feeling for their orphans and widows.
All of them were godless and evil,
talking filth and folly.
And even after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again.
18-21Their wicked lives raged like an out-of-control fire,
the kind that burns everything in its path—
Trees and bushes, weeds and grasses—
filling the skies with smoke.
God-of-the-Angel-Armies answered fire with fire,
set the whole country on fire,
Turned the people into consuming fires,
consuming one another in their lusts—
Appetites insatiable, stuffing and gorging
themselves left and right with people and things.
But still they starved. Not even their children
were safe from their rapacious hunger.
Manasseh ate Ephraim, and Ephraim Manasseh,
and then the two ganged up against Judah.
And after that, he was still angry,
his fist still raised, ready to hit them again. (The Message)
All Scripture quotations not otherwise designated are from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV®). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.
All hymn texts are taken from the hymnal Sing to the Lord. Copyright © 1993 by Lillenas Publishing Company.
Copyright © 2009 by WordAction Publishing Company. All rights reserved. WordAction.com
Weekly Prayer:
O God, thank you for valuing me, even when I struggle to value myself. Help me to love myself as you have loved me. Give me contentment in being the person you’ve made me to be, and in serving you and others the ways I am gifted to do. Then, help me to love my neighbor as I love myself. I thank you that your ways are so much higher and greater than mine. Amen.
Commentary of the day :
Saint Ephrem (c.306-373), Deacon in Syria, Doctor of the Church
Diatesseron 8, 3-4 (cf SC 121, p.159)
"If the house is worthy, let your peace come upon it"
«On entering any house, first say, 'Peace to this house,'» (Lk 10:5) so that the Lord himself might enter and remain there, like with Mary... This greeting is the mystery of faith, which shines forth in the world. Through it, enmity is stifled, war is stopped, and men acknowledge one another. The effect of that greeting was hidden by a veil, in spite of the fact that the mystery of the resurrection is prefigured... when the light rises and dawn chases away the night. From the moment when Christ sent his disciples, men began to give and to receive this greeting, a source of healing and of blessing...
This greeting with its hidden power... is amply sufficient for all men. That is why Our Lord sent it together with his disciples as a forerunner, so that it might bring about peace and that, carried by the voice of the apostles, whom he sent, it might prepare the way before them. It was sown into all the houses...; it entered into all who heard it, so as to separate and to put aside its children, whom it recognized. It remained in them, but it denounced those who were foreign to it, for they did not welcome it.
This greeting of peace did not dry up; it began in the apostles and then sprang up in their brothers, revealing the Lord's inexhaustible treasures... Present in those who greeted in this way and in those who welcomed the greeting, this announcement of peace was neither diminished nor divided. It announced that the Father is near and in everyone; it revealed that the Son's mission is entirely with everyone, even if its goal is to be with his Father. It will not cease to proclaim that the images are now fulfilled and that the truth will finally chase away all shadows.
CHILDREN’S SUNDAY
(BIRTH-AGE 12)
LECTIONARY COMMENTARY
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Herbert R. Marbury, Guest Lectionary Commentator
Assistant Professor of Hebrew Bible, Vanderbilt University Divinity School,
Nashville, TN
Lection – 1 Samuel 3:1-10 (New Revised Standard Version)
(v. 1) Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread. (v. 2) At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; (v. 3) the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. (v. 4) Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” (v. 5) and ran to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. (v. 6) The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” (v. 7) Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. (v. 8) The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli, and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. (v. 9) Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down; and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” So Samuel went and lay down in his place. (v. 10) Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
I. Description of the Liturgical Moment
Cultures and faith communities around the world celebrate the gift that God offers to humanity through children. African American Christians are no different. In many black churches, Children’s Day is a time for recognizing the achievements of young congregants who have earned a place on the honor roll, recently graduated, or distinguished themselves by their athletic prowess or creative genius. Children’s Day is also a time for adults to offer children the space to display their gifts by leading worship. Many churches will encourage children to form a choir, serve as primary liturgists, and more on that Sunday. In these churches, children live out the biblical saying that “a child shall lead them.”1
II. Biblical Interpretation for Preaching and Worship: 1 Samuel 3:1-10
Part One: The Contemporary Context of the Interpreter
I remember as a young boy the annual bustle leading up to Children’s Day. The energy devoted to preparation rivaled the preparation given to any of the high holy days of the liturgical year. As kids, we planned for months in advance to conduct the perfect worship experience. I remember the children and youth director, along with mothers and fathers of the church, joining the effort to teach us the conventions of worship. It was also a day when the order of service juxtaposed the latest hip-hop with a baroque anthem and traditional liturgical dancers took notes from a teen step team. The sermon, preached by an older youth, resonated with all the cues of youth culture and held young people in rapt attention. Our children’s group, like many others, also involved children of the community whose families did not attend the church. So, on Children’s Day, both the congregation and kids leading worship reflected our neighborhood: churched and unchurched, Christian, Muslim and Hebrew Israelite. It was a marvelous exercise in interfaith fellowship because our church took seriously the challenge to “suffer the little children to come unto me and forbid them not for such to the Kingdom of God belong.”2
Part Two: Biblical Commentary
I Samuel 3:1-9 inaugurates Samuel as a prophet of the Lord. What an exciting occurrence--a vision at a time when visions of the Lord were rare! One would expect such an auspicious event to be heralded by both Samuel and Eli’s celebration. But, ironically, the event passes almost unrecognized by God’s new prophet or by his ailing teacher. What happened? How could they miss God? How could Samuel mistake God’s voice for Eli’s? In verse seven, the text informs the reader that Samuel did not yet know the Lord. So, sadly, Samuel hears the voice but does not recognize his creator. In other words, in a society where children are not valued as gifts of God with their own agency and ability to hear from the Lord, why would they be taught to hear God for themselves? Both Samuel and Eli find themselves confused by the experience, because Samuel has not yet been given permission to hear God for himself.
In verse 2, we are told that Eli is ailing. With failing vision, he cannot see God as clearly as he might have during the height of his ministry. Although Eli could not see it, God had already called his student, Samuel, to lead Israel. With neither army nor political office, Samuel would join the tradition of prophets who would anoint and depose kings, such as Saul and David. Samuel’s word would send Israel to war, prophesy God’s vision, and admonish rulers to repent and return to the ways of the Lord. Today, black families, communities, and civic organizations find themselves plagued by ailing leadership who still have much to teach, but have not taught a younger generation to hear from the Lord for themselves. Thankfully, it took Eli only three attempts to recognize God’s voice. The omniscient narrator heightens the reader’s frustration by clueing the reader in to the identity of the voice before Eli identifies its source. Finally, Eli realizes the gift that God had given to Samuel.
Many black children live in a world where their gifts go unrecognized or live lives where their gifts are rejected. Black communities are replete with sad anecdotes of brilliant young kids, whose intellectual prowess surpasses fortune 500 CEOs, but who grow up to build empires in the drug trade because no one received and nurtured their gifts. Worse, when families and communities fail to recognize and cultivate their children’s gifts, others may do so for their own purposes. Black communities were late in claiming hip-hop as a worthy and legitimate music expression of black youth. Within a few years of hip-hop’s inception, the larger music industry exploited the creative energy of black youth for profit rather than cultivating God’s gift in them. For years, the market consumed the production of images and lyrics that degraded young people, only exacerbating the pathology in black communities.
However, God has not left our youth in silence or darkness. God persisted in the darkness of Samuel’s room until Samuel recognized God’s voice. Just as Samuel finally recognized God’s voice, God persists until we listen. God is still speaking to black children and youth and they are responding in marvelous ways.
In 1969, Weldon Irvine and Nina Simone collaborated to tell us that we must learn to teach our young that they are “Young, Gifted and Black . . . and that’s a fact!” Each one is endowed with agency, a calling, and a particular connection to the Creator. Our responsibility is to teach them to be available to God, and then to receive from them the good thing that God has for humanity.
Celebration
When we empower children by ensuring that they have healthcare and housing, quality education and safe environments, then they will hear a word from the Lord and heal our land! When we teach our children to be available to God, they will imagine themselves in the image of their Creator, not in the images developed by market-driven mass media. On that day, when no child is hungry or alone, naked or unloved, when each one has what she needs to respond, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening,” then the blessings of the Lord will be revealed among us.
Descriptive Details
The descriptive details in this passage include:
Sights: Eli lying in his room, aged, blind, and weary (v. 2); a dark room lit only by dim candle light (v. 3); a young boy, startled, running into the next room and rousing an old man (v. 4); and
Sounds: An old man snoring; a voice piercing the darkness; Samuel, awakened abruptly, running toward Eli’s room, an annoyed Eli instructing Samuel to return to bed (vv. 4,6); and Samuel asking the Lord to speak as he listened (v. 10).
Notes
1. Isaiah 11:6b, NRSV
2. “Luke 18:16.” The Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments with the Apocryphal/Deuterocanonical Books : New Revised Standard Version. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 1989.
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