Living in the Spirit

May 31, 2023

Scripture Reading: Psalm 8
O Lord, our Sovereign,
   how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
   Out of the mouths of babes and infants
you have founded a bulwark because of your foes,
   to silence the enemy and the avenger.

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
   the moon and the stars that you have established;
what are human beings that you are mindful of them,
   mortals that you care for them?

Yet you have made them a little lower than God,
   and crowned them with glory and honor.
You have given them dominion over the works of your hands;
   you have put all things under their feet,
all sheep and oxen,
   and also the beasts of the field,
the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea,
   whatever passes along the paths of the seas.

O Lord, our Sovereign,
   how majestic is your name in all the earth!

This scripture should be required reading at least once a week, but definitely when we have had a bad day or a time of being challenged to be the best persons we were created to be. It is important that when we read this, we accept what it teaches and that it applies to all people. Our world is so divided, and we seem to get so distracted by issues that have little or no impact on our lives but can be very painful to others. We do not need to be better than anyone to be the person God created us to be. We are called to love everyone, not judge them.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for showing us how to love one another and to love ourselves. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Living in the Spirit

May 30, 2023

Scripture Reading: Genesis 1:1-2:4a

Then God said, ‘Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’
So God created humankind in his image,
   in the image of God he created them;
   male and female he created them.
God blessed them, and God said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue it; and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over every living thing that moves upon the earth.’ God said, ‘See, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit; you shall have them for food. And to every beast of the earth, and to every bird of the air, and to everything that creeps on the earth, everything that has the breath of life, I have given every green plant for food.’ And it was so. God saw everything that he had made, and indeed, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day. –Genesis 1:26-31

How do we interpret the meaning of the phrase to have dominion over it? Is that a license to do whatever fits our fancy, or does it mean taking responsibility for the well-being over which we have been given dominion? We, humans, are often drawn to the short-term immediate pleasures without regard for long-term ramifications. It seems we may finally understand that whoever created this earth knew what they were doing. For example, I am hearing more and more concerns being expressed about the ramifications of the loss of bees on our environment. Much of the dust from the Dust Bowl was the result of straight-row planting and harvesting of crops designed to maximize the amount harvested. Those straight rows produced more crops but made it easier for the strong winds to whisk the topsoil away in the flat lands of the Great Plains. Planting trees to block the winds from scalping the plains helped, as did contour planting.

We are experiencing grave outcomes from climate change. We need to decide how we care for the earth for the benefit of all.

Prayer: Lord, grant us the wisdom to discern the right actions to take to care for the earth and all that depends on it for life. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Living in the Spirit

May 29, 2023

Scripture Reading: Genesis 1:1-2:4a

In the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless void and darkness covered the face of the deep, while a wind from God swept over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good; and God separated the light from the darkness. God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And there was evening and there was morning, the first day. –Genesis 1:1-5

People of modernity and even earlier have had trouble accepting the description of creation in Genesis. They are usually looking for science, not guidance for living. On the other hand, some read it as science and may miss the guidance for living. I picture creation being something like an artist walking up to a block of marble, envisioning the statue of David, and chipping it into reality.  That is the short story. More than one attempt was made to create a likeness of David out of the block of marble, and parts of the block were damaged in that process. Michelangelo, the artist who finally completed the statue, had to work around the flaws in the marble block.

God turned chaos into order, recognizing the need for diversity of wind and water, light and dark with differing purposes, all essential. The Lord created humans to oversee God’s beloved creation and recognized for that to happen, God trusted us humans enough to make us in God’s image and gave us the responsibility and free will to care for the earth and all that is within it. We occasionally get it wrong, like the artist first assigned to create the statue of David, but with God’s patient help, we can get it right even in our imperfections.

Prayer: Guide us, O Lord, as we care for your creation. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Pentecost

May 28, 2023

Scripture Reading: John 7:37-39
On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, ‘Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, “Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.” ’ Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive; for as yet there was no Spirit, because Jesus was not yet glorified.

Talking to a fellow advocate recently, he expressed concern that we must make sure that everyone’s civil rights were protected regarding some egregious hate crimes that had been committed recently by elected officials and other government employees. We agreed, however, that legal protection of civil rights is only a first step in addressing the spread of hate crimes and other discriminatory practices across our land. Our collective souls need to be healed.  Hate crimes and discrimination reflect peoples’ self-denial of their self-worth. When Jesus said we were to love our neighbors as we love ourselves (Mark 12:30-31), he did so with the understanding that we did love ourselves because God loves everyone, and everyone is made in the image of God. We, however, live in a world with varying degrees of accepting that truth, and thus, we get caught up in worldviews that do not consider whose we are and from whom we come.

Paul describes this in 2 Corinthians 6:10:

For it is the God who said, ‘Let light shine out of darkness’, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be made visible in our bodies.

It is within this assurance that we can let go of those worldviews that support hate and mistreatment of others and allow ourselves to be flooded with the streams of living water provided by the Spirit of God that cleanses and heals our souls, enabling us to love like Jesus.

Prayer:
Change My Heart Oh God
Make It Ever True
Change My Heart Oh God
May I Be Like You

You Are The Potter
I Am The Clay
Mold Me And Make Me
This Is What I Pray* Amen.

From the song Change my Heart O Lord, by Eddie Espinosa. See at https://divinehymns.com/lyrics/change-my-heart-oh-god-song-lyrics/

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Eastertide

May 27, 2023

Scripture Reading: John 20:19-23
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, ‘Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.’ When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.’

The Greek word translated here as retained is kratéō – to place under one’s grasp (seize hold of, put under control)

I am never sure what to say when the New Interpreter Bible Commentary begins the discussion of scripture by saying this is a very complex verse to interpret. I grabbed the Commentary because the scripture was a very complex verse for me to interpret. The Commentary introduces its comments by noting that the scripture is a form of the teaching about binding and loosing in Mattew 18:18, Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.

I am uncomfortable with being assigned the job of forgiving others for their sins. I can and should forgive anyone who has harmed me in some way; however, taking on Christ’s role of forgiving sins takes on a whole different responsibility. I, first, must be cleansed of my sins. Yet, I am sure that there are issues and actions in my life that I do not even recognize as being a sin. How can I determine what sin is in another, much less consider what would make me refrain from forgiving someone’s sins?

The Commentary discusses this as a community action. We are each responsible for loving others enough to help them maintain a close relationship with God by helping anyone being separated from God by their actions or lack of actions to restore that connection. To do that, we must walk with them until they can receive the forgiveness that reconnects them with God.

Prayer: Lord, create in me a clean heart to enable me to love others as I love myself. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Eastertide

May 26, 2023

Scripture Reading: Acts 2:1-21

When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability. –Acts 2:1-4

How do we describe the indescribable? Several years ago, I was driving east in a very heavy rainstorm. Suddenly, I saw a car driving west, hydroplaning in circles over the grassy divide separating the highway.  I do remember pulling as far over as I could, and I remember the back of the car slamming into the back door of my car. The next thing I remember was a hard landing followed by seeing the very frightened face of a man tapping on my window, asking if I was all right.  He was the driver of the other car. I said I was. He helped me out of the car with rain still pouring and guided me back across the road, where his car had finally landed on the side of the road. We both sat in his car in some shock. That was before the days of cell phones. Shortly, however, a Highway Patrolman pulled up and assessed the situation. After he examined my car, he returned to say he had called for a wrecker and complimented me for driving up the side of the little hill that changed the trajectory of the coming car, which otherwise would have probably hit my front door and me. I said I did not drive up the hill, and he said well, somebody did because look at your tracks. After coming down the hill, my back wheels slammed into the ditch, which instantly stopped me from driving into the heavy traffic on the turnpike.

That memory flashed in my mind when I read this very familiar scripture about the arrival of the Holy Spirit. I cannot explain how they could all speak and understand each other in various languages. What I do know is that unexplainable experiences often give us greater awareness of whose we are and act as an encouragement to take more seriously doing our part in the furtherance of creating God’s vision of the Beloved Community.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for your presence with us in the Holy Spirit. Open our hearts and minds to swerving you more nearly. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Eastertide

May 25, 2023
Scripture Reading:

1 Corinthians 12:3b-13
Therefore I want you to understand that no one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says ‘Let Jesus be cursed!’ and no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.
Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of services, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of activities, but it is the same God who activates all of them in everyone. To each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. To one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the discernment of spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues. All these are activated by one and the same Spirit, who allots to each one individually just as the Spirit chooses.
For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. For in the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.

We all have a part to play, and we all must work together as one. That means some of us must be enablers to ensure that everyone feels comfortable in filling their role. That is why education is so important, education that complements the innate skills and talents of each person.  I remember one woman I worked with who applied for public assistance after having a baby when she was a teenager, and the father had disappeared. She was smart, friendly, and she said she had always wanted to be a beautician. Hers was one of the easiest situations with which I worked. We set in motion the training she needed and provided care for her child. She completed the classes and went to work in a salon, and soon, she no longer needed any help. I only saw her when she cut my hair. She eventually had her own salon and rented booths to several hairdressers. A couple of years later, I was transferred to another job in another city. I canceled a scheduled haircut because I was moving and thanked her for serving me so well over the past years. The next day I received a bouquet of flowers from her, thanking me for being her client and wishing me well in my new job. I thanked God for the opportunity to see her blossom into the person she was created to be. I wonder how many young women whose hair she cut benefited from her wise counsel and example.

Prayer:  Lord, help us all to work together toward the benefit of all. Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Eastertide

May 24, 2023

Scripture Reading:

Psalm 104:24-34, 35b

May the glory of the Lord endure forever;
   may the Lord rejoice in his works—
who looks on the earth and it trembles,
   who touches the mountains and they smoke.
I will sing to the Lord as long as I live;
   I will sing praise to my God while I have being.
May my meditation be pleasing to him,
   for I rejoice in the Lord.
Let sinners be consumed from the earth,
   and let the wicked be no more.
Bless the Lord, O my soul.
Praise the Lord! –Psalm 104-31-35

I am a news nerd. I inherited it from my father. He was a farmer, and I am not sure he was as interested in the news of the day as he was in the weather forecast. But the news was played morning, noon, evening, and night in my childhood home, and I now follow the same pattern. Even worse, I listen to national and local news in the evenings, followed by PBS news, which is my favorite, by the way.  I like to know what is happening; I prefer to make my own decision regarding whether the world is coming to an end based on what I am hearing.

This came to mind as I read the scripture above because this Psalms reminds us that God is in heaven, and all is right with the world. Keeping engaged with what is happening about us is one way of finding our calling as we strive to build God’s beloved community on this earth.  

Pippa’s Song by Robert Browning

The year ’s at the spring,
And day ’s at the morn;
Morning ’s at seven;
The hill-side ’s dew-pearl’d;
The lark ’s on the wing;
The snail ’s on the thorn;
God ’s in His heaven—
All ’s right with the world!

Prayer: Help us all understand and live into your promise Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid. (John 14:27). Amen.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.

Eastertide

May 22, 2023

Scripture Reading: Acts 2:1-21

“In the last days it will be, God declares,
that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh,
   and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
and your young men shall see visions,
   and your old men shall dream dreams.
Even upon my slaves, both men and women,
   in those days I will pour out my Spirit;
     and they shall prophesy. –Acts 2:17-18

Look around you. Whom do you see with the same positive, forward-looking enthusiasm described in the above scripture? The idea is that yes, we have serious problems, but we can do something about it. What I see reminds me of the children’s story of Chicken Little, who ran around calling out: “The sky was falling.” In their hysteria and distraction, they are eaten by the fox. There is a lesson for all in that story.

It has been interesting to observe how we have responded to the recent end of Title 42 regarding immigration. The response and care of people fleeing danger and distress in their homelands is a tremendous challenge. Filtering out the smugglers and crooks makes it even harder. With much hard work by government workers and non-profit organizations, it has not turned out to be the debacle some people projected, and probably some wanted to fail to support their political aspirations.

Are we Christ-followers like scared chickens, or are we following the footsteps of our ancestors in faith, accepting the guidance of the Holy Spirit to envision a better world and implement the steps necessary to make it a reality?

Prayer: Spirit of the living God fall afresh on us. Melt us, mold us, fill us, use us*. Amen.

*Adapted from the chorus Spirit of the Living God.

All scriptures are quoted from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicized Edition, copyright 1989, 1995, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights are reserved.