Author Archives: WOJ@deborahsdescendants.com

Faith Mentor

Living in the Spirit

June 21, 2022

Scripture Reading:

1 Kings 19:15-16, 19-21

Then the Lord said to him, ‘Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. Also you shall anoint Jehu son of Nimshi as king over Israel; and you shall anoint Elisha son of Shaphat of Abel-meholah as prophet in your place.

 So he set out from there, and found Elisha son of Shaphat, who was ploughing. There were twelve yoke of oxen ahead of him, and he was with the twelfth. Elijah passed by him and threw his mantle over him. He left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said, ‘Let me kiss my father and my mother, and then I will follow you.’ Then Elijah said to him, ‘Go back again; for what have I done to you?’ He returned from following him, took the yoke of oxen, and slaughtered them; using the equipment from the oxen, he boiled their flesh, and gave it to the people, and they ate. Then he set out and followed Elijah, and became his servant.

I did not realize the lectionary had prequels. Yesterday we remembered Elisha taking over the role of Elijah as he was whisked to the heavens on a chariot of fire and horses of fire. Today we go back to Elisha’s entry into being a prophet. The role of faith mentor is crucial. Jesus was the living example of a faith mentor. We are all called to be faith mentors. The smallest child senses when their presence in church is welcomed—even celebrated.  Hebrews 11:1-3, describes it thusly, Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. Indeed, by faith our ancestors received approval. By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was made from things that are not visible.

Living your faith will be the best sermon you will ever preach.

Prayer: Thank you Lord for modeling for us how to live our faith. 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.

Passing the Mantle

Living in the Spirit

June 20, 2022

Scripture Reading:

2 Kings 2:1-2, 6-14

Now when the Lord was about to take Elijah up to heaven by a whirlwind, Elijah and Elisha were on their way from Gilgal. Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Stay here; for the Lord has sent me as far as Bethel.’ But Elisha said, ‘As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’ So they went down to Bethel.

Then Elijah said to him, ‘Stay here; for the Lord has sent me to the Jordan.’ But he said, ‘As the Lord lives, and as you yourself live, I will not leave you.’ So the two of them went on. Fifty men of the company of prophets also went, and stood at some distance from them, as they both were standing by the Jordan. Then Elijah took his mantle and rolled it up, and struck the water; the water was parted to the one side and to the other, until the two of them crossed on dry ground.

When they had crossed, Elijah said to Elisha, ‘Tell me what I may do for you, before I am taken from you.’ Elisha said, ‘Please let me inherit a double share of your spirit.’ He responded, ‘You have asked a hard thing; yet, if you see me as I am being taken from you, it will be granted you; if not, it will not.’ As they continued walking and talking, a chariot of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them, and Elijah ascended in a whirlwind into heaven. Elisha kept watching and crying out, ‘Father, father! The chariots of Israel and its horsemen!’ But when he could no longer see him, he grasped his own clothes and tore them in two pieces.

He picked up the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and went back and stood on the bank of the Jordan. He took the mantle of Elijah that had fallen from him, and struck the water, saying, ‘Where is the Lord, the God of Elijah?’ When he had struck the water, the water was parted to the one side and to the other, and Elisha went over.

My mother fell and broke her arm when she was 95. At the emergency room, we were told she had had a small stroke that impacted her sense of balance. She would need 24/7 alert care. My siblings and I had never imagined that she would need nursing care, but there it was. We should have known she would make the best of it. She enjoyed her fellow patients and particularly liked the weekly visits of elementary students who came and did craft projects with her and the others who wished to participate. This move forced us to decide about her home and we eventually realized we would need to sell it. She had prepared the house for just such an event. Everything in her file cabinets was labeled. The bookcases were well organized. It was not hard to discern what she had planned to be donated to the local mission. I thought of that when I read the above scripture. Elijah had groomed Elisha well to take his mantle and continue the work of a prophet in service to the Lord.

That is a part of all our jobs. I watched our youngest children on Father’s Day come to the front of the church for the children’s moment and afterward scattered about the church making sure that every man present got a small gift in recognition of their day. We are all called to pass the legacy of love.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for those who went before us to pave the way for our continuing God’s ministry. 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.

Leaving our Ivory Palaces

Living in the Spirit

June 19, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 8:26-39

Now there on the hillside a large herd of swine was feeding; and the demons begged Jesus to let them enter these. So he gave them permission. Then the demons came out of the man and entered the swine, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and was drowned.

When the swineherds saw what had happened, they ran off and told it in the city and in the country. Then people came out to see what had happened, and when they came to Jesus, they found the man from whom the demons had gone sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind. And they were afraid. Those who had seen it told them how the one who had been possessed by demons had been healed. Then all the people of the surrounding country of the Gerasenes asked Jesus to leave them; for they were seized with great fear. So he got into the boat and returned. The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’ So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him. –Luke 8:32-39

One of the greatest challenges we face in these days of divide and conquer is sharing our faith with loved ones and friends when they are on a totally different path. I belong to a Christian Facebook group and cannot believe how many postings I have seen where people had been asked to leave their church because they did not support the political viewpoints of its leaders. Also, I have read many posting where people had not responded to any political discussion but had made the difficult decision of leaving the church they loved because it has drifted away from its purpose. Thus, I do not take likely the assignment Jesus gave the man he had healed of the demons when he said, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’

I like the idea of finding issues and actions on which we and our loved ones can agree. Work on a Habitat house together. Feed the hungry. Adopt a nursing home and visit its residents who do not have anyone. We need to all get out of our ivory palaces as the old song says and address the great needs of people like the ones that crossed Jesus’s path regularly and he stopped and cared for them. If we see the world through Jesus’s eyes we might find our way to Oneness.

My Lord has garments so wondrous fine,
and myrrh their texture fills;
its fragrance reached to this heart of mine,
with joy my being thrills.

Out of the ivory palaces
into a world of woe,
only his great eternal love
made my Savior go*.

Prayer: Lord, guide us in spending some time each week living life among people as you did when you walked this earth.  Amen.

*The first verse and chorus of Out of the Ivory Palaces by Henry Barraclough see at https://hymnary.org/text/my_lord_has_garments_so_wondrous_fine

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.

Finding Your Talents

Living in the Spirit

June 18, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 8:26-39

Then they arrived at the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. As he stepped out on land, a man of the city who had demons met him. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he did not live in a house but in the tombs. When he saw Jesus, he fell down before him and shouted at the top of his voice, ‘What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me’— for Jesus had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many times it had seized him; he was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the wilds.) Jesus then asked him, ‘What is your name?’ He said, ‘Legion’; for many demons had entered him. They begged him not to order them to go back into the abyss. –Luke 8:26-31

People for many reasons end up poor living on the street, some suffer from mental illness. Others escaped abusive home lives or suffer from addictions. The demon-possessed man was most likely suffering from some form of mental illness. Some are veterans dealing with post-traumatic stress disorder.

We all, to some extent, face challenges when we must change our understanding of the world around us with which we have become comfortable. When I worked with women with children trying to move out of poverty, we offered a workshop where the leader asked the participants the describe their life as it was. For most, it included not having enough money to buy food for a full month. They could not afford clothing for their children They were not able to get a job that paid enough to support their families often because they had dropped out of school because they got pregnant and were deserted by the child’s father. They felt left alone and stuck. The leader of this seminar asked the participants to imagine they were standing on a wall with one side representing the life had just described. The other side was an unknown dark chasm that encompassed their other choices. They were asked to imagine what might fill that void. What did they want to do or be not do or not be? Then they discussed what it would take to make their vision a reality–things like getting their GED or otherwise improving their employability and developing a plan to complete the reorganizing of their lives refocusing on making what they wanted to be a reality. It was a very successful program.  One of the participants wanted to be a hairdresser. I had watched a lot of young women go to beauty school and have it not work out, but I helped her enroll in the school and had her cut my hair after she had graduated and was renting a booth in a shop. Two years later she owned the shop. She enabled many young women to seek and fulfill their visions also.

One of Jesus’s traits was the ability to see the talent in each person he met and when necessary, help them to see and actualize it also. As Jesus’s disciples, we have been given that same challenge.

Prayer: Lord, help us at each stage of our lives fulfill being the person you created us to be and help us help others do the same. 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.

Carefully Taught

Living in the Spirit

Actors John Kerr and France Nuyen in a scene from the 1958 film South Pacific. The interracial romance between the onstage pair unsettled some audiences.

June 17, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Galatians 3:23-29

Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.

I cannot read this portion of scripture without hearing in my head – You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught from the musical South Pacific by Rodgers & Hammerstein. Here are the first three verses:

You’ve got to be taught to hate and fear,
You’ve got to be taught from year to year,
It’s got to be drummed in your dear little ear—
You’ve got to be carefully taught!

You’ve got to be taught to be afraid
Of people whose eyes are oddly made,
And people whose skin is a different shade—
You’ve got to be carefully taught.

You’ve got to be taught before it’s too late,
Before you are six or seven or eight,
To hate all the people your relatives hate—
You’ve got to be carefully taught!
You’ve got to be carefully taught!*

Bigotry is becoming normal in our society today. The current popular target of our hate is turned toward people in the LGBTQIA2S+ community but it still lurks across all lines of differences. God created each of us in God’s image. Every time we have a flash of bigotry fly through our minds, we need to remember that—God created each of us in God’s image.

Prayer: Lord, help us not teach bigotry by our actions or our words and heal us from the bigotry we have been taught that lingers in our being. Amen.

*See at https://rodgersandhammerstein.com/song/south-pacific/youve-got-to-be-carefully-taught/

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.

Moral Law

Living in the Spirit

June 16, 2022

Scripture Reading: Galatians 3:23-29

Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.

I am aware of originally good-intentioned laws, that are now bad laws. They are almost impossible to remove because they have become norms.  Oklahoma has a burdensome law that taxes cannot be raised without a 75% vote from the legislature in support of the increase. Attaining that super majority vote is nearly impossible. While there is no limitation on cutting taxes. Tax idealogues are in control resulting in Oklahoma’s rankings being very low among other states in the provision of crucial state services that are not being provided. Our education system is among the services being hurt by a lack of adequate funding. Civil laws are intended to define and protect the Common Good, not protect the rights of one group’s financial doctrine over another. Thus, moral law must be considered in establishing civil law.

Moral law is a system of guidelines for behavior. These guidelines may or may not be part of a religion, codified in written form, or legally enforceable. For some people moral law is synonymous with the commands of a divine being. For others, moral law is a set of universal rules that should apply to everyone*.

The Bible is one source of civil law established for events happening in the time it describes. Eating pork was avoided because at one time they did not know what trichinosis was, how to recognize it, or how to prevent its devastation other than avoiding pork altogether.  The Bible also records moral laws that stand the test of time in general, guiding the standards needed for society to function successfully. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine may break some international laws or covenants. The slaughter of innocent children and others surely is against the moral law.

The Ten Commandments are moral laws that have been muted over time. Lying, idolatry—particularly the worship of money, and adultery all have lost their strength in supporting morally healthy communities and thus a morally healthy world. While laws and rules not found in scripture hold dominance over being a practicing Christian, for example, white supremacy.

Determining what is moral involves discerning and practicing what is just. We seem to have lost our way regarding justice. We will never attain justice until we are able to give up the idols of greed, lust for power, and bigotry that are now our guiding lights.

Prayer: Lord, open our eyes to see the harm we do to one another by not taking the time to deepen our understanding of your way, your truth, and your life**. Amen.

*https://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Moral+Law#:~:text=Moral%20law%20is%20a%20system,that%20should%20apply%20to%20everyone.

**Derived from John 14:6

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.

God’s Hope for the World

Living in the Spirit

June 15, 2022

Scripture Reading: Psalm 22:19-28

I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters;
   in the midst of the congregation I will praise you:
You who fear the Lord, praise him!
   All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him;
   stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
For he did not despise or abhor
   the affliction of the afflicted;
he did not hide his face from me,
   but heard when I cried to him.

From you comes my praise in the great congregation;
   my vows I will pay before those who fear him.
The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
   those who seek him shall praise the Lord.
   May your hearts live forever!

All the ends of the earth shall remember
   and turn to the Lord;
and all the families of the nations
   shall worship before him.
For dominion belongs to the Lord,
   and he rules over the nations
. –Psalm 22:22-28

Most of us are probably more familiar with the first verse of Psalm 22 which Jesus quoted from the cross: My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?    Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning? Reading the remainder of the chapter suggests that he took comfort from that scripture even in the agony of a painful death. It takes the reader all the way back to their ancestor Jacob who knew God and attested to God’s support and brings the history of God forward for Christ-followers’ understanding of God’s continuing fidelity in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus, the Christ. God’s vision of the whole world being blessed through his love continues to this day.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for your saving grace giving us hope in a world that is being challenged from every quarter. 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.

Seeking God

Living in the Spirit

Living in the Spirit

June 14, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 65:1-9

I was ready to be sought out by those who did not ask,
   to be found by those who did not seek me.
I said, ‘Here I am, here I am’,
   to a nation that did not call on my name.
I held out my hands all day long
   to a rebellious people,
who walk in a way that is not good,
   following their own devices;
a people who provoke me
   to my face continually,
sacrificing in gardens
   and offering incense on bricks;
who sit inside tombs,
   and spend the night in secret places;
who eat swine’s flesh,
   with broth of abominable things in their vessels;
who say, ‘Keep to yourself,
   do not come near me, for I am too holy for you.’
These are a smoke in my nostrils,
   a fire that burns all day long
. –Isaiah 65:1-5

This is a sad scripture. Isaiah indicates that God was available and accessible for the Israelites who were in desperate need of the gifts of God’s love and guidance, and they would not turn to God. Things haven’t changed much over the centuries. Sounds like the Israelites responded to God as many today are doing, defining God as we want God to be rather than as God is. It is sad because God’s ways protect our self-interest. The world does not accept that because greed, for example, is inconsistent with our self-interests.

We as individuals, disciples, and citizens of this world are called to examine ourselves and bring our way into sync with God’s ways. We might be amazed at how much better our lives would be if we conformed to the love of God.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we ignore your presence in our lives and jump from one distracting answer to another while trying to address the challenges of living in the world today. 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.

Sound of Silence

Living in the Spirit

Living in the Spirit

June 13, 2022

Scripture Reading:

1 Kings 19:1-4, (5-7), 8-15a

He said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’ Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Then there came a voice to him that said, ‘What are you doing here, Elijah?’ He answered, ‘I have been very zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts; for the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword. I alone am left, and they are seeking my life, to take it away.’ Then the Lord said to him, ‘Go, return on your way to the wilderness of Damascus; when you arrive, you shall anoint Hazael as king over Aram. –1 King 19:11-15

Hello darkness, my old friend
I’ve come to talk with you again
Because a vision softly creeping
Left its seeds while I was sleeping
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon god they made
And the sign flashed out its warning
In the words that it was forming
Then the sign said, “The words on the prophets are written on the subway walls
In tenement halls”
And whispered in the sound of silence*

There are lots of interpretations of this song, but I have seen none that connect it to the above scripture. I do not know if Paul Simon had this scripture in mind when he wrote it, but the song speaks to me of a world where no one listens to anyone else, and everyone follows the latest temptation that presents itself. In such instances, we do not have to think or weigh the worth of what is put before us. It suggests that oneness has nothing to do with loving one another but focusing our love on the bright shiny objects of the world as we stand next to each other and are still totally alone. Only when Elijah does the impossible, lets go of all those outward distractions, and hears the sound of silence does he recognize that God is always with him, and he is never alone. God’s presence empowers him to return to his calling leading the people out of the wilderness of separation from God and into the fullness of loving God and loving one another.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we get caught up in the ways of the world. Return us to wholeness in your love that allows us to the oneness with you and one another. Amen.

*First and last verse of Sound of Silence by Paul Simon see at https://www.google.com/search?q=sound+of+silence+lyrics&rlz=1C1VDKB_enUS987US987&oq=Sound+&aqs=chrome.1.69i59l2j69i57j35i39j46i10i199i465i512j69i60l3.3798j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

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.

Hearing the Spirit’s Message

Living in the Spirit

June 12, 2022

Scripture Reading:

John 16:12-15

‘I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own, but will speak whatever he hears, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, because he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine. For this reason I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you.

The Spirit takes what is Christ’s and declares it to us. How do we receive what is declared? How deep are the filters we have developed that strain or even stop the flow of love and truth sent to us by Christ through the Spirit? Recently, we experienced torrential rains for several days in a row saturating the earth and filling all the drainage gutters. I watch one young man on TV using a metal pole to push the litter blocking the drainage gutters to stop flooding. We need to commune with God to help clear our hearts and minds of the cultural filters that clutter our receiving the Spirit’s message. How do we discern truth in a world plagued by distractions trying to keep us from dealing with the things God needs us to do? If God is love and if the most important commandments are to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves, then any messages with which we are being bombarded must be measured for worth by passing the test of love.

Prayer: Lord, clear our filters so that we may follow 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.