Author Archives: WOJ@deborahsdescendants.com

Transform Us

January 20, 2022

I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgement, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. For as in one body we have many members, and not all the members have the same function, so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another. We have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us: prophecy, in proportion to faith; ministry, in ministering; the teacher, in teaching; the exhorter, in exhortation; the giver, in generosity; the leader, in diligence; the compassionate, in cheerfulness. –Romans 12:1-8

I am going off lectionary today because I messed up and used the scripture for today, last week. I am sure this scripture from Romans is somewhere in the lectionary but it is one of my favorites and I am substituting it here so I will not repeat the same scripture too closely.

I wrote emails this morning making changes in meetings because COVID is peaking in Oklahoma. I used the phrase “COVID times” to describe how we must adapt to the world in which we live. I then moved on to consider this scripture that tells me Do not be conformed to this world and realized that our world has no conformity. My faith group strongly supports safety precautions during COVID, passing out masks at entrances to people who desire them and offering worship in-person, live-streamed, and on Facebook. Other groups refuse to adapt to such safety recommendations. They indicate requiring them to follow such steps limits their rights as individuals. We are a house divided in so many ways, all believing theirs is the way to which we should conform.

Amid our divisiveness how do we as Christ-followers, be transformed by the renewing of [our] minds, so that [we] may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect? My usual response is to say we need to love like Jesus and to love our neighbor as ourselves, but the louder cry seems to be to question who is my neighbor? These have only become words, not actions. My prayer is for God to reach into our collective hearts and transform us.

Prayer:

Bind Us Together, Lord
Bind Us Together
With Cords That Cannot Be Broken
Bind Us Together, Lord
Bind Us Together
Bind Us Together In Love

There Is Only One God,
There Is Only One King
There Is Only One Body,
That Is Why We Sing*. Amen.

First verse and chorus of Bind Us Together by Bob Gillman see at https://divinehymns.com/lyrics/bind-us-together-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.

Of Laws and Grace

Ordinary Time

January 19, 2022

Scripture Reading: Psalm 19

The law of the Lord is perfect,
  reviving the soul;
the decrees of the Lord are sure,
   making wise the simple;
the precepts of the Lord are right,
   rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear,
   enlightening the eyes;
the fear of the Lord is pure,
   enduring forever;
the ordinances of the Lord are true
   and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
   even much fine gold;
sweeter also than honey,
   and drippings of the honeycomb. –Psalm 19:7-10 he

Sister Joan Chittister’s book The Ten Commandments: Laws of the Heart helped me understand the importance of law in our lives while delving into the breadth and depths of the Ten Commandments. I grew up on a farm. One evening while watching TV, we saw an ad for a Gubernatorial candidate showing him walking idyllically through a pasture with grazing cattle holding his wife’s hand staring up at the blue sky. My dad said he could never vote for anybody who does not have sense enough to watch where he was stepping in a pasture full of cows. Laws and rules formed from experience ease our paths in life.

God wants the very best for all of God’s creations including each of us, and through God’s various emissaries shared guidance toward that end. The Ten Commandments are the most practical advice we could ever receive. Think about how much better our world with be if we had ever all worked at following them. Instead of practicing sage advice we either use them to establish self-righteousness or to judge others.

A few thousand years later God sent Jesus who introduced us to grace establishing that God’s love is our salvation and God’s supreme commandments to love God and love our neighbors as ourselves encompasses all the laws. Those laws remain relevant as they help us discern how to apply love in our daily lives.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for the gift of your grace and for the laws that exemplify our living in your love. 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.

Restore Our Souls

Ordinary Time

January 18, 2022

Scripture Reading:
Nehemiah 8:1-3, 5-6, 8-10

So they read from the book, from the law of God, with interpretation. They gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading.

And Nehemiah, who was the governor, and Ezra the priest and scribe, and the Levites who taught the people said to all the people, ‘This day is holy to the Lord your God; do not mourn or weep.’ For all the people wept when they heard the words of the law. Then he said to them, ‘Go your way, eat the fat and drink sweet wine and send portions of them to those for whom nothing is prepared, for this day is holy to our Lord; and do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.’ —Nehemiah 8-10

One of my favorite songs is Lessons to be Learned* I heard on a Barbra Streisand album.

They say there’s a universal plan
For every woman, for every man
I do believe there’s a higher power
But in our darkest hour it’s hard to understand
So we start to question, start to doubt
We lose faith in what life’s all about

Why did the right road take the wrong turn
Why did our heart break, why’d we get burned
Just like the seasons there are reasons for the path we take
There are no mistakes
Just lessons to be learned
We too might weep if we come together and realized the way we live our lives differs from God’s design for living an abundant life. Perhaps that is because our definition of an abundant life relates to financial well-being whereas scriptures describe spiritual health. We tend to get the world’s measures of success mixed in with God’s.

I do believe that spiritual health supports and sustains the idea that all people have the right to have enough—enough food, clothing, and shelter; enough quality affordable and accessible health care, and public education that enables each person to become the one they were created to be. We all have responsibility to make sure that enough is reality.

Prayer: Lord, as you return us from the exile of COVID help us to examine our lives and see the changes we need to be in sync with you. Amen.

*First verse and refrain from Lessons to be Learned by Gazeley / Malamet / Rich © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Spirit Music Group, Write By The Sea Songs

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.

The Source of Life

Ordinary Time

January 16, 2022

Scripture Reading: John 2:1-11

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

I hosted a singer from Europe several years ago while she was touring churches in the USA when she sang at our church. I was notified ahead of time I would need to stock wine for her to drink as she never drank water. I wondered what I had gotten into but I went to the liquor store and found the wine she required. It was an inexpensive common wine, which surprised me. I thought I was dealing with a diva. She was a wonderful person and I enjoyed her company. Raised, in eastern Europe, she learned early that the water in her community was not safe to drink and everyone’s water, including the children’s, was laced with a little wine to kill the deadly germs in the water supply.  She only added enough of the red wine to turn her water pink. With her career taking her all over the world, she treated every venue in the same manner.

I do not know what symbolism John intended when he wrote the above scripture, but reading it just now reminded me of my European guest. Turning water into wine was a life-saving act to her and most likely was true in first-century Israel.  John continues this theme a little later in the book when he quotes Jesus as saying, The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly. (John 10:10) We are called to be in the world but not of the world and we are called to live and love like Jesus no matter where in the world we might find ourselves.

Prayer: God, enable me to follow your lead in interacting with the people whose paths I cross.  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.

Called

Ordinary Time

January 15, 2022

Scripture Reading: John 2:1-11

On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, ‘They have no wine.’ And Jesus said to her, ‘Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.’ His mother said to the servants, ‘Do whatever he tells you.’ Now standing there were six stone water-jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to them, ‘Fill the jars with water.’ And they filled them up to the brim. He said to them, ‘Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.’ So they took it. When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom and said to him, ‘Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the guests have become drunk. But you have kept the good wine until now.’ Jesus did this, the first of his signs, in Cana of Galilee, and revealed his glory; and his disciples believed in him.

How do we know the right time to initiation our life’s calling?

  • Moses encountered a burning bush (Exodus 3:1-17),
  •  Gideon tested God twice before following God’s command (Judges 6:36-7:23),
  • Isaiah had a vision (Isaiah 6),
  • Jesus had a mother who was told by an angel who her son was, and she encouraged his stepping into that role (Luke 1:26-38).

These were all leaders whose works deserved recording in the annals of history. However, each Christ-follower has at least one calling, likely many, from checking on the sick to donating food to a pantry or working for justice for all God’s children. Each person is gifted with skills to foster the Kingdom of God on this earth. Answering our calling and supporting others in theirs are critical elements to enabling a world ruled by God’s love. We must keep our whole beings open to hearing our calls and answering them.

Prayer: Grant us each the strength and courage first to hear your call and then answer it with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. 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.

Created to be One

Ordinary Time

January 14, 2022

Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 12:12-31a

Indeed, the body does not consist of one member but of many. If the foot were to say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. And if the ear were to say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body’, that would not make it any less a part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single member, where would the body be? As it is, there are many members, yet one body. The eye cannot say to the hand, ‘I have no need of you’, nor again the head to the feet, ‘I have no need of you.’ On the contrary, the members of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and those members of the body that we think less honorable we clothe with greater honor, and our less respectable members are treated with greater respect; whereas our more respectable members do not need this. But God has so arranged the body, giving the greater honor to the inferior member, that there may be no dissension within the body, but the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. –1 Corinthians 12:14-26*

In Jul 2015, former president Jimmy Carter said the United States is now an “oligarchy” in which “unlimited political bribery” has created “a complete subversion of our political system as a payoff to major contributors.” Both Democrats and Republicans, Carter said, “look upon this unlimited money as a great benefit to themselves*.”

An Oligarchy is a group or organization that is controlled by a privileged few**

Recalling Carter’s above observation, I saw this scripture in a new light. I more and more believe that God created the world to be interdependent, and any attempt to disconnect that objective leads eventually to disaster. Like steering a boat sharing the waterway with many other travelers, we are each called to maintain a steady course using all the skills and talents God has gifted us to be the best of who we are and desire that all those other people become the best that they can be. I fear greed blinds some to the necessity of achieving that critical mission to sustain our very lives. There is no trickle-down in the economy. All wealth is dependent upon the abundance each person shares in the economy.

The USA is a grand experiment on whether a nation can exist in harmony as a government of the people by the people and for the people. We have never met that vision fully, but we stand very close to the precipice of proving we cannot. The actual test is whether the people want democracy. Are we letting ourselves be trapped by the oligarchs? Why are we letting them rule us?

 Prayer: Lord, strengthen us with the power of love to recover our dream of a world ruled by loving our neighbors as we love ourselves and not impoverishing them so we can be richer. Amen.

*https://theintercept.com/2015/07/30/jimmy-carter-u-s-oligarchy-unlimited-political-bribery/

**https://unabridged.merriam-webster.com/unabridged/oligarchy

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.

We Can Do All Things in Christ

Ordinary Times

January 13, 2022

Scripture Reading:
1 Corinthians 12:12-31a

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.

Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers; then deeds of power, then gifts of healing, forms of assistance, forms of leadership, various kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all possess gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret? But strive for the greater gifts. And I will show you a still more excellent way. –1 Corinthians 12:12-13, 27-31a

Children’s Hospital in Oklahoma City was a decrepit place when I arrived to work there in 1974. That is, the building and facilities were dilapidated. I was amazed at the quality of work accomplished by a very dedicated staff who cared about children—all children. They provided routine care for the poorest of the poor up to state-of-the-art lifesaving care for any child that needed it within the limitations of its resources. The state legislature could not find the money to improve the facilities until they remembered that the two-cent sales tax could only be used by the Department of Public Welfare. So, they transferred the Children’s hospital to DPW and said fix it, and Lloyd Rader did. He was a powerful man, scary even, but he knew how to get things done.

Much of the social work staff at the hospital left with the transfer to DPW. I was a child welfare supervisor in Payne County and was transferred to supervise social workers at Children’s Hospital. Trailers were set up to house much of the administrative staff while rebuilding was completed. The social work staff officed at the end of a wide hallway. My boss was a wonderful gentleman. Each morning he came by our “office” and emptied all the mouse traps in our desks before we began work. I remember those days when I drive by the beautiful facility in its place today and hear about their various services and accomplishments. Those changes happened because some people saw a need, others joined them, and a state-of-the-art facility became a reality.

As the Body of Christ, we are called to work together for the well-being of all God’s children, whether caring for the sick or assuring that all people have the necessities of life. We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us*.

Prayer: Help us see needs and meet them. Amen.

*Derived from Philippians 4:13

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’s Light

Ordinary Time

January 12, 2022

Scripture Reading: Psalm 36:5-10
Your steadfast love, O Lord, extends to the heavens,
   your faithfulness to the clouds.
Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains,
   your judgments are like the great deep;
   you save humans and animals alike, O Lord.

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!
   All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
They feast on the abundance of your house,
   and you give them drink from the river of your delights.
For with you is the fountain of life;
   in your light we see light.

O continue your steadfast love to those who know you,
   and your salvation to the upright of heart!

The weather in Oklahoma changes often. We can have a high of 80 degrees one day and a high below freezing the next. The wind is rarely still, and cloudy days mix with bright sunny days. I am light sensitive, so I wear regular glasses, often covered with sunglasses. Yesterday, I faced the dilemma of needing to be outside on a freezing day with very bright sunshine. My poor ears did not know what to make of what I thrust on them—glasses stems, sunglass stems, masks loops, and finally earmuffs. My ears hurt from all that weight.

We can carry a lot of weight in our spiritual life that limits our access to God’s light. Nevertheless, the nature of God’s light is not blinding unless, in some circumstances, we shroud ourselves with so much self-righteousness we miss seeing God’s righteousness. Saul had such an experience with God’s light on the road to Damascus*. Saul thought he was doing God’s work, persecuting the Christ-followers. How much work do we do establishing self-righteousness and our justice rather than God’s righteousness and justice?

Prayer:  Lord, free us from the garb of self-righteousness and let your light show us the way to living in your Spirit. Amen.

*See at Acts 9:1-19

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 Beloved

Ordinary Time

January 11, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 62:1-5

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
   and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,
until her vindication shines out like the dawn,
   and her salvation like a burning torch.
The nations shall see your vindication,
   and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name
   that the mouth of the Lord will give.
You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
   and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
You shall no more be termed Forsaken,
   and your land shall no more be termed Desolate;
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,
   and your land Married;
for the Lord delights in you,
   and your land shall be married.
For as a young man marries a young woman,
   so shall your builder marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
   so shall your God rejoice over you.

I just arrived home from attending my brother-in-law’s funeral. He and my sister had been married for 58 years. She and their children carefully crafted a service I think Bill liked. He was a storyteller, and they had compiled short stories that described who he was and who he was not in some instances. Bill was rich in helping and welcoming others but was not much into pomp and circumstances. While he worked at various jobs, he was a farmer at heart. One of his grandsons just posted about the service on social media ending his comments by saying Now he is walking with God in heaven farming and taking care of cattle.

A lot of marriages do not last two years, much less 58. So, Isaiah is talking in the scripture above about the permanence of our relationship with God using as an example the marriage relationship that when well lived, in the good times and the bad, is an eternal source of joy and love to both God and us God’s beloved.

Prayer: Lord, we asked today for special blessings for my sister and her descendants as they grieve the loss of their beloved one. Help us always be a delight to you as we seek to live your love. 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.

God’s Abundance

Ordinary Time

January 10, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 62:1-5

For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent,
   and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest,
until her vindication shines out like the dawn,
   and her salvation like a burning torch.
The nations shall see your vindication,
   and all the kings your glory;
and you shall be called by a new name
   that the mouth of the Lord will give.
You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord,
   and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.
You shall no more be termed Forsaken,
   and your land shall no more be termed Desolate;
but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her,
   and your land Married;
for the Lord delights in you,
   and your land shall be married.
For as a young man marries a young woman,
   so shall your builder marry you,
and as the bridegroom rejoices over the bride,
   so shall your God rejoice over you.

God has always wanted the best for all God’s people. However, problems arise when trying to discern God’s best from the world’s definition of best. So, how does God describe the best—being loved and loving others. Jesus explains that at John 10:10b, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” “More abundantly” means beyond what is anticipated, exceeding expectation; “more abundant,” going past the expected limit*. How do we measure abundance–how the world measures abundance with more excellent salaries, bigger homes, and fancy cars? Or do we perceive the abundant life as abounding fullness of joy and strength for spirits, souls, and healthy bodies? Jesus set the minimum in Mathew 25:34b-36, Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick, and you took care of me I was in prison, and you visited me. Abundance is not measured by wealth but starts when all have enough of the necessities to grow and flourish as God created them become.

Prayer: Lord, as we work toward a world where all have enough, let us also celebrate the advancement of our ability to strengthen our spirits and souls. Amen.

*https://biblehub.com/greek/4053.htm

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.