Category Archives: Daily Devotion

Common Good

Lent

April 5, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 50:4-9a

The Lord God has given me
   the tongue of a teacher,
that I may know how to sustain
   the weary with a word.
Morning by morning he wakens—
   wakens my ear
   to listen as those who are taught.
The Lord God has opened my ear,
   and I was not rebellious,
   I did not turn backwards.
I gave my back to those who struck me,
   and my cheeks to those who pulled out the beard;
I did not hide my face
   from insult and spitting. –Isaiah 50:4-6

I do not know if I have the tongue of a teacher, but I do enjoy facilitating good discussion and I usually work with adults. I grew from experiences in various employment. I did almost every job except fry cook at one of the chain restaurants on an interstate, cleaned houses, babysat children, and worked as a nursing assistant at two different nursing homes when I was in high school and college. I grew from each of these experiences, and I think those experiences helped me move into my career as a better prepared social worker and later as a pastor. In Bible studies, I learn from small business owners about the challenges of the business world, from welders and plumbers to accountants and lawyers. As a child welfare worker, I grew to appreciate sheriffs, deputies, and other law enforcement officials.

I have a sense that we are trying to build a world where everyone thinks alike and sees the world from a single perspective. God created a world requiring people with many diverse skills and talents to maintain it. Such work would, of necessity, require us to share our experiences as we work together for the common good. Perhaps the problem is that we do not care about the common good.

Prayer: Lord, thank you for providing other people in my life who give me a better understanding of this world you created. 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 Help Us

Lent

April 4, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 50:4-9a

The Lord God helps me;
   therefore I have not been disgraced;
therefore I have set my face like flint,
   and I know that I shall not be put to shame;
   he who vindicates me is near.
Who will contend with me?
   Let us stand up together.
Who are my adversaries?
   Let them confront me.
It is the Lord God who helps me;
   who will declare me guilty?
All of them will wear out like a garment;
   the moth will eat them up. –Isaiah 50:7-9

How do followers of Christ see the world so differently? How do we speak truth to righteousness when we cannot agree on what is just, what is of God? The prophets whose messages are recorded in the Hebrew Bible faced those same questions, about different issues but they dealt with the same blindness to the reality that was so clear to those prophets but not to the people.  History tells us that the prophets were right. How do we free ourselves from seeing what we want to see and hearing what we want to hear?

Isaiah’s message in the above scripture is that in the face of such diversity, being in sync with God becomes of even greater importance. The problem was that the people Isaiah was trying to reach thought they were following God and Isaiah was the one off-course. He concludes that only time will tell. That was too late for the Israelites, and they landed in exile. Is that our future?

Prayer: Lord, create in us clean hearts so that we might commune meaningfully with you. 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.

Greed

Lent

April 3, 2022

Scripture Reading: John 12:1-8

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.’

For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and in their eagerness to be rich some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many pains. –1 Timothy 6:10

Greed is our world’s idol of choice. It is an addiction, harder to vanquish than any drug or alcohol or smoking. Greed alters the values by which we live. All aspects of life are impacted by the worship of wealth. People project the measure of their worth onto the ability to acquire whatever it is that they lust after. I am beginning to understand better the word endemic.  Endemic means belonging or native to a particular people or country: not introduced or naturalized*.  Those who study viruses are now saying COVID in its various forms has now become endemic in our world and in our country. We must learn to live with it. Those characteristics are true regarding greed. We all have a touch of greed. The difference is that greed cannot be treated by vaccines. To conquer greed, we must learn to recognize it and faithfully decide to avoid it. We humans have proved that we do not like being responsible for our well-being. However, that is exactly what Christ calls us to do. Love one another, care for one another and own the well-being of all.

Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit can and will enable us to love like Jesus if we choose to change.

Prayer: Lord, help us to see where greed is ruling our lives and actions. Grant us the courage to let greed go and be made anew through your love. Amen.

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

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.

Ending Poverty

Lent

April 2, 2022

Scripture Reading: John 12:1-8

Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Mary took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard, anointed Jesus’ feet, and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume. But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples (the one who was about to betray him), said, ‘Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii and the money given to the poor?’ (He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief; he kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it.) Jesus said, ‘Leave her alone. She bought it so that she might keep it for the day of my burial. You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me.’

Some people interpret Jesus’s statement You always have the poor with you, but you do not always have me, as there is nothing, we can do about the poor. I think he was saying we need to use our time wisely. Poverty does, indeed, strike individuals and families and in Matthew 25 Jesus tells us we are to incorporate the alleviation of lack of food, appropriate clothing, and health care into our service to God.  The statement you will always have the poor with you, however, recognizes that poverty is a systemic problem that not only requires attention to meeting needs but also changing societal norms that support poverty’s existence.

About 97 million more people are living on less than $1.90 a day because of the pandemic, increasing the global poverty rate from 7.8 to 9.1 percent; 163 million more are living on less than $5.50 a day. Globally, three to four years of progress toward ending extreme poverty are estimated to have been lost*.

U.S. Billionaires Got 62 percent Richer During Pandemic. They’re Now Up $1.8 Trillion **. Global Billionaires See $5.5 Trillion Pandemic Wealth Surge ***.

There is something very wrong with this picture.

While poverty increased during the pandemic it was running amok before the pandemic. Food stamps, childcare subsidies, and Medicaid provided for low-wage families are essentially the benefits not being provided by large corporations. Middle-class taxes are largely paying for these benefits. Small businesses suffer too because they cannot compete with the mass producers. Small farms are dying all over the country. It is a complex and difficult problem to solve and in the final analysis, because we have ignored it for some time, we will all be impacted by the necessary changes. History tells us that when the rich just keep getting richer and the poor poorer the foundation of the economy is destroyed and so goes the empires. The USA is flirting with that reality now. Greed eventually eats itself.

Jesus teaches a simple story, that loving our neighbors as we love ourselves lets us have an abundant life. John 10:10b, I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” Abundance is not measured in money it is the fullness of life found in spirit, soul, and body.

Prayer: Lord, show us the way to your abundance for all. Amen.

*https://blogs.worldbank.org/developmenttalk/covid-19-leaves-legacy-rising-poverty-and-widening-inequality#:~:text=About%2097%20million%20more%20people,estimated%20to%20have%20been%20lost.

**https://ips-dc.org/u-s-billionaires-62-percent-richer-during-pandemic/

***https://ips-dc.org/global-billionaires-see-5-5-trillion-pandemic-wealth-surge/

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.

Futuring

Lent

April 1, 2022

Scripture Reading:
Philippians 3:4b-14

Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own; but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on towards the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus. –Philippians 3:12-14

Learn from your mistakes and move on. My mother always said we should not cry over spilled milk, although I remember seeing her cry over breaking one of her mother’s antique bowls. I am reading N. T. Wright’s book, Paul, A Biography. It is very good by the way. Paul was always strongly right until he got spun around to face a different reality on that road to Damascus. He was still Paul, strongly right, having to deal with having been strongly wrong. After this experience, Paul seems to burst out in all the wrong directions until he finally traveled to the mountain to spend time with God. He then returned to his hometown, Tarsus, where he spent several years reconstructing his faith. I am reminded of the title of Marcus Borg’s book, Reading the Bible Again For the First Time: Taking the Bible Seriously But Not Literally.

As we live into the 21st century we face challenges our ancestors in faith never dreamed of when they recorded their experiences with God. Yet the Word of God is still as vibrant today as it was 2000 years ago. We still need to maintain a close relationship with God and glean the truths of God’s word as it applies to us today. Searching scriptures to find the ways we can love God and love our neighbors as ourselves might be a good place to start.

Prayer: God who is Love, forgive us for our past misunderstandings and help us prepare for the realization of your Kingdom in our 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.

Self-Righteous

Lent

March 31, 2022

Scripture Reading:

Philippians 3:4b-14

even though I, too, have reason for confidence in the flesh.

If anyone else has reason to be confident in the flesh, I have more: circumcised on the eighth day, a member of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew born of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to righteousness under the law, blameless.

Yet whatever gains I had, these I have come to regard as loss because of Christ. More than that, I regard everything as loss because of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and I regard them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but one that comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God based on faith. I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the sharing of his sufferings by becoming like him in his death, if somehow I may attain the resurrection from the dead. –Philippians 3:4b-11

This is a letter to those of us who suffer from some degree of religious supremacy, and most of us do. In fact, we would not be participating in a religion we did not think was better, at least for us, than any other religion. I could easily write something like what Paul wrote in the opening section of the scripture quoted— born in the USA, a Christian born of Christians, baptized at the age of six. None of those matters, when I consider the great gift of grace, I receive from the love of God through Jesus the Christ. God’s righteousness must prevail not my self-righteousness for being born the right color in the right country to law-abiding parents who taught me to be law-abiding, even when some laws were/are unfair.

I purposely used the word supremacy because we are called to deal with it in our society today. Christian nationalism is also a phrase that evokes a marriage of church and state which makes me very uncomfortable. Indeed, my faith in God should drive every aspect of my faith, but I am not God and must not assume God’s role in the life of others even through manipulation of governance. God did grant us permission to love others—all others, no matter what and we can do as much of that as possible.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we take our privilege for granted. Help us to see how that may hurt others and help us make changes in our lives to correct such injustice. 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.

What Fortune?

Lent

March 30, 2022

Scripture Reading: Psalm 126

When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
   we were like those who dream.
Then our mouth was filled with laughter,
   and our tongue with shouts of joy;
then it was said among the nations,
  ‘The Lord has done great things for them.’
The Lord has done great things for us,
   and we rejoiced.

Restore our fortunes, O Lord,
   like the watercourses in the Negeb.
May those who sow in tears
   reap with shouts of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
   bearing the seed for sowing,
shall come home with shouts of joy,
   carrying their sheaves.

One of the gifts of Bible study is learning what one assumes but does not know. In my understanding, the word fortune implies a lot of money. Not even close to being the whole truth, I discovered. The first definition of fortune in the Merriam-Webster dictionary is a hypothetical force or power that unpredictably or capriciously determines events and issues favorably or unfavorably for persons or causes*. I had to read down to the fifth definition to find this, condition in life as determined by material possessions. Furthermore, when I checked Strong’s Concordance for the meaning of the Hebrew word translated as fortune in the scripture above, I discovered there was no word for what appears as fortunes above only an untranslatable mark of the accusative case**. I do recall understanding that there is both good fortune and bad fortune.

What I can glean from this scripture is that the people were wanting to return to what they considered to be a better state of being probably in a time of peace and prosperity. We can never turn back the clock to a better time. Even if we could return to the good old days, we would realize that we had moved on from them. What did we do before cell phones?

What the author of the above Psalm tells us is that when the bad fortunes that have set us back are conquered we are freed to plant new seeds, produce a new harvest and find new sources of peace and a new definition of prosperity from our times of bad fortunes. I see that forward-looking desire in the eyes of the Ukrainians longing for peace, I see it in the actions of people whose homes have been destroyed by the weather and understand that God is always with us in the good times and the bad comforting us and encouraging us to step out in faith to plant new seeds and grow a better world.

Prayer: Lord, we pray for all those whose lives are upside-down from all kinds of calamity. Show us how to love them as they struggle to survive. Amen.

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

**https://biblehub.com/hebrew/853.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.

Old to New

Lent

March 29, 2022

Scripture Reading:
Isaiah 43:16-21

Thus says the Lord,
   who makes a way in the sea,
   a path in the mighty waters,
who brings out chariot and horse,
   army and warrior;
they lie down, they cannot rise,
   they are extinguished, quenched like a wick:
Do not remember the former things,
  or consider the things of old.
I am about to do a new thing;
   now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
   and rivers in the desert.
The wild animals will honor me,
   the jackals and the ostriches;
for I give water in the wilderness,
   rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
   the people whom I formed for myself
so that they might declare my praise.

Change is constant. I copy and paste the scriptures I used in these posts, italicize them, and quote the source below. My computer notes grammatical and spelling errors, but I do not make corrections indicated for my quotes. I do not know the rule regarding changing the grammar in quotes, so I just do not change them. Mostly, they put commas where we no longer use them and recommend taking commas out when our rules indicate they are needed. These are usually trivial corrections but a comma in the wrong place can make a world of difference.

My sister and I were talking about etiquette changes that have occurred over time. When we were children, family members never held bridal or baby showers for a relative. It is common now. The men always passed through a buffet line first. Now children who need help filling their plates go first. I must admit I always still feel a little strange letting go of the old ways even when they make more sense.

In the Psalm above God instructs us in doing a new thing through God, letting God’s way guide ours. And that requires faith that God will provide for us in our times of need.

Prayer: Thank you Lord, for guiding us through the newness of 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.

A New Thing

Lent

March 28, 2022

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 43:16-21

Thus says the Lord,
   who makes a way in the sea,
   a path in the mighty waters,
who brings out chariot and horse,
   army and warrior;
they lie down, they cannot rise,
   they are extinguished, quenched like a wick:
Do not remember the former things,
  or consider the things of old.
I am about to do a new thing;
   now it springs forth, do you not perceive it?
I will make a way in the wilderness
   and rivers in the desert.
The wild animals will honor me,
   the jackals and the ostriches;
for I give water in the wilderness,
   rivers in the desert,
to give drink to my chosen people,
   the people whom I formed for myself
so that they might declare my praise.

Over the past few years, I have had a sense that we are living in a time that is as consequential as the Reformation, the Renaissance, or the Industrial Revolution all woven together. Religion is in chaos, digital communication surpasses the printing press, and travel has made the world more accessible. How we deal with such change will pave our path for the future. Where is our faith amid such change? How do we discern God’s way in the anger and divisiveness that flows through our systems of faith, government, and culture?

Isaiah tells us in 700 BCE that God is about to do a new thing in us, and God still is today. God will not rest until God’s Kingdom is fulfilled and neither should we.

Prayer: Here we are open to doing whatever you call us to do as we work toward the actualization of your Kingdom on earth, show us the way, and help us follow your path. 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.

Recognizing Whose We Are

Lent

March 27, 2022

Scripture Reading: Luke 15:1-3, 11b-32

Then Jesus said, ‘There was a man who had two sons. The younger of them said to his father, “Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.” So he divided his property between them. A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and travelled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. But when he came to himself he said, “How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.” So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his slaves, “Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!” And they began to celebrate.’

Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. He replied, “Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.” Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. But he answered his father, “Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!” Then the father said to him, “Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.”’ –Luke 15:11b-24

We come into the world being loved by God. We are God’s creation made in God’s image with gifts and talents designed to make a positive impact on the world around us. We come into the world with the gift of choice regarding how we reflect God and how we invest our gifts and talents. The prodigal son chose to squander not only his inheritance of being made in the image of God but also his gifts and talents. At the point of desperation when he realized the results of his actions, he returned to his Creator and asked for a second chance and it was granted with the fulness of God’s love and forgiveness.

Our world is full of prodigal adults and children who do not know whose they are and thus do not fully understand who they are. In fact, most of us have experienced isolation from God at one time or another, even those of us who work at doing everything right like the prodigal’s brother. Be assured in either case God welcomes all who search for God’s loving care.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we turn away and forge our lives outside of your loving care. Help us turn around and return to you. 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.