Tag Archives: Oneness

God’s Steadfast Love

Living in the Spirit
November 1, 2017

Scripture Reading: Psalm 107:1-7, 33-37

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good;
   for his steadfast love endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the Lord say so,
   those he redeemed from trouble
and gathered in from the lands,
   from the east and from the west,
   from the north and from the south. –Psalm 107:1-3

In small groups or Bible studies, we are often encouraged to share what God has done for us. Psalm 107 implores us to do so. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, I think it is as important for us to say what the lord has done for us to ourselves as it is to share it with others.  Particularly living in a world fraught with divisiveness and the questioning of formally trustworthy entities, understanding what one’s real priorities are grows more important. Our focus needs to turn more on the endurance of the steadfast love of God and how that plays out in our everyday living.

Listening to what others are saying is important also. I grow weary of hearing or reading viewpoints that are foreign to me about how we are to be as a society. I must admit I sometimes need to turn it off and retreat from the constant barrage of hate-filled rhetoric. In my heart, My guess is those with differing opinions feel the same about me. I know I need to listen to the backstory in what others are saying. From where do those ideas derive? How can we bridge the gulfs that divide us and find the common ground etched in God’s Word?

Desperate people get caught in desperate responses. Greedy people do not care who they hurt to garner wealth. How do we seek out those living lives of desperation and work alongside them to ease their suffering? How do we awaken those caught in the addiction of greed to the wealth of God’s love that overshadow all worldly riches? How do we keep the principalities and powers of the world at bay as we grow a Kingdom ruled by God’s love?

A good starting point is identifying and rejoicing in the everyday instances of God with Us.

Prayer: Lord, open doors of opportunities for us to share your steadfast love 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.

 

God is Always at Work

Living in the Spirit
October 31, 2017

Scripture Reading: Joshua 3:7-17

When the people set out from their tents to cross over the Jordan, the priests bearing the ark of the covenant were in front of the people. Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing towards the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off. Then the people crossed over opposite Jericho. While all Israel were crossing over on dry ground, the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, until the entire nation finished crossing over the Jordan. –Joshua 14-17

Many of us read with skepticism stories recorded in the Bible of extraordinary events saving people. Some even invest time and energy trying to explain them as naturally occurring events. Some like me think it may be a little of both. The Battle of Dunkirk in World War II perhaps involved both. German soldiers had Allied troops backed up to the waters’ edge with no place to go when the German commander decided to slow their push down until supplies could catch up with them. I wonder how much this commander felt the sting of killing enemy soldiers as if they were sitting ducks. A still small voice perhaps peaked his conscience.

The small break in action coincided with the allies’ desperate attempt to rescue their soldiers by way of the sea. The main problem was the Germans had superior air power that could destroy the rescue ships either coming or going. The allies decided to proceed, and as they headed for the beaches of France, it rained so hard the German planes could not take off, and the fog over the water was so dense the ships were not readily visible. While many gave their lives in this rescue, the people on those ships and boats saved 330,000 soldiers.

What strikes me about both stories, the Israelites crossing the Jordan and the Battle of Dunkirk, is God’s presence among God’s people who seek solutions to the situations in which they find themselves. While God calls us to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God  (Micah 6:8b), God is present with us and supports us as we seek to do God’s will.

Lord, listen to Your children praying,
Lord, send Your spirit in this place;
Lord, listen to Your children praying,
Send us love, send us pow’r, send us grace!**

Prayer: Lord, give us the courage to step out in faith and act when needed and the faith to accept your guidance in our actions. Amen.

*https://www.deedsofgod.com/index.php/31-1940-ad–gods-weather-the-evacuation-of-dunkirk-mainmenu-169
*Chorus of Lord, Listen to the Children Praying by Ken Madema see at http://crossingsmusic.wikidot.com/lord-listen-to-your-children-praying

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.

Making Disciples or Not

Living in the Spirit
October 29, 2017

Scripture Reading: Matthew 22:34-46

Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them this question: ‘What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?’ They said to him, ‘The son of David.’ He said to them, ‘How is it then that David by the Spirit calls him Lord, saying,
 “The Lord said to my Lord,
‘Sit at my right hand,
   until I put your enemies under your feet’ ”?
If David thus calls him Lord, how can he be his son?’ No one was able to give him an answer, nor from that day did anyone dare to ask him any more questions. –Matthew 22:41-46

Those of us who center on Jesus’ commandments to love God and love one another might want to take a deeper dip into how Jesus dealt with his fellow believers. Throughout the gospels, the Pharisees challenged Jesus trying to catch him up in what they deemed “bad theology” apparently in the hope of discrediting him. He challenged them right back and knew his faith’s history and scriptures as well as they did. Do we?

I just read a blog* by John Pavlovitz where he asserts that some Christians are doing a better job of creating atheists than they are making disciples. Are we driving people out of the church because we may say the right words but do not live them or because we pick and choose our Biblical quotes as a means of supporting our bigotry and privilege?

Soul-searching, a quest for greater understanding of the ways of Jesus, and repentance of our ways that may differ from his all are indicated in such a time as these. Follow-up actions may include learning to dialogue across Christianity to try to understand how such divisiveness in our faith has occurred and how it can be healed.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us if our actions have driven anyone away from knowing you. Help us find ways to build bridges of understanding rather than putting up roadblocks. Amen.

*https://johnpavlovitz.com/2017/06/04/the-christians-making-atheists/

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.

Caring for the Gospel

Living in the Spirit
October 27, 2017

Scripture Reading: 1Thessalonians 2:1-8

As you know and as God is our witness, we never came with words of flattery or with a pretext for greed; nor did we seek praise from mortals, whether from you or from others, though we might have made demands as apostles of Christ. But we were gentle among you, like a nurse tenderly caring for her gospel of God but also our own selves, because you have become very dear to us. –1 Thessalonians 2:4-8

What an interesting example of taking the story of God to others, Paul compares it to a nurse tenderly caring for her gospel of God. I worked as a nurse’s aide in one nursing home when in high school and another in college. Working the day shift, I was responsible for bathing my assigned patients. Frail elderly persons often have dry paper-thin skin that required the gentle touches. For most patients, the feel of the warm washcloth brought them comfort and renewal. Throughout the day, I fed many patients who could not feed themselves. Feeding another is an art, learning to understand what they like and do not like when they cannot tell you. Different from feeding a baby who is learning new taste, the elderly already know what they like and have lost control over their choices of eating unless the person doing the feeding cares enough to grasp the reactions they have to the food offered.

Church experiences earlier in some people’s lives left them scared. Others glean opinions of faith from the diversity of practices they observe from the outside, which in our world today is bound to confuse. Loving the other enough to take the time to get to know them and let them get to know us is crucial as we attempt to share the love of God with them.

Prayer: Lord, make us gentle nurses tenderly caring for the gospel of God as we share it with others. 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.

 

Empathy

Living in the Spirit
October 26, 2017

Scripture Reading: 1Thessalonians 2:1-8

You yourselves know, brothers and sisters, that our coming to you was not in vain, but though we had already suffered and been shamefully maltreated at Philippi, as you know, we had courage in our God to declare to you the gospel of God in spite of great opposition. For our appeal does not spring from deceit or impure motives or trickery, but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the message of the gospel, even so we speak, not to please mortals, but to please God who tests our hearts.
–1 Thessalonians 2:1-4

The quote, Preach the Gospel always and when necessary use words*, is needed as much now as ever. Our deeds matter and often speak louder than our words. Words are important too. Words can tear down, and words can lift up. Those of us who identify as Christian define Christ to others through our words and deeds just as Paul did. Empathy seems a lost art. In a diverse world we must invest the time to learn how what we do and what we say impacts the other. What might be comforting to me might cause pain to someone else.

When I arrived at an elder Pawnee woman’s home to update her case information many years ago, I found her making the most beautiful beaded baby moccasins. She said they were for her new grandbaby. There were beads across the toes that extended the length of the bottom of the tiny booty. I commented on the quality of her work and wondered if she would make some that I could buy. She was silent for a moment, finally replying, “You do not want moccasins like these. The beads on the bottom tell that my grandson will never walk on the earth. These are for his burial.” She was kind and understanding of my ignorance and she taught me the importance of empathy.

Prayer: Lord, open our hearts to glimpses of the world from the viewpoint of the people we encounter. Help us be conduits of your love as we serve in your name. Amen.

*Often attributed to St. Francis, but the author is unknown. Read more at https://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/u/unknown109569.html

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.

 

Prosper Our Work

Living in the Spirit
October 25, 2017

Scripture Reading: Psalm 90:1-6, 13-17

Turn, O Lord! How long?
   Have compassion on your servants!
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
   so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us,
   and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
   and your glorious power to their children.
   and prosper for us the work of our hands—
   O prosper the work of our hands! –Psalm:13-17

“It’s a God thing” is a phrase often used to describe what some would call a coincidence that has a divine conclusion. In a world seemingly in a downward spiral, we hunger for a glimpse of God at work saving us from ourselves as well as from the perils that surround us.

God’s presence manifests most often when God’s people are doing God’s work. Moses leads the Israelites from Egypt. Elijah takes on Ahab and Jezebel. John baptizes Jesus. The tomb is empty, and a new dawn arises. Jesus’ disciples huddled together in grief decide it is time to get on about the business of building the world Jesus envisioned and they experience violent winds and tongues of fire to empower and shepherd them on their journey.

God meets us on our paths to justice and peace. My grade school playground had a merry-go-round that was low to the ground and divided into equal segments by metal tubes that rose from the outer sides and connected in the middle. Each child would grab one of the metal tubes, and we would run as fast as we could to get it started and then jump on for the ride. Smaller children got on at the start; the runners worked together to maintain a constant speed until all were riding.  I think God manifests God’s presence most often when we commit full steam ahead to work in God’s service and join God who adds power to the ride.

Prayer: Let your work be manifest to your servants.
             and your glorious power to their children.
            and prosper for us the work of our hands—
           O prosper the work of our hands!  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.

Intercessory Pray

Living in the Spirit
October 23, 2017

Scripture Reading: Exodus 33:12-23

Moses said to the Lord, ‘See, you have said to me, “Bring up this people”; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, “I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.” Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.’ He said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’ And he said to him, ‘If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.’ –Exodus 33:12-16

My Bible labels our scripture today as Moses’ Intercession, his prayer for his people. We have a service of intercessory pray each Sunday accompanying the pastor’s prayer where participants are invited to call out the name or names of persons or situations in need of prayer. These are usually brief with no detail, Bill, The Smith Family, those recovering from the hurricane. They are always heartfelt and thus important. After each name or situation is named the congregation responds, “Here our prayer O, Lord,” a community of faith joining together to asked God’s presence in the lives of others. Intercessory prayer is at least as old as the time of Moses while being just as relevant today. God already knows the detail of the need for prayer; we just want to join our prayers together to build the synergy of love that is needed to heal an individual, a family, community, or the world.

The interesting thing about intercessory prayer is that just by naming the ones in need we commit to working harder to bring into fulfillment the type of community and world God envisions for us. It is when we turn our eyes away from God and from our neighbors’ needs that paths open for evil to intervene.

Prayer: Here our prayers O, Lord and in the process of sharing in prayer open our hearts and minds to your service. 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.

Profiting from Addiction

Living in the Spirit
October 22, 2017

Scripture Reading: Matthew 22:15-22

 But Jesus, aware of their malice, said, ‘Why are you putting me to the test, you hypocrites? Show me the coin used for the tax.’ And they brought him a denarius. Then he said to them, ‘Whose head is this, and whose title?’ They answered, ‘The emperor’s.’ Then he said to them, ‘Give therefore to the emperor the things that are the emperor’s, and to God the things that are God’s.’ When they heard this, they were amazed; and they left him and went away. –Matthew 22:18-22

Jewish leaders seemed dedicated to disgracing Jesus according to Matthew. Challenging him to address the unpopular issue of paying taxes to Rome was just one attempt. There are a lot of “gotcha” moments played out in our time, too. These appear on regular media and social media some with the bias of the reporter. It is distracting and often not worth our time or energy. Such discourse usually plays on our greatest fears or biases. I think that is rather what Jesus was telling the Pharisees in our scripture today.

The Jews did not like being under Roman rule much less paying taxes to them. Jesus caught between unhappy Jews, and the Roman authority called the Jewish leaders out for their attempt to discredit him.

There is a lesson here for us. We must pick our justice battles well. Many distractions are tossed at us sapping us of precious energy and resources while bad policies slide through with ease.

I learned from a New York Times and 60 Minutes report that a law passed in 2011 is enabling the spread of the opioid problem across our country. The law appeared apparently to be innocent but was well crafted to limit the DEA’s ability to oversee the transmission of these drugs to local pharmacies and doctors. There is a lot of money to be made in addictive drugs. Greed is a strong motivation thus the need for strong accountability.

More than 64,000 Americans died from drug overdoses in 2016, including illicit drugs and prescription opioids–nearly double in a decade.*

We can do better than that. By the grace of God and with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will.

Prayer: Lord, help us find our way out of the marshes of divisiveness and come together in oneness to find wholeness for all those caught in the folds of addiction. Amen.

*https://www.drugabuse.gov/related-topics/trends-statistics/overdose-death-rates

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 the Word

Living in the Spirit
October 20, 2017

Scripture Reading: 1 Thessalonians 1:1-10

…you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place where your faith in God has become known, so that we have no need to speak about it. For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming. –1 Thessalonians 1:7-10

The first Christians waited with great expectations for the bodily return of Jesus. He had promised he would come back and they anticipated it would be in their lifetime if not very soon. I wonder when the bodily return became unessential for their everyday work as they experienced his presence in the Holy Spirit.

The church at Thessalonica was a charter church. Its members seemed to come from similar cultures to the other first century churches, but they somehow moved more readily from idol worship to accepting God as monotheistic. They also were apparently able immediately to be doers of the Word and not just believers.

We, today, tend to get hung up on living the Word because of our differences in interpreting the Word. It is no wonder that Congress and state legislatures are unable to get much done. They are mirroring their constituents’ (that is us) lack of ability to live the Word rather than investing our energies in expounding our understanding of what it says. Negotiating solutions is not necessarily compromising our values. One value, for example, is that every child should be raised in a loving home with adequate resources to meet his or her basic needs.  There are many ways to reach that goal that have nothing to do with abortion, welfare, or other divisive issues. Assuring that everyone who works full time earns a living wage would help meet the basic needs requirement. Quality public education where children learn self-respect and respect for one another and gain hope for their futures is known to reduce unwanted pregnancies which reduce abortions. I fear the sad truth is we do not share the common value of quality lives for our children. Wanting to be right in our beliefs drives our values rather than caring about the people impacted by our divisions.  Also, the cynical part of me thinks our values are driven by who has the most financial gain to make from policies. The result is we live in a world of stagnation and stalemate.

There is nothing new here. Amos railed about the same problems in 750 BCE. His answer remains valuable still. We must repent of our greed and use our faith to bring us together in love to make a better world rather than making our faith a stumbling block.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us for getting caught up in divisions and stalemate. Show us how we can learn from each other to live your Word 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.

Known by Our Actions

Living in the Spirit
October 16, 2017

Scripture Reading: Exodus 33:12-23

Moses said to the Lord, ‘See, you have said to me, “Bring up this people”; but you have not let me know whom you will send with me. Yet you have said, “I know you by name, and you have also found favor in my sight.” Now if I have found favor in your sight, show me your ways, so that I may know you and find favor in your sight. Consider too that this nation is your people.’ He said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’ And he said to him, ‘If your presence will not go, do not carry us up from here. For how shall it be known that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people, unless you go with us? In this way, we shall be distinct, I and your people, from every people on the face of the earth.’ –                                                                                                                                                      Exodus 33:12-16

I do not know how many times I have sung the words They’ll Know We are Christians by Our Love*. I believe that sentiment to be true. What frightens me is the many ways love seems to be defined by Christians. In some instances, we exclude people by what we consider to be their sins. Does that reflect God’s love?  Other times we set people apart because of the color of their skin, their religion, or their place of origin? Does that reflect God’s love?

In all the devastation we viewed on TV over the past few months, stories of people who risk their lives for others abound. I certainly saw Christ in each of these people,  though I do not know anything about their religious affiliations. Perhaps if we wish to reflect God with us, we need to turn our attention to being in sync with God rather than projecting what we have gleaned from a world that does not know God.

We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
We are one in the Spirit, we are one in the Lord
And we pray that our unity will one day be restored
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah they’ll know we are Christians by our love 

We will work with each other, we will work side by side
We will work with each other, we will work side by side
And we’ll guard each man’s dignity and save each man’s pride
And they’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love
Yeah, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.*

Prayer: Lord, enable our lives to reflect your love, filtering out the world’s ways we claim as yours. Amen.

*Taken from the song We are One in the Spirit  by Peter Scholtes, see at https://hymnary.org/text/we_are_one_in_the_spirit

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.