Tag Archives: Perserverence

Healing Our World

Living in the Spirit

August 10, 2020

Scripture Reading:
Genesis 45:1-15

Then Joseph could no longer control himself before all those who stood by him, and he cried out, ‘Send everyone away from me.’ So no one stayed with him when Joseph made himself known to his brothers. And he wept so loudly that the Egyptians heard it, and the household of Pharaoh heard it. Joseph said to his brothers, ‘I am Joseph. Is my father still alive?’ But his brothers could not answer him, so dismayed were they at his presence.

Then Joseph said to his brothers, ‘Come closer to me.’ And they came closer. He said, ‘I am your brother Joseph, whom you sold into Egypt. And now do not be distressed, or angry with yourselves, because you sold me here; for God sent me before you to preserve life. Genesis 45:1-5

We are called to persevere in doing the work of God. Joseph did that. Nearly killed by his brothers, he was sold into slavery. While a slave, he was imprisoned unjustly. Even in prison, he persevered interpreting a dream and winning the favor of the Pharaoh. In our story today serving as the Pharaoh’s number one man, he encounters again those brothers who were so jealous of him they considered killing him. I cannot imagine what went through his brother’s minds when he identified himself. Much less what they thought when Joseph expressed that everything turned out as good. He was in the right place at the right time with the right skill set to deal with famine. God is good.

Perseverance results from the faith that God is working God’s purpose out. We, as God’s people, are gifted with the freedom to use our talents any way we choose for good or for evil. God’s desire for us is to do good. Our world is suffering from a pandemic over which we have yet to find control. It is a scary time, and we pray that the scientist will find treatments and hopefully, a vaccine that works.

I spent yesterday in a workshop dealing with addressing the many problems caused by poverty in our world.  In the USA, 4.5% of all deaths are related to poverty*. Many of the COVID-19 deaths are related to poverty. Poverty has become a constant in our lives. When Jesus said the poor will always be with us, I wonder if it meant that was a given. Perhaps he recognized the fact that systemic issues like poverty have become our norm. It does not have to be.

Prayer: God of Mercy, we pray for all those dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic.  We also pray for all that are caught in the spiral of poverty. Grant us the perseverance to eradicate both. Amen.

*https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/how-many-us-deaths-are-caused-poverty-lack-education-and-other-social-factors#:~:text=Overall%2C%204.5%25%20of%20U.S.%20deaths,for%20those%2065%20or%20older.

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.

Fruit of the Spirit

Lent

Scripture Reading:
Psalm 130

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
   and in his word I hope;
my soul waits for the Lord
   more than those who watch for the morning,
   more than those who watch for the morning.

O Israel, hope in the Lord!
   For with the Lord there is steadfast love,
   and with him is great power to redeem.
It is he who will redeem Israel
   from all its iniquities. –Psalm130:5-8

Patience is one of the cluster of characteristics of the fruit of the Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23—love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The use of the singular or collective noun “fruit” has always been a challenge to me. The word is describing the results of the gift of the Spirit and seems to imply that they are more like a cluster of grapes than a bowl of mixed fruits. My tendency is to separate them but deep inside I think they are more like the grapes.

I oft state that patience is a virtue I lack and jokingly add that I prefer the King James Version translation that uses the words long-suffering. I finally came to realize that patience is the fuel for perseverance. While I agree with Ralph Waldo Emerson that Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm, justice is never accomplished without perseverance. Enthusiasm may ebb when the challenges seem overwhelming; perseverance rekindles the fire of enthusiasm.

Waiting on the Lord is not grounded in sitting around and doing nothing to make the world a better place for all, until God finally gets God’s job done solving all our problems. Waiting on the Lord always involves being in close communion with God as we persevere in doing God’s will as a part of the Body of Christ active and engaged in the world today—not getting ahead of God and not dragging our feet behind God.

Prayer: Lord, we do indeed need Thee every hour but at this moment in this time, our need is great throughout the world. Help us feel your presence as we persevere to overcome the calamity that is upon us. 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.

Epiphany

January 13, 2020

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 49:1-7

Listen to me, O coastlands,
   pay attention, you peoples from far away!
The Lord called me before I was born,
   while I was in my mother’s womb he named me.
He made my mouth like a sharp sword,
   in the shadow of his hand he hid me;
he made me a polished arrow,
   in his quiver he hid me away.
And he said to me, ‘You are my servant,
   Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’
But I said, ‘I have labored in vain,
   I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity;
yet surely my cause is with the Lord,
   and my reward with my God.’ –Isaiah 49:1-4

As a cradle Christian, that is one whose mother shared her faith from the child’s beginning, I can identify with this poem. As a want-to-be justice advocate I know exactly what this suffering servant is professing. Taking one step forward and two steps back to eventually make the slightest of progress can be washed away in one hurricane or earthquake or change in leadership. And we start over again.

I know what it is like when it seems we have labored in vain. I have been working on health care reform since Joseph Califano was Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare in the Carter Administration. Almost 50 years later we in the USA are still struggling to provide even basic health care to too many of our citizens.

We are called to do justice whenever righteousness is not in play and surely our cause is with the Lord, and our reward with our God.

Prayer: Lord, we do get weary, abide with us and sharpen our justice swords so we can continue to strive toward your justice. 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.

Perseverance

Team ConceptLiving in the Spirit
June 1, 2016

Scripture Reading: Psalm 146

Praise the Lord!
Praise the Lord, O my soul!
I will praise the Lord as long as I live;
   I will sing praises to my God all my life long. –Psalm 146:1-2

As you may have guessed, I am an ardent Oklahoma City Thunder fan and have been since they arrived in my fair city. The Thunder lost Monday night in a game for the ages and now they probably will take a few days off and then begin again to prepare to win the championship next year. I used them as an example in my book of people who do their individual best together. We people of faith are called to keep our eyes on bringing the Kingdom of God to fruition by using every talent we have together to facilitate God’s purpose for all.

This may sound strange, but I look at athletics as a positive way to channel some of our basic competitive instincts. Paul was into sports and often used it as a metaphor for his work. It sure beats war. The teams, following the end of the game, shared appropriate congratulations with an undertow of see you again next year. I am also impressed with how they model a world where Christians and Muslims, blacks and whites live together well in sibling-like love.

The Thunder faced unbelievable odds in getting to this final game. They never should have been there. A new coach, no matter how good he is, needs time to meld and mold a team. Having recovered from knee replacement surgery, I can tell you that it takes months to get back into a new normal way of movement and my normal movement pales in comparison to Kevin Durant’s who had major foot surgery last year. I cannot imagine the shared pain of the deaths of Dion Waiter’s brother, Monty Williams’ wife, and co-owner Aubrey McClendon. But that is life, as I am sure these guys would tell you, and they persevered through it.

Congratulations Thunder for a year well played. I know you are disappointed at not winning it all, but I want to thank you for your tenacity and for being the gift you are to your fans.

Thunder Up!

Prayer: Lord, help us to persevere in our work toward fulfilling your call to make justice and mercy a fixture in our society. 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 American. Used by permission. All rights reserved.