Living in the Spirit

August 27, 2023

Scripture Reading:

Exodus 3:1-15

But Moses said to God, ‘If I come to the Israelites and say to them, “The God of your ancestors has sent me to you”, and they ask me, “What is his name?” what shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I am who I am.’ He said further, ‘Thus you shall say to the Israelites, “I am has sent me to you.” ’ God also said to Moses, ‘Thus you shall say to the Israelites, “The Lord, the God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you”:
This is my name forever,
and this my title for all generations. –Exodus 3:13-15

I tend to think of God as beyond human understanding, but certain characteristics of God are consistently recognizable. The New Interpreter’s Bible Commentary, when considering God’s declaration of I AM WHO I AM, describes three clear attributes of God: power, fidelity, and presence.  God in creation demonstrated God’s all-powerfulness. In God’s history with the people, God lived his loyalty and the consistency of God’s presence. At the close of this scripture, we receive the name that is not a name, Yahweh. Derived from the verb to be, it stresses the power of being and the possibility of newness. Rightness and justice can be renewed. We can grow from our mistakes and make progress toward an even better outcome as we strive to work with God’s help to live in God’s love.

Moses demanded God’s name after he heard what God had chosen Moses to do, actions that he felt were far beyond his grasp. God’s declaration of I AM WHO I AM was the assurance that if Moses accepted his assignment, it came with the promise of God’s power, fidelity, and presence. Scary as our calling today may be to us, we, too, have that same promise today.

Prayer: Lord, give us the strength and courage to receive and implement your calling. 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 26, 2023

Scripture Reading: Matthew 16:13-20
Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist, but others Elijah, and still others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Simon Peter answered, ‘You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.’ Then he sternly ordered the disciples not to tell anyone that he was the Messiah.

I read an article yesterday about the continuing decline in church membership. People are not necessarily moving away from God but from the trappings of the church in our world today. We seem to want to define people by our interpretations of what is important rather than introducing people to the love of God that defines what is important in life. I love my church when it is at its best; it models the beloved community, that the Kingdom of God Jesus appointed us to build. I, however, have lived through the bad times in more than one church where divide-and-conquer ways of being take control.  I was a child when I first experienced such behavior. The chairs at our communion table were old, and wooden, losing their stability, and needing replacement. A committee was appointed to purchase new chairs.  The first Sunday, the new chairs appeared in the sanctuary all hell broke loose. The seats of the chairs were upholstered. The people who objected apparently thought upholstery was considered too frivolous for the church.  It was very plain upholstery.  As a child, it all seemed very silly. It was blown out of proportion to the point that the family of the woman who chaired the committee withdrew from the church. The chairs remained. They had already been purchased. Such behavior has nothing to do with chairs. I believe it has to do with feelings of worth combined with the measure of worth being better than others.  Such thinking negates the concepts that all people are made in the image of God, all people are worthy, and God loves all people.  No one is made worthy by being better than anyone else.  

Prayer: Lord, help each person accept themselves as the person they are and the person they strive to become in 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 25, 2023

Scripture Reading: Romans 12:1-8
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 judgment, 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.

I was raised in a home that taught me that I was no better than anyone else and that no one else was better than me. I was also raised in a community that generally believed that. My hometown was largely populated with German immigrants and their descendants who arrived in the USA just in time to take advantage of the Homestead Act. They were farmers fleeing from drought and famine in their homeland. Others of us were descendants of immigrants homesteading, like mine, who came for various reasons. My first ancestors to arrive in the USA were, indeed, fleeing from religious persecution. Starting in New England, their descendants moved west to homestead. Raised in a rural area, they soon identified the skills and talents of each of their neighbors. My dad was the local welder. One of our neighbors had lost the lower half of one of his arms in an accident, but he could sled hay with one arm and a hay hook better than anyone. There were excellent quilters and gardeners. These same farmers and small-town merchants were the pillars of our churches. Some were elders, others Sunday School teachers. My sister was the organist at our church starting as a teenager. Groups of them checked on the homebound and children who needed clothing or school supplies. We were not perfect, and we did not always get along, but everyone from every church and those who did not attend church showed up when our church was struck by lightning that set it on fire. Two men ran in and carried the organ out. It took six to take it back in. The beloved community gathers together to share their talents and skills to be one in Christ Jesus in righteousness and justice.

Prayer: Lord, instill in us the fervor to be the beloved community. 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 24, 2023

Scripture Reading: Romans 12:1-8
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 judgment, 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.

The grammar checker I use underlined in blue the phrase in the above scripture: Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by renewing your minds, so that you may discern God’s will—what is good and acceptable and perfect.  Blue indicates it is not wrong, but it could be written more concisely or with a better word. When I quote scripture, I never take the grammar checkers’ advice. In this case, I use what the NRSV translators chose.  Grammar has changed since my grade school years and even in the last ten years since I started writing these devotions. It is now OK to leave a floating preposition at the end of a sentence.

While it was not the grammar checker’s intent, underlining this sentence drew my attention, making me realize its important message. We are suffering an abundance of influence by our worldview, which superseded conforming to God’s way. In that process, some in society demand that their worldview be interpreted as God’s way. That makes it hard to discern what is of God and what is the worldview being substituted for God’s way. We pick and choose from the Bible what we agree with and easily ignore the uncomfortable messages that interfere with the way of being with which we have become comfortable. We want to hang copies of the Ten Commandments on schoolroom walls and in the public square while lying, stealing, coveting, adultery, and even murder are accepted norms in our world today. Are there any denominations that have not had to deal with sexual misconduct of their clergy? Newspapers are now carrying whole sections dedicated to correcting known lies from quotes of public officials. Our laws now make it legal for student loans to collect so much interest that they may never be paid in the student’s lifetime—that is stealing, in my book.

How do we deal with the takeover of worldviews? First, we must study the Bible, not use it as a weapon. More importantly, we must enter into a deeper communion with God to discern what is right and what is just.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we substitute our worldview with yours. Guide us to find true righteousness and 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 23, 2023

Scripture Reading:

Psalm 138

I give you thanks, O Lord, with my whole heart;
   before the gods I sing your praise;
I bow down towards your holy temple
   and give thanks to your name for your steadfast love and your faithfulness;
   for you have exalted your name and your word
   above everything.
On the day I called, you answered me,
   you increased my strength of soul. –Psalm 138

I do not remember when I started praying for God to heal my soul. I had grown weary of all the hate in the world, where there are rarely opportunities or willingness to find common ground, even among people of faith.  Politicians have identified this reality. They do all they can to take advantage of this to divide and concur. Those of us who follow Jesus who called us to be one (John 17:21), must take this seriously. Thus, I loved the final line of the scripture quoted above. I was unfamiliar with this, although I am sure I have read it. That is why we read and re-read the scriptures as we grow in faith and love.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for increasing our strength of soul. 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 22, 2023

Scripture Reading: Isaiah 51:1-6

Listen to me, you that pursue righteousness,
   you that seek the Lord.
Look to the rock from which you were hewn,
   and to the quarry from which you were dug.
Look to Abraham your father
   and to Sarah who bore you;
For he was but one when I called him,
   but I blessed him and made him many.
For the Lord will comfort Zion;
   he will comfort all her waste places,
and will make her wilderness like Eden,
   her desert like the garden of the Lord;
joy and gladness will be found in her,
   thanksgiving and the voice of song. –Isaiah 51:1-3

In our crazy, money-driven world, reading this scripture from Isaiah gives hope. I am trying to transition to be more responsible for the care of the earth as it relates to climate change. I have recycled since my first little blue box was delivered some years ago. I now fill a big green garbage container on wheels and put it out for the city to empty more than the blue garbage container for stuff that cannot be recycled.  I am taking the warnings about climate change seriously, and I still have a lot to learn and apply. My state is going in the opposite direction. In 2022 the Oklahoma legislature passed a bill outlawing the state from investing state employees’—my—retirement money with any company that no longer handles investments for oil companies as they do their part to address climate change.  Oil companies have a lot of experience in many areas to which they could transition and should be encouraged to transition so they could thrive in business as the use of fossil fuels declines. Our legislature should support those companies in that transition rather than reducing state employees’ retirement reserves, some retirees are already living in poverty.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when greed drives us to take advantage of others and help us see a better way to ensure all have enough.  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.

Living in the Spirit

August 21, 2023

Scripture Reading: Psalm 124
If it had not been the Lord who was on our side
   —let Israel now say—
if it had not been the Lord who was on our side,
   when our enemies attacked us,
then they would have swallowed us up alive,
   when their anger was kindled against us;
then the flood would have swept us away,
   the torrent would have gone over us;
then over us would have gone
   the raging waters.

Blessed be the Lord,
   who has not given us
   as prey to their teeth.
We have escaped like a bird
   from the snare of the fowlers;
the snare is broken,
   and we have escaped.

Our help is in the name of the Lord,
   who made heaven and earth.

Our help is in the name of the Lord. We have a whole set of books gathered into one that tells us the story of God in history, parables, and poetry. It helps us to understand what is just and what is not. Through Jesus Christ, God gave us a human example to follow, showing us how to love and care for one another. He instilled in us the presence of the Holy Spirit to be with us and left us with the challenge to go into all the world and share God’s love.  He did not necessarily say it was easy, but he did say building the Kingdom ruled by love was worth the effort.

Prayer: Thank you, Lord, for being our guiding light as we strive to continue your mission 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 20, 2023

Scripture Reading: Exodus 1:8-2:10

Now a man from the house of Levi went and married a Levite woman. The woman conceived and bore a son; and when she saw that he was a fine baby, she hid him for three months. When she could hide him no longer she got a papyrus basket for him, and plastered it with bitumen and pitch; she put the child in it and placed it among the reeds on the bank of the river. His sister stood at a distance, to see what would happen to him.

The daughter of Pharaoh came down to bathe at the river, while her attendants walked beside the river. She saw the basket among the reeds and sent her maid to bring it. When she opened it, she saw the child. He was crying, and she took pity on him. ‘This must be one of the Hebrews’ children,’ she said. Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, ‘Shall I go and get you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’ Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Yes.’ So the girl went and called the child’s mother. Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, ‘Take this child and nurse it for me, and I will give you your wages.’ So the woman took the child and nursed it. When the child grew up, she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and she took him as her son. She named him Moses, ‘because’, she said, ‘I drew him out of the water.’ –Exodus 2:1-10

The King of Egypt was concerned that the Israelites were growing in population and could threaten Egypt, so he worked them harder and ordered their baby boys to be killed. I must say that the King of Egypt at the time of Moses was not nearly as wise as the one who hired Joseph. Indeed, in my many years working for the government, I have worked under leaders who made excellent decisions and others who left me wondering what he or she was thinking. What matters is how people respond to leaders. Apparently, the Israelites did everything they could to save their sons. In this instance, they were living within a monarchy. We in the USA are trying to live in a democracy, a government by the people, but at times it seems our leadership can get distracted by the world’s way and make some decisions for which we eventually pay a high price. Moses eventually led the Israelites out of Egypt. We, on the other hand, are responsible for choosing our leaders. Thus, we are the ones who must do our homework and make wise decisions about our leadership. I have opened both the Washington Post and the New York Times, recently reading headlines asking in one way or another if our democracy is broken. The answer is only if we let it be.

Prayer: Lord, forgive us for getting caught in the world’s ways we do not follow your guidance to do justice for all people. 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.

Living in the Spirit

August 19, 2023

Scripture Reading:

Matthew 15: (10-20), 21-28

Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, ‘Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon.’ But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, ‘Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us.’ He answered, ‘I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.’ But she came and knelt before him, saying, ‘Lord, help me.’ He answered, ‘It is not fair to take the children’s food and throw it to the dogs.’ She said, ‘Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.’ Then Jesus answered her, ‘Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.’ And her daughter was healed instantly. –Matthew 15:21-28

 I have probably said this before, but I will say it again.  I am so glad the compilers of Matthew included this story. It first tells us that Jesus was indeed fully human. He was what sociologists call ethnocentric, inclined to regard one’s own race or social group as the center of culture, exhibiting an incapacity for viewing foreign cultures dispassionately*

Second, it illustrates that humans can change their Worldview if they open their hearts and minds to God’s view.

Prayer: Lord, help us see the way to your view of how we should love and treat one another. Amen.

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

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 in the Spirit

August 18, 2023

Scripture Reading:

Romans 11:1-2a, 29-32
I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the scripture says of Elijah, how he pleads with God against Israel? for the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. Just as you were once disobedient to God but have now received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now been disobedient in order that, by the mercy shown to you, they too may now receive mercy. For God has imprisoned all in disobedience so that he may be merciful to all.

We walk a very special path trying to stay in sync with God while caught in the middle of multiple worldviews pulling at us with unique logic to our times. At times like these, one of my go-to scriptures is Matthew 11:28-30: ‘Come to me, all you that are weary and carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.’

Paul recognizes that reality in our lives, which is as true today as it was 2000 years ago. An ad is running on TV in Oklahoma regarding a garage door business. It runs with no sound.  I look up from my laptop, phone, or iPad to see if something has gone wrong with my TV and immediately start reading the message on the screen. The ad makes me realize I am not watching the news at all. I am doing several activities at once and probably not getting the gist of any of them well. The silence of that ad gets my attention every time, even though I do not have a garage. I am sure I will soon acclimate to the change and somehow incorporate it into my worldview along with others, and the ad will be changed to get my attention once again.

God’s ways do not change. We were commanded to build our lives on God’s love in written history 3,000 years ago, which still applies today. We must, with intention, take the time to discern God’s view and the current worldview in which we live and follow God’s way, which is ruled by love.

Prayer:
 Open my eyes that I may see
glimpses of truth thou hast for me.
Place in my hands the wonderful key
that shall unclasp and set me free.
Silently now I wait for thee,
ready, my God, thy will to see.
Open my eyes, illumine me,
Spirit divine! Amen.

First verse of Open My Eyes by Clara H. Scott. See at https://hymnary.org/text/open_my_eyes_that_i_may_see

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.