Blog Archives
What Does Getting an IV ( Or going to a Dentist) and the Lord’s Supper Have in Common
Devotional and Discussion Quote of the Day:
23 For I received from the Lord the teaching that I passed on to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took a piece of bread, 24 gave thanks to God, broke it, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in memory of me.” 25 In the same way, after the supper he took the cup and said, “This cup is God’s new covenant, sealed with my blood. Whenever you drink it, do so in memory of me.” 1 Corinthians 11:23-25 (TEV)
10 “Be still, and know that I am God! I will be honored by every nation. I will be honored throughout the world.” Psalm 46:10 (NLT)
477 Why do you neglect those corners in your heart? As long as you don’t give yourself completely, you can’t expect to win others. What a poor instrument you are! (1)
On Thursday, I had some medical tests done. As I was laying there on the hard gurney, the nurse told me to stay still, as she was going to ram a large (it looked six inches long and an inch wide) needle into one of my veins. “Hold still,” she says.
Yeah. Be still. Uh huh,
Think about this, you are laid back in the comfortable dentist chair, and the dentist smiles and says, this will hurt just a little, as he takes tools that barely fit in the room, and comes at you with sinister glee glowing from behind his mask.
“Just be still,” he cautions. The only problem, in both those our nerves, betray us. We lie there, shaking, our bodies tense and on edge, not sure how painful this will be. Our minds are trying to find something to distract us, something else upon which to focus. Is it over yet?
So what do these two phobias of mine have to do with the Lord’s Supper?
The stillness we need to have is part of it.
But so is the trust that what is going to happen to us is going to be for our betterment.
I think many of us approach communion to casually. Do we realize that this is God, Jesus’ precious Body give for us, His blood shed for our sins, that we are going to take? Are we still enough to realize that we aren’t just symbolically in the presence of God, we really are?
Do we realize that God’s presence will cleanse, restore, and bring healing to our broken lives, our hurting souls?
Paul tells the church to examine themselves, to recognize His presence, that to fail to do so has resulted in some spiritually falling asleep, and in some cases, death.
We need to be still; We need to take the time to know He Is God, our God, the God, who loves and cares for us. It’s not for His ease, or because He is impatient, it is for our best, for our healing, for our comfort.
Imagine if you spent the time in a dentist’s chair paging through His resume, interviewing other patients, trying to critique his prior operations, and pontificating and debating about why He is better than the dentist three doors down. Imagine,as the arm is cleaned, and the needle approaches that vein, you spend time trying to determine whether it would be better to place it somewhere else, or arguing about the history of plastic versus metal needles, and occasionally wondering about the use of leeches?
Relax, breath deep, know the presence of God. Drop to your knees in awe (if you can get back up!) and savor the moment, the Body and Blood, given and shed for you……
He is God!
He is with you!
This is what you’ve been told to seek, this moment, this precious time…. breathe slowly, find that point where you revere and adore Him, and where that reverence is balance with a flood of joy. As you are still and know that He is God as His love and mercy wash away all that is not this moment, God and His family…
this moment we need!
Be still…. for just a moment longer…
Smile, and know you life is in His hands…..
AMEN
Be still… be still and know He is God.
Escriva, Josemaria (2010-11-02). The Way (Kindle Locations 1168-1170). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
An Odd Addiction…
Devotional Discussion THought of the Day:
9 O God, we meditate on your unfailing love as we worship in your Temple. Psalm 48:9 (NLT)
7 Yet no one calls on your name or pleads with you for mercy. Therefore, you have turned away from us and turned us over to our sins. Isaiah 64:7 (NLT) \
436 God’s love for his creatures is so boundless and our response to it should be so great that, when Holy Mass is being said, time ought to stand still.
Without question, it is the high point of my week. It is where time does seem to stand still, where the struggles of life seem to be of absolutely no matter. It is an experience that is “otherworldly”. It is definitely beyond logic or reason, and it’s beauty and peace cannot be explained. Right now, because it is more frequent, I rejoice, my days seem brighter. Because of that, I would say I am addicted to it….
A simple move, my hand placing in another’s hand Something so precious, and words softly spoken, that change everything.
“Take and eat, the Body of Christ, broken for YOU.”
As I say these words, some hear them so well their body’s change, the relax, they smile, some even weep with joy.
It is that moment, as they receive the gift of the Sacrament, that life makes sense. The presence of God is made clear, and that changes everything.
It is not that discussing God’s presence and praying with near strangers over breakfast is less, or praying at the bedside of someone having surgery, or helping two at great odds with each other know God’s peace isn’t as great of a moment. All of ministry, all of life is filled with the presence of God. We come to know peace in all things, in all places. His grace is needed in all those places.
But those are moments in this world, and there is something about the sacraments, about baptism and absolution and the Lord’s Supper that gives us a moment of heaven. It is, as St. Josemaria says, the moment time stands still. A moment of clear communion with God. It’s the time where our pleas and cries for God’s loving mercy are answered. What is a brief second becomes without measure.
Over the last week, I’ve come across a word a number of times, kenosis. It means the “emptying”. The moment where everything in life is shed. It is the description of Christ, emptying himself in order to become a servant. As we receive the Body of Christ, that happens to us as well, all is stripped away, save Him. Except His love. His mercy, His peace. It is the stripping away of sin, of all unrighteousness, It is the reliving of our baptism, of our being united, forged to Jesus Christ.
Emptied of all that isn’t God, we find out how we have been united to Him, How He makes us whole.
God’s glory, revealed to us as love conquers it all. All our sin, all our brokenness, all our rebellion and trauma. It is pictured in the Old Testament, where God gathered the leaders into His presence, having lefft Egypt far behind… and as they feast in His presence.
Receiving the Body of Christ is a great joy, as is see those who God called to that moment. The meditation and thought of that moment… that alone should compel us to know Him more deeply, to hear the stories of those He’s sustained, especially those in scripture. The sacraments do that, they help us realize our dependence, our need on the presence of God, and reveal to us that He is here.
Such is why i love to dwell on the Eucharist, and why such a little thing is such a tremendous blessing to me. tO see this happen to 50, 60, 100 people, is amazing. ( If there is a reason I am envious of those with larger churches, it is perhaps this!)
The promises of God, delivered to us, that we dwell in peace.
(and we who serve are blessed to deliver it!)
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 1681-1682). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
How Tied Are We to this Life?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
21 For what is life? To me, it is Christ. Death, then, will bring more. 22 But if by continuing to live I can do more worthwhile work, then I am not sure which I should choose. 23 I am pulled in two directions. I want very much to leave this life and be with Christ, which is a far better thing; 24 but for your sake it is much more important that I remain alive. 25 I am sure of this, and so I know that I will stay. I will stay on with you all, to add to your progress and joy in the faith, 26 so that when I am with you again, you will have even more reason to be proud of me in your life in union with Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:21-26 (TEV)
11 They won the victory over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the truth which they proclaimed; and they were willing to give up their lives and die. Revelation 12:11 (TEV)
881 Non habemus hic manentem civitatem—our definitive home is not to be found on this earth. And so that we don’t forget it, at the hour of death this truth appears crudely at times, in lack of understanding, say, or in persecution or in being despised. But there is always a sense of loneliness, for even though we may be surrounded by affection, every person dies alone. Now is the time to untie all the bonds that bind us! Let us prepare ourselves at all times for that step which will bring us into the eternal presence of the Most Holy Trinity. (1)
In two weeks, we start a new sermon series here at Concordia.
it’s about our journey to heaven, and the conversations we have, as we travel there, led by Christ, driven by the Holy Spirit.
Today’s readings in my devotional time made me think of the title. “Are we there yet??? And other backseat conversations on the way to Heaven”
Paul is impatient to get home, to be done with the journey. To find what the sabbath, what church, what the sacraments point to it being. To see clearly what we can only get passing glimpses of, but ohhhh.. are those glances incredible. Paul, who had given up so much, now seeks to give up all. As does Josemaria Escriva – reminding us that this isn’t our home, that this isn’t the place to which we are bound, to which we have unbreakable ties. As did the martyrs of Revelation, those who didn’t love life more than the One who they shared with each other.
On one hand, there is a longing to go home and rest in the glory of God the Father, our Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit. One another, we know the work we can do here, the real wor, makes a difference in the life (both eternal and temporal) of people here. We help them know the peace that comes from knowing where our desitination is in Christ.
And so we work, aware of our own weaknesses, aware of His presence, aware of His love.
Ready to share that with those around us, ready to explain why we have hope in this life and for the next. As we sing in our Memorial Acclimation:
“Christ has died, Christ is Risen! Christ will come again!
We were dead in our sins, now we’re buried with Him, We are Risen with Christ! We are Given new Life! Christ will bring us home, making us His own!
Christ has died, Christ is Risen! Christ will come again!” (2)
So remember as you struggle through this day… this is just the journey home. And keep your eyes our Christ, who began this journey, and will bring it to completion.
AMEN!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3602-3607). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
(2) From the Memorial Acclimation (Chris Gillette Worship Band Liturgy) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSOPkjcqfF4
Do We Desire God’s Presence? Do we Desire Eternity?
Devotional/Discussion Thought of the Day :
4 I have asked the LORD for one thing; one thing only do I want: to live in the LORD’S house all my life, to marvel there at his goodness, and to ask for his guidance. Psalm 27:4 (TEV)
11 Yet God has made everything beautiful for its own time. He has planted eternity in the human heart, but even so, people cannot see the whole scope of God’s work from beginning to end. Ecclesiastes 3:11 (NLT)
857 Someone we know well told us sincerely, in confidence, that he had never been bored, for he had never been on his own, without our Friend. It was late in the evening, and there was a great silence… You felt very intently the presence of God… And, in the knowledge of that reality, what peace! (1)
Each morning that I find myself in my office, I start the day with the morning liturgy from “Celtic Daily Prayer”. Each morning I do so, after remembering my baptism while making the sign of the cross, the very next thing is Psalm 27:4. I read the words and often ask myself a question.
Do I really want only that – to live in His house all my life, for all eternity?
Let me confess, I struggle with that, as I imagine you do.
And if I struggle with living with Him here, in this time and place; I also struggle with seeing that which Solomon mentioned, that God has planted eternity in my heart. For often my heart and mind are not centered there. Some things I desire may be good and beneficial, like seeing people given the gift of faith, and the promises that come from Baptism and receiving the Body and Blood of Christ. I desire the church to grow, to find reconciliation where it is so needed. But anxiety over making that happen.
Is my first desire God’s presence, to be where He abides?
There are times it is, and I can think back over the years and long for those times again. The quiet sanctuaries of my youth, the incredible retreats I’ve been on, the baptisms, the putting into people’s hands the body and blood of Christ. The holding someone’s hand while they passed away, just silently praying. Praying again with my son, when he fit in the niche of my arm, praying that God would bless him, and through him many people. They are my treasured times, they are the best moments of my life.
Yes I do desire this, and I cannot but help look forward to eternity, because of promises like this:
9 However, as the scripture says, “What no one ever saw or heard, what no one ever thought could happen, is the very thing God prepared for those who love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9 (TEV)
The times are precious, when I can sit and meditate on this, when I contemplate my baptism, or the Eucharist, or receiving the incredible news that my sins are absolved.
It is then I realize the peace the Josemaria’s friend new, the silence, the presence of God. That which we do desire the most, if we take a moment to realize it.
Be still, my friends, and know there is a God, and you are His…..
It is worth every micro-second. For there eternity, the eternity planted in our hearts is revealed.
For eternity is yours already. He is with you…
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3511-3515). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Football Season Starts Soon: Whose side is God On? (and in other rivalries as well)
Discussion and Devotional THought of the Day:
13 When Joshua was near the town of Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with sword in hand. Joshua went up to him and demanded, “Are you friend or foe?” 14 “Neither one,” he replied. “I am the commander of the LORD’s army.” At this, Joshua fell with his face to the ground in reverence. “I am at your command,” Joshua said. “What do you want your servant to do?” 15 The commander of the LORD’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did as he was told. Joshua 5:13-15 (NLT)
759 You complain that he shows you no understanding. I am certain he does as much as he can to try to understand you. But what about you? When will you make a bit of an effort to understand him? (1)
It is getting near that time of year when men pray more consistently on Sundays. They thank God more often, they pray too him more deeply, the acknowledge His presence and ask His blessings (and quote all the passages about cursing and defeating their enemies…)
Well, those men who are football fans, and those who are fanatics.
I wonder if God ever tires of those prayers, if he ever gets tired of the rivalries that He is included in by prayer? As if God really had a favorite football team, as if he really has a favorite team or a favorite player, or even a favorite sport?
I think of Joshua’s words above – he wanted to be sure this soldier was on his side…… and that was even before he knew the Soldier was Christ Jesus.
Whose side are you on?
Neither.
Which football team is favored by God? Neither.
With that out of the way – let’s get on to what is important. I am here.. you are here, therefore this is Holy Ground.
The purpose of God isn’t to have this team or that team win, or even this nation or that nation be the dominant power. People will get mad at me, but it is not whether the Ukraine or Russia prevails, whether ISIS is in power in Iraq, or some other group. Or who is guiltier in the war between Hamas and Israel.
Even if those who oppose God are “victorious”, or seem to be, that doesn’t mean God is not working in their lives. That is why God raised up Nineveh, why Jeremiah 29:7 talks about praying for oppressors, why Jesus commands us to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us.
Do we understand people enough to see their need for God in their lives? Do we see that we, as His people, as to be beacons, to bring light into their darkness?
Those steps are needed, but first we desperately need to know that we are in the presence of God. That it is not our agenda, or even our nation’s agenda that is important. There is only one agenda, there is only one will that matters. God’s.
It is His – that none should perish – but that all wold come to repentance, as St Peter instructs. Raider fans, Bills fans, Broncos Fans, even Patriots fans. Russians, Ukrainians, Iraqi’s of every ethnicity and culture, Palestinians, those in Hamas, even the Israeli’s.
That they would come to know they live in God’s presence, that the Holy Spirit would replace their hearts of stone with hearts of flesh, that they would have the breath of God, the Holy Spirit, give them life.
That is why Joshua would meet the pre-incarnate Christ, it is why Israel was loved, and protected, SO that we could heed the words of King David in the second Psalm,
Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him. Psalm 2:11-12 (NKJV)
Lord have mercy on us!
Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 3155-3157). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
God, and the Problem of Evil
Discussion and Devotional Thought of the Day:
6 When reports come in of wars and rumored wars, keep your head and don’t panic. This is routine history; this is no sign of the end. 7 Nation will fight nation and ruler fight ruler, over and over. Famines and earthquakes will occur in various places. Matthew 24:6-7 (MSG)
54 As the members of the Council listened to Stephen, they became furious and ground their teeth at him in anger. 55 But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw God’s glory and Jesus standing at the right side of God. 56 “Look!” he said. “I see heaven opened and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!” 57 With a loud cry the Council members covered their ears with their hands. Then they all rushed at him at once, 58 threw him out of the city, and stoned him. The witnesses left their cloaks in the care of a young man named Saul. 59 They kept on stoning Stephen as he called out to the Lord, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” 60 He knelt down and cried out in a loud voice, “Lord! Do not remember this sin against them!” He said this and died. Acts 7:54-60 (TEV)
Yesterday was a hard day for so many around the world, and many closer to me.
There were the stories that made the news, the Malaysian plane shot down, the conflict in Israel, the conflicts in Sudan and Nigeria.
There are the other stories as well, that will not make the news, My friend whose memory is failing him. The family of a lady I visited in the hospital, whose heart is beating…yet whose body is shutting down, leaving her family without the one they count on for strength. There are parents whose children are facing procedures to could reveal the possibility of a lifetime of pain,
And yes, there are the martyrs like St. Stephen, and St Paul. Men whose faith is testified to, even by their enemies. Men of peace, who would give people the hope found in trusting Christ.
Which brings about a question, how do we survive the evil we encounter in the world? How do we cope with news that shatters hearts, that could shatter our faith? That could make us cuss and scream and yell at God. How can we imitate the faith of those who the Letter to the Hebrews describes,
33 By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. 35 Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. 36 Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. 37 Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. 38 They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. Hebrews 11:33-38 (NLT)
As a pastor, as someone who has served as a chaplain in jails, hospitals and with a hospice and homecare medical group, I’ve seen people do survive in such hard times, and not only endure, but be a blessing to those around them. Do they have some secret? No, save that they know Christ They know Him so well, they realize His promises.
They walk with Him,
We can even see them go through the stages of grief
Abraham bargained with God, even as he realized the evil of Sodom and Gommorah
Jeremiah was angry with God, even accused God of deceiving him, because of the ministry to His people.
Jonah deal with depression over God’s work to save people he didn’t like or trust
Job’s friends were awesome at encouraging denial of the truth,
just because we trust in God doesn’t mean we avoid evil – that we avoid the horrible days… but it means we move with Him through them. Guarded by Him, comforted by them, knowing His promises will be fulfilled.
For as they moved through the valleys of the shadows of darkness (evil) they learned not to fear, for God was there… and He will be with us.
That is how we deal with God and the problem of evil.. with the problem that things are wrong, messed up, screwed up, painful.
We look to Jesus, the author and One who perfects our trust in God.
Will We Treat God Then, the Way We Do Now?
Devotional Thought of the Day:
17 Then Christ will make his home in your hearts as you trust in him. Your roots will grow down into God’s love and keep you strong. 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. Ephesians 3:17-19 (NLT)
16 Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the LORD is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!” 17 But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!” Genesis 28:16-17 (NLT)
2 Just as the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the LORD surrounds his people, both now and forever. Psalm 125:2 (NLT)
470 Our Lord sent out his disciples to preach, and when they came back he gathered them together and invited them to go with him to a desert place where they could rest… What marvellous things Jesus would ask them and tell them! Well, the Gospel is always relevant to the present day. (1)
Last night, as we studied the passage we are preaching on this week I began thinking of the question that is the title of this post. I meet with several guys and we work together on the Bible passage for this week, which was talking about the struggles in this life are nothing compared to the glory that is awaiting us. It also talks about the presence of the Holy Spirit being the foretaste of that glory. This morning, my devotional readings included all three passages above, further fueling the thoughts and the need to meditate on this – and share it here.
We have the Spirit of God dwelling in us, therefore the places we stand and sit, as plain and simple as they are, are holy ground. But do we realize it? Do we realize that God surrounds us, His people – now and forever, Do we realize that as God makes His home in us, as we come to know the measure of His love, may we begin to really live?
Will we rest in Christ, and find the peace our souls depend upon, even as our bodies depend on food? Will we struggle with the concept of an incarnate God in our lives? Will we learn to depend upon His presence the way we depend on oxygen in the air we breathe?
A way to ask that is the title – do we expect to treat God in heaven the way we do now?
Will we forget about His presence, will we do what we want, will we go days without thinking of Him, talking to Him, hearing His voice as we meditate on His word? Will we keep Him at a distance, fighting with others for the furthest row from His presence? Or will will be in awe of the glory He shares with us? Will we run to Him, will we rejoice as He welcomed us, His children, into His presence?
Will our relationship change, and if so, why isn’t it changing already?
Look again at the above readings, what will change about the relationship, except perhaps that what we know, will also be what we see?
I pray that we would enjoy the presence of the Holy Spirit and the Love of God, that we are in awe at the thought of eternity with Him!
Godspeed!
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 2066-2069). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
He Thinks about, and Cares for US!!
He Thinks About, and Cares for Us!
Psalm 8
† In Jesus Name †
May you receive the grace, the mercy and peace of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ, that you resonate with the cry for His majestic name, His incredible glory, to fill the earth!
What to Preach about this Week?
When I looked at the readings this week, and realized that on hallmark calendars it was Father’s Day, and on the Church Calendar it is Trinity Sunday, I faced a dilemma.
Which incredible thing do I preach on?
Do it preach on Trinity Sunday, and what the Athanasians’ Creed means? Do I preach on how those of us who are fathers can try to be like our Father in heaven? Or how our children should respect us like we are supposed to respect our Father in Heaven? Look at the readings – we have the incredible passage about the great commission! Go into all the world my friends and let’s get to work making disciples! Or about baptism, or doubt, or faith? I could have even preached on the longer optional reading today, which was all of Creation in chapter 1 and some of chapter 2 of Genesis.
Lot’s of great choices! Which one do we need to hear the most?
Not one of those…
We need to hear the words of the Psalm… we need to grasp the incredible praises that are communicated in those words, and then, join in the praises!
Though we rarely give thought to the psalms, besides to pray through them, I think this day… everything else, why we want to explain the Trinity, the Mission of the Church, the role of fathers, everything, begins to make sense….. so let’s get to it!
- What is Man?
How many of you saw the moon Friday night, or last night? How many have looked up into the sky and seen the brilliance of the millions of stars in the Milky Way galaxy? Or simply lain in the grass and looked at the clouds passing by on a beautiful day, and realized that it is God who put these things in place…it is He who ordained all of creation…..
How glorious, how inspirational, how even creating something like a star, or the universe through which it’s light and energy travel.. How it is all kept in balance, how amazing…
Compare that to us.
Who are we, compared to the distances of space, the energy that could reflect off a moon and shine so gloriously in the night sky?
The psalmist asks that very same question:
4 what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them?
Who are we?
We might answer we are dads, or moms, we might answer by what we do for a living, I am a pastor, Tom is retired, Chris is a professor and a musician…
We might answer more honestly from our perspective, we are people who know sorrow and grief, are anxious, sometimes dwell in guilt and shame, we are broken, sinful. We struggle to understand things of God, like how the God is three and one, or how Jesus is 100% God and 100% man… or how a creed written 1400-1700 years ago explains it.
But that is from our perspective, from our view, and the Psalmist is asking God what He thinks about us……. and why He would care for us….
That is why the Psalmist praises God, because God does think about us, and He does care for us…..
Unbelievable, Incredible!
Not just think as in – oh yeah, there they are, the word has a depth of perception, of looking into deeply and understanding.
God – the one who thought for a moment and the moon and stars were made….
Thinks deeply and cares about us. About you, about me, about us together as Concordia…
And He cares.. more deeply than we can imagine..
Yhwh and Adonai
I want you to go back, and look at verse one for a moment.
1 O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth!
Do you notice that the first LORD there is all in capitals, and the second is normal? That is because in Hebrew, there are different words. The first, the one all in capitals, isn’t the word LORD, but the actual name of God. Yhwh or Jehovah depending on pronunciation. The Name that is to fill the earth, the Name above all names. The Name God has given us to call upon Him, that we would know He saves us!
The second is His title – Lord, Master, King, the one who reigns over us. But that to is not always what we think. The word comes from the idea of a foundation, of the one who provides support and sets us up firmly to stand.
The description of it in Hebrew reminded me of something here, the base for the processional cross. Hmmm…. Vicar, come up here for a moment please.
We are like the processional cross… without a base – we look nice – and maybe able to stand for a moment. But without the base, we will fall eventually and maybe even crack someone on the head…
But with the base…the foundation, the place where we fit, we stand….
And that is the nature of God’s reign, of His Lordship. It focuses on His commitment to us, the promises He makes and fulfills in Christ’s death, burial and resurrection.
We see it in His sharing His creation with us, giving us responsibility for it. A responsibility to care for it, to care for each other, even as He cares for us.
It makes sense for God to do this to Jesus, to place all this authority and responsibility in His hands. But does it make sense to put it in our hands?
It does, when we realize that God never leaves us, that God is always present here, in our lives, even as Christ’s Body and Blood are present in the Lord’s Supper.
And in Christ, joined to His death and resurrection in baptism, we find ourselves alive in Him, His co-heirs, God’s children. I love the Apostle Paul’s way of phrasing this:
12 For when you were baptized, you were buried with Christ, and in baptism you were also raised with Christ through your faith in the active power of God, who raised him from death. 13 You were at one time spiritually dead because of your sins and because you were Gentiles without the Law. But God has now brought you to life with Christ. God forgave us all our sins; 14 he canceled the unfavorable record of our debts with its binding rules and did away with it completely by nailing it to the cross. 15 And on that cross Christ freed himself from the power of the spiritual rulers and authorities; he made a public spectacle of them by leading them as captives in his victory procession. Colossians 2:12-15 (TEV)
Does God think about you? Does God care?
Look at what He has done for us in Christ……
And know He knows you, He cares for you…
The Majestic, Omnipotent, Omniscient, Triune God… thinks about you, cares about you… loves you….
And brings you into His glory and peace, a place beyond all description, where we are guarded and protected by Christ….
So let us worship Him! AMEN?
Who Is My Brother? Who is my Neighbor? Who is my fellow-citizen?
Devotional thought of the day:
9 The LORD asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” He answered, “I don’t know. Am I supposed to take care of my brother?” Genesis 4:9 (TEV)
17 “Do not bear a grudge against others, but settle your differences with them, so that you will not commit a sin because of them. 18 Do not take revenge on others or continue to hate them, but love your neighbors as you love yourself. I am the LORD. Leviticus 19:17-18 (TEV)
317 The Apostle also wrote that “there is no more Gentile and Jew, no more circumcised and uncircumcised; no one is barbarian or Scythian, no one is a slave or a free man; there is nothing but Christ in any of us.” Those words are as valid today as they were then. Before the Lord there is no difference of nation, race, class, state… Each one of us has been born in Christ to be a new creature, a son of God. We are all brothers, and we have to behave fraternally towards one another! (Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1501-1505). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.)
We are a society that lives on the defensive. We see it nationally, where we spend billions on trying to protect our assets, and when our leaders try to help out others in need, they are blasted. We see it in how we want justice, as long as its impact is NIMBY (not in my back yard) as long as it doesn’t affect my neighborhood. We are wiling to help extended family, as long as it doesn’t cost our immediate family, or even our personal needs, wants, desires. We honor the sacrifice of the past, as long as it doesn’t mean we have ot sacrifice today. Martyrs of 500 years ago are honored, but we don’t want to face the fact that there are martyrs every day. Because that might mean we have to suffer.
It is the nature of our world, and if in no other way, we struggle to be in that world, but not of it, in regards to this.
We struggle to be one in Christ.
We struggle to forgive hurts, to reconcile, to ever desire those things. We want instead to justify our actions, our words, our thoughts, We want to be know as the ones who are right,the ones who do things the way they should be done, and those members of our family, or those nor from our community, or from our country, are always wrong.
We need to go back to the basics, to our baptism, to the moment the Holy Spirit cuts open our hearts and creates in us faith, when He gives us a new mind, when we become new creatures. We need to keep that moment before us, to remind us of who we are. Not just a Parker, nor just someone who lives in Cerritos, or the USA, but one who has found Jesus completely trustworthy, who realizes the love and mercy given to me, who recognizes the healing done in heart and soul.
It is then I can ask the questions of who is my brother, or neighbor, or fellow citizen on this journey through life. The answer?
Who did Christ die for?
The only way to love them, is in Christ. For then we can deal with the hurt, the pains the betrayals, knowing God has already dealt with those injuries at the cross. Even as He dealt with ours.
That’s what faith is… trusting in God’s presence, His love, His mercy, for us all…..
The Key to Faith, Peace and Joy….on a Tuesday which is actually a double Monday!
Devotional Thought of the Day:
1 LORD, I have given up my pride and turned away from my arrogance. I am not concerned with great matters or with subjects too difficult for me. 2 Instead, I am content and at peace. As a child lies quietly in its mother’s arms, so my heart is quiet within me. 3 Israel, trust in the LORD now and forever! Psalm 131:1-3 (TEV)
268 If you are convinced of your “poor quality”—if you know yourself—you will react to events supernaturally. Joy and peace will take a firmer root in your soul, in the face of humiliations, being despised, calumnies… In these cases, after saying fiat—Lord, whatever you want—you should think: “Is that all he said? He obviously does not know me, otherwise he wouldn’t have left it at that.” Being convinced that you deserve worse treatment, you will feel grateful to that person, and rejoice at what might have made somebody else suffer. (1)I
it is Tuesday morning, but not a normal Tuesday. It is more like a triple espresso version of Monday.
I could go into why, but each of us has our challenges, our crosses, our burdens to bear, The secret is to bear them with great joy, because of the peace that we have, that surpasses all understanding, a peace that comes to all who trust in God.
But that trust isn’t easy, having faith in God is something itself that is miraculous, that is supernatural because it simply isn’t natural to us.
There is a point in life where the world so overwhelms and oppresses us, that we want to emotionally crawl into a corner and go into a fetal position. To find a place where we can find security, where we can find peace, where we can find healing for our souls.
As I read this passage from Psalms this morning, as I looked at St Josemaria’s words in Furrow, something came to mind. When we are so spiritually exhausted, when we are so tired, so beyond our abilities, focusing on being humbled isn’t an issue. We simply are, and when we call out to God in such despair, we somehow, miraculously hear His voice, we recognize His presence. We find that we are embraced by Him, that we have found the rest and healing our souls so long desire.
All of a sudden, the supernatural becomes the natural, the work of God becomes our norm, and we walk through life, frazzled and joyous, oppressed and yet peace-filled, harried but trusting in a God who has proved His love for us at a wretched torturous cross, and proved to us that we dwell in Him. It is hard to explain, but it comes down to the simple humility that is described in the first commandment,
5 “The LORD said, 6 ‘I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from Egypt, where you were slaves. 7 ” ‘Worship no god but me. Deuteronomy 5:5b-7 (TEV)
It is that simple, humility is recognizing that we aren’t gods, that we aren’t in charge, but that He is. He is our God, the One who has promised us peace, mercy, joy, because of the love He has for us. Living simply in that, we find something beyond, something supernatural, something that should become more and more natural. That is why reading and studying (they are different disciplines) God’s word is crucial to our lives, it is why the sacraments, Baptism, Confession and Absolution, and the Eucharist (the Lord’s Supper) are blessings that should be received frequently. These means of grace bring us back to that level of humility, that place where we are curled up in God’s arms… that place where we simply know His presence, and His love… and that, that is enough for incredible peace, mind-blowing joy, and a strengthening of our faith as we walk humbly with Him.
Amen.
(1) Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). Furrow (Kindle Locations 1320-1326). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
