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Church- our Home… where we are neveraway from Home
DEvotional thought of the Day…or was it yesterday…?
A small sanctuary, really a room that doubles as a classroom, a meeting room, a reception area, a thousand and one other things.
Not the largest group I have preached too, in fact, perhaps one of the smallest, fourteen people, with two guests, of which I was one.
Two musicians, struggling to learn to play together – very different in styling – yet the voices soared in praise of God. It was…… how do I find the words.
the word? Home.
Thousands of miles away – miles I will travel tomorrow…to once again hold my wife, to hug my son.
Yet this odd feeling of being home… in a land I can’t remember coming to…. relationships seemingly forged in 3 days?
A few hours later, I sit in a hotel room – trying to stay awake to greet my family as they wake up…. thinking about the service 5 hours ago… still somewhat in awe…
That is what being part of God’s family is like – being able to be home – to truly neverbe away from our family….for we find ourselves united in Christ Jesus. It could only be the Lord of all that could make such a time happen, only he could do that which is describable….yet undescribable.
Would we realize that every worship service is this…. incarnational, this relational, this incredible. They are… for He has promised to be there.. where He gathers, convicts, heals, blesses, reconciles, loves…grants peace.
TOo often, no matter the style, our worship can seem like work, the humdrum daily grind…. Regarding “work” a priest once wrote:
Jesus, our Lord and Model, growing up and living as one of us, reveals to us that human existence—your life—and its humdrum, ordinary business, have a meaning which is divine, which belongs to eternity. (1)
If God can take doing the dishes, or filing paperwork or baking bread and give it a divine meaning… how much more that time where He calls and gathers us together – to reveal again His love… to bless and pour out Himself….
And if moments like this… are so… transcendent… how much more will it be… when we see Home… our eternal Home?
(1)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 2525-2526). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Overcoming “Whenyoudon’twantto-itis”
Devotional/Discussion thought of the day:
I think I heard it 15 times yesterday…..
First from my five year old – who didn’t wnt to get out of bed….
Then as the day progressed, it seemed everyone was tired, and would rather have spent the morning, if not the day, just relaxing, napping, ignoring the world around them, and just having some “personal time.”
Me too!
I can look from the outside and see that the causes, trying to get back into the swing of things after our kids have been on vacation break, having finally begun to “let down” after the holidays, (rest? really? when?) I can also see the impact of our attitudes on our work – it becomes a little harder to be motivated, we work a little slower, we don’t do as complete a job. In truth, we would rather be resting, playing, just not… back in the swing of things…
Eventually we will get back to speed, eventually our attitudes should improve, but the longer we tolerate our rest…the more we lose out on, the less we see God working thourgh us, the more we become content with our half-heartedness. Is there a way to pass this phase quicker, to desire not to go back to bed- but to greet the day and move on?
I know o only one way – to anticipate who we will spend the day with, to realize that we are going to get to see God at work today, as He works on us, working in us, wortking through us. That we work on Holy Ground, not because of a burning bush, or an ark of the covenant, but because we work with God, He never leaves us on our own. He is there, bringing His mercy and peace and love. Knowing that drowns our lack of desire- and replaces it with anticipation. Realizing that we died in Christ to sin, leaves us rejocing that there is no condemnation for e are in Jesus, we can find ourselves with confidence drawn into His presence., we can rejoice knowing all things will work for good, and so we find our work changing, from being toil to being time with Him….
It’s the only way I can struggle with the wanting to go back to bed…. for I know God has some things in mind today….that will drive me into His presence, remind me that not only can I depend on Him – He desires me to…..
May we all cry for mercy, even as we look forward to walking in His presence, with anticipation. AMEN
No Excuses! Really! They aren’t needed..if..
12 Since God chose you to be the holy people he loves, you must clothe yourselves with tenderhearted mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Make allowance for each other’s faults, and forgive anyone who offends you. Remember, the Lord forgave you, so you must forgive others. 14 Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds us all together in perfect harmony. Colossians 3:12-14 (NLT)
When I speak to you of good example, I mean to tell you, too, that you have to understand and excuse, that you have to fill the world with peace and love.(2)
It is a phase we all go through, a defensive mechanism that we revert to in moments where we’ve been “caught” in the act. In a five year old, it can be a little cute and hilarious. In a 30 year old, or even a 50 or 70 year old – not so much. I am talking about making up and giving excuses. The ways in which we try to bend the perception of others, in regards to our actions (and their perceptions are often accurate) to get them to put the best construction, the best reasoning on our actions. We may say things without thinking, we may do something that was wrong, whether we know it or not at the time.
And a five year old can make up some of the silliest excuses you’ve ever heard! Again – kinda cute, a interesting phase.
But what if the best…way of dealing with excuses was not to be found in the one making them, but in the one to whom they are made?
If I read Paul’s words above, and they were practiced, especially the ones underlined, we see a relationship in which a person wouldn’t have to give you excuses – there would be no need! If we trusted each other, to forgive, to make allowance for our mistakes, why would we bother? If we could comprehend the love, the charity (see the last two blogs for charity/love) would we be so quick to find excuses? If we put the best construction, saw the best in what each other did – as Luther taught, would we need to create incredible stories – and get defensive? If we sought to understand and excuse, to fill the world with love and peace… would others need to blame others?
As I think about the community of faith, and the sanctuary it should be, about how we should be able to strengthen each other, build up each other, help each other overcome temptation, this is one of the greatest ways. To mutually work to create an environment where mercy and love are demonstrated, are encouraged, where peace reigns, because we learn not to be defensive, because we do not have to be! What a wondrous environment we could create! We would be the church God intended, a church were people ran for absolution, for forgiveness and would find assurance of it. Accountability wouldn’t be a law driven concept, but one that we rejoiced in, knowing those asking us questions were actually interested in helping us thrive.
It starts simply – not with trying to find excuses for our actions, but excusing and forgiving the actions of others….knowing that is exactly what Christ did!
Even simple – this won’t be easy…. so let us cry for God’s mercy!
And know and be assured – and assure each other… He has listened and is merciful!
(1) Luther’s Small Catechism: Developed and Explained.
(2)Escriva, Josemaria (2011-01-31). The Forge (Kindle Locations 2103-2104). Scepter Publishers. Kindle Edition.
Bearing Christ for the World
Bearing Christ for the World
Luke 1:30-46
† In Jesus Name †
As we contemplate the praises that a young pregnant girl offers, because she trusts in God’s promises, not just for her, but for the people of God, can we as well be blessed because we trust in Him, as we bring Christ into the world as well.
How much confirmation means
The bottom line – you are blessed because you trust God at His word..
But the things she trusts in God for, we should as well
Some think she was sent to her cousin in disgrace, a young teenage girl – pregnant prior to her marriage. The timing is off for that – for she left a few short days after Gabriel brought her the message of God’s intentions for her- which makes Elizabeth’s words all the more… incredible.
I would think she hadn’t told anyone but in a hurry takes the opportunity and leaves town – but caring for her aunt gave her a chance to get away, to contemplate the incredible message, to try and figure out what to tell her fiancé, her family, her friends.
Remember – back then – such a disgrace was often punished by throwing her out of the house – and throwing stones at her.
She gets to her cousins house, probably deep in thought, a bit anxious, and though not doubting God, the implications of being chosen by Him for a purpose still dominating her thoughts, her emotions. And in the midst of this – without any prompting, her cousin Elizabeth proclaims,
[Mary] “God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed.
Put together with the words of Gabriel – these form the beginning of the prayer anyone who grew up catholic knows quite well, Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee, Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thine womb – Jesus!
These words of Elizabeth, so powerful, so confirming, fueled by the power and joy of the Holy Spirit, confirm that which was already known… but oh what peace it is, to have confirmed that which God has already made clear is His will in one’s life. No longer can it simply be discounted as a dream of a young girl – but a reality.
But let’s not overlook the rest of Elizabeth’s words, indeed we cannot – for they form the foundation – not only for the reason Mary is called blest, but for the sermon as well!
44 When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. 45 You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said.”
You are blessed because you believe the Lord would do what He said…
That my friends, is not only Mary’s blessing – but yours as well.
Let’s see why
He hasn’t forgotten me!
Mary responds to Elizabeth’s words, with words of her own, words of praise, words that adoringly reveal the glory of God she is witnessing. These are not the kind of words you would expect from a teenage girl – unless that teenage girl was filled with the Spirit of God. Hear again the first section.
“Oh, how my soul praises the Lord.
47 How my spirit rejoices in God my Savior!
48 For he took notice of his lowly servant girl,
and from now on all generations will call me blessed.
Have you ever felt that God was so busy, He forgot about you for the moment? That your prayers went to voicemail? Have you ever felt that you weren’t important to God? Growing up, I was often the odd man out, and while I didn’t mind persay, I you sometimes wondered if God knew who I was, any more than those whose lives flashed past mine. I get what Mary is saying here.
The word that “took notice” is translated from is an incredibly powerful word. It’s look and deep perception and discernment combined. This kind of look pierces all of our outside illusions and comes right to the core of our being. God the father took notice of Mary, even as He takes notice of us – each one of us, and places within us His love, His peace. And as she realizes this depth of God’s concern for her, as she realizes how He will work in her life – the joy and worship just flows from her soul….it will know no limitations in this moment, and yes – we do count her blessed – for she trusted in His love.
Bringing this home, there is not one of us, that isn’t so blessed. There is not one of us, that goes without God “taking notice of us”. To realize that He does love us, that He is interested in us, that He is immanent, transcendent, incarnate in our lives as well as Mary’s – that is an intimacy with God that goes beyond anything we can imagine.
The question is – do we realize it – do we hear the voices that confirm it, just as Mary heard Elizabeth’s cry of joy?
He has done something wonderful for me!
Mary moves on from the realization that God takes notice of us, as her praises slightly transistion,
49 For the Mighty One is holy, and he has done great things for me!
Pastor’s pet peeve moment – why doesn’t that sentence end with a exclamation point? What were the translators thinking – imagine how they would have felt – if on Christmas day, when their children and spouse opened their presents, if the reaction was, o what a great present.. no, they want to hear their children exult with glee – excitement – and yeah – hugs and thanks.
Yet they used a period her. Yup – God is mighty and holy and He did some great, well good sorta, well nice things for me – PERIOD.
Can’t you see the women dancing in each other’s arms, the mother of the prophet, and the mother of Jesus, the mother of God. Can’t you hear their laughter – their joy, their excitement? Or do you think this scene occurs with the high dignity of English tea time?
Sure – Mary is not thinking about the cross yet, or the resurrection – while she knows her Son will be the promised one, that the baby- just barely forming in her womb – is the Lord who will change everything – who will turn the world upside down.
Would we, who have been joined to Christ incarnate, whose bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit – as much the temple of God as the young lady whose body bore the son of God, rejoice as well as we bear God for the world!
While I would admit there is a difference – that being physical – in both Mary and our lives, the presence of God is indeed what makes us blessed, it is why we rejoice! It is something beyond wonder, beyond amazement, that God would look upon us and choose us, that He would bless us, that He would abide with us.
He does something for those like me!
I find it extraordinary as well – that Mary’s magnificat doesn’t end there – with God doing wonderful, great things for her. Her song takes a final transition, as she realizes this wonderful thing is not just about her…but a blessing for the entire world. Let me call your attention to verses, 50, 53, 54, and 55
50 He shows mercy from generation to generation to all who fear him.
53 He has filled the hungry with good things and sent the rich away with empty hands.
54 He has helped his servant Israel and remembered to be merciful.
55 For he made this promise to our ancestors, to Abraham and his children forever.”
It is amazing to me, that Mary takes this incredible news in her life – and realizes that it isn’t just about her – that all those who desperately need to know God’s mercy, that its about those who are hungry for something more in life, that He fills, that those in need of help He has helped – as He pours out His loving mercy to them, even as He promised…
That it is finally about the descendant of Abraham – the one long promised coming, the Lord who would bless every nation, who would create from a bunch of sinners like us, a people for God – a people for God to Love.
The early church fathers, the pastors and bishops of the first few centuries – often talked of Mary as a image, a symbol of the church. That the qualities that make her unique in some ways, are the very qualities one finds in the bride of Christ, the church, Often this is talked about, as she answers Gabriel’s message with the “let it be done according to Thy Word.”
As well, I think the incredible quality of hers, to see the effect of God’s presence in her life, as it affects others, is also a major characteristic of the church. For that is our call as believers – as those who bear God’s name, who are the temple of the Holy Spirit – a place people can find forgiveness, and healing and peace, even as Jesus brings those things into our life.
For we as well bear Christ, we bring Him into the world, and in doing so, share with others the intimacy, the love, and peace He has given us, for we are blessed for we believe God would do, did do, what He said He would, in Christ. AMEN?
Come and See – His Day
Come and See: The Day!
Jer. 33:14-16
† In Jesus Name †
May the grace of God, the love and mercy and peace that is yours in Christ Jesus, be that which is most evident in your life, until the day
He returns in Glory for us! AMEN!
Come and See!
Yesterday afternoon, a man named Michael was standing right here, with his dad standing next to him. He was as anxious as any man I have ever stood beside as they prepared to enter marriage.
As the doors back there opened, as he looked upon his fiancé, dressed in white, there was the loudest gasp I have ever heard from a man, as he commented, in awe of how beautiful she was, at how her beauty exceeded every expectation he had, every dream of how this moment would be.
During the wedding, it was kind of cute – as he looked upon her with such adoration that she often looked away – almost embarrassed to see the look in his eyes! A couple of times during the vows I even had to remind her to look at him!
That kind of mindset, that nervous anticipation of the bride and groom, the moment before the doors open and they look at each other, that ½ second when time slows to a crawl prior to the doors opening – that is the mindset of advent.
We know He is coming, we know what has been promised. We have desired the day to finally come, the moment, the time that is drawing closer. Maybe we’ve even dreamed about it, as we hear the descriptions of what it will be like.
There is a sense of awe, and a sense of anxiety, a feeling of doubt as we wonder “how will I live up to His expectations?”
As we walk through this advent together, as we look to the day when Christ comes again, fulfilling the promises that were first fulfilled when He came 2000 years ago, it is my hope that we realize that our situation is not unlike the situation Mike’s lady found herself in, as we realize the love of God and the way that Christ sees us, the church, His bride.
For that is what that day is all about!
The day when we have come to see, as we come to adore our Lord.
What do we expect of the Messiah?
In my more self-righteous moments, I wonder how the people of Israel could overlook all of the prophecies about the Messiah. How could they have been so far off in what they expected Jesus to be like, how they expected Him to come. How could the experts have been so…wrong?
Those errors had incredibly serious implications, for example – if Herod’s advisors had known that Jesus didn’t come to establish some mere political kingdom, that he wasn’t going to overthrow Caesar and Herod, would he have bothered to slaughter all the innocent male children? Would the Pharisees have reacted to Jesus if they had spent more time in Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations and Ezekiel, rather than just seeing the promises of a new Moses, a new David?
What about our expectations today, as we look at the church around the world – does it still expect the kingdom of heaven to be established on the earth? I have mocked the television-evangelist types, when they promise wealth and health and happiness, yet there are times, I have to admit, when my expectations are just as self-centered. And that leads to trouble, for false expectations can create a let down of massive proportions. When our expectations are shattered, no matter their basis, how do we react? Are we like the young couple that sees their life in the harsh reality that occurs when the bills are piling up, the in-laws are becoming more critical, and the pressures of work and household are taking their toll? Do we spiritually “fall out of love” with God at times?
How do we balance off promises like “all things work for good for those who love God,” with the things we don’t understand, like economy, like disease, like death? How do we hear passages like Jeremiah, that promise a day coming… when we’ve been waiting so long, when we’ve heard that Jeremiah’s promise was about the coming of the Messiah? – the first coming? When those promises, supposedly fulfilled by the baby in the manger, now seem to be as naïvely received as the promises of how perfect a young couple thinks their marriage will be?
Has God let us down? Will the second coming also be…more of the same?
What is promised?
As we enter Advent, as we take a moment and light an extra candle, and then two and then three, and then four, and then, in the right moment, at the precise time, this fifth candle is lit, the one that really matters, the one that makes hope and peace and joy and faith possible, we need to learn that lesson – these candles only find their meaning in that candle.
So to do the promises of God, found in the Old Testament only make sense when we, the church, the bride of Christ, are looking at our groom, at our Lord.
Hear Jeremiah’s words again,
14 “The day will come, says the Lord, when I will do for Israel and Judah all the good things I have promised them.
In Sunday School, we are going to talk about who Israel and Judah are, and who they aren’t. For us, in this moment, I am going to tell you – what matters is that you are, one way or the other, included in that group.
God will do what He has promised, in His time, and it will be good.
What will done? What will God do?
He will raise up a righteous servant. One of David’s line. He will do what is just and what is right – throughout the land – that is what Jeremiah tells us.
Isn’t that why Christ came? To set everything right, to fix it all? TO make life perfect?
Was not the Messiah to bring healing and light to the nations? To bring glory to Israel?
Even as I look around at the broken world in which we live, I can in truth say, yes, I believe Christ came to do that, and has done it, and is doing it still.
Except that we don’t see the work all that clearly, in fact, only with a little more clarity than those awaiting the Messiah the first time. For in Jeremiah’s promise, we see that the righteousness – the perfection comes, not in us, but in Christ. It is His work that establishes what is just and right – it is His work.
At the cross, that work was done. At that time, we were saved, and indeed the people of God live in safety. We have been delivered my friends, from all that threatens us. Sin has no power over us, for God has given us the keys of the kingdom, the responsibility to nullify sin through the authority to forgive it, to dismiss it, to negate it.
Likewise its compatriots, Satan and death, though they seem to loom powerfully in this world, are but illusions and fraud. They cannot separate us from God, they cannot diminish His love for us. They cannot remove His guarantee that all will work for good, because He stands behind that.
That is what it means, for the city of God to be named, The Lord is our righteousness. Yhwh-tsidkenu. It is He that is perfect, righteous, holy.
And we, the church, are His bride. Joined to Him, one, even as a husband and wife become one…
He Has Come, He is Coming!
In many ways, life is like the wedding ceremony, with the life that will become true, only hinted at, even as we wait for the life that is to come, afterward.
We haven’t begun the life together yet… even though the joys of the moment are here. We still struggle to look our Lord in the eyes, to see His love there, to know that He sees us as His beautiful, clean, glorious bride.
Yet that too is part of advent, the reminder that life is yet to truly begin.
We are in the presence of the bridegroom, who has paid every price to bring us to this point. We see Him in His glory, and wonder whether we truly belong here.
There is the message of advent as well – we do, we’ve been called here, we’ve been called to live eternally as the bride of Christ, as the people of God.
Soon, the wedding will become the feast, and then the life…
May we live in this moment, looking to Jesus, the Lord who chose us to be His, who brings us into life and shares His life and His righteousness and holiness with us.
Come my friends. Come and see your Lord, the One who shares it all with you. Come and see your Lord, look into His eyes of love, do not look away.
I’d leave you with two promises, found in the writings of the Apostle Paul, to churches like us…
If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. 2 Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory.
Colossians 3:1-4 (NAB)
1:6 I am quite confident that the One who began a good work in you will go on completing it until the Day of Jesus Christ comes.
Philippians 1:6 (NJB)
Your Lord awaits… it is time to celebrate, for you have been saved, your life with Him is lived safely and peacefully, for in His righteousness, you are guarded, your heart and mind always in His care. AMEN.
Use our scars to build Your Church O Lord…
Devotional thought of the day:
Listening randomly to the music on my computer, the last couple of days a song has played, and stuck in my brain. The chorus includes these words,
“use our hands to build your church o Lord, use our hands to build Your church.”
A very good friend recorded the song, and like me, went to a Bible College where we were taught to lead and minister in a manner consistent with Christ’s model. We were called to serve, to sacrifice, not for our own glory, but simply to point people to Jesus. It was held out to us as the way to build God’s church, to do as ROmans 12:1-9 talks so beautifully concerning. Because of God’s incredible living kindness and mercy, present to Him your bodies, to be sacrificed spiritually – for this is the logical way to worship (parker’s paraphrase)
Last night, as Chris and I were side by side, facilitating the worship of our people, I was struggling. A dear friend in our congregation received news that she would have to undergo chemotherapy, not just a course of treatment, but a long haul, to keep at bay cancer. My childhood friend’s dad was in the hospital, possibly having a heart attack (his mom passed away recently) my dad had been taken to the ER. Another friend’s dad, extremely influential in helping me and so many other minister, responded positively despite what most would see as a major setback. As the evening progressed, I found out about others in crisis, and it began to become, well overwhelming.
It is hard to preach on Isaiah 40 when you are crushed. It is hard to preach on casting your cares on Christ, when you almost don’t have a chance for a breath as they come flooding in. Then again, you can’t really know how much God will strengthen you, how much His power is displayed in our weakness, until you really need to know it.
So how does Chris’ song, and all of the suffering work into on theme in this blog?
I was thinking about his song, and our lessons on servant ministry/leadership and about a phrase the influential pastor wrote. God can turn your scars into stars. When all of a sudden, the two morphed into one thought.
Use our scars to build YOUR church o Lord, use your scars to build Your church!
Use our scars to build YOUR church o Lord, use your scars to build Your church!
If we, in presenting our bodies to God to be living sacrifices, to serve and use our talents and abilities to accomplish His will ( 2 Pet 3:9) then He can as well use our anxieties, our illnesss, our setbacks, our crosses our scars.
It takes trust to lay those things down, far more trust than to volunteer to serve a dinner, or sing in the choir, or become a pastor or missionary, or even that incredible sacrifice – a children’s Sunday school teacher ( I am not joking with that btw- I think they are among the greatest of God’s servants) I hate my scars, I even hate more the scars and potential scars I see my people bearing. I would do anything to see them freed from such burdens, and it bothers me when I cannot.
But I see something else at work, for I am seeing God using those scars. I saw my friend, on the day she received such news, come to church and stay for the potluck, her strength an example of the very words from Isaiah. Her husband was one of the men who served that meal, working besides others and encouraging them. I see others, also dealing with issues and anxieties sharing in the same meal. I see a church of broken people, whom God has brought together and lifted up as His church….
And I realized, what I was praying for in my morphing a song and a thought and a phrase, it was already happening…. here.. in our midst. In a glorious-yet tragic-yet inspring-yet full of tears-yet beyond imagination way.
Lord – have mercy on us- bring healing to these lives… and help our unbelief…even as you give us strength, and cause us to rise up on wings as eagles..
AMEN
Adoration- is it part of your worship?
Devotional Discussion of the day:
In a few days, the strains of familiar music will fill your ears, if it hasn’t already. The sounds of Christmas (even though it is not advent.)
But as I plan out our special services, one chorus keeps resounding in my mind, echoing louder and louder, as it does as we sing it on Christmas Eve.
Venite Adoreum – Come! Adore Him! ( Or as we sing it, O Come let us Adore Him)
It brings a question to mind, how much of our music – whether traditional choir cantatas, or contemporary pieces spend time in adoration, in awe, in realizing that this isn’t just another holiday to be happy, but this in God. present, real, here. God coming in weakness yet fully in glory, God whom the angels in heaven cannot but praise, God whose reflection carried by angels causes incredible fear, (why else are their first words – Be not Afraid?)
Do we adore – with every fiber of our being – God in our midst? God incarnate? Do we pause to consider the enormity of this event, the blessedness? The beyond all imagination glory of a humble stable, a young lass, and her fiance, lookng down and knowing beyond all doubt..that this was God?
Maybe we don’t want to.. because if we do… we have to realize how much we need Him, desperately need Him.
Not just then…. not just on the cross…. but now.
Come my friends, let us adore Him!
An Incredible Prayer, Disguised as a Camp Song
Devotion of the Day
My first reaction was to wonder when he learned the song that was being sung with the enthusiasm that can only be generated within the heart of a five year old.
KUMMM BY YAAAAAA my Lord… KKKKKKKKKumn by YAAAAAAA
My immediate reaction was to think ill thoughts of whoever taught him that camp song! And I thought of all who mocked the song, at first agreeing with them in my mind. Especially as I heard my five year old – feeling much better after two days of being sick, sing it with all of his might. (and if you know him…. well – you can picture this.)
I eventually thought back to my youth, to when the song was actually popular and not mocked, and I remembered the translation of the song. Someone’s singing/crying/working/praying LORD BE WITH US. ( or literally Come by hear!)
As I thought of these words, it became apparent to me, this simple song, once written by a simple people who knew desperation, who knew anxiety, who knew pain, is truly a very deep hymn – one of great comfort and deep spiritual truth. For no matter the vocation, no matter the action, it is always appropriate to cling to the One who is here – to cry out to Him, asking Him to reveal Himself – for He is always here… always ready to respond always ready to care and bring mercy and peace.
Kumbaya –is simply another way of praying the Kyrie – another way of reaching out and realizing we were not alone..for He is with us.
May we cry out both, in sincerity and in recognition of our need, and may we know we have been heard….
Live Graciously, even in an Election Year!
Consider these passages – as you engage others, and post your positions on facebook…
5:43 “You’re familiar with the old written law, ‘Love your friend,’ and its unwritten companion, ‘Hate your enemy.’ 44 I’m challenging that. I’m telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone gives you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, 45 for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best—the sun to warm and the rain to nourish—to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. 46 If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. 47 If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal? Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that. 48 “In a word, what I’m saying is, Grow up. You’re kingdom subjects. Now live like it. Live out your God-created identity. Live generously and graciously toward others, the way God lives toward you.
Matthew 5:43-48 (MSG)
4:19 Let us love, then, because he first loved us. 20 Anyone who says ‘I love God’ and hates his brother, is a liar, since whoever does not love the brother whom he can see cannot love God whom he has not seen. 21 Indeed this is the commandment we have received from him, that whoever loves God, must also love his brother.
1 John 4:19-21 (NJB)
May that which we say, and post, reflect God’s glory to a world that more than enough evil and darkness.
