Mark 3:22-30 - And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He is possessed by Be-el'zebul, and by the prince of demons he casts out the demons." 23 And he called them to him, and said to them in parables, "How can Satan cast out Satan? 24 If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. 25 And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand. 26 And if Satan has risen up against himself and is divided, he cannot stand, but is coming to an end. 27 But no one can enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man; then indeed he may plunder his house. 28 "Truly, I say to you, all sins will be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; 29 but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin" -- 30 for they had said, "He has an unclean spirit."
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Do you ever feel harrassed by the devil? Jesus' numerous exorcisms brought freedom to many who were troubled and oppressed by the works of evil spirits. Jesus himself encountered personal opposition and battle with Satan when he was put to the test in the wilderness just before his public ministry. He overcame the evil one through his obedience to the will of his Father. Some of the Jewish leaders reacted vehemently to Jesus' healings and exorcisms and they opposed him with malicious slander. How could he get the power and authority to release individuals from Satan's power? They assumed that he had to be in league with Satan. They attributed his power to Satan rather than to God. Jesus answers their charge with two arguments. There were many exorcists in Palestine in Jesus' time. So Jesus retorted by saying that they also incriminate their own kin who cast out demons. If they condemn Jesus they also condemn themselves. In his second argument he asserts that no kingdom divided against itself cannot survive for long? We have witnessed enough civil wars in our own time to prove the destructive force at work here for the annihilation of whole peoples and their land. If Satan lends his power against his own forces then he is finished. How can a strong person be defeated except by someone who is stronger? Jesus asserted his authority to cast out demons as a clear demonstration of the reign of God. God's power is clearly at work in the exorcisms which Jesus performed and they give evidence that God's kingdom has come.
What is the point of Jesus' grim story about a strong man's house being occupied by an evil force? Our foe and the arch-enemy of God, who is Satan, is stronger than us. Unless we are clothed in God's strength, we cannot withstand Satan with our own human strength. What does Satan wish to take from us - our faith and confidence in God and our allegiance to follow God's law. Satan is a rebel and a liar. Satan can only have power or dominion over us if we listen to his lies and succumb to his will which is contrary to the will of God. Jesus makes it clear that there are no neutral parties in this world. We are either for Jesus or against him, for the kingdom of God or against it. There are two kingdoms in opposition to one another - the kingdom of God's light and truth and the kingdom of darkness and deception under the rule of Satan. If we disobey God's word, we open to door to the power of sin and Satan's influence in our lives. If we want to live in true freedom from the power of sin and Satan, then our "house" - our mind and heart and whatever we allow to control our appetites and desires - must be occupied and ruled by Jesus Christ where he is enthroned as Lord as Savior. Do you know the peace and security of a life submitted to God and his word?
What is the unforgivable sin which Jesus warns us to avoid? Jesus knows that his disciples will be tested and he assures them that the Holy Spirit will give them whatever grace and help they need in their time of adversity. He warns them, however, that it's possible to spurn the grace of God and to fall into apostasy (giving up the faith) out of cowardice or disbelief. Why is blasphemy against the Holy Spirit reprehensible? Blasphemy consists in uttering against God, inwardly or outwardly, words of hatred, reproach, or defiance. It's contrary to the respect due God and his holy name. Jesus speaks of blaspheming against the Holy Spirit as the unforgivable sin. Jesus spoke about this sin immediately after the scribes and Pharisees had attributed his miracles to the work of the devil instead of to God. A sin can only be unforgivable if repentance is impossible. If someone repeatedly closes their eyes to God, shuts their ears to his voice, and reject his word, they bring themselves to a point where they can no longer recognize God when he can be seen and heard. They become spiritually blind-sighted and speak of "evil as good and good as evil" (Isaiah 5:20).
To fear such a state of sin and spiritual blindness, however, signals that one is not dead to God and is conscious of the need for God's grace, mercy, and help. There are no limits to the mercy of God, but anyone who refuses to acknowledge and confess their sins and to ask God for forgiveness, spurns God's generous offer of mercy, pardon, grace, and healing. Through their own stubborn pride and wilfullness, they reject God, refuse his grace and help to turn away from sin, and reject the transforming power of the Holy Spirit to heal and restore them to wholeness. God always gives sufficient grace and help to all who humbly call upon him. Giving up on God and refusing to turn away from sin and disbelief results from pride and the loss of hope in God.
What is the basis of our hope and confidence in God? Through Jesus' death on the cross and his victory over the grave when he rose again on the third day, Satan has been defeated and death has been overcome. We now share in Christ's victory over sin and Satan and receive adoption as God's sons and daughters. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, the Lord enables us to live a new life of love and freedom from slavery to sin. The Lord Jesus is our refuge and strength because he makes his home with us (John 15:4) and gives us the power and help of the Holy Spirit. Do you take refuge in the Lord and allow him to be the Lord of your life?
"Lord Jesus, you are my hope and salvation. Be the ruler of my heart and the master of my home. May there be nothing in my life that is not under your lordship."
Supplementary Reading
Things I Cannot Understand - by Os Hillman
Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. ~ Job 42:3b
If there was any one man on earth who had reason to question God's love, it was Job. He lost his family, his health, and his wealth-all at the same time. His friends came to his side only to question his spirituality. God had already answered the question of his integrity. Job was described in the opening verses of the book as "blameless and upright" (see Job 1:1). His calamities were not born from sin. Job acknowledged God's right to do anything in his life until one day he could take it no longer. He questioned God's motives.
God answered Job, but not in the way he wanted to hear. God answered him with a series of questions that represents the most incredible discourse of correction by God to any human being. Three chapters later, Job realized that he had questioned the motives of the Author of the universe, the Author of love. He fell flat before his Creator and realized his total depravity. "Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know."
Have you ever questioned God's activity in your life? Have you questioned His love for you based on circumstances that came your way? The cross at Calvary answers the love question. He sent His own Son in replacement for your sin. If you were the only person on earth, He would have done the same. His ways cannot always be understood or reconciled in our finite minds. That must be left for a future time when all will be understood. For now, entrust your life to Him completely. Embrace Him in the hard times and the good.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Friday, January 02, 2009
January 25, 2009 - Sunday Gospel Mark 1:14-20
Mark 1:14-20 - Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel." 16 And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men." 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him.19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zeb'edee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20 And immediately he called them; and they left their father Zeb'edee in the boat with the hired servants, and followed him.
Meditation by Larry Broding
This week, Mark presented the call of the disciples, in the same way John presented the call last week. John saw evangelization as a process of personal witness, personal invitation, and discipleship from friend to friend. Mark, however, placed the call to discipleship in the public arena; it was made directly by Jesus. John emphasized the role of the disciple recruiting others. Mark emphasized the relationship of Jesus to the disciple.
Mark began with the arrest of the Baptist to introduce Jesus to public ministry. Jesus picked up the Baptist's theme. The Kingdom of God is immanent. Repent. Unlike the Baptist, Jesus did not proclaim the advent of the Messiah. He preached belief in the Good News. Soon, the preaching of the gospel would eclipse the expectation for God's chosen One. [1:14-15]
The Good News demanded a response. It was more than a moral turnabout. It meant a new life situation, a new relationship with God. For Mark, Jesus was the embodiment of the Good News. His preaching, his call, established this new relationship with God. Notice Jesus called four men and all four responded immediately (Mark's transition word used in 1:18 and 1:20). Leaving their livelihood and followed the preacher and presence of the Good News.
Much has been written about the social context for Jesus' ministry. Unlike John the Baptist whose ministry had a geographic location, Jesus took his ministry on the road. People came to see the Baptist, while Jesus came to the people. While John drew his congregation from Jerusalem and outlying areas, Jesus' ministry lay in the backwater countryside of Galilee. The Baptist got the attention of the leadership in Judaism, but Jesus did not encounter official criticism immediately.
These differences made the ministry of Jesus easier to ignore, but, ultimately, more dangerous to the leadership. Jesus was the leader of a group movement. In a culture with few social supports, people at the time of Jesus had to be self-sufficient. Hence, they would form a group for a common goal. Indeed, group identity and power became all important. Extended families would intermarry and form alliances for the common good. Governments (i.e., royal families) would contract with groups (i.e., local families and village cooperatives) to gather produce and bring it to market; in turn, the government would receive a large percentage of the profits. (Scholars speculate Peter, Andrew, James, and John belonged to government-sanctioned groups that fished the lake; tax records from first-century Galilee strongly infer such groups existed.) Even charismatic leaders would gather people together for a common end, economic, political, or religious. Like the rest of society, Jesus formed a group whose members moved from place to place (like an army). Peter, Andrew, James, and John were among the first to partake in the mobile ministry of Jesus.
However, the message of Jesus proved to be as threatening as his means. In a static culture that did not change from generation to generation, Jesus preached something new. God would come and change everything. For their own reasons, the first four disciples left the safety of their group (family and friends) for the challenge of a new life based on this new message. They responded to the call of Jesus, for they wanted to live with Jesus. The call of Jesus was more important than any security, any relationship, any possession they had.
Why a Sacrament of Reconciliation after Baptism?
Why is there a Sacrament of Reconciliation after Baptism? To answer that question, we need to ask: why do we sin after baptism? The Catechism states:
"...the new life received in Christian Initiation (i.e., Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist) has not abolished the frailty and weakness of human nature, nor the inclination to sin that tradition calls concupiscence . . . "
The message ("Repent and believe the Good News") and call of Jesus ("Come and see") are actually one. To have a personal relationship with God's Son requires a constant spirit of repentance and faith in the gospel. While the key moment of repentance and personal faith in Jesus is Baptism, our response many times falls short. Many times, we need to renew our moral conversion and our faith choice. We need to experience the loving touch of God's mercy. The Sacrament of Reconciliation provides us such a time and such an experience.
How has your life changed when you chose to believe in Christ? How have you renewed that choice?
"Follow me." The invitation Jesus gave his early followers is the same he makes to us now. He invites us to change and believe. We need to realize he not only give us the challenge, he gives us the means to abandon our former life of sin and to trust in God. He gifts us with the Spirit. So, the call of Jesus is not only a direction; it is a helping hand. Human frailty may trip us from time to time, but the Lord will not disappoint. When we follow the Lord, he leads us and sustains us.
Try to look at your life this past week through God's eyes. Write down your spiritual successes and failures. How has God helped you with your successes? How have you disappointed God with your failures? Pray God renews your commitment to his Son this coming week.
Supplementary Reading
The Strength of Brokenness - by Os Hillman
The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength. ~ 1 Samuel 2:4
There is an oxymoron throughout the Bible. It says that brokenness is strength. How can this be? How can brokenness be strength? In order to use men and women to their fullest extent, the Lord has to break His servants so that they might have a new kind of strength that is not human in origin. It is strength in spirit that is born only through brokenness.
Paul was broken on the Damascus road. Peter was broken after Jesus was taken prisoner. Jacob was broken at Peniel. David was broken after his sin with Bathsheba. The list could go on of those the Lord had to break in different ways before they could be used in the Kingdom.
When we are broken, we see the frailty of human strength and come to grips with the reality that we can do nothing in our own strength. Then, new strength emerges that God uses mightily. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Do not fear brokenness, for it may be the missing ingredient to a life that emerges with a new kind of strength and experience not known before. Pray for a broken and contrite heart that God can bless.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Larry Broding
This week, Mark presented the call of the disciples, in the same way John presented the call last week. John saw evangelization as a process of personal witness, personal invitation, and discipleship from friend to friend. Mark, however, placed the call to discipleship in the public arena; it was made directly by Jesus. John emphasized the role of the disciple recruiting others. Mark emphasized the relationship of Jesus to the disciple.
Mark began with the arrest of the Baptist to introduce Jesus to public ministry. Jesus picked up the Baptist's theme. The Kingdom of God is immanent. Repent. Unlike the Baptist, Jesus did not proclaim the advent of the Messiah. He preached belief in the Good News. Soon, the preaching of the gospel would eclipse the expectation for God's chosen One. [1:14-15]
The Good News demanded a response. It was more than a moral turnabout. It meant a new life situation, a new relationship with God. For Mark, Jesus was the embodiment of the Good News. His preaching, his call, established this new relationship with God. Notice Jesus called four men and all four responded immediately (Mark's transition word used in 1:18 and 1:20). Leaving their livelihood and followed the preacher and presence of the Good News.
Much has been written about the social context for Jesus' ministry. Unlike John the Baptist whose ministry had a geographic location, Jesus took his ministry on the road. People came to see the Baptist, while Jesus came to the people. While John drew his congregation from Jerusalem and outlying areas, Jesus' ministry lay in the backwater countryside of Galilee. The Baptist got the attention of the leadership in Judaism, but Jesus did not encounter official criticism immediately.
These differences made the ministry of Jesus easier to ignore, but, ultimately, more dangerous to the leadership. Jesus was the leader of a group movement. In a culture with few social supports, people at the time of Jesus had to be self-sufficient. Hence, they would form a group for a common goal. Indeed, group identity and power became all important. Extended families would intermarry and form alliances for the common good. Governments (i.e., royal families) would contract with groups (i.e., local families and village cooperatives) to gather produce and bring it to market; in turn, the government would receive a large percentage of the profits. (Scholars speculate Peter, Andrew, James, and John belonged to government-sanctioned groups that fished the lake; tax records from first-century Galilee strongly infer such groups existed.) Even charismatic leaders would gather people together for a common end, economic, political, or religious. Like the rest of society, Jesus formed a group whose members moved from place to place (like an army). Peter, Andrew, James, and John were among the first to partake in the mobile ministry of Jesus.
However, the message of Jesus proved to be as threatening as his means. In a static culture that did not change from generation to generation, Jesus preached something new. God would come and change everything. For their own reasons, the first four disciples left the safety of their group (family and friends) for the challenge of a new life based on this new message. They responded to the call of Jesus, for they wanted to live with Jesus. The call of Jesus was more important than any security, any relationship, any possession they had.
Why a Sacrament of Reconciliation after Baptism?
Why is there a Sacrament of Reconciliation after Baptism? To answer that question, we need to ask: why do we sin after baptism? The Catechism states:
"...the new life received in Christian Initiation (i.e., Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist) has not abolished the frailty and weakness of human nature, nor the inclination to sin that tradition calls concupiscence . . . "
The message ("Repent and believe the Good News") and call of Jesus ("Come and see") are actually one. To have a personal relationship with God's Son requires a constant spirit of repentance and faith in the gospel. While the key moment of repentance and personal faith in Jesus is Baptism, our response many times falls short. Many times, we need to renew our moral conversion and our faith choice. We need to experience the loving touch of God's mercy. The Sacrament of Reconciliation provides us such a time and such an experience.
How has your life changed when you chose to believe in Christ? How have you renewed that choice?
"Follow me." The invitation Jesus gave his early followers is the same he makes to us now. He invites us to change and believe. We need to realize he not only give us the challenge, he gives us the means to abandon our former life of sin and to trust in God. He gifts us with the Spirit. So, the call of Jesus is not only a direction; it is a helping hand. Human frailty may trip us from time to time, but the Lord will not disappoint. When we follow the Lord, he leads us and sustains us.
Try to look at your life this past week through God's eyes. Write down your spiritual successes and failures. How has God helped you with your successes? How have you disappointed God with your failures? Pray God renews your commitment to his Son this coming week.
Supplementary Reading
The Strength of Brokenness - by Os Hillman
The bows of the warriors are broken, but those who stumbled are armed with strength. ~ 1 Samuel 2:4
There is an oxymoron throughout the Bible. It says that brokenness is strength. How can this be? How can brokenness be strength? In order to use men and women to their fullest extent, the Lord has to break His servants so that they might have a new kind of strength that is not human in origin. It is strength in spirit that is born only through brokenness.
Paul was broken on the Damascus road. Peter was broken after Jesus was taken prisoner. Jacob was broken at Peniel. David was broken after his sin with Bathsheba. The list could go on of those the Lord had to break in different ways before they could be used in the Kingdom.
When we are broken, we see the frailty of human strength and come to grips with the reality that we can do nothing in our own strength. Then, new strength emerges that God uses mightily. God resists the proud but gives grace to the humble.
Do not fear brokenness, for it may be the missing ingredient to a life that emerges with a new kind of strength and experience not known before. Pray for a broken and contrite heart that God can bless.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 24, 2009 - Saturday Gospel Mark 3:19b, 20-21
Mark 3:19b, 20-21 Then he went home; 20 and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for people were saying, "He is beside himself."
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Is the Lord Jesus honored in your home? Why would Jesus' relatives be so upset with him when he began his public ministry? On one occasion Jesus remarked that a man's enemies will be the members of his own household (Matthew 10:36). The Gospel of Mark records the reaction of Jesus' relatives when he went home: they came to seize him. They, no doubt, thought that Jesus must have gone mad or become a religious fanatic. How could a good home-body from Nazareth leave his carpentry trade and go off to become an itinerant preacher? Jesus had thrown away the security and safety of a quiet and respectable life close to his family and relatives. He probably expected some opposition or reaction from the highest religious authorities in Jerusalem. The hardest opposition, however, may come from someone close to us, even your own kin. Jesus met opposition with grace and with determination to fulfill his Father's will. Are you ready to obey and follow the Lord even if others oppose your doing so?
"Lord Jesus, may I always put you first and find joy in doing your will. May your love and charity grow in me, especially in the face of opposition and adversity."
Supplementary Reading
True Repentance in a Nation - by Os Hillman
When the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his robes. ~ 2 Chronicles 34:19
Josiah was a godly king in Israel. However, before he came to power, the nation had fallen into all kinds of evil. One man, Manasseh, had brought the nation to a condition of inexorable evil. God finally had enough.
Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am going to bring such disaster on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle. I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line used against Samaria and the plumb line used against the house of Ahab. I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down (2 Kings 21:12-13).
Josiah came into power just before this judgment. He began to clean up the evil by burning all the idolatrous temples, ridding prostitution and homosexuality from the streets, and destroying occult shrines. He did this without the benefit of even reading God's Word, but through the Holy Spirit working in his heart. Then one day the ancient Scriptures were discovered in the temple that had lain dormant for years.
They had a profound impact on King Josiah.
When the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his robes. He gave these orders to Hilkiah, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Abdon son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary and Asaiah the king's attendant: "Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the remnant in Israel and Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord's anger that is poured out on us because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written in this book" (2 Chronicles 34:19-21).
Josiah was broken. He tore his robes in repentance. He fell to his knees and repented for the wickedness of his nation. He stood in the gap, and God honored Josiah; however, it wasn't enough. God still had to judge the nation for its previous wickedness under the reign of Manasseh.
"Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what He spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before Me and tore your robes and wept in My presence, I have heard you, declares the Lord. Now I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here." ... (2 Chronicles 34:27-28).
God spared Josiah during his reign, but after he died judgment came upon the nation.
No nation is immune from God's judgment. Pray for your nation today. Pray that your nation will have a repentant heart among the leaders and the people.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Is the Lord Jesus honored in your home? Why would Jesus' relatives be so upset with him when he began his public ministry? On one occasion Jesus remarked that a man's enemies will be the members of his own household (Matthew 10:36). The Gospel of Mark records the reaction of Jesus' relatives when he went home: they came to seize him. They, no doubt, thought that Jesus must have gone mad or become a religious fanatic. How could a good home-body from Nazareth leave his carpentry trade and go off to become an itinerant preacher? Jesus had thrown away the security and safety of a quiet and respectable life close to his family and relatives. He probably expected some opposition or reaction from the highest religious authorities in Jerusalem. The hardest opposition, however, may come from someone close to us, even your own kin. Jesus met opposition with grace and with determination to fulfill his Father's will. Are you ready to obey and follow the Lord even if others oppose your doing so?
"Lord Jesus, may I always put you first and find joy in doing your will. May your love and charity grow in me, especially in the face of opposition and adversity."
Supplementary Reading
True Repentance in a Nation - by Os Hillman
When the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his robes. ~ 2 Chronicles 34:19
Josiah was a godly king in Israel. However, before he came to power, the nation had fallen into all kinds of evil. One man, Manasseh, had brought the nation to a condition of inexorable evil. God finally had enough.
Therefore this is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: I am going to bring such disaster on Jerusalem and Judah that the ears of everyone who hears of it will tingle. I will stretch out over Jerusalem the measuring line used against Samaria and the plumb line used against the house of Ahab. I will wipe out Jerusalem as one wipes a dish, wiping it and turning it upside down (2 Kings 21:12-13).
Josiah came into power just before this judgment. He began to clean up the evil by burning all the idolatrous temples, ridding prostitution and homosexuality from the streets, and destroying occult shrines. He did this without the benefit of even reading God's Word, but through the Holy Spirit working in his heart. Then one day the ancient Scriptures were discovered in the temple that had lain dormant for years.
They had a profound impact on King Josiah.
When the king heard the words of the Law, he tore his robes. He gave these orders to Hilkiah, Ahikam son of Shaphan, Abdon son of Micah, Shaphan the secretary and Asaiah the king's attendant: "Go and inquire of the Lord for me and for the remnant in Israel and Judah about what is written in this book that has been found. Great is the Lord's anger that is poured out on us because our fathers have not kept the word of the Lord; they have not acted in accordance with all that is written in this book" (2 Chronicles 34:19-21).
Josiah was broken. He tore his robes in repentance. He fell to his knees and repented for the wickedness of his nation. He stood in the gap, and God honored Josiah; however, it wasn't enough. God still had to judge the nation for its previous wickedness under the reign of Manasseh.
"Because your heart was responsive and you humbled yourself before God when you heard what He spoke against this place and its people, and because you humbled yourself before Me and tore your robes and wept in My presence, I have heard you, declares the Lord. Now I will gather you to your fathers, and you will be buried in peace. Your eyes will not see all the disaster I am going to bring on this place and on those who live here." ... (2 Chronicles 34:27-28).
God spared Josiah during his reign, but after he died judgment came upon the nation.
No nation is immune from God's judgment. Pray for your nation today. Pray that your nation will have a repentant heart among the leaders and the people.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 23, 2009 - Friday Gospel Mark 3:13-19
Mark 3:13-19 - And he went up on the mountain, and called to him those whom he desired; and they came to him. 4 And he appointed twelve, to be with him, and to be sent out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons: 16 Simon whom he surnamed Peter; 17 James the son of Zeb'edee and John the brother of James, whom he surnamed Bo-aner'ges, that is, sons of thunder; 18 Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Cananaean, 19 and Judas Iscariot, who betrayed him. Then he went home.
Meditation by Don Schwagger
What is God's call on your life? When Jesus embarked on his mission he chose twelve men for the task of preaching the kingdom of God and healing the sick in the power of that kingdom. In the choice of the twelve, we see a characteristic feature of God's work: Jesus chose very ordinary people. They were non-professionals, who had no wealth or position. They were chosen from the common people who did ordinary things, had no special education, and no social advantages. Jesus wanted ordinary people who could take an assignment and do it extraordinarily well. He chose these men, not for what they were, but for what they would be capable of becoming under his direction and power. When the Lord calls us to serve, we must not shrug back because we think that we have little or nothing to offer. The Lord takes what ordinary people, like us, can offer and uses it for greatness in his kingdom. Do you make your life an offering to the Lord and allow him to use you as he sees fit?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with gratitude and generosity for all you have done for me. Take my life and all that I have as an offering of love for you, who are my All."
Supplementary Reading
The Root of Bitterness - by Os Hillman
See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ~ Hebrews 12:15
The enemy of our souls has a very specific strategy to destroy relationships. Whether these relationships are in business, marriage, or friendships, the strategy is the same. A conflict arises, judgments are made, and feelings are hurt. What happens next is the defining point of whether the enemy gains a foothold, or the grace of God covers the wrong.
When a root of bitterness is allowed to be planted and grown, it not only affects that person, but it also affects all others who are involved. It is like a cancer.
Breaking satan's foothold requires at least one person to press into God's grace. It cannot happen when either party "feels" like it, for none of us will ever feel like forgiving. None of us feel like talking when we have been hurt. Our natural response is to withdraw or lash out at the offending party. It is only obedience that allows God's grace to cover the wrongs incurred. This grace prevents the parties from becoming victims who will seek compensation for their pain.
The next time you are hurt by someone, realize the gravity of the crossroads where you find yourself. Choose grace instead of bitterness. Then you will be free to move past the hurt, and a root of bitterness will not be given opportunity to grow.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger
What is God's call on your life? When Jesus embarked on his mission he chose twelve men for the task of preaching the kingdom of God and healing the sick in the power of that kingdom. In the choice of the twelve, we see a characteristic feature of God's work: Jesus chose very ordinary people. They were non-professionals, who had no wealth or position. They were chosen from the common people who did ordinary things, had no special education, and no social advantages. Jesus wanted ordinary people who could take an assignment and do it extraordinarily well. He chose these men, not for what they were, but for what they would be capable of becoming under his direction and power. When the Lord calls us to serve, we must not shrug back because we think that we have little or nothing to offer. The Lord takes what ordinary people, like us, can offer and uses it for greatness in his kingdom. Do you make your life an offering to the Lord and allow him to use you as he sees fit?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with gratitude and generosity for all you have done for me. Take my life and all that I have as an offering of love for you, who are my All."
Supplementary Reading
The Root of Bitterness - by Os Hillman
See to it that no one misses the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. ~ Hebrews 12:15
The enemy of our souls has a very specific strategy to destroy relationships. Whether these relationships are in business, marriage, or friendships, the strategy is the same. A conflict arises, judgments are made, and feelings are hurt. What happens next is the defining point of whether the enemy gains a foothold, or the grace of God covers the wrong.
When a root of bitterness is allowed to be planted and grown, it not only affects that person, but it also affects all others who are involved. It is like a cancer.
Breaking satan's foothold requires at least one person to press into God's grace. It cannot happen when either party "feels" like it, for none of us will ever feel like forgiving. None of us feel like talking when we have been hurt. Our natural response is to withdraw or lash out at the offending party. It is only obedience that allows God's grace to cover the wrongs incurred. This grace prevents the parties from becoming victims who will seek compensation for their pain.
The next time you are hurt by someone, realize the gravity of the crossroads where you find yourself. Choose grace instead of bitterness. Then you will be free to move past the hurt, and a root of bitterness will not be given opportunity to grow.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 22, 2009 - Thursday Gospel Mark 3:7-12
Mark 3:7-12 - Jesus withdrew with his disciples to the sea, and a great multitude from Galilee followed; also from Judea 8 and Jerusalem and Idume'a and from beyond the Jordan and from about Tyre and Sidon a great multitude, hearing all that he did, came to him. 9 And he told his disciples to have a boat ready for him because of the crowd, lest they should crush him; 10 for he had healed many, so that all who had diseases pressed upon him to touch him. 11 And whenever the unclean spirits beheld him, they fell down before him and cried out, "You are the Son of God." 12 And he strictly ordered them not to make him known.
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Is there anything holding you back from giving yourself unreservedly to God? Jesus offered freedom to everyone who sought him out. Wherever Jesus went the people came to him because they had heard all the things he did. They were hungry for God and desired healing from their afflictions. In faith they pressed upon Jesus to touch him. As they did so power came from Jesus and they were healed. Even demons trembled in the presence of Jesus and acknowledged his true identity: You are the Son of God. When you hear God's word and consider all that Jesus did, how do you respond? With doubt or with expectant faith? With skepticism or with confident expectation? Ask the Lord the increase your faith in his saving power and grace.
"Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Inflame my heart with a burning love for you and with an expectant faith in your saving power. Set me free from all that hinders me from drawing closer to you."
Supplementary Reading
The Role of Intercession - by Os Hillman
Coming over to us, he [Agabus] took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, "The Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand
him over to the Gentiles.' " When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. ~ Acts 21:11-12
In my own personal spiritual pilgrimage, God has allowed me to come into relationship with those in the Body of Christ who are called to a greater level of intercessory prayer. God calls each of us to be intercessory prayer warriors, but there are individuals in the Body of Christ who are called to be frontline warriors and who are more skilled in the area of intercession. These individuals often can have a gift of prophecy as part of their intercessory anointing. Such appears to be the case of Agabus in the Book of Acts.
Agabus seems to have received a word from God, and by way of a physical demonstration, tied his belt around Paul to let him know that he would be bound in Jerusalem if he went to this city. Agabus and the others immediately drew a conclusion that he was not to go to Jerusalem. Paul disagreed and proceeded to Jerusalem where he was, in fact, bound and beaten after giving testimony to the people and religious leaders of Jerusalem.
God calls intercessors to the role of seeing. He calls leaders to the role of interpreting actions.
God allows intercessors to see a more complete picture. However, actions are never left for the intercessors to determine. Conversely, leaders need to get the spiritual picture of what they are dealing with. This is why they need gifted intercessors. They must not make the mistake of believing they can see the entire picture without the intercessors. Once they have the intercessors' insights, they must determine the right course of action. This is their role. Conflicts arise when either tries to fulfill both roles.
Paul knew he was to go to Jerusalem, even if it meant being beaten. He did go and was beaten. However, we sense that he made the right decision based on Jesus' comments to him in Acts chapter 23, verse 11: "The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, 'Take courage! As you have testified about Me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.' "
Pray that God will bring intercessors and leaders into your life. He wants you to have a complete picture of the situations you face each day and to know the actions necessary for fulfilling His will for your life.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Is there anything holding you back from giving yourself unreservedly to God? Jesus offered freedom to everyone who sought him out. Wherever Jesus went the people came to him because they had heard all the things he did. They were hungry for God and desired healing from their afflictions. In faith they pressed upon Jesus to touch him. As they did so power came from Jesus and they were healed. Even demons trembled in the presence of Jesus and acknowledged his true identity: You are the Son of God. When you hear God's word and consider all that Jesus did, how do you respond? With doubt or with expectant faith? With skepticism or with confident expectation? Ask the Lord the increase your faith in his saving power and grace.
"Lord Jesus Christ, you are the Son of God and the Savior of the world. Inflame my heart with a burning love for you and with an expectant faith in your saving power. Set me free from all that hinders me from drawing closer to you."
Supplementary Reading
The Role of Intercession - by Os Hillman
Coming over to us, he [Agabus] took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet with it and said, "The Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jews of Jerusalem will bind the owner of this belt and will hand
him over to the Gentiles.' " When we heard this, we and the people there pleaded with Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. ~ Acts 21:11-12
In my own personal spiritual pilgrimage, God has allowed me to come into relationship with those in the Body of Christ who are called to a greater level of intercessory prayer. God calls each of us to be intercessory prayer warriors, but there are individuals in the Body of Christ who are called to be frontline warriors and who are more skilled in the area of intercession. These individuals often can have a gift of prophecy as part of their intercessory anointing. Such appears to be the case of Agabus in the Book of Acts.
Agabus seems to have received a word from God, and by way of a physical demonstration, tied his belt around Paul to let him know that he would be bound in Jerusalem if he went to this city. Agabus and the others immediately drew a conclusion that he was not to go to Jerusalem. Paul disagreed and proceeded to Jerusalem where he was, in fact, bound and beaten after giving testimony to the people and religious leaders of Jerusalem.
God calls intercessors to the role of seeing. He calls leaders to the role of interpreting actions.
God allows intercessors to see a more complete picture. However, actions are never left for the intercessors to determine. Conversely, leaders need to get the spiritual picture of what they are dealing with. This is why they need gifted intercessors. They must not make the mistake of believing they can see the entire picture without the intercessors. Once they have the intercessors' insights, they must determine the right course of action. This is their role. Conflicts arise when either tries to fulfill both roles.
Paul knew he was to go to Jerusalem, even if it meant being beaten. He did go and was beaten. However, we sense that he made the right decision based on Jesus' comments to him in Acts chapter 23, verse 11: "The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, 'Take courage! As you have testified about Me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.' "
Pray that God will bring intercessors and leaders into your life. He wants you to have a complete picture of the situations you face each day and to know the actions necessary for fulfilling His will for your life.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 21, 2009 - Wednesday Gospel Mark 3:1-6
Mark 3:1-6 - Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. 2 And they watched him, to see whether he would heal him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. 3 And he said to the man who had the withered hand, "Come here." 4 And he said to them, "Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?" But they were silent. 5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, "Stretch out your hand." He stretched it out, and his hand was restored. 6 The Pharisees went out, and immediately held counsel with the Hero'di-ans against him, how to destroy him.
Meditation by Don Schwagger:
What is God's intention for the commandment, keep holy the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12)? The scribes and Pharisees wanted to catch Jesus in the act of breaking the Sabbath ritual so they might accuse him of breaking God's law. In a few penetrating words Luke records that Jesus knew their thoughts. They were filled with fury and contempt for Jesus because they put their own thoughts of right and wrong above God. They were ensnared in their own legalism because they did not understand or see the purpose of God. Jesus shows their fallacy by pointing to God's intention for the Sabbath: to do good and to save life rather than to do evil or to destroy life.
Christians celebrate Sunday as the Lord's Day, to commemorate God's work of redemption in Jesus Christ and the new work of creation he accomplished through Christ's death and resurrection. Taking "our sabbath rest" is a way of expressing honor to God for all that he has done for us. Such "rest" however does not exempt us from our love for our neighbor. If we truly love the Lord above all else, then the love of God will overflow to love of neighbor as well. Do you honor the Lord in the way you celebrate Sunday, the Lord's Day and in the way you treat you neighbor?
"Lord Jesus, in your victory over sin and death on the cross and in your resurrection you give us the assurance of sharing in the eternal rest of heaven. Transform my heart with your love that I may freely serve my neighbor for his good and find joy and refreshment in the celebration of Sunday as the Lord's Day."
Supplementary Reading
The God of the Valley - by Os Hillman
The man of God came up and told the king of Israel, "This is what the Lord says: 'Because the Arameans think the Lord is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys, I will deliver this vast army into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord'." ~ 1 Kings 20:28
Whenever we stand on the mountain, we are able to see clearly. It is the best vantage point to see what lies ahead. Wouldn't it be great to live on the mountain all the time in order to anticipate what is ahead? God allows us to experience the mountaintop at times. Joseph's first mountaintop experience was as a young man. He had the favor of his father, Jacob. He was given a fine coat and even had a dream about his future. As a young man, Joseph had a sense of destiny about his life. God often gives us a picture of our future so that we will remember this picture when we are being tested to trust Him in the valley. This picture usually does not reveal how God intends to bring about the visions for our life.
However, none of us really derive the character qualities God desires for our lives while we are on the mountain. It is in the valley where the fruit is planted and harvested. It cannot grow on the mountain; it must grow in the valley. God is a God of the mountain, but he is even more a God of the valley. In the valley, it is more difficult to see ahead; the clouds often cover the valley and limit our sight. Joseph was thrust into a deep valley that left him wondering if the God of his father had forsaken him. Jesus hoped that He might be able to avoid the valley that caused Him to sweat blood. There is a valley that each of us must enter, usually unwillingly, in order to experience the God of the valley-and to experience His faithfulness in the valley. Once we have spent time in this valley, we come out with something we would have never gained if we had not entered it. The valley brings much fruit into our lives so that we might plant seeds into the lives of others. God does not waste valley experiences. If we are faithful in the valley, we will enter a new dimension with God that we never thought possible. There is a harvest of wisdom and virtue that can only be grown in the valley.
Has God brought you into the valley? Know that the valley is a place of fruitfulness; it is a place of testing. It is where God brings what you know in your head into your heart. The only value of knowledge is when it becomes part of your heart. Look for God in the valley today.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger:
What is God's intention for the commandment, keep holy the Sabbath (Exodus 20:8; Deuteronomy 5:12)? The scribes and Pharisees wanted to catch Jesus in the act of breaking the Sabbath ritual so they might accuse him of breaking God's law. In a few penetrating words Luke records that Jesus knew their thoughts. They were filled with fury and contempt for Jesus because they put their own thoughts of right and wrong above God. They were ensnared in their own legalism because they did not understand or see the purpose of God. Jesus shows their fallacy by pointing to God's intention for the Sabbath: to do good and to save life rather than to do evil or to destroy life.
Christians celebrate Sunday as the Lord's Day, to commemorate God's work of redemption in Jesus Christ and the new work of creation he accomplished through Christ's death and resurrection. Taking "our sabbath rest" is a way of expressing honor to God for all that he has done for us. Such "rest" however does not exempt us from our love for our neighbor. If we truly love the Lord above all else, then the love of God will overflow to love of neighbor as well. Do you honor the Lord in the way you celebrate Sunday, the Lord's Day and in the way you treat you neighbor?
"Lord Jesus, in your victory over sin and death on the cross and in your resurrection you give us the assurance of sharing in the eternal rest of heaven. Transform my heart with your love that I may freely serve my neighbor for his good and find joy and refreshment in the celebration of Sunday as the Lord's Day."
Supplementary Reading
The God of the Valley - by Os Hillman
The man of God came up and told the king of Israel, "This is what the Lord says: 'Because the Arameans think the Lord is a god of the hills and not a god of the valleys, I will deliver this vast army into your hands, and you will know that I am the Lord'." ~ 1 Kings 20:28
Whenever we stand on the mountain, we are able to see clearly. It is the best vantage point to see what lies ahead. Wouldn't it be great to live on the mountain all the time in order to anticipate what is ahead? God allows us to experience the mountaintop at times. Joseph's first mountaintop experience was as a young man. He had the favor of his father, Jacob. He was given a fine coat and even had a dream about his future. As a young man, Joseph had a sense of destiny about his life. God often gives us a picture of our future so that we will remember this picture when we are being tested to trust Him in the valley. This picture usually does not reveal how God intends to bring about the visions for our life.
However, none of us really derive the character qualities God desires for our lives while we are on the mountain. It is in the valley where the fruit is planted and harvested. It cannot grow on the mountain; it must grow in the valley. God is a God of the mountain, but he is even more a God of the valley. In the valley, it is more difficult to see ahead; the clouds often cover the valley and limit our sight. Joseph was thrust into a deep valley that left him wondering if the God of his father had forsaken him. Jesus hoped that He might be able to avoid the valley that caused Him to sweat blood. There is a valley that each of us must enter, usually unwillingly, in order to experience the God of the valley-and to experience His faithfulness in the valley. Once we have spent time in this valley, we come out with something we would have never gained if we had not entered it. The valley brings much fruit into our lives so that we might plant seeds into the lives of others. God does not waste valley experiences. If we are faithful in the valley, we will enter a new dimension with God that we never thought possible. There is a harvest of wisdom and virtue that can only be grown in the valley.
Has God brought you into the valley? Know that the valley is a place of fruitfulness; it is a place of testing. It is where God brings what you know in your head into your heart. The only value of knowledge is when it becomes part of your heart. Look for God in the valley today.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 20, 2009 - Tuesday Gospel Mark 2:23-28
Mark 2:23-28 One Sabbath he was going through the grainfields; and as they made their way his disciples began to pluck heads of grain. 24 And the Pharisees said to him, "Look, why are they doing what is not lawful on the Sabbath?" 25 And he said to them, "Have you never read what David did, when he was in need and was hungry, he and those who were with him: 26 how he entered the house of God, when Abi'athar was high priest, and ate the bread of the Presence, which it is not lawful for any but the priests to eat, and also gave it to those who were with him?" 27 And he said to them, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath; 28 so the Son of man is lord even of the Sabbath."
Meditation by Pat Callone (Institutional Relations - Creighton)
Below are the last two lines of Mark's gospel which tells the story of the Pharisees' complaint about Jesus' disciples eating grain on the Sabbath.
"Then he (Jesus) said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.'
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath."
My aunt, who is 95 years old, is at the Josie Harper Hospice House in Omaha, NE. It is a wonderful place. My dad died there in October 2004 so our family has a long tradition with the Harper Hospice house.
When I was visiting my aunt last Saturday she said, "There really aren't very many things that are very important." You might guess that my aunt is faith-filled in all ways. The theme of her life has been: "Family is important." In fact, when she sees some cousins are not communicating with each other, she steps in and says, "Your mother would not be very happy about your relationship. Don't you think it is time for you to make peace?"
She is the last "matriarch" in our family. From her position in life she can see that "not many things are really that important." She knows the family values that have been a long tradition:
*"table fellowship" - take care of family and share with others;
*"forgiveness" - be aware of your own short-comings and forgive others theirs;
*"develop a daily relationship with God"
She prays daily. In fact I was told last Saturday that she watches the clock and every hour she prayers 10 "Hail Marys" for the father of one of the nurses at Hospice. He has cancer and is going through many tests.
This gospel reminds me that daily we all need to remember "what is really important" and not get upset by the "little things" that distract us from our purposes in life.
God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, help us develop internal peace so that our minds and hearts will not be distracted from what we know is most important in life: Our relationship with You in the service of others. Amen.
Supplementary Reading
The Door of Full Surrender - by Os Hillman
But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold. ~ Job 23:10
I was recently sitting with the leader of a workplace organization as he described a question he poses to workplace believers. "What if there were two doors to choose from; behind one door was the complete will of God for your life and behind the other door was how life could be according to your own preference.
Which door would you choose?" The struggle for most lies in the desire to follow God completely and the fear of what might be behind the door of full surrender. Most of us desire to follow God, but few of us will do it at any cost. We do not really believe that God loves us to the degree that we are willing to give Him complete permission to do as He wills in us.
If we desire to fully walk with Christ, there is a cost. We may give intellectual assent and go along with His principles and do fine; however, if we are fully given over to Him and His will for our life, it will be a life that will have adversity. The Bible is clear that humans do not achieve greatness without having their sinful will broken. This process is designed to create a nature change in each of us, not just a habit change. The Bible calls it circumcision. Circumcision is painful, bloody, and personal.
If God has plans to greatly use you in the lives of others, you can expect your trials to be even greater than those of others. Why? Because, like Joseph who went through greater trials than most patriarchs, your calling may have such responsibility that God cannot afford to entrust it to you without ensuring your complete faithfulness to the call. He has much invested in you on behalf of others. He may want to speak through your life to a greater degree than through another. The events of your life would become the frame for the message He wants to speak through you.
Do not fear the path that God may lead you on. Embrace it. For God may bring you down a path in your life to ensure the reward of your inheritance. "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all" (2 Cor. 4:17)
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Pat Callone (Institutional Relations - Creighton)
Below are the last two lines of Mark's gospel which tells the story of the Pharisees' complaint about Jesus' disciples eating grain on the Sabbath.
"Then he (Jesus) said to them, 'The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath.'
That is why the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath."
My aunt, who is 95 years old, is at the Josie Harper Hospice House in Omaha, NE. It is a wonderful place. My dad died there in October 2004 so our family has a long tradition with the Harper Hospice house.
When I was visiting my aunt last Saturday she said, "There really aren't very many things that are very important." You might guess that my aunt is faith-filled in all ways. The theme of her life has been: "Family is important." In fact, when she sees some cousins are not communicating with each other, she steps in and says, "Your mother would not be very happy about your relationship. Don't you think it is time for you to make peace?"
She is the last "matriarch" in our family. From her position in life she can see that "not many things are really that important." She knows the family values that have been a long tradition:
*"table fellowship" - take care of family and share with others;
*"forgiveness" - be aware of your own short-comings and forgive others theirs;
*"develop a daily relationship with God"
She prays daily. In fact I was told last Saturday that she watches the clock and every hour she prayers 10 "Hail Marys" for the father of one of the nurses at Hospice. He has cancer and is going through many tests.
This gospel reminds me that daily we all need to remember "what is really important" and not get upset by the "little things" that distract us from our purposes in life.
God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, help us develop internal peace so that our minds and hearts will not be distracted from what we know is most important in life: Our relationship with You in the service of others. Amen.
Supplementary Reading
The Door of Full Surrender - by Os Hillman
But He knows the way that I take; when He has tested me, I will come forth as gold. ~ Job 23:10
I was recently sitting with the leader of a workplace organization as he described a question he poses to workplace believers. "What if there were two doors to choose from; behind one door was the complete will of God for your life and behind the other door was how life could be according to your own preference.
Which door would you choose?" The struggle for most lies in the desire to follow God completely and the fear of what might be behind the door of full surrender. Most of us desire to follow God, but few of us will do it at any cost. We do not really believe that God loves us to the degree that we are willing to give Him complete permission to do as He wills in us.
If we desire to fully walk with Christ, there is a cost. We may give intellectual assent and go along with His principles and do fine; however, if we are fully given over to Him and His will for our life, it will be a life that will have adversity. The Bible is clear that humans do not achieve greatness without having their sinful will broken. This process is designed to create a nature change in each of us, not just a habit change. The Bible calls it circumcision. Circumcision is painful, bloody, and personal.
If God has plans to greatly use you in the lives of others, you can expect your trials to be even greater than those of others. Why? Because, like Joseph who went through greater trials than most patriarchs, your calling may have such responsibility that God cannot afford to entrust it to you without ensuring your complete faithfulness to the call. He has much invested in you on behalf of others. He may want to speak through your life to a greater degree than through another. The events of your life would become the frame for the message He wants to speak through you.
Do not fear the path that God may lead you on. Embrace it. For God may bring you down a path in your life to ensure the reward of your inheritance. "For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all" (2 Cor. 4:17)
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 19, 2009 - Monday Gospel Mark 2:18-22
Mark 2:18-22 Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting; and people came and said to him, "Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?" 19 And Jesus said to them, "Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. 20 The days will come, when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. 21 No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment; if he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. 22 And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the wine will burst the skins, and the wine is lost, and so are the skins; but new wine is for fresh skins."
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Which comes first, fasting or feasting? The disciples of John the Baptist were upset with Jesus' disciples because they did not fast. Fasting was one of the three most important religious duties, along with prayer and almsgiving. Jesus gave a simple explanation. There's a time for fasting and a time for feasting (or celebrating). To walk as a disciple with Jesus is to experience a whole new joy of relationship akin to the joy of the wedding party in celebrating with the groom and bride their wedding bliss. But there also comes a time when the Lord's disciples must bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility and fasting and for mourning over sin. Do you take joy in the Lord's presence with you and do you express sorrow and contrition for your sins?
Jesus goes on to warn his disciples about the problem of the "closed mind" that refuses to learn new things. Jesus used an image familiar to his audience - new and old wineskins. In Jesus' times, wine was stored in wineskins, not bottles. New wine poured into skins was still fermenting. The gases exerted gave pressure. New wine skins were elastic enough to take the pressure, but old wine skins easily burst because they were hard. What did Jesus mean by this comparison? Are we to reject the old in place of the new? Just as there is a right place and a right time for fasting and for feasting, so there is a right place for the old as well as the new. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old (Matthew 13:52). How impoverished we would be if we only had the Old Testament or the New Testament, rather than both. The Lord gives us wisdom so we can make the best use of both the old and the new. He doesn't want us to hold rigidly to the past and to be resistant to the new work of his Holy Spirit in our lives. He wants our minds and hearts to be like new wine skins - open and ready to receive the new wine of the Holy Spirit. Are you eager to grow in the knowledge and understanding of God's word and plan for your life?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow in the knowledge of your great love and truth. Help me to seek you earnestly in prayer and fasting that I may turn away from sin and wilfulness and conform my life more fully to your will. May I always find joy in knowing, loving, and serving you.
Supplementary Reading
When Fear Keeps Others From Their Destiny - by Os Hillman
No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. ~ Acts 5:13
Every work day in thousands of offices across the globe, Christians testify of God's grace in their lives in some way. Sometimes it comes through a subtle performance of their duties with a smile and peace that non-believers cannot understand. In other cases, there might be more visible, unexplainable examples of God's work. This was the defining difference in believers in the early Church. They lived a life that followed with signs and wonders that could not be humanly explained.
The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number (Acts 5:12-14).
How often we have heard non-believers acknowledge their respect for the Christian workplace believer , but they dare not join them in their persuasion. It is this fear of the unknown that keeps many a non-believer on the path to hell. Who has God placed in your path today to help detour from a path of eternal torment to a path of freedom and eternal life? The Lord desires that each should come to knowledge of the truth so that they might be saved. As you enter the workplace today, ask the Lord for a divine appointment that might be the turning point for a lost soul. There's no prayer the Lord will delight in more than this one.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger
Which comes first, fasting or feasting? The disciples of John the Baptist were upset with Jesus' disciples because they did not fast. Fasting was one of the three most important religious duties, along with prayer and almsgiving. Jesus gave a simple explanation. There's a time for fasting and a time for feasting (or celebrating). To walk as a disciple with Jesus is to experience a whole new joy of relationship akin to the joy of the wedding party in celebrating with the groom and bride their wedding bliss. But there also comes a time when the Lord's disciples must bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility and fasting and for mourning over sin. Do you take joy in the Lord's presence with you and do you express sorrow and contrition for your sins?
Jesus goes on to warn his disciples about the problem of the "closed mind" that refuses to learn new things. Jesus used an image familiar to his audience - new and old wineskins. In Jesus' times, wine was stored in wineskins, not bottles. New wine poured into skins was still fermenting. The gases exerted gave pressure. New wine skins were elastic enough to take the pressure, but old wine skins easily burst because they were hard. What did Jesus mean by this comparison? Are we to reject the old in place of the new? Just as there is a right place and a right time for fasting and for feasting, so there is a right place for the old as well as the new. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old (Matthew 13:52). How impoverished we would be if we only had the Old Testament or the New Testament, rather than both. The Lord gives us wisdom so we can make the best use of both the old and the new. He doesn't want us to hold rigidly to the past and to be resistant to the new work of his Holy Spirit in our lives. He wants our minds and hearts to be like new wine skins - open and ready to receive the new wine of the Holy Spirit. Are you eager to grow in the knowledge and understanding of God's word and plan for your life?
"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow in the knowledge of your great love and truth. Help me to seek you earnestly in prayer and fasting that I may turn away from sin and wilfulness and conform my life more fully to your will. May I always find joy in knowing, loving, and serving you.
Supplementary Reading
When Fear Keeps Others From Their Destiny - by Os Hillman
No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. ~ Acts 5:13
Every work day in thousands of offices across the globe, Christians testify of God's grace in their lives in some way. Sometimes it comes through a subtle performance of their duties with a smile and peace that non-believers cannot understand. In other cases, there might be more visible, unexplainable examples of God's work. This was the defining difference in believers in the early Church. They lived a life that followed with signs and wonders that could not be humanly explained.
The apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. And all the believers used to meet together in Solomon's Colonnade. No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded by the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added to their number (Acts 5:12-14).
How often we have heard non-believers acknowledge their respect for the Christian workplace believer , but they dare not join them in their persuasion. It is this fear of the unknown that keeps many a non-believer on the path to hell. Who has God placed in your path today to help detour from a path of eternal torment to a path of freedom and eternal life? The Lord desires that each should come to knowledge of the truth so that they might be saved. As you enter the workplace today, ask the Lord for a divine appointment that might be the turning point for a lost soul. There's no prayer the Lord will delight in more than this one.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 18, 2009 - Sunday Gospel John 1:35-42
John 1:35-42 The next day again John was standing with two of his disciples; 36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked, and said, "Behold, the Lamb of God!" 37 The two disciples heard him say this, and they followed Jesus. 38 Jesus turned, and saw them following, and said to them, "What do you seek?" And they said to him, "Rabbi" (which means Teacher), "where are you staying?" 39 He said to them, "Come and see." They came and saw where he was staying; and they stayed with him that day, for it was about the tenth hour. 40 One of the two who heard John speak, and followed him, was Andrew, Simon Peter's brother. 41 He first found his brother Simon, and said to him, "We have found the Messiah" (which means Christ). 42 He brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him, and said, "So you are Simon the son of John? You shall be called Cephas" (which means Peter).
Meditation by Larry Broding
In quick succession, John the Gospel writer laid out the evangelization of the first disciples. Unlike Matthew, Mark, or Luke, John clearly connected the Baptist's followers to those of Jesus. In other words, John saw the ministry of the Baptist flow into the ministry of the Galilean.
In John 1:19-51, the evangelist presented six stories of witness and testimony over seven days. This gospel represent the activity of days three through four in a seven day week. Scripture scholars see this "week" as the new creation. God created a new people, starting with the testimony of the Baptist, and ending with the miracle at the Cana wedding feast. The first day was studied in John 1:19-28 (the Third Sunday in Advent: Cycle B) where the Baptist defined his ministry as " . . . a voice crying out in the desert; 'Make straight the way of the Lord!'" (see 1:23) This gospel presented the next two stories. Unlike 1:19-28 where the Baptist testified to the Jewish leadership, he evangelized his own followers, who, in turn, evangelized others.
When the Baptist saw Jesus, he proclaimed "Look! The Lamb of God!" While this title might strike us as enigmatic, the proclaimed title caused two followers to follow Jesus. Why? As gentle, docile animals, lambs were prized for their tender meat and fine coat; in other words, they gave all they had for their masters. The "Lamb of God" referred to the sacrificial animal, slaughtered at the Temple for the Passover meal. (See John 19:14, 31, 42) In John, this was the same day Jesus was crucified. Jesus was the One the Baptist foretold, because he gave himself totally for his followers, even to death. This theme resonated with Isaiah's Suffering Servant ("He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth." Isaiah 53:7, RSV)
(Note how John wove discipleship, sacrifice, and meal together in one title. Don't we see the same themes in Eucharist, a meal of sacrifice and discipleship?) [1:36]
Two disciples left John and followed Jesus. Since any legal testimony required more than one witness, the gospel writer presented two disciples to assure the veracity of the Baptist's claim. [1:37] Even though they sought the Lord, notice the initiative of Jesus. He first asked the followers intent and invited them to join him. The gospel writer used the invitation "come and see" in other contexts of evangelization. Philip invited Nathaniel to meet Jesus with the phrase "come and see" in 1:45. The Samaritan woman at the well invited others in her town to "come and see the man who told me everything I have done" in 4:29. The invitation begun by Jesus was continued with followers bringing others into the community. [1:38-39]
John used one of the two followers as the transition point between the Baptist and the new Rabbi. Andrew invited his brother, Simon, to meet his new Teacher. Again note the language of Andrew's invitation. "We (dual witnesses indicating the veracity of the claim) have found the Messiah (the title definitively claiming what the Baptist inferred)." The invitation sealed the transition. Jesus was the Christ, the focal point of revelation. [1:40-41]
When Jesus met Simon, he gave the follower a new identity. He called Simon by his formal name to clearly identify him. Then Jesus gave him his new name: "Cephas" (Aramaic for "Rock;" the Greek translated the word as "Petros," from which we get the name "Peter"). When Jesus gave Simon his new name, he defined the new disciple's role in the community. Simon was like solid rock, not a pebble or a stone that could be moved. Peter was a rock layer strong enough to securely build the foundation of a house. In light of the other gospels, Jesus gave Simon a leadership role with the new name. Remember that, in the time of Jesus, one's name revealed one's strength of character and abilities. In other words, a name defined one's power. [1:42]
"The Lamb who takes away the sins of the world"
When John the Baptist pointed to Jesus as the "Lamb of God," he recognized not only the role of Jesus in salvation; he inferred the relationship of the Son to the Father. As he had come from the Father, Jesus gave himself back to the Father. His self-giving began with his Incarnation, became explicit in his baptism, continued through his ministry, and culminated on the cross. He gave himself because he loved the Father and loved all God's creatures. The Baptist's declaration ("The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world") revealed both the character and the mission of Jesus. Through his love, he accepted the role of the Suffering Servant. He gave himself to his Father for our sake in spite of suffering and death.
Why is self-giving so unusual? Have you ever been impressed by others who give their time and talent to others? Have they ever asked you to join them? What happened? Did their invitation change you?
A simple invitation can be life-changing. Come and see . . . That invitation can come in different ways, from a letter or a look to a simple act of unselfish love. Come and see . . . When we invite others to faith, we ask them to encounter the One after whom we pattern our lives. Come and see . . . the Lord. He will show us the loving way to live and he will give us a new identity as a Christian. He will show us the way to the Father. Come and see . . .
How have you influenced others to become Christ-like? Have you extended them acts of love? Have you ever asked them to join you at Church? Try to help someone this week and invite him or her closer to the Lord.
Permission for use. All materials found in word-sunday.com are the property of Larry Broding (Copyright 1999 -2007). Viewers may copy any material found in these pages for their personal use or for use in any non-profit ministry. Materials may not be sold or used for
Supplementary Reading
When God Seems Far Away - Os Hillman
Why, O Lord, do You stand far off? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble? ~ Psalm 10:1
One of the great mysteries of God is His ways. Some of His ways almost appear to bring us into the most difficult places, as if He were indifferent to our circumstances. It would appear that He is turning His head from our sorrows. These events in our lives have a particular objective to perform for us. That objective is to bring us to the end of ourselves that we might discover the treasure of darkness. "Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness" (Job 30:26).
When we are taken into these dark periods, we begin to see light that we never knew existed. Our sensitivities become heightened and our ability to see through spiritual eyes is illuminated. Unless we are taken into these times, our souls never develop any depth of character. We do not gain wisdom, only knowledge. Knowledge is gained through understanding; wisdom is gained through the experience of darkness.
After we go through these periods, we discover that God was, in fact, with us throughout the entire time. It does not feel or appear that He is there when we are in the midst of the dark periods. However, He is there walking with us. He has told us countless times that He will never leave us. However, when we are in those dark periods, it does not feel like He is there because He does not rescue us from the circumstances. He does this for our benefit in order that we might become more like Jesus. Jesus learned obedience from the things He suffered (see Heb. 5:8). What does that say about how you and I will learn obedience? Embrace the dark times and gain the wisdom that God intends for you from these times.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Larry Broding
In quick succession, John the Gospel writer laid out the evangelization of the first disciples. Unlike Matthew, Mark, or Luke, John clearly connected the Baptist's followers to those of Jesus. In other words, John saw the ministry of the Baptist flow into the ministry of the Galilean.
In John 1:19-51, the evangelist presented six stories of witness and testimony over seven days. This gospel represent the activity of days three through four in a seven day week. Scripture scholars see this "week" as the new creation. God created a new people, starting with the testimony of the Baptist, and ending with the miracle at the Cana wedding feast. The first day was studied in John 1:19-28 (the Third Sunday in Advent: Cycle B) where the Baptist defined his ministry as " . . . a voice crying out in the desert; 'Make straight the way of the Lord!'" (see 1:23) This gospel presented the next two stories. Unlike 1:19-28 where the Baptist testified to the Jewish leadership, he evangelized his own followers, who, in turn, evangelized others.
When the Baptist saw Jesus, he proclaimed "Look! The Lamb of God!" While this title might strike us as enigmatic, the proclaimed title caused two followers to follow Jesus. Why? As gentle, docile animals, lambs were prized for their tender meat and fine coat; in other words, they gave all they had for their masters. The "Lamb of God" referred to the sacrificial animal, slaughtered at the Temple for the Passover meal. (See John 19:14, 31, 42) In John, this was the same day Jesus was crucified. Jesus was the One the Baptist foretold, because he gave himself totally for his followers, even to death. This theme resonated with Isaiah's Suffering Servant ("He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth." Isaiah 53:7, RSV)
(Note how John wove discipleship, sacrifice, and meal together in one title. Don't we see the same themes in Eucharist, a meal of sacrifice and discipleship?) [1:36]
Two disciples left John and followed Jesus. Since any legal testimony required more than one witness, the gospel writer presented two disciples to assure the veracity of the Baptist's claim. [1:37] Even though they sought the Lord, notice the initiative of Jesus. He first asked the followers intent and invited them to join him. The gospel writer used the invitation "come and see" in other contexts of evangelization. Philip invited Nathaniel to meet Jesus with the phrase "come and see" in 1:45. The Samaritan woman at the well invited others in her town to "come and see the man who told me everything I have done" in 4:29. The invitation begun by Jesus was continued with followers bringing others into the community. [1:38-39]
John used one of the two followers as the transition point between the Baptist and the new Rabbi. Andrew invited his brother, Simon, to meet his new Teacher. Again note the language of Andrew's invitation. "We (dual witnesses indicating the veracity of the claim) have found the Messiah (the title definitively claiming what the Baptist inferred)." The invitation sealed the transition. Jesus was the Christ, the focal point of revelation. [1:40-41]
When Jesus met Simon, he gave the follower a new identity. He called Simon by his formal name to clearly identify him. Then Jesus gave him his new name: "Cephas" (Aramaic for "Rock;" the Greek translated the word as "Petros," from which we get the name "Peter"). When Jesus gave Simon his new name, he defined the new disciple's role in the community. Simon was like solid rock, not a pebble or a stone that could be moved. Peter was a rock layer strong enough to securely build the foundation of a house. In light of the other gospels, Jesus gave Simon a leadership role with the new name. Remember that, in the time of Jesus, one's name revealed one's strength of character and abilities. In other words, a name defined one's power. [1:42]
"The Lamb who takes away the sins of the world"
When John the Baptist pointed to Jesus as the "Lamb of God," he recognized not only the role of Jesus in salvation; he inferred the relationship of the Son to the Father. As he had come from the Father, Jesus gave himself back to the Father. His self-giving began with his Incarnation, became explicit in his baptism, continued through his ministry, and culminated on the cross. He gave himself because he loved the Father and loved all God's creatures. The Baptist's declaration ("The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world") revealed both the character and the mission of Jesus. Through his love, he accepted the role of the Suffering Servant. He gave himself to his Father for our sake in spite of suffering and death.
Why is self-giving so unusual? Have you ever been impressed by others who give their time and talent to others? Have they ever asked you to join them? What happened? Did their invitation change you?
A simple invitation can be life-changing. Come and see . . . That invitation can come in different ways, from a letter or a look to a simple act of unselfish love. Come and see . . . When we invite others to faith, we ask them to encounter the One after whom we pattern our lives. Come and see . . . the Lord. He will show us the loving way to live and he will give us a new identity as a Christian. He will show us the way to the Father. Come and see . . .
How have you influenced others to become Christ-like? Have you extended them acts of love? Have you ever asked them to join you at Church? Try to help someone this week and invite him or her closer to the Lord.
Permission for use. All materials found in word-sunday.com are the property of Larry Broding (Copyright 1999 -2007). Viewers may copy any material found in these pages for their personal use or for use in any non-profit ministry. Materials may not be sold or used for
Supplementary Reading
When God Seems Far Away - Os Hillman
Why, O Lord, do You stand far off? Why do You hide Yourself in times of trouble? ~ Psalm 10:1
One of the great mysteries of God is His ways. Some of His ways almost appear to bring us into the most difficult places, as if He were indifferent to our circumstances. It would appear that He is turning His head from our sorrows. These events in our lives have a particular objective to perform for us. That objective is to bring us to the end of ourselves that we might discover the treasure of darkness. "Yet when I hoped for good, evil came; when I looked for light, then came darkness" (Job 30:26).
When we are taken into these dark periods, we begin to see light that we never knew existed. Our sensitivities become heightened and our ability to see through spiritual eyes is illuminated. Unless we are taken into these times, our souls never develop any depth of character. We do not gain wisdom, only knowledge. Knowledge is gained through understanding; wisdom is gained through the experience of darkness.
After we go through these periods, we discover that God was, in fact, with us throughout the entire time. It does not feel or appear that He is there when we are in the midst of the dark periods. However, He is there walking with us. He has told us countless times that He will never leave us. However, when we are in those dark periods, it does not feel like He is there because He does not rescue us from the circumstances. He does this for our benefit in order that we might become more like Jesus. Jesus learned obedience from the things He suffered (see Heb. 5:8). What does that say about how you and I will learn obedience? Embrace the dark times and gain the wisdom that God intends for you from these times.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 17, 2009 - Saturday Gospel Mark 2:13-17
Mark 2:13-17 - He went out again beside the sea; and all the crowd gathered about him, and he taught them. 14 And as he passed on, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax office, and he said to him, "Follow me." And he rose and followed him. 15 And as he sat at table in his house, many tax collectors and sinners were sitting with Jesus and his disciples; for there were many who followed him. 16 And the scribes of the Pharisees, when they saw that he was eating with sinners and tax collectors, said to his disciples, "Why does he eat with tax collectors and sinners?" 17 And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."
Meditation by Carol Zuegner (Journalism Department - Creighton)
Sometimes Jesus didn't hang out with the right crowd. At least in the eyes of the Pharisees. Jesus invited the sinners and tax collectors in and ate with them. Think of the high school lunch tables, the in crowd and the out crowd. Our judgmental characters lead us to put people in categories so we can feel better about ourselves. But we are all God's people.
I see this message as one of hope, redemption and challenge. Hope and redemption for me, when I fall short, when I sin, that I can still be invited to the table. The dark parts in me do not have to take over. The message also challenges me to see beyond labels and stereotypes, and more importantly, even with those labels, to open my own heart and give people a chance, the same chance and opportunity that I would hope to receive from all.
I am struck by the first reading from Hebrews:
"The word of God is living and effective,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
penetrating even between soul and spirit,
joints and marrow,
and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart."
To me, the living word draws that link between Jesus sitting around a table with tax collectors and sinners and my own world of labels and stereotypes and the high school lunch tables. I can ask God to help me peel back layers, to open my heart to God's mercy and grace.
Supplementary Reading
When Insecurity Turns Evil - by Os Hillman
Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ~ Romans 12:15
Saul was the King of Israel. David was in Saul's army and beginning to build a reputation as a great warrior. One day when David came back from a battle, the women danced and sang: " 'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of
thousands' " (1 Sam. 18:7).
Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" (1 Samuel 18:8)
This statement caused something to snap in King Saul. From this point on, Saul was never the leader God intended him to be. He allowed insecurity to drive his every decision. Insecurity leads to the need to control people and circumstances. The need to control leads to anger once we realize we are unable to control the circumstance. King Saul could not accept, much less rejoice, over David's success. David's life would never be the same, because Saul sought to kill David every chance he had. Saul had a choice; he could have seen David as an up-and-coming general in his army who could have become an important part of his team and made the kingdom of Israel even stronger. Instead, he looked at him as a threat.
When you hear good news about fellow workers or associates, do you rejoice with them? If you find yourself comparing your life's circumstances to others and don't feel you measure up, recognize that this is one of satan's greatest ploys to destroy you.
Christ has given you all things in Him. He has a unique plan for you that cannot be compared to another. He alone is your security. Trust in the purposes He has for your life. And remember, "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19 KJV).
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Carol Zuegner (Journalism Department - Creighton)
Sometimes Jesus didn't hang out with the right crowd. At least in the eyes of the Pharisees. Jesus invited the sinners and tax collectors in and ate with them. Think of the high school lunch tables, the in crowd and the out crowd. Our judgmental characters lead us to put people in categories so we can feel better about ourselves. But we are all God's people.
I see this message as one of hope, redemption and challenge. Hope and redemption for me, when I fall short, when I sin, that I can still be invited to the table. The dark parts in me do not have to take over. The message also challenges me to see beyond labels and stereotypes, and more importantly, even with those labels, to open my own heart and give people a chance, the same chance and opportunity that I would hope to receive from all.
I am struck by the first reading from Hebrews:
"The word of God is living and effective,
sharper than any two-edged sword,
penetrating even between soul and spirit,
joints and marrow,
and able to discern reflections and thoughts of the heart."
To me, the living word draws that link between Jesus sitting around a table with tax collectors and sinners and my own world of labels and stereotypes and the high school lunch tables. I can ask God to help me peel back layers, to open my heart to God's mercy and grace.
Supplementary Reading
When Insecurity Turns Evil - by Os Hillman
Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. ~ Romans 12:15
Saul was the King of Israel. David was in Saul's army and beginning to build a reputation as a great warrior. One day when David came back from a battle, the women danced and sang: " 'Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of
thousands' " (1 Sam. 18:7).
Saul was very angry; this refrain galled him. "They have credited David with tens of thousands," he thought, "but me with only thousands. What more can he get but the kingdom?" (1 Samuel 18:8)
This statement caused something to snap in King Saul. From this point on, Saul was never the leader God intended him to be. He allowed insecurity to drive his every decision. Insecurity leads to the need to control people and circumstances. The need to control leads to anger once we realize we are unable to control the circumstance. King Saul could not accept, much less rejoice, over David's success. David's life would never be the same, because Saul sought to kill David every chance he had. Saul had a choice; he could have seen David as an up-and-coming general in his army who could have become an important part of his team and made the kingdom of Israel even stronger. Instead, he looked at him as a threat.
When you hear good news about fellow workers or associates, do you rejoice with them? If you find yourself comparing your life's circumstances to others and don't feel you measure up, recognize that this is one of satan's greatest ploys to destroy you.
Christ has given you all things in Him. He has a unique plan for you that cannot be compared to another. He alone is your security. Trust in the purposes He has for your life. And remember, "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus" (Phil. 4:19 KJV).
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 16, 2009 - Friday Gospel Mark 2:1-12
Mark 2:1-12 - And when he returned to Caper'na-um after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no longer room for them, not even about the door; and he was preaching the word to them. 3 And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him; and when they had made an opening, they let down the pallet on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, "My son, your sins are forgiven." 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 "Why does this man speak thus? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, "Why do you question thus in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, `Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Rise, take up your pallet and walk'? 10 But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins" -- he said to the paralytic -- 11 "I say to you, rise, take up your pallet and go home." 12 And he rose, and immediately took up the pallet and went out before them all; so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, "We never saw anything like this!"
Meditation by Brian Kokensparger (Creighton)
I am always exhausted after Christmas. Though the season is fun, I quietly look forward to putting away all of the decorations, taking down the Christmas lights, packing them all away, getting back on my diet and exercise routine, and returning to a little normalcy.
Today's readings are about just that: normalcy. In the Church calendar, we have returned to "ordinary" time. I believe this is an ecclesiastical reference to the Church's progression through the year, but it's not all that unreasonable to also consider it by its more common definition, "commonplace or of no special quality or interest" (dictionary.com). This connotes a time of rest, even in the Church's calendar, before we begin looking forward to Lent and Easter.
The first reading, a portion of the letter to the Hebrews, speaks to us about rest as well, that rest that was won on the seventh day. It is a rest to be "entered into." That is one directive that is easy to follow; most of us are more than happy to enter into rest (the temporary kind, not the eternal kind, of course).
Those of us here at Creighton who are on the academic calendar appreciate the time between semesters as a time of rest. The students go home or travel. The faculty members also go places, or stay at home and put their feet up in front of a cozy fireplace to do research and prepare courses. Even though staff members (like me) have to work (outside of Creighton's generous holiday leave), the pace of the day is different. We are finally able to complete tasks that have been waiting all semester. We have the time to clean our desks and offices, take care of filing, review our departmental budgets, and get everything into shape and ready for the new semester. It's not rest, per se, but the different pace promotes a balance that is restorative. Even when we are working hard, it's a restful time.
Likewise, in today's Gospel reading, it appears that Jesus is getting a working rest. He is "at home," presumably taking it easy from His pressured life of ministry. Then His disciples find out where He is, and the house fills to overflowing. As a younger man, I used to wonder if Jesus considered this an interruption to His quiet time at home. Was He irritated at the intrusion of all these people? Was He just a little ticked off when they opened a hole in the roof to lower yet another needy person down to Him?
Nothing in the passage indicates this. Instead, Jesus is moved to preach, to teach, and to heal.
I believe that this is the key to this Gospel passage and to Jesus' ministry as well. Teaching, preaching, healing - they flowed out of His spirit. They are gifts of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus could not stop doing these things any more than He could stop breathing. The "rest" part was that He could do them at home, with His family, alongside people that He trusted.
Notice, though, that the ever-present scribes were also there to test Him. Even there - in the friendly confines of His family home - He was subject to criticism and scorn. And even there, He dealt with the criticism in the same way that He dealt with it on the outside - by outwitting His critics and making them step into their own traps.
So during these "ordinary" times let us dwell on our own ministries. Do they flow out naturally from our beings, utilizing our talents and gifts appropriately? Are they shared in our homes as well as the outside? Do people have to cut a hole in our roof just to get a few moments of our undivided attention?
Enjoy your "rest."
Supplementary Reading
Why God Blesses - by Os Hillman
And David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of His people Israel. ~ 1 Chronicles 14:2
King David learned an important lesson every leader must learn if he is to ensure God's continual blessing. He knew why God blessed him. It wasn't because he deserved it, though he was a man who sought God with his whole heart. It wasn't because of his great skill, though he was a great military strategist. It wasn't because he was perfect, for he committed some horrible sins during his reign as king. No, it was for none of these reasons. God blessed David for the "sake of His people Israel."
God never blesses an individual just for that person's exclusive benefit. God calls each of us to be a blessing to others. So often we forget this last part. R.G. LeTourneau, a businessman who built heavy construction equipment, came to realize this only after God took him through many trials. Once the Lord had all of LeTourneau, he came to realize that the question wasn't whether he gave 10 percent of what the Lord gave him. Rather, the question was, "What amount does He want me to keep?" LeTourneau was known for giving 90 percent of his income toward the end of his career and was a great supporter of world missions. But the Lord doesn't bless workplace believers just for the ability to give financially. God has given workplace believers many more gifts beyond the financial.
What is happening with the spiritual fruit of God's blessing on your life? Is it clogged, or is it freely flowing to others? Ask the Lord to free you to be a blessing to those in your circle of influence.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Brian Kokensparger (Creighton)
I am always exhausted after Christmas. Though the season is fun, I quietly look forward to putting away all of the decorations, taking down the Christmas lights, packing them all away, getting back on my diet and exercise routine, and returning to a little normalcy.
Today's readings are about just that: normalcy. In the Church calendar, we have returned to "ordinary" time. I believe this is an ecclesiastical reference to the Church's progression through the year, but it's not all that unreasonable to also consider it by its more common definition, "commonplace or of no special quality or interest" (dictionary.com). This connotes a time of rest, even in the Church's calendar, before we begin looking forward to Lent and Easter.
The first reading, a portion of the letter to the Hebrews, speaks to us about rest as well, that rest that was won on the seventh day. It is a rest to be "entered into." That is one directive that is easy to follow; most of us are more than happy to enter into rest (the temporary kind, not the eternal kind, of course).
Those of us here at Creighton who are on the academic calendar appreciate the time between semesters as a time of rest. The students go home or travel. The faculty members also go places, or stay at home and put their feet up in front of a cozy fireplace to do research and prepare courses. Even though staff members (like me) have to work (outside of Creighton's generous holiday leave), the pace of the day is different. We are finally able to complete tasks that have been waiting all semester. We have the time to clean our desks and offices, take care of filing, review our departmental budgets, and get everything into shape and ready for the new semester. It's not rest, per se, but the different pace promotes a balance that is restorative. Even when we are working hard, it's a restful time.
Likewise, in today's Gospel reading, it appears that Jesus is getting a working rest. He is "at home," presumably taking it easy from His pressured life of ministry. Then His disciples find out where He is, and the house fills to overflowing. As a younger man, I used to wonder if Jesus considered this an interruption to His quiet time at home. Was He irritated at the intrusion of all these people? Was He just a little ticked off when they opened a hole in the roof to lower yet another needy person down to Him?
Nothing in the passage indicates this. Instead, Jesus is moved to preach, to teach, and to heal.
I believe that this is the key to this Gospel passage and to Jesus' ministry as well. Teaching, preaching, healing - they flowed out of His spirit. They are gifts of the Holy Spirit. So Jesus could not stop doing these things any more than He could stop breathing. The "rest" part was that He could do them at home, with His family, alongside people that He trusted.
Notice, though, that the ever-present scribes were also there to test Him. Even there - in the friendly confines of His family home - He was subject to criticism and scorn. And even there, He dealt with the criticism in the same way that He dealt with it on the outside - by outwitting His critics and making them step into their own traps.
So during these "ordinary" times let us dwell on our own ministries. Do they flow out naturally from our beings, utilizing our talents and gifts appropriately? Are they shared in our homes as well as the outside? Do people have to cut a hole in our roof just to get a few moments of our undivided attention?
Enjoy your "rest."
Supplementary Reading
Why God Blesses - by Os Hillman
And David knew that the Lord had established him as king over Israel and that his kingdom had been highly exalted for the sake of His people Israel. ~ 1 Chronicles 14:2
King David learned an important lesson every leader must learn if he is to ensure God's continual blessing. He knew why God blessed him. It wasn't because he deserved it, though he was a man who sought God with his whole heart. It wasn't because of his great skill, though he was a great military strategist. It wasn't because he was perfect, for he committed some horrible sins during his reign as king. No, it was for none of these reasons. God blessed David for the "sake of His people Israel."
God never blesses an individual just for that person's exclusive benefit. God calls each of us to be a blessing to others. So often we forget this last part. R.G. LeTourneau, a businessman who built heavy construction equipment, came to realize this only after God took him through many trials. Once the Lord had all of LeTourneau, he came to realize that the question wasn't whether he gave 10 percent of what the Lord gave him. Rather, the question was, "What amount does He want me to keep?" LeTourneau was known for giving 90 percent of his income toward the end of his career and was a great supporter of world missions. But the Lord doesn't bless workplace believers just for the ability to give financially. God has given workplace believers many more gifts beyond the financial.
What is happening with the spiritual fruit of God's blessing on your life? Is it clogged, or is it freely flowing to others? Ask the Lord to free you to be a blessing to those in your circle of influence.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 15, 2009 - Thursday Gospel Mark 1:40-45
Mark 1:40-45 - And a leper came to him beseeching him, and kneeling said to him, "If you will, you can make me clean." 41 Moved with pity, he stretched out his hand and touched him, and said to him, "I will; be clean." 42 And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean. 43 And he sternly charged him, and sent him away at once, 44 and said to him, "See that you say nothing to any one; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to the people." 45 But he went out and began to talk freely about it, and to spread the news, so that Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in the country; and people came to him from every quarter.
Meditation by Don Schwagger (RC Net)
Do you seek the Lord Jesus with expectant faith? No one who sought Jesus out was refused his help. Even the untouchables and the outcasts of Jewish society found help in him. Unlike the people of Jesus' time who fled at the sight of a leper, Jesus touched the leper who approached him and he made him whole and clean. Why was this so remarkable? Lepers were outcasts of society. Their physical condition was terrible as they slowly lost their limbs and withered away. They were not only shunned but regarded as "already dead" even by their relatives. The Jewish law forbade anyone from touching or approaching a leper, lest ritual defilement occur. This leper did something quite remarkable. He approached Jesus confidently and humbly, expecting that Jesus could and would heal him. Normally a leper would be stoned or at least warded off if he tried to come near a rabbi. Jesus not only grants the man his request, but he demonstrates the personal love, compassion, and tenderness of God in his physical touch. The medical knowledge of his day would have regarded such contact as grave risk for incurring infection. Jesus met the man's misery with compassion and tender kindness. He communicated the love and mercy of God in a sign that spoke more eloquently than words.
How do you approach the untouchables and outcasts, and those you find difficult to love. Do you offer them mercy and help as Jesus did? The Lord is always ready to show us his mercy and to free us from whatever makes us unclean.
Lord Jesus, inflame my heart with your love and make me clean. May I never cease to tell others of your love and mercy."
Supplementary Reading
Welcome Your Tomorrows - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you." - 2 Chronicles 20:17
I read about a lady who, realizing that the New Year was quickly coming, gloomily declared, "Go away tomorrow." That's sad, isn't it? I say, "Welcome to tomorrow!" I'm excited because every new day creates a new opportunity.
But you may argue, "Dr. Schuller, you simply don't understand. As I look toward the future it seems like the world of technology is replacing people. So what will a future controlled by computers be like? We will all be outmoded, unwanted throwaways."
I disagree.
Really, the future of your life is not only in God's hands, but in your hands, too. You see, God gives you the freedom to choose whether or not to be a believer. What happens depends on one person-the person who sets your goals. And who sets your sights for you? Who sets your goals? You do. The key to your future lies within you.
The year ahead is filled with new goals, new hopes, new discoveries, new possibilities, new successes, new faith. So make a commitment today to welcome tomorrow as you walk in faith with God.
* * *
Thank You for being ever-present in my life, Lord. Knowing You are with me gives me the confidence I need to welcome the future with optimism and joy.
* * *
You will welcome tomorrow if you walk in faith with God today.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger (RC Net)
Do you seek the Lord Jesus with expectant faith? No one who sought Jesus out was refused his help. Even the untouchables and the outcasts of Jewish society found help in him. Unlike the people of Jesus' time who fled at the sight of a leper, Jesus touched the leper who approached him and he made him whole and clean. Why was this so remarkable? Lepers were outcasts of society. Their physical condition was terrible as they slowly lost their limbs and withered away. They were not only shunned but regarded as "already dead" even by their relatives. The Jewish law forbade anyone from touching or approaching a leper, lest ritual defilement occur. This leper did something quite remarkable. He approached Jesus confidently and humbly, expecting that Jesus could and would heal him. Normally a leper would be stoned or at least warded off if he tried to come near a rabbi. Jesus not only grants the man his request, but he demonstrates the personal love, compassion, and tenderness of God in his physical touch. The medical knowledge of his day would have regarded such contact as grave risk for incurring infection. Jesus met the man's misery with compassion and tender kindness. He communicated the love and mercy of God in a sign that spoke more eloquently than words.
How do you approach the untouchables and outcasts, and those you find difficult to love. Do you offer them mercy and help as Jesus did? The Lord is always ready to show us his mercy and to free us from whatever makes us unclean.
Lord Jesus, inflame my heart with your love and make me clean. May I never cease to tell others of your love and mercy."
Supplementary Reading
Welcome Your Tomorrows - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you." - 2 Chronicles 20:17
I read about a lady who, realizing that the New Year was quickly coming, gloomily declared, "Go away tomorrow." That's sad, isn't it? I say, "Welcome to tomorrow!" I'm excited because every new day creates a new opportunity.
But you may argue, "Dr. Schuller, you simply don't understand. As I look toward the future it seems like the world of technology is replacing people. So what will a future controlled by computers be like? We will all be outmoded, unwanted throwaways."
I disagree.
Really, the future of your life is not only in God's hands, but in your hands, too. You see, God gives you the freedom to choose whether or not to be a believer. What happens depends on one person-the person who sets your goals. And who sets your sights for you? Who sets your goals? You do. The key to your future lies within you.
The year ahead is filled with new goals, new hopes, new discoveries, new possibilities, new successes, new faith. So make a commitment today to welcome tomorrow as you walk in faith with God.
* * *
Thank You for being ever-present in my life, Lord. Knowing You are with me gives me the confidence I need to welcome the future with optimism and joy.
* * *
You will welcome tomorrow if you walk in faith with God today.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 14, 2009 - Wednesday Gospel Mark 1:29-39
Mark 1:29-39 - And immediately he left the synagogue, and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. 30 Now Simon's mother-in-law lay sick with a fever, and immediately they told him of her. 31 And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her; and she served them. 32 That evening, at sundown, they brought to him all who were sick or possessed with demons. 33 And the whole city was gathered together about the door. 34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him. 35 And in the morning, a great while before day, he rose and went out to a lonely place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and those who were with him pursued him, 37 and they found him and said to him, "Every one is searching for you." 38 And he said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also; for that is why I came out." 39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.
Meditation by Don Schwagger (RC Net):
Who do you take your troubles to? Jesus' disciples freely brought their troubles to him because they found him ready and able to deal with any difficulty, affliction, or sickness which they encountered. When Simon brought Jesus to his home, his mother-in-law was instantly healed because Jesus heard Simon's prayer. Jerome, an early church bible scholar and translator (c. 347-420), reflects on this passage:
"Can you imagine Jesus standing before your bed and you continue sleeping? It is absurd that you would remain in bed in his presence. Where is Jesus? He is already here offering himself to us. 'In the middle,' he says, 'among you he stands, whom you do not recognize' (Cf. John 1:26) 'The kingdom of God is in your midst' (Mark 1:15). Faith beholds Jesus among us. If we are unable to seize his hand, let us prostrate ourselves at his feet. If we are unable to reach his head, let us wash his feet with our tears. Our repentance is the perfume of the Savior. See how costly is the compassion of the Savior."
Do you allow Jesus to be the Lord and healer in your personal life, family, and community? Approach him with expectant faith. God's healing power restores us not only to health but to active service and care of others. There is no trouble he does not want to help us with and there is no bondage he can't set us free from. Do you take your troubles to him with expectant faith that he will help you?
"Lord Jesus Christ, you have all power to heal and to deliver from harm. There is no trouble nor bondage you cannot overcome. Set me free to serve you joyfully and to love and serve others generously. May nothing hinder me from giving myself wholly to you and to your service."
Supplementary Reading
When the Father Comes to Meet You -Written By Robert H. Schuller
"The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." - Exodus 14:14 (NKJV)
I love the story about old Dr. John McNeil who was a famous American preacher some years ago. He said, "When I was a lad in Scotland I used to work late, and in order to get home I had to walk a long distance. I had to go several miles through a little village and then through a narrow canyon where criminals and thieves were known to hide.
"One particular Saturday night I walked as fast as I could. My heart was pounding in my chest, for the night was as black as a wolf's jaw. Not a star was shining. The moon was dark. There were no lights in the sky.
"I rounded a bend in the road in the most desolate, the most forsaken and the most frightening part of the whole canyon. Suddenly, there was a call in the night! For a moment my heart stopped. The call came again, it was my father's voice. He was coming out to meet me at the worst part of the canyon. 'John! It's you!' he said.
"In a moment his large hand was on my shoulder and his heavy footsteps were falling at my side. I was home right then and there!"
You are always home when your Heavenly Father comes to meet you. For God has promised, "I will be with you!" He knows you. He calls you. And He is with you! You need never be afraid again!
* * *
Heavenly Father, I need never be afraid again for You walk with me all the way. Thank You for Your abiding presence in my life today and always. Amen.
* * *
The shadows of fear disappear in the light of God's abiding presence.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Don Schwagger (RC Net):
Who do you take your troubles to? Jesus' disciples freely brought their troubles to him because they found him ready and able to deal with any difficulty, affliction, or sickness which they encountered. When Simon brought Jesus to his home, his mother-in-law was instantly healed because Jesus heard Simon's prayer. Jerome, an early church bible scholar and translator (c. 347-420), reflects on this passage:
"Can you imagine Jesus standing before your bed and you continue sleeping? It is absurd that you would remain in bed in his presence. Where is Jesus? He is already here offering himself to us. 'In the middle,' he says, 'among you he stands, whom you do not recognize' (Cf. John 1:26) 'The kingdom of God is in your midst' (Mark 1:15). Faith beholds Jesus among us. If we are unable to seize his hand, let us prostrate ourselves at his feet. If we are unable to reach his head, let us wash his feet with our tears. Our repentance is the perfume of the Savior. See how costly is the compassion of the Savior."
Do you allow Jesus to be the Lord and healer in your personal life, family, and community? Approach him with expectant faith. God's healing power restores us not only to health but to active service and care of others. There is no trouble he does not want to help us with and there is no bondage he can't set us free from. Do you take your troubles to him with expectant faith that he will help you?
"Lord Jesus Christ, you have all power to heal and to deliver from harm. There is no trouble nor bondage you cannot overcome. Set me free to serve you joyfully and to love and serve others generously. May nothing hinder me from giving myself wholly to you and to your service."
Supplementary Reading
When the Father Comes to Meet You -Written By Robert H. Schuller
"The Lord will fight for you, and you shall hold your peace." - Exodus 14:14 (NKJV)
I love the story about old Dr. John McNeil who was a famous American preacher some years ago. He said, "When I was a lad in Scotland I used to work late, and in order to get home I had to walk a long distance. I had to go several miles through a little village and then through a narrow canyon where criminals and thieves were known to hide.
"One particular Saturday night I walked as fast as I could. My heart was pounding in my chest, for the night was as black as a wolf's jaw. Not a star was shining. The moon was dark. There were no lights in the sky.
"I rounded a bend in the road in the most desolate, the most forsaken and the most frightening part of the whole canyon. Suddenly, there was a call in the night! For a moment my heart stopped. The call came again, it was my father's voice. He was coming out to meet me at the worst part of the canyon. 'John! It's you!' he said.
"In a moment his large hand was on my shoulder and his heavy footsteps were falling at my side. I was home right then and there!"
You are always home when your Heavenly Father comes to meet you. For God has promised, "I will be with you!" He knows you. He calls you. And He is with you! You need never be afraid again!
* * *
Heavenly Father, I need never be afraid again for You walk with me all the way. Thank You for Your abiding presence in my life today and always. Amen.
* * *
The shadows of fear disappear in the light of God's abiding presence.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 13, 2009 - Tuesday Gospel Mark 1:21-28
Mark 1:21-28 - And they went into Caper'na-um; and immediately on the Sabbath he entered the synagogue and taught. 22 And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. 23 And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; 24 and he cried out, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are, the Holy One of God." 25 But Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be silent, and come out of him!" 26 And the unclean spirit, convulsing him and crying with a loud voice, came out of him. 27 And they were all amazed, so that they questioned among themselves, saying, "What is this? A new teaching! With authority he commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey him." 28 And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout all the surrounding region of Galilee.
Meditation by Joan Lanahan (Creighton)
POWER OF GOODNESS
In today's reading from Mark, Jesus' power and authority is recognized by the unclean spirit who has possessed a man:
"I know who you are: the Holy One of God".
Jesus' response: "Be quiet. Come out of him", is a good retort for us to remember in the days and months ahead.
The U.S. and World economies are a mess. More unemployment looms ahead as well as sad news in stock exchanges, housing, retail, cars, etc. You name it and doomsdayers are predicting it!
God, creating us, gave us power and authority, "a little less than the angels (Ps 8)". Some of us will have the authority and ingenuity to recreate a positive economy as well as peace where there is hatred and violence. All of us have the power to look for goodness and positive happenings instead of dwelling with naysayers.
A TV story in Nebraska last week spoke of a woman whose car was broken into and her old camera with family pictures was stolen. During a TV interview she spoke of how much those pictures meant to her family. The thief left a package for the reporter and, you guessed it, returned the camera. We can dwell on the increased robberies happening with the economic downturn, or we can choose to look for "power of goodness events".
Norman Vincent Peale wrote a powerful book,"The Power of Positive Thinking", many years ago. His recognition of a positive attitude has been confirmed by psychologists as a healthy lifestyle and a great stress reducer.
Rather than being pollyannish, we see reality, look for hope and try to be positive about possible outcomes.
You and I, Jesus' followers, and good will people of all faiths, have big challenges these next months and years. Our cultures need to become more proactive with healthy changes. We begin with ourselves. Let's be hopeful people instead of trapped in fear. Our good energy, our positive thinking, our working together to create "a Better World" begins NOW.
Supplementary Reading
Developing Our Heart for God - by Os Hillman
I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and make you like a warrior's sword. ~ Zechariah 9:13b
In the third and fourth centuries Socrates and other Greek scholars began to influence the Church in ways that were different from the Hebraic roots of the early Church. The Greek influence appeals more to the intellect, whereas the early-Church Hebraic model appealed to the heart. The Greek influence resulted in more emphasis on oratory skills and cognitive knowledge of God. Over the many centuries, this influence has shown itself in a more programmatic approach to the gospel rather than a process of living out our faith. So why is it important for us to understand this?
I realized in my own life that I was a product of this Greek system. My walk with Christ focused more on what I knew than on an intimate and powerful walk with God. Knowledge without power to express the life within is of little value. The more programmatic the focus, the less emphasis we place on building deep and caring relationships that result in changed lives. Our early Church fathers knew there was a cost to living out the Word of God, not simply giving mental assent to it.
Are you walking with God today in an intimate fellowship? Or, are you only involved in programs and activities designed to do good things? Reflect on Proverbs 23:12: "Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge." We must listen and respond with the heart. Whatever service we give to God should be a result of our relationship with our heavenly Father, not an end unto itself.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Joan Lanahan (Creighton)
POWER OF GOODNESS
In today's reading from Mark, Jesus' power and authority is recognized by the unclean spirit who has possessed a man:
"I know who you are: the Holy One of God".
Jesus' response: "Be quiet. Come out of him", is a good retort for us to remember in the days and months ahead.
The U.S. and World economies are a mess. More unemployment looms ahead as well as sad news in stock exchanges, housing, retail, cars, etc. You name it and doomsdayers are predicting it!
God, creating us, gave us power and authority, "a little less than the angels (Ps 8)". Some of us will have the authority and ingenuity to recreate a positive economy as well as peace where there is hatred and violence. All of us have the power to look for goodness and positive happenings instead of dwelling with naysayers.
A TV story in Nebraska last week spoke of a woman whose car was broken into and her old camera with family pictures was stolen. During a TV interview she spoke of how much those pictures meant to her family. The thief left a package for the reporter and, you guessed it, returned the camera. We can dwell on the increased robberies happening with the economic downturn, or we can choose to look for "power of goodness events".
Norman Vincent Peale wrote a powerful book,"The Power of Positive Thinking", many years ago. His recognition of a positive attitude has been confirmed by psychologists as a healthy lifestyle and a great stress reducer.
Rather than being pollyannish, we see reality, look for hope and try to be positive about possible outcomes.
You and I, Jesus' followers, and good will people of all faiths, have big challenges these next months and years. Our cultures need to become more proactive with healthy changes. We begin with ourselves. Let's be hopeful people instead of trapped in fear. Our good energy, our positive thinking, our working together to create "a Better World" begins NOW.
Supplementary Reading
Developing Our Heart for God - by Os Hillman
I will rouse your sons, O Zion, against your sons, O Greece, and make you like a warrior's sword. ~ Zechariah 9:13b
In the third and fourth centuries Socrates and other Greek scholars began to influence the Church in ways that were different from the Hebraic roots of the early Church. The Greek influence appeals more to the intellect, whereas the early-Church Hebraic model appealed to the heart. The Greek influence resulted in more emphasis on oratory skills and cognitive knowledge of God. Over the many centuries, this influence has shown itself in a more programmatic approach to the gospel rather than a process of living out our faith. So why is it important for us to understand this?
I realized in my own life that I was a product of this Greek system. My walk with Christ focused more on what I knew than on an intimate and powerful walk with God. Knowledge without power to express the life within is of little value. The more programmatic the focus, the less emphasis we place on building deep and caring relationships that result in changed lives. Our early Church fathers knew there was a cost to living out the Word of God, not simply giving mental assent to it.
Are you walking with God today in an intimate fellowship? Or, are you only involved in programs and activities designed to do good things? Reflect on Proverbs 23:12: "Apply your heart to instruction and your ears to words of knowledge." We must listen and respond with the heart. Whatever service we give to God should be a result of our relationship with our heavenly Father, not an end unto itself.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 12, 2009 - Monday Gospel Mark 1:14-20
Mark 1:14-20 Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, 15 and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent, and believe in the gospel." 16 And passing along by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and Andrew the brother of Simon casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen. 17 And Jesus said to them, "Follow me and I will make you become fishers of men." 18 And immediately they left their nets and followed him.19 And going on a little farther, he saw James the son of Zeb'edee and John his brother, who were in their boat mending the nets. 20 And immediately he called them; and they left their father Zeb'edee in the boat with the hired servants, and followed him.
Meditation by Rev. Rich Gabuzda (Creighton)
Bold Revelations
Today's first reading helps us make a smooth transition from the Christmas season to Ordinary Time. The Letter to the Hebrews opens by recounting that God's communication with us in the past came "in partial and various ways" through prophets; but now, "in these last days, he spoke to us through the Son." The unmistakable point is that now, for us, there is a boldness and directness, even a clarity, as Jesus reveals his Father to us.
But who is this Son? What does it mean for God to call Jesus, "Son"? Again, the Letter could not be more direct: this Son is the one through whom all things were created, the "refulgence" of God's glory, "the very imprint of his being." As the gospel accounts of the Christmas season affirm in their own ways, this child, born in the flesh, is truly divine.
In its own particular way, the Letter calls us to a careful way of seeing and hearing Jesus. As one author puts it, when we observe even "the least and most human of his reactions," we are witnessing a revelation of the Father: if we observe the humility of Jesus, we witness not a gesture enacted to make us feel comfortable with him, but rather a revelation of the humility of God himself! Here is that boldness, directness and even clarity.
The Letter challenges us regarding our own comfort with such boldness. If, for Jesus, the "least and most human of his reactions" are full of revelation, who are we to eliminate the presence of the Holy Spirit from such details of our lives? If we are humiliated in some way, do we believe that Jesus shares in that with us? If we are fatigued from life's difficulties, do we believe that Jesus shares our limits with us? If we experience joy and delight in the simplest of human activities, do we believe Jesus shares our delight? May we be given the faith to accept such truths with boldness!
Supplementary Reading
Watch Fears Fade - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"The Lord is the One who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you...do no fear nor be dismayed." - Deuteronomy 31:8 (NKJV)
The people who lived next door to us had three Doberman pinschers. The huge dogs welcomed us soon after we moved in. They were marvelous, beautiful creatures, but ferocious. I kept at least ten feet between me and the fence. When I went out running they would see me, and as soon as I came near their yard they came racing after me, teeth bared, foaming at the mouth. I'm alive because of that fence!
My daughter, though, walked over to our neighbor's yard to play with their daughter and the Dobermans never bothered her. I kept saying, "Honey, you'd better watch out for those big dogs."
And she would answer me, "Dad, those dogs are trained."
"I know they're trained," I responded, "but be careful!"
She persisted, "Dad, you just don't understand. Those dogs are trained only to bite somebody who is running. That's why they never bite me!"
I have to admit that I never experimented with that theory, but this I do know: after all my years as a pastor, I can confidently say that most, if not all, of our fears are the kind that are trained to strike at our hearts only when we run away from them. Face them, and we find they are not enemies at all. They are shadows on our path-it's that simple!
* * *
Because You are with me at all times, Lord, I can face my fears, whether large and small, and move past them as I trust in You.
* * *
Face your fears and they will fade away.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Rev. Rich Gabuzda (Creighton)
Bold Revelations
Today's first reading helps us make a smooth transition from the Christmas season to Ordinary Time. The Letter to the Hebrews opens by recounting that God's communication with us in the past came "in partial and various ways" through prophets; but now, "in these last days, he spoke to us through the Son." The unmistakable point is that now, for us, there is a boldness and directness, even a clarity, as Jesus reveals his Father to us.
But who is this Son? What does it mean for God to call Jesus, "Son"? Again, the Letter could not be more direct: this Son is the one through whom all things were created, the "refulgence" of God's glory, "the very imprint of his being." As the gospel accounts of the Christmas season affirm in their own ways, this child, born in the flesh, is truly divine.
In its own particular way, the Letter calls us to a careful way of seeing and hearing Jesus. As one author puts it, when we observe even "the least and most human of his reactions," we are witnessing a revelation of the Father: if we observe the humility of Jesus, we witness not a gesture enacted to make us feel comfortable with him, but rather a revelation of the humility of God himself! Here is that boldness, directness and even clarity.
The Letter challenges us regarding our own comfort with such boldness. If, for Jesus, the "least and most human of his reactions" are full of revelation, who are we to eliminate the presence of the Holy Spirit from such details of our lives? If we are humiliated in some way, do we believe that Jesus shares in that with us? If we are fatigued from life's difficulties, do we believe that Jesus shares our limits with us? If we experience joy and delight in the simplest of human activities, do we believe Jesus shares our delight? May we be given the faith to accept such truths with boldness!
Supplementary Reading
Watch Fears Fade - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"The Lord is the One who goes before you. He will be with you. He will not leave you...do no fear nor be dismayed." - Deuteronomy 31:8 (NKJV)
The people who lived next door to us had three Doberman pinschers. The huge dogs welcomed us soon after we moved in. They were marvelous, beautiful creatures, but ferocious. I kept at least ten feet between me and the fence. When I went out running they would see me, and as soon as I came near their yard they came racing after me, teeth bared, foaming at the mouth. I'm alive because of that fence!
My daughter, though, walked over to our neighbor's yard to play with their daughter and the Dobermans never bothered her. I kept saying, "Honey, you'd better watch out for those big dogs."
And she would answer me, "Dad, those dogs are trained."
"I know they're trained," I responded, "but be careful!"
She persisted, "Dad, you just don't understand. Those dogs are trained only to bite somebody who is running. That's why they never bite me!"
I have to admit that I never experimented with that theory, but this I do know: after all my years as a pastor, I can confidently say that most, if not all, of our fears are the kind that are trained to strike at our hearts only when we run away from them. Face them, and we find they are not enemies at all. They are shadows on our path-it's that simple!
* * *
Because You are with me at all times, Lord, I can face my fears, whether large and small, and move past them as I trust in You.
* * *
Face your fears and they will fade away.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 11, 2009 - Sunday Gospel Mark 1:7-11
Mark 1:7-11 And he preached, saying, "After me comes he who is mightier than I, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. 8 I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit." 9. In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. 10 And when he came up out of the water, immediately he saw the heavens opened and the Spirit descending upon him like a dove; 11 and a voice came from heaven, "You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased."
Meditation by Larry Broding
In Mark, Jesus first appeared at his baptism. While Matthew and Luke shared this story, Mark was unique for his brevity and his symbolism. Mark seemed to write in shorthand. He assumed his readers would understand his meaning. And the symbols (water, heavens opening, descent of the Spirit, and voice from heaven) support the first verse of Mark's gospel: "...the Good News of Jesus Christ, Son of God."
In five verses, this Sunday's gospel turned the focus from John to Jesus. John always preached the same message, "One more powerful is coming!" And he always baptized as a challenge for repentance. But, in a culture focused upon the present, John looked forward. He foresaw the baptism of the Spirit, God's very life, through the Messiah. [1:7-8; see the study from 2 Advent, Cycle B for more details on these verses]
In the next three verses, Mark put the light on Jesus. He came from Nazareth and was baptized. Then, the heavens were split open (literally "to tear apart" in Greek), the Spirit descended into him, and a sound from heaven declared Jesus as " . . . my beloved Son, in whom I am delighted." Notice a few details, however. First, in 1:10-11, Jesus saw these three events occur almost instantaneously (this is the power of the word "immediately" in 1:10). This was a moment of revelation for him. Hence, he was the witness. Second, the open heavens, the descending Spirit, and the voice of approval indicate that the power of God was not longer contained in the realm of the transcendent. No, God's power overflowed into the mundane lives of people. God was close. Third, Jesus was the focal point of God's overflowing power. The Spirit descended not upon, but within Jesus. The inner dwelling Spirit was Mark's claim that Jesus was the Christ, God's beloved Son.
While Jesus was the primary witness to these events, Mark inferred the event was public in nature. In other words, others saw what Jesus did. Others were present when God tore firmament of the sky apart so heaven and earth were one. (As a note of interest, contemporaries of Jesus believed the firmament of the sky held back the primordial water; when the heavens were opened, the water fell to earth as rain. Now, when the sky opened, the flood was God's Spirit.)
These also witnessed the Spirit coming into Jesus. The flood of God's power had one distinct point. From that point, the Spirit would flow into every creature.
Finally, a sound like thunder proclaimed the status of Jesus as God's Son. Mark used two redundant adjectives ("beloved" and "well pleasing") to make the same point. In his words, God himself legitimized Jesus' title, status, and mission. Others saw this public declaration. [1:9-11]
Why was the public nature of this act important? A public declaration of kinship was necessary for questions of legitimacy. In the time of Jesus, people had a limited knowledge of procreation. While they certainly understood how a wife conceived in union with her husband, they could not prove legitimacy of an heir. (In a male dominated, gender segregated society, men had a mistrust of their mates' moral character. While we have blood tests and DNA screening, men only had the word of their wives.) Since men held the all political and cultural power, only a father could declare his wife's child a "son." (In Judaism, the rite of circumcision provided the stage for this declaration. Eight days after birth, a son was circumcised and named by his father before God. The rite not only brought the boy into a covenant relationship with God, it brought the boy into a relationship with his father.)
Unlike Luke and Matthew who saw Jesus as God's Son from birth, Mark began the Son-ship of Jesus from his public reception of the Spirit. It began with his baptism and continued in his ministry.
The Baptism of Jesus
Why was Jesus baptized by John? The immersion of Jesus in the Jordan revealed his place, his power, and his mission. Since his baptism was witnessed by John's audience, sinners, his place was with the sin-filled, his power was for the sinner, and his mission was to the sinner. Jesus came to save the lost. So, he began his ministry in an act of solidarity with the lost.
His baptism colored the rest of his life. It foreshadowed his ministry as the "Suffering Servant" (see Isaiah 53). Being counted with sinners in baptism, he would die as a sinner. As he rose from the water, he would rise from the grave.
If we were to really answer the question of Jesus' baptism, however, we could sum it up in one word: Spirit. Jesus' baptism released God's Spirit in a new way. No longer was God's Spirit reserved for the few he chose. Through Jesus, the Spirit would be offered to all.
When we were baptized, God offered us the same revelation he made to Jesus: a flood of his very life, his indwelling Spirit, and the status of beloved and well-pleasing child.
Have you had any moments of clarity about your relationship with God? What moments of grace have you experienced? How have these moments changed you? How did those moments affirm your baptism and your life as a Christian?
While our moments of focus come in a private manner, our moment of revelation, baptism, is public. While it may not have been an overwhelming experience (indeed, we may not have even remembered it), baptism does loom over us as a turning point. God offered us the same relationship he had with Jesus. He gave us (and continues to give us) a choice for the Spirit and for divine childhood. The baptism of Jesus is our template.
The choice for baptism means to act as God's child. How can you act as His child? Choose one or two ways for this coming week.
Supplementary Reading
Mountains into Miracles - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"Praise Him for His mighty acts. Praise Him according to His excellent greatness." - Psalm 150:2 (NKJV)
Early one morning during a session of our Institute for Successful Church Leadership, a minister from Minnesota was suddenly paged to take an emergency call. He was told that his three-and-a-half-year-old son had fallen into a swimming pool. His wife had lifted the little boy out of the pool and applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to his apparently lifeless body. By the time the ambulance arrived, the boy was beginning to respond.
The whole audience of four hundred ministers joined me in prayer for that little child. And what a great moment it was at the closing convocation, during the dedication service, to see the little lad and his parents come forward to kneel at the front of the church. I don't think there was a dry eye in the entire church.
After the service, the father told me that when they arrived at the hospital, x-rays showed that there was water in his son's lungs. Several hours after we had all joined in prayer, they x-rayed his lungs again and found no water present!
The doctor called it "a miracle." And it was! For it only takes you and God to make a miracle.
* * *
Thank You, God, for the mountains in my life that You and I are turning into miracles!
* * *
For every mountain there is a miracle.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Larry Broding
In Mark, Jesus first appeared at his baptism. While Matthew and Luke shared this story, Mark was unique for his brevity and his symbolism. Mark seemed to write in shorthand. He assumed his readers would understand his meaning. And the symbols (water, heavens opening, descent of the Spirit, and voice from heaven) support the first verse of Mark's gospel: "...the Good News of Jesus Christ, Son of God."
In five verses, this Sunday's gospel turned the focus from John to Jesus. John always preached the same message, "One more powerful is coming!" And he always baptized as a challenge for repentance. But, in a culture focused upon the present, John looked forward. He foresaw the baptism of the Spirit, God's very life, through the Messiah. [1:7-8; see the study from 2 Advent, Cycle B for more details on these verses]
In the next three verses, Mark put the light on Jesus. He came from Nazareth and was baptized. Then, the heavens were split open (literally "to tear apart" in Greek), the Spirit descended into him, and a sound from heaven declared Jesus as " . . . my beloved Son, in whom I am delighted." Notice a few details, however. First, in 1:10-11, Jesus saw these three events occur almost instantaneously (this is the power of the word "immediately" in 1:10). This was a moment of revelation for him. Hence, he was the witness. Second, the open heavens, the descending Spirit, and the voice of approval indicate that the power of God was not longer contained in the realm of the transcendent. No, God's power overflowed into the mundane lives of people. God was close. Third, Jesus was the focal point of God's overflowing power. The Spirit descended not upon, but within Jesus. The inner dwelling Spirit was Mark's claim that Jesus was the Christ, God's beloved Son.
While Jesus was the primary witness to these events, Mark inferred the event was public in nature. In other words, others saw what Jesus did. Others were present when God tore firmament of the sky apart so heaven and earth were one. (As a note of interest, contemporaries of Jesus believed the firmament of the sky held back the primordial water; when the heavens were opened, the water fell to earth as rain. Now, when the sky opened, the flood was God's Spirit.)
These also witnessed the Spirit coming into Jesus. The flood of God's power had one distinct point. From that point, the Spirit would flow into every creature.
Finally, a sound like thunder proclaimed the status of Jesus as God's Son. Mark used two redundant adjectives ("beloved" and "well pleasing") to make the same point. In his words, God himself legitimized Jesus' title, status, and mission. Others saw this public declaration. [1:9-11]
Why was the public nature of this act important? A public declaration of kinship was necessary for questions of legitimacy. In the time of Jesus, people had a limited knowledge of procreation. While they certainly understood how a wife conceived in union with her husband, they could not prove legitimacy of an heir. (In a male dominated, gender segregated society, men had a mistrust of their mates' moral character. While we have blood tests and DNA screening, men only had the word of their wives.) Since men held the all political and cultural power, only a father could declare his wife's child a "son." (In Judaism, the rite of circumcision provided the stage for this declaration. Eight days after birth, a son was circumcised and named by his father before God. The rite not only brought the boy into a covenant relationship with God, it brought the boy into a relationship with his father.)
Unlike Luke and Matthew who saw Jesus as God's Son from birth, Mark began the Son-ship of Jesus from his public reception of the Spirit. It began with his baptism and continued in his ministry.
The Baptism of Jesus
Why was Jesus baptized by John? The immersion of Jesus in the Jordan revealed his place, his power, and his mission. Since his baptism was witnessed by John's audience, sinners, his place was with the sin-filled, his power was for the sinner, and his mission was to the sinner. Jesus came to save the lost. So, he began his ministry in an act of solidarity with the lost.
His baptism colored the rest of his life. It foreshadowed his ministry as the "Suffering Servant" (see Isaiah 53). Being counted with sinners in baptism, he would die as a sinner. As he rose from the water, he would rise from the grave.
If we were to really answer the question of Jesus' baptism, however, we could sum it up in one word: Spirit. Jesus' baptism released God's Spirit in a new way. No longer was God's Spirit reserved for the few he chose. Through Jesus, the Spirit would be offered to all.
When we were baptized, God offered us the same revelation he made to Jesus: a flood of his very life, his indwelling Spirit, and the status of beloved and well-pleasing child.
Have you had any moments of clarity about your relationship with God? What moments of grace have you experienced? How have these moments changed you? How did those moments affirm your baptism and your life as a Christian?
While our moments of focus come in a private manner, our moment of revelation, baptism, is public. While it may not have been an overwhelming experience (indeed, we may not have even remembered it), baptism does loom over us as a turning point. God offered us the same relationship he had with Jesus. He gave us (and continues to give us) a choice for the Spirit and for divine childhood. The baptism of Jesus is our template.
The choice for baptism means to act as God's child. How can you act as His child? Choose one or two ways for this coming week.
Supplementary Reading
Mountains into Miracles - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"Praise Him for His mighty acts. Praise Him according to His excellent greatness." - Psalm 150:2 (NKJV)
Early one morning during a session of our Institute for Successful Church Leadership, a minister from Minnesota was suddenly paged to take an emergency call. He was told that his three-and-a-half-year-old son had fallen into a swimming pool. His wife had lifted the little boy out of the pool and applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to his apparently lifeless body. By the time the ambulance arrived, the boy was beginning to respond.
The whole audience of four hundred ministers joined me in prayer for that little child. And what a great moment it was at the closing convocation, during the dedication service, to see the little lad and his parents come forward to kneel at the front of the church. I don't think there was a dry eye in the entire church.
After the service, the father told me that when they arrived at the hospital, x-rays showed that there was water in his son's lungs. Several hours after we had all joined in prayer, they x-rayed his lungs again and found no water present!
The doctor called it "a miracle." And it was! For it only takes you and God to make a miracle.
* * *
Thank You, God, for the mountains in my life that You and I are turning into miracles!
* * *
For every mountain there is a miracle.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 10, 2009 - Saturday Gospel John 3:22-30
John 3:22-30 (alternate reading: Luke 4:14-22) After this Jesus and his disciples went into the land of Judea; there he remained with them and baptized. 23 John also was baptizing at Ae'non near Salim, because there was much water there; and people came and were baptized. 24 For John had not yet been put in prison. 25 Now a discussion arose between John's disciples and a Jew over purifying. 26 And they came to John, and said to him, "Rabbi, he who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you bore witness, here he is, baptizing, and all are going to him." 27 John answered, "No one can receive anything except what is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him. 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly at the bridegroom's voice; therefore this joy of mine is now full. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease."
Meditation by Tamora Whitney (Creighton)
My spiritual New Year's resolution is to be mindful of the sacred in everything. And included in that is a sense of gratitude for the world as well. I want to sing the Lord a new song of joy and praise. For the Lord does love his people - enough to give us this amazing world and everything in it, including his son who came into this world at Christmas as a baby and will redeem the world.
In the first reading we are told that God listens to us and hears us when we call on him and that our sins can be forgiven. How grateful we should be for that. In the second reading we hear John the Baptist telling of the good things given us from heaven, and like him we can be observant of the amazing events around us.
Everything around us is a miracle, and we should acknowledge it as such. Each snowflake of winter and each blade of grass in the spring is something amazing. Everything we do, we can do begrudgingly or out of habit, or we can do with a mind to the sacred nature in all. Every errand to the store can be an adventure. Every encounter is an encounter with the sacred. Everything is sacred. Let us be glad in our maker and praise him, and be thankful for all we are given.
Supplementary Reading
The Captain of Your Soul -Written By Robert H. Schuller
"For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." - Hebrews 2:10 (NKJV)
Some years ago, after I finished speaking at a conference in Sweden, Mrs. Schuller and I took a cruise through the Northern Cape. We were at sea for a day or two and had not met the captain. But as we were walking on the deck we suddenly stopped in our tracks when the intercom came on and we heard, "This is your captain speaking."
Everyone else stopped, too, when they heard this voice with its beautiful Scandinavian accent. As we listened, we did not know what he looked like, but we did know it was his voice.
All of us ride on a ship called Earth. We are spinning at an incredible rate, flying through the universe. And I have news for you-there is a Captain, even though you haven't seen Him.
Believe in Him and sometime, somehow, someway He will speak to you through an event, an emotion, the Bible or a friend. You will hear the announcement, "This is your Captain speaking." At that moment of faith, miracles begin for miracles cannot occur without faith. And faith only happens when you begin to step out on a great idea that is seemingly impossible. And the concept of God as the Captain of your soul is the starting point!
* * *
God, You are my Captain. I am trusting You for today and tomorrow.
* * *
There is no more important voice to know than that of the Captain of your soul.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Tamora Whitney (Creighton)
My spiritual New Year's resolution is to be mindful of the sacred in everything. And included in that is a sense of gratitude for the world as well. I want to sing the Lord a new song of joy and praise. For the Lord does love his people - enough to give us this amazing world and everything in it, including his son who came into this world at Christmas as a baby and will redeem the world.
In the first reading we are told that God listens to us and hears us when we call on him and that our sins can be forgiven. How grateful we should be for that. In the second reading we hear John the Baptist telling of the good things given us from heaven, and like him we can be observant of the amazing events around us.
Everything around us is a miracle, and we should acknowledge it as such. Each snowflake of winter and each blade of grass in the spring is something amazing. Everything we do, we can do begrudgingly or out of habit, or we can do with a mind to the sacred nature in all. Every errand to the store can be an adventure. Every encounter is an encounter with the sacred. Everything is sacred. Let us be glad in our maker and praise him, and be thankful for all we are given.
Supplementary Reading
The Captain of Your Soul -Written By Robert H. Schuller
"For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings." - Hebrews 2:10 (NKJV)
Some years ago, after I finished speaking at a conference in Sweden, Mrs. Schuller and I took a cruise through the Northern Cape. We were at sea for a day or two and had not met the captain. But as we were walking on the deck we suddenly stopped in our tracks when the intercom came on and we heard, "This is your captain speaking."
Everyone else stopped, too, when they heard this voice with its beautiful Scandinavian accent. As we listened, we did not know what he looked like, but we did know it was his voice.
All of us ride on a ship called Earth. We are spinning at an incredible rate, flying through the universe. And I have news for you-there is a Captain, even though you haven't seen Him.
Believe in Him and sometime, somehow, someway He will speak to you through an event, an emotion, the Bible or a friend. You will hear the announcement, "This is your Captain speaking." At that moment of faith, miracles begin for miracles cannot occur without faith. And faith only happens when you begin to step out on a great idea that is seemingly impossible. And the concept of God as the Captain of your soul is the starting point!
* * *
God, You are my Captain. I am trusting You for today and tomorrow.
* * *
There is no more important voice to know than that of the Captain of your soul.
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
January 09, 2009 - Friday Gospel Luke 5:12-16
Luke 5:12-16 (alternate reading: Mark 6:45-52) - While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and besought him, "Lord, if you will, you can make me clean." 13 And he stretched out his hand, and touched him, saying, "I will; be clean." And immediately the leprosy left him. 14 And he charged him to tell no one; but "go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to the people." 15 But so much the more the report went abroad concerning him; and great multitudes gathered to hear and to be healed of their infirmities. 16 But he withdrew to the wilderness and prayed.
Meditation by Eileen Wirth (Journalism Department - Creighton)
If Jesus were a celebrity in our day, He might have won Barbara Walters' Most Fascinating Person Award of 31 A.D. for his cures like the one in today's Gospel. I can see him fleeing the paparazzi just as he fled the crowds of his own time.
But what I reflect on today is not how Jesus handled his growing celebrity, fascinating as that is to a journalist, but two other aspects of today's reading:
*the courage of the leper in approaching Jesus
*the respectful manner in which Jesus responded to the leper even though He obviously dreaded the inevitable impact when word spread of the cure.
It's a great lesson for anyone who constantly fields requests for help from children, students, patients, customers, parents, parishioners, administrators, etc.
As I write this, it is finals week, a period that tries the patience of the saintliest professors. At times like this, it is good to remember the courage that it takes people to seek assistance and to recall the positive or negative impact of small encounters on the supplicant. An impatient word at the wrong time can have lasting consequences or vice versa.
As a teacher, it is humbling to occasionally hear from a former student that some long forgotten kindness or piece of advice had a lasting impact. When I examine my conscience, I wonder about the contrary as well.
Although I hate the cliché "what would Jesus do?" I'll try to keep his encounter with the leper in mind when one too many requests lands on my desk or in my email.
Supplementary Reading
True Nature of Christmas Giving - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward." - Matthew 10:42 (NKJV)
It was Christmas morning, 1968-the first Christmas that the Tower of Hope was open. We had our Christmas Eve candlelight service the night before. The church was filled with candles and twinkling lights, and the most glorious Christmas music you could ever hope to hear. The next morning, the children awakened early in anticipation of the presents piled under the tree.
When the gifts were opened, I decided to return to the church. My mind and pockets were filled with little notes that people had given me at the Christmas Eve service and I wanted to organize them. Sheila, my teenage daughter, the oldest of the family, agreed to ride with me so I wouldn't have to go alone.
The church was abandoned. There was only one lonely car parked in a corner of the parking lot. As Sheila and I approached the Tower, we noticed a petite young girl, huddled against the doors, virtually sleeping on her feet.
I tapped her on the shoulder and said, "Hello."
Her eyes filled with tears. Her narrow shoulders trembled and she said, "I spent the night in my car."
It hurt to think of this poor young girl sleeping alone in her car on Christmas night. I asked her, "Where are you sleeping tonight?"
"I don't know," she replied.
So Sheila invited her to come and share a room at the house. She was our house guest for quite some time, and during that time, she was exposed to our faith, and we often would tell her, "You can go back to school. You can go to college and become anything you want to be if you just let God take control of your life."
Well, she began attending our church and made a confession of her faith in Jesus Christ and she found a new life filled with God's blessings.
What is Christmas if it hasn't made a difference? Better yet, what difference has Christmas made in your life this year?
* * *
Lord, thank You for Your special touch in my life this Christmas. Thank You for the love of family and friends and most of all for the gift of Your Son. Amen.
* * *
"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can." - John Wesley
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
http://his-ways-better-than-our-ways.blogspot.com
Meditation by Eileen Wirth (Journalism Department - Creighton)
If Jesus were a celebrity in our day, He might have won Barbara Walters' Most Fascinating Person Award of 31 A.D. for his cures like the one in today's Gospel. I can see him fleeing the paparazzi just as he fled the crowds of his own time.
But what I reflect on today is not how Jesus handled his growing celebrity, fascinating as that is to a journalist, but two other aspects of today's reading:
*the courage of the leper in approaching Jesus
*the respectful manner in which Jesus responded to the leper even though He obviously dreaded the inevitable impact when word spread of the cure.
It's a great lesson for anyone who constantly fields requests for help from children, students, patients, customers, parents, parishioners, administrators, etc.
As I write this, it is finals week, a period that tries the patience of the saintliest professors. At times like this, it is good to remember the courage that it takes people to seek assistance and to recall the positive or negative impact of small encounters on the supplicant. An impatient word at the wrong time can have lasting consequences or vice versa.
As a teacher, it is humbling to occasionally hear from a former student that some long forgotten kindness or piece of advice had a lasting impact. When I examine my conscience, I wonder about the contrary as well.
Although I hate the cliché "what would Jesus do?" I'll try to keep his encounter with the leper in mind when one too many requests lands on my desk or in my email.
Supplementary Reading
True Nature of Christmas Giving - Written By Robert H. Schuller
"And whoever gives one of these little ones only a cup of cold water in the name of a disciple, assuredly, I say to you, he shall by no means lose his reward." - Matthew 10:42 (NKJV)
It was Christmas morning, 1968-the first Christmas that the Tower of Hope was open. We had our Christmas Eve candlelight service the night before. The church was filled with candles and twinkling lights, and the most glorious Christmas music you could ever hope to hear. The next morning, the children awakened early in anticipation of the presents piled under the tree.
When the gifts were opened, I decided to return to the church. My mind and pockets were filled with little notes that people had given me at the Christmas Eve service and I wanted to organize them. Sheila, my teenage daughter, the oldest of the family, agreed to ride with me so I wouldn't have to go alone.
The church was abandoned. There was only one lonely car parked in a corner of the parking lot. As Sheila and I approached the Tower, we noticed a petite young girl, huddled against the doors, virtually sleeping on her feet.
I tapped her on the shoulder and said, "Hello."
Her eyes filled with tears. Her narrow shoulders trembled and she said, "I spent the night in my car."
It hurt to think of this poor young girl sleeping alone in her car on Christmas night. I asked her, "Where are you sleeping tonight?"
"I don't know," she replied.
So Sheila invited her to come and share a room at the house. She was our house guest for quite some time, and during that time, she was exposed to our faith, and we often would tell her, "You can go back to school. You can go to college and become anything you want to be if you just let God take control of your life."
Well, she began attending our church and made a confession of her faith in Jesus Christ and she found a new life filled with God's blessings.
What is Christmas if it hasn't made a difference? Better yet, what difference has Christmas made in your life this year?
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Lord, thank You for Your special touch in my life this Christmas. Thank You for the love of family and friends and most of all for the gift of Your Son. Amen.
* * *
"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can." - John Wesley
GOD BLESS US ALL!
Many who plan to seek God at the 11th hour, die at 10:30 :-( -Unknown
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