Category: Scripture ponderings

Suggestive Relaxation

In the oft recited 23rd Psalm there is a phrase I am learning to appreciate. David writes: The Shepherd makes or lets me rest in green meadows and leads me beside quiet streams. (vs.2). So which is it? Make or let?

I did a little research and the one thought that bubbled to the top was the Shepherd cannot make the sheep lay down. They won’t do that until all their needs are met. Therefore, because verse 1 is true, verse 2 is possible.

But sometimes I don’t know all my needs are met because I’m so hyper-focused on my wants. I’m stomping through the wilderness wondering about when my next meal is coming (next provision) and I practically trip right over it. I’m such a dumb sheep.

But there is also a rich gift here that I have only too recently begun to recognize and appreciate.

Last fall I began utilizing a program of hypnosis/suggested relaxation to address my food/weight issues. The first thing I realized was that I didn’t know how to relax.

I have often said that as the oldest child of alcoholics (albeit functioning ones) I learned early on to be hyper-vigilant. This was a must for self-protection and in my attempts to keep my siblings from upsetting the parents. The latter was not something I did very well. The residual effects of these behaviors has left me constantly busy and pretty good at reading an audience.

Relaxing has too often felt self-indulgent. It reminds me of a book title I saw once, “When I Relax I Feel Guilty.” Intriguing while it might have been, I didn’t have the time to read it.

But rest is something different. It is holy. It is gift. It will also be the topic of my next sermon series. I found a quote which caused me to pause and reflect on my need to make more room in my life for this holy gift. The quote is from Jerry Flora’s book, “Classic Friends (p. 15).”

“On relaxing: Once Abbot Anthony was conversing, with some brethren, and a hunter who was after game in the wilderness came upon them. He say Abbot Anthony and the brothers enjoying themselves, and disapproved. Abbot Anthony said: “Put an arrow in your bow and shoot it.” This he did. “Now shoot another,” said the elder. “And another, and another.” The hunter said: “If I bend my bow all the time it will break.” Abbot Anthony replied: “So it is also in the work of God. If we puts ourselves beyond measure, the brethren will soon collapse. It is right, therefore, from time to time, to relax their efforts.”

Once upon a time a pastor was chastised by a hard working peer when found engaged in a soul-feeding pastime. The peer proudly pronounced that since Satan never took a day off, neither would they. Clearly unimpressed, the resting pastor, compassionately responded with a clear redirection: My friend you are following the wrong example. Then went onto to point out that even God rested from creative labor.

I’m not sure what you’ll be able to take away from this. I hope that you can sense the provision, presence, and promise of the Shepherd…and that you find rest for your soul. There really are green pastures and quiet streams just for you.

A Long Scrutinizing Look

We just came through the Advent and Christmas season at the church where I pastor. We have “looked” at the events of Christmas through the eyes of some of the major characters (Joseph, Mary, the shepherds, and Herod). On the final Sunday of the year I invited them to think about living with eyes wide open, expecting God to work in and through them. To drive the point home I even gave them a pair of stick-on googly eyes to put somewhere to remind them. (You can hear the sermon here: https://www.youtube.com/live/S5lCB1nqhkQ?si=YJKQyPkGFvhaobtR )

Then this morning I did my Midweek Refresh lesson (you can find it here: https://www.facebook.com/615192221/videos/1701598427084687/). In the text of Matthew 7:1-5, Jesus is speaking to the crowd about judging. One of the things I gained new insight on is Jesus concern with the hypocritical nature of their judgment. He was pointing out the negative impact of hypocrisy and holding others to a higher standard that the “judgers” held for themselves. I expressed that when I feel a judging spirit rising in me I need to turn the camera around and look into my own heart. Most often than not, the things I don’t like either about others or what they’re doing are things I don’t like about myself.

When that was done, I picked up my copy of the Message and turned to the Psalm for this week, Psalm 46. Two parts jumped out at me. I want to consider one of them here. The text is Psalm 46:10. The most familiar version is “Be still and know that I am God. Yesterday we considered the CEB: That’s enough! Today: Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, you High God, above politics, above everything.

In a devotional that accompanies The Message, I found and copied this statement into my Bible: Take a long scrutinizing look at what God is doing. This requires patient attentiveness and energetic concentration (Living the Message February 2/1).

Read those descriptors again, slowly. Let them find lodging in your mind and heart. Long scrutinization. Patient attentiveness. Energetic concentration.

Our fast-paced, over-packed, urgent and immediate life balks at the very suggestion that anything requiring more than a nanosecond of our attention is of any value. That kind of thinking will deprive us peace, joy, and love.

When we sense the gaze of our loving creator, it is the long look of pride, and delight, and everlasting love. That’s the look we need for our God. And I’m just going to put this here for us all to consider: yes, and for each other.

Today, take a long loving look at God. What do you see?

Look, look! A brand new book!!

Hey everybody!! Here’s the cover of my soon to be released devotional. In a couple days it’ll be available on Kindle. Paperback will be ready to purchase later in the week. I’ll keep you. posted Please help me spread the word. Thanks!!

Remembering God’s Mercy

Like a horse in the desert, they did not stumble. Like cattle that go down into the valley, the spirit of the Lord gave them rest. Thus you led your people to make for yourself a glorious name (Isaiah 63:13b-14, NRSV).

What a beautiful image. Sadly they are only part of the picture. These verses are preceded by a description of the negative consequences of choosing not to follow God. This choice is also found earlier in the book of Isaiah, where the prophet speaks of how God offered the people rest but they refused it.

Thinking on that this morning I was brought to tears as I considered the struggles people I love are going through because they refuse the rest, the shalom that God offers.

Recently, I had someone tell me they couldn’t talk to me because of my religion. They were sure that I judged them, and it angered them so that they would rather not have a relationship with me…they felt they could not.

To say my heart was broken would barely come close to the pain I felt.

In both a teaching and preaching setting I’ve had the opportunity to study the word “religion” and its affects on people: both those who claim to have it and those who don’t want anything to do with it. On the one hand people who claim a faithful lifestyle, often get caught up in the rules and the appearances, lacking the ability to walk the talk with integrity. They often come across as modern day pharisees with their hypocrisy hanging out all over the place.

The unfortunate thing as I see it, is we have moved so far from the root meaning of the word “religion.” If we turn to the Latin base for our word (re-ligare) we find that it refers to re-attaching, holding out the imaging of reconnecting that which has been pulled apart. By inference then, our religion should ooze integrity: the complete integration of what we believe and how we express it.

There’s another place in scripture that speaks of rest, rest by quiet streams in meadows green–a place of peace and provision: God, the good shepherd, makes me lie down in green pastures; leads me beside still waters; restores my soul. God leads me in right paths for his name’s sake (Psalm 23:2-3).

My prayer today, for you and me, would be that we not turn away from the rest God offers; that we would not settle for a disconnected life filled with things that rob us of peace and integrity; that we would chose to be led by God–the one who knows us best and loves us most, whose promise and provision puts the pieces back together and completes and restores us. Amen.

Hopefully Devoted: May Your Name Be Kept Holy

Our Heavenly Father, may your name be kept holy (Matthew 6:9).

You must not misuse the name of the LORD your God (Exodus 20:7a).

This week I’ll start a series of messages on the Lord’s Prayer. We’ll primarily consider Matthew’s version. So our first message is on, “Our Heavenly Father, may your name be kept holy.”

Meditating on this reminded me of the commandment listed above. Typically we think of “not taking the Lord’s name in vain.” Which is what then became the meme above when I put the commandment into the positive (more “do this” than “don’t do that”).

So much can be unpacked in this one verse of teaching on prayer. I would lift up to you two helpful books for your consideration/edification/education. The first book is by Kenneth E. Bailey, “Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes.” And the other is “The Greatest Prayer,” by John Dominic Crossan.

For this post, however, I just want us to consider what it means to keep God’s name holy. When you were growing up did your parents ever admonish you to not do anything that would tarnish the family name? In some cultures this is more intensely adhered to, but there is that element of family honor to some degree across the board. And the consequences varied with the intensity.

Something that is holy is set apart, or set above all else. In the commandments, God already established that the people were to have no other gods before him, and no idols. How it became more focused on our verbal use of God’s name is subject for another time. Limiting how we honor God with merely our speech, clearly misses the full understanding of “keeping God’s name holy.”

Bottom line, keeping God’s name holy is about how we live. In all that we do, are we putting God first? Do we carry the name of God well? Is the fish on the back of our car giving other drivers a clear message who our co-pilot is? Does the cross that we wear or Jesus name on our t-shirt proclaim whose we are?

As we consider the Lord’s Prayer, let’s be sure to begin by evaluating our words, thoughts and deeds.

Hopefully Devoted: Walk Humbly With Your God

This Sunday we will complete our current series on the Micah Mandate, Micah 6:8, by considering the third instruction/expectation: walk humbly with your God.

One of the commentators I read suggested that the order of the instructions is key to understanding what God was requiring of the people. First, do justice: do the right thing. Seek to live equitably. Consider who/how God is and how God wants us to live.

Then, love fiercely–because that’s how we are loved by God. Yes, we are to be kind. Definitely we are to show mercy: not giving unto others what they deserve, but we are to go beyond that expectation and show God-type love.

Finally then, walk. Live. Live daily. Jesus’ very instructions to his disciples was that they were to take up their cross daily and follow him (Luke 9:23).

One of the things we’re going to do in the Sunday message is look at each of the words in the final instruction. As I meditated on the phrase, looking at each word on its own, I began to wonder where God would place the emphasis. Honestly, I’m not sure.

The word, though, that kept rising to the top for me today is the word: humbly. Pondering this, I recalled a book I got last year by Christopher A. Hutchinson entitled, “Rediscovering Humility.” (Confession: I wasn’t in a place spiritually or mentally where I could read last year. Being in a different place now, I’m ready and reading. So far: it’s spot on!)

Right from the top, Pastor Hutchinson makes it clear that humility is not something we can add to our list of qualities to strive for in our faith journey. He puts it this way: “I wish instead to advance humility as the central paradigm of the Christian life. I believe humility to be at the very heart of Christian faith and even to be the best paradigm of all proper thought regarding God, oneself, and others…It is the alpha and omega of the gospel at work in God’s people (pg. 3).”

What does he mean when he calls it the “best paradigm of all proper thought regarding God, oneself, and others”? A paradigm is the example or pattern. In this case the author is saying when you peal away all the layers and get to the heart: you’ll find (or should) humility.

Who we are and how we are to be as a people following Jesus is summed up in humility. When Jesus preached his Sermon on the Mount, he began with the beatitudes, and the very first one (blessed are the poor in spirit), points to a clear awareness of who we are and how we are to be in relationship with God. When Jesus responded to the disciples request to be taught about prayer, Jesus began by pointing again to that relationship (our Father).

Micah leads to that same place. Get it right with your brothers and sisters (do justice). Love like God (hesed, everlasting fierce love). And keep walking, living in that proper relationship with God.

The very first scripture I learned as a child was Psalm 100. Those words are the bedrock of my faith: It is He who made us, and we belong to Him (Psalm 100:3). That for me points me clearly to who God is, and my relationship with the Creator. In awe and wonder, thankfulness and humility then I live my life…I will walk humbly with God.

Monday Mindset: Resolute

Definition: admirably purposeful, determined, and unwavering

Good Monday morning to you! And greetings to those who find this later. As promised, we will bring a Monday morning post that is focused on a word given to us by a friend on Facebook that will hopefully help us to get our week started on a positive note, and help to carry us through. Today’s word was given to us by my friend, Dawn Baldwin.

I’ve given you the internet definition of our word, resolute. I’ve also supplied you with a mini collage of pictures that I found on pixaby.com.

A quick search of Bible references led me to these verses:

I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 2 Timothy 4:7.

To this end I strenuously contend with all the energy Christ so powerfully works in me. Colossians 1:29

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9

Which of the pictures above speaks the loudest to you of being resolute? Which Bible verse?

For me it’s the snails. I’m not sure if you can tell, but they’re either at a start or finish line. Sometimes life feels like it flies by at NASCAR speed. But not always. Often it truly does move painfully s l o w. Waiting for results or returned calls. Being on hold. Trusting others to do their part. Not knowing. Not seeing. Uncertain. Doing and overdoing can make us feel bone-tired weary…but so can doing nothing.

Here’s the major lesson I learned in 2022: God’s got this. And while I live in an instant, do-it-right-now world, there are things that take time. I came back from Arizona and I was ready (or so I thought) to jump right into my next assignment. And it didn’t happen. Month after month. Opportunity after opportunity. The fullness of God’s plan did not unfold for almost the entire year.

I will not pretend that I was patient. Nope. I shed tears and cried out to God. But I also kept on. I kept on trusting. I kept on watching. I kept on serving. My commitment was unwavering. God placed a call on my life and I knew that whatever was next would be divinely orchestrated. And, I was right.

Now as you look out over what this day, this week, your life holds, I invite you to check your resolve, your commitment. Don’t grow weary in the waiting or the doing. If the path takes a turn, anticipate the adventure. If the way seems hard, remember how you’ve made it through hard times before.

Go back and look at our definition. There’s a word included that gives added meaning to our commitment. See it: admirably. You will not admire your own resolve. God will not be impressed. Nope. Our resolute living is our testimony, our legacy.

So, hang on. Keep going. The world needs to see us trusting God’s power. The wold is hungry to see how to run the race. Our commitment and faithful running of the race will not only result in our reward for finishing. It may also encourage other weary runners along the way.

Q Is For Quiet

(Another post from long ago…right when I needed the reminder.)

For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, “In repentance and rest you will be saved, in quietness and trust is your strength. But you were not willing, (Isaiah 30:15).

When our first grandchild, Penelope, was born I created an ABC lullaby that was quite effective at calming her and lulling her to sleep.  She heard it nearly every day for six months and then she and her mommy moved away.  My second grandchild, Caden didn’t get to hear the song much since they lived away from us when he was little.  When Asher came along he lived with us and even when he and his mommy got an apartment he came to see us nearly every day.  Needless to say, Asher heard the lullaby almost daily.  As calming as it was for him, singing it also calmed my spirit.


I have come to appreciate quiet and not just the quiet that comes after the kids are gone.  I mean the stillness of a fresh morning when I whisper even to God.  This has not always been the case.  For far too many years I had way too much on my on my plate.  Keeping myself busy, taking on more and more tasks earned me recognition at work and seemed to impress people.  So I kept at it, all the while feeling a niggling in my spirit that whispered of my need for quiet and rest.  But I was not willing, and the result was tragic.  I’m still trying to put the pieces back together, but some days it really doesn’t feel like there any pieces to work with (see Isaiah 30:14).  


Recently Asher was obviously needing a nap, but desperately fighting to stay awake.  He had crawled up into my lap so I started to sing the ABC lullaby.  Knowing that he didn’t want to go to sleep, he put his hand over my mouth and said, “No, Mema.”  He knew if I continued to sing he would fall asleep and he just couldn’t afford to miss anything.  Or so he thought.  He had a miserable afternoon which resulted in his spending some time in Time Out where, finally alone, he fell asleep.

Just like I knew that Asher needed a nap, God knows what we need.  He knew what the children of Israel needed, too.  They foolishly wanted to put their confidence back in Egypt.  They didn’t want to trust in God or his word.  The prophet is warning them that they needed to return and find their rest, their satisfaction in God and his plan.  They needed to surrender their disquieted spirit and find their strength in him.  But they weren’t willing.  Are you?

Staying Thankful

Here’s the context for the meme verse: Ever since I first heard of your strong faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for God’s people everywhere, I have not stopped thanking God for you. I pray for you constantly, asking God, the glorious Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, to give you spiritual wisdom and insight so that you might grow in your knowledge of God. I pray that your hearts will be flooded with light so that you can understand the confident hope he has given to those he called—his holy people who are his rich and glorious inheritance (Ephesians 1:15-18, NLT).

There are three dogs living in my house. Two belong to my daughter with whom we share the house. And one is mine. Half the time we walk the dogs together, but some days I walk them by myself. Our walks together are full of conversation and much laughter. When I walk alone, I occasionally talk to the dog, or myself. Sometimes I talk to God.

A friend of mine used to live in one of houses I pass often. She moved away this year. I miss her. A few walks ago as I walked past her old house I told God I missed her and asked for a special blessing to fill her heart. Without missing a beat, I felt God nudge me that I should let my friend know I thought of her and prayed for her.

That’s what Paul did here. Beyond that, he also listed what he would ask God for his friends. Consider his list: spiritual wisdom, growth in knowledge of God, understanding of the hope God offers to those who believe and follow.

The friends Paul prayed for “unceasingly” were seeking to walk in faith in a new way. Some were building on their Jewish roots, but others were building as they went. The things Paul asked of God represented how the Ephesian believers hearts and minds needed to be equipped for the persecution they faced for choosing to walk in a different way.

The world doesn’t understand our choice of following the way of Christ. Our friends need prayer for strength and wisdom.

One other thing jumps out at me from Paul’s prayer. Appreciation. It’s not a big thing, but expressing our gratitude for others can go a long way, and deliver a huge blessing. Today let’s make a point of telling someone how much they mean to us. Let’s thank God for them, and let them know we’re holding them in our prayers.

Gratefulness

Hi. If I told you this year’s been hard, it would be an understatement.

Words, thoughts, creativity…they’ve been tough to come by.

Right now I’m feeling cautiously optimistic. That’s not how I like to be. I want to be all in and enthusiastic about everything. Just not there right now.

So it’s not surprising to me that while I intended to write 30 devotions about gratitude and thankfulness this month…I’ve only gotten as far as creating a few memes and picking out Bible verses to reflect on.

Here’s the first meme:

I referred to this verse in my FB Midweek Refresh lesson. I have felt like addressing the different verses which point to giving thanks and being grateful, while frequently discussed, are not always given a honest interpretation when it comes to application. Why? Because life is tough and we need more than Pollyanna platitudes.

On a scale of 1-10, I would give this verse a 10 for difficulty. My reasoning lies in the phrase “in all circumstances.”

Before we pick this verse apart, let’s drop it into context for a moment. Paul wrote the letter of 1 Thessalonians in response to the heavy persecution the believers were facing. He wanted to encourage their faith and hope. To do this he directed them to look to the future, and specifically to Christ’s return.

When do we lose hope? For me, hopelessness creeps (and often floods) in when my focus is on the direness, bleakness of the situation. Feelings of overwhelming lack and negativity block out the positive…the hope.

Paul’s words and intent reminded me of the old hymn: “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus.” The encouragement of the hymn writer syncs with Paul’s message, for when we look full into Jesus’ wonderful face “the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of his glory and grace.”

Nothing about this verse diminishes the awfulness or pain we might be going through. It certainly didn’t for the Thessalonians. Our hope is not in the circumstances changing. So what does? Our focus.

It is God’s will for us to give thanks in all (each and every) circumstances because we experience the presence and promise of God through it all. We never face the test or difficulty alone. We never have to do it in our strength alone.

And look…just thinking about this enabled me to write a blog post. Thank you, God, for your presence and promise. Forgive me when I lose focus. Remind me where to keep my eyes. Amen.