When the Pilgrims Return

 

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Psalm 126:1-6

When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem, it was like a dream!  We were filled with laughter, and we sang for joy.  And the other nations said, “What amazing things the Lord has done for them.”  Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!  What joy!  Restore our fortunes, Lord, as streams renew the desert.  Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.  They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.

This past Sunday Elizabeth and I attended a worship service of the outdoor sort, the final Sunday for my friend, Nathan Snyder, as pastor of Fairgrove UMC in Thomasville.  He is retiring from full time service, and it was good to be there as the congregation celebrated his four decades of ministry; it was a time filled with remembering and celebration, a time of joy.  They even had a Nathan-parade in lieu of a covered dish, as Nathan and his bride, Margaret, stood at the outdoor shelter and all the members drove past to wish their retiring pastor happy trails! 

During the last 3 months we have been enduring an exile of sorts.  Congregations all over the world have refrained from meeting in their gathering places, the place where worship is so familiar, and the hugs, handshakes, and conversations flow like refreshing streams of God’s glory.  Now we meet via pixel-resoluted screen times, flat-screened, and absent of the pulses of our brothers and sisters.  As for me, all I hear and sense of a live body in the room is my furry friend, Wellie, snoring beside me when I write, or record the latest sermon.  Stout Methodist as he is, Wellie is no match for the living, breathing human souls I long to be with.

I have gained a new appreciation of what it meant for the Israelites to be captives in a strange, foreign land…and then, they got to come home; it was a big deal.  They came singing, with joy-filled hearts and souls.  Their joy was so full other nations took note with amazement – what wonderful things the Lord has done!

And so, it is natural, as I look to the future, to relish that time when we get to come home – home to God’s spiritual body, gathered in joy and worship, instead of this drought-ship, dry, parched, quarantined existence.  In my mind there is a picture of God’s house, full of joy-filled faces, glad to be back – happy to be singing, praying, giving, loving, planning, serving….together!

Of course there will be some new flies in the ointment, so to speak.  Some will wear masks and gloves; hand sanitizer will be on order by the gallon, and some of it might feel strange for awhile.  It’s like that after a long absence; you want to get back, but what will it be like beyond just that first rush of joy?  I think I know; there will be sharing of our lives again, sharing all the stories of what has happened, guessing at why it all happened, and the catching-up that always happens.  And, somewhere past the strange uneasiness of discovering that change has happened, and the discomfort of knowing our world is different, we will find ourselves strangely renewed, hearts strangely warmed (as Mr. Wesley might say); we will awaken to the dawn of a new day of possibilities.  We will begin to open to a new moment, an era of letting the petty differences to which we may cling, evaporate like the unimportant wisps of selfishness they really are.  Song preferences, perceived slightings, unwelcomed change or tedious repetition, will all be somehow so insignificant.  In my sanctified imagination I imagine the refreshing of just raising our voices together to sing, our hands lifted to praise, heads bowed to pray, and hearts and souls opened for hearing God’s voice to lead us into deeper, fuller relationship…this is what will come for God’s people.  Because this is what God always does for grateful, humble people.  And I cannot think of a time when I have been more grateful, or humbled, by the realization that I may have been taking corporate worship for granted…and I sense that I can’t possibly be the only one who feels this way.

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, your pilgrim children, exiled from the buildings and routines we sometimes worship, are longing to go home.  We know you do all things well, and in your time.  As we wait on your hand to guide, may we wait with our sandals on, staff in hand, ready for your direction.

For You Today

Can you say “pilgrim”?  A pilgrim isn’t home; he’s wandering – she’s wondering, we’re walking.  It’s always a movement.  The only real concern we should have is the direction in which we’re moving – towards God…or the other way.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO                                                                                                                  

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on Psalm 126 see World UPSIDE DOWN and Precious Seeds  and When a Warrior Weeps

When a Warrior Weeps

 

Tuesday, June 16, 2020

Psalm 126:5-6

Those who plant in tears will harvest with shouts of joy.  They weep as they go to plant their seed, but they sing as they return with the harvest.

Those who care passionately about people weep.  In a previous post I wrote: 

The text indicates that the sower goes forth and bears the seed; but he also weeps over it.  Do you weep over insignificant things, or precious?  I see weeping over lost loved ones, straying prodigals, health reversals and lost fortunes.

So, why the weeping?  The sower knows the seed must die before it can produce anything worthwhile.  Jesus said that plainly:

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels—a plentiful harvest of new lives.  John 12:24

In that passage Jesus was predicting his death on the cross for our benefit.  It was a short time before the cross, and Jesus understood the cost of saving rebellious humankind from eternal death.  And that is why he wept in Gethsemane; Jesus was so moved with compassion for us he sweat great drops of blood.  These were the tears of his soul, longing for our redemption and squeezing every last ounce of caring for self and safety out of his system…and it was for us.

And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.  Luke 22:44

I think of presidents making unpopular decisions, knowing it might cost their political career, or personal reputation…but doing it anyway because it’s the right thing to do.

I think of a father scooping up his three-year-old from the middle of the street; the child howls with anger because she wanted to play there.  She didn’t understand the danger, so she rares back and declares to her father, I HATE YOU!

I think of a child hearing his parents, late at night, arguing in the living room…again.  And, it turns violent…again.  There is pain and blackened eyes…again; the 7-year-old cannot stay in the bed and listen….again.  So, he runs to the living room and steps between mother and father, knowing he cannot make a difference, but his weeping makes him try.

In each instance the motivation is love.  It is love that causes a president to choose the right thing over a popular thing.  It is love that makes a father act when his child puts herself in danger, and doesn’t understand.  It is love that propels even a small child to stand in protection of a battered mother.  And it was love that compelled Christ to the cross.

So, what about those seeds?  Why plant them?  Love!

There are laws of the harvest. 

          ·       You will always reap more than you sow.

          ·       You will always reap later than you sow.

          ·       You will not reap unless you sow. 

And the greatest, least popular, law is:

          ·       The harvest is greater or lesser in direct proportion to the cost to you of sowing.

Parents of prodigals sow seeds of self-sacrifice, nurture, and forbearing the immaturity of youth because of love.  And the greatest cost is loving, doing the best for the prodigal, when the cost will be the prodigal choosing the pigpen over the homeplace.  That is when a parent becomes a warrior in the prayer room, and that is when a warrior weeps.

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, we understand doing the so-called right thing is really just living the truth of love, doing the best for our neighbor, which includes the whole world, starting in our own houses with our children, parents, and kin.  Give us grace today to faithfully back up doing the right thing with our warrior’s tears.

For You Today

The joyful end of Jesus’ story of the Prodigal is separated by time in the far country’s pigpen.  It’s easy to want to jump to the last chapter; easy, not right.  Give God time and plenty of warrior’s tears to awaken your prodigal to just how bad that pigpen really smells…and how exceptionally foolish was the choice was to live there.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO                                                                                                                  

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on Psalm 126 see World UPSIDE DOWN and Precious Seeds  

Telling the Story

 

Monday, June 15, 2020

Psalm 105:37-45

The Lord brought his people out of Egypt, loaded with silver and gold; and not one among the tribes of Israel even stumbled.  Egypt was glad when they were gone, for they feared them greatly.  The Lord spread a cloud above them as a covering and gave them a great fire to light the darkness.  They asked for meat, and he sent them quail; he satisfied their hunger with manna—bread from heaven.  He split open a rock, and water gushed out to form a river through the dry wasteland.  For he remembered his sacred promise to his servant Abraham.  So he brought his people out of Egypt with joy, his chosen ones with rejoicing.  He gave his people the lands of pagan nations, and they harvested crops that others had planted.  All this happened so they would follow his decrees and obey his instructions.  Praise the Lord!

If you’ve ever slowly walked through a graveyard, taking the time and thoughtful tour, you’ve also come away wondering about the rest of the story of the lives that lay buried there.  You wonder what it was like to be that person, what joys, pains, sorrows and good times are also interred beneath the stone in the cold earth.  I’ve seen a few lengthy epistles on a few headstones that tried to get as much of the story as possible carved in stone.  But how can you get a person’s life summarized in 100 words or less, or, for that matter, in 1,000 pages?

That was the opener for the conversation between my best friend and me several days ago.  We were headed for yet another doctor’s appointment, and the pensive question bit into the silence as we drove; how can you tell a person’s entire story?  Of course, being the professional clergy in the conversation, my stock answer came tumbling out before I even considered; nobody can tell another’s story – we write our own obituary with the way we live, every thought, action, relationship, gift, and conversation.  Our conversation lasted all the way to Winston.

And then the Psalmist showed up in today’s lection, Israel’s epitaph:  Every bit of what happened was so Israel would obey God’s laws and will.  And, doesn’t that put meat on the bones of captivity, bondage, suffering, plagues, Passover, wilderness, and all the story since Eden?  Doesn’t it sum up the story of humankind from the very moment of creation?  God, the loving Creator and parent of us all, did everything with us to lead us to Him, His will, and a relationship with Him!

I have considered my bride’s question since the moment it pierced the quiet ride we were having, and it led my mind back to when I was 19 and my Dad had that conversation with me as I was getting ready to leave my parent’s home and form a new household with Elizabeth.  Dad only told me two things, the first being when the difficult times came. those would be ours to work out; the leaving and cleaving clause in those marriage vows meant accepting responsibility and the work necessary to making a marriage last and also count.  The second thing Dad told me was like the Psalmist’s summary:  everything your Mom and I have tried to do for and with you was so you will be closer to God.  Dad did say one other thing, but he said it with a smile; that was:  and, remember, you can always come home for a visit…a VISIT.  (I got it….the leaving was a one-way-door).

I think it’s an inescapable question that flows from considering the worth of your story.  It’s a question that most people on the longer side of 5 or 6 decades of living (or more) must entertain.  Let’s face it, when you get near that threescore and ten thing, you can’t avoid thinking about the next chapter.  Life is brief, moves quickly, and disappears like a wisp of wind.  Or, as Dad was also fond of saying in his later years, I ain’t buying any green bananas.

In the interest of tying today’s thoughts and Israel’s story together with your story and mine, remember that Israel’s story (as told by the Psalmist) was all about God’s presence and providence.  It was rescue, relationship, and remembering.  And this is exactly the summary of why Jesus came – he died to rescue us, and draw us into an eternity of relationship, and he doesn’t want us to ever forget that.

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, we are mindful that our story does matter.  We care that people know we lived, and that our lives counted.  Help us to live so as to leave obedient footprints following after you.  Help us to make our life’s stories impossible to tell without seeing Your holy child, Jesus, on every page.

For You Today

Do you recall the pizza commercial line that asked the question:

So, what do YOU want on your tombstone?  

You’re answering that question every day!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO                                                                                                                  

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For other posts on Psalm 105 see Hanging Out with Dad and Let the Whole World Know  

Overthinking Faith

 

Friday, June 12, 2020

Genesis 24:1-9

Abraham was now a very old man, and the Lord had blessed him in every way.  One day Abraham said to his oldest servant, the man in charge of his household, “Take an oath by putting your hand under my thigh.  Swear by the Lord, the God of heaven and earth, that you will not allow my son to marry one of these local Canaanite women.  Go instead to my homeland, to my relatives, and find a wife there for my son Isaac.”  The servant asked, “But what if I can’t find a young woman who is willing to travel so far from home? Should I then take Isaac there to live among your relatives in the land you came from?”  “No!” Abraham responded.  “Be careful never to take my son there.  For the Lord, the God of heaven, who took me from my father’s house and my native land, solemnly promised to give this land to my descendants.  He will send his angel ahead of you, and he will see to it that you find a wife there for my son.  If she is unwilling to come back with you, then you are free from this oath of mine.  But under no circumstances are you to take my son there.”  So the servant took an oath by putting his hand under the thigh of his master, Abraham. He swore to follow Abraham’s instructions.

For each of the last three years this text has jumped off the page each time I read it.  And then, I had no choice but to write what God was saying to my heart.  I went back and read each of those devotional pieces and found the common thread of Abraham living in the faith he proclaimed.  The writer of Hebrews explains:

It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance.  He went without knowing where he was going.  And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents.  And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise.  Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God.  Hebrews 11:8-10

Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob…the faith, this belief in One whom they could not see, and living in that reality was passed on to successive generations by….well, faith!

By entrusting finding a bride for Isaac to his servant, Abraham was staking the entire future of more than his family to this man; Abraham was putting the witness of God’s faithfulness on the line.  I believe the patriarch had finally learned, at that stage of his long life, to be comfortable with trusting God’s way more than trying to control everything to make it all come out right.  This is not exactly a doctrinal textbook definition of faith, but it sure says what it means to live it on the ground.

By comparison, Abraham’s servant may have been overthinking, rather than serving.  Perhaps he’d been hanging around Abraham too long, and had seen too many of his master’s flaws, lying to the Egyptians, and trying to give God’s promises a little extra insurance by having a backup heir in Ishmael.  The servant, like a cunning politician, wanted every possibility covered.  When he heard Abraham’s instructions, he asked, well, what if…and what if…and what if….  Abrahm’s oldest, most trusted servant was overthinking the issue of faith.  In patient, but no-nonsense faith, Abraham told the man…no what if’s, just do what I asked you…if God doesn’t do what He said, then you’re released from your promise. 

In hindsight, I believe Abraham had learned to trust that what he’d heard from God was to be believed, not overthought.  If God didn’t bring it all to pass, it was Abraham who had misunderstood God, and God would handle even that.

Abraham’s servant took the oath, and, later we find him wondering as he’s looking at Rebekah, is this the one?  The man had sworn an oath, and he was trying his best to fulfill his responsibility, but he just couldn’t help himself trying to make sure.  Abraham’s man may have been his oldest and most trusted servant, but he was also his Overthinker-in-Chief!

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, we’d much rather live like Abraham, trusting You, no matter what the circumstances look like, or what the prevailing culture prescribes we should do, or not do.  Help us to receive for this day Abraham’s kind of faith.

For You Today

One thing is certain about living the faith we proclaim – it ain’t easy!  But, when we do (finally) toss off all our tendency to control our circumstances, and truly let God have those circumstances, the relief and joy of trusting Him is a sure way to discover we don’t need anti-depressants or panic attack drugs to get through another day!

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!

Go to VIDEO 

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For another post on Genesis 24 see Finding Rebekah and Marrying Wisdom and Faith and The Promise  

Pictures of Truth

 

Thursday, June 11, 2020

Hebrews 3:1-5

And so, dear brothers and sisters who belong to God and are partners with those called to heaven, think carefully about this Jesus whom we declare to be God’s messenger and High Priest.  For he was faithful to God, who appointed him, just as Moses served faithfully when he was entrusted with God’s entire house.  But Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses, just as a person who builds a house deserves more praise than the house itself.  For every house has a builder, but the one who built everything is God.  Moses was certainly faithful in God’s house as a servant.  His work was an illustration of the truths God would reveal later.  But Christ, as the Son, is in charge of God’s entire house.  And we are God’s house, if we keep our courage and remain confident in our hope in Christ.  

As God’s “undershepherd”, Moses was in charge of faithfully leading the flock to follow Yahweh’s direction…and that was always (and still is) pointed in the direction of home…to the Father.

The writer of Hebrews tells us that whatever leadership Moses exhibited as he shepherded the Israelites away from bondage in Egypt, and to the brink of the Promised Land was illustration of the truths God would reveal later. 

Whenever you look at a leader and make a judgment call as to how well he or she did, you focus on what is accomplished.  But, you also (should) want to know how it was done.  It’s that old saying about how you played the game that counts.  In the Kingdom of God it is entirely about “how”.  Consider:

·       In 2 Samuel 6:6-7 we see Uzzah near the ark of the covenant; he reached out to keep it from toppling over as it was being carried; Uzzah was immediately executed by God’s power.  He thought to accomplish something worthy, but he disobeyed in how by touching what God had said was too holy to handle.

·       In 1 Samuel 13 King Saul ignored God’s instructions to wait for Samuel to offer the sacrifice before battle.  Saul sealed his loss of the kingdom by dishonoring the how of serving God in favor of the what he wanted to accomplish.

If you pay attention to how Jesus accomplished what He did, you see why the Hebrews text says Jesus deserves far more glory than Moses.  For instance, in the wilderness temptations Satan offered Jesus power, might, and glory if he would just acknowledge Satan’s power.  Jesus didn’t blink; He told the devil to get lost! 

Moses’ faithfulness as a leader was only illustrative of the faithfulness of Christ, in the same way a road sign that points to the destination is never the destination itself; it merely shows you how to move in the right direction.  And, if you’ve read the sign, understood the sign’s meaning, and judged it to be true, but you never take the first step afterward…you’re no closer to the destination than a baby eagle flying, if he is too frightened or lazy to peck his way out of the shell his mother is sitting on.

Pictures are good.  Ever since the advent of the digitized world, we all take a lot more of them…a whole lot more!  The best pictures are high resolution, vibrant colors, and interesting subjects.  Moses was a pretty good picture of leadership that pointed to the truth of God’s best.  Jesus is the best, most complete picture of God’s beauty and holiness. 

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, thank you for the holy pictures we see in the Scriptures of how you are to be worshipped and served.  May our steps in this world not just accomplish what you desire – may we accomplish your will with the kinds of steps that honor how you would be served and worshipped.

For You Today

The signs you’ve seen in Scripture point to your journey with Christ; the kinds of steps you take, the how along with the what.  How’s that journey working for you?  Or did you forget to take that first step.  If you’ve still got one more breath left in you, it’s not too late to start.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!       

Go to VIDEO

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For another post on Hebrews 3 see Think Carefully  

The Beauty of Holiness

 

Wednesday, June 10, 2020

Psalm 29:2

Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name; worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness. ^(KJV)

I was introduced to the Scriptures as a very young child.  The version of Scripture heard in our church was King James.  Memorization of God’s Word was taught as an important duty, key to having it (the Word of God) hidden in our hearts.[1]  I always assumed that the phrase in the beauty of holiness was a command that I come to God as holy, forgiven, and not steeped in my sinful ways.  That was difficult for someone like me, full of youthful questions and doubts.  I despaired of ever being “good enough” to come before God as holy.

Enter the world of other translations.  The version I have taken the time to fall in love with is the New Living Translation^©  This morning’s verse hit me with a different look at an old friend, the beauty of holiness.

Honor the Lord for the glory of his name.  Worship the Lord in the splendor of his holiness. ^(NLT)

Instead of a command to come before God for worship in my brand of holiness, the command shifts to worship God because of His holiness!  It’s a command towards reverence, not a command to get clean and live right, so you are then permitted to worship. 

This is the dress code thing I’ve bumped up against since the 60’s.  It follows this line of reasoning:  You come to God’s house dressed in your finest to honor God.  Now, that’s not bad reasoning.  If I were invited to the White House, I believe I’d wear a suit and tie.  It’s a sign of respect towards the one who sits at the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office.  But I don’t wear a suit and tie every day; especially to sleep in my own bed.  Yet, I am commanded to worship when I get up in the morning, when I leave my house, when I return, and all day, in everything I do.[2]  So, worship isn’t confined to the church house, nor is there any amount of scrubbing-up my life to get to a point of “holy” sufficient to satisfy any worthiness level before God. 

Now, that does two things:

a.     It makes me aware that I can only truly worship God when I come before Him humbled and honest, as Charlotte Elliott wrote,

Just as I am, without one plea, but that thy blood was shed for me, and that thou bidst me come to thee, O Lamb of God, I come, I come.

b.     It compels me to remember that I am always in that condition, and keeps me connected with God’s grace, which is only sufficient for sinners.  I cannot be holy without His imputed holiness to my life.

Warren Wiersbe, in his Bible Study series comments that:

True holiness is a beautiful thing to behold, and certainly the greatest demonstration was in the life of Jesus Christ when He ministered on earth. Sin is ugly, no matter what we may call it, but true holiness is beautiful and brings glory to God.[3]

So, it isn’t “holiness” that I can muster up, or fake; holiness is trusting in the God of Calvary, Who brought glory to the Father with His life, and stands with opened arms to welcome us into that beautiful holiness.  Our lives surrendered to that purpose of bringing glory to Yahweh is a beautiful thing.

Let’s Pray Together:

Father, we understand that when we worship You, who are altogether worthy AND beautiful, it is an act that brings us beauty to share with others.  Allow us grace to receive Your beauty of holiness.

For You Today

Both ugly and beautiful are forever, except when the grace found in worship makes an eternal exchange of one for the other.

You chew on that as you hit the Rocky Road today.  Have a blessed day!       

Go to VIDEO

Title Image:  Pixabay.com  Unless noted, Scripture quoted from The New Living Translation©

For another post on Psalm 29:2 see Honor the Lord  

---

[1] Psalm 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.

[2] Colossians 3:23 and Deuteronomy 11:18-22

[3] Warren Wiersbe BE Bible Study Series © Warren W. Wiersbe