pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Monthly Archives: December 2023


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Building Faith

Reading: Psalm 126:1-3

Verse 3: “Yes, the LORD has done great things for us, and we are overjoyed.”

Today the psalmist writes of a faith practice that we too must include in our faith practices. The psalmist looks back on a difficult time that God has rescued them from. The Israelites had been in exile in Babylon for a long time. Finally God heard their cries and rescued them. In today’s Psalm the writer recalls that when “the Lord brought back the captives,” suddenly their future was bright and filled with hope. The people dreamed dreams and they celebrated life back in Palestine. The Israelites were “filled with laughter” and there was joy upon their tongues.

Can you recall a time when God rescued you or when God restored you in some other way? Did you stop and laugh as God’s actions filled you with joy? It is so important to recognize and to remember those times when God has turned our sadness into joy, our hardship into blessing. These interactions and moments are important to celebrate in the here and now. And they are important to recall the next time we are in a struggle. They build up our faith and trust in God. They prepare us to turn first to God in moments or seasons of trial and hardship.

As the psalmist looks back on what God has done there is a recognition that other nations have noticed. There is a recognition of God’s power and might. Then our section for today closes with these words: “Yes, the LORD has done great things for us, and we are overjoyed.” May it be so for you and for me as well.

Prayer: Lord God, you are faithful and steadfast to us, the sheep of your pasture. You watch over us and guide us; you provide for us and you nourish us. And in times of trouble, you rescue us. Your love never fails. Thank you, most faithful and loving God. Amen.


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A People the Lord Has Blessed

Reading: Isaiah 61:8-11

Verse 11: “The LORD God will grow righteousness and praise before all the nations.”

In the second half of this week’s Isaiah 61 passage God declares a love for justice and a corresponding hate of robbery and iniquity. In all things God loves good and hated evil. This is because God is good and in God there is no evil whatsoever. Created in God’s image, God’s intent is for us to mirror the character of God. In verse 8 God promises an everlasting covenant. Through this covenant the people of the Lord will be blessed.

Beginning in verse 10, Isaiah responds. The promises of God bring delight and joy to his soul. The prophet noted that God has “clothed me with garments of salvation… in a robe of righteousness.” Covered in these figurative garments, Isaiah is empowered to practice and to reflect the character of God. The living out of a deeply rooted faith will be a witness to the people of God and to the world. This connects back to verse 9b, where we read, “‭All who see them will recognize that they are a people blessed by the LORD.”

Our passage also connects with an analogy that I’ve touched on the last two Sundays. In these words of hope and of a promise of new life, Isaiah draws on the image of a garden. The soil and the seed are essential. Good tending is necessary. And then God gets involved as the seed sprouts, grows, and eventually bears a crop. The same concepts are true in our faith. Time in the Bible tolls the soil of our hearts. Worship and study and prayer plant seeds that we must tend to and nourish. Then God’s Holy Spirit gets involved, leading and guiding our growth, causing our faith to grow deeper, allowing it to be witnessed by all, leading others to seek out the One in whom we delight and find joy, the One who leads us in righteousness and into salvation. May this be so for you and for me today and every day.

Prayer: Lord God, your covenant remains true today – you are our God and we are your people. Clothe us in righteousness, fill us with the joy and delight of salvation through Jesus Christ. Then set us out into the world, Lord, drawing others into a saving faith. Amen.


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Such… Good… News

Reading: Isaiah 61:1-4

Verse 1: “The Lord has sent me to bring good news to the poor… to bind up… to proclaim release for captives… liberation for prisoners.”

As Isaiah’s ministry and Israel’s time in exile is coming to a close, the prophet offers these words of hope and promise. These words were written to a people living in captivity in a foreign land. These words can be applied to many times and to many people who are experiencing exile in many forms. These words spoke to the people of Jesus’ day as they lived under the Roman occupation. These words speak to many people today. These words speak to you and to me.

Verse 1 is so powerful. It is jam-packed with hope, promise, rescue… It begins with a call to “preach good news to the poor.” Maybe this is material good news – food, help with rent or gas or utilities, warm clothes for the winter. Maybe this is spiritual aide that helps them to know that they are beloved and worthy, that they matter and belong to God and to us. Then there is “binding up” those who are broken and hurting. Verses 2 and 3 also touch on this. The binding up is healing for the ill and the suffering. It is also comforting those who grieve. It is drawing in the lonely. There is also proclaiming the freedom from captivity and darkness that the Lord brings. This encompasses the Israelites literal release from Babylon. It also includes release from addictions and other abusive relationships or from unjust situations and systems. And it includes freedom and release from our sins and from the guilt and shame that is often connected to our sin.

In one form or another we have each experienced each of these forms of the good news. As followers of Jesus Christ we too are sent to bring this good news to others. Taking where we have been, recognizing how we got to where we are at, may we help others to experience the good news of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Prayer: Lord God, walking and living with you, we’ve experienced firsthand all of what Isaiah speaks of. We’ve been healed, freed, rescued… Use each of us today and every day to bring the good news of Jesus Christ to those who need healing or hope, release or rescue, restoration or redemption. Amen.


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A Holy Kiss

Reading: Psalm 85:8-13

Verse 10: “Faithful love and truth have met; righteousness and peace have kissed.”

Our second half of Psalm 85 with promises of peace, salvation, and the glory of the Lord. What wonderful words for the people to hear. God has felt absent for a while now. To beg for God’s presence and to hear these words in response – what hope! Embedded in these words are also things that the people must live out. They must return to being God’s people, fearing the Lord by living lives that honor and adhere to God’s will and ways. The relationship is not one-way.

The Psalm pivots in verse 10. Here we read, “Faithful love and truth have met; righteousness and peace have kissed.” The coming together of these four qualities of God are sealed with a kiss. In our time, this is no longer a common practice or gesture. This kiss, one gentle expression of friendship, love, and peace, was a greeting between close friends and family. This kiss was tender and vulnerable. This kiss expressed genuine affection and it welcomed both parties back into intimate relationship.

Today’s equivalent may be the handshake and the hug. My wife and I went to a reunion of sorts last night. It was folks who had taught and worked together at a school that closed at the end of 2012. There were some folks I waved to and smiled at from across the room. Some I shook hands with and then we shared in small talk. A side hug was the greeting that was used. We shared in a bit deeper conversation about our lives. For many, the hug was embracing and lasted a few seconds. The conversation thereafter was genuine and deep, bringing us right back to 2012 and then up to last night. In today’s text, that is the holy kiss shared between God and God’s people. May that be how we greet God as we open our Bibles, as we bow our heads, as we worship, and as we engage God’s world.

Prayer: Lord God, each time that we draw near to you, may it be filled with genuine affection and deep love, faithfulness, righteousness, and peace. And as we go from our time together, may these be the fragrance and outpouring of our lives, drawing others towards you. Amen.


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Recalling Faith and God

Reading- ‭Psalms ‭85:1‭-‬2‬ ‭- “LORD, you’ve been kind to your land; you’ve changed Jacob’s circumstances for the better. You’ve forgiven your people’s wrongdoing; you’ve covered all their sins.”

Photo credit: Diego Gennaro

Psalm 85 is a song of remembrance. Although we only read portions today and tomorrow, the whole song remembers both the good and the bad of Israel’s relationship with God. It recalls times of joy and times of sorrow. It thanks God for God’s presence and it begs God for God’s presence. In the general sense, then, it mirrors most of our lives of faith – the days when we are close to God and the days when we feel distant, the times of joy and the times of sorrow. These emotions and feelings are amplified in the holidays.

Like many Psalms and other books of the Bible, Psalm 85 reflects on the story of faith. Today’s two verses celebrate when God’s “favor” was shown, restoring the peoples’ lives. The restoration centers on the forgiveness of their sins. Sin is often what creates the separation and sorrow. God’s love and grace remedy this division. As a people of God and as persons of faith, it is important to remember that God always restores us – both in particular instances and in the continual mercy and grace that always abounds in our lives.

In the spirit of the Psalm, what stories of God’s presence do you recall? What special moments happened at this Christmas or at that family gathering? It is important to also reconnect to the moments when God has been tangibly present in Advent or Christmas Eve worship. Take some time to recall these God moments and the blessings of God for you and your family. And in doing so, be assured that God is with us now and will be with us in our future.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the many ways that you have touched our lives and our faith. As we’ve recalled these moments, we now rejoice in your love for us and for our place in the family of God. We are grateful for our place and for the love and presence that will continue to walk with us each and every day. Thank you, Lord God. Amen.


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Trust in HOPE

2nd Peter 3:12b-15a – “But according to his promise we are waiting for a new heaven and a new earth, where righteousness is at home. Therefore, dear friends, while you are waiting for these things to happen, make every effort to be found by him in peace—pure and faultless. Consider the patience of our Lord to be salvation.”

As we continue in the week’s Epistle reading, Peter draws us to the big picture, to the promise and hope that one day Jesus will return. The community of faith has given up their old ways of life and have taken on Christ. This decision for Christ has not always been easy to live out. There is persecution in many places and there is the constant pull of the world. All of this remains true for those seeking to walk faithfully today.

In verse 13 Peter offers these words: “But according to his promise we are waiting for a new heaven and a new earth.” Jesus himself said that he would return. That is the promise. But within this promise, it can still be a challenge to live faithfully in the here and now. There are times when our faith is challenged by things outside of our control and there are times when we create the difficulty all on our own. Both are often rooted in sin.

Today is the last day for a local institution that cares for those struggling with the issues of poverty and homelessness. They have long lived and ministered to those that Jesus would call “the least of these.” The forces of this world have once again conspired. The closure is not just or right or holy. Last night a few of us gathered outside the building to remember and share stories and to pray for the future. There was a heaviness that remains on my heart today.

Yet even in grief I can choose to trust in hope. In hope for the salvation that Peter writes of today. In hope for those who will be without come Monday. In hope for those who have failed the vulnerable and powerless. In hope for what God might have in store for our community. I choose to trust in hope because in and through Jesus, one day we will all experience a new heaven and a new earth. There will be no more tears, no more hunger, no more hate. There will be a banquet table where all have a place. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, walk with us who grieve today. Whisper your words of love and hope into our hearts again and again today and again in the hard days to come. Wrap your arms of love around us and keep us in your care. Amen.


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Work to Be Done

Reading: 2nd Peter 3:8-12

Verses 11-12: “What sort of persons ought you to be in leading lives of holiness and godliness, waiting for and hastening the coming of the day of God.”

Photo credit: Clay Banks

As Peter closes his second letter, he addresses their concerns about the delay of Jesus’ return. He first reminds them of the difference between God’s time and their time. It has been about 30 years since Jesus was raised from the tomb. In the present moment, 30 years of waiting does feel like a really long time for us. Yet from God’s perspective, 30 years isn’t even a miniscule blip on the eternal timeline. Yet Peter does understand the believers desire for Jesus to return. I love Peter’s words and thoughts that address this longing: “God is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.”

I love the fact that Peter sees beyond just the believers. It’s not all about them (or us in today’s context.) It is partly about the other. As the day will come “like a thief’s – unexpected and suddenly – the followers of Jesus need to always “live holy and godly lives.” Day by day they must live always ready for Christ to come. Peter is echoing Jesus’ words from last week: stay alert, be ready, keep awake. The second emphasis in this part of the passage is on the other. They are why God is patient. They are why the second coming has not yet occurred. God wants “everyone to come to repentance.” Everyone.

Peter’s encouragement to live holy and godly lives is both for their own salvation and for the non-believers salvation. The believers must live this way to be able to witness to the other. Always loving and caring for others reveals Jesus’ love and care for the other. This is how they and we work “to speed its coming.” Yes, there is still work to be done. Let’s get busy!

Prayer: Lord God, what great love you have for all of humanity. Your patience is waiting on us to make disciples of all peoples. This feels like an “all” – not just some, not just most. This requires us to have a love as deep and wide as your love. Make it so within us, O God. Amen.


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The Glory of the Lord: Love

Reading: Isaiah 40:1-11

Verse 5: “Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together.”

Photo credit: Milo Weiler

Isaiah 40 offers words of comfort to Israel. In the book of Isaiah, chapters 1-39 have detailed God’s case against the leaders and people of God. They have lived in sin. They have been disobedient. They have worshipped idols and foreign gods. The last king boastfully shows off the treasures of his kingdom to some envoys from Babylon. Chapter 39 ends with Isaiah foretelling of the long exile that is soon to come. After this dire prophecy, all hope would be lost.

Many scholars believe that the portion of Isaiah that covers chapters 40-66 was written much later and likely comes from an anonymous prophet writing under Isaiah’s name. Although in our Bibles it seems like the next day as we turn from chapter 39 to chapter 40, we’ve moved from the 8th century BC to the 6th century BC. The exile has happened. Jerusalem and the temple have long laid in ruins. For generations, exile is all they’ve known. Some scholars suggest that God has been silent for these 150 or so years. If all hope was lost at the end of chapter 39, now the people do not even know what hope is.

Now, with that background and context, hear again these words of comfort, these words that promise restoration of Israel. The way will be made by God. “Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together.” The Lord will “gather the flock” that has long been scattered in exile. The Lord will carry them “close to his heart.” As God speaks again to the people, God speaks words of love. Soon these words will take on flesh and dwell among us. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, you remind us today of your great love that still overcomes even the greatest sin and still restores even the deepest separation. You continue to dwell with us, offering hope to all who call on your name. Thank you, God. Amen.


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Change IS Necessary

Reading: Mark 1:1-8

Verse 3: “Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.”

Returning to Mark 1 today we delve a little deeper into the “repent” part of John’s message. Although we tend to place the practices of introspection, confession, and repentance in the season of Lent, these practices also have a place in Advent. They are the focus of our Lenten preparation. They are part of our Advent preparation.

By our nature we are prone to sin. We are naturally selfish and this leads us to be greedy or controlling or lustful or prideful or… These emotions are enablers on our path to sin. So we need to hear the call to repent, even now in this season of hope and peace and love and joy. The call to repent makes us a bit uncomfortable. First, no one likes change, especially when it is forced. And that is what repentance is really about – forcing our naturally selfish nature to be unselfish. And, second, no one likes to hear that they are living wrong, that they are living unfaithfully. To hear this implies a need for a change. And change is necessary.

In Advent we prepare the way in our hearts for the coming of Jesus. In his birth we celebrate the light coming into the world. It is the light of Christ that shines into the darkness of injustice and inequality, poverty and want, isolation and loneliness, grief and anger, violence and war, and so much more. It is the light that beckons us into these places and spaces. This too is part of the call to repent – to help our world and one another to repent of these maladies. In these places and spaces change is also necessary. As we allow the light of Christ to shine brighter in our own hearts, may we also take that light out into the world, bringing healing and wholeness to our broken and dark world.

Prayer: Lord God, may our journey be both inward and outward. As we grow in our love for you, may that love overflow out into the world. As we seek to change within, may we also seek change in our world. In and through us may your light shine brightly, bringing healing within and without. Amen.


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Responding to the Call

Reading: Mark 1:1-8

Verse 4: “John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.”

Photo credit: Savvas Kalimeris

We begin the week in Mark’s gospel. It was the first gospel written. It is short and concise. Mark mostly focuses on the three years of Jesus’ active ministry. Matthew’s and Luke’s gospels were built upon Mark’s and add much more detail to Jesus’ life, particularly to his birth. John’s gospel is similar to Mark’s in its focus. After a short Genesis-ish “birth story,” John jumps right to where Mark begins, with John the Baptist. Just think – if we only had Mark’s and John’s gospels we’d likely not have nativity sets and childrens’ Christmas programs and…

Verse 1 states that Mark’s gospel is “about Jesus Christ, the son of God.” And then Mark leads us out into the Judean wilderness. Quoting from Isaiah as a means to quickly set the stage, Mark reminds his readers of the prophecy that foretold of one “calling in the desert.” The call was to prepare oneself for the coming of the Lord, to straighten out one’s life so that one was ready to receive the Messiah into one’s heart.

Responding to this call from God, we read, “John the baptizer appeared in the wilderness, proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.” John called people to repent of their sins – to clean up their lives. This was the first step in readying people for Jesus’ coming. Laying their sins before God and repenting of them – committing to holy living – people were then baptized in the Jordan River. In this season of Advent may we too make ourselves right with God and, remembering our baptism, may we commit our lives once again to holy living.

Prayer: Lord God, may we hear the call of John the Baptist as a call upon our lives and hearts too. Help us to realize the full weight of the call to repent, to turn away from our sin and disobedience, and to walk closely with you again. And may we also remember that the burden is light and that the way is easy because you walk with us. Amen.