pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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Faith Formation

Reading: 2nd Samuel 2: 18-20 & 26

Verse 26: “The boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and favor with the Lord and with men”.

After being dedicated to God, young Samuel continued to grow both physically and spiritually. Hannah would make him new priestly garments every year and would bring them to him at the time of the yearly sacrifice in the temple. Our passage tells us that “the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and favor with the Lord and with men”.

As I think about Samuel’s upbringing I think about how we raise our children – both in our nuclear families and in our church families. Just as Samuel was dedicated to God at birth, so too do people of faith dedicate their young children to God. In some faith traditions we baptize our infants, marking them as a member of the family of faith and pledging to raise them in the faith. In other faith traditions, infants are dedicated or consecrated with the same marking and pledge to raise them in the faith. In both cases the congregation has a role to play. The congregation pledges to do all they can to help raise the child in the faith.

As soon as they are able to we begin to bring our children to Sunday school or perhaps to a Wednesday night faith formation class. They learn the stories of the Bible and begin to apply its teachings to their lives and decisions. At some point we hope our children grow out of the faith of their parents and into a faith of their own. In some churches baptism marks this point and in others confirmation does.

As we look at Samuel’s life and at other examples we find in scripture, we see that the plan that God has for all children is to be raised in the faith. May we be attentive to all of our children, ever aware of our roles as parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, friends, mentors, teachers, pastors… to be a part of their faith formation, helping them to always “grow in stature and favor with the Lord and with men”.

Prayer: Lord, help me to be faithful in leading and guiding my children and all of the children that come under my care, helping each to know you more and to draw closer to you. May I ever do these things with both my words and my actions. Amen.


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Where’s Your Bethlehems?

Reading: Micah 5: 2-5a

Verse 4: “He will stand and shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord”.

Out of tiny Bethlehem will come the ruler of the world. Out of this small village will come Jesus Christ, the Lord. It is a great claim to fame for a really little place. In reality, it is a small place in a small country. Israel today is only the size of a small state – closest to Massachusetts or New Hampshire. But size – big or small – is not what is important or relevant. What happened there is what matters. Bethlehem is where love and peace and hope and mercy and grace and forgiveness took on flesh and entered the world.

We often encounter Jesus in church. At times I will find myself overwhelmed with His presence, tears streaming down my face as we sing a song or hymn. But Jesus is not just in church. He came to “shepherd His flock” everywhere, not just inside the walls of our churches. This leads me to consider where else I have met Jesus. Each of these is my own little Bethlehem – relatively unimportant in the big scheme of things, but very significant to me and my faith. It was once in the balcony of my home church on a Friday night during a retreat. It was once in the emergency room in tiny Torrington, Connecticut. I have encountered God over and over in so many places. Each has been a blessing to me.

This leads me to invite you to take a few moments to recall your Bethlehems. When and where have you encountered the peace or love or grace or… of Jesus Christ? This day, take some time to celebrate and thank God for His presence in your life. May it be a time of blessing for you.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for meeting me in church, in the woods, in the ER and birthing rooms, in the mission field, and in many other places. Thank you God. Amen.


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Why Am I So Blessed?

Reading: Luke 1: 39-45

Verse 43: “Why am I so blessed, that the mother of my Lord should come to me”?

Luke begins his Gospel with the angelic visits to Zechariah and to Mary, each time proclaiming a special and holy birth. Zechariah is told that his boy will go before the Lord, preparing the people for His coming. Mary is told that she will bear the Son of the Most High. She is also told that Elizabeth will give birth too, even though she is old and barren. Gabriel closes his visit with Mary by reminding her, “For nothing is impossible with God”.

This quick recap gets us to today’s passage. Mary gets ready and heads off to see her relative Elizabeth. When Elizabeth hears Mary’s voice, her baby leaps within her womb. Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and she identifies Mary as “blessed among women” and declares the child to be blessed as well. Elizabeth, through the power of the Spirit, knows she is in the presence of the Lord. She then asks, “Why am I so blessed, that the mother of my Lord should come to me”? She wonders honestly why she is so blessed.

Every day we cross paths with many people. Often they are familiar to us and sometimes we meet someone new or someone we only occasionally see. This last one was the case with Mary and Elizabeth. Some of our encounters each day are opportunities to be people of faith. Maybe it is by simply rejoicing in someone’s presence in our lives, thanking them for the positive ways in which they bless us. Maybe it is ministering to their need in that time and place – offering food or clothing or gifts for their children, praying with them, or just being present during a time of loss. Maybe it is sharing the good news with someone who does not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

We do not know if it is a familiar face or a stranger that God will place in our path today or tomorrow. We do not know what task God will set us to. But we do know that the Holy Spirit will lead and guide us to accomplish God’s purposes if we are as willing and receptive as Elizabeth was. If we are, we too will be blessed. Like her, we may walk away wondering why we were so blessed to be in Jesus’ company. If we are faithful, we will be truly blessed.

Prayer: Lord, may the Holy Spirit be active and present today. May my words and actions bring your light and love into people’s lives. In doing so, I will be blessed to be in your presence as well. Thank you for the opportunities you bring my way. May I be faithful to be your hands and feet and voice. Amen.


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Community

Reading: Philippians 1: 3-8

Verse 6: “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”.

In his letter to the Philippians, Paul begins by thanking God for the faith this church displays. Each time that he prays for them he rejoices in their “partnership in the gospel” with him. They must be living out their faith well. Paul also recognizes the end game as well. Their faithful living will lead to the redemption of their souls. In verse 6 he writes, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus”. Paul is thankful for their place in the family of God both now and in eternity.

Do you have folks in your life that you can say this about? Can you survey those you know and offer up such a prayer of thanksgiving for them? We each have people “in my heart”, just as Paul did, that we too can be lifting prayers of thanksgiving for. There are many in my family and in my circles of church friends and colleagues who have great faith that I am thankful for. Their witness and example encourage and strengthen me on my journey of faith.

For Paul, whether in chains or out preaching the gospel, he appreciated the connection that he has with all Christians everywhere. Paul knows that the family of God extends across geographical spaces and through cultural and social differences. He writes, “all of you share in God’s grace with me”. If he were reading this line aloud, I think Paul would emphasize the word “all”. There is a unity amongst and a connection between all members of the body of Christ. For this too I rejoice. For Christians everywhere, no matter our denominational flavor, we all share the same Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are all living under the same covenant of grace. In the essentials, we enjoy unity and community. Praise be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for all of those you have and continue to place in my life who live as witnesses to your will and way. They mean so much to me, to my faith. Bless them, O Lord. I also thank you for my fellow Christians, who also seek to bring you glory as together we build the kingdom. Thank you God for the larger community of faith. Amen.


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Love Overflow

Reading: 1st Thessalonians 3: 9-13

Verse 12: “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and everyone else”.

As Paul writes to the church in Thessalonica in our passage today, he is writing to the community of faith. Throughout the Bible, God is about community. In the beginning, God lived in community with Adam and Eve. As the Bible progresses, God’s love story reveals that community is the way we are to live out our faith. Much of our faith continues to be practiced in community. Our sacraments focus on being a part of the community of faith.

Our culture today has a mix of community and individualism. Most of the things we do are done in community – family, school, sports, work. But within these is a sense or valuing of individual success or achievement. We hear things like, “they wouldn’t be the company they are without…” or “they would not be the greatest team ever without…”. In our culture we raise individual success over the group’s or team’s success.

In a way the same can be said of people in the Bible. For example, we could say that without Moses the Israelites would either still be wandering around the desert or they would have returned to Egypt. In the Bible, no individual is more important than Jesus Christ. No one was a better example of obedience to God. No one loved God and neighbor like Jesus did. Yet these individuals were different than the individuals that rise to the pinnacle of their fields today. Moses and other important Biblical leaders, and especially Jesus, were not about self and individual glory. They were about living in relationship with God and with their communities. They were not just leaders, they were humble servant leaders.

Above all, Jesus’ life revolved around love. It is the focus of our key verse today: “May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and everyone else”. During the season of Advent, may we spend time each day in the Word and will the Lord our God, growing in love. And may that love overflow to each other and to the stranger that we meet as well. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Dear God, may love be evident in our community of faith – in the ways we worship you and in the ways we love each other. May that love flow out into our homes, into our neighborhoods, into our schools and work places, so that all will know the love of Christ this Advent season. Amen.


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Holy and Blameless

Reading: 1st Thessalonians 3: 9-13

Verse 13: “May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be holy and blameless… when our Lord Jesus comes”.

In our passage today, Paul is writing to a persecuted church. The Christians suffered for their belief in Jesus Christ. Paul is writing to encourage them to keep the faith. In a world that is often attacking their faith, it must have been hard to always be light and love to the world.

In our country, persecution is not widespread. I do not fear going to church tomorrow nor do I try and keep my identity as a pastor secret. Even so, even in America, at times Christians do face forms of persecution and do suffer for their faith. This is part of the times in which we live. We are now living in between the fall of man and the restoration of all things when Jesus returns in final victory. As followers of Jesus we do have the model that Jesus himself lived out. He gave us the example of how to live a life obedient to God regardless of the cost.

The Christians that Paul was writing to also relied on the witness and teaching of Jesus. They also turned to the Word as well. The Thessalonicans kept the faith because they knew the promises and trusted them. Through faith they lived with God’s love, grace, mercy, and hope. Through faith they were blessed with God’s presence, strength, comfort, and assurances. They daily lived out verse 13: “May He strengthen your hearts so that you will be holy and blameless… when our Lord Jesus comes”.

When our lives become stressed and the voices of discord and unrest and questioning and even persecution arise, may we too remember and cling to the promises. When suffering comes our way because of our faith, may we rejoice as we welcome God’s communion with us, walking by our side. In the persecution and suffering, in the trial, may we fully rely on God, walking holy and blameless in His sight – not on our own but fully in God’s power and might.

Prayer: Lord – thank you for your abiding presence in the good and in the bad. You are always near. Thank you Lord. Thank you. Amen.


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Eyes to See

Reading: Luke 21: 25-36

Verses 26 and 26: “There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars… nations will be in anguish… men will faint from terror”.

In our gospel lesson for this week, Jesus tells us that there will be signs that signal His second coming. In our opening verses, He says, “There will be signs in the sun, moon, and stars… nations will be in anguish… men will faint from terror”. These verses make it sound like it will be evident when the time is at hand. Yet for thousands of years people have seen catastrophic wars and diseases and disasters and wondered: is it now?

Since war and violence and pestilence seem to be natural parts of our world that occur with regularity and frequency, it is hard to interpret any of these as the signs that Jesus Christ is speaking of in today’s passage. So how will we know? I think the better question is: how do we see?

In our modern world we often rely on medicine instead of prayer. We turn to prayer as a last resort. We turn to ourselves to solve life’s problems instead of seeking the guidance of the Holy Spirit. When this doesn’t work, we may try and numb ourselves or may turn to other ways to take our minds off the matter. Again, we turn to faith when all of our efforts to solve, avoid, numb, forget, ignore… have failed. We do not always see the world – both the bad as well as the good – through eyes of faith. If we are looking for signs with our human eyes, surely we will miss the signs from God.

To use a simple illustration, I see this revealed at funerals. If the person and family are people of faith, they see the loss with a long-term vision. If the person and/or family is not a person or people of faith, then the death is the end. Both families feel the sting and pain of human loss, but when viewed through eyes of faith, the hurt is tempered by the hope of eternal life and by thoughts of eventual reunion. These same can be said for how people view change, other losses, hard times…

Yes, Jesus will return. If we are looking for, even anticipating this, then we see the world with eyes of faith and our daily lives are so much richer. We will see signs of the kingdom often, being strengthened and encouraged along the way. May we ever be on the watch, seeing with eyes of faith, eager and ready to encounter Jesus here and when we do stand before Him one day. Amen.

Prayer: Lord, prepare me. Lord, give me kingdom eyes to see. Come Lord Jesus, come. Amen.


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Always Comes Through

Reading: Psalm 126

Verse 1: “When the Lord brought back the captives… we were like men who dreamed”.

Today’s Psalm is a song of ascent. It would have been sung as the people were heading to worship. Our Psalm today is both one of remembrance and one of longing. Verse 1 remembers: “When the Lord brought back the captives… we were like men who dreamed”. The people were blessed to return to Jerusalem from captivity. God kept them safe and provided for them. The people dreamed about restoring the temple and the city. It was a time when God was surely present. We too all have times that we can look back to and see when God led us out of the valley or through the darkness.

Then, in verse 4, there is a transition. The author writes, “Restore our fortunes, O Lord”. Life has been a struggle. Things have not gone well lately. Maybe there has been a drought and ensuing famine. Maybe those around them have been more hostile than usual. There is weeping and sorrow in the land. We too have been here – in a season or time when we felt hard-pressed, when we felt that God has forgotten about us.

Yet in our Psalm the people still look to God. Even in the hard time. The people still trust that God will restore them. Even when hope begins to dim. They look to God in faith. They know that God will never abandon them. In faith, we too trust that God will never abandon us. God is always faithful and true.

In one of my daily devotions, the author spoke of our God “who may not come when we want but always comes on time”. It was a wonderful reminder. Sometimes we do have to wait a bit, but God always comes through. Thanks be to God. Amen.

Prayer: Lord, help me to always trust in you. Give me your patience when mine runs thin. Give me the faith of the psalmist when my faith teeters. Thank you for the many experiences of your restoration and grace in my life. May I remember them in my times of need, gaining assurance that you are always on the way. Amen.


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Unlikely

Reading: 1 Samuel 2: 9-10

Verse 10: “He will give strength to His king and exalt the horn of His anointed”.

Just as Hannah poured out her suffering to God, in her prayer today she pour out the joy of her heart as she expresses her thanks to God. Hannah also offers a prophetic word to the nation of Israel. Her son will follow in her footsteps as Samuel is used by God to change the course of Israel’s history as he anoints their first kings.

Hannah comes to this role from the margins. She has been outside looking in for a long time and now she is the voice of prophecy, speaking of God as their Rock and of His blessing those who are obedient and faithful. She speaks here from her own experiences with these things. Because God answered her prayers, she believes that God will also be with the people. She looked to God and He responded; if the nation does so too, then God will respond.

Samuel, her son, will be Israel’s last judge. Judges were people God raised up to lead the people. The line of those who guide the people with God will come to a close as Samuel anoints Saul as the first king. Now prophets will come along to guide the nation, but they will not rule. As Saul falters, Samuel will anoint David to be Israel’s next king. Hannah speaks of David’s rule when she says in verse 10, “He will give strength to His king and exalt the horn of His anointed”. David will be Israel’s greatest king and through his line, Jesus will be born.

Hannah was an unlikely mother. Yet she gave birth to one of the great prophets. Hannah was an unlikely choice to be the voice of God for her people. Yet as she poured out her thanks to God, the Spirit spoke through her to bring vision and hope to Israel. Are we too unlikely to be used by God? If we are faithful and obedient, God can and will use each of us too. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Dear God, Hannah was faithful and true. She held firm to you, her God. May my faith and my walk be as true. Use me in your kingdom, O God. Amen.


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Witness

Reading: Mark 12: 41-44

Verse 43: “This poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others”.

This passage is a hard passage for many Christians today. Part of me wonders if it is a stay-home passage. That is a passage that people know is being preached on so they choose to stay home from church that day or they quit reading the blog at that point. It is a passage that challenges us to our core if we are willing to consider Jesus’ message and to really look within to see if we are equalling the example set by the widow.

“This poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others”. She only put in two small copper coins. They were worth just a fraction of a day’s wages. This would be equivalent to a $40,000 a year business person putting in a couple of dollars at church today. Jesus and the disciples have watched rich person after rich person throw large sums of money into the temple treasury. Compared to their large gifts, it is hard to say that the widow’s offering is “more” than theirs. Yet Jesus says it is more. In fact, more than all the others.

No matter how big or small our offering is today in terms of cash value, I wonder if Jesus would say our offering was “more” when set beside all the other gifts brought to our church today? It is NOT about the cash value of the gift but is about the cost to the giver. A four-year-old could bring the best offering today, just as the widow did. Jesus explains why the widow’s gift was such. Jesus says, “They gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything – all she had to live on”. Wow.

Some folks blanch at the word “tithe”. Compared to the widow’s faith, even 10% might look weak. There was not only great cost for the widow, there was a deep, deep faith on display. When you consider what you bless your church or community of faith with each week, does it demonstrate such cost and such faith in God? In not, I ask you to reconsider your faith.

Dear Father who blesses me so richly: may I ever give to you as the widow gave. Whether my time or my money or my gifts, may the portion I give you reflect the love you have for me. Amen.