pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

Tag Archives: Lord


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Drawing Others to the Lord and Savior

Reading: John 4:27-42

Verse 28: “Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town.”

As the story of Jesus’ interaction with the woman at the well continues, we read, “Then, leaving her water jar, the woman went back to the town.” The woman has been touched by Jesus emotionally and spiritually. She lays aside – maybe forgets? – why she came to this place and goes to invite others to come and meet Jesus. It is no small point that she goes and invites those who have made her into an outsider, into an outcast that feels she must come to draw water alone in the heat of the day.

So moved is the woman and so compelling is her testimony that she draws others into a relationship with Jesus. Can you remember when your faith was so strong that it drew others to Christ? Perhaps you have and live that kind of faith now. The woman’s testimony is so powerful that many Samaritans come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah. Others are drawn by this power and come to believe after they have spent some time with Jesus. In all, many people from this woman’s village come to know “that this man really is the Savior of the world.”

Where do you connect with this story? Are you where the woman was when she first came to the well or are you like the woman who laid her worldly task aside to share the good news of what Jesus has done for her? Maybe you’re somewhere in between. In the end Jesus calls the disciples and us to be like the woman who went into town to draw others to her Lord and Savior. In verse 35 Jesus tells us, “Open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for the harvest.” Like the woman, may our faith draw others to the Savior.

Prayer: Lord God, use me today to draw others to Christ. By my words, my actions, my example, use my life to reveal the Lord and Savior of the world to all that I meet. Amen.


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God our Help

Reading: Psalm 121

Verse 8: “The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore.”

Verses 1-2 are a declaration of the psalmist’s trust and faith in the Lord our God. The author declares that help comes from the Lord. These verses may be words we claim too. These words can be read as our words, as words that declare our faith.

Verses 3-8 define the help that can come from the Lord. They are things that the psalmist has experienced and offers to us and to others as something that we or they can experience. If you’re not quite ready to claim verses 1-2 as your own, then these remaining verses offer evidence of the ways that God can be your help. God will guard your steps and will be your protector. God will watch over you “both now and forevermore.” As we journey in faith, trusting in God just a little, we come to see that God is always faithful. This allows us to trust just a little more. Perhaps this has been your experience long enough that you do claim all of the words of the psalmist as your words. Perhaps these words are your declaration too – words of faith and trust in a God who will always be your help.

Claiming these words as our own – whether now or at some point on your journey – we must ask: how do we, like the psalmist, proclaim and declare them so that others can know the Lord as their help? This is our charge: to share the good news. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Lord God, in whatever way I can, help me declare that you are my help and my shield, my defender and my guide. With words and actions may I share the good news with all I meet. Amen.


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Always

Reading: Psalm 121

Verse 2: “My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.”

Psalm 121 is one of the Songs of Ascent – songs that were sung as people headed up to worship. Jerusalem and the temple were built upon hills that physically required upward movement. The Psalm begins with a lifting of the eyes, with a look up towards God. As movement is definitely part of our Lenten journey, this Psalm fits right in. These words today speak of a physical journey. This is certainly part of our faith too. We go to worship, to classes, to events to grow in our faith. And we also go to our sacred spaces – the sanctuary, the beach, the path in the woods… – when we need to feel God’s presence in times of need.

The psalmist declares, “My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.” The writer recognizes that the Lord is personal – “my help” – and that the Lord is all-powerful – “the maker of heaven and earth.” In the remainder of the Psalm we read of God’s constant presence in our lives. The Lord watches over and protects us “both now and forevermore.” To the psalmist, God is always right there, always present. This truth is our truth too. The Lord never leaves us, never “slumbers or sleeps.”

As we take in the whole of this Psalm, we come to recognize our dependence on God. It is humbling to see how totally dependent we are on the Lord. Yet it is also deeply assuring to know that God is always right there. A thanksgiving wells up in me as I am reminded of God’s abiding presence that is a constant in our lives. As we continue on our Lenten journey, may we walk fully assured that God is with us – always.

Prayer: Lord God, yes, my help comes from you! Thank you for reminding me once again that you are always there. May my grateful response today be to make you more fully known to those living outside of a relationship with you. Use me as you will to reveal your love to the world. Amen.


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Justice, Mercy, Humility

Reading: Micah 6:6-8

Verse 8: “God has shown you… what is good… what is required… To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.”

Photo credit: Simon Berger

As we turn to the second half of this week’s Old Testament passage, Micah asks what he should bring before the Lord. He wonders if burnt offerings would be enough. Maybe so if it were “thousands of rams” followed by “ten thousand rivers of oil?” That sounds like a lot. Or maybe something closer to home? Perhaps sacrifice a child – “the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul?” That feels like a lot. It felt like a lot was needed. The sin of Israel was great. Yet for God, restoring a relationship wasn’t about volume or about a huge but isolated proof of faith. It was much simpler. It was about the heart. In Micah’s day the Israelites were going through the motions required by the sacrificial system. To go through them a thousand or ten thousand times mattered not. To offer your firstborn and then to return to sinful living? Worthless.

Instead of hands and feet going through meaningless motions, God desired the heart of the people. God wanted to see hearts committed to what really mattered to God. In verses 8 we read, “God has shown you… what is good… what is required… To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.” God sought people with hearts focused on justice, mercy, and humility. This is what is good. This is what is required. This is what really matters to God. The challenge for us is this: in our modern world, how do we live this out?

We live in a time when people are selfish and focused on material goods and social status. From this place it is difficult to see injustice, oppression, and pride as bad things. They are the means to achieving success. Yet these practices leave a wake of poverty and division and need. It is to these things that the eyes and heart of God are drawn. What is our response, our good and required response? It is not to write a check for $1,000 or to donate 10,000 meals or to sell our house to give money to some great cause. While good and likely helpful to others, these motions do not align our eyes and heart with God’s eyes and heart. Our response is really much simpler than these things. Very hard in our culture, yes, but simpler. What is good, what God required? A daily walk that focuses on justice for all, mercy and kindness to all, and humility as we seek to walk hand in hand with our God. Walking this way, our eyes and hearts will be drawn to the places and people that draw God’s eyes and heart. May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Lord God, it really is pretty basic, isn’t it? Step away from self and from all that the world says matters. Step into the circumstances and lives of people that matter to you – those needing to experience justice, those needing mercy, those requiring a humble servant’s presence. Use me in all of these ways, O God. Amen.


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What Is Right and True

Reading: Psalm 27:1, 4-9

Verse 1: “The Lord is my light and my salvation — whom shall I fear?”

Photo credit: Darold Pinnock

This week’s Psalm begins with words of faith and trust in God. As you read these words, David’s faith oozes out, his trust shouts aloud. Moving into verse 4 we see the source of his faith and trust. Here David asks just one thing – to dwell in God’s presence all of his days. Even though an enemy may attack, even though an army may besiege him, David trusts that God will keep him safe and that God will “set me high upon a rock.”

In this life we will face enemies and attacks. Last night at youth group we talked about doing the right thing. It is a moment when we sometimes falter, fearing what may happen to us, worrying about what others may say or think about us. Fear of the potential trial or of the cost of doing what we know is right and just can paralyze us. In David’s words we are reminded today that God is with us and that God has been and always will be both our helper and our defender.

Today we remember and celebrate one who lived these words and truths out. Today we remember and celebrate a pastor who chose to stand for justice and equality. Fear could have easily won the day many times. The threats and violence would’ve silenced many people’s voices. Day by day, Martin Luther King, Jr., clung to his light and salvation, to his stronghold, to the one rock upon which he stood. As his fellow saints who walk the same path of faith, may we too choose love instead of hate, trust instead of fear, and hope instead of defeat. God is still at work for the good in all things. In faith and trust may we stand for what is right and just.

Prayer: Lord God, what examples of faith. From the one who sought you with all of his heart to the one who trusted you with his very life, may we be encouraged and inspired. As we seek to trust in you, O God, and as we strive to be love to and for all people, deepen our faith in you, our rock and our light. Amen.


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Praise Lived Out

Reading: Psalm 148

Verse 13: “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.”

The psalmist calls for praise. Following the order found in Genesis 1 in the creation story, the writer calls for praise from all parts of our existence. From the sun, moon, and stars, all the way to humanity, the call is to praise the Lord our God. In verse 13 we are provided with the ‘why’: “Let them praise the name of the Lord, for his name alone is exalted; his splendor is above the earth and the heavens.” God alone is worthy of our praise. Yet praise is more than simply worshipping God.

Walter Brueggemann argues that our lives should be praise lived out. Yes, we are to worship and praise God for all that God has done and continues to do. But our praise cannot stop in the past or even reside just in the present. Our lives and our praise must also be a part of building God’s kingdom here on earth. Jesus – God with us – best personifies this idea. His life of praise was lived out in the ways he sought the lost and the least; in the ways he healed and cared for the orphan, the sick, the widow; and, in the ways he gave mercy and grace to the outcasts, the marginalized, the sinners. Jesus revealed a new way of being and living in the world. It was the way of love.

As we stand on the brink of a new year, we often think of and reflect back on the year that is ending. May one of our questions be to ask ourselves if we loved as Jesus loved. And then may we consider how we can love God and one another more deeply and more completely in 2023. As we prepare to enter a new year, may we commit to being praise lived out, all for the glory of God.

Prayer: Lord God, as this 24 hours rolls into the next one, it is just another day. Yet it also is a significant change, a moment that calls me to reflection and introspection. Pause with me today, O God. Help me to consider how I can better praise you with my life in the coming year. Sit with me and show me how I can better live out my praise of you, my God, my Lord and Savior. Amen.


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Sing, and Pray!

Reading: Psalm 96

Verses 10 and 11: “Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns” … Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad.”

Photo credit: Jack Sharp

Psalm 96 is all about singing a song to God, the creator of all things. We are invited to proclaim salvation to all the world. We are encouraged to sing of God’s splendor and majesty, of God’s strength and glory. The psalmist invites us to “bring an offering and come into God’s courts.” Go to church or the temple or synagogue or sanctuary and bring God a thank offering. Go and worship the splendor and glory of the Lord!

We are not invited to sing a solo or even to sing just with our brothers and sisters in Christ. In verse 10 we read, “Say among the nations, “The Lord reigns.” Share the good news and invite all people to join in the worship! “Let the heavens rejoice, let the earth be glad.” As our voices come together and praise the Lord, the sea, the fields, the trees – all of creation – will join in the mighty chorus. This vision is part of the Advent. Yes, a part of Advent is the celebration of the birth of Christ. But a part is also to look forward to the second Advent, to the time when the new heaven and earth are established. It is then that this mighty chorus will praise God.

While this vision and these thoughts bring many of us joy and hope and peace and a feeling of being loved, some people are struggling right now. Yesterday we had a Blue Christmas service, ministering to those experiencing grief and loss during the holidays. Several from our community of faith are in the hospital or have family there. It is -16° here and the wind is howling. Suffering is not just emotional but also physical for some. As we sing praises to God, let us also lift a lament for our brothers and sisters who are having a difficult time now. May we cover one another in prayer.

Prayer: Lord God, today I think of those without home and of those whose jobs place them out in the weather. Be a shield about them, lead them to shelter. And my heart is heavy for those battling illness today. Be with them Lord Jesus, be close by their side. Amen.


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Grace and Peace

Reading: Romans 1:7

Verse 7: “Grace and peace to you from God our father and from the Lord Jesus Christ.”

Photo credit: Jon Tyson

“Grace and peace to you.” This phrase and the meaning that it carried flows throughout the New Testament and is foundational to the body of Christ. These two essential elements of the gospel create a holy community when lived out. When the Christian community says and lives out these two concepts both within and outside the community, barriers such as socio-economics, gender, race, ethnicity… are broken down and removed. Being loved by God transforms the way that we love others.

Grace is the gift of God and Jesus Christ that leads to forgiveness and reconciliation. Grace is something we do not deserve but receive abundantly anyway. It is the backbone of our covenant relationship with the Lord. Grace is what drives the no-matter-what love that God has for us and that we are called to practice with others. Peace was first a Jewish concept. We’ve lost some of its original meaning. “Shalom” was their word. It conveyed the basic ideas of peace – contentment, assurance, ease – but it extended much wider for the Jews. Shalom longs for and works toward God’s vision for the world – nothing broken, everything made whole. That’s why caring for the needy, welcoming the stranger, protecting the weak… were deeply engrained in the Hebrew people. Peace should long for this for all people and for all of creation.

When we live and extend these ideas of grace and peace, we are building holy community and we are inviting all to be a part of that community. May it be so for you and for me. Grace and peace to you!

Prayer: Lord God, help me first to be a person of grace and peace within. Remove all within me that prevents me from seeing all as you see it. Purge away those things that create barriers in my heart. Then, through me, may all come to know your grace and peace and love. Amen.


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The Call to Belong

Reading: Romans 1:1-6

Verse 5: “Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.“

In the opening of Romans Paul mentions the “gospel of God.” The word translated ‘gospel’ is also often translated ‘good news.’ Paul, as are all who love God, shares that he is “set apart for the gospel.” He, like all who follow Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior, is set apart from the ways of the world for the purposes of being and sharing the gospel or good news of Jesus Christ. So, what is the ‘gospel?’

First, it is rooted in the Old Testament. Many prophets wrote of the coming of one who would save his people. The Messiah and the good news that he would bring to humankind was promised long ago. Second, the gospel is the promise of this salvation to all who enter into a covenant relationship with God through Jesus Christ. A covenant is a no-matter-what agreement. Asking Jesus Christ to be our Lord and Savior, we pledge loyalty to live as he lived. We commit to loving God and neighbor with all that we are. Jesus agrees to love us even when we fail and to remain present to us, living in Spirit in our hearts, helping us to walk faithfully.

Paul and his co-workers strove to live this way. In verse 5 he writes, “Through him we received grace and apostleship to call all the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith for his name’s sake.” Grace for when they failed; a charge to call all people to live in faithful obedience to Christ. These are both ways that we love our neighbor – by sharing both grace and love with them. Paul makes this clear in verse 6: “You also are among those who are called to belong to Jesus Christ.” Through our witness and life may others feel the call to belong to the Lord.

Prayer: Lord God, strengthen and encourage me today to answer the call. Use me to draw others to Jesus Christ, the savior of all the world. May my love for you be reflected in my love for your world. Amen.


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Help and Hope (and SO much more!)

Reading: Psalm 146:5-10

Verse 5: “Blessed is he [and she] whose help is the God of Jacob; whose hope is in the Lord our God.”

Psalm 146 is a celebration of who God is and of what God does for those who trust in the Lord. It is a song that reminds us of the deep love of God and of the many ways that this love is applied to our lives. It is primarily about God in our lives here and now. At the end we are also reminded that “God reigns forever.”

In verse 5 we read that we are blessed when God is our helper. It is so true. Life is so much better when we rely on God as our help (instead of trying to rely on self.) When we press into and lean on the hope we find in God, then God is faithful and walks with us, pouring hope into our lives. In the next four verses the psalmist offers a myriad of ways that God is both our help and our hope. In many of these cases it is God who helps us when we cannot help ourselves and it is God who brings us hope when we had none.

In these verses we are reminded that God stands for us and with us when we are oppressed. God feeds us when we are hungry. God frees us when we are imprisoned – whether physically, emotionally, or spiritually. God opens our blind eyes when we need guidance or redirection. God lifts us up when we are down. God loves on us. God cares for us and comforts us when we are alone or grieving or hurting. God guards us against the evils of the world. Yes, we have much to celebrate. And, this list is only partial!

The Psalm closes with these words: “The Lord reigns forever… for all generations. Praise the Lord.” Life is seldom perfect. Yet we have so many blessings and so much to be thankful for. Yes, let us praise the Lord!

Prayer: Dear God, thank you for your great love. It amazes me when I think of all the ways that you touch my life. In each way listed in the Psalm and in many other times, you have blessed me. I humbly ask, O God, that you would use me as a conduit of your love. Through my words and actions may others come to know your great love for them. Amen.