pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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God at Work

Reading: Psalm 114:1-4

Psalm 114:4 – “The mountains leaped away like rams; the hills leaped away like lambs!”

Psalm 114 celebrates the exodus from Egypt and the entry into Canaan – the Promised Land. The Israelites were immigrants in a foreign land, enslaved by a cruel Pharaoh. But even then, the people belonged to God. They were “God’s sanctuary… territory.” Through the plagues, God led the people out of Egypt and into the wilderness. And when the Egyptians pursued them, God went to work. Rescuing Israel from fear, meeting their need for protection, God made a way, instilling faith and hope. At times our story holds these elements too: fear and need. When we turn to God, we find hope. The story of God at work in our lives is very different from the self-sufficient image we like to portray to the world.

There are times when life is hard, when we feel insecure, when there are many obstacles. At a point in each of these difficulties, we come to the end of ourselves. We cannot part the sea. We cannot climb the mountain. We cannot navigate the twists and turns of the path. So we turn to the one who has been present all along, patiently waiting. And as we surrender to God, God goes to work. God makes a way. The sea parts. “The mountains leaped away like rams.” God walks the hard path with us. God leads us through, even carrying us some of the time. These memories become the fuel that empowers us to live fully as a child of God, living into who and what we were created by God to be. In the moments of these first steps of faith, we are covered in grace. What a sweet place to be!

Prayer: Lord God, how good life would be if you were always our first thought, our first place to turn. When you are and when we do, peace and joy and contentment are ours. But too often we turn to ourselves, to our desires, wants… Soon we’re underwater, overwhelmed, defeated. Thank you for always being there. Thank you for always making a way. You are an amazing God. Amen.


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God IS There

Reading: Exodus 14:22-31

Exodus 14:31 – “The people were in awe of the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.”

Photo credit: Diego Gennaro

The exodus story continues! The Israelites walk through where the sea had been. The dry ground under their feet and the walls of water to the left and right must’ve been amazing. Many must have walked through eyes wide open and jaws hanging down. Meanwhile, the Egyptian army was in hot pursuit. They probably didn’t even notice the amazing things that God was doing. If so, maybe they’d have stayed on their side of the sea.

God drew the army in and then threw them into a panic. The slow movement allowed Israel to finish crossing the sea. At this point, the Egyptians realize that God was fighting for Israel. It was too late. Moses stretched out his hand and the sea returned to its normal place. The whole army drowned. God rescued Israel. It happened right there before their eyes. The outcome? “The people were in awe of the Lord, and they believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses.”

In the possible God moments, are you more like the Israelites or more like the Egyptians? Do you notice when God shows up to rescue? Or to redeem or to reconcile or to renew? When we are open to or even seeking God, we see that God is there. I’ve noticed encounters with God in a church balcony, in an ER room, in a prayer room at an event, and in a hospital room more than once. But I’m sure I’ve missed others. Yet in the moments when we need God to be present, God is there. Always. Be open to it. Seek the Lord. God is there.

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for making a way for Israel. And thank you for showing up in amazing ways during our times of need. Help us to notice, to see, and even to seek you. Open our eyes to see the times that you part the sea, and the times when your touch is gentle and small. In all things, may we encounter you, O God. Amen.


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Blessings

Reading: Matthew 14:13-20

Matthew 13:20 – “Everyone ate until they were full, and they filled twelve baskets with the leftovers.”

This week’s gospel lesson is about compassion, challenge, provision, and abundance. These four things were a part of Jesus’ life and they should be a part of our lives. It is not always easy to practice these four things. As our story opens, it is one of those times. Jesus is grieving and wants to be alone. But the crowds follow him. He could send them away or he could try harder to escape their presence. But, instead, he chooses compassion. This leads Jesus to heal many people. Inferring how many from the rest of the story, I bet Jesus healed every single person who came forward for healing. All.

At the end of his long day, the disciples suggest dismissing the crowd so that they can get some food. Compassion. But Jesus challenges them: “You give them something to eat.” Just as Jesus’ emotional tank was about empty as the day began, the disciples have just five loaves and two fish among them. I imagine there was a very uncomfortable stare, pausing on each of the twelve, before Jesus said, “Bring them to me.” From next to nothing comes provision and abundance. The food is blessed. It gets distributed. We read, “Everyone ate until they were full, and they filled twelve baskets with the leftovers.” All eat. A huge crowd is fed. And all twelve disciples have a basket full of leftovers. A blessing upon a blessing!

The miracles begin with compassion. God works through faith and a willing heart. How might God use what you think is meager – or next to nothing – to feed or clothe or house or heal or… others? Where do you feel compassion? See the need and allow the Holy Spirit to stir your heart. Take on the challenge: step forward in faith and trust. Offering what you have opens the gates for God’s abundance to flow. Where is the need in your world?

Prayer: Lord God, sadly, there are needs all around. Poverty, loneliness, hunger, loss, abuse, illness, oppression – all around. Open our eyes and stir our hearts. Move us to action and service. As we offer what we can, multiply it by your power, O Lord. Use us to bless others. Amen.


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Abiding Presence, Ongoing Work

Reading: Genesis 32:25-31

Genesis 32:31 – “The sun rose as Jacob passed Peniel, limping because of his thigh.”

Photo credit: Timo Volz

Continuing in Genesis 32 today, the “man” cannot defeat Jacob, who refuses to quit. Even after God injures Jacob’s hip, he wrestles on. Jacob must sense some purpose in this encounter. So as dawn nears and God again asks Jacob to let go, he responds, “I won’t let go until you bless me.” God blesses Jacob with a new name, symbolizing the change within. All of his life, Jacob has struggled with God. After this personal encounter, seeing God “face-to-face,” Jacob has been “saved.” Saved from selfishness and pride, Jacob can see and live beyond himself. As our passage closes, we read, “The sun rose as Jacob passed Peniel, limping because of his thigh.”

The band I AM THEY wrote a song called “Scars.” The first two verses read, “Waking up to a new sunrise, Looking back from the other side, I can see now with open eyes… Darkest water and deepest pain, I wouldn’t trade it for anything, ‘Cause my brokenness brought me to You, And these wounds are a story You’ll use.” These words remind us that, like Jacob, God works in and through our struggles. Sometimes there is deep pain and hurt. But afterwards, looking back, we can see how God changed us, transformed us. For Jacob, his limp was a tangible reminder, yes of the wrestling, but more so of the transformation. Our scars, whether physical or emotional or spiritual, remind us too of God’s abiding presence and ongoing work in our lives. As the lyrics of the chorus thank God for the scars and the reminders of who God is, may we also rejoice in God’s deliverance, victory, and transformation through the struggles.

Prayer: Lord God, while we’d never choose the struggle while in the middle of it, we can look back and see your plan, your purpose, at work. We can also see how we were changed and how we grew in our relationship with you. Thank you for your faithfulness, especially as we are often less than we should be in the struggle. And thank you for never leaving us there when we need you most. Amen.


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A Sacred Encounter

Reading: Genesis 32:22-24

Genesis 32:24 – “But Jacob stayed apart by himself, and a man wrestled with him until dawn broke.”

Photo credit: Mitchel Lensink

As we begin, some context from the start of chapter 32. Jacob is returning home. He is doing as God directed. As he gets close he hears that Esau is approaching with 400 soldiers. Esau is the one who had his birth rite stolen by Jacob. When Jacob fled, Esau was threatening murder. In fear and terror Jacob comes up with a plan. If Esau can’t be bought off, maybe some will escape while the rest are captured or killed or… Then Jacob prays for safety, even as he tries to barter with God. He then adds a level of security for himself. As we turn to our reading for today, we see that Jacob places all that is his – wives, children, servants, livestock – across the Jabbok River and retreats back across – alone.

Alone – just where he needs to be right now to encounter God. In verse 24 we read, “But Jacob stayed apart by himself, and a man wrestled with him until dawn broke.” This is much more than a physical struggle. Likely in response to Jacob’s prayers, wheeling and dealing, and scheming, God has come to wrestle with Jacob spiritually. In the wrestling, God confronts Jacob’s fears, lack of faith and trust, and his prideful, sinful ways. In the end, after transformation, Jacob refuses to let go of God. The physical and spiritual have come together. Once blessed, renamed “Israel,” he will face the day knowing that God is with him.

When we find time and space to be alone with God, to lay our fears, doubts, and worries before God, we too will find that God is ready to wrestle with us. God will meet us at our point of need and will help us to wrestle through, transforming us and our faith. Making time and space for a sacred encounter, we can count on our faithful God to show up and to work in us. May we trust in our faithful, loving God.

Prayer: Lord God, draw us into times and places where we can encounter your presence. Still our racing, often fearful, minds and hearts so that we can receive what you have to say and give. With open hearts and minds, transform us, bringing us to a place of deeper faith and greater trust. Thank you, Lord. Amen.


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Right Here with Us

Reading: Genesis 28:10-19

Genesis 28:15 – “I am with you now, I will protect you everywhere you go, and I will bring you back to this land.”

As we turn to Genesis 28, we do so with some context. Jacob has just stolen Esau’s firstborn blessing (with the help of his mother) and Esau is furious. He is ready to kill his brother Jacob. So Isaac sends Jacob away, back to the ancestral homeland to find a wife. As Jacob traveled it must’ve been scary and uncomfortable for him. Jacob was the “indoorsy”  brother. After traveling for a day, Jacob lays down, using a rock for a pillow. He is alone, vulnerable, and probably anxious.

In a dream, Jacob encounters God. He sees a staircase with angels moving up and down. And then God is there. In verses 13-15 God reiterates the promises made to Abraham and Isaac: land, numerous descendants, protection. All families on the earth will be blessed through Jacob’s family. Then, in verse 15, God says to Jacob, “I am with you now, I will protect you everywhere you go, and I will bring you back to this land.” Right here, right now, in this moment, God is there with Jacob.

As we journey in faith we too come to know that God is right here with us. In the times when we’re on the run, in moments when we’ve made bad choices, in all times good and bad – God is there with us. God walks with us, no matter what. Thanks be to God.

Prayer: Lord God, when we find ourselves in the wilderness, remind us of your steadfast presence. Open our eyes and hearts as you did Jacob’s, meeting us where we are at, giving us what we need in the moment or situation. Thank you for always being there for us. Amen.


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Choose Grace and Generosity

Readings: Psalm 119:110 and Genesis 25:27-34

Genesis 25:30 – “I’m starving! Let me devour some of this red stuff.”

Photo credit: Kate Remmer

Continuing in Genesis 25 today, Jacob and Esau have grown up. They have become their own people. Esau loves the outdoors. Jacob loves the indoors. Esau is more loved by their father. Jacob is more loved by their mother. One day the outdoorsman comes in absolutely famished. The indoorsman is boiling some lentil stew and baking some bread. Esau says to his brother Jacob, I’m starving! Let me devour some of this red stuff.” One is in need. The other has the power to meet that need. This sets up a potential power dynamic.

There are times when many of us find ourselves in a place where we have power over others. It might be the norm in some of our work environments. Or it might be because of a momentary situation, like it was for Jacob and Esau. In both of these situations, we have a decision to make: How will we use our power? Will we run roughshod over others, living by a “my way or the highway” attitude? Will we exploit or otherwise take advantage of the one in need that crosses our path?

In Genesis 25, Jacob uses his brother’s need to his own advantage. Esau’s starvation leads to a willingness to give up something in the future. When we cross paths with people in great need, will we prey on their desperation or will we simply meet a need, no strings attached? Will we step into the trap laid by the evil within us or will we follow our faith as guided by the Spirit? For most folks in places of power, there is more than enough. May we choose grace and generosity each time.

Prayer: Lord God, grace, love, forgiveness, other blessings – you give freely. We too have much to give – these things plus our resources, our time, our energy, our talents… Work in our hearts, O God, guiding us to give as you give, freely and unconditionally. Amen.


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Always Seeking to Deliver

Reading: Romans 7:15-25

Romans 7:21 – “So I find that, as a rule, when I want to do what is good, evil is right there with me.”

At the end of chapter 7, Paul describes his own struggle to do and be good in the world. He often does the things he hates to do. In his mind, he knows God’s Law is just and good and right. If it were up to his mind, he’d do all the good stuff: worship God, love neighbor, meet the needs of the poor… But he just can’t quite…

In verse 21 Paul writes, “So I find that, as a rule, when I want to do what is good, evil is right there with me.” Have you found this to be true in your life? That fleshy part of you – that part that just wants pleasure, that part that easily turns to pride and judging, that part always seeking to elevate self to the throne – that fleshy part is always pulling you away from holy, God-pleasing living. Paul chooses the word “war.” And in those moments when he feels like he is totally losing the “war” – it is then that Paul feels like a “miserable human being.” Ever felt this way? Ever allowed sin to win and you instantly see how it hurt someone you love?

Paul correctly realizes two things in verses 24 and 25. First, on his own, his fate is “dead corpse.” Ouch. Second, and most importantly, he realizes that Jesus Christ is his deliverer. Jesus is always with us too, always fighting for us in Spirit, always seeking to deliver us from temptation and sin. Through Jesus Christ, we will have the victory over sin and death. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, the power of evil is strong and pervasive. It runs rampant in our world. All sorts of messaging, people, and situations draw us to sin. We need you Lord. Desperately. Be the constant voice too, calling us to good and holy living. Empower and equip us, O God, to live by your will and ways. Amen.


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Rest, Peace, Hope

Reading: Matthew 11:27-30

Matthew 11:29 – “Put on my yoke, and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves.”

Finishing out our gospel reading for this week, Jesus first claims authority over all things. He declares, “My Father has handed all things over to me.” God has empowered Jesus to be over all things, to have power over all of creation. Jesus then invites you and me to be a part of his kingdom, part of this creation, saying, “Come to me…” Come and experience my power. Come and experience my love. Come and live under my authority. Come and find rest, hope, peace.

In the rest of verse 28 Jesus names two of humanity’s realities. Many people are “struggling hard and carrying heavy burdens.” For many people, they struggle through a paycheck-to-paycheck existence, making choices between necessities. Others struggle through addictions and others struggle against injustice and others with abuse or violence. Many people are carrying heavy burdens – financial, emotional, relational, physical. For some of these folks, the burdens are their own to try to carry. For others, they carry burdens for those they love. These realities, especially in combination, can make us feel exhausted, overwhelmed, and/or defeated.

To these folks and really to us all, Jesus says, “Put on my yoke, and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves.” Jesus invites us all to give our lives to him, to enter into a relationship, to know his love. He invites us to really get to know him, to study his words and his way of life. In exchange, Jesus gives us rest. Walking in Jesus’ way of love, we grow to trust our burdens and struggles to him. He walks with us, lifting some of the struggle, some of the burden – enough so that we can find some rest. Jesus gently and humbly leads us, bringing renewal, life, rest, hope, and peace. Thank you, Lord Jesus.

Prayer: Lord God, how we need you! This life, even on a good day, can be hard and difficult. Add in limited finances or challenges with health or other factors, and life can feel heavy and hopeless. If this is our reality, Lord, help us to choose you and the peace, hope, and rest that you offer. If this is not our reality, use us to reveal Jesus’ love and way to others as we seek to walk alongside people in need of rest, hope, and peace. Thank you, God. Amen.


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Jehovah Jireh

Reading: Genesis 22:9-14

Genesis 22:9b – “Abraham built an altar… arranged the wood… tied up his son Isaac… laid him on the altar…”

Abraham, Isaac, the wood, the knife, and the fire arrive atop the mountain as we continue in Genesis 22. In the rest of verse 9 we read of Abraham’s resolute faith and steadfast obedience: “Abraham built an altar… arranged the wood… tied up his son Isaac… laid him on the altar…” I wonder, was he so faithful and so resolute that all of his emotions were on mute? How else could Abraham will himself through these steps of readying the sacrifice?

As Abraham raises the knife to shed blood and take life, a messenger calls out to him, “Abraham? Abraham?” Was the messenger pulling Abraham back into the reality of this scene? Pausing the action, the messenger acknowledges Abraham’s reverence for God, demonstrated through his willingness to offer Isaac as a sacrifice. Looking up, Abraham sees a ram, ready to be taken and offered as the sacrifice. Jehovah Jireh – the God who provides – “sees to it,” as Abraham told Isaac earlier.

Flashing forward in Israel’s history, to a moment when the plagues have reached their climax in Egypt, again God provided a way. This time the blood of the lamb marked their houses. And, again, the hand of death passed over the firstborn. The Israelites were faithful and obedient to God and God provided. In our walks of faith, the God who provides will be with us as well. Jehovah Jireh will give us the words to say, the actions to take, the resources to meet needs, the strength to stand… Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for these reminders of your faithfulness to us, your children. As we walk with you, you show us the way, you lead and guide, you equip and resource us – all to bear your light and love, your hope and peace to a world in need. Thank you, God. Amen.