pastorjohnb

Thoughts and musings on faith and our mighty God!

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“I know you by name.”

Reading: Exodus 33:12-18

Exodus 33:17 – “I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name.”

As chapter 33 begins, God tells Moses and the people to “get going,” to head to the land promised to their ancestors. Today’s portion of this week’s Exodus reading is Moses’ response to this directive along with God’s response to Moses. Moses and the people are not comfortable pressing on without God going with them. So Moses asks God to allow him to know God even more, to “understand you more fully… to enjoy your favor.” God tells Moses that, yes, God will go with him. That is not enough for Moses.

Pressing God, Moses speaks for the people, asking for God’s presence to be with the people too. This presence is what sets them apart from all other people. God responds, “I will indeed do what you have asked, for I look favorably on you, and I know you by name.” God will go with the people too. As assurance, Moses asks to see God’s “glorious presence.” We will unpack this request and God’s response at the end of the week.

What does this exchange between God and Moses reveal to us? Moses is modeling what Paul later wrote about in Philippians 4. He is taking his worry and anxiety to God. Moses honestly talks with God, revealing his faith and trust in their relationship. In turn, God is patient and assures Moses that God will continue to be with him and with the people. God is faithful. And through this presence, God will give Moses rest. God is a provider. As we go to God again and again, with our worries and with our thanksgiving, our relationship with God will grow and deepen. God will look upon us and say, “I know you by name.” May it be so for you and for me.

Prayer: Lord God, lead and guide us to come to you with all that is on our hearts and minds – the praise and thanksgiving, the worries and the fears – all of it. Draw near to us in these moments, assuring us of your presence and love. Deepen our connection to you. Amen.


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Noticing and Giving Thanks

Reading: Luke 17:11-19

Luke 17:15 – “One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, ‘Praise God!'”

As we begin this week, the Upper Room Disciplines devotional steps outside the lectionary readings today. The addition of today’s Luke 17 passage is in recognition of Thanksgiving Day in Canada. I am grateful because this passage also connects into Philippians 4’s call to always rejoice in the Lord, living as people of thanksgiving and praise.

Today’s story about the healing of the ten lepers is a familiar story. Traveling from Galilee to Jerusalem for the last time, Jesus enters Samaria. Almost all Jews avoided this area. Not Jesus. Along the border, Jesus encounters ten men with leprosy. Their contagious diseases forced them to live outside of society. It also forced them into mixed groups. Only one of the ten is identified as a Samaritan. The other nine, because of the border location, must’ve been Jews.

The ten lepers cry out to Jesus, asking for mercy. He instructs them to go to the priests. As they go, they are healed. Nine continue on to the priests so that they can be declared “clean,” so that they can re-enter society. In verse 15 we read, “One of them, when he saw that he was healed, came back to Jesus, shouting, ‘Praise God!'” One of them, the one outside of Judaism, returns to thank Jesus. Jesus praises the man’s faith, questioning where the other nine are. We likely do too.

We do so because we are more like the nine than the one. We do not always give thanks for the things that God and others do for us. Maybe we usually intend to but get caught up in the busyness of life – nevermind in the joy of being reunited with family and friends that you’ve been isolated from forever. Reminder COVID? And remember the joy of finally being able to gather in community again? We can relate to the nine. And yet we are called by Jesus’ story to be like the one. We are invited to live with an attitude of gratitude, noticing and taking the time to give thanksgiving and praise for God’s presence and work in our lives. May it be so for us all.

Prayer: Lord God, draw us into a time of reflection right now. Bring to our minds the things that we should’ve been thankful and grateful for but somehow missed or didn’t make the time to offer our thanks. Draw out our praise and thanksgiving right now, in this moment…

Amen.


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Practice, Practice, Practice

Reading: Philippians 4:8-9

Philippians 4:8 – “Focus your thoughts on these things: all that is true… holy… just… pure… lovely… and worthy of praise.”

Concluding our Philippians 4 reading for this week, we end with Paul’s guidance on how to “stand firm in the Lord.” It begins with fixing our eyes and our heart on the things that are excellent and admirable, that are life-giving and soul-lifting. These things are the core characteristics of a lived life of faith. In verse 8 Paul calls us to this task: “Focus your thoughts on these things: all that is true… holy… just… pure… lovely… and worthy of praise.” Paul invites us to think about these things always. Doing so, our thoughts will guide our words and our actions.

The core beliefs of our faith are what is true. Salvation, grace, love, mercy, humble service, generosity, one God – core beliefs. All that is holy is the will and way of God. Central and foundational are the great commands: love God and love neighbor. To be just is to live in right relationship with both God and neighbor and to redeem and restore these relationships when they are broken or damaged. To be selfless is to be pure. To not think of our wants but of other’s needs starts with a pure heart. The lovely in our life and in the world are those things touched by God. It is a sunrise and a kind word, a meal shared and a gentle embrace. These and other blessings are worthy of our praise and thanksgiving.

To focus our thoughts on what is true, holy, just, pure, lovely, and worthy of praise and to live these out daily is a tall order. Paul’s guidance: practice. Daily remember what we’ve “learned, received, heard, and saw” from Paul and from Jesus. And then practice, practice, practice these things. And as we practice, practice, practice, the peace of God will be with us. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, walk closely with us today and every day. Open our ears and hearts to the whispers and nudges of your Holy Spirit. Echo the words and example of Jesus in our hearts and minds. Send us out, thusly equipped and prepared, to be always true, holy, just, pure, and lovely, bringing you all the praise and the glory and honor. Amen.


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Joy and Peace

Reading: Philippians 4:1-7

Philippians 4:6 – “Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks.”

Photo credit: Hannah Skelly

Turning to Paul’s letter to the Philippians today and tomorrow, we close out a week of hard passages with hopeful words about standing firm in the faith. Reminding us of how hard this can be, in verse 2 Paul calls for reconciliation between Euodia and Syntyche. Following Jesus’ conflict resolution guidance, Paul invites a mediator and other members of the church to get involved to heal this broken relationship.

In verses 4-7 Paul then encourages us to be glad or to rejoice in the Lord and he gives us guidance on how to always have joy in the Lord. In verse 6 Paul writes, “Don’t be anxious about anything; rather, bring up all your requests to God in your prayers and petitions, along with giving thanks.” There is much in this life and in our world that can make us anxious or afraid or angry or worried or… Paul invites us to hold onto joy even in the difficult times of life. Step 1 is prayer. Bring our petitions and our pleadings to God. Why? Because God is near and because God hears and responds. How do we know this? We turn to the next step.

We cannot miss step 2: “along with giving thanks.” Prayer cannot be just about asking God for this or that. Prayer must also include praising and giving thanks for God’s presence in our lives. This step is an act of gratitude that builds our humility and leads to a willingness to surrender our lives and all situations to the Lord. It is through these actions that we experience “the peace of God that exceeds all understanding.” It is a peace that allows us to rejoice in the Lord always. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, as we daily offer our thanksgiving and praise in our prayers, build up our memories of your presence. The times when you have been there, when you rescued or redeemed us, when you led or guided us through the valley – they build our trust and faith. From this firm foundation, walk daily with us in the good, in the bad, and in the in-between, filling us with your joy and your peace. Amen.


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Faithful, Enduring Love

Reading: Psalm 106:1-6

Psalm 106:3 – “The people who uphold justice, who always do what is right, are truly happy!”

Photo credit: Freestocks

As we read the first half of this week’s Psalm today, the psalmist begins with praise followed by a request for God’s “saving help.” Verse 1 opens with praise and thanksgiving for God’s faithful, enduring love. The psalmist then recognizes God’s might that is beyond compare. This seems like a Psalm of praise so far. It begins to shift in verse 3. Here we read, “The people who uphold justice, who always do what is right, are truly happy!” Maybe that’s other people. This feeling continues in the next two verses. The author invites God to “remember me” and to “visit me.” God feels distant to the psalmist.

Scholars believe this Psalm was written during the exile in Babylon. Israel was at a low point in the faithful-sinful-repentant cycle that repeats itself again and again in the scriptures. The golden calf was not the only low point in the wilderness. Exile was not the only low point after entering the Promised Land. These words of praise and thanksgiving are words of longing and of a desire to know God’s presence once again. These words of the psalmist are words of repentance.

The Psalm gets real in verse 6: “We have sinned – right along with our ancestors. We’ve done what’s wrong. We’ve acted wickedly.” This admission is not limited to the folks in the Bible. This is our experience as well. We sin and fall short. God feels distant. We repent. We are made right by God. We live faithfully for a while. And we sin again. Sadly, this seems to be the human condition. Yet there is a deeper and stronger truth. As the psalmist gives thanks for God’s faithful, enduring love, so too do we. God’s love and the grace that flows from this love are greater than our sin. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for your long, sure, steady walk with us. Thank you for a love that never gives up on us, for a grace that never runs out. In praise our hearts sing the old hymn, “Grace, grace, God’s grace! A grace that is greater than all our sin!” Amen.


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Seeking God – Regularly

Reading: Psalm 105:1-6 and 37-45

Psalm 105:4 – “Pursue the Lord and his strength; seek his face always!”

Photo credit: Rainier Ridao

Psalm 105 spans a vast swath of Israel’s history. The author recounts God’s acts on Israel’s behalf from the time of Abraham through their entry into the Promised Land. The Psalm, however, does not recount every act of God recorded in the scriptures. In this Psalm we find more of a highlight reel. Our remembrance of God’s activity in our life usually works the same way. We quickly recall the big blessings and the great rescues. But when we put in some effort, when we really reflect on our journey of faith, we realize that there are many more times when God became present to us – many more than on our highlight reel.

In the second half of our reading, the psalmist recounts the time just after the final plague through Joshua leading Israel through the Jordan River. The author also recalls the manna and quail and the water from a rock. These are but four of many times that God was present and active during their time in the wilderness. The psalmist does not include the golden calf and other rebellion, grumbling, and complaining. If we told our whole story of faith, we’d have stories like these too. The times of sin, of no faith, of struggle – all parts of our journey that shape and form us into who God created us to be.

Verses 1-6 are mostly about praising God for all that God has done for Israel. But tucked in these verses is a great encouragement: “Pursue the Lord and his strength; seek his face always!” In life, we naturally do this in the highs and lows. But life is mostly lived in between. So we need to be intentional about pursuing and seeking God regularly. We pursue God by creating times and places set apart for daily time with God. It can be a quiet time in the morning. It can be worship on Sunday. We seek God by being intentional about pausing at moments throughout our day to reflect on God’s presence in that day. Maybe it is a quick moment of thanksgiving before your meals. Maybe it is on the commute. May we all be intentional about pursuing and seeking the Lord our God.

Prayer: Lord God, we praise you for the many ways that you have been with your people through the ages. And we praise you and offer our thanksgiving for your involvement in our daily lives. Lead and guide us to see you often, bringing us to spontaneous moments of praise. Amen.


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Tremble, Praise, Rejoice!

Reading: Psalm 114:5-8

Psalm 114:7 – “Earth: Tremble before the Lord!”

Photo credit: Uta Scholl

As we continue in Psalm 114 today, the psalmist celebrates what was and leans into the present. Yesterday the author wrote of what God had done and of how Israel was now God’s people once again. The slavery of the past was no more and they were freed to be “God’s sanctuary.”

Verses 5 and 6 begin with a questioning of creation. These questions ask physical parts of creation – waters and hills and mountains – why they did things otherwise impossible. The answer, of course, is God. It was God who parted the waters. It was God who moved mountains. The psalmist mixes the literal and the figurative here. Over the course of our journey of faith, we too experience both.

Sometimes God acts in our lives in ways that are like the parting of the sea. A “door” opens or an invitation comes from nowhere that helps us move forward when we felt stuck. A seemingly immovable or unresolvable circumstance is “moved,” freeing us to continue our journey of faith. God works in ways that bring us to awe, praise, and wonder. For the earth and the people who inhabit the earth, we too could proclaim, “Earth: Tremble before the Lord!”

After the desert journey, which also included other miracles, Israel understood that they were God’s people. As it was with Israel, these miracle moments in our lives transform our faith, empowering us to move forward with a deeper faith and a stronger connection to the Lord our God. We too rejoice that we are God’s people!

Prayer: Lord God, each time you part the waters or move a mountain, our faith grows, deepens, widens. We face the next obstacle or challenge with more trust, more assurance, more resolve. Continue to walk with us daily – leading, guiding, making a way. Amen.


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Praise the Lord!

Reading: Psalm 149

Psalm 149:6 – “Let the high praises of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands.”

Photo credit: Fuu J

Psalm 149 begins with words and images of praising God. Sing a new song! Celebrate with drum and lyre! Dance! Sing praises because “God is pleased with his people.” And then, in verse 6, the Psalm takes what feels like a hard right: “Let the high praises of God be in their mouths and a double-edged sword in their hands.” At first reading, one wonders what happened. Calls for revenge, punishment, binding chains, and justice follow. These actions will be an “honor” for God’s people? And then the Psalm ends with, “Praise the Lord!”

Well then. Verses 1-5 are great. But what are we to do with verses 6-9? A little context will help. Overall, the Psalm is about praising God for the deliverance and rescue that God has brought – past, present, and future. Scholars believe that the Psalm was written after the exiles returned from Babylon. They were rebuilding Jerusalem, the wall, and the temple. God has delivered them from exile. The images of battles won and enemies defeated is an extension of the rebuilding. The land is filled with pagans that also must be dealt with. Some of these nations helped with the destruction and death primarily brought on by Babylon. To rebuild and reclaim the land would not be possible without God’s power and presence. The psalmist is counting on God’s help.

How does our reading change, though, if we read verses 6-9 from a figurative viewpoint? We can be defeated and/or held captive by many things that can only be redeemed through God’s power and presence. We can find ourselves in need of a rebuilding that only God can accomplish. And by “we,” I mean all of us. So in a fight against injustice or oppression, maybe our words are like a sword that cuts through evil. Maybe our actions lead to justice and a binding up of unjust systems. Maybe we are shackled by anger or fear or addiction or… Maybe we need God to break these chains and to set us free. When we’ve experienced or are a part of God’s deliverance for others, we too shout out, “Praise the Lord!”

Prayer: Lord God, there are many things to praise you for and there are many ways to offer our praise. Thank you for the times that you have rescued and delivered us. Praise be to God! From a place of faith and wholeness, use us to help free others from all that binds so that they too can praise you. Amen.


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Faithful, True, Steadfast, Loving

Reading: Psalm 124:6-8

Psalm 124:8 – “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.”

Earlier this week we read the first part of Psalm 124. For a refresher, it began with “If the Lord hadn’t been for us…” On our walks of faith, this is something we too experience. If God was not with me, the grief would’ve overwhelmed me. If God was not with me, the temptation would’ve been too great. If God _____… We can all fill in the rest of that sentence again and again. We can do so because God is faithful and true and steadfast and loving. The natural outflow of this kind of remembering is to praise and worship God, to offer our thanksgiving to the Lord.

Turning to today’s verses, that is what the psalmist does! In verse 6 we read, “Bless the Lord because…” In the Psalm, Israel did escape the enemy. They slipped out of the trap. If God wasn’t there that day, how things would be so very different. The same idea is true for us. Pause for a moment and think of a few hard times when God was there for you. Where would you be if God wasn’t there for you?

The Psalm closes with a great statement of faith: “Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth.” Yes! God is our help. Without God, life would be unbearable – filled with sin, sorrow, and suffering. We do not have to live in these places, though. God is faithful and true and steadfast and loving. Thanks be to God!

Prayer: Lord God, we are so grateful for your abiding and constant presence. In life there is good and evil, health and illness, want and plenty… You are present in it all. We are especially thankful for your presence, love, and care in the hard moments, when we are most likely to become less than you intend us to be. O God, walk with us daily. Amen.


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Songs of Praise

Reading: Psalm 105:1-6 and 16-22

Psalm 105:5 – “Remember the wondrous works he [God] has done, all his marvelous works, and the justice he declared.”

Our Psalm for this week remembers God’s mighty acts on behalf of Israel from the time of Abraham and the covenant through the time when the Israelites resettled in Canaan (or the Promised Land.) Verses 1-6 are a call to praise and worship God for these mighty acts of God. The psalmist invites us to give thanks and to praise God, to pursue God’s presence, and to “Remember the wondrous works he [God] has done, all his marvelous works, and the justice he declared.” In the frequent remembering, one builds up faith, trust, and hope in the Lord. We’re also reminded that we too are “the offspring of Abraham… God’s chosen ones.” So these stories are our stories too.

Verses 16-22 focus in on the story of Joseph. These verses begin with God calling for a famine. In order to ready God’s people, God “sent a man ahead of them.” The sending was difficult. Betrayed by his brothers, Joseph was sent off in shackles. Yet God remained at work, through each twist and turn, until “the King made Joseph master of his house and ruler over everything he owned.” It was then, driven by the famine, that his brothers bowed before him, bringing Joseph’s long-ago dream into reality. As Israel would later read these words again and again, they would be led over and over to praise God for these wondrous and marvelous acts of justice and love.

We too can read these words and offer our praise to God. And there are many other stories in the Bible that we can read that lead us to offer our praise and thanksgiving to God. But we also have stories within us – stories of God’s rescue and redemption, of God’s forgiveness and grace, of God’s love and peace, of God’s healing and comfort… Sometimes these are the songs of praise that others need to hear. Sometimes they are the songs we need to remember in our difficult moments. So each day may we sing our songs of God’s mighty and marvelous acts in our lives!

Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the many ways that you touch our lives. Some are the headliners – the wondrous and mighty acts that we cannot miss. But most are the small and regular touches, ones that could go unnoticed if we’re not looking for them. Open our eyes and hearts to these acts too, O God. These are the fuel for our daily, faithful walk with you. Thank you. Amen.