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Author Archives: John D. Willome

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About John D. Willome

I post a blog of daily devotions that are my prayer journals based on scripture.

Hurt and Closure

08 Sep

“Original Blues Clues Host Steve Burns Finally Addresses His Sudden Departure In Viral Twitter Clip” –Vanity Fair

Dear God, hurt and closure are an interesting thing. Sometimes we are hurt and need closure and we don’t even realize it. Even if we are still maintaining a relationship with someone, if there is a lingering unaddressed issue between us it can still fester and steer the relationship in unhealthy ways.

It kind of makes me think of steps 8 and 9 in the 12-step program from AA:

Step 8: “We made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all.”

Step 9: “We made direct amends to such people wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others.”

I’m bringing all of this up because of the response some people had to the new video clip of Steve Burns addressing Blues Clues fans about why he left. Frankly, he was in character and he didn’t reveal any new information, but there was a visceral reaction for some people to get to see him one more time and have some closure. Some highlights of the Twitter reactions:

So some people had a reaction to Steve’s sweet and affirming video. They got closure on something that they didn’t realize they needed closure on. He left kind of abruptly. I remember being impacted by it myself when he left, and I was just a 32-year-old dad who watched it with his kids.

Of course, there are relationships in my life right now that are in need of some closure. In need of making amends. There’s one in particular that I think needs amends on my part, but I have no idea what my offense was. It frustrates me that the person won’t tell me the sin I committed, but whatever I have done, real or perceived, is obviously coming between us.

Father, help me to do what I need to do accept responsibility for the offenses I commit and to reach out to make amends when appropriate and when it won’t cause more harm than good. And help me to extend forgiveness to those who seek to make amends with me. Bring all of this closure for your glory’s sake. Use it to build unity in families, in your body, in communities, and in the world.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 8, 2021 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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Colossians 2:6-19

07 Sep

6 And now, just as you accepted Christ Jesus as your Lord, you must continue to follow him. 7 Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

8 Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather than from Christ. 9 For in Christ lives all the fullness of God in a human body. 10 So you also are complete through your union with Christ, who is the head over every ruler and authority.

11 When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. 12 For you were buried with Christ when you were baptized. And with him you were raised to new life because you trusted the mighty power of God, who raised Christ from the dead.

13 You were dead because of your sins and because your sinful nature was not yet cut away. Then God made you alive with Christ, for he forgave all our sins. 14 He canceled the record of the charges against us and took it away by nailing it to the cross. 15 In this way, he disarmed the spiritual rulers and authorities. He shamed them publicly by his victory over them on the cross.

16 So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths. 17 For these rules are only shadows of the reality yet to come. And Christ himself is that reality. 18 Don’t let anyone condemn you by insisting on pious self-denial or the worship of angels, saying they have had visions about these things. Their sinful minds have made them proud, 19 and they are not connected to Christ, the head of the body. For he holds the whole body together with its joints and ligaments, and it grows as God nourishes it.

Colossians 2:6-19

Dear God, when I read this passage this morning verse 8 caught my eye:

Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world, rather from Christ.

My initial thought went to issues like gay marriage and other issues that separate what I’ll call “fundamentalist” Christians and “moderate” Christians. Do I allow my own beliefs to succumb to the world’s views in the name of intellectualism?

My wife and I were listening to a podcast yesterday where the hosts were talking about a large church in Minneapolis that is going through a purging of some of its leadership because of the sin of “empathy.” The person who won the power struggle and forced the exit of three of the top pastors (including the head pastor) apparently feels like there is a difference between sympathy and empathy. It’s in this Christianity Today article: “Bethlehem Baptist Leaders Clash Over “Coddling” and “Cancel Culture.” Apparently, according to one side, sympathy is biblical while empathy is not biblical. As I understand the argument, empathy will lead you to disconnect from the truth as you put yourself in someone else’s place and make you more susceptible to embracing heresy in the name of love.

The argument Skye Jethani made in the Holy Post podcast was that, yes, empathy can be taken too far, but it’s no more unbiblical than is charity because sometimes charity can be abused and taken too far. He also made a really good point that the act of you coming to earth through Jesus was a pretty good display of empathy on your part.

So then I came to the second thought, which was that it is just as easy for someone to be mislead by errant “conservative” teaching as it is someone to be mislead into being too liberal. Which brings me back to verse 7 of this passage, because it is the only solution that I know to keep me right before you and doing the work you have me to do in this world:

Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness.

Father, all I really know to pray here is help me to keep plugged into you as deeply as I can. Help me to nourish the soil of my heart, weeding it from the cares of this world, so that my roots can grow deep and I can start to have the moment Neo had in the Matrix, and I start to see the world for what it really is with your perspective and not just what my eyes see it as. In this moment, I’m acutely aware of how much I need you. Please be with me.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 7, 2021 in Colossians

 

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John 14:23-27

06 Sep

Jesus replied, “All who love me will do what I say. My Father will love them, and we will come and make our home with each of them. Anyone who doesn’t love me will not obey me. And remember, my words are not my own. What I am telling you is from the Father who sent me. I am telling you these things now while I am still with you. But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.

“I am leaving you with a gift—peace of mind and heart. And the peace I give is a gift the world cannot give. So don’t be troubled or afraid.
John 14:23-27

Dear God, I am always grateful to be reminded about the Holy Spirit. You know I talk a lot about the fruits of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23). And these are the foundational things that relationship with you and the Holy Spirit brings, but there is also knowledge and direction. He is my comforter too. He is my advocate to you. On a scale of 1-10, I probably still only understand and truly internalize his role in my life at a 3, but it is great to be reminded of everything you have given me by simply giving me your Spirit.

Father, as I continue on this vacation, restore my soul as I by these streams of cool waters. As I am removed from the valleys and mountains of my life for this period of time, speak to my heart, mind, body, and soul. Help me to do things that will draw me closer to you and closer to my wife. And also help me to sink into all of the fruits of your Spirit so that I might experience them all and be what you need me to be for my wife as she goes to rough her own journey of restoration as well.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 6, 2021 in John

 

Mark 7:31-37

05 Sep

Jesus left Tyre and went up to Sidon before going back to the Sea of Galilee and the region of the Ten Towns. A deaf man with a speech impediment was brought to him, and the people begged Jesus to lay his hands on the man to heal him. Jesus led him away from the crowd so they could be alone. He put his fingers into the man’s ears. Then, spitting on his own fingers, he touched the man’s tongue. Looking up to heaven, he sighed and said, “Ephphatha,” which means, “Be opened!” Instantly the man could hear perfectly, and his tongue was freed so he could speak plainly! Jesus told the crowd not to tell anyone, but the more he told them not to, the more they spread the news. They were completely amazed and said again and again, “Everything he does is wonderful. He even makes the deaf to hear and gives speech to those who cannot speak.”
Mark 7:31-37

Dear God, I feel bad that I don’t see how much you have really done for me, to the point that I cannot be shut up about you. These people couldn’t be shut up. You tried to keep them quiet, but they were too enamored with the mighty things you did. You changed their lives in physical, tangible ways. You entered their world and they couldn’t help but spread the word.

As for me, you have done great and wonderful things for me. The difference is, I suppose, that they could also all be explained away by coincidence or chance. Do I really believe that you are the one behind the wonderful things? Good things in my family. My work. My health. My career. I could tell story after story about the things you’ve done, and sometimes I do. But do I really believe it was you? I know I’ve prayed about this several times, but it always seems to remain true.

Father, help me to really see what you are doing in my life and then share what you need me to share with others. Draw others to yourself through me. Let your kingdom come to earth as it is in heaven, and do it through my life. I will have the opportunity to interact with several people today. In fact, I had a couple of divine appointments yesterday as we started our vacation. Holy Spirit, please help me to not miss every opportunity you put in front of me. For your glory, oh Lord!

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 5, 2021 in Mark

 

2 Timothy 1:11-18

04 Sep

And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News. That is why I am suffering here in prison. But I am not ashamed of it, for I know the one in whom I trust, and I am sure that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him until the day of his return.

Hold on to the pattern of wholesome teaching you learned from me—a pattern shaped by the faith and love that you have in Christ Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit who lives within us, carefully guard the precious truth that has been entrusted to you.

As you know, everyone from the province of Asia has deserted me—even Phygelus and Hermogenes. May the Lord show special kindness to Onesiphorus and all his family because he often visited and encouraged me. He was never ashamed of me because I was in chains. When he came to Rome, he searched everywhere until he found me. May the Lord show him special kindness on the day of Christ’s return. And you know very well how helpful he was in Ephesus.
2 Timothy 1:11-18

Dear God, it’s special when we can look back and see how you put people in our lives through whom you changed us forever. You out Paul in Timothy s life. You even used John Mark in Paul’s life towards the end, even though Paul and Barnabas split over Mark years before. Now you were using Onesiphorus and his family to bless Paul. No one does it on their own.

I had lunch with a wealthy, successful man this week who came from humble beginnings. He rattled off at least five people in our time together as he told me about his life. All of them showed him mercy and kindness. I know my father has had similar people in his life. I have had them too.

So first, thank you for what you have done for me through others. Second, please help me be that person for other people. Start with my wife and children. Then my family. My coworkers. My friends. Even those in our community who will benefit from volunteers or charitable giving that I do who will never know me. I was reading in a book earlier today by Skye Jethani called What if Jesus was Serious about the idea that the kingdom of heaven to which Jesus refers is actually all around us now. So as I participate in your kingdom coming on earth, right now, use me to be what you need for others, and please help me to not miss the blessing or assistance you are giving me through others.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 4, 2021 in 2 Timothy

 

What’s my part?

02 Sep

Supreme Court declines to block Texas abortion law that bans procedure at six weeks

Dear God, something really, really big recently happened in my state that will impact a woman’s ability to abort a pregnancy. As someone who is pro-life, I’m curious that I’m not dancing on the tables and celebrating. I’m a believer in protecting the right of unborn children to live. Now that the state where I live is supporting that cause through its law, and the Supreme Court of the United States is passively affirming the law, what does that functionally mean?

By the numbers, 150 children per day will not be aborted in Texas (I’m going to ignore the possible number that will go to another state or will be illegally aborted). That translates into over 50,000 children per year, in Texas, who will now be born and require resources to survive. That means more Medicaid spending, More food stamps. More WIC. More needs for Early Head Start, Head Start, and spaces in schools. Assuming that a lot of them are born into difficult homes and poverty, ultimately we will need more police, more jail space. Maybe this is why I’m not dancing on the table. I’m playing the tape to the end and realizing that there is now a lot of work to do.

Father, show me my part to play in all of this. Whether it is helping crisis pregnancy centers, early childhood intervention programs, parent support programs, etc. Show me how to respond. How to spend my money. How to spend my time. Give me your eyes, and, Holy Spirit, move me.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on September 2, 2021 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

Psalm 95

31 Aug

Come, let us sing to the Lord! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.

Let us come to him with thanksgiving. Let us sing psalms of praise to him.

For the Lord is a great God, a great King above all gods.

He holds in his hands the depths of the earth and the mightiest mountains.

The sea belongs to him, for he made it. His hands formed the dry land, too.

Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our maker,

for he is our God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today!

The Lord says, “Don’t harden your hearts as Israel did at Meribah, as they did at Massah in the wilderness.

For there your ancestors tested and tried my patience, even though they saw everything I did.

For forty years I was angry with them, and I said, ‘They are a people whose hearts turn away from me. They refuse to do what I tell them.’

So in my anger I took an oath: ‘They will never enter my place of rest.’”
Psalm 95

Dear God, we don’t write worship songs like this anymore. This one starts out nice enough, encouraging us to worship, but it ends with a pretty stark warning: “Don’t do what they did when I brought them out of Egypt. Worship me and do what I tell you to do.”

I wonder what it would be like if they wrote songs for Sunday like this. I’m really trying to think of any traditional hymns or modern worship songs that mention this kind of warning. Nothing comes to mind. But it’s a good reminder.

Father, there are times when I am very afraid of missing what you’re calling me to do. There are times when I put other things before you and don’t worship you. There are times when I’m selfish and lethargic. I’m sorry for all of those sins. But I am grateful. I do love you. I want to do what you’re calling me to do and love those you call me to love. Open my eyes so I can see.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 31, 2021 in Psalms

 

Ephesians 2:11-22

30 Aug

Don’t forget that you Gentiles used to be outsiders. You were called “uncircumcised heathens” by the Jews, who were proud of their circumcision, even though it affected only their bodies and not their hearts. In those days you were living apart from Christ. You were excluded from citizenship among the people of Israel, and you did not know the covenant promises God had made to them. You lived in this world without God and without hope. But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ. For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death. He brought this Good News of peace to you Gentiles who were far away from him, and peace to the Jews who were near. Now all of us can come to the Father through the same Holy Spirit because of what Christ has done for us. So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. Together, we are his house, built on the foundation of the apostles and the prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus himself. We are carefully joined together in him, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through him you Gentiles are also being made part of this dwelling where God lives by his Spirit.
Ephesians 2:11-22

Dear God, I’ve read this passage countless times, but I don’t think I’ve every really appreciated how anti-racist Paul was in his message. He was taking this to Gentiles. All Gentiles.

A couple of days ago, my wife and I were talking about how the great Babylonian exile among the Israelites ultimately marked the end of idol worship for them. They were always falling into idol worship with the surrounding nations, but they stopped after that. That terrible exile seems to have purged it from them. I asked her this morning if it was because the nations that conquered them (Babylon, Rome, etc.) didn’t worship idols, but instead worshiped the men in charge as their god and maybe that was just a step too far for them. Maybe it was.

I bring all of that up here because after I read this passage this morning I all of a sudden juxtaposed Paul’s message of the welcoming all other nationalities into Christianity and even watering down some of the requirements like unclean food and circumcision to accomplish it, and the Old Testaments’ warnings of getting too close to and intermingling with foreigners. What Jesus brought was truly paradigm shifting. It was your love built for the whole world.

Father, thank you for building a bridge between you and me through Jesus. Thank you for giving me something better than an idol or a man to worship. I am sorry for the idols I set up in my life. I’m sorry for worshipping money and what I perceive as financial security. I’m sorry for worshiping what I think my children’s lives should be or what paths they should take. I’m sorry for worshiping the destiny I want for myself and putting that before my worship of you. I’m sorry for my selfishness. I’m sorry for sinning against you. Please forgive me, and thank you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 30, 2021 in Ephesians

 

John 6:28-29

28 Aug

They replied, “We want to perform God’s works, too. What should we do?” Jesus told them, “This is the only work God wants from you: Believe in the one he has sent.”
John 6:28-29

Dear God, this actually kind of fits with my recent struggles. I’ve felt a bit overwhelmed by the combination of negative things happening in the world and even my own family. The idols my heart wants to create (peace in the world, government, health, spouse, children, parents, friends, act.) start to fail me and I just don’t know what to do. I think that’s probably been reflected in some of my prayers lately.

Several years ago, I had a job that exposed me to some of the most miserable aspects of human existence. I was around children who lived in terrible situations and I would go home from work very depressed and discouraged some days. Over time, I learned to compartmentalize that pain and leave it at work. I would work to address it during the day, but at night I had to let it go so I could be with my family and have some semblance of a joyful life.

I think the ability to compartmentalize things is important, but it is fraught with danger because I can be tempted to try to deny it out of existence, allowing it to build and grow in my subconscious until it starts poisoning me. Probably a better idea is to compartmentalize it in its place, but still pay attention to it and work on it as your Spirit convicts and leads me to. It can’t be left in its compartment all of the time, but it can be put out of my way so that I don’t have to dwell on it constantly.

An example of why I’m saying all of this is because I’ve been frustrated over the situation in Afghanistan and the suffering going on there. What am I to do? Sometimes there’s simply nothing for me to do but pray. Maybe I can actually do something for people in instances like Haiti, sending money to help feed people. Or I can organize local services to help people in need. But there are sometimes when I want to perform your work, as this passage says, and your words back are for me to believe in you.

Father, I believe in you and trust you. Please grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to do what I need to do and what you call me to do (including prayer) to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 28, 2021 in John

 

The Prophets

27 Aug

Dear God, I have a confession to make. I’ve pretty much avoided the prophets. The only excuse I have is no excuse at all–I’ve been lazy. I can’t just take a little chunk from Isaiah or Jeremiah and figure out what is going on. I can’t even read the whole book and really get a picture of the context and what is happening. It would take some research and time for me to understand what you might have to teach me through those men, and I’ve been unwilling to commit the time to do it. I’m sorry for that.

I have a vacation coming up soon, and I have an entire set of biblical commentaries. I’ve also been looking for something to read on this vacation to take the place of some of the normal things I do that take (waste?) my time. So my plan is to pick two commentaries and read them while I’m on the trip. And I will pray to you about them as I go. Sometimes through these journals and sometimes not. But I know you have a lot to teach me and apply to our current world through those books.

One thing I feel pretty poignantly right now is the different things happening in the world and what my personal role is in addressing them. What is my response to the tragedies in Afghanistan and Haiti? Human trafficking everywhere (including here)? Supporting the local medical community through COVID? Becoming an advocate for smart pandemic policies? What would you have me do?

Then there are personal things. My relationships with family members. My witness to friends. My willingness to lean on friends and be vulnerable with them.

Something tells me that there might be some words of the Holy Spirit for me buried within those books. So I’m committing you to now that I am going to take the time to start doing a little mining. I might start this weekend, but I am sure I will start when my vacation begins next weekend. I am sorry for my laziness in this area. I am sorry I’ve shunned about 1/3 of your scripture. I’m sorry there are still these parts of me that are so selfish.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on August 27, 2021 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 
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