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Matthew 9:35-38

06 Jul

Jesus traveled through all the towns and villages of that area, teaching in the synagogues and announcing the Good News about the Kingdom. And he healed every kind of disease and illness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Matthew 9:35-38

Dear God, when I read this passage this morning I was struck by the last few words: “…ask him to send more workers into his fields.” I’m surprised he didn’t tell them that they needed to get to work. Sure, maybe that was implied because he knew it would take more than them to get the job done. And presumably people would have to be taught, either by Jesus or someone who knew Jesus, how to be a harvester. It still strikes me that each of us has a role to play in your kingdom and the intimation for me here is that not everyone Jesus was addressing was intended to be a harvester.

I think there are probably two things all of us need to pay attention to as we work out our faith and our place in your kingdom. First, we need to seek your direction and follow when we feel led. Second, we need to make sure that we stay with your guidance on the journey and don’t say things that will accidentally lead people away from you.

Father, help me to get past some of the things I allow to distract me from you and the work you’ve given to me. Help me to not only work hard, but to work within the construct of seeking your presence and wisdom. Speak to me through Scripture. Speak to me through others. Give me a discerning heart that will separate the wheat from the chaff so that I might be both a servant in your kingdom and avoid being someone who accidentally or intentionally leads others away from you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 6, 2021 in Matthew

 

Genesis 28:10-22

05 Jul

Meanwhile, Jacob left Beersheba and traveled toward Haran. At sundown he arrived at a good place to set up camp and stopped there for the night. Jacob found a stone to rest his head against and lay down to sleep. As he slept, he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway. At the top of the stairway stood the Lord, and he said, “I am the Lord , the God of your grandfather Abraham, and the God of your father, Isaac. The ground you are lying on belongs to you. I am giving it to you and your descendants. Your descendants will be as numerous as the dust of the earth! They will spread out in all directions—to the west and the east, to the north and the south. And all the families of the earth will be blessed through you and your descendants. What’s more, I am with you, and I will protect you wherever you go. One day I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have finished giving you everything I have promised you.” Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I wasn’t even aware of it!” But he was also afraid and said, “What an awesome place this is! It is none other than the house of God, the very gateway to heaven!” The next morning Jacob got up very early. He took the stone he had rested his head against, and he set it upright as a memorial pillar. Then he poured olive oil over it. He named that place Bethel (which means “house of God”), although it was previously called Luz. Then Jacob made this vow: “If God will indeed be with me and protect me on this journey, and if he will provide me with food and clothing, and if I return safely to my father’s home, then the Lord will certainly be my God. And this memorial pillar I have set up will become a place for worshiping God, and I will present to God a tenth of everything he gives me.”
Genesis 28:10-2

Dear God, it is hard to make the decision to worship you as our father worships you. Well, that’s not quite right. Let me put it this way. At some point, each of us has to make a decision. In this case, Jacob had wanted his father’s blessing that came from you, the God his father served, but judging from the ultimatum Jacob laid out at the end of this passage, he really didn’t have any intention of serving you until this experience. You weren’t yet his God.

At some point, my grandfather had to make a decision about following you. He had to do it for himself. I wish I had asked him about his faith while he was alive. I went to church with him and my grandmother. I saw him sing in the choir. I went to a Bible study with both of them once when I was in college. I know they went to at least one retreat at a Christian retreat center. But I don’t know much about his personal relationship with you or his journey to being your child. I don’t know his testimony.

I do, however, know my dad’s testimony and how he had to wrestle with you before he submitted. And I know my own testimony. Mine wasn’t as much of a wrestling as a seeking. When someone would tel me about the fruits of the Spirit you offer through submitted relationship (along with the fire insurance from hell), I wanted it. I was willing to give up my will for yours. At least in the moment. It seems I continuously struggle to take back piece of self-indulgence that I’ve surrendered to you. But I’m still here, working out my faith day by day.

Now it’s my children’s turn to figure it out for themselves. They are grown. And I’ve seen them each respond to life and to you differently. I’m reminded of when my grandmother (father’s mother) used to tell me that she just wanted her three sons to be “fine Christian men.” I’m sure that’s what Abraham wanted for Isaac and Ishmael (well, maybe Godly since “Christian” didn’t exist yet). I’m sure that’s what Isaac wanted for Esau and Jacob. And now, this passage shows a step Jacob was taking in that journey.

Father, my grandfather has completed his journey. Help his sons on theirs. Help their children on theirs (including me on mine). And help the children of this next generation. Give visions. Beckon. Inspire. Convict. Whatever it takes. Do it for all of our sakes and for your glory.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 5, 2021 in Genesis

 

Mark 6:1-6

04 Jul

Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. Then Jesus told them, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family.” And because of their unbelief, he couldn’t do any miracles among them except to place his hands on a few sick people and heal them. And he was amazed at their unbelief. Then Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people.
Mark 6:1-6

Dear God, I am sure this isn’t the future Mary envisioned all those years ago. Way back in the manger with the shepherds and Joseph. In the temple with Simeon and Anna (Luke 2). Way back with the wise men. Way back when she and Elizabeth would talk about what the figure held for their boys. Sitting up late, nursing Jesus and talking to Joseph. I am certain they couldn’t help but speculate as to what you were going to do with Jesus’s life. And now, here he is, being rejected by her friends and neighbors. I don’t know if Mary was in on it, but in Mark 3:21, his family thinks he’s crazy. In Matthew 12, she’s with his brothers and trying to speak to him. No, this wasn’t at all working out like it was supposed to.

I’ve been pretty disillusioned by how I thought my children’s lives and my relationships with them would work out. The reality has proven to be very different than my expectations. At least I know I’m in good company. If Jesus’s mother was concerned about his behavior and his brothers tried to take him away, if their family was broken and dysfunctional, then maybe we have the wrong paradigm for what a functional family will look like. If, in my opinion, the two best parents in the Bible, raising your son, ended up walking a disappointing path with their children, maybe I shouldn’t expect any better—either from my life of me as a child of my parents or from me as a parent.

Father, help me to simply take my eyes off of what I think should be and put them on you. Let your kingdom come and your will be done on earth. Do it through me. Do it in spite of how I might accidentally get in your way. Do it for your glory.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 4, 2021 in Mark

 

Jeremiah 17:5-10

02 Jul

This is what the Lord says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the Lord. They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land.

“But blessed are those who trust in the Lord and have made the Lord their hope and confidence. They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

“The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”
Jeremiah 17:5-10

Dear God, verse 10 an example of a verse that could easily be taken out of context by a prosperity gospel preacher.

“I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”

But this is obviously foolishness. When I look at the verses that precede it, I can see that there is a lot more to this passage than the words of verse 10. This isn’t about me just having good actions, as verse 10 alone would imply. No, in context, this is about being a follower of you, not just a believer (this has been a theme of my prayers to you over the last several months). You examine our hearts and know them better than we know ourselves. You know if we are putting our roots into you or into the things of this world. And then sometimes we will go through heat or long months of drought. You never promise that won’t happen. But you do promise that you’ll be there for us in those times if our roots are tapped into you and your Holy Spirit.

Father, first, please help me to remember to tap into you. Help me to be a follower and not just a believer. And then help me to take that message to others. Help me to communicate to anyone you have given me in my sphere of influence that it isn’t about the droughts in life, but the fact that we are tapped into the source of life. You bring peace. You bring joy. You bring love. You bring patients, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, kindness, and self control. I can have all of these through the worst of droughts because of you. Please forgive me for the times I’ve suffered and have tried to solve my suffering through worldly means. I am sorry.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on July 2, 2021 in Jeremiah

 

Zechariah 14:8-9

30 Jun

On that day life-giving waters will flow out from Jerusalem, half toward the Dead Sea and half toward the Mediterranean, flowing continuously in both summer and winter. And the Lord will be king over all the earth. On that day there will be one Lord —his name alone will be worshiped.
Zechariah 14:8-9

Dear God, I was having lunch with a friend today and Israel came up. He’s had some recent experience there and he mentioned that “most” Israelis are not devout and do not take their Jewish faith seriously. I don’t know how true that is, but I’d have to say it seems to be consistent with my perception. To be sure, I know some Jewish people who take their love for you and faith in you very seriously. But from a distance and what they portray publicly, I don’t see much mention of you from their society as a whole.

Which leads me to our country. It feels like we (and I mean the collective, broad-stroke stereotype of “we”) are becoming more and more believers that there is a God and not followers of you. This same friend mentioned his three adult children are very different in their faith. one is practically a monk (if not an actual monk—I’m not clear on his title, but he’s something in the Catholic Church). Another child is sounded to me like a believer in you and not a follower of you. The third is totally agnostic, if not atheist, pursuing morality as a principle by which to live his life. This isn’t dissimilar from my own children or many children of friends whom I know—or many people my age. We are drifting. We are the frog in the pot, cluelessly approaching the boiling point.

Father, Zechariah tells us in this prophecy that there will be a day when your name alone will be worshipped. I also heard an interview on a podcast yesterday where they talked about whether or not they should be worried about the future of the Christian church. Their ultimate answer was no, in the long run your church will be fine because you are in charge. But it might have to go through a refining process over a long period of time. It might get smaller, but ultimately more influential. One day the churches and the Christian faith we planted in the Southern Hemisphere might have to save faith in the northern hemisphere, but your church will be fine. Well, please, show me what you would have me do in the lives around me in your world so that I might be a small part of any ultimate plan you have.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 30, 2021 in Zechariah

 

Psalm 138:8

29 Jun

The Lord will work out his plans for my life— for your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever. Don’t abandon me, for you made me.
Psalm 138:8

Dear God, this is from a psalm David wrote. As I read psalms by David and others, and as I journal through hymns and songs that others wrote, I try to identify with their human experience as they relate to either you or their surroundings, trying to learn something about myself or being reminded to worship you. But if I were to write my own psalm, song, or poem, what would my heart be saying to you right now? If I look inside, is there anything I need to get down in writing?

I’m not much of a poet. About the only poetry I write is haiku because it’s intentionally short and you have to strategize each syllable. That’s more my style. So what would I say if I were to write a haiku to you from my heart?

I’ve been given much
I need help to steward it
Lead me down your path

Yeah, I think that’s it. Hmm. What an interesting exercise. That really touched something I didn’t expect or see coming. At work, you’ve given us a lot of resources, but I’m not sure how to use them the most wisely. In my personal life, you’ve given me resources beyond money (good wife/marriage, influence in our community, etc.). You’ve given me this special relationship with you and some unique insights into scripture. You’ve given me a gift for public speaking. Am o wasting all of it? Am I missing opportunities for the work you need my vapor of a life to do? I also have areas of my life that are problematic. Am I doing what you want me to do to resolve them?

Father, I will work on trying to assess some of this today. I will seek you, your will, and then try to be willing to sacrifice my own selfishness to answer your call. Please give me eyes to see and ears to hear. Give me a heart to follow, and a mind submitted to you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 29, 2021 in Psalms

 

2 Peter 3:3-10

28 Jun

Most importantly, I want to remind you that in the last days scoffers will come, mocking the truth and following their own desires. They will say, “What happened to the promise that Jesus is coming again? From before the times of our ancestors, everything has remained the same since the world was first created.” They deliberately forget that God made the heavens long ago by the word of his command, and he brought the earth out from the water and surrounded it with water. Then he used the water to destroy the ancient world with a mighty flood. And by the same word, the present heavens and earth have been stored up for fire. They are being kept for the day of judgment, when ungodly people will be destroyed. But you must not forget this one thing, dear friends: A day is like a thousand years to the Lord, and a thousand years is like a day. The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent. But the day of the Lord will come as unexpectedly as a thief. Then the heavens will pass away with a terrible noise, and the very elements themselves will disappear in fire, and the earth and everything on it will be found to deserve judgment.
2 Peter 3:3-10

Dear God, some Christians are uncomfortable with this passage because they don’t want to deal with the idea that Peter didn’t understand the second coming. If scripture is inerrant, then how do I deal with Peter’s errancy? But in this case, I don’t know that Peter was wrong as much as he was sharing his theory. Now, he would probably have been shocked to learn that I would still be sitting here 2,000 years later still waiting for your return. But there’s something comforting in Peter’s mistakes.

For me, Peter is the living embodiment of what you value. He allows his passion and love for you to both lurch the church forward into history and then to get him into trouble or the wrong situations. For example, just before Pentecost, he seemingly abruptly decides that it’s up to them to fulfill the prophecy and replace Judas, which they do by casting lots and picking Matthias. But history tells us it was likely actually Paul who fulfilled that prophecy. Then he went on to deliver an amazing prayer at Pentecost. I could go on and on with stories about him. My point is, he lived a little recklessly, but sometimes that’s what you need, even if it comes with some hubristic or foolish mistakes.

Father, I am not a reckless person. I am not a bold person. I don’t know if you necessarily want me to be given the role you have for me in your body. Whether I am or I’m not intended to be more like Peter, please help me to not judge the Peters in your body so harshly, but to do what I can to support them. And help me to live completely into the role you have for me to play.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 28, 2021 in 2 Peter

 

Black Lives Matter & Critical Race Theory

26 Jun

Dear God, I was really surprised to learn in the last week that Critical Race Theory (CRT) has been around since the early 70s. What?!? But I’ve been hearing so much about it lately. How could this not be something new?

I think I first heard it referenced on a podcast a few months ago. What I remember wasn’t an endorsement, but it wasn’t a condemnation either. It reminded me of a column I found about a year ago by Randy Alcorn titled “Black Lived Do Matter, But the BLM Organization Opposes Christian Values: So What Should We Do?” That particular editorial was about how it’s important to not throw out an important concept of realizing there is a racism problem in our society while rejecting the politics of an organization that has co-opted the the words “black lives matter.”

Anyway, to go back two days, I came across this YouTube video showing an exchange between the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and a member of Congress, during which CRT was discussed. I’ve recently heard so many scary, alarmist things about CRT, but everyone sounding the alarm about it was very vague. I decided I needed to do my due diligence and learn more about it so that I could develop an informed opinion rather than just decide what I thought about it by whether the person talking up its virtues or its dangers had a (D) or an (R) by their name, or was on CNN or Fox News.

Of course, I started with Wikipedia, the great authority for all knowledge (sarcasm intended). That’s when I confirmed what the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs alluded to: this is not a new concept. I’ll get back to that later. After I read the explanation of it, I read some commentaries by people who are critical (“The Lies that Serve Us” and “What is Critical Race Theory?”). After reading them, my assessment was that there are probably some basic truths.

  • Jim Crow laws are an undeniable way in which state and local governments enacted laws to suppress the advancement of black people.
  • Redlining was a huge factor in suppressing the ability of people of color to build wealth through property ownership.

In fact, I’m going to stop this list. There are too many examples of systemic racism for them to be denied. Quite simply, I am a privileged white man. I get the benefit of the doubt because of how I look. When my wife and I are driving back from South Padre Island and go through the inland border checkpoint, they wave us through without checking our ID, while my Hispanic coworkers have to produce identification. My minority coworkers experience racism at local stores just in how they are treated when I do not. Again, there are too many examples to even list. They are just too numerous. But in short, there are certainly aspects of CRT that are undeniably true.

What’s concerning me is that we’ve become such a binary society. We have to accept all or nothing. If I support Trump or Biden for president, that means I have to either support or attack everything they say, believe, or put into place as policy. Our society no longer values critical thinking and nuance. We can’t see how someone might have a great theory with weak elements or a terrible theory with solid elements. It’s all or nothing.

Finally, I read this piece by Robert Vischer, dean of the law school at St. Thomas University. It’s called “Staying Calm About Critical Race Theory.” Basically, Vischer pulls out the value we can learn from CRT without having to embrace the whole thing. Just like black lives do, indeed, matter, that doesn’t mean we have to embrace everything the organization believes.

So regarding CRT, it feels like people who don’t want to exam how racism is still active in our society and even laws have attached it to an extreme theory so they can avoid dealing with it. It’s ridiculous.

Father, at the end of all of this, I simply ask that you open my eyes so that I can see. Part of that process is to develop more friendships with people with difference color skin than I have. In fact, that’s going to start tonight with church. My wife and I have decided to try to attend the Spanish mass at our Catholic Church as much as possible so that we can at least start the process of getting to know our neighbors. In fact, I’ve already noticed one thing that cannot help but impact the ability for Spanish-speaking Catholics in our town and their relationship with you. Their mass is at 7:00pm on a Saturday night. The Saturday English mass is at 5:00pm. So if I am English-speaking, I can choose mass at 5:00pm on a Saturday and still have my evening ahead of me, or go at 7:30am, 9:00am, or 11:15am on Sunday. But if I am Spanish-speaking, my only choice is to give up the heart of my Friday evening. How much does that impact the ability of the Spanish speaking Catholics to be exposed to mass and to you? So teach me. Open my eyes so I can see. And please direct me so that I might help our society to make a difference when I see injustice at any level.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 26, 2021 in Miscellaneous, Musings and Stories

 

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2 Thessalonians 3:2-3

24 Jun

Pray, too, that we will be rescued from wicked and evil people, for not everyone is a believer. But the Lord is faithful; he will strengthen you and guard you from the evil one.
2 Thessalonians 3:2-3

Dear God, I feel like this could really be misinterpreted by someone who would use a passage like this as a way to be confrontational with others who disagree with them. In our country, we have taken disagreement and turned it into attacks. We disagree with someone so we perceive their disagreement as an attack, and then we assume our job is to attack back. But that is not what Paul is talking about here. First, he’s talking about legitimate rescue from legitimate evil. He’s talking about being stoned, imprisoned, crucified, losing your possessions, etc. He’s talking about actual persecution, not the persecution as defined by 21st century Americans. What we as Christians have with our society is disagreements. As long as we keep attacking others with our opinions instead of loving them through them, we will not do one thing to change their mind.

One thing I need to study up on is “Critical Race Theory.” I need to understand what it is because it seems to have become a political flashpoint. People are for it or against it based on whether they have a “D” or “R” next to their political identity, but most do not know what it really contains. It’s like the person I was talking with a few days ago who was boycotting Coca-Cola. When I asked why they didn’t have their facts correct. In essence, they didn’t know why. They just knew someone they trusted had told them Coca-Cola was bad and they accepted it. Frankly, they were denying themselves a Coke product they enjoy for something that, if they really looked into it, might not be as big of a deal as they thought it was.

Father, guide me through your Holy Spirit. Give me ears to hear and eyes to see. Help me to look beyond the preconceptions and misconceptions that blind me to your truth, and see the world as you see it. Help me to be thoughtful. Help me to be diligent. Help me to be loving as I do my best to be the man you need me to be. Please forgive me for when I fail, because you know how much I do, indeed, fail.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 24, 2021 in 2 Thessalonians

 

Psalm 121

22 Jun

A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem

I look up to the mountains— does my help come from there? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth! He will not let you stumble; the one who watches over you will not slumber. Indeed, he who watches over Israel never slumbers or sleeps. The Lord himself watches over you! The Lord stands beside you as your protective shade. The sun will not harm you by day, nor the moon at night. The Lord keeps you from all harm and watches over your life. The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever.
Psalm 121

Dear God, see, this is one of those psalms that’s a nice sentiment, but I don’t think it’s theologically solid. At least not in the way we like to think of you keeping us from harm, for example. The last two verses were the verses of the day for Bible Gateway. My problem is, if I were to read them and just take them literally them I would have a distorted vision of what you owe me in our relationship.

And I’ve been there before. I’ve been disappointed in you when I’ve come across times of struggle from which I thought you should have better protected me. But I was wrong. You might be working it all out for my good, but I might never see what that means on this side of life.

Father, I appreciate the sentiment of giving these pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem a song to sing together. I appreciate that they were worshipping you. And I appreciate them singing of your love for us and how much you care about us. I would just add that sometimes suffering or even harm are going to happen, and you won’t keep it from us. That’s okay. It’s just part of your world and plan I do not understand. But I trust you. I love you. I worship you.

In Jesus’s name I pray,

Amen

 
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Posted by on June 22, 2021 in Psalms

 
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