Lent 2020 Day 30 “Present in the Presence”

Daily Scriptures: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20130;%20Ezekiel%201:1-3,%202:8-3:3;%20Revelation%2010:1-11

                                                          Psalm 130

¹ Out of the depths, I cry to you, Lord; ² Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive
    to my cry for mercy. ³ If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand?

⁴ But with you there is forgiveness, so that we can, with reverence, serve you.

⁵ I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word, I put my hope.
⁶ I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.

⁷ Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. ⁸ He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.

Present In The Presence

Tick tock, tick tock, Waiting….Waiting….Waiting. Is there anybody who enjoys waiting? Most people I have met will describe waiting as one of their least favorite life situations. I recently observed myself and my phone have a closer relationship when I am waiting. The moment things slow down my phone comes up. Its almost a habit. Checking messages, looking at the gram, anything to pass the time. When we are waiting, our minds tend to fixate on the not yet and the things we would love to be doing. The growth opportunity exists in bringing our full attention to the present moment and identifying GOD in our midst. It is easy to grow agitated and disturbed when we are having an “out of being” experience. When I say “an “out of being experience”,  I am thinking on the lines of Being a Human being and not just a human doing. An “out of being” experience occurs when our bodies exist in one place but our minds are running all around town. Every moment of anxiety while waiting in a line, at a stoplight, at the doctor’s office can indicate an out of being experience.

In the writing of this Psalm, we connect with the writer in an intimate moment. The writer expresses the cry of the soul for help. He writes, “Out of the depths I cry to you, LORD…Be attentive to my cry for mercy. I can feel this. During the most challenging times of my life, I have found myself laying prostrate at the altar of the church I pastor with my face down and a full agonizing cry to GOD. (I do this when alone, so I don’t alarm anybody). In the moment of this cry, I am fully present. My mind is not wandering, I am totally focused on experiencing GOD and GOD experiencing me. At this moment like the Psalmist, I confront my role in my situation. Either through neglect or arrogance sin has crept into my life and I need forgiveness. My situation cannot totally change until I change. Carrying guilt locks me into living in the past. Knowing I am forgiven liberates me to live in the present PRESENCE. When we are forgiven the residue of sin can be washed away and we become new creations in Christ. Forgiveness allows us to breathe again and to begin the practice of being fully present in the moment. This is the challenge of waiting.

When we are able to say my whole being waits for the LORD, we are able to lose the illusion of time and see ourselves in the context of eternity. It is always now in the context of eternity. To wait with our while being takes practice. Imagine pausing the next time you find yourself waiting, and focus on your breathing. Drop your shoulders, exhale, de-stress and know you are blessed. Place your hope in the word of the LORD who plans to prosper you. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and put your hope in the unfailing love of GOD. Sometimes the wait is a Divine delay while GOD is preparing a great blessing for us. Instead of stressing through the stretching of waiting, Be Still and chill. GOD is with you and that’s all we need.

PRAYER: LORD we confess we want you to hurry up. We want to escape the waiting time and just get to the bottom line now. We want the joy of Easter without the pain of Calvary. Help us to wait with our whole being. AMEN

Point To Ponder: Where are you now? Are you fully present? Today when you find yourself waiting, don’t fiddle with your phone, or get distracted, but whisper a prayer for someone near you. Pray for your pastor or president. Breath and Be…

Lent 2020 Day 13 “Impatience”

 

Daily Scriptures: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20128%3B%20Numbers%2021%3A4-9%3B%20Hebrews%203%3A1-6&version=AMP;NIV

^{NUMBERS 21:4} They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea,^[a] to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; ⁵ they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!”

⁶ Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. ⁷ The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

⁸ The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” ⁹ So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.

Impatient

Any parent who has ever driven on vacation with a young child is very familiar with the following mantra, “Are we there yet”? “Are we there yet”? The more exciting the destination or long the trip the more the question gets asked. Many of us as children of GOD have been in a similar situation with GOD. We like the child on a long ride start to get anxious. We want what we believe has been promised to us to come and come quickly.

The Israelites in our text are in the wilderness on the way to the promised land. What an exciting destination. The challenge is the way to the promised land is through the wilderness. Going through the wilderness is more than a notion. The wilderness is often dry, untamed land. Rugged and rocky. Going through the wilderness requires strength, dedication, hope, and perseverance. To top it off sometimes you have detours and delays in the wilderness. While in the midst of a detour they grow impatient and grumble. They start giving GOD and Moses the attributes of Pharoah. It is Pharoah that would have them die and GOD has promised abundance. The Israelites lose focus and their faith falters.

One take away for us today is knowing the way to our most desired outcome may be through the wilderness. There is no instant success. The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary. The wilderness helps us to work through our delusions of self-reliance and inspires us to trust in GOD even when we cannot track GOD. This Lent we may be desiring closeness with GOD and we may have to feel alone and deserted to get there. Every snack we forsake or soda we give up is a sacrifice that we do in hopes of reaching the promised land of more intimacy. And we may grow impatient when it feels like GOD is farther away than when we started. I encourage YOU to not give up on GOD because GOD has not given up on YOU. It takes hot water to get the best flavor out of tea and it may take a wilderness to get the best out of YOU. Keep the faith.

Point to Ponder: Would YOU sacrifice freedom for security? Is death better than bondage? In what areas of your life are you growing impatient?

Lent 2019 Day 36 “Human Being or Human Doing?”

 

Wed Apr 10

Psalm 119:145-176 Psalm 128-130

Jeremiah 25:30-38

Romans 10:14-21

John 10:1-18

^{Psalm 130:5} I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
⁶ I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.

 

Waiting….Waiting….Waiting. Is there anybody who enjoys waiting? Most people I have met will describe waiting as one of their least favorite life situations. When we are waiting our minds tend to fixate on the not yet and the things we would love to be doing. The growth opportunity exists in bringing our full attention into the present moment and identifying GOD in our midst. It is easy to grow agitated and disturbed when we are having an “out of being” experience. When I say out of being experience I am thinking on the lines of Being a Human being and not just a human doing. An “out of being” experience occurs when our bodies exist one place but our minds are running all around town. Every moment of anxiety while waiting in a line, at a stop light, at the doctors office can indicate an out of being experience.

In the writing of this Psalm as in many others we connect with the writer in an intimate moment. The writer expresses the cry of the soul for help. He writes, “Out of the depths I cry to you, LORD…Be attentive to my cry for mercy. I can feel this. In the most challenging of my life experiences, I have found myself laying prostrate at the altar of the church I pastor with my face down and a full agonizing cry to GOD. (I do this when alone, so I don’t alarm anybody). In the moment of this cry I am fully present. My mind is not wandering, I am totally focused on experiencing GOD and GOD experiencing me. In this moment like the Psalmist I must confront my role in my situation. Either through neglect or arrogance sin has crept into my life and I need forgiveness. My situation cannot totally change until I change. Carrying guilt locks me into living in the past. Forgiveness liberates us to live in the present. When we are forgiven the residue of sin can be washed away and we become new creations in Christ. Forgiveness allows us to breath again and begin practicing being fully present in the moment. This is the challenge of waiting.

When we are able to say my whole being waits for the LORD, we are able to lose the illusion of time and see ourselves in the context of eternity. It is always now in the context of eternity. To wait with our while being takes practice. Imagine pausing the next time you find yourself waiting, and focus on your breathing. Drop your shoulders, exhale, de-stress and know you are blessed. Place your hope in the word of the LORD who plans to prosper you. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and put your hope in the unfailing love of GOD. Sometimes the wait is a Divine delay while GOD is preparing a great blessing for us. Instead of stressing through the stretching of waiting, Be Still and chill. GOD is with you and that’s all we need.

PRAYER: LORD we confess we want you to hurry up. We want to escape the waiting time and just get to the bottom line now. We want the joy of Easter without the pain of Calvary. Help us to wait with our whole being. AMEN

Point To Ponder: Where are you now? Are you fully present? Today when you find yourself waiting, don’t fiddle with your phone, or get distracted, but whisper a prayer for someone near you. Pray for your pastor or president. Breath and Be…

Lent 2019 Day 36 “Human Being or Human Doing?”

Wed Apr 10

Psalm 119:145-176 Psalm 128-130

Jeremiah 25:30-38

Romans 10:14-21

John 10:1-18

^{Psalm 130:5} I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
⁶ I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.

 

Waiting….Waiting….Waiting. Is there anybody who enjoys waiting? Most people I have met will describe waiting as one of their least favorite life situations. When we are waiting our minds tend to fixate on the not yet and the things we would love to be doing. The growth opportunity exists in bringing our full attention into the present moment and identifying GOD in our midst. It is easy to grow agitated and disturbed when we are having an “out of being” experience. When I say out of being experience I am thinking on the lines of Being a Human being and not just a human doing. An “out of being” experience occurs when our bodies exist one place but our minds are running all around town. Every moment of anxiety while waiting in a line, at a stop light, at the doctors office can indicate an out of being experience.

In the writing of this Psalm as in many others we connect with the writer in an intimate moment. The writer expresses the cry of the soul for help. He writes, “Out of the depths I cry to you, LORD…Be attentive to my cry for mercy. I can feel this. In the most challenging of my life experiences, I have found myself laying prostrate at the altar of the church I pastor with my face down and a full agonizing cry to GOD. (I do this when alone, so I don’t alarm anybody). In the moment of this cry I am fully present. My mind is not wandering, I am totally focused on experiencing GOD and GOD experiencing me. In this moment like the Psalmist I must confront my role in my situation. Either through neglect or arrogance sin has crept into my life and I need forgiveness. My situation cannot totally change until I change. Carrying guilt locks me into living in the past. Forgiveness liberates us to live in the present. When we are forgiven the residue of sin can be washed away and we become new creations in Christ. Forgiveness allows us to breath again and begin practicing being fully present in the moment. This is the challenge of waiting.

When we are able to say my whole being waits for the LORD, we are able to lose the illusion of time and see ourselves in the context of eternity. It is always now in the context of eternity. To wait with our while being takes practice. Imagine pausing the next time you find yourself waiting, and focus on your breathing. Drop your shoulders, exhale, de-stress and know you are blessed. Place your hope in the word of the LORD who plans to prosper you. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and put your hope in the unfailing love of GOD. Sometimes the wait is a Divine delay while GOD is preparing a great blessing for us. Instead of stressing through the stretching of waiting, Be Still and chill. GOD is with you and that’s all we need.

PRAYER: LORD we confess we want you to hurry up. We want to escape the waiting time and just get to the bottom line now. We want the joy of Easter without the pain of Calvary. Help us to wait with our whole being. AMEN

Point To Ponder: Where are you now? Are you fully present? Today when you find yourself waiting, don’t fiddle with your phone, or get distracted, but whisper a prayer for someone near you. Pray for your pastor or president. Breath and Be…

Lent 2019 Day 27 “How Long?”

Mon Apr 1

Psalm 89

Jeremiah 16:10-21

Romans 7:1-12

John 6:1-15

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+89%2C+Jeremiah+16%3A10-21%2C+Romans+7%3A1-12%2C+John+6%3A1-15&version=NIV

^{Psalm 89:1} I will sing of the Lord’s great love forever;
    with my mouth I will make your faithfulness known
    through all generations.
² I will declare that your love stands firm forever,
    that you have established your faithfulness in heaven itself.                     ¹⁴ Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne;
    love and faithfulness go before you.
¹⁵ Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you,
    who walk in the light of your presence, Lord.
¹⁶ They rejoice in your name all day long;
    they celebrate your righteousness.
¹⁷ For you are their glory and strength,
    and by your favor you exalt our horn.^[d]
18 Indeed, our shield^[e] belongs to the Lord,
                                             our king to the Holy One of Israel.                                                                        ⁴⁶ How long, Lord? Will you hide yourself forever?
    How long will your wrath burn like fire?
⁴⁷ Remember how fleeting is my life.
    For what futility you have created all humanity!
⁴⁸ Who can live and not see death,
    or who can escape the power of the grave?
⁴⁹ Lord, where is your former great love,
    which in your faithfulness you swore to David?

I hate to bust your bubble but all the things we say and think are solid until they are tested. It is easy to see and declare the endless love of GOD when you are safe and secure in your walled house with locked doors. in the western world it is especially easy to associate the blessings of GOD with the stuff that we have. Some preachers have built whole ministries around the desire of congregants to feel good about their ability to acquire stuff. Prosperity gospel proponents link Godliness with gold and goodies. If you want more stuff just be more holy. Without going to far into this let me just say that is a fallacy that takes advantage of how many think.

The Psalmist begins by declaring the stability of the love of GOD. In good times when the sun is shinning we will song of the LORDS love with exuberance and fervor. Yet as we keep reading the Psalm we get to the other side of the emotinoal coin. The Psalmist now asks, “How long LORD, will YOU hide forever?” How soon we forget. I am sure that some one reading this may recognize themself in this scenario. At one time you were on fire for GOD. Couldnt wait to get to the sanctuary. Singing in the car and whistling spiritual love songs as you worked. But then trouble came your way and it came in waves. One calamity sfter another. Loved one dies, money get low and bills get higher. Children need more and respond less. All of a sudden the praise become sparse and the question arises, “How long LORD, HOW LONG?” During Lent as we sacrifice we must remember it will ain on the just and the unjust. Our consecration is not an shield against challenges. Even then at the end of the day may we finally resolve to say like the Psalmist in vs ⁵² Praise be to the Lord forever! Amen and Amen. Our praise is not based on what we have but who GOD is.

Point to Ponder: Have you recognized any loss of fervor in your life during times of distress? What is the greatest obstacle to your praise? In what ways are your stretchings obscuring your blessings? How will you praise through to your breakthrough?

Lent 2018 Day Thirteen Standing on the Promises of GOD

Psalm 105

¹ Give praise to the Lord, proclaim his name; make known among the nations what he has done. ² Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. ³ Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. ⁴ Look to the Lord and his strength;  seek his face always.  Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced, ⁶ you his servants, the descendants of Abraham, his chosen ones, the children of Jacob. ⁷ He is the Lord our God; his judgments are in all the earth. ⁸ He remembers his covenant forever, the promise he made, for a thousand generations, ⁹ the covenant he made with Abraham, the oath he swore to Isaac.

¹⁰ He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree, to Israel as an everlasting covenant: ¹¹ “To you I will give the land of Canaan as the portion you will inherit.”

Psalm 105:37-45 (NIV)

³⁷ He brought out Israel, laden with silver and gold, and from among their tribes no one faltered. ³⁸ Egypt was glad when they left, because dread of Israel had fallen on them.

³⁹ He spread out a cloud as a covering, and a fire to give light at night. ⁴⁰ They asked, and he brought them quail; he fed them well with the bread of heaven. ⁴¹ He opened the rock, and water gushed out; it flowed like a river in the desert. ⁴² For he remembered his holy promise given to his servant Abraham. ⁴³ He brought out his people with rejoicing,

    his chosen ones with shouts of joy; ⁴⁴ he gave them the lands of the nations, and they fell heir to what others had toiled for—  45 that they might keep his precepts and observe his laws.

Praise the Lord.

Genesis 21:1-7  (NIV)

The Birth of Isaac

21 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised. ² Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham in his old age, at the very time God had promised him. ³ Abraham gave the name Isaac^[a] to the son Sarah bore him.⁴ When his son Isaac was eight days old, Abraham circumcised him, as God commanded him. ⁵ Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. ⁶ Sarah said, “God has brought me laughter, and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.” ⁷ And she added, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Hebrews 1:8-12  (NIV)

⁸ But about the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever; a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.⁹  You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has set you above your companions by anointing you with the oil of joy.”[a] ¹⁰ He also says, “In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands. They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. ¹² You will roll them up like a robe; like a garment they will be changed. But you remain the same, and your years will never end.”

Standing on the Promises of GOD

When I was a child playing little league baseball my dad left me at the field and said, I will be back to get you. As fate would have it, a heavy rain started to fall. All the players took cover and the coaches offered rides to all the kids. As tempting as it was to get out of the rain, I knew my instructions were to wait. The coaches shook their heads and went on. After a while, dad did come. The question all the coaches asked was why didn’t you leave? Were you worried? My answer was no because my dad had never let me down and I trusted in him.

Psalm 105 highlights the faithfulness of GOD in keeping promises. This in fact is the theme for all the scriptures today. How GOD keeps promises no matter how impossible the odds look. Verses 2-5 contain these words, ” let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice. ⁴ Look to the Lord and his strength;  seek his face always.  Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,”. I know as we live this life, there are sometimes when the things we see around us defy the things we believe about GOD. There are a myriad of life situations that look out of control. How does a loving GOD allow such vile and disgusting human behavior? How can there be those who squander and those who don’t have enough? How do we deal with mass shootings, poverty, elderly abuse and child abuse? There are no easy answers.

Today as we meditate on our Lent devotion, I write to say, GOD is Still in control. When I say GOD is still I mean still in both connotations. GOD exists even though there is chaos and disarray AND in this chaos, GOD can be still. We may not always see GOD, but I assure you the stillness of GOD is not inaction, but an active stance of steadiness. GOD is not swayed by circumstances that appear out of control. The stillness of GOD is to be celebrated. For this reason, we can be still in the storm. The hurricane as violent as it is has a calmness in its center. Though the winds blow and the odds are stacked against you, remember GOD is still. The storms may be a test and in order to observe our growth the teacher may have to be still. GOD is. When dad says it will happen, rejoice even though the rains may fall. Our Daddy is coming back to get us.

Points to Ponder: In what ways has your patience been tested waiting on GOD? How long is too long to hold on to a dream? How will you share the ways GOD has come through for you with others?

Holy Saturday: Stillness

Our scripture today is Matthew 27:57-66
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew+27%3A57-66&version=NIV

How do you feel in stillness? How do you respond to being alone, intentionally silent? No phone or tablet, no newspaper or radio? Many people are uncomfortable in silence? On one Holy Saturday I had an hour of silent meditation at the church. No sound, just silence. At the end one of my elders said, “I cannot do this again, the silence was deafening”. Our present society is filled with distractions and often we miss the subtle moves of GOD in our midst. historically Jesus is in the tomb today. We wait in silent expectation for the resurrection.

Out text depicts the burial of Jesus. A guard is placed outside the tomb and the savior is silent. When the savior is silent I work to be still. Moving without direction and inspiration is like being a ship without a sail. Like a leaf in the wind. Holy Saturday is not just a day to put the finishing touches on the new outfit, but the time to be still and reflect on what it is like to be still. Slow down today, take an extra moment to smell your surroundings and experience the presence of GOD on the most solemn of days. #livebig

PRAYER: LORD teach us to hear your voice. When you are silent help us to be still and to experience you in stillness.

Point To Ponder: How do you handle silence? What have you learned in your silence.

Lent Day 36: Waiting

 

^{PSALM 130:5-8} I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits,
    and in his word I put my hope.
⁶ I wait for the Lord
    more than watchmen wait for the morning,
    more than watchmen wait for the morning.

⁷ Israel, put your hope in the Lord,
    for with the Lord is unfailing love
    and with him is full redemption.
⁸ He himself will redeem Israel
    from all their sins.

Waiting….Waiting….Waiting. Is there anybody who enjoys waiting? Most people I have met will describe waiting as one of their least favorite life situations. When we are waiting our minds tend to fixate on the not yet and the things we would love to be doing. The growth opportunity exists in bringing our full attention into the present moment and identifying GOD in our midst. It is easy to grow agitated and disturbed when we are having an “out of being” experience. When I say out of being experience I am thinking on the lines of Being a Human being and not just a human doing. An “out of being” experience occurs when are bodies exist one place but our minds are running all around time. Every moment of anxiety while waiting in a line, at a stop light, at the doctors office can indicate an out of being experience.

The Psalmist in Psalm 130 addresses this.

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20130&version=NIV

In the writing of this Psalm as in many others we connect with the writer in an intimate moment. The writer expresses the cry of the soul for help. He writes, “Out of the depths I cry to you, LORD…Be attentive to my cry for mercy. I can feel this. In the most challenges of my life experiences I have found myself laying prostrate at the altar of the church I pastor with my face down and a full agonizing cry to GOD. (I do this when alone, so I don’t alarm anybody). In the moment of this cry I am fully present. My mind is not wandering, I am totally focused on experiencing GOD and GOD experiencing me. In this moment like the Psalmist I must confront my role in my situation. Either through neglect or arrogance sin has crept into my life and I need forgiveness. My situation cannot totally change until I change. Carrying guilt locks me into living in the past. Forgiveness liberates us to live in the present. When we are forgiven the residue of sin can be washed away and we become new creations in Christ. Forgiveness allows us to breath again and begin practicing being fully present in the moment. This is the challenge of waiting.

When we are able to say my whole being waits for the LORD, we are able to loose the illusion of time and see ourselves in the context of eternity. It is always now in the context of eternity. To wait with our while being takes practice. Imagine pausing the next time you find yourself waiting, and focus on your breathing. Drop your shoulders, exhale, de-stress and know you are blessed. Place your hope in the word of the LORD who plans to prosper you. Trust in the LORD with all your heart and put your hope in the unfailing love of GOD. Sometimes the wait is a Divine delay while GOD is preparing a great blessing for us. Instead of stressing through the stretching of waiting, Be Still and chill. GOD is with you and that’s all we need.

PRAYER: LORD we confess we want you to hurry up. We want to escape the waiting time and just get to the bottom line now. We want the joy of Easter without the pain of Calvary. Help us to wait with our whole being. AMEN

Point To Ponder: Where are you now? Are you fully present? Today when you find yourself waiting, don’t fiddle with your phone, or get distracted, but whisper a prayer for someone near you. Pray for your pastor or president. Breath and Be…

Additional Scriptures:

Psalm 128 and 129

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+128%2C+129&version=NIV

John 10:14-21

https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=john+10%3A14-21&version=NIV