Wait for the Lord!

Psalm 27 1:14

You heard that old saying Déjà vu! Well, I was looking through my new bible and flipped to Psalm today, which by the way always comforts me. Anyway, I was going to read Psalm 26 because today is March 26 and started reading Psalm 27, and when I got to the end…I felt the presences of the Lord reconfirming what I’ve already said in one of my last blog entries. This just confirm it again....Wait for the LORD; be strong, and let your heart take courage; wait for LORD! Psalm 27:14…. Need, I say anymore.

Do Not Worry 2

How interesting that many of our readings have circled back to this basic message: "Do not worry."

Last night, as I was waiting for people to arrive for the soup supper, I chose the Bible passages that we read before our Labyrinth Walk. So far, I've been choosing a Psalm and a Gospel passage. I flip through the pages, and try to be alert to the promptings of the Spirit.

Last night, I chose Matthew 6: 25-34, which spoke to many of us around the table, since it talked about worry. I love the closing verse: "So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today's trouble is enough for today."

We were so moved by the passage that we decided not to sing a Taize song before we walked, as has been our custom. We wanted to focus on those words.

Worry and fretfulness is something I struggle with, even as I know that it's useless to worry. Often, the things I worry about don't come to pass, while I'm blindsided by something I didn't anticipate, didn't worry about in advance.

More importantly, I should have more trust in God and these words that we all keep coming back to. In the words of the old song: "Have no fear, little flock."

Turns out, I'm the problem

I returned to Genesis after spending much time with Paul because I tend to over-intellectualize everything. Paul feeds into this because of of the nature of his writings and I was drifting too far into the mind and away from the heart (balance, people, balance!).

So I am enjoying Genesis in my NIV Study Bible, when our Lutheran study Bibles arrived. Beautiful editions of the NRSV...(awkward pause)...NRSV?....well what the heck is the difference between NIV and NRSV?....ooooooooooooooooookay....here we go again....

The NRSV comes down from the King James version (the favorite of Protestants) and tries to maintain the literal translation and ambiguities while rendering the Bible into a contemporary language. The NIV will go a step further including use of gender-neutral language but still trying to preserve the literal translation. The literal part is critical for me; I'm super-sensitive to people trying to slip their personal business into my Bible! I want my ambiguity!

Now I absolutely will NOT take my reading and then start trying to compare the two translations, a nightmare of intellectual temptation during my morning faith moments. Here, what does noted NT authority Raymond Brown say? (hold on, wait for it, wait for it) "...one should choose a translation carefully. No translation is perfect, and readers can learn much from comparing them." OF COURSE, DR. BROWN, AND THANKS, THANKS A LOT.

Our "GOD is awesome!

Luke 13 10:35 / Luke 14 1-35

During my reading today, I have been enlighten again about how our “GOD” is just awesome… He teaches us to believe and shows us through scriptures. The sowing of the mustard seed and how he has healed the crippled women are just the beginning of his marvelous work; he teaches us to be humbled and hospitable in all his teaching. More and more people today forget that this existed and it shows…but if they would read the most famous book of all they will learn something that is small but powerful. Don't you agree?

Do Not Worry

While, I was in church yesterday trying to ask the church secretary a question, I notice some baby blue bibles. And, while the blue was very energetic in color, I notice it was a Lutheran Study Bible. So, I asked if could be put on the list to purchase one and guess what? Sam, sold me her, wow how about that! She would not have parted with it otherwise, but she notice the font was a little smaller then what she would have liked. Well, when I open it, I knew it would continue to helping me in my journey of reading my bible and I started right away. I checked out the back and wanted to begin with the preferred Bible reading plan but realized, I have read most of the first week so, I jumped into the second week. It took me into Luke and I read about the Half-hearted followers and the Power of Pray…all good selections but I ended up with. Luke 12:22-34……Do Not Worry!

Well this goes with out saying from my last entry and a few before….the Lord is confirming this for me and I gotta listen. In verse 32….”Do not be afraid, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.; well it makes all the sense in the world right. Next verse that hit home, verse 34…For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.

Thanks be to “GOD”!

Missed you all!

I've given up worrying about lapses in my daily reading; I've come to consider them as blessings from God. They always when come when God has visited an abundance of new challenges for me to manage and time becomes scarce; I get them under control and return to the Bible to recharge and fortify for the next set of opportunities to grow. This last set, though, was a real doozy-new responsibilities at TLC, layoffs and paycuts at work, temptations of the mind, body, and soul in my personal life.

But while my reading may lapse, my listening for Christ never ceases as I go through my day. And He has turned me back to my readings, guiding me away from the intellectual involvement of Paul and back to Genesis.

I have always bought into the notion that the Bible is a living document, that your interpretations will change over your life. But this is the first time I personally have returned to a Bible reading after experiencing my own growth as a Christian. And where I used to read the story of Creation from the point of view of a scientist, I now read from the point of view of a Christian. It is simply the clearest, most beautiful expression of God's work imaginable. In God's love, while He filled all that was formless and empty, He allowed a little of it to be filled by me. And I now don't just know my place as He has laid it out for me, but I feel my spot in His Creation as naturally as the spaces held by the Tigris or Euphrates. This bond is too strong to be disturbed by whatever temptations or tribulations may be cast my way.

In some respects, as I respond to the temptations and tribulations of the day with as much love or patience or forgiveness as I can summon, I find that God has allowed me to re-create at least a tiny windowsill Garden of Eden of my own. I enjoy it and reflect upon what life would be like with only love and no pettiness, no iniquity, no shame.

Who can you depend on?

Hebrews 13-5:6
5Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,
"Never will I leave you;
never will I forsake you."[a] 6So we say with confidence,
"The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
What can man do to me?"[b]

I have a calendar on my desk and it said the quote of “God never leaving or forsaking you and how we should not be afraid. Well, you know this is easier said, because we are human and we allow that within it self to guide us instead of being confident that “Jesus will get us through this. The word confidence means to belief, trust and have faith in somebody.

What can man do to me or for me? The Lord is my helper; and I will not be afraid, because trusting in the Lord has always help me in many ways that man can not. So, for those of you who are reading this and have family members, or friends who don’t know what “GOD” can do! Just tell them to have faith, because I’m a witness that when I leave it all up to him he can do amazing and abundant things. You can’t depend on man like you can depend on “GOD” and that’s a fact, you better ask somebody.

I'm Back!

After, service Sunday…I felt compelled to get back into the swing of reading my bible. I think it was brought on by our entertainment and not to mention PK’s sermon.
I called my mom later that evening and she had told me how she was reading the bible also and every time she reads it she always finishes with reading Psalms 23… So, I decided to read this Psalms today and as many of you know. We have all read this Psalm, a million times in our life time. However, today it seem to jump out at me and started me back on my journey… because it is the lord that leads me, to the paths of righteousness, even though we walk through many valley’s and go through many storms….he is always there to comfort us.

We Are the Light of the World, if We Can Stay Lit

Last night, we had a brief service before we walked the labyrinth. I chose two Bible passages: Psalm 1 and the passage from Matthew that talks about our call to be the light of the world.

I haven't been feeling too much like the light of the world lately. I've been craving a nap for about a week solid. I'm in one of those work periods where we have lots of meetings, lots of 10-12 hour days. I feel fortunate to still have a job, but I'm wishing it came with a napping couch.

Last night, after I read the Bible passages, we lit candles in tall jars to take with us to the labyrinth. It was windy, so we didn't bother to set up the labyrinth with candles--experience has taught us that the candles won't stay lit.

It was tough keeping the candles lit even when we carried them. I cupped my hand over the flame, but the first moment that I was distracted from my task of keeping the little flame lit, it blew out. I think that only one of us (out of about 11 walkers) had a lit candle when we were done.

At first, I felt searing guilt over my inability to keep the flame lit. And then I thought about the experience as a metaphor.

In that passage from Matthew, chapter 5, verses 14-16, Jesus tells us that we are to let our light shine, but he doesn't tell us how hard it will be some days. As a child, I always thought that once the light was lit, the hard part was over. I would just shine and shine and not hide my light under a bushel and not let Satan pfff it out (as that old song goes).

How do we keep our light from going out? I suspect it's in the various disciplines that we adopt to strengthen our spiritual lives: praying, reading the Bible, reading other spiritual literature, fasting, tithing, charitable giving, working for social justice, practicing gratitude, noticing the wonders of the world, surrounding ourselves with like-minded people who help keep our lights lit.