Prayer

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. (Colossians 4:2)



"Prayer is the lisping of the believing infant, the shout of the fighting believer, the requiem of the dying saint falling asleep in Jesus. It is the breath, the watchword, the comfort, the strength, the honour of a Christian."  


From C. H. Spurgeon's Morning and Evening Daily Devotional

Happy Easter!

The Lord has made known is salvation, he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations.  (Psalm 98:2)


Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb,  Amen!  Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever!  Amen.  (Revelation 7:10, 12)

Good Friday

Ah, sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, offspring of evildoers,  children who deal corruptly!  They have forsaken the LORD, they have despised the Holy One of Israel, they are utterly estranged.  Why will you still be struck down?  Why will you continue to rebel?  The whole head is sick,  and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even to the head, there is no soundness in it, but bruises and sores  and raw wounds;  they are not pressed out or bound up or softened with oil. Your country lies desolate; your cities are burned with fire; in your very presence foreigners devour your land; it is desolate, as overthrown by foreigners. (Isaiah 1:4-7)


Ok, granted, not a cheerful passage to start off with.  But can you close your eyes for a minute and get a mental picture of what these words describe?  It's hideous!  Like something out of a horror movie with zombies, and burnt out, desolate, abandoned cities, darkness and hopelessness.  Isaiah says the people are utterly estranged from God.  That's what sin does. We can sugarcoat it all we want to, but the ugliness of our sin, the hideousness of it as compared to the beauty and holiness of God is a reality we cannot change.


Sin is what separates us from God.  If left unconfessed, unrepented, it can harden our hearts to the point that we become  utterly estranged from God; it becomes more and more difficult to hear his still, small voice calling out to us to turn away from the sin and turn to him.  What a dismal picture!


Today is Good Friday, the day we remember and enter into the last hours of Jesus' life on earth, his great suffering and death on the cross, the physical pain and suffering he endured, the whipping and abuse before the cross and the torturous, agonizing hours he endured nailed to that cross.  He also endured spiritual suffering the likes of which we can never know.  By taking on himself the horror and ugliness of our sin, he must have endured an anguish in his spirit that was unimaginable - only God could have withstood it. The King of kings and Lord of lords left the glory and beauty of heaven and the continual, blessed communion with the Father and the Spirit to die the most horrendous death man could devise.  Out of love and obedience, God became man, dwelt among us, walked, talked, taught, healed and saved, only to be crucified as a criminal.  The gentle Lamb of God was slaughtered.

• He was despised and rejected by men; 
  a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; 
  and as one from whom men hide their faces 
  he was despised, and we esteemed him not.  (Isaiah 53:3)
• All we like sheep have gone astray; we have 
  turned—every one—to his own way; 
  and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. (Isaiah 53:6-9)
• I am poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint; my heart is like wax;  it is melted within my breast; my strength is dried up like a potsherd, and my tongue sticks to my jaws; you lay me in the dust of death. (Psalm 22:14-15

In John's Gospel, Jesus told his beloved brothers what was coming and why:  Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.  (John 12:31-32)  In Jesus' life, words, suffering and death, we see the face of God:  LOVE.  Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.  (John 15:13)

On this Good Friday as we remember these events of some 2000 years ago, may we look on them with fresh eyes,  We need to see our own sinfulness that separates us from God - from LOVE - that caused our dear Lord to cry out in anguish from the cross.  We have to face the ugliness of our sin, confess it, repent of it, and leave it at the cross never to be picked up again.

Could it be any clearer? Our old way of life was nailed to the cross with Christ, a decisive end to that sin-miserable life—no longer at sin's every beck and call! What we believe is this: If we get included in Christ's sin-conquering death, we also get included in his life-saving resurrection. We know that when Jesus was raised from the dead it was a signal of the end of death-as-the-end. Never again will death have the last word. When Jesus died, he took sin down with him, but alive he brings God down to us. From now on, think of it this way: Sin speaks a dead language that means nothing to you; God speaks your mother tongue, and you hang on every word. You are dead to sin and alive to God. That's what Jesus did.  (Romans 6:6-11 The Message)

Wait For It

Reading my Lenten devotional this morning, the author wrote powerfully and honestly about suffering, being in the midst of suffering:  "Lent is an opportunity to recognize that Jesus will return to set all things right, but he hasn't yet.  In the midst of suffering it is terrifying to feel the pain, tell the story, ask God for help and wait for it."  Please read those words again, put yourself in that place - we've all been there to some degree.  It can be a terrifying place to be!  No end in sight, just the place of suffering, of crying out to God, unanswered questions of "Why?" and "How long?".  We know that Jesus himself asked those questions in his own unimaginable suffering.  He is fully acquainted with our grief and suffering:  

He was despised and rejected by men;

a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces

he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he has borne our griefs

and carried our sorrows;

yet we esteemed him stricken,

smitten by God, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his wounds we are healed.  (Isaiah 53:3-5)

Look once again at the quote from the devotional, it ends with the words, "wait for it".  That's what it means to be a follower of Christ.  We can wait because we have hope.  We can ask the unanswered questions of the one who holds all the answers. We can hold on to God's promises because they are sure and true.  We can sit in our places of suffering and know that we are not alone; we have one who is closer than a brother - closer than our very breath - who knows the depths of our pain and suffering. He knows our fears.  We can say, with Paul, I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able to guard until that Day what has been entrusted to me.  (2 Timothy 1:12)   

I have seen time and time again how tenderly, lovingly and even reverently, Jesus ministers to his hurting and suffering children.  As a prayer minister, I'm constantly awed by Jesus and the ways he is with someone in their time of pain.  I often feel as if I'm standing on holy ground - to be allowed to share in the intimacy of Jesus' presence and ministrations to a suffering child of God.

Wait for it.  Wait on the Lord.  He is always faithful, always near.  His promise is that we will be renewed, restored and revived.  Even more than that:  they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

We are just days away from our Easter celebrations:  the glory, the beauty, the hallelujahs.  But we must go through these days of remembering the suffering and passion of our Lord.  Wait for it.  The light will burst forth.  Easter is coming.  The darkness and suffering of Good Friday is not the end of the story.

Wait for it!

2012 Lenten Devotional from Trinity School of Ministry  http://www.tsm.edu/

Readiness

• I also said to the people at that time, “Let every man and his servant pass the night within Jerusalem, that they may be a guard for us by night and may labor by day.” So neither I nor my brothers nor my servants nor the men of the guard who followed me, none of us took off our clothes; each kept his weapon at his right hand.  (Nehemiah 4:22-23)
• In this manner you shall eat it: with your belt fastened, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD's Passover. (Exodus 12:11)
• Stay dressed for action and keep your lamps burning, and be like men who are waiting for their master to come home from the wedding feast, so that they may open the door to him at once when he comes and knocks.  
  (Luke 12:35-36)  

The Bible has a lot to say about readiness, being prepared, watchful, alert, sober-minded; even to the point (as in the verse from Nehemiah above) of sleeping fully dressed with a weapon at their side.  The image is of a soldier, fully alert, armed and ready at the first hint of danger or attack.  The Exodus passage points to another kind of readiness - a sense of urgency and waiting, ready to walk whenever and wherever.  Then, in the Luke passage, we read the description of a servant, always on stand-by, waiting expectantly for his master's return, ready to attend to his master's needs.  


These are all apt descriptions of a Christian disciple.  We are to be prepared and watchful, armed and waiting, listening and serving.  What does that look like in practical terms?  Obviously, we are not armed to the teeth ready to go to war!  Many of us have never served in war-time as soldiers or lived through a miraculous deliverance from slavery in a foreign land like that of the Israelites in Exodus.  


Really?  Are we sure about that?  Have you ever had someone on your mind for no apparent reason - can't seem to stop thinking about them?  The Lord may be calling you into battle - to intercede for your friend even if you don't know the details of the struggle.  Has your friend or loved one been in the middle of a potentially life-changing decision, crisis or moral dilemma - a crossroads where the wrong choice could result in serious consequences?  To pray at this moment is to enter into battle.  Or have you been the beneficiary of such prayers?  Have you been delivered from slavery to a sin or addiction that made you feel as if you were living in a foreign, strange "land"?  


We can't see the war that is being waged, the forces battling for and against us, with our human eyes.  The apostle Paul tells us that our battle is not against flesh and blood; but the battle is no less real, no less "deadly".  Don't kid yourself - it IS a matter of life and death; our enemy is  prowling around, seeking someone to devour (1 Peter 5:8) while our God is calling us to choose life. That's why we're given so many reminders and descriptors of readiness, preparedness and watchfulness.



Like Nehemiah, even as we prepare to sleep, we lie down wearing our spiritual "clothes" and "weapons". This "attire" is described by Paul in Ephesians 6:10-20.  We wear our salvation as a helmet protecting our head (our mind, our thoughts, words, imaginations and sight); our righteousness is as a breastplate protecting our heart, the very core of who we are; God's truth is belted around us, holding everything else in place.  Our feet are "wearing" readiness - readiness that is given to us by the Gospel - readiness to walk in the power of that Gospel wherever our Lord leads.  The last two items are at our side and in our hands - the sword and the shield: the Word of God and faith in, of and through our Lord.  These items of warfare are wielded offensively and defensively.  Faith is our shield, our protection against the flaming darts of the evil one (Eph 6:16) - those attempts by the enemy to assault our convictions, our right choices, our testimony and beliefs.  The Word of God - the sword of the Spirit - is the most powerful and, if you notice, the only weapon.  God's word needs to be part of us.  Spend time reading, listening, absorbing the Scriptures.  

• For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.  (Hebrews 4:12)
• All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.  (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

So, yes, we are to be alert, prepared and ready to respond to God's call.  Our preparedness is not left to us to figure out.  It is God's work in us, for us, and through us  - with our cooperation, of course.  He allows us to participate with him in his work on earth.  May God's kingdom come, his will be done on earth as it is in heaven!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

Reading my Lenten devotional this morning, I was reminded of the prayer attributed to St. Francis, St. Francis' Breastplate.  Growing up in the Episcopal church, I remember (laboriously) singing the hymn version of this prayer; but the words are truly wonderful and worth meditating on.  


As I reread the entire prayer this morning, I was struck by a "new favorite" verse:

I bind unto myself today

The power of God to hold and lead,

His eye to watch, His might to stay,

His ear to hearken to my need.

The wisdom of my God to teach,

His hand to guide, His shield to ward,

The word of God to give me speech,

His heavenly host to be my guard.

And an "old favorite" verse:

Christ be with me, Christ within me,

Christ behind me, Christ before me,

Christ beside me, Christ to win me,

Christ to comfort and restore me.

Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,

Christ in hearts of all that love me,

Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I've included the entire prayer in honor of St. Patrick's Day.  I encourage you to take some time to read and savor these beautiful and powerful words.

I bind unto myself today

The strong Name of the Trinity,

By invocation of the same,

The Three in One and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever.

By power of faith, Christ's incarnation;

His baptism in the Jordan river;

His death on Cross for my salvation;

His bursting from the spicèd tomb;

His riding up the heavenly way;

His coming at the day of doom;

I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power

Of the great love of the cherubim;

The sweet 'well done' in judgment hour,

The service of the seraphim,

Confessors' faith, Apostles' word,

The Patriarchs' prayers, the Prophets' scrolls,

All good deeds done unto the Lord,

And purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today

The virtues of the starlit heaven,

The glorious sun's life-giving ray,

The whiteness of the moon at even,

The flashing of the lightning free,

The whirling wind's tempestuous shocks,

The stable earth, the deep salt sea,

Around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today

The power of God to hold and lead,

His eye to watch, His might to stay,

His ear to hearken to my need.

The wisdom of my God to teach,

His hand to guide, His shield to ward,

The word of God to give me speech,

His heavenly host to be my guard.

Against the demon snares of sin,

The vice that gives temptation force,

The natural lusts that war within,

The hostile men that mar my course;

Or few or many, far or nigh,

In every place and in all hours,

Against their fierce hostility,

I bind to me these holy powers.

Against all Satan's spells and wiles,

Against false words of heresy,

Against the knowledge that defiles,

Against the heart's idolatry,

Against the wizard's evil craft,

Against the death wound and the burning,

The choking wave and the poisoned shaft,

Protect me, Christ, till Thy returning.

Christ be with me, Christ within me,

Christ behind me, Christ before me,

Christ beside me, Christ to win me,

Christ to comfort and restore me.

Christ beneath me, Christ above me,

Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,

Christ in hearts of all that love me,

Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself the Name,

The strong Name of the Trinity;

By invocation of the same.

The Three in One, and One in Three,

Of Whom all nature hath creation,

Eternal Father, Spirit, Word:

Praise to the Lord of my salvation,

Salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Exodus

God spoke to Moses and said to him, “I am the LORD. I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, as God Almighty, but by my name the LORD I did not make myself known to them. I also established my covenant with them to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which they lived as sojourners. Moreover, I have heard the groaning of the people of Israel whom the Egyptians hold as slaves, and I have remembered my covenant. Say therefore to the people of Israel, ‘I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from slavery to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great acts of judgment. I will take you to be my people, and I will be your God, and you shall know that I am the LORD your God, who has brought you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians. I will bring you into the land that I swore to give to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. I will give it to you for a possession. I am the LORD.’”  (Exodus 6:2-8, emphasis mine)


There are times in the Scriptures when God really seems to assert himself.  He's always holy, always God - all powerful, all knowing, all seeing God.  But there are still times when it seems as if he stands tall, puts his foot down and says, Listen to me; this is who I am; I am God.  This passage in Exodus in one of those times. Notice how many times he reveals or identifies himself.  Do you suppose Moses was flat out, on his face in the presence of all that holiness and awesomeness?  Remember the call of the prophet in Isaiah 6.  His encounter with God's holiness left him completely undone:  And I said: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”  (Isaiah 6:5)  We would do well to spend more time reflecting on passages like these. We forget that the God we serve is a fearsome, holy and awesome God.  It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."  (Hebrews 10:31)  Holy fear, reverence and awe are things we are not well acquainted with in the 21st century.  We throw around the word 'awesome' until it loses its meaning, its impact.  


God's words to Moses as he proclaims his identity, his character, his glory, are words of deliverance, redemption, promise and relationship on a level never before known.  Israel is being delivered in fulfillment of God's covenant promise to the patriarchs, the fathers of God's chosen people.  God knew the suffering of his people.  He knew their oppression, the brokenness of their spirits.  Exodus 2:25:  "God saw the people of Israel - and God knew."


Don't think for a minute that God doesn't see your brokenness, your suffering.  He sees and he knows. This God - the Great I AM, El Shaddai, God Almighty, Yahweh, the LORD, the Almighty, Everlasting God - sees and knows.  He will bring you out of your slavery to sin, deliver you from whatever is oppressing you, redeem you, make you his own and be your God.  

The LORD is my light and my salvation; 

whom shall I fear?  

The LORD is the stronghold of my life; 

of whom shall I be afraid?  (Psalm 27:1)

But my eyes are toward you, O GOD, my Lord; 

in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!  (Psalm 141:8 ESV)

To you, O LORD, I lift up my soul.  

O my God, in you I trust; 

let me not be put to shame; 

let not my enemies exult over me.  

Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; 

they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.  

Make me to know your ways, O LORD; 

teach me your paths.  

Lead me in your truth and teach me, 

for you are the God of my salvation; 

for you I wait all the day long.  (Psalm 25:1-5)