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MEDITATION:

Written by Donald J. Shelby (1931-2012), a minister, speaker, and writer. This is an excerpt from his book “Forever Beginning.”

Meeting Jesus does not inevitably lead to his becoming our personal savior. We must make room in our life for him; we must choose him and accept him as our savior by claiming his presence. We must let him be Lord of our lives. That decision involves opening ourselves to Jesus and receiving him into the most intimate dimensions of our lives. Because Jesus comes to us in love, he refuses to exploit or manipulate us, to be coercive or invasive, for to do so would contradict the very nature of love. If he would be loved by others, we must let them love us. We must be vulnerable and reachable enough that others can get close enough to love us, including Jesus. So Jesus approaches the threshold of our being with beckoning love, and he waits for us to open our life to him from the inside….

To enter into that intimate relationship where Jesus becomes our savior is to let Jesus be with us and within us, person to person, on the emotional and volitional levels of our being. It is to respond to the contagion of his presence. It is to let down whatever defenses we hav in place so that we come together heart to heart, so that the spirit in him touches and resonates with the spirit in us. It is to meet him with our deepest feelings and fears, with our aspirations and imaginations, with our desires and loyalties, with our creative energies and self-understanding. It is to meet him with our shadow-side and our hidden face, risking his acceptance of all we are – even those things about ourselves we have rejected and tried to disguise. It is to meet him with the expectation that what happens between him and us will enlarge life with fulfillment and beauty. It is to enjoy with him that same pervasive sense of well-being and excitement that quickens in us when we spend unhurried time with good friends or when we share intimate moments of oneness with those we love. It is to meet him with gratitude and a sense of wonder over the gift of himself that Jesus offers.

PRAYER:

Written by Phil Togwell, a contemporary writer and   leader of the Anglican Diocese of Durham’s Prayer Project.

While I may not have any actual enemies, I can think of a few people who annoy me, people who have upset me, hurt me, and offended me. Jesus, help me to love them. And as I pray my best prayer for them now, I choose to bless them in your name. Jesus, I am deeply grateful that you love me as I am, but also that you don’t leave me as I am. Because you love me, you admonish me, you don’t let me get away with bad behavior, you discipline me. And I yield to it all again. Help me to become a little more like you in the way that I love others today. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Tia McCollors, a contemporary Christian author.

The darkness is deceiving. It turns objects into things they aren’t and can heighten the intensity of our fears. We stop in our tracks during a midnight trip to the bathroom, frozen for a moment by the snake lying in the middle of the floor. We quickly realize that it’s the braided belt we wore with our favorite dress earlier that morning to Sunday worship service. The shadows of dogwood trees brushing against our bedroom window bring joy and singing birds in the morning, but transform ominous shadows at night and unrecognizable noises at night.  The enemy of our souls knows that walking in the darkness clouds our judgment and darkens the path to our true source; that source, being the Lord God Almighty. When in dark or fearful situations, turn on the light. God’s word is a source of light. Psalm 119  tells us that it is “a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Find scriptures that apply to your concerns and declare the word of God aloud. You don’t have to walk in the enemy’s darkness if you turn on the light of Jesus.

PRAYER:

From the Mozarabic Rite, a liturgical rite of the Latin Church once used generally in the Iberian Peninsula (Hispania), in what is now Spain and Portugal. 

Let Thy mercy, O Lord, be upon us, and the brightness of Thy Spirit illumine our inward souls, that He may kindle our cold hearts, and light up our dark minds; who abideth evermore with Thee in Thy glory. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by John E. Biersdorf, a contemporary pastor and writer on science and religion. This is an excerpt from his book “Healing of Purpose.”

Compassion is expressed in gentleness. When I think of the people I know who model for me the depths of the spiritual life, I am struck by their gentleness. Their eyes communicate the residue of solitary battles with angels, the costs of caring for others, the deaths of ambition and the costs of caring for others, the deaths of ambition and ego and the peace that comes from having a very little left to lose in this life. They are gentle because they have honestly faced the struggles given to them and have learned the hard way that personal survival is not the point. Their caring is gentle because their self-aggrandizement is no longer at stake. There is nothing in it for them. Their vulnerability has been stretched to clear-eyed sensitivity to others and truly selfless love.

PRAYER:

Written by Francis of Assisi (c1181-1226), an Italian Catholic friar, deacon and preacher. He founded the men’s Order of Friars Minor, the women’s Order of Saint Claire, the Third Order of Saint Francis and the Custody of the Holy Land.

 I beg you, Lord, let the fiery, gentle power of your love take possession of my soul, and snatch it away from everything under heaven, that I may die for love of your love as you saw fit to die for love of mine. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Kevin Adams, a contemporary American church planter, trainer in church leadership, and pastor.

She was a slave, bound to men who used her to make a lot of money. They found she “had a spirit by which she predicted the future,” so they used her for “fortune-telling.”  Whatever that spirit was, it knew that Paul and his friends were “servants of the Most High God,” and it moved her to pester the new missionaries in town. This slave girl connected with the gospel of Jesus by way of surprise. Paul grew so annoyed by her carrying on that he told the spirit to leave her “in the name of Jesus Christ.” And immediately she was free—not just from her demonic master but from her human ones too. She experienced Christ’s power as a gift.

Paul walked and talked the gospel, and that can bring radical change. Set free, the girl no longer fit into an exploitative system. The gospel changed her life and upset the social balance, and that stirred up trouble for Paul and Silas. Some people try to stuff the church into limiting categories and definitions. But the dynamic church, true to the gospel, cannot be contained. The gospel brings personal and social change. Jesus brings salvation that triumphs through losing, prospers through giving, and leads through serving. When Jesus’ power comes into our life, we do not look at people or social status in the same way. We begin to see everyone and everything with Jesus’ eyes of love and justice.

PRAYER:

A Collect (short general prayer used in Christian liturgy) from the 6th Century

O Lord Jesus Christ,

you gave your life for us

that we might receive pardon and peace.

Mercifully cleanse us from all sin,

and always keep us in your favor and love;

for you live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,

one God, now and forever. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Calvin Hoogendoorn, a contemporary pastor and author. 

Are you willing to submit to people in authority over you? Your answer may reveal whether you are content to live as one of God’s chosen people in the world. The Bible teaches that submission is the appropriate demeanor for God’s children. In his writings Peter teaches that the child of God is to submit to “every authority,” whether in government, in employment, in marriage, in community, or in the church. These examples make a critical point. Since the Lord instituted authorities, to disobey them is to disobey him. What does it mean to submit? Like a car yielding to the flow of traffic, submission means blending into the flow of God’s kingdom work. It sounds simple enough, but most of us dislike the idea of submitting. Some even suggest it is the enemy of freedom. The truth, though, is that God provides grace and freedom through submission. Sin compels a person to live in an ever-shrinking universe called “me.” Submission is the grace that frees us from sin’s personal blinders by calling us to live within a community. The kingdom gospel is a world-embracing gospel, and I am to accept my civic responsibility in order to give expression to it.

PRAYER:

Written by Calvin Hoogendoorn, the author of today’s reflection.

Dear Lord, by your Holy Spirit give me courage to exercise the privilege of submission to you, your Word, your call, and to all authority that you have established. In Jesus’s name, Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Peter Hoytema, a contemporary paster and author. 

In connection with praying “Your kingdom come,” Jesus taught us to say, “Your will be done, on earth as it is in ­heave.”  We can sometimes feel uncertain whether the things we pray for are in line with God’s will. Or perhaps we might think that our confidence is somehow ­diminished if we say, “. . . if it be your will” as we pray. While God’s will is deeply mysterious, there is also something very reassuring about it. Praying “your will be done” does not mean we fully understand God’s will. This is mostly a prayer that expresses our desire to do God’s will. And that is a prayer of strong conviction. It conveys our trust in the goodness of God’s will and our assurance that God will carry out his purposes. And, remember, praying within God’s will is about following Jesus’ example.

Even Jesus wrestled with his Father’s will and submitted to it. The result of that prayerful struggle was that Jesus could say with firm resolve, “Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!” His connection with the Father was the source of his strength. A book about prayer that I have grown to appreciate has an interesting title. It’s called Yielding. There is nothing weak about submitting to God. Yield­ing to God’s will is the very thing that strengthens us.

PRAYER:

Written by Peter Hoytema, the author of today’s reflection.

Lord, sometimes your will seems confusing; guide us to pray like Jesus. Help us to trust you, love you, and obey you. May your will be done in our lives. Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by In Touch Ministries, a ministry of Dr. Charles F. Stanley.

If professing believers were really honest, many would say their lives bear little resemblance to the Christian life described in Scripture. They struggle repeatedly with the same sins, feel that God rarely answers prayers, and wonder why He hasn’t given them the desires of their heart. How is this possible? The problem may be a lack of submission to Jesus Christ. People often want the forgiveness of sins and the promise of heaven but are not willing to place themselves under the lordship of Christ. Therefore, they are disconnected from what He wants to do in their life. In refusing to submit, they forfeit the blessings that come to those who know Christ as Savior and Lord.

Today’s passage states, “You are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience resulting in righteousness” (Romans 6:16). Although we strongly dislike the concept of slavery, that is the reality for every person who enters the world: We are all born as slaves of sin. Thankfully, that doesn’t have to be the final word. Anyone who turns to Christ in repentance and faith is set free. However, this is not freedom to simply do whatever we want. In fact, doing so would naturally head us back to our old slave master of sin. Avoiding submission to God results in wasted years of chasing after His blessings through our own cunning. True freedom and blessing are found only in being a slave to God, who is always good, wise, and loving. In obedience to His will, we find freedom from sin, answers to prayer, and new desires that come from a changed heart.

PRAYER:

Written by Richard John Neuhaus (1936-2009), a Christian cleric and writer.

Forgive us, Heavenly Father, for living as though you do not know and do not care, as though you are not our loving Father. Give us such faith that the constant theme of our live may be, “Lord, let it be to me according to your word.” This we trustingly ask in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Hugh Prather (1938-2010), an American writer, lay minister, and counselor. This is an excerpt from his book “The Quiet Answer.”

When our purpose is clear, there is no question what to do. Ultimately, we cannot make a mistake, for God has provided a purpose to all we have done even though our motives may have been insincere at the time. Love uses all to bless all. Our progress is seen not in what we do but in what we perceive our goal to be. Either we assign our ego’s objective or God’s purpose, and that is determined by what we choose to consult within us at the time each decision is made. It is impossible not to consult something. If we think that our experience is our guide, we will not believe that the still and present urgings of Love direct us.

PRAYER:

Written by the writer of our meditation, Hugh Prather

I give this time to You alone. Please guide me in this prayer. I ask only for honesty and total sincerity. May I pray from my heart alone. If there is anything I should experience now, or any words I should hear, I am ready to receive them. In stillness and quiet listening, I now open myself to you.  Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Joan Puls, a contemporary author.  This is an excerpt from her book “Every Bush is Burning.”

The source of all our freedom is the freedom of Jesus Christ. By our association with him we are invited into the kingdom of liberation and love. We pledge our faith, “green as a leaf.” We receive the spirit that disentangles us from sin, from narrow perspectives of the law, and from the fetters of fear. We join all of creation in struggling to reject what is evil, in submitting to the greater law of love, and in sharing in the glorious freedom of those who belong to God.

PRAYER:

Written by Megan Bailey, a contemporary author and content producer.

 My Father, You are a good Father. You never change, grow weary of me, or tired of helping me. If Your Word says You care, then I choose to trust in that care. I place every burden I carry in Your hands today.  I entrust my very soul into Your care. I will not worry for one moment. I refuse fear, for my Father cares for me and He is well aware of every critical issue I am facing today. I will not be discouraged. I will not be moved off of this strong stance of faith. I will stand my ground and declare that God is good! You care for me! I can, therefore, live a carefree life, free from heaviness, oblivious to the confusion and quandaries the enemy of my soul tries to engage me in. Thank you for Your loving care for me and all that is important to me. Teach me to trust You more and more every day. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

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MEDITATION:

Written by Henri J. M. Nouwen (1932-1996), a Dutch priest, professor, writer, and theologian.  This is an excerpt from his book “A Cry for Mercy.”

O Lord Jesus, your words to your Father were born out of your silence. Lead me into this silence, so that my words may be spoken in your name and thus be fruitful. It is so hard to be silent, silent with my mouth, but even more, silent with my heart. There is so much talking going on within me. It seems that I am always involved in inner debates with myself, my friends, my enemies, my supporters, my opponents, my colleagues, and my rivals. But this inner debate reveals how far my heart is from you. If I were simply to rest at your feed and realize that I belong to You and you alone, I would easily stop arguing with all the real and imagined people around me. These arguments show my insecurity, my fear, my apprehensions, and my need for being recognized and receiving attention. You, O Lord, will give me all the attention I need if I would simply stop talking and start listening to you. I know that in the silence of my heart you will speak to me and show me your love. Give me, O Lord, that silence. Let me be patient and grow slowly into this silence in which I can be with you.

PRAYER:

The author of this prayer is unknown.

Father God, I come into your presence so aware of my human frailty and yet overwhelmed by your love for me. I thank you that there is no human experience that I might walk through where your love cannot reach me. If I climb the highest mountain you are there and yet if I find myself in the darkest valley of my life, you are there. Teach me today to love you more. Help me to rest in that love that asks nothing more than the simple trusting heart of a child. In Jesus name, Amen.

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