Three Simple Rules Lenten Devotional

Introduction:

In 1743, leaders in the societies that were established through John Wesley’s Methodist Movement were looking for guidance in what they should teach.  After much thought and discussion, John Wesley answered with what has become known as the General Rules of the United Societies. 
Even though it has been over 265 years since Wesley’s rules were published, these three rules are still basic guidelines for Christians living in the complex world of today.  They are guidelines for a way of living that will form Christian character among those who strive to follow them.  The goal is to help followers achieve what Wesley described as a “holiness of heart and life.”

For John Wesley, holiness is two-fold.  First there is an inward, personal holiness that seeks a relationship with God that leads to a life of trust, obedience, joy, and worship.  These are “acts of piety” and are the means by which we arrive at our goal of “Staying in love with God.”

Then there is an outward holiness that shows itself in the ways a Christian shows love for God through the acts of love for neighbors.  These are “acts of mercy”.   

The “acts of piety” and “acts of mercy” are the “means of grace” that Wesley is noted for.  Even before the means of grace were discussed, John Wesley cautioned those who listened to his teachings to Do No Harm.

Excerpts from “Three Simple Rules” study….

Day 1

Wednesday, February 17:  Scripture: 1 Peter 1:13-16- “Therefore, prepare your mind for action; be self-controlled, set your hope fully on the grace to be given you when Jesus Christ is revealed.  As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance.  But just as he who called you is holy, so holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.”

Theme for the Day:  “A Call to Holiness-Thinking About Lent”

If we were to delve into the Bible and study the Biblical understanding of sacrifice, one would be led to the Old Testament where animals were sacrificed or to the New Testament where the sacrifice of Christ reigns supreme.  One would run across passages that call for both individual and communal sacrifice, and in the mix of all of this we would come across a stewardship word – “tithe”.

The tithe is God’s expectation for us as believers, and that tithe is 10% which we give as response to God’s grace and work in our lives.  We usually associate the tithe with our financial giving, and hard line Bible readers would say that our offerings are those things that we give above and beyond the expected 10%.  God’s tithe, however, includes more than our financial giving.  It also includes our time, which in this day and age is often more precious than our money.

We begin with the tithe, because as we are entering the season of Lent, we realize that this season is about 10% of the year.  That is, Lent provides an opportunity to give what God expects of us, a tithe of our year, and devote ourselves to understanding more about who God is and who we are in God. 

Traditionally, this season is a time to step back from the day in, day out and be deliberate in seeking a closer walk with Jesus Christ, a time for developing habits which will stick with us for life, and a time to recognize God’s invitation to make sacrifices so that we might live more fully by the Spirit.  Lent is a time to be reshaped and empowered to be more faithful disciples.

Over the next 40 days, we will be journeying together using one of the foundational elements of our faith, given to us by the founder of the Methodist Movement, John Wesley, the Three Simple Rules.  The sermons for Lent will be based upon these rules, and the Sunday School classes (children, youth, and adult) will be studying these rules as a way of being reshaped and empowered to be more faithful disciples.

“The Rules” are simple on the surface – “Do no harm, Do good, and Stay in love with God” – but as we delve further and further into these and apply them to our day to day living, we realize that living into them is a constant task.  Living by these rules in all ways means we have to surrender ourselves over to God’s care and look to God to reveal how we might be shaped into God’s faithful servants. 

As we enter this season of Lent, as we share these devotionals together written by our own brothers and sisters from BUMC, as we learn to live by these Three Simple Rules, may God lead us to more fully understand God’s call to give ourselves over to Him.  May this “tithe” of our year be that which bears fruit for the Kingdom and in our own lives.

Day 2

Do No Harm:  “By ‘doing no harm’ by avoiding evil of every kind, especially that which is most generally practiced”….John Wesley 

Thursday, February 18:  Scripture:  Genesis 1:1-28 & 31a        

Theme for the Day : “The magnificence of God’s Creation.”

Given the choice of worshiping indoors or outdoors, I would choose outdoors.  I’m not especially rugged or fond of being hot, cold, or windblown, so how does that make sense?  It’s just my nature to connect with nature.  As a child I would often dig in the dirt, fascinated with worms and bugs, while my sister set up the Barbie dolls inside. (The dolls wouldn’t move unless you made them, but even the tiniest insects did all sorts of amazing things on their own!)  Later, when I experienced vesper services in the woods at church camp, sharing a log pew around a crude altar, singing, praying, and hearing scripture, I began to recognize God’s touch and feel connected to Him through this marvelous, natural world.

The next time you hike in the woods or even walk around your neighborhood, notice the variety of shapes, sizes, and colors in nature, from the leaves to the plants and trees, from the smallest insects to the birds and mammals.  The silhouette of a single tree against a sunset and the brilliant hues of wildflowers scattered around are original and living art.  God’s energy is all around; God’s creation is beyond our comprehension.  Humans have always sensed this.  That is why ancient people worshiped nature; they knew God was life and recognized His power.

But we have Christ!  We know that God’s power goes even beyond nature, because God is love, and love is eternal.  We have His Word, His promise of salvation, no matter where we are in this magnificent creation that He shares with us.

Thank you, Lord, for creating us and loving us.  Help us to see you in nature and to appreciate this world as we grow closer to you through Christ.         

Day 3

Friday, February 19:  Scripture: Psalm 8:6 - “You have given them dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under their feet.”        

Theme for the Day: “Our Responsibility to God’s Creation”

This passage is the source of one of my favorite anthems – “The Majesty and Glory of Your Name”, even if the arranger made it one of the highest to sing. But who is “them” in this translation? “Them” is us. We are the ultimate creation of God.

But what purpose do we serve? The Psalmist is clear. We were set to rule over what God had made. Remember now, what God made was perfect, untouched, pure. Was creation ready for being ruled over by us? What was God thinking? How can one rule over something perfect made by God?! I think God’s intent was that we should rule over the works of His hands in the same way He would.

Think of what it means to be responsible to God’s creation, not simply responsible for. The use of one of these simple prepositions instead of the other changes the entire meaning of the intent for our relationship with the work of God’s hands. God didn’t just make stuff and leave it alone. He left His creation in the hands of Man; in your hands and in mine. We have a responsibility to God’s work.

In light of this, it should be clear that we are to do no harm to the creation, the “works of God’s hands”, placed in our hands. Again, God did not passively leave stuff for us to take care of. He actively gave us charge over what He had done. Today, look for ways to have responsibility to God’s effort. And leave God in charge of being responsible for us, for you.

Day 4

Saturday, February 20:  Scripture: Proverbs 26:20- “For lack of wood the fire goes out, and where there is no whisperer, quarreling ceases.”

Theme for the Day:  “Keeping Peace”

Learning to build and maintain a campfire is an art to itself.  Some folks build it with balls of newspaper or “fire-starters” made from wax paper and paraffin.  Some start with tinder and kindling, adding progressively larger wood pieces (this is the scout way!) bit by bit as the fire comes to life. Some use the assistance of matches or lighters.  Or, if you are stranded on a desert island on a survival game show, you may be seen striking a flint and adding coconut husks to the flame while your teammates bask in the sun.

Effort is also needed to keep a fire going, and there are a number of ways to achieve this result. Some folks fan a fire with something to keep the air moving, or blow very hard into the flames.  Some use an old fashioned, peculiar looking bellows.  I remember one of these my grandmother had!  It stood on its narrow end propped up by the fireplace in her house. It fascinated me as I opened and closed it to feel the stream of air it produced. There are even those frustrated barbecuers who have rekindled a fire with the use of lighter fluid; these folks are generally seen wandering around with singed eyebrows and bruised backsides from falling over backward to escape the conflagration.  This is MOST assuredly not following the simple rule of “Do no harm”!

No matter which technique or materials you choose, three things are needed to give birth to a fire and raise it successfully:  oxygen, heat and a fuel source.  Without any one of these three elements, a fire won’t survive.

Gossip as well requires similar human elements to stay alive.  Remember the old telephone game where someone whispers something simple to the next person, and by the time it goes around the circle, the original phrase is nothing like it started? Rumors are much like that: they start small and innocent, grow larger as they pass from person to person, become fanned by the flames of suspicion, and become out of control as they spread like wildfire.  Like fire, gossip lives on the airtime it receives.  A rumor gets hotter the longer it persists, and the souls of the target and the perpetrators are burned like fuel.  Yet, like fire, a sudden dousing or simple neglect will extinguish a rumor mill.

Ask yourself if you might be one of the elements that encourage a rumor.  Do you contribute to the telephone game? Would you be the spark that starts gossip from your careless comments?  Are you fueling the process by passing rumors along? Do you vigorously fan the flames?  Or will you be the one keeping the peace by squelching the mess or breaking the chain?  Pray this Lenten season to “do no harm”, and fan the fire of peace and forgiveness.

Day 5

Sunday, February 21: Scripture:    Proverbs 15:1 - “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”         

Theme for the Day: “Harsh Words”

One of the many things I remember about my childhood school days are the different little rhythms our teachers would teach us.  Today the one that stands out to me is, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me”.   

As a child that seemed like the best advice someone could give me but as we got older and our vocabulary got stronger the words got harsher and more direct.  The pain of having someone say negative or angry things to you weighs a lot on the soul.  Sometimes you sit for hours and hours thinking of ways to return the favor or thinking why would someone say those nasty things to me.

Now as an adult, that saying has a much greater impact than any teacher could have imagined.  For most people, their words are the harshest weapon they own.  As a child of God, I have learned to speak with a soft tongue.  I have learned that God has left us a book filled with many, many words that can teach us better ways to use our words.  The anger that builds up from using negative or harsh words does not help anyone, especially you. 

In Matthew 18:15-17 God leaves us great passages to help us deal with confronting an angry situation and improve upon ways to use our words in a good way and not let anger take over.    

As we sit back and reflect on the message of today, let us pray and ask God to guide our hearts and minds.  Ask God to direct our words so that we can all be lifted up not turned upside down.  God is our problem solver we just need to go to him and ask for a solution, he will fix it every time.

Day 6

Monday, February 22: Scripture: Luke 6:27-29 - “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.  If anyone strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also; and from anyone who takes away your coat do not withhold even your shirt.”

Theme for the Day: “Treatment of those who treat you poorly.” 
I contemplated these verses about the treatment of those who treat you poorly during my many, MANY snow days this month.   My mind kept wandering back to my loved ones.  Can any of you relate? Sure, it is sometimes a challenge to treat strangers and acquaintances well when they have mistreated you. Usually, we don’t have much interaction with them, so we can be civil in these circumstances most of the time.  But what about those who live with you?  What about your brothers, sisters, children, spouses, parents?  When I reflected on those that have treated me poorly in my past, a very few things came to mind that were most hateful. These were interactions with people who professed to love me.

Have you ever “unloaded” on a loved one?  I can safely say that I am guilty of that, as well as the recipient of that in the past.  So why is it easier to treat those we love poorly?  Why do we save those fierce emotions for the ones we love?  Do we feel safe?  Do we know that we can spew our feelings in the safety and unconditional love of our family?  We do.  We know that we can show the good, the bad and the ugly at home.  We wouldn’t dare show that at work, or church or Wal-Mart, would we?     Let’s face it.  We are human.  We get mad, aggressive, anxious, resentful, mean and oh, so much more.  Our mouths get in us more trouble when our feelings collect, and often, all of these emotions fly in the face of the ones we love; our spouse, our child, our sister, our mother.  And how do we respond?  How do we treat those who treat us poorly?  Do we turn the other cheek?  Do we forgive and forget?  Sometimes. My Daddy would have answered, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything!” OH, that this be true in our world.  It is easier to do that with strangers or acquaintances.  It is so much harder to do with those we love.  We hold on to the deepest hurts caused by those we love. So what can we do?

Do we share the good, the bad and the ugly with our Lord, the perfect example of unconditional love? I don’t think we do that very well.  I think we need to bring it all to Him.  When I have had to deal with loved ones who have done me wrong, I have felt the need to pray about it. Sometime it is very difficult. I can pray for them.  I can pray for the situation.  I can pray that I handle myself like a child of God.  I can pray for guidance of what to say, and often of what NOT to say.  What I have found is that prayer diffuses the bomb.  Prayer eases the feelings.  Prayer help center me, so that I may hold my tongue, or see the situation in a new light.  Prayer helps me see that it may not have been that big a deal at all.  Prayer is the key.  When someone treats you poorly, pray.  Prayer has been the answer for me.

Day 7

Tuesday, February 23:  Scripture: Galatians 5:22-23 & 25- “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.”   “If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.”

Theme for the Day: “The Holy Spirit can help us to resist doing harm.”

How can I obtain worthiness to write so little about something that means so much?   Jesus has told us he is the vine and we are the branches, so we must directly draw our life directly from Jesus.  Jesus will release his life into us through the Holy Spirit in the same way the vine releases life into the branches.  These gifts are seen as; Love which binds all the virtues together in perfect unity, we truly cannot love God unless we love one another.  Joy can give strength in your daily walk with the Lord through trials you can obtain Joy.  To be Joyful is to experience the power of the Holy Spirit within us and to say to a watching world, “Our God reigns.”  Peace let us have a fervent and Godly manner in to seek it, maintain it, and restore it to have the presence of peace.   Realize that the Holy Spirit has his peace to give you and he can give this in great abundance but we need to ask.   Patience should be maintained in all aspects – longsuffering, forbearance, endurance, and perseverance –this is a fruit that is most intimately associated with our devotion to God.    Kindness is the inner disposition created by the Holy Spirit and Goodness is kindness in action – words and deeds.  Acknowledge your need of his divine grace to enlarge your soul and enable you to look beyond yourself to the concerns and needs of those around you.  Then come to His throne with confidence to receive the grace you need for growing in the fruit of kindness and goodness.   Faithfulness is the true dependable, trustworthy, and loyal servant.  So if we seek to gain in the grace of faithfulness toward God we must grow in faithfulness toward one another in hope of him saying “well done, good and faithful servant.”  Be Gentle, as a Shepherd carries his sheep close, so too we should carry others heart’s.  Keep” tough and tender”; keep constant improvement in ourselves and maintain always tenderness to others.   Self-control is the exercise of inner strength under the direction of sound judgment that enables us to do, think, and say the things that are pleasing to God. 

Put these Garments of the Holy Spirit on and wear with the Lord’s pride and glory.  Have the new enriched spirit of the Lord.

Being in an arena in which there are visible signs of gratification and satisfaction there also comes sometimes points of heart break and tears.  We as individuals will see people not having any of the physical necessities of our daily life but we miss in seeing the joy that sometimes these people may give.  I would like to give to you one story that have touched me and I have seen the glory of some of these fruits these people carry with them.

Patient A:  I had received a call from a teacher at a school asking if I might be able to provide an exam for a student as well as any additional care that she may need.  They also went on to explain that the child or parents had no money and the child had been living in a closet.  She apparently had very few clothes and her hygiene may be in severe need of help. 

I answered quickly for myself as well as for my staff and explained that we had just set a program up for the area for exactly the needs of individuals such as this.  The teacher was excited and we set an appointment for the child, but later down the road they changed the appointment.   We asked if everything was alright and found that of course this 17 year old child had no way to get to the office, which was not the problem because the teachers were bringing her.  Although, the bigger problem for the patient was she did not have anything nice or presentable to wear to my office.  The teacher’s hearts were softened and they came up with some money to go to the Good Will store to purchase her a dress that she thought would be presentable.  Understand she thought she could not come because she was not presentable to us.

Well the day had come and the staff had all let me know that she was in room 6 and the teachers were in the room with her.  Now, I introduced myself and continue with the exam.  I had happened to look back as I was doing the exam as we all realized this patient could not see the 20/200 line which is considered legally blind if uncorrected.  When I had glanced again I had seen tears in the teacher’s eyes.  Was this in dismay that she couldn’t see, or that she realized what the child had been missing?  I continued and found her eyes to be healthy and with correction she was able to see 20/20.

Patient A returned to the clinic to pick up her glasses with the same outfit and a smile that was saying I am ready to see the world.  But what this child gave to us (I, my staff, and these teachers) was much more.  She had seen the frames she picked out and put them on, as she did tears came from her eyes that touched each and every one of us.  Her comments were “Thank you, Thank you, I can see, Thank you, nobody has done anything for me like this!”  We all had tears; these teachers had given their love, gentleness, kindness, joy, peace, goodness, and patience to her.  We as providers got to see this child give to us a true God’s gift of JOY.

Day 8

Wednesday, February 24: Scripture: Galatians 5:14-15 “For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself. If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.”     

Theme for the Day: “If you have love, you will not do harm.”
Even though I still believe in the basic goodness of my fellow man, I do have occasion, now and then, to REALLY wonder what’s going on in the hearts of some of them!
 
Our local TV station has a face book page now where viewers can pop in to share their opinions on various news stories an was concerning a missing toddler whose body was eventually found, wrapped in a trash bag, at a land fill site. The child’s stepfather, who had concocted a totally implausible tale about men knocking him out, kidnapping the baby, and leaving d hot button topics. One segment  that definitely elicited some strong response recently a ransom demand for $10,000.00 has so far been charged with child neglect and improper disposal of a body. We can assume that graver charges are yet to follow.

As awful as this story is, it’s not the step father that I’m concerned about here. He is clearly a bad man and hopefully will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law, but hopefully he will be dealt with by the judicial system. No, the ones who are truly giving me pause are the folks who spilled their anger and disgust into cyberspace and on to the face book page.
 
While I, along with everyone else, am shocked and dismayed by the man’s alleged actions and hopes he will pay a penalty if convicted, I am more worried about the people that are committing something as bad as the murder itself. I was stunned at the hatred that was spewed! Some writers suggested that the step-father be released on bail so that they could save the state the money and dispense justice themselves. These ideas were accompanied by venomous, hate filled and violent condemnations of the suspect killer. It was clear that if their wishes had been granted and the man released there would have been another body in the landfill by night fall.
 
Yes, of course, we are all entitled to an opinion on any subject. We certainly have the right to discuss behaviors, attitudes, and incidents and express our likes or dislikes, BUT when did it become acceptable to become both judge and jury of our neighbors and begin to pass sentence, especially upon people we don’t even know? How did it come to the point that we feel comfortable in wading into a situation and informing the world that we know best and we have the answer and we can insult, condemn, curse and revile anyone who doesn’t see things the same way we do.

I know that I have been just like everyone in passing judgment on people but Jesus forgave the ones who persecuted him. He was hanging on the cross between two thieves and he forgave them of their sins and than he forgave the ones that persecuted him. I pray that we will find it in our hearts to Love our neighbors as ourselves.

Thought for the day: Walk a mile in someone else shoes before you judge them for what they do.

Day 9

Thursday, February 25: Scripture: Matthew 5:38-42- “You have heard that it was said, an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you, do not resist and evildoer.  But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile.  Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.” 

Theme for the Day: “How to treat those who treat you badly.”

This is one of the most famous passages in the Bible – from it the phrases ‘eye for an eye,’ ‘turn the other cheek,’ and ‘go the extra mile’ have entered the secular vocabulary. And yet, for all its fame, and importance to the Christian philosophy, it is frequently misunderstood.

Most people view turning the other cheek as being passive in the face of a threatening force, a very unattractive position to be sure. However, what we are really being told here is to react against a force of evil, not with passivity, but with a force of good. This intent can be seen more clearly in Romans 12:17 – “Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody.”
  
The rule of “an eye for an eye” had been around for millennia in Jesus’ time, ever since the ancient Babylonian king Hammurabi chiseled it onto a stone tablet of laws around 1760 BC. It was thought that the only way to ensure justice was to take from the attacked that which he had taken from the victim. It took Jesus himself to tell the world, like a mother scolding her squabbling children, “two wrongs don’t make a right.”

Day 10

Friday, February 26:  Scripture: Matthew 5:43-48- “You have heard that it was said, you shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.  But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father in Heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.  For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have?  Do not even the tax collectors do the same?  And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others?  Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”        

Theme for the Day: “Love your enemies.”

“So all we need to do is love our enemies to become children of God and have a perfect day. If I only knew who was my enemy! And why I should love them! And why that would be a perfect day! Three not so simple rules to think about on our Lenten journey.”

First of all, where have you heard it said to “hate your enemy”? This may be a worldly guideline, but it is not learned from the Bible. The Law of Moses did not command hatred of the enemy, and certainly the Gospels did not echo this sentiment. So what is it about the enemy that we would tend to hate? I looked up enemy in the dictionary to find several meanings. One says “a person or group that tries to harm another, ie. adversary”. A second is “a force or nature that opposes another, and a third simply states an enemy is “anything that will harm.”

Jesus contrasts enemies with those we find easy to love, the ones that love us back, then compares us to tax collectors and others who greet only our brothers and sisters with love. Ouch! So our enemy might be as close as our neighbor, or anyone to whom we do not extend a loving smile.

Secondly, should we love everyone we meet and how can we accomplish this impossible feat? Here I would like to include some excerpts from a Bible study I took called “Jesus in the Gospels”.

Leviticus 19:18 says, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” By dropping “as yourself” Jesus (in our scripture lesson above) signals he is not interested in giving instructions about how we are to love the neighbor. Then he sets up the startling reversal in Matthew 5:44: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…” Here too Jesus’ eye is on the disciple, not on the effect of right behavior on the opponents (enemies). So here, by loving the enemy and praying for the persecutor, we replicate the God who sends rain and sun indiscriminately, thereby responding to the evil with good.

So loving someone does not and should not require the expectation of a similar response in return. God loves you and me without expecting anything in return. If we want to be children of God, we must reflect on earth the God in us.

My study bible entitles this passage “the law of love”. Here is what the footnotes say about these verses.  “Jesus corrected the misapprehension the Jews had about the law of love.  He made it clear that love exists for enemies as well as friends, for foreigners as well as fellow Jews. Later Paul reiterated the command to love one’s enemies, pointing out how Jesus died for us when we were his enemies.” (Rom. 5:8-10)

I was watching an episode of Bones where a man was killed and burned on a church altar, and the man had horns and a tail making him look like some peoples’ vision of Satan. The question of the struggle between good and evil, neighbor vs. enemy arose. A Muslim character on the show told a story about protecting his family against an insurgent who was rushing toward him with a gun. He shot and killed the insurgent, then looked at his possessions finding a picture of his wife and children. The Muslim character questioned who won the battle that day, good or evil, God or Satan. Sometimes evil comes disguised as our enemy.

So when it comes to loving our enemies, can we ever be perfect as our heavenly Father is perfect? Well perfection comes one day at a time. And here, Jesus may have meant perfection as a goal to be obtained through experience and time. Once again my study bible has some insight on this phrase.

“This perfection must be a God-like quality of love and kindness even for those who do not deserve it, a quality that is possible for us to attain. This sort of perfection is not equivalent to absolute sinlessness; rather, it concerns one’s intention or attitude to do right. Believers (children of God) can enjoy the grace of God to maintain an attitude of kindly benevolence and sincere desire for the well-being of others.”

So today think about who your adversary is, and who needs your love, and make them the same person. Oh, and have a perfect day!

Day 11

Saturday, February 27: Scripture:  Deuteronomy 5:17-21 - “You shall not murder.  Neither shall you commit adultery.  Neither shall you steal.  Neither shall you bear false witness against your neighbor.  Neither shall you covet your neighbor’s wife.  Neither shall you desire your neighbor’s house, or field, or make or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”                       

Theme for the Day: “The Ten Commandments dealing with doing no harm.”

These commands, or tips, or guidelines, for living with others are pretty specific. I wonder if the same point could have been made just by saying, “Be nice to everybody”. This phrasing is much more positive. Of course this would include not killing people because that’s not nice. Adultery isn’t nice. Stealing isn’t. Lying isn’t either. 

But what harm is there in just looking at what my neighbor has? Where’s the harm in that? I don’t know about you but once I get something in my head, it’s often hard to let go of it until I see a resolution to the thought. More often than not for me, this resolution entails getting what I want. Whether what I want is a new gadget or curtains or jewelry or animal for my farm really doesn’t matter. 

Or getting what I want could be stewing over a way to get back at someone who is talking behind my back.  At times, I can even covet undermining someone.

Either way, I spend a lot of mental energy and time on things that lead me away from the positive intent of “Be nice to everybody”. It is then that I need to be reminded that I shalt not harm others or myself by thoughts that take me away from God. And not being near God is to me the definition of “hell”. God does not want any of us to be in this state of being. Sometimes I need a reminder that loving God is the goal but getting to that goal is the hard part. At times I need a specific, different type of reminder of what not to do so that I remember how not to harm others.

Day 12 

Sunday, February 28: Scripture: Jeremiah 6:14 - “They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, ‘Peace, peace’ when there is no peace.”              

Theme for the Day:  By not helping those who are in need, we are doing harm. 

In 2005, my father asked me to go on a medical mission trip to Honduras. He told me about the many people over there that needed help. At that point in my life I was trying to have a child and I honestly didn’t feel a great calling to help those in a foreign country. I had my own needs that I felt hadn’t been met, and I guess in some ways I was afraid of the unknown. I was afraid of what it would be like in another country, a very economically distraught country. 

I have always believed that I am a good person, and I help those in need. I have been a nurse for twelve years and love helping my patients. I try to give generously whenever I knew of needs and some of my happiest experiences were shopping for gifts for the angel tree at church. I hoped and prayed that the people that received my gifts were blessed.

Then my father came to me and said he was going to Honduras in 2009 and that he believed I needed to go. By this time I was a mother and the decision was daunting, but I felt led to follow my heart. In September 2009 I went with Daddy and some people from his church to Honduras. The simple things like shoes for our children, toothpaste, and vitamins are like gold to them. My heart ached for them, I cried a lot, and God showed me that by me not going in 2005--by not helping those in need--I had done harm.

Most of us have at least one Bible in our home and probably do not read it as often as we should. When I gave the families that I had nursed in the clinic a Bible, all of them smiled, some shook my hand, and sometimes I was even given a hug. I may not have fixed them medically, but I gave of myself as God had called me to do.

We should all take the opportunity, whether near or far, to embrace the things God would have us to do. Sometimes it is easier said than done, but we should strive to not have regrets of missed chances to lift up another. To help and not harm.

Day 13

Monday, March 1: Scripture: Matthew 5:9 - “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.”         

Theme for the Day: “Being a ‘Peacemaker”
I met Chad on a recent visit while serving on a Kairos Prison Ministry team.  He was a lanky fellow but his most notable feature was the hollowness in his eyes.  At first, our conversations were brief.  During the four days I spent with him and other residents at Keen Mountain, he began to share some of his life’s experiences with me.

His first encounter with the law was at age 12.  He was incarcerated at the age of 16 and spent the last 20 years in prison.  He had 54 more years to serve.  His mother was the only family member who had not abandoned him and since she lived in Michigan, her visits were both rare and brief.

I shall never forget the events of that Friday afternoon.  This would be the last day of our visit and soon my teammates and I would be going home, escorted through the seven locked steel doors and what seemed like miles of high fencing and razor wire that separated confinement from freedom.

It was after one of the talks given by a lay team member Chad turned to me and said, “I want what you have.”  He could just as easily have spoken to any other member of the Kairos team or one of the many Christ followers who are residents at Keen Mountain.  But I was thankful for the opportunity to be a peacemaker, to share the Gospel of Jesus “The Christ” with him.  Chad found freedom that day, a kind of freedom the world does not understand.

In his first sermon recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus explains to his disciples God’s plan for our becoming participants in the kingdom of heaven.  It has nothing to do with signing a pledge card, walking down an aisle or our being sprinkled or dunked in water.  It is about our responding to the prompting of the Holy Spirit and allowing God to change our hearts.

Jesus said you enter the kingdom of heaven, here and now, when you accept the truth that you are spiritually bankrupt, or poor in spirit.  You will be comforted when you mourn over your sinful condition.  You will inherit the earth when in meekness you rely on his power and promises to transform your life. Your hunger and thirst for a righteousness that you do not have and can never achieve will be satisfied by the truth revealed to you by the presence of his Spirit.   Your cries for mercy are met by his lavishing mercy upon you and you respond by showing mercy to others. Yes, the eyes of your heart will see God acting in and through your life and in the life of others because you have been made pure by the blood of Christ. We become peacemakers because we have made peace with God.  And the world’s response to Christ followers will be persecution, insults and false accusations.

The world’s definition of peace is the absence of conflict.  (A good description of a grave yard don’t you think).  But a believer’s definition of peace is active, living a life that exemplifies the life and teachings of Christ.  The transforming presence of the Holy Spirit exhibited in our lives will cause uneasiness and conflict for those living in the world. And as the Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, we have the opportunity to be a peacemaker by sharing the Gospel with them.

So go out and start a fight.  Then you can live out the joy of God’s salvation by being a peacemaker.  After all, you are salt and light of the earth.

Day 14

Tuesday, March 2: Scripture: Romans 12:14 - “Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them.” 

Theme for the Day:  “Do not react in a hurtful way when someone treats you badly.”
This verse echoes Jesus’ teaching from Matthew 5:44 - “Love your enemies. Pray for those who persecute you.”   Doesn’t this go against our human nature sometimes – or maybe most of the time?  Retaliation is the first thing that comes to mind when someone does us wrong.  

Not so much at this “chapter” of my life as when I was younger.  When I was young my temper seemed to flare more intensely and much quicker than it does today.  In the heat of a moment of my youth I would immediately think of how I might hurt someone whom had hurt me.  But as I have grown in both age and faith, I have realized that reacting in a hurtful or harmful way is not the way to go. 

This is not to say that I might still have thoughts of payback but I have learned that this doesn’t make me feel better and it definitely doesn’t solve anything. Friends as well as enemies sometimes hurt us.  How quickly a friendship might end if we decide to persecute instead of forgive.  But then our friends are easier to love than our enemies so how do we deal with this situation? 

In this chapter of my life I have decided to try to stop – think – and pray for those who hurt me.  Who better to talk to when someone harms us that our Heavenly Father?  He is there in the heat of the moment when we call upon him and he will bless our friends as well as our enemies and give us peace.  All we have to do is ask.

Day 15

Wednesday, March 3: Scripture: Matthew 6:12 - “And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors.”    

Theme for the Day:  “Forgiveness”

I know someone that was raped several years ago while at work. Even though years had passed since she was violated she continued to experience occasional waves of pain, anger and sadness. She lost her job, her marriage went in a tailspin and ended in divorce as a result of this vicious act. 

She hired an attorney and filed a lawsuit. However, she decided to let the suit go rather than endure the stress that would be associated with a long drawn-out case that would include depositions, numerous court appearances, and attempts to discredit her. “I decided it would be best to move on with my life,” she told me. 

While my friend dropped the litigation in an effort to move on with her life, she was not been able to move past the pain, anger and grief that is associated with the unfairness that life brings our way for years, because although she spoke of forgiving she could not let go of the anger associated with the rape for many years.  

All of us have things that happen to us in life, which create pain, anger and grief. In most cases, they come unexpectedly and are, we feel, rarely deserved. The difference between Christians and non-Christians is how we handle the “thorn”.  Do we reach for the bottle or do we reach for the instructions that God’s Word gives to help us cope? 

Christians know that forgiveness should know no boundaries. What isn’t clear is that forgiveness doesn’t always happen overnight and is a continuing process. Sometimes we, humans, find it impossible to forgive and move on. The sore spot “speaks” up again and again through a thought or memory that carries us back to the scene of the transgression and our attitude suddenly takes a nose dive bitter with resentment; as if we forgot to forgive in the first place.   However Jesus said forgive again, and again, and again “up to seventy times seven.” 

Forgiveness requires great effort, as does anything that is worth having or giving.  However with our great effort comes the realization that to forgive is to learn to forgive as Jesus forgave if we truly want to live in spiritual unity with God.

Day 16

Thursday, March 4: Scripture: Matthew 25:35-40 - “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.  Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink?  And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing?  And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? And the king answered them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it for me.”

Theme for the Day:  “Helping the Needy” 

Patricia glanced at her list as she rounded the first corner in the grocery store.   Her “to do list” was extensive that day, and she was trying to find items as she went through the store the first time so that she wouldn’t need to backtrack.  Sound familiar?    

As she rounded the corner she realized that she would have to share the next isle with an older lady.   She smiled as she moved toward the side of the isle and the ladies simply passed with each enjoying a pleasant smile shared.  

On the second isle, Patricia chuckled as they once again needed to negotiate the “right of way”.  This time Patricia spoke, “Good Morning!”  Her greeting was returned in kind.  

On the third isle the lady held out her hand to stop Patricia’s progress.  “I want to thank you for being so friendly today.  You see, my husband of 43 years passed away ten days ago and this is my first trip out without him.  You have made it much easier for me.”  Needless to say, that was not what Patricia was expecting to happen in the middle of Kroger!  Yet, she realized that it was an opportunity sent from God to her.  Would she take advantage of it?   

Patricia and the lady spent the next several minutes talking.  Patricia let the lady share whatever she wished to share.  As the conversation slowed down they both continued their shopping and shared several other smiles as they progressed through the store.

Who was blessed?  Obviously the lady was comforted, but Patricia was the one who felt a warm glow all that day and would remember her shopping trip in the future.   She had experienced the joy of giving.

Challenge: Do you have the time to share a smile today?  

Day 17

Friday, March 5:  Scripture: Hebrews 13:16 - “Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.”

Theme for the Day: “Sharing and Sacrifice”

We are all needy.  God created us that way.  If we didn't have needs, we would not need Him.  Most of us have had experiences in life when we needed help.  Also, I imagine we have had many opportunities to help the needy by sharing our time and material possessions.  Everyone would probably agree that they enjoyed helping someone sick or needy more than being the recipient of help themselves.  I do know, though, that for me personally, it was in those times of trial and heartache that my faith was strengthened the most.  I feel that this is part of God's plan to help us grow spiritually and to become mature Christians to serve Him and to help carry out His plan here on earth.  

One doesn't have to look far to see hurting people.  There are needs everywhere!  It is sometimes overwhelming, and we are tempted to take the line of least resistance, but that is not God's way.  What would Jesus do?  First of all, He tells us to love your neighbor as yourself; then He says to pray and seek our Heavenly Father's guidance.  God gave us His Holy Word to guide us in the right direction.  If we are obedient to read the Bible, pray and seek His face daily, the opportunities He gives us to reach out and help the needy will not be burdens, but joys and blessings.  

Just this past year, our church witnessed a true miracle when one of our dear members was healed after she had spent four months in a rehabilitation facility due to serious complications from a fall.  Faithful volunteers from our church lovingly gave of their time to help the family by sitting with our friend during daytime hours.  What a faith-builder this has been! It has brought unspeakable joy.  There are so many great mission projects our church is involved in to help the needy of all ages.  The willing participation of our members is heartwarming.  With such sacrifices, our Lord is pleased.  We truly are Becoming United in Ministry with Christ.

Day 18

Saturday, March 6: Scripture: 3 John 1:11 - “Beloved, do not imitate what is evil but imitate what is good.  Whoever does good is from God; whoever does evil has not seen God.”
Theme for the Day:  “Imitate Christ”

Nancy Turner had originally signed up to do this meditation, but with all of her cancer treatments an procedures, she felt too tired to be able to complete this.  In response, I told her that her life was a “mediation” with out putting pen to paper.  If there was ever one who imitated Christ, it is Nancy Turner.
 
Those of you who know Nancy and I don’t know many in this church who don’t, you know that her gentle spirit, her unshakable faith, and her gift of teaching are all modeled by Christ’s example.  I have seen her work in this church and her inspirational example now for ten years and I know full well how many lives she has touched for Christ. 

A group of about 20 of us got together to lay hands and pray over Nancy a few weeks ago.  Being in that room with all of those people all praying for Nancy’s healing was a powerful experience.  I know it touched all of our souls to be a part of this experience.  

I hope you will join with me this day to lift up prayers of healing for our dear Nancy.  She has some tough days and weeks ahead with chemotherapy treatments and weak moments.  She needs us and our prayers to under-gird her in this time of trial.  

May we all follow Nancy’s example of imitating Christ in our everyday lives.  Thanks Nancy, for being such a good role model. 

Day 19

Sunday, March 7: Scripture: Luke 6:27-28 - “But I say to you to listen, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.”

Theme for the Day:  “Do good to all, even those who don’t treat you well.” 

So often as Christians when we think of Christian love, we think of the love we have for our Savior…the gratitude we feel for Christ’s sacrifice demonstrating the ultimate love, the love He has for us. As we grow in our faith we find ourselves sharing God’s love with those around us. We testify to our family and friends, we invite our neighbors to join us at church, we participate in church activities and coordinate with other churches to expand our ministries. We share the prayer concerns of those we know with our church family and know that those we love enough to mention will indeed be lifted up in prayer. 

Many of these things are the expressions of love that draw us in, that nurture our lives and our faith and inspires us to reach out and share it with others. This is good, this is necessary…but it’s also comfortable. 

One of the most difficult steps along my journey has been Christ’s tough love, the love that is tough for me to give…to forgive those that hurt me, to love those that may despise me, to pray for those that don’t believe in prayer. If I believe in God and I try to be the Christian I should be; if I love those around me, yet they treat me badly, surely I can’t be blamed for turning away from them. But if God is my example and He turns away from no one, isn’t that the expectation for me as well? 

Recently as I went through a difficult time, a very hurtful time, a good friend wanted me to know that she was praying for me…then she added that she was praying as well for the person that was the source of the hurt. I was taken back at first, how was that fair? How did this person that had been hurtful deserve her compassion and prayer? The more I thought about it, the more I realized that she was right, I needed not only to forgive and move on, but I needed to find love in my heart and extend my prayers as well. We are all God’s children; He loves each one of us and expects us to love as He does, no exceptions. 

God’s love excludes no one, yet so often we exclude those that we feel are not worthy of God’s love for whatever reason. If someone has turned away from God, has denied his existence or simply has never known Him, how will they ever come to know Him if we are not there shining the light of His love and welcoming them, encouraging them to seek His love? I can’t move forward in my faith if I’m not willing to let go of the bad and pray for us ALL to experience God’s grace. 

Day 20

Monday, March 8: Scripture: Psalm 37:3 - “Trust in the Lord, and do good; so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.”

Theme for the Day:  “Doing good will enrich your life.”  

Life sometimes doesn’t seem fair. “Good” people struggle. People who are “bad”, or who we perceive to be “bad”, sometimes seem to be prospering. We find ourselves asking, “why?”  Why do bad things happen to good people? But is this really the right thing to ask? Shouldn’t we focus on all that God has done to bless us and how we can show God’s love to others? 

The last few years have brought much concern and uncertainty. Once great companies have fallen, unemployment reached 10%, and savings and retirement plans have lost tremendous values. The threat of additional terrorists attacks here in the U.S. are very real, while our troops battle terrorists daily in an effort to bring security to us and the world. Illness and disease seem to be headline news daily. Earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, flooding, and even snow storms kill, devastate, and stop daily life as we know it. Our earthly life is full of uncertainty. So, how do we deal with these challenges? 

The writer of Psalm 37 tells us to “Trust in the Lord, and do good”. When we completely trust Lord, we realize that our life is in God’s hands. Through joy and sorrow, good times and bad, God wants us to trust Him. And when we trust Him, we have no need to worry about uncertainly or complain about life - because God is with us. 

God is good, and it our responsibility to do “good”. As Christians, we want to bring others to God, so that other people will know God and accept Him as their Savior. Doing good will enrich your life. When we focus on helping others and sharing the love of God, we realize how much we have been blessed and how fortunate we are. It helps us put life in perspective and keep our priorities in line. 

In my personal experience, I have learned that I’m at my best when I’m focused on serving others and doing my best to help others become better people and Christians.

While I know I fail at this too often, I try to use my God given gifts and talents to help other and to “do good” in the world. I pray that we all do good work to further God’s kingdom. Trust in the Lord, one day at a time. See the many blessings God has given us and “do good” with what He has given us. God will provide for us and give us security.  

Day 21

Tuesday, March 9: Scripture: 1 Thessalonians 5:15 - “See that none of you repays evil for evil, but always seek to do good to one another and to all.”

Theme for the Day:  “How we should treat others”

When I think of how we should treat others, the first thing that comes to my mind is the Golden Rule. ~ “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.” ~

If everyone lived by this rule, imagine just how wonderful our world would be!
 
I attended Back-to-School night at my daughter’s school this year.  One of her teachers took me aside as we were changing classes to tell me of a special thing that my daughter had done when she stood up for a friend who had been made fun of by a class bully.  I was so proud to know that she put her friend’s feelings above all in order to do the right thing.  As a parent, I have made it my mission to teach my children the importance of being kind to others, and to never laugh at the expense of others!  The rewards for doing good deeds for others are endless!
 
I implore you to be mindful of the simple things that you can do each and every day to make a difference in someone else’s life.  Acts of kindness come in many forms and fashions whether it be a simple pat on the back for a job well done; a simple thank you to show appreciation or a hug to let someone know you care.
 
We are all God’s children, and we all need to feel loved and accepted.  Give your love unconditionally! 

Day 22

Wednesday, March 10: Scripture:   Colossians 3:12-13 - "As God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and if anyone has a complaint against another, forgive each other, just as the Lord has forgiven you.  Above all, clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony." 

Theme for the Day:  “Characteristics of a true Christian” 

Life really is about choices.  When my students tell me that they yell angry words because “well, my dad has a bad temper,” I correct them and remind them that they have a choice no matter how their parent acts.  When our own children were tempted to follow the bad example of a peer, Cecil and I would tell them to think hard about that because they were accountable for their actions, (and of course the classic “If your friend told you to jump off a bridge, would you do it?”) 

So I have always loved this verse from Colossians that talks about choices.  First of all, we are called “God’s chosen ones”.  This is a reminder that He loved us enough to choose us to be with Him forever.  He then asks us to choose to do something: to clothe ourselves.  In other words, you have a choice to do this.  I think that often we wait around expecting God to just “give us love, give us kindness” as though we didn’t have to do one thing.  We would just stand still and get zapped with those traits.  But once He has called us by name and told us we are His beloved, then He wants us to choose to do what He asks. It is our choice.

As I think about clothing myself, I love to think about each word on the list as a literal piece of clothing:  compassion as an undergarment, kindness as a shirt, humility as slacks, meekness as socks and patience as shoes. Then over everything, to put on the wonderful overcoat of love, which binds everything together as with a belt in perfect harmony.  Then snuggled in these wonderful clothes, with that great warm overcoat of God’s love wrapped tightly around us, the world doesn’t seem so cold after all. I believe that causes us to see it more as He does and so then choose to reach out more to a hurting world.

Day 23

Thursday, March 11: Scripture: Mark 12:31 - “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Theme for the day: “If you treat others as you yourself would want to be treated, you will always do good.” 

How do you want to be treated? Not, how do you think you should be treated or how are you treated, but how do you want to be treated? For most of us, we want to be treated with love, respect, kindness, compassion and understanding. 

I have a friend and she comes from a difficult family dynamic. Her family’s background includes drug abuse, prison stays and mental illness. Vicki is the person in her family that is always there with a hug, a prayer or a word or act of support. Her nieces are always at her house spending the night or going on some day trip to the mall for a new outfit. She is always the one her mother calls on. She is the one her brothers call for advice or help. She has provided a room to stay in, a car to drive or employment for more than one family member. 

I have seen her extend her hand of friendship and acceptance to many people over the years. If someone needed the shirt off her back she won’t hesitate in giving it to them. A better friend you could not ask for. She very seldom receives that same kind of love in return from the people in her life. But, it does not detour her, she continues to love without expectation. It is just in Vicki to treat people who surround her with love and compassion. It is just in her because the love of Christ lives within her. When you have the love of Christ within you, you cannot help but give it away. 

So, how do you want to be treated? Think about that the next time someone cuts in you line or cuts you off in traffic. Think about that the next time a family member does something that hurts your feelings or does something you think they shouldn’t do. You may not always be treated the same way, you may even get treated badly. But remember, the theme says “If treat others as you yourself would want to be treated, you will always do good”, not they will love you back more or you will be rich beyond belief or you will receive a medal for your great service, but that you will always do good. You can take heart in knowing that Christ loves you. He loved you before you could even love yourself. So, go ahead and give some of that love, respect, compassion and understanding away today! God’s peace and patience be with you. 

Day 24

Friday, March 12: Scripture: Acts 10:37-38 - “That message spread throughout Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John announced; how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power; how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil for God was with him.” 

Theme for the day: “The Holy Spirit is our advocate in doing good.” 

God will never leave you or forsake you. He is the almighty and everlasting. He guides us through life with faith not by sight. We as God’s children must be willing to pass this message along to our community just as Peter did when he meet with Cornelius. We should never fear the unknown for the Holy Spirit is our compass and our guide. So many of us put faith in the navigation system in our vehicle to lead us to our destination, why not direct that same faith into the Holy Spirit.

From what I can tell you God has never lead me wrong and for the many blessings I have received, the least I can do is spread the word about his goodness and mercy. The world around us is decaying little by little each day; we need to uplift our communities, towns, cities, our states. Uniting as one Godly army we can spread goodness in the masses and we can’t be denied.

In Luke 6:27-28, God leaves a message of loving your enemies and doing good to them. Even when someone is doing their best to cause you harm, our Heavenly Father still wants us to be good pillars of his word and what He stands for.

As we sit back and reflect on the message of today, let us pray and ask God to guide our hearts and minds. He knows us better than we know ourselves. As we pray for the goodness and mercy of the Almighty to fill our body, we also ask you God to bring peace to those we pass your message along to so they can be filled with the Holy Spirit, just as we are. 

Day 25

Saturday, March 13: Scripture: Romans 12:9-10 - “Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection, outdo one another in showing honor.”

Theme for the day:  “God intends for his people to treat one another with goodness.” 

What a theme for a day.  Would our world not be a heavenly place if for one day all of us could treat each other with goodness?  When we look at that statement it seems to be an easy thing to do.  Treat your neighbor with goodness.  Treat your friends with goodness.  Treat your family with goodness.  Yes, those are all so simple for us to do, but I believe God means for us to also treat the “unlovable” with goodness.  We need to treat the man on the street that has not had a bath with goodness.  We need to treat the drug addicted with goodness. We need to treat the alcoholic with goodness.  We need to treat our “enemies” with goodness.  

If we look at what Jesus did, then we can more easily accept what we should do.  Jesus chose to eat and drink with the “sinners.”  He ate with the tax collectors and the poor and the unclean.  He knew that people would talk and that He would be questioned, but that did not matter to Him.  He chose to show goodness to all at all cost.  

When he was questioned about why he would eat with the unclean, He simply explained that we as Christians (those who already know Him and accept Him as their Savior) have seen and experienced His goodness, but those who do not know Him have not experienced His full and unfailing goodness.  Therefore as we try to live and be Christ like; we should take the time not only to show goodness to our friends, our neighbors, our family, but we should dig deeper into our souls and show goodness to all.  Let us each start today with goodness in our heart for all, because to know the goodness that belongs to human nature is to know Christ. 

Day 26

Sunday, March 14: Scripture: Romans 12:13 - “Contribute to the needs of the saints, extend hospitality to strangers.”
Theme for the day: “God expects us to share the blessings that he gives us with others.”

As a teenager I remember my mother saying, "All of our bad luck has been good luck".  This was after a flat tire had been fixed by a total stranger, in the "middle of nowhere".  She then began recalling all the times she thought she was alone and needed help when daddy wasn't around to "save the day".  

Many of us can retell stories like my mothers' which proves to us that God is in all our lives everyday.  The people who crossed paths were sharing their blessings of time or talents with others who are in need. 

The scripture above was the basis of how the early church did parish care.  Everyone in the church was supposed to “do their part” to contribute to the needs of the saints.  There was no welfare, Salvation Army, Red Cross, unemployment, or even Social Security.  The widows who had no employment were cared for by the church.  Women couldn’t work except for those who were part of the world’s oldest profession, so the decent women of the church had no financial support when their husbands passed away. 

So as we experience Lent this day, may we give a little to someone in need.  Lent is about sacrifice and we need to remember that God expects us to share our blessings with others.  Everything here on earth is God’s already.  He is sharing it with us and expects us to share it with our fellow travelers that we share space with on this big round ball turning through the universe.  What can you share with someone else this day?  

Day 27

Monday, March 15: Scripture: Luke 22:27 -  “For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves?  Is it not the one at the table?  But I am among you as one who serves.”

Theme of the day:  Jesus came to show us that we should serve one another. 

Grandma taught us service through action.  There was no action too small or too large.  It could be as simple as listening to a child, feeding anyone who stopped by or housing extra families in her four room home during the depression.  You never heard her complain.  What you did see was a woman of peace who literally whistled as she worked, generously giving of herself.

Grandma’s service was not what books are written about.  Instead, it was about day to day, hour by hour serving people in whatever capacity they needed.  Grandma has been gone for a long time but her servant heart lessons continue to live in those she touched.  God continues to live in us because one woman was willing to share her heart. 

When I think of people who are examples of “one who serves” I think of my Grandma Hall.  It was not what she said or the number of scripture she could quote.  It was her servant heart that made her stand out.  Grandma Hall was a quiet, unassuming woman whose favorite hymn was “It is Well with My Soul”.  She was the wife of Grover Hall for over 63 years, mother of six children and countless grandchildren and great grandchildren.  By today’s standards, her life would appear boring and mundane.  It was anything but; as she quietly impacted those around her.

Day 28

Tuesday, March 16: Scripture: Micah 6:8 - “What does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”

Theme of the day:  “Doing good requires being just and fair and merciful.”

Micah was a man who pleaded to God for change in the people around him. God provided Micah with the words he could deliver to help everyone live better lives.

While digging deeper into this verse, I discovered something called the Micah Challenge.  This is a challenge that is issued to children to help them better understand how they can apply Micah’s words from God to their lives.  First of all, it explains each of the three instructions God gave Micah:

Acting justly involves being fair to everyone. It means making sure that everyone has enough to live well. Not only should people act justly, but governments and businesses should also make sure that what they do is fair.

Loving mercy means helping others. It involves making sure that everyone is cared for in our families, our churches, our communities, and all around the world. It means being kind to people even though you may not know them well or at all.

Walking humbly with God is when we know in our hearts that God is with us in everything. When we really know this, we want to pray to God and study the Bible, and we want to always try and do what God wants us to do.

Imagine what the world would be if each and every day we took The Micah Challenge.  If each day we made a conscious decision to apply it as often as possible.  This would be the world in which God intended us to live.

 Prayer:  Help us God to live the way your Word shows us in Micah 6:8:

• to act justly to all people, everywhere!
• to love mercy every day in every way!
• to walk humbly with God in everything we do!
  Amen

Excerpts taken from:  The Micah Challenge

Day 29

Wednesday, March 17: Scripture: Ephesians 4:31 -  “Put away from you all bitterness and wrath and anger and wrangling and slander, together with all malice, and be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ has forgiven you.”

Theme of the day: “Be rid of the bad feelings in your life and conquer them with good.”

My husband had surgery on Nov. 19.  He was unable to do much for himself for awhile, so it fell upon me to do for him, plus all of the extra chores that the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays bring.  Boy, was I a grouch.

By the time our first snow was due on Dec. 18, I was in the middle of a really good pity party.  At about this time, I found myself in a long checkout line at Wal-Mart.  As we waited, I got into a conversation with the lady behind me.

After we complained about the long lines, she told me that she was having a very hard time facing the holidays.  Her husband had died on Nov. 18 after a two year illness.  (That was the day before my husband’s surgery)  She missed him very much and didn’t want to face the holidays alone.  Her situation made my problems seem so minor.

Sometimes God just has to hit you over the head with what is really important in life.

My prayer for you today is that you learn to take the good, the bad, and the ugly parts of your life and lay them at the feet of God.  Because in the end, He’s the only One who will be able to give you a relationship that is full of understanding.   This applies whether the relationship is husband-wife, parent-child or friendship.

Day 30

Thursday, March 18: Scripture: Ephesians 5:1-2 - “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

Theme of the day:  “If we are to strive to be more like Christ, we must imitate his teachings of love.”

Many years ago there was a soft drink commercial that showed a toddler-age boy playing with puppies.  I do not remember the brand of drink but if I concentrate I can still hear the laughter of that child as the puppies began to lick his face.  I remember I would always stop what I was doing to LISTEN to that commercial.  It brought a smile to my face, laughter to my heart and a sense of intense joy to my spirit. 

Children’s laughter has always brought a sense of great love to my soul;  a sense that when a person can feel and react like that, all is right with God.  I spend my life learning from children.  I have learned how to be joyful, how to be more like God and Jesus.  I have learned that as adults we tend to complicate things; make them too wordy, too intimidating.  Children, especially young children, accept things the way they are and move forward.  Just like Jesus did here on earth.  I pray for the grace and patience to be more child-like, accepting others and then openly sharing the love and joy of God and Jesus with them- like a child.

Day 31

Friday, March 19: Scripture: John 21:15-17  - When they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than theses?” He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.”  Jesus said to him, “Feed my lambs.”  A second time he said to him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  He said to him, “Yes, Lord, you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Tend my sheep.”  He said to him for the third time, “Simon son of John, do you love me?”  Peter felt hurt because he said to him the third time, “Do you love me?”And he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus said to him, “Feed my sheep.” 

Theme for the Day:  “What is God asking of you to show that you are in love with him?”
Holman’s Bible Handbook says concerning the scripture above:  The first word for love, used in Jesus’ first two questions, refers to a love that involves the will and personality.  The second kind of love, indicated by the word for love used in the third question of Jesus, refers more to the emotions than to the will.

Regardless of whether or not much is to be made of these word distinctions, the key issue is that of love for Christ, and this Peter surely expressed.  His earlier three denials are here answered in three affirmations of love and service.  Jesus clearly wanted love for Him to include both will and emotion, demonstrated in a life of discipleship to the church.

Staying in love with God takes a commitment of both our will and emotion.  We can feel the emotion of love without demonstrating it.  It has been said that a picture is worth a thousand words and people learn best by example.  What kind of an example is Christ asking of Peter here?  Christ asked Peter to “Tend His Sheep”.  How does a shepherd “Tend His Sheep”?

A good shepherd is one that keeps constant watch over his flock.  If a sheep gets lost or caught in a briar patch, he rescues the sheep.  He uses the crock of his staff to pull a sheep out of a body of water it might fall in and gently taps the sheep with his staff to lead them to where they need to be.

A good shepherd is one who is constantly searching for good pasture land for his sheep to graze.  As one pasture is eaten away, he leads the sheep to one with fresh grass.   A good shepherd is one that fought off lions and bears and other beasts that were a constant threat to his flock.

A good shepherd is one that waters his flock daily.  He draws water from the well in a jug and pours it in a trough so that his sheep can drink when they are thirsty.  He may also lead the sheep to drink from a body of water.  He must be careful that the water does not have a strong current that would carry the sheep away.  He sometimes needs to find water in unlikely places.

A good shepherd sleeps with his sheep.  On summer nights he slept with his flock of sheep under the sky, curled up in a rough sheepskin coat.  In winter months, he slept in a tent, cave, or stone sheepfold, but always near his flock.

In the same way, Jesus Christ is asking us to be good shepherds.  He wants us to be in constant watch over His flock.  He wants us to never stop caring for His sheep and trying to lead them along good paths.  He wants us to help His sheep when they stray from the good path He has chosen for them.  He asks us to provide for the needs of the flock and he never lets them thirst.

Jesus is saying to Peter, if you love me then prove it.  How can we prove to Christ that we love Him?....... “Tend to His sheep!”

Day 32

Saturday, March 20: Scripture: 1 John 4:21 - “The commandment we have from him is this: those who love God must love their brothers and sisters also.”
Theme for the Day:  “To love God, you must love others.”

The two little boys were struggling to get into their playing in the snow outfits. If they didn’t hurry up, it might stop snowing before they made it outside! While the older brother quickly slipped on his boots, mittens, and hat; his little brother was still sitting on the floor struggling with that first boot.

Big brother tried talking his brother through the difficult maneuver of pointing the toes, pulling on both sides of the boot evenly and pushing hard, but it just wasn’t working. Finally he leaned over his brother and said, “put your foot into my lap and push and I will pull on your boot”.   It worked like a charm. Two helping each other could accomplish what one alone could not!

Little children are such shining examples of how we must love our brothers and sisters, both literal and figurative. Siblings may squabble and disagree at times but that underlying bond of love always shows through in the end. So it is with our brothers and sisters in Christ. We will never be in perfect agreement on all things, but the love of Christ will ultimately bind us together.

Day 33

Sunday, March 21: Scripture: 2 Timothy 3:16-17 - “All scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work.”
Theme for the Day:  “Reading and studying the Scriptures”

Almost every chilly morning I put on a pair of socks. Since I want them to match what I’m wearing, I need to be able to distinguish among colors when I choose a pair.  Turning on a lamp in the room easily helps me identify brown or tan socks, but if I use this light to try to tell navy from black, there is a good chance that I might later discover that I’ve made the wrong choice!  The only way to be sure I’m correctly identifying colors is to take the socks to the window, open the blinds, and expose them to daylight.  Then the truth comes out:  the choice is clear!

Likewise, each day we have a choice to make regarding the kind of light we will cast on our decision-making. We can use the world’s convenient “light”, offered to us in the forms of peer pressure, advice from experts, commentary from the media, self-help books, and such. Though it’s handy, relying on this artificial “light” sometimes causes us to make wrong choices.  Thankfully, God provides a much brighter, totally trustworthy alternative light source--- the Bible! When we choose to illumine our daily decision-making with the truths found in God’s Word, we can be confident that we have put the best possible Light on whatever situation is at hand. We then see things as God intends.  Through our daily study and application of the scriptures, God sheds True Light on our lives, equipping us to make right choices so we can do His work in the world. 

Day 34

Monday, March 22: Scripture: 1 Timothy 4:13 - “Until I arrive, give attention to the public reading of scripture, to exhorting, to teaching.” and Colossians 3:16-“Let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly; teach and admonish one another in wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God.”

Theme for the Day:  “God’s Word Proclaimed”

Teaching.  Though it may not be our ‘called profession’ we are all teachers simply be being an example to others.  Our children & youth especially are always watching us to see how we treat one another, how we act and react in any given situation.  They are watching us to see what being a Christian all about.  This musical story beautifully illustrates how a master musician diffused a potentially volatile situation and turned it into a teachable moment.

Wishing to encourage her young son’s progress on the piano, a mother took the small boy to a Paderewski concert.  After they were seated, the mother spotted a friend in the audience and walked down the aisle to greet her.  Seizing the opportunity to explore the wonders of the concert hall, the little boy rose and eventually explored his way through a door marked “No Admittance”.   When the house light dimmed and the concert was about to begin, the mother returned to her seat and discovered that her son was missing.  Suddenly, the curtains parted and the spotlights focused on the impressive Steinway on stage.  In horror, the mother saw her little boy sitting at the keyboard, innocently picking out “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star.”  At that moment, the great piano master made his entrance, quickly moved to the piano and whispered in the boy’s ear,  “Don’t quit, keep playing”.  Then leaning over, Paderewski reached down with this left hand and began filling in a bass part.  Then with his right hand he reached around the other side of the child he added a running obligato.  Together, the old master and the young novice transformed a frightening situation into a wonderfully creative experience.  The audience was mesmerized.

The musician could have reacted in anger or he could have had security escort the boy off stage.  Instead, he chose to surrounded the child with love and support and make an innocent child’s song part of his concert.  Would we have reacted with such grace and gentleness?  As Christians we must constantly pray that God will show us how to make ‘bumps in the road’ part of our ‘life’s concert’!

Prayer:  “Teach us Your ways, O Lord.  Help us to react to difficult situations with gentleness and grace.  May your Word be proclaimed more in my actions than in my words.”  Amen

Day 35

Tuesday, March 23: Scripture: 1Thessalonians 5:16-18 - “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”

Theme for the Day:  “Prayer”

What is prayer?  Simply put, prayer is the act of communicating with God.

For the longest time, I thought that my prayer time with God required me to totally isolate myself from anyone and everything.  I also thought that praying more than two or three times a day would ‘wear out my welcome’ with God.  While it is nice to have a quiet, comfortable place to talk with God, it is not necessary.  I have learned that God likes to hear from you no matter what time of day and no matter where you are.  What is even better is there is no limit or quota of prayers that you have with God – not in a day, a week, a month, a year, or even a lifetime.

Do you text or instant message?  If so, you know what it is like to talk to someone and get an immediate response back.  Prayer is not so different from these technologies that we all use today.  You see, God is always listening.  As long as you pray faithfully, believing in God, his responses are also immediate just like a text or an instant message.

I now find myself not only praying at a quiet moment during my day or while worshipping at church, but I also pray while I am getting dressed in the morning, driving to work, sitting in the airport, or working out at the gym.  I am actually ‘checking in with God’ all throughout the day.  This has really strengthened my relationship with Him and it reminds me that I am never alone.

God will respond to your prayers immediately – it might not be what you think of as an answer, but God knows better than you what is the ‘true answer to prayer’.  If you are praying for someone who is sick, God will touch them and give them comfort.  If you are praying for someone who is in trouble, God will give them peace.  If you are praying because you are scared, God will wrap His arms around you and make you feel at ease.

Finally, remember that God needs to hear our thanks.  Thanks because He always hears our prayers.  Whether we are rejoicing or hurting – He is always listening and always has an answer.  So, thank God every day, rejoice that you always have Him at the other end of your prayer, and revel in the fact that you can talk with Him as many times as you like, never exceeding a ‘plan with a limited number of texts or messages’.

Day 36

Wednesday, March 24: Scripture: Matthew 4:1-2 - “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  He fasted for forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished.”

Theme for the Day:  “Fasting or Abstinence-Even Christ fasted in preparation for the beginning of His ministry.”

I remember when I went on my Walk to Emmaus back in 1993 I believe, I went with much anticipation, but also with a little bit of fear because I didn’t know what to expect.  I remember thinking I could handle just about anything they presented me with, but “What if they make us fast?”  That was something that I wasn’t sure I was prepared to do.  If there is one thing you can never call me it is “late for dinner”.  I have always enjoyed food to its fullest and had never really skipped a meal, much less fasted.

Well, for any of you who have ever been on the Walk to Emmaus, fasting from eating is definitely not part of the experience.  The opposite was actually true.  Every time we turned around we were being pampered with wonderful “made with love” food.  But, as I think back on the experience we did fast that wonderful weekend, it just wasn’t from food.

We fasted from the every day stresses that plague our lives.  We fasted from any disagreements that we might have with co-workers, taking care of our families, running errands, etc.  It was the kind of fast that we all need from time to time to help to prepare us for life and for what God calls us to do.  God intended for us to rest from our life once a week, that is why he created the Sabbath. 

Christ prepared himself for the call of his ministry by fasting before hand.  What can we fast from to better prepare us to experience a fuller Lenten season, so that we might be about our ministry.   Pray about it and put it into practice.

Day 37

Thursday, March 25: Scripture: Colossians 3: 16 - “Teach and admonish one another in wisdom” and  Philippians 2:1-5-“If there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.  Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves.  Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others.  Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.”

Theme for the Day:  “Christian Conferencing”

Christian Conferencing is a fairly new term for something that has been happening in our denomination and other denominations for as long as they have existed.    Christian Conferencing is a term that describes the community through which we find support growth and accountability as we live out our faith.

At the last General Conference of the United Methodist Church, a group worked very hard to make sure the conference was not just a General Conference but when the business was conducted it would be conducted in a way that was compatible with Christ’s teachings.  This sounds like a given in a Christian Denomination but for many of us who have been in conferences in the church, (district or annual conference) we are well aware that Christians don’t always act like Jesus would act especially in matters where we disagree.

John Wesley believed that conferencing or meeting together was a means of grace for Methodists.  He believed it was important for the early Christians to meet together for support, to learn from one another, for accountability and mutual encouragement.

When we read the Bible passages for today, we are told to be like-minded and to be one in spirit.  We are told to let the word of Christ dwell in us.  If we do this, we will recognize each and every person we come in contact with as a child of God and we will treat them this way.

If we have the mind of Christ, we will be willing to serve others.  Christ was a servant leader.  Paul wrote, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves.”  This doesn’t mean that others are superior to you but that each should be treated with respect and honor. 

Once Mother Teresa was asked how she could take care of the people she took care of.  How could she stand to touch the diseased bodies of the poor in India?  Her answer was, “I see Jesus in the face of every person who I reach out to.”  Think about how much better our world would be if we saw Jesus in the face of every person that we met. 

Day 38

Friday, March 26: Scripture: Mark 12:29-30 - “Which commandment is the first of all?-Jesus answered, ‘The first is , ‘Hear , O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength’”

Theme for the Day:  “Loving the Lord Your God”

We often find ourselves living in a complex world, focused on our own desires more often than those of others.  Love can also be complex if we focus on ourselves, and not on others.  We learn from today’s scripture that when he spoke to the Pharisees, Jesus told us that the greatest commandment is to love God with all of our heart, with all of our soul, and with all of our mind.  Jesus had been presented with what the Pharisees thought was a complex question – an attempt to stump him and humiliate him in front of a crowd – yet Jesus was able to make the complex simple and he gave us what is now known as the Great Commandment.

His answer was simple and can be summed up by two words: Love God.  But as we well know, some of the simplest things in life can be the most difficult to do.  To follow the Great Commandment means we have to put aside our own desires, and strive to serve God in everything we do. Everything we do should be done to praise God.  The food and drink we consume should be consumed to glorify God. We need to love God with all of our strength - all of our energy.  It means holding nothing back when it comes to showing our love for God.  If we love God, we will be able to know Him.

Today, before you make a choice, ask yourself, "Does this glorify God?" Ask yourself if you are fulfilling your own desires, or if you are doing what God desires.  Ask yourself, "Am I loving God with all of my heart, all of my soul, and all of my mind?"

Day 39

Saturday, March 27: Scripture:  Romans 12:1-2  - “I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God…what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Theme for the Day:  “Giving yourself to God”

The message found in today’s scripture is addressed to us all. The dedication of our lives to serving God begins with a decisive commitment.  A lot of us at the start of the year, probably, made a New Years resolution to improve our health, lose weight, etc.  But just as staying disciplined on a diet or new exercise routine requires daily reminders and recommitment to be successful, so dedicating ourselves to the Lord involves a day by day awareness of the pledge we have made as Christ’s disciples.

These reminders are imperative because the world we live in relentlessly appeals to our inherent self absorption and pride.  However, through an attitude of continual submission to God our hearts and lives will be transformed by God’s power.  And then we will know, with an assurance that comes from the Holy Spirit that His ways are “good and acceptable and perfect”.  This enables us to live the peaceful and joyful life God has made available to us all.  Are you a living sacrifice?

Day 40

Sunday, March 28:  Scripture: Psalm 105:4 – “Seek the Lord and his strength; seek his presence continually.”

Theme for the Day:  “Be in God’s presence always.”

As I sit and write this devotion, we are in the midst of yet another major winter storm.  Many are cut off from their jobs, families, and Churches, and are feeling the effects of isolation.  The aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti is still at the forefront of the news.  Unemployment in our country remains at an astonishing level of 10 percent.  I realize there are so many reasons that we could become angry, bitter and disheartened.  But then before I allow myself to take that path, I recognize so many more reasons that we have to rejoice in the face of what seems to be insurmountable challenges. 

We love and worship the Lord our God who is with us always, who made the ultimate sacrifice out of love for us – whether or not we consider ourselves worthy!  It is through God’s unlimited grace that we have so many reasons to be thankful and to rejoice in our blessings.  Through the means of modern communications, many of us knew days ahead of the impending storms so we could stock our refrigerators, fill our oil tanks, and stay warm inside as the snows fell.  Also through telephones and computers, we can stay connected with family and friends, even if it’s not face to face.  We can check on our loved ones to make sure they are safe, and express our love and concern.  If we aren’t able to drive to Church on Sunday because of road and travel conditions, Pastor Tim will ingeniously post our worship service on-line so we can still hear the word of God and participate in a worship experience.  Yes, we still have reasons for concern because we know many who are struggling with unemployment and many around the globe who lack even the basic necessities of daily living.  But it is also these areas of concern that call us as Christians to action – that we should pray and work to help all our friends and fellow Christians in need.  The possibilities to be in mission are endless!
 
Through daily prayer, the study of scripture, participating in the life of our Church, and doing acts of goodness and mercy, we are strengthened as Christians and come to realize that God’s presence in our lives is continuous.  God never forsakes us or abandons us; during the bad times and the good times, His presence is steadfast.  It is only up to us to seek His presence and then live into His presence so that we can “Become United in Ministry with Christ.”

Prayer:  Dear loving Lord, thank you for all the blessings you have bestowed upon us.  Please help to strengthen us on a daily basis to know you are with us and to teach us to seek and be in your presence always.  Let us waken each morning with a prayer that you bless this day and everything we do as your disciples, and then go to bed each night with a prayer of thanksgiving to you.  Amen.