Sunday, December 2

Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 122; Isaiah 2:1-5; Matthew 24:36-44; Romans 13:11-14; Psalm 145

Each Advent season I love hearing the words of the prophets create an image of the One for whom we wait. Their words create such a stark contrast between the “what is” and the “what could be”. The sense of possibility is amazing! In today’s passage, Isaiah does a beautiful job creating a vision of transformation. He talks about swords being transformed into plowshares – spears being turned into pruning hooks. Often we hear these words of transformation and relate them solely to those things outside ourselves. Today, I invite you to do a personal inventory and see if there are parts of yourself that are the equivalent of a sword – maybe your anger, your fear, your jealousy. Find that part of yourself. Now, take that piece and spend some time imagining how that part of yourself might look if it were transformed into something more positive: the equivalent of a plowshare. Imagine, for instance, if your anger were transformed into a passion that motivated you to get out and help others. Imagine if your jealousy were transformed into a sense of love and appreciation that caused you to grow deeper into your relationship with another. Just think what might happen. Real peace might be achieved in the one place that matters most: your heart. Til next time…

Saturday, December 1

Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 87; Isaiah 1:21-31; Matthew 24:46-51; Romans 13:8-14; Psalm 14

Buried near the middle of today’s passage from Isaiah lies one of my VERY favorite theological concepts. Let me first share the passage from Isaiah that I’m referring to and then reveal that theological concept to you. After Isaiah begins by pronouncing God’s disgust at Israel’s practices in the first four verses of today’s passage, Isaiah then tells us God says in Isaiah 1:25b (NIV): “I will thoroughly purge away your dross and remove all your impurities.” In my old Wesleyan circles, the concept here is referred to as sanctification. Sanctification is the process wherein the Spirit of God works within the heart of an individual to clean things up. The key thing to remember here is that sanctification is the work of God – NOT the work of an individual. In order to understand this process I’ve always thought of sanctification in terms of what happens to an individual when she or he falls in love. When the individual falls hard for that special someone, each and every element of her or his life begins to fall in line. You unconsciously start finding time to be with the special someone; you think about that special someone incessantly when you are apart; you find excuses to seek out that special someone’s presence. That’s what happens in our spiritual lives as well when we fall in love with God. This Advent season – as we once again fall for the incomprehensible love of God that we find expressed in that manger in Bethlehem – may we give thanks for the ways in which sanctification kicks in and helps our lives catch up with our hearts. Til next time…

Friday, November 30

Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 50; Isaiah 1:10-20; Matthew 24:29-35; Romans 13:1-7; Psalm 15

Each Christmas season it is easy to get so caught up in your “to do” lists that you never stop to think about what you are doing. Instead, if you’re like me, you become so focused on the next item on our “to do” list that the holiday seems to be over before you know what hit you. This morning’s passage reminds us about the important of taking the time to slow down and spiritually think about what you are doing before you do it. Isaiah 1:11 (NIV) cries out to us: “’The multitude of your sacrifices – what are they to me?’ says the Lord. ‘I have more than enough of burnt offerings, of rams and the fat of fattened animals; I have no pleasure in the blood of bulls and lambs and goats.’” Here, God reminds us that it is not just the practice of ritual that matters most (i.e. the next item on our spiritual “to do” list), but rather the heart that lies behind those actions. This Advent season I invite you to examine your “to do” list with new eyes. Is there someone on your list, for instance, who might benefit more from some relationship-building time and truth-sharing than yet another scarf or tie for their collection? If there is, slow down and tend to the heart of the matter. In doing so you will honor the coming of the Christ-child in new and transformative ways. Til next time…

Thursday, November 29

Today’s Lectionary Readings: Psalm 38; Isaiah 1:1-9; Matthew 24:15-28; Revelation 1:12-20; Psalm 128

There’s no other way to put it than to say this morning’s readings aren’t a lot of fun to read. In Isaiah, for instance, you have words talking about the impending doom to be visited upon Israel; and in Matthew you have a disturbing apocalyptic vision of the future. Needless to say, not the most comforting words I’ve experienced in my daily times of devotion. Today’s first Psalm – Psalm 38 - did raise an interesting issue for me. In that passage, the psalmist cries out in verse 18: “I confess my iniquity; I am troubled by my sin.” This verse got me to wondering: is the psalmist troubled by his/her sin simply because of the consequences he/she’s received, or is he/she troubled by his/her sin because of the distance it’s put between him/herself and God? For some, this distinction might not seem significant. To me it is. The first option suggests a sort of mechanical relationship with God (“Just tell me what to do and I’ll do it so my life turns out the way I hope”) rather than a relational connection with God (“I’m deeply in love with you God and want to make choices that strengthen our relationship rather than weaken it”). How would you describe your approach toward God: is it mechanical, relational, or perhaps something else? Is your approach what you would want? During this season of Advent, I hope you’ll take the time to nurture the sort of connection with God that you feel called to create. Til next time…