Psalm 63:3-7

Because your steadfast love is better than life,

my lips will praise you.

So I will bless you as long as I live;

in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,

and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

when I remember you upon my bed,

and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

for you have been my help,

and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

A few weeks have past since I last jotted down a few thoughts during Lent. I have been turning over the phrase, “for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy,” in my heart and mind. It cause me to think of Jesus saying, ““O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing!”

When I was much younger my safe place was on my mother’s lap. I could curl up with my head under her chin hearing her heart beating and her breath no slowly moving my head up and down in peaceful rhythm. I know some of you did not find your mother safe and this thought could bring back memories of abuse, devastation and despair.

Great Healer and Holder of all who are broken please place your peace, compassion, mercy and care on those who hurt because of their mothers.

My experience is one of care, love and safety. I am grateful to God for my mom. As I grew I still wanted to sit on my mom’s lap but I was to big. That didn’t stop me from having her sit on my lap. I can’t recall how old I was but I remember not really being in a good place and saying that I needed her to hold me. She climbed on my lap and wrapped her arms around my neck and I fell into the rhythm of her breath and into security and joy.

Can you imagine not wanting the care, cover and confidence that comes from resting under Christ wing? Christ longs to gather us in so that we are helped and filled with joy. Our posture can be like the Pharisees that Jesus is speaking to and lamenting over. We are unwilling. We prefer to do the work on our own. We have it figured out and can handle it. Thanks for the offer but we have it from here. During lent we are reminded of our brokenness and our need to be made whole. Christ longs to gather us under His wing. He calls out to us and we can come and rest and rejoice. He offers Himself in His steadfast love and we just need to climb up in His lap.

You are the One who gathers us in and under your wing. Your steadfast love brings care and joy. Help us to be willing. Teach our rebellious hearts to stop resisting and rest in your good provision and care. In our recongnition of our brokenness keep us from despair that might cause us to resist in shame. Let us run to your embrace and you run toward us. In Christ, amen.

Psalm 63:3-7 (ESV)

Because your steadfast love is better than life,

   my lips will praise you.

So I will bless you as long as I live;

   in your name I will lift up my hands.

My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food,

   and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips,

when I remember you upon my bed,

   and meditate on you in the watches of the night;

for you have been my help,

   and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.

A few months ago I started a new lifestyle eating plan, otherwise known as a diet.  It is a plan that provides me enough food to live on and a deep variety all based on blood work and my health.  It has been great.  I feel better than i have felt in a long time.  There are a few  phases in the plan and i am now at a place where i can deviate from the prescribe food list one meal a week.  A celebration meal!?!  I have noticed that when i eat these meals i tend to stay pretty close my prescribed list of foods.  Not much variation.  But when i do go off and really dive deep into the celebration it is very satisfying.  I might not feel great the next day but the joy i have in eating that meal is so tangible.  I love food.  I use to joke that my ideal weight was 350lbs (159kgs) because that would mean ideally i could eat whatever i wanted.  Not healthy but enjoyable in the moment.

What is your favorite meal?  The thing that you would be willing to eat all the time?  This passage says that they are satisfied as with a rich meal.  I have a phrase that pops out of my mouth when i have a great bite of food.  “Oh My Golly!”  It is a spontaneous declarations of peace, pleasure and praise to the one who prepared that bite.  

In the time of Lent, a time when many of us have forsaken something, let us remember God’s everlasting ever pursuing love for us and find satisfaction in it.  It will cause us to shout praise to the one who prepares and presents His love for us through Christ Jesus.  Holy Spirit will move us to the peace and pleasure of His presences.

God,  Your love makes us sing.  Your everlasting love brings us peace and pleasure.  Your everlasting love is all of life to us.  Amen

Psalm 25:1-10 (CEV)

I offer you my heart, Lord God,
    and I trust you.
   Don’t make me ashamed
   or let enemies defeat me.
Don’t disappoint any
   of your worshipers,
   but disappoint all
   deceitful liars.
Show me your paths
   and teach me to follow;
    guide me by your truth
   and instruct me.
You keep me safe,
   and I always trust you.
Please, Lord, remember,
   you have always
   been patient and kind.
Forget each wrong I did
   when I was young.
   Show how truly kind you are
   and remember me.
You are honest and merciful,
   and you teach sinners
   how to follow your path.
You lead humble people
to do what is right
   and to stay on your path.
In everything you do,
   you are kind and faithful
   to everyone who keeps
   our agreement with you.

 

The Passage above is part of the Sunday reading from the Revised Lectionary.  It can be helpful to have a rhythm that helps us walk along our journey with God. Instead of just opening the Bible and dropping a finger the Lectionary gives guided reading for each day if you desire.  This guide is helpful in direction and recalling.  

We really don’t have an issue recalling something.  Of course we can forget a name of someone, the place we put our keys, the name of our favorite movie.  But when it comes to wrongs done toward us and the wrongs that we have committed we often struggle to move beyond them.  They creep into our minds and hearts as we are falling asleep.  We play the day over and over again in our heads and wonder how we even made it through.  We wake up anxious in the morning knowing we will be hurt and will hurt others.  That we will “not be perfect” and we dread getting up and out of bed.  “If i had only…” will whisper in our ears throughout the day reminding us that we just aren’t good enough.  

In this Psalm  David calls to God to forget each wrongdoing.  I don’t think that David doesn’t believe that God is forgiving or full of mercy.  He sings of those wonderful parts of God’s being in this Psalm.  It is almost like David is saying, “I have a hard time forgetting and if I have a hard time, it might be hard for you.  And if you remember these things, then i am in deep trouble.  Please forget.”  

But don’t just forget.  Remember me and teach me.  Remember who I am to you and teach me to remember and walk in your ways.  Remind me that  You are mercy.  Remind me that You are steadfast love.  Remind me that You are the Truth.  Remind me that You are the One who knows us completely.

We have paid street parking in Fremantle and that means there are folks who walk around making sure you have not exceeded your allotted time to park.  I have watched one of these fine people write a ticket for a car where the owner was running down the street carrying two boxes full of things begging the parking enforcement officer to have mercy.  “It just now expired!”  He did not have mercy.  Ticket issued.  

That is not God.  He is not walking around waiting for the slip up.  He is not recalling the times you have lived outside of your design.  He is not hoping to catch you.  He remembers and He forgets.  Amen.

 

God of mercy and love.  Teach us to remember your forgetfulness of our sins and brokenness. Teach us to remember your steadfast love and justice. Teach us to rest in our place in Christ Jesus.  Amen

 

Ephesians 3:20-21 (ESV)

Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us,  to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.

Psalm 23:5-6 (ESV)

You prepare a table before me
   in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with oil;
   my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
   all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
   Forever.

John 10:10 (ESV)

The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

Two days into Lent and those who have given things up are beginning to anticipate Sunday (only if they practise a celebration day on Sunday) so that they can have a little bit of that thing they have left behind during this season.  Those who maybe decided to add something to their spiritual life are frustrated as they try to rearrange their already overbooked schedule to fit this important thing into their day.  

I have had an interesting and fruitful relationship with Lent for several years.  One year i only drank fruit and veggie juice for the 40 days.  Another year I gave up sugar which is hard when you have an addiction to little debbie zebra cakes.  I also gave up talk radio at one point and that never came back unless you count podcast.  Lent for me was always about giving something up or removing something from the mix of my life.  

For many Lent is about deprivation and having less of something.  Less food, less enjoyment, less noise, less time.  The reality is that many of us live with that mindset all year long.  We believe that we just don’t have a sufficient amount of whatever it is that we need.  When I was just drinking juice I just wanted something that crunched.  When I was without sugar I just wanted something with sugar.  I wanted a zebra cake.  When I was without talk radio I just wanted nothing.  Really no talk radio was pretty great.  We can easily fall into a posture of want.

The verses above remind us that we can be in a posture of abundance.  Lent walks us toward the proclamation of the overflowing Love of God.  The moments of wanting push us toward seeing that God through Jesus Christ has poured out into our lives His Love, Mercy, Truth and Pleasure. Our cup overflows.  He does more than we can imagine.  We have a life abundant or as the Message says, “I came so they can have real and eternal life, more and better life than they ever dreamed of.”

Prayer:

Father, you are overflowing with love.  You are all that we need.  In our desire for more teach us that you are the abundance.  Change our posture of want to one of abundance.  And in the abundance of your love let us overflow to all those around us.  amen.

Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 (CEV)

Everything on earth
has its own time
   and its own season.
2 There is a time
for birth and death,
   planting and reaping,
3 for killing and healing,
   destroying and building,
4 for crying and laughing,
   weeping and dancing,
5 for throwing stones
and gathering stones,
   embracing and parting.
6 There is a time
for finding and losing,
   keeping and giving,
7 for tearing and sewing,
   listening and speaking.
8 There is also a time
for love and hate,
   for war and peace.

9 What do we gain by all of our hard work? 10 I have seen what difficult things God demands of us. 11 God makes everything happen at the right time. Yet none of us can ever fully understand all he has done, and he puts questions in our minds about the past and the future. 12 I know the best thing we can do is to always enjoy life, 13 because God’s gift to us is the happiness we get from our food and drink and from the work we do. 14 Everything God has done will last forever; nothing he does can ever be changed. God has done all this, so that we will worship him.

15 Everything that happens
   has happened before,
and all that will be
   has already been—
God does everything
   over and over again.[a]

As I write this Ash Wednesday has come and gone in both my adopted home of Australia and my birth home of the United States.  I have been thinking about Ash Wednesday quite a bit leading up to yesterday.  Early this morning I received an email from Redeemer Church in Indianapolis (my sending church) with a link to their Ash Wednesday Worship Folder.  It was great to read through the songs and the readings.  Ash Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent.  There are those who give things up for Lent and there are those who add a spiritual practise during Lent.  Then there are those who are trying to figure out why some many people have dirty foreheads and why would anyone give up something as good as sugar or beer.  

Ecclesiastes 3:20 will be quoted or alluded to in most Ash Wednesday service.  All go to the same end.  You are from dust and to dust you will return.  The beginning of that passage lays out that there is a time for everything.  It would make a good song lyric. Giving things up and taking things on.  Seasons of life.  Rhythm and ritual. Everything has a season and we have a hard time figuring out the purpose of it all.  It may seem like the best thing we can do is just enjoy life.  Eat and Drink and work for tomorrow we may die, as the purveyor of wisdom in Ecclesiastes says.  It can get pretty desperate at times.  We want to fight back and scream at the top of our lungs, “There shouldn’t be a time for that!”  as the news of another school shooting comes across the wire, a politician who can’t keep a commitment to his wife and family is found out, a broken relationship or recurring illness that devastates. “There shouldn’t be a time for that!”  

So we sit in the darkness of our own understanding.  We lay down with heaviness hoping that the dawn will bring brightness.  We desire to pick up justice and put down haughtiness.  We desire to pick up peace and put down animosity.  We desire to put down destroying words and pick up encouragement.  We desire to put down ego and pick up compassion.   And we wonder what is it that a good God has done that last forever. We long to experience and believe that it is His everlasting, always pursuing, self-giving love. And we hope that it will mark our hearts even more than the ash on our forehead.  

 

Prayer: Father, give us eyes to see and ears to hear your pursuit of us and your song of love that you sing over us.  In tragedy give us peace to rest in your promise and courage to stand against injustice.  Let us know that all is not meaningless.  That Your work last forever. Amen

Scripture/ Prayer/ Meditation/ Action

Psalm 136

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
2 Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
4 to him who alone does great wonders,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
5 to him who by understanding made the heavens,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
6 to him who spread out the earth above the waters,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
7 to him who made the great lights,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
8 the sun to rule over the day,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
9 the moon and stars to rule over the night,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
10 to him who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
11 and brought Israel out from among them,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
12 with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
13 to him who divided the Red Sea in two,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
14 and made Israel pass through the midst of it,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
15 but overthrew[a] Pharaoh and his host in the Red Sea,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
16 to him who led his people through the wilderness,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
17 to him who struck down great kings,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
18 and killed mighty kings,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
19 Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
20 and Og, king of Bashan,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
21 and gave their land as a heritage,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
22 a heritage to Israel his servant,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
23 It is he who remembered us in our low estate,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
24 and rescued us from our foes,
for his steadfast love endures forever;
25 he who gives food to all flesh,
for his steadfast love endures forever.
26 Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his steadfast love endures forever.

Scripture

John 17:6-19

“I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. 8 For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.[a] 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them[b] in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself,[c] that they also may be sanctified[d] in truth.

Prayer

Father, no one likes to be hated. Our desire to be approved and liked can cause us to move away from your name. We are kept in your name through Christ. This can bring discomfort and confrontation. Give us grace and comfort in this place. Give us love to those who hate us. Keep us in your name. Amen.

Meditation

This is a threefer. I have really been going back and forth with this idea of being hated by the world. After two days i really did not believe i could write anything. I am really not sure i can even as i sit down again at the computer to write this. Not of this world. Hated by the world. Not a great advertising slogan to bring people into your movement. I think the first things is to remind myself that being hated is not something to pursue. Which means i don’t have to be confrontational or against in my living. I am hated. Jesus states it as a fact. So, if i am doing things in a confrontational and against way in my relationships with people and they hate me or are angered by me this is not a victory. This is me being puffed up in some false righteousness. I am called to live at peace with those around me. If i am antagonizing them just to get a visible assurance of their hatred I am missing the point.

So if i am living at peace with people why do they hate me? Good questioned. Ephesians reminds us that Christ came to preach peace to those who were far off and those who were near. That on the cross He put to death the hostility that is between us (both us and God and us and each other) in order to build a new body; a place of worship. So hostility no longer exist in this body (ideally). The world is not present because it is still captured in the old way. The way of hostility. That is why they hate. They are not part of the new.

If we can remember our old self, the one that seems to be our shadow continually beckoning us back, you may recall that we lived in a stance of against. In order to feel purpose, secure, liked we play a comparison with those around us. We build enemies to give ourselves meaning. The way of hostility reigns but in Christ it has been put to death so we live in peace. We do not need to pursue the hatred, it is there. We pursue peace in order to invite those who are far off to the way of peace. Kindness leads to repentance.

Action

Love those around you. Accept the love that comes from those around you. Pursue peace with all people. Give mercy and grace. Know that you are hated but it is not the primary definition of a follower of Christ. Our identity rest in HIs love and the love we express to all.

Scripture John 17:6-19

“”I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”

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Prayer

Jesus you have spoken your truth in order for us to have your joy complete. We can mistake happiness for joy. We can mistake pleasure for joy. We can mistake full bellies for joy. We can mistake acceptance by the world as joy. We can mistake worldly security as joy. Lead us to your joy. You have made it complete in us. Amen
Meditation

During Advent I preached a sermon on joy. I have included the link here to listen to the sermon. Joy – Lee Hinkle, please check it out.

http://www.podbean.com/media/share/pb-y2g9i-658fda  
Action

Ask God to help you make a list of where the Joy of the Lord was your strength. Take time to praise Him for those places.  

Scripture

John 17:6-19

“”I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth. As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.”
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Prayer

Outside of ourselves and our inner self can often feel chaotic and purposeless. It is easy for us to looks at what is happening and since despair and run toward doubt. You are not afraid by our doubt. You are not put of by our questions and fears but you provide comfort and assurance in their midst. Your knowing and revealing of that knowledge; your purposes and your execution of those purposes bring glory to you and worship from us. Let my heart race toward your purpose through Jesus. Amen

Meditation

One thing that I have grown to really like in Australia is their apparent love of the print media. That’s not to say they love the print media but they seem to really enjoy reading a newspaper. There are lots of store fronts that cater to print media. Dailys, weeklys, magazines, print journals. It is really great to walk into town to one of the local newsstands and pick up the daily paper. The news however is not as pleasant of an experience. Bad news sells so reading the paper everyday serves as a reminder of how messed up things seem to be. This world is chaotic.

At the same time many of us could look at the level of confusion in the world and say,” if only my life was that calm” broken relationship, worn out bodies, job insecurity, faith confusion. We can spiral to a place of despair very easily.

This prayer gives us light in the darkness. It is really not in a positive place. There is one who is lost but it is according to scripture. There is a purpose and plan. The cross is cruel but its purpose is beautiful and brings about forgiveness, justice and mercy.

Providence, God’s plan, is hard to explain and even harder at times to understand. “Why” can be a common response to things. I think of it as a dance with God leading. He knows the steps, He chose the music and He can change the tune at His desire. He is leading us through the dance He knows and we are just learning. Anytime you learn a new dance (granted i don’t know this empirically, don’t let my wife know that we should probably take dance lessons for me to keep using this illustration) there will be bumps and bruises as you fight against the one who is leading, forget steps, get distracted and lose count with the music. Trusting that your dance partner knows the dance can be hard. Jesus, in this prayer, acknowledges and reminds us that God knows and will dance with us through life.

Action

Find a place where you won’t get embarrassed and dance around as a prayer and reminder that God leads the dance. He knows His plan for us and will fulfill it.

Scripture John 17:6-19

I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world. Yours they were, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word. 7 Now they know that everything that you have given me is from you. 8 For I have given them the words that you gave me, and they have received them and have come to know in truth that I came from you; and they have believed that you sent me. 9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one. 12 While I was with them, I kept them in your name, which you have given me. I have guarded them, and not one of them has been lost except the son of destruction, that the Scripture might be fulfilled. 13 But now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 15 I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one.[a] 16 They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify them[b] in the truth; your word is truth. 18 As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world. 19 And for their sake I consecrate myself,[c] that they also may be sanctified[d] in truth.
Prayer

Let us be kept in your name Father. Hold us there with your mercy and love. let our lives be a reflection of your name. Your name is above all names. let is rest in your protective care. Amen.
Meditation

When I was in high school I wrote a persuasive paper against running away from home. In the introduction I had to admit that I came from the perfect family. Now we all know that no family is perfect but mine was pretty close.i know that many people did not so this line of thought can be difficult. I pray that the Family of God will be this for you. My family is a place of unconditional love, safety, openness, compassion, protection and a passion for each other.  

When we think of being kept it seems restrictive and limiting. We may ask, “what freedom am I losing?” In Christ we are kept in God where there is complete freedom. It is free because it is a place of unconditional love, safety, openness, compassion, protection and passion. God holds us because He and only He knows who we are to be. We are His and the best place to be is kept in His name.  

Action

Write a love letter to God listing all the ways being kept in Him brings you freedom.