Author: John Thomas Frazier

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Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 26: Year 1

Morning, Psalms 61 and 62; Evening,  ;Psalm 68:
Nehemiah 12:27 to 31a, and 42b to 47; Revelation 11:1 to 19; Matthew 13:44 to 52:

“The earth shook, and the skies poured down rain, at the presence of God, the God of Sinai, at the presence of God, the God of Israel.  You sent a gracious rain, O God, upon your inheritance; you refreshed the land when it was weary:” (These are two verses from Psalm 68)

I just watched a video where people (many women and children of southern Madagascar) are starving due to global climate change. For them climate change is not political, it is life, or should I say, the ending of it.  To read these words of a gracious rain in today’s Psalm 68 I thought how wonderful it would be for God to have it rain for these people, even in spite of the ecological negligence the rest of us perpetrate on them and others like them.

That God would have me catch this television article on the day of the words of Psalm 68 is no coincidence. That I am sharing these words with you is also no coincidence. You and I need to advocate for the downtrodden and our planet, this fragile earth our island home.`

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All Souls / All Faithful Departed

Psalm 130, Wisdom 3:1 to 9, 1^st Thessalonians 4:13 to 18, and John 5:24 to 27: 

“Very truly, I tell you, anyone who hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life, and does not come under judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (John 5:24)

I like the part where it says, “does not come under judgment.”  I have many deceased friends who did not claim a specific denomination nor attend Church regularly.  But God knows their faith.  We are not to judge them. That will be God’s job.  These are the Faithful Departed which we remember today.

I like that our Church has set aside a day of remembrance for people we have lost to death. Some died of natural causes or disease. Some were victims of mass murder such as a school shooting or shootings at a public gathering; some were victims of terrorist attacks such as the attacks of 9/11.  We should not let the evil plan of a sinful person or group determine when we mourn our loss. Our Church has a day for this. It is today. We remember them today and again give them to God Almighty where they have “passed from death to life.”

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

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Daily Office Readings for Proper 26: Year 1

Morning, Psalms 56 and 57; Evening, Psalms 64 and 65;
Nehemiah 6:1 to 19; Revelation10:1 to 11; Matthew 13:36 to 43

“I will confess you among the peoples, O Lord; I will sing praise to you among the nations.” (Psalm 57)

For me, “confessing God” means giving God proper credit for the good that happens to us as we journey through life.  I know that the good that has happened to me was not of my own doing. There have been opportunities and breaks in my life that were beyond anything I could ask or imagine. There have been military or government rules or regulations that were broken or changed  that favored my further progression as a servant of God. And for all this I am so truly thankful.

I talk God up whenever I am with others in order that they understand that my progression in life is not my strategy conceived and built by me but rather by God.  I want people to put their trust in God again. We are not on our own to love. We are owned by Love.

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Today is All Saints Day! 

Eucharistic Readings for this day are Wisdom of Solomon 3:1 to 9; or Isaiah 25:6 to 9; Psalm 24; Revelation 21:1 to 6a; and John 11:32 to 44:

Too few people are aware of this annual remembrance. Most know about Halloween or, All Hallows Eve, the night before all Saints Day but have no idea about the day we set aside to remember the saints of old.  There are many. We have the apostle saints, Matthew, John, James, Peter and the others. We have the post resurrection saints, a list that we are still adding to, like Saints Paul, Francis, Mary (Mother of Jesus) and Mary Magdalene, Teresa and many, many others

The saints made great personal sacrifices while living out their godly lives. Many were martyred like Joan of ark and Martin Luther King Jr. and many others. Others also suffered in the teachings of God’s love but they maintained their faith no matter what, setting for us examples of righteous living. “Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself:” (Wisdom of Solomon 3:5).  Remember from part 1 of today: “I will confess you among the peoples, O Lord; I will sing praise to you among the nations.” (Psalm 57)

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

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Daily Office Readings for Sunday of Proper 26: Year 1

Morning, Psalms 24 and  29; Evening,  Psalms 8 and 84:
Nehemiah 5:1 to 19; Acts 20:7 to 12; Luke 12:22 to 31:

“A young man named Eutychus, who was sitting in the window, began to sink off into a deep sleep while Paul talked still longer. Overcome by sleep, he fell to the ground three floors below and was picked up dead.  But Paul went down, and bending over him took him in his arms, and said, ‘Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him.’ Then Paul went upstairs, and after he had broken bread and eaten, he continued to converse with them until dawn; then he left. Meanwhile they had taken the boy away alive and were not a little comforted.” (Acts 20: 9 to 12)

As a preacher, I try hard not to preach anyone to death.  Jokes aside, Paul stops and goes down to the young man and proclaims “his life is in him.”  If we go to sleep in a Gospel reading, or a Gospel hymn, or a spiritual reading as an end to our day, our life is still in us even if we die. And angels will take us away alive.

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New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 26: Year B

Hebrews 9:11-14 and Mark 12:28-34

“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.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.”  (Mark 12: 29 to 31

Different biblical English translations have different wordings being asked of our Lord Jesus. Some ask, “which is the greatest of the Commandments?”  Some ask, “Which is first of the Commandment?  And, some ask, “Which is the most important of the Commandments?  However, in all of them, it seems the asker is looking for a single commandment answer. Our Lord Jesus gives a compound response. First is to love our Creator God with all that we are, in strength, in mind, in soul and in heart. And then, as if either not concerned about it being a one or two point answer; or, that the part two is so closely attached to the first that it cannot be separated, Jesus informs us that we are to then, and only then, love other human beings as we love ourselves. And yes, we are to love ourselves as a fellow human being but only after loving God first.

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 25: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 55; Evening, Psalms 138 and 139:1 to 17;
Nehemiah 4:1 to 23; Revelation 7:4 to17; Matthew  13:31 to 35:

“After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands:” (Revelation 7: 9).

In this scene in Revelation we have many people of all walks of human life.  And while they are representative of almost all aspects of human life, there is one category not mentioned; religion.

All nations, tribes and voices of humanity are brought before God without mention of how they got to God. I think this is important, very important.  And here is the good part, “They will hunger no more, and thirst no more; the sun will not strike them, nor any scorching heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of the water of life, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes:” (Revelation 7: 16 and 17).

God knows all there is to know about us no matter our religion as expressed in Psalm 139 for today:

1. Lord, you have searched me out and known me;
you know my sitting down and my rising up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.

2. You trace my journeys and my resting-places
and are acquainted with all my ways.

3. Indeed, there is not a word on my lips,
but you, O Lord, know it altogether.

4. You press upon me behind and before
and lay your hand upon me.

5. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me;
it is so high that I cannot attain to it.

6. Where can I go then from your Spirit?
where can I flee from your presence?

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 25: Year 1

“So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well.” (Matthew 13: 26)

God has made all things very good as we learn in the opening of Genesis. But soon to follow is evil.  Why?  Please note that evil does not begin and then good follows. No, first there is good, and then evil follows. This doesn’t have to be.

In today’s parable Jesus tells of the wheat sown and then an enemy plants weeds among the wheat. It seems that evil only wants to spoil the goodness for evil’s sake. We start with Creation and proceed to a fall because of evil and sin. We have homes and employment and then comes foreclosure or termination, respectively.  If the first didn’t exist, the second couldn’t exist. Evil only has its existence in corrupting goodness. If we are aware of this, then being forewarned is being forearmed.

The lesson for us today is to be alert. We are not to wait for evil, but we are to understand that evil lurks at the door and its desire is to consume us but we must master it. (Genesis 4:7)

God created us very good. But we must be on the alert for the evil and sin that shows up in community, in our Church, in our friends, in our family and in our selves. We must be vigilant.  When, (not if), you see evil, call it out; even in yourself. We must separate ourselves from any evil that tries to infest itself in us. And like in the parable, as we grow in spiritual maturity, the evil will be as distinguished as weeds among wheat, and be better identified so as to be removed.

Let us ponder all that God has made good, and very good, including our Sabbath rest.

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all their multitude. And on the seventh day God finished the work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all the work that he had done” (Genesis 2:1 and 2). So, for this evening and tomorrow day my friends, Shabbat Shalom. 

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

What is Shabbat? Intro to the Jewish Sabbath – YouTube

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 25

Morning, Psalm 50; Evening, Psalm 103;
Nehemiah  1:1 to 11; Revelation 5:11 to 6:11; Matthew 13:18 to 23:

“When I heard these words I sat down and wept, and mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven:”  (Nehemiah 1:4)

Nehemiah broke down in tears upon hearing about the trouble and shame of those left behind and the destruction of the wall and gates of Jerusalem.  All of it was human on human violence.  He couldn’t bear it.

Weeping is prayer.  From Hagar and Ishmael (Genesis 21), to Mary Magdalene at the tomb of our Lord Jesus (The Gospel of John 20), and many points in between, like the one we have for today, God’s ears hears tears.

When it comes to crying, it does not matter about one’s faith or even if one has a faith. God has hardwired us to connect with God whenever we cry. Therefore, even if one claims to be an atheist, but whose heart has moved him or her to crying, God is notified and acts in only the way God sees fit.

I have heard it said that real men don’t cry.  That’s Balderdash. If real men have real souls, (and they do), then something emotionally painful will cause their tears to flow.  And the super sensitive ears of God will definitely hear those water droplets flow down his cheeks, regardless of surrounding noise, and respond in ways that only God can.

There is too much sadness all around today.  We have natural disasters, Covid fears and deaths, military threats, and we still have human on human violence and many other sad situations that cause all of us to come to tears as it did to Nehemiah. But God will never abandon us. “Weeping may spend the night, but joy comes in the morning,” (Psalm 30). This is because God’s ears hears tears.

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday of Proper 25, Year 1

Morning, Psalm 119:49 to 72; Evening,  Psalm 49;
Ezra 6:1 to 22; Revelation  5:1-10; Matthew 13:10 to 17:

“With joy they celebrated the festival of unleavened bread for seven days; for the Lord had made them joyful, and had turned the heart of the king of Assyria to them, so that he aided them in the work on the house of God, the God of Israel.” (Ezra 6:22)

God often intervenes in the thinking of people around true believers. It has happened long ago, and it happens today. God influenced king Darius to assist the Israelites in the rebuilding of their place of worship.  Darius spared no resource in assisting the displaced people of God. He decreed,  “Moreover, I make a decree regarding what you shall do for these elders of the Jews for the rebuilding of this house of God: the cost is to be paid to these people, in full and without delay, from the royal revenue, the tribute of the province Beyond the River. (Ezra 6:8).

The heart of king Darius was so moved to help the Israelites that he also put words in his edict that warned those who might resist their work. He wrote, “Furthermore, I decree that if anyone alters this edict, a beam shall be pulled out of the house of the perpetrator, who then shall be impaled on it. The house shall be made a dunghill: (Ezra 6 11). There is something about the Marine in me that admires the determination of king Darius to see God’s work done without interference.

All said and done, God still works through the hearts of the people around we believers in order to help us.  All we have to do is keep believing, keep loving, and remain determined in building God’s spiritual house, that spiritual house not made with human hands, eternal in the heavens.

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 25: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 45; Evening,  Psalms 47 and 48;
Ezra 5:1 to 17; Revelation 4:1 to 11; Matthew 13:1 to 9:

“Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  Let anyone with ears listen!” (Matthew 13: 8 and 9)

I think what we are supposed to listen to with our ears is that our heart and minds should be like the good soil.  I have never heard it preached this way, “We are to be the good dirt.”

We must notice that all the seed is the same and therefore good.  What really matters is where it lands. These seeds are like the gifts of God and faith in God, given to us to bring forth a harvest pleasing to God.

But like the diverse terrain upon which some of the good seed falls, some of us are not conducive to making the most of  God’s gifts to us.  Some of us have faith that is too shallow and provide no foundation for God’s gifts to us.  Some of us are too occupied with worldliness to make good use of God’s gifts to us, which would actually make the world we are transfixed by a better place. Some of us misuse our gifts for personal gain thus let our gifts go as if taken away by birds.

We are called to be absorbent soakers of God’s seed putting everything else aside. It is in this way that we will do what is pleasing in God’s sight, thirty, sixty, and a hundred fold.

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 25: Year 1

Morning, Psalms 41 and 52; Evening,  Psalm 44;
Zechariah 1:7 to 17; Revelation 1:4 to 20; Matthew 12:43 to 50:

“When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it wanders through waterless regions looking for a resting-place, but it finds none. Then it says, “I will return to my house from which I came.” When it comes, it finds it empty, swept, and put in order.  Then it goes and brings along seven other spirits more evil than itself, and they enter and live there; and the last state of that person is worse than the first. So will it be also with this evil generation:” (Matthew 12: 43 to 45).

Our Lord Jesus speaks of various evil spirits that will inhabit us should they find a vacancy in us.  They can be driven out, but if we don’t work at finding worthwhile, good spirits to make a home in us, the evil spirits will return and be even worse.

It seems we humans are made to be led by one kind of spirit or another. All spirits or longings make themselves manifest in us by the way we think, our attitudes towards others, and our charitable, or self –serving greed. We have choices.

The only choice we do not have is to stay void of any spirit at all. Every person I have ever met pushes towards some desire, the good or the bad. When I say good I include everything from studying birds, or the universe, or medicine, or theology, or anything godly that keeps us occupied with learning that may help or inform others in a good way.  When I say bad, it tends to be all practices that bring harm, hurt or death to our neighbor. The bad practices may include, but are not limited to, identity theft, the illicit sell of drugs, any desire of trying to take something that does not belong to us, and any harm we wish to have done to others, even in the name of so called justice.

We need to monitor our emotions and desires. Are they good or bad?  If accomplished, will the spirit of our desires bring others wholeness; or new helpful information; or a way to start their own search for goodness?  We must “be” those we are in any kind of relationship with. Any notion in us that has us to not care about our neighbor is the manifestation of an evil spirit that is lurking around looking for a vacancy. We must fill our desires with ambitions that build up our neighbor and our Church. Good and positive spirits do not have to appear religious but will still have a charitable and loving outcome.

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John

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Daily Office Readings for Sunday of Proper 25: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 63:1 to 8, and Psalm 98; Evening,  Psalm 103;
Haggai 1:1 to 2:9; Acts 18:24 to 19:7; Luke 10:25 to 37:

“Which of these three, do you think, was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of the robbers?’ He said, ‘The one who showed him mercy.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go and do likewise.” (Luke 10: 36 and 37)

This is the conclusion of the parable of the Good Samaritan. Most of us Christians have heard this parable. It starts with the lawyer who is trying to get out of caring for people not like himself.  “Who is my neighbor?” he asks.  Jesus tells him of both a Levite and a priest who pass the injured man by, not wanting to chance touching someone who may be dead and defile themselves, and so be excluded from temple worship. But the Samaritan truly put compassion before Church, The message of the Church is to have compassion for all people. The Samaritan got it. And he did it. How about us?  Hearing the parable is one thing.  Going, and doing likewise, is another.

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New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 25: Year B

Hebrews 7:23 to 28 and Mark 10:46 to 52  (Reprinted from April 4, 2020)

“So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.” (Mark 10:50)

This is the healing story of blind Bartimaeus son of Timaeus who asks for his sight again.  What is often kind of glossed over is Bartimaeus throwing off his cloak.  Think about it, if you are blind you become well aware of keeping up with things so that you can put your hands on it again. I have my sight and still, I lose things all the time, my keys, my phone, my glasses, many things.

Bartimaeus, knowing he has the opportunity to stand (or kneel) before our Lord Jesus, throws off his cloak.  He lets go of his “security blanket” knowing that being before Jesus will make all things new and secure.

The same is true for us today. The only way we can put our whole trust in our Lord Jesus is to let go of false security.  Our Lord Jesus asks us today, What is it that we want Him to do for us?  What say yee? 

As we listen to what the Spirit is saying to us, let us live to love, to serve, and to teach, while pondering anew what the Almighty can do. John