Author: John Thomas Frazier

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 23: Year 2

AM Psalms 20, 21:1-7(8-14); PM Psalms 110:1-5(6-7), 116, 117; Ecclesiasticus. 3:17to31; Acts 28:17to31; Luke 9:37to50

 “My child, perform your tasks with humility; then you will be loved by those whom God accepts. The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself; so you will find favor in the sight of the Lord. For great is the might of the Lord; but by the humble he is glorified.”  (Ecclesiasticus 3:17 to 20)

If you look this passage up you will see that there is not a verse 19.  My notes say that verse 19 should read “Many are lofty and renowned, but to the humble he reveals his secrets.”  So 18 and 20, even without the missing verse 19, are still about humility.  In my own practice of humility, which I still fail from time to time, it is about the humility of invisibility.  The humility of invisibility is about not insisting on my own presence in the group.  We live in a world now where everybody wants to be heard.  Fine. But given air time alone does not make one right. Being heard does not mean being believed. The humble way is to wait to be asked to speak.

When the writer says “The greater you are, the more you must humble yourself,” perhaps it works the other way also; that is, “the more you humble yourself, the greater you are.” What do you think?  Must we insist on being heard?  And if heard, we must realize that what we say may not be valued?

We must perform our tasks with humility. Many of the Mystics that I have learned from were unknown in their own day; Saint John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila to mention two.  It is through reading their writings that we are able to go to the deep end of the spiritual pool.

Remember, it is in our humility that God is glorified. “For great is the might of the Lord; but by the humble he is glorified.”  And as pointed out, by the missing verse, the humble are blessed with secret wisdom.  I don’t know about you, but being gifted with God’s secret knowledge makes being quiet even harder, it makes being humble even harder. I think having such secret knowledge would make me want to run out and share it right away. However, we must listen to the counsel of the Spirit of God in Christ Jesus and learn how to be still and be silent and not to unnecessarily share our thoughts which is the rule of DUST, which is, “Don’t Unnecessarily Share Thoughts.”

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper23: Year 2

AM Psalms 16 and 17; PM Psalm 22; Ecclesiasticus 1:1to10 and18to 27; Acts 28:1to16; Luke 9:28to 36

“For the fear of the Lord is wisdom and discipline, fidelity and humility are his delight.” (Ecclesiasticus 1:27)

This book from the Apocrypha is the Ecclesiasticus, or Wisdom of Jesus, son of Sirach; not to be confused with Jesus, Son of God.  This is a Wisdom writing.  It did not make the canon, or the accepted books of the Bible, but is none the less an important teaching tool for the Church.  In this book, there is a close association between wisdom and seeking the will of God.

Perhaps a better word for the word fear in this sense is the word respect or belief in the Lord.  For it is in believing in God and trusting in God that we are enlightened.  God reveals to those who believe in God.  Many people refuse to believe because they cannot prove God exists.  But, on the other hand, they cannot prove that God does not exist.  Art is proof of the Artist. Creation is proof of the Creator.  Nothing is happenstance.

For many of us today, frustrations abound.  But “Those who are patient stay calm until the right moment, and then cheerfulness comes back to them” (Ecclesiasticus 1:23). Patience is key here.  We have to prayerfully wait things out.  We should ponder all things as a people of prayer.  The writer of Ecclesiasticus says of such a people, “They hold back their words until the right moment; then the lips of many tell of their good sense (Ecclesiasticus 1:24).  I like to use the term DUST or “don’t unnecessarily share thoughts.”  Too quickly sharing thoughts, even if not meant, or fully developed yet by the speaker, have gotten people fired from their jobs.  All they had to do was keep it to themselves for just a little bit longer.  Again, those who are patient stay calm until the right moment.

In our practice of discipline, fidelity and humility we should try to DUST ourselves.  Holding back our thoughts and anger will give us time to ponder about what truly bothers us. It will lead us to better outcomes and we will have fewer regrets.  We just need to calm ourselves.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 23: Year 2

 Psalm 18; Jonah 3:1to4:11; Acts 27:27to44; Luke 9:18to27

“Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk. And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’ And the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put on sackcloth.” (Jonah 3:4 and 5)

Jonah did not like the people of Nineveh.  He preferred all of them to be destroyed.  But God loved them. God wanted to save them.  I can see Jonah walking through Nineveh sarcastically uttering the words, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!’  He probably said the words in a low tone, hoping the people would not hear him.  That way he could say to God he did the work, but knowing it was not his best effort. 

However, the people did hear him and repented, much to Jonah’s disappointment. Jonah learned that God loved the people that he did not love.  God loved the people who oppressed him and his people.  God loves the people today of the other political party.  God loves the people of the other race. We all need to realize that God’s love is not limited to us and our kind.  God is “all” kinds and loves all kinds. 

In the end, Jonah would rather die than have the people of Nineveh be saved.  I truly hope we don’t sink to that level. More than that, we need to ask God to help us to see the other as God sees them.  And when we have come to our true selves, do the Lord’s work as if we ourselves came up with the idea.  There should be no hint that we are not pleased to do what God is asking us to do.

Pleased be cautioned however.  If people of your group, be it political party, race, gender, orientation, nationality, or any human segregation, your own people will turn against you. But you will have God on your side.  Who else do you need?  When you help the other, do not wish you were dead instead like Jonah. Whether we like it or not, God loves all people because God is good, all the time, and everywhere. 

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday of Proper 23: Year 2

AM Psalm 119:1to24; PM Psalms 12, 13, 14; Jonah 1:17to2:10; Acts 27:9to26; Luke 9:1to17

“Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the fish, saying, ‘I called to the Lord out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.” (Jonah 2:1 and 2)

I have a saying, “God’s ears hears tears.”  I know it’s not correct grammar but it works for me.  It is a reminder that when we are at our lowest in life, all we have to do is cry out to God.  Theologians will tell us that we can’t know God. And, maybe there is some truth to that.  But maybe we can know something about God.  Throughout the Bible God comes to the aid of people who come to tears, from Hagar (Genesis 21:16),  to Mary Magdalene (John 20:11), and many points in between. God comes to people who cry from sadness, grief, or abuse.

I have come to believe that it matters not what people believe in terms of getting God’s attention.  God is so attached to the sadness of humans that even if a self declared atheist cries, God is with them. We can’t escape the love of God. God loves us more than we love God. God forgives our shortcomings. God overlooks our ignorance.  God is eternally merciful and therefore,  God’s ears hears tears.

If you think you don’t know how to pray, cry.  It works.  Cry from sadness, Cry from abuse or victimization.  Cry from loss of a loved one.  In all these, God is with you.  God made us with secret alarms that go directly to God which brings God to us in times of distress.  This is why God’s ears hears tears.  This does not mean that God will respond in a way that suits the one crying.  It does mean that God is present and attentive in ways beyond the discernment of mortals.

In the biblical examples above, an angel attended to Hagar and Ishmael in Genesis, and Jesus called Mary by Name in the Gospel of John. In our story of Jonah the writer has Jonah spit out on the shores of Nineveh. It takes these times of desolation and isolation to become contemplative enough to become aware of the presence of God with us, Emanuel. 

This still happens today.  Don’t wait until something bad happens.  Carve out some time to be still and be quiet and wait for God.  Reflect on your life, the good and the bad.  If you come to tears, watch out!

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 23: Year 2

AM Psalms 5 and 6; PM Psalms 10 and 11; Jonah 1:1to17; Acts 26:24to27:8; Luke 8:40to56

“But Jesus said, ‘Someone touched me; for I noticed that power had gone out from me.” (Luke 8:46)

In my Thursday morning Cursillo Reunion Group the gathered group is well aware that I, John, am not a fan of “unexpected opportunities.”  During our session the question always comes up, “With what unexpected opportunities has the Lord accomplished through you…” I am a strong “J” on the Myers Briggs personality tests. While this “J” stands for judgment it more readily relates to the need to know outcomes.  I am so “off the chart” in this category that I will wait until someone has seen a movie that I want to see and then ask them to tell me about it in detail.  If pushed, I would probably even pay for them to see the movie so that they can tell me about it.  I know this is bad but I really don’t like surprises. And I don’t think “opportunity” and “unexpected” should be used in the same sentence,, especially with “opportunity” used as an adjective for “opportunity.”

Having said all this, I now learn from our Lord Jesus as he was in rout to do a good work when an unexpected opportunity occurs. While on his way to attend to a dying twelve year old, a woman, bleeding for 12 years, guided by her faith, touches the garment of Jesus.  She is instantly healed.  Jesus realizes that someone’s faith has made use of his healing power.  He has unknowingly participated in an unexpected opportunity.

I have heard that the reward for hard work is more hard work.  Perhaps the same is true of good opportunities.  That is, the rewards for good opportunities are more good, and even unexpected, opportunities. This healing is further evidence that Jesus takes the faith in us already and uses it to heal us.  After the woman was healed, He said to her, ‘Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” (Luke 8: 48)

I also want to note again, that this is another situation where Jesus takes with him his inner circle of very faithful followers, Peter, John and James along with the parents of the child..  Perhaps he picked those who had both, faith in him, as well as genuine love for the child.  After kicking the doubters out of the room Jesus focused on the twelve year old girl. “He took her by the hand and called out, ‘Child, get up!’ Her spirit returned, and she got up at once. Then he directed them to give her something to eat.” (Luke 8:54 and 55) Even in this act of healing I would say that Jesus used the faith of the five in the room to do His work. 

Thank you Lord Jesus and use my faith in opportunities to do your good works, both expected and unexpected.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 23: Year 2

AM Psalms 1, 2, 3; PM Psalms 4, 7:  Micah 7:1to7; Acts 26:1to23; Luke 8:26to39

“The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him; but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’ So he went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him.” (Luke 8: 38 and 39)

It seems that the many demons in the man only needed a biological host in order to live.  So they asked permission to pass from the man to the pigs.  Jesus grants them the permission.  When they entered the pigs they immediately made the pigs go into the lake (Lake Galilee).  This is the same body of water from which the fishermen caught their fish.  Could not the spiritual demons then go into the fish?  This then would be their cycle of life. For they would go right back to the people who caught the fish and it starts all over again.  This is just my pondering.

I try to keep up with the actual accounts of Jesus actually inviting followers to follow him. I have 5: Simon and Andrew – Matthew 4:18 – 20; John and James – Matthew 4: 21 – 22; Matthew (AKA Levi) Matthew 9:9.  I know we try to claim the twelve as it matches the twelve tribes of Israel.  But we don’t have the actual recorded words of “come, follow me” for the remaining seven.  There is also the Rich young man in Mark 10:21 -22 who was told to “come follow me,” but he rejected Jesus’ invitation because he wanted to keep his wealth. 

Now we have one who asks to follow Jesus but Jesus says no. Jesus wants him to go back among his people and show what God can, and will, do. Of course he “went away, proclaiming throughout the city how much Jesus had done for him;” the point being made that “Jesus” and “God” are synonymous.  We don’t get to follow this man as he proclaims our Lord Jesus among non Jews. But Jesus leaves hints about what’s going on. Jesus says in the Gospel of John “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.” (John 10:16) 

The power and love of our Lord Jesus is witnessed by Jew and Gentile alike.  All report in their communities about Jesus being Lord of all, the seen and the unseen (like demons). Jesus himself will return to his spiritual nature for all eternity.  But he does not abandon us.  The Spirit of our Lord Jesus is with us, leads us and guides us.  Jesus still asks us to “come, follow him” and to “declare how much God has done for you”

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Part 1 of 2

Daily Office Readings for Sunday of Proper 23: Year 2

 Psalms Am 146, 147; PM 111, 112, 113; Micah 6:1to 8; 1 Cor. 4:9to16; Matthew. 15:21to28

“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8)

So justice, kindness and humility are the requirements of God from us. So for me, justice means being fair and impartial to all people regardless of the so-called race, gender or sexuality, ethnicity, religion, country of origin or anything else.  If they are human they are entitled to justice.  Justice then opens the door to kindness. And kindness can only be accomplished if we humbly put the need of the other ahead of the want for ourselves.

Part 2 of 2

New Testament Readings for Sunday of Proper 23: Year A

Philippians 4:1to9  and Matthew 22:1to14

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless.”  (Matthew 22:11 and 12)

In this parable from our Lord Jesus the king has deemed the original guests as unworthy and has now “scraped the barrel” so to speak, for anybody that could be found to attend the wedding banquet.  Then why be intolerant of one who can’t afford or just doesn’t have a proper robe, unless of course, one was offered but then refused? 

Today, in the midst of our COVID crisis most communities require people gathered to wear masks.  If they don’t have one, quite often the host will offer one.  If the guests still refuses to wear it, they are asks to leave; where there “might” be weeping and gnashing of teeth, (or not). 

The point is, if we look at justice, kindness and humility from the Daily Office Reading in part 1 above, we will see that insisting on our own way of being free of the mask requirement could endanger a vulnerable person thus denying them justice, and not being very kind, which shows arrogance, rather than humility. It is so easy to slip into unintended behavior. 

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 22: Year 2

 Psalms AM 137:1-6(7-9), 144; PM  104; Micah 5:1to 4,10 to 15; Acts 25:13 to27; Luke 8:16to 25

“No one after lighting a lamp hides it under a jar, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a lamp stand, so that those who enter may see the light.” (Acts 25:16)

Light is often used as a metaphor for moral enlightenment.  When some of us learn about better ways to live harmoniously in community, we model this higher morality, thus extending this light to others.  Morality is like money or food stores, it is not meant to be hoarded.  There are plenty of people in need of such learning; of such light.

Every village, community or parish, has those in their midst who are above the fray of challenging relationships.  These are sometimes quiet people who are easy to get along with.  But some are not so quiet, none the less, they are upbeat and positive.  Either way, quiet or engaging, these people of the light seem to be the few among us who bring in the light of love and share it with us.  

From them we need to light our own torches from their light and continue to carry it into this dark world.  Such light illuminates our tendency to be self-righteous, self-centered and challenging when there is no reason to be this way. 

Sometimes the light does not show us where to go, but rather, where not to go.  It’s like having my flashlight with me when I take the dog out in the morning.  The light does not show me where to step, but rather, where not to step.  The light of morality works as a guard on our lips and hands and feet.  This moral lamp, from a shared lamp stand, helps us to avoid trouble and move closer towards the glory of God.  My beloved of the Lord, walk in the light, and then carry the light for others so that they too, might see.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 22: Year 2

Psalms AM 140, 142; PM 141, 143:1-11(12); Micah 3:9to4:5; Acts 24:24to 25:12; Luke 8:1to15

“He shall judge between many peoples, and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away; they shall beat their swords into plough shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks; nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more; but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees, and no one shall make them afraid; for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken. For all the peoples walk, each in the name of its god, but we will walk in the name of the Lord our God for ever and ever.”  (Micah 4:3 to 5)

The prophet Micah speaks of a distant peace.  He speaks of a time when we will no longer need a military to go up against another nation; and maybe not even police because all people will honor the laws of their God. I know it sounds radical; maybe even impossible.  And, it is an especially strange concept since it seems so much like we are going in the other direction.  Our swords and spears are going more and more into nuclear weaponry rather than instruments of agriculture, food and medicines for the world.  If we only focused our resources towards the care of others instead of the threat of others.  What a wonderful world we would be.

How do we get to this radical way of living?  If we prayed more in private, and worshiped more earnestly in community, we would be a planet where all people in every walk of life would sit in their own planted gardens in peace while being thankful to God.  What a beautiful sight that would be. All people will walk with their God, as they understand God in their worship communities, regardless of how God is named in that community, and live in peace.  Be we Muslims, Jews or Christians, we ought to see God as a God of love and peace.  We are not competing.  We need to understand, for whatever reason; God is made manifest to different people in different ways.  However, the characteristics of love and compassion for the stranger and those who are different must be appreciated and respected.  There is no manifestation of hate in any understanding of God.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 22: Year 2

 Psalms (AM) 131, 132, [133]; (PM)  134, and 135; Micah 3:1to 8; Acts 24:1to23; Luke 7:36 to50

“I have a hope in God—a hope that they themselves also accept—that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous.  Therefore I do my best always to have a clear conscience towards God and all people.”  (Acts 24: 15 and 16)

This is the verse in Acts that I always try to remember and make known.  Our life hope is on the resurrection, or, it should be.  From what Paul says, the resurrection is not something earned.  It’s going to happen to all people, the righteous and unrighteous alike, because we are God’s, and God wants to see us on our fateful day. 

Eternal life, on the other hand, does not seem to always follow the resurrection. It appears that waking up before the throne doesn’t mean we live happily ever after.  There is judgment. There is accountability.  Paul, and maybe even a few of us, struggle to have a clear conscience towards God and all people. 

A life of dedicated service to Christ will bring us eternal life, but it is not as something earned, rather, it is something asked for in prayer and supplication.  And in receiving the grace of God, it brings about a life of dedicated service of its own accord.  Believe it or not, it is freedom.  There is a prayer that says, “O God, the author of peace and lover of concord, to know you is eternal life and to serve you is perfect freedom” (BCP 99). How about that?  Serving God is perfect freedom!  This only feels this way if we really live into the words, “Your kingdom come, your will be done.”

I have thought, since seminary, that the most important service I could provide a family is the burial service or funeral for a beloved relative.  As Christians, we are an Easter people – a Resurrection people.  We say things like, “he or she is in a better place now.”  That might be true (or not), or he or she might not exist at all anymore. The alternative to eternal life is not death but non existence.  Personally, I don’t believe a loving God would make us live at some post death level only to be in continual pain for all eternity. We either get our hearts right or cease to exist. But first there is our resurrection which we all must undergo.  We have no choice.

So like Paul, we also must do our best to have a clear conscience towards God and all People.  And my beloved, it must always be God first, and then, all people.  The important piece here is “all” people. We can’t pick and choose.  God loves all people.  The only way you can clear your conscience is to try and love those that God loves; all people.  There are people on this planet who will not get through your filter for one reason or another.  So I say don’t filter people at all, let it go. As our Presiding Bishop (Michael Curry) says, “Just love.”  It is not required that they love you back.  God is looking at your personal effort and the hope –the eternal hope that is in you as you approach your day of unavoidable Resurrection.  Love your conscience clear.

Let us hear what the Spirit is saying to, and through, the saints of God, and then ponder anew what the Almighty can do. John