onewhoponders

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 13: Year 2

Morning, Psalm 78:1-39; Evening, Psalm  78:40-72 

Judges 7:1-18; Acts 3:1-11; John 1:19-28

“John answered them, ‘I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know.” (John 1:26)

John the Baptist explains that among them stands one whom they do not know.  I personally don’t think they even know John the Baptist; they have thought him to be the Messiah, Elijah and a prophet, all of whom John denies being. So they don’t even know John.  But John tells them that among them stands one whom they have not even noticed. And Jesus is right there, in their midst. I often ponder that when John uttered these words if he was making eye contact with our Lord Jesus as he said it.  I think if I were there and heard him say such words, I would follow his eyes to see if I could see who he was talking about.

One thing that this COVID 19 Pandemic has done is reduced us to social distancing to the point where, in our small groups, there would be no mysterious person among us.  We know everyone in our group.  No room for God Incarnate to ease up next to us.  I am convinced that from time to time in my life, mysterious strangers have come to my aid, even when I didn’t know I needed help. But this doesn’t mean that the Holy Spirit of Jesus couldn’t use those who are with us, no matter how small our group, even down to where two or three are joined together, He is with us.

We still need Jesus standing among us.  Regardless of how Jesus might appear in our midst, his presence is always a blessing.  Jesus promised us the Holy Spirit, the Advocate, to be with us, in our midst.  And I believe the Advocate is with us.  So John’s words are still true.  There is one among us whom we do not know.  Sometimes our Lord Jesus speaks through others because we need to hear His actual words.  Often, the speaker whom Jesus uses is unaware of what he or she is saying.  The message is for us, not them.  When this happens, we must learn to receive and accept the message as it comes, not from the person speaking, but from our Lord Jesus who uses who he chooses to ensure we are wholly, and holy, informed.  Yes, often there is One among us whom we do not know.  Jesus speaks to us, through us.

Making war against another is an evil, sinful act. Let us continually lift up Ukraine in our prayers. Let us hear the Spirit in our midst leading us to ways we can help end the pain felt in Ukraine.

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 13: Year 2

Morning, Psalms 80; Evening, Psalm 77 ;

Judges 6:25-40; Acts 2:37-47; John 1:1-18

“That night the Lord said to him, ‘Take your father’s bull, the second bull seven years old, and pull down the altar of Baal that belongs to your father, and cut down the sacred pole that is beside it; and build an altar to the Lord your God on the top of the stronghold here, in proper order; then take the second bull, and offer it as a burnt-offering with the wood of the sacred pole that you shall cut down.’ So Gideon took ten of his servants, and did as the Lord had told him; but because he was too afraid of his family and the townspeople to do it by day, he did it by night. When the townspeople rose early in the morning, the altar of Baal was broken down, and the sacred pole beside it was cut down, and the second bull was offered on the altar that had been built.”  (Judges 6: 25 – 28)

While all of the Daily Office Readings are wonderful, my pondering gravitated towards the lesson I read in Judges.  Gideon has been called by God to let go, let go of the beliefs of his parents to ponder anew what the Almighty is doing.  This is not new.  Abram too was called from his father’s house to a place that God would show him, (Genesis 12:1).  So God calls us from darkness to light and to more light, and to further light.

I think this resonated with me so much because I too had to let go of old and false beliefs in order to behold the real truth about God.  My parents would have me believe in the human constructed system of racism even though they themselves were considered on the bottom rung of the racial divide.  It has taken time, but God has called me away from believing such nonsense.

What I have also pondered about the Gideon story is that there is often the requirement to give up something in order to obtain something. And it may not be an action that we are bold enough to do openly.  Gideon did his deed at night so as to avoid notice.  I chose to give up any so-called black expectations people may have had of me in order to be who I really am, who God made me to be.

Racial discrimination is today’s  altar of Baal and the un-sacred poles of some of our parents outdated superstitions.  We must remove them in order to make room for the real Truth: the Truth that is God. Stepping out of our expected behavior of darkness into the light of true belief territory is not easy, but it is very necessary.  And the truth will make us free.

I pray that the truth of the atrocities perpetrated against Ukraine come to light and are dealt with accordingly.

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

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 13: Year C

Colossians 3:1-11 and Luke 12:13-21

“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life is being demanded of you.” (Luke 12:20)

This passage is taken from the parable of the “Rich Fool.”  This parable is used by Jesus to show a younger brother that his desire for wealth made wealth his idol. Moreover, he would do well to not worry about material things but rather the kingdom of heaven.

To be clear the rich man in the parable that Jesus uses to teach from is not an evil man.  He has not cheated his workers or stolen anything.  However, he has benefited from the sun, the soil, and the rains in due season.  Because of this trifecta of blessings he obtained wealth.  And this wealth becomes his god and begins to own him.  It has him talking to himself. It has him planning for himself only. It has him living for himself only.  And finally, it even has him congratulating himself.  Where is the Creating, Redeeming and Sanctifying God in his plan, his life, his living and his praise?

Jesus comes into the world after money comes into the world.  Before the coins of currency, time was a big issue.  People had to trade before crops spoiled. And there was great dependence on God for tomorrow’s sustenance. Money begins to avert our dependence on God.  Money then became a god. 

All around the rich fool were the poor.  But apparently it never occurred to him to share his stores with them.  I know people who don’t have much. And by the way they distribute what little they do have, they probably never will.  But they give to the needy, They give to the children of the poor. They give to their church.  They are rich in the Kingdom of God! Instead of being rich fools, they are the holy saints of heaven that will dwell in light eternal.  Because they are looking after the poor and lonely in this world, God will take care of them in the next.  Thank You Jesus.

I have worked with families who fought bitterly over wealth at the time of the death of an older family member.  It is not pretty. I think what is saddest about it is the concern and energy put into wanting the money and property of the deceased. I have also seen the property fights regarding divorce settlements, again, not pretty. Instead of thinking about what we need, we think about what we can get.

We should focus our desire on the Kingdom of heaven and go back in our corporate spiritual ancestry and learn to re-trust in God for tomorrow’s sustenance.  God is God before time began. God was God when we depended on the short life of crops and livestock.  That same God is our God today.  Just because we have coins, currency, credit cards, stocks and bonds we are not out from under the domain of God.  This is the God before time. This is the God before money. This is the God of now. And, this is the God that always will be.  This God is watching how we use our borrowed resources during the little time we are here.  We should not want to be so much concerned with who will get what remains of our wealth after we are gone. Rather, we want to be concerned with where our soul remains after we are gone. This very night your life could be demanded of you.

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 12: Year 2

Morning, Psalms 75 and 76;,Evening, Psalms  23 and 27;

Judges 5:19-31; Acts 2:22-36; Matthew 28:11-20

“‘You that are Israelites, listen to what I have to say: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through him among you, as you yourselves know, this man, handed over to you according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of those outside the law. But God raised him up, having freed him from death, because it was impossible for him to be held in its power.”  (Acts 2: 22 – 24)

Peter painfully reminds the Israelites of both who Jesus was, and is, and, their part in going against the goodness of God in handing him over to be killed.  Even though those who actually crucified him were outside their faith, they indeed were responsible. 

The important thing to remember for us today, we who call ourselves Christians, is that our Lord Jesus was, and is, the living will of God. Today we can only read of “the deeds of power, wonders, and signs that God did through” our Lord Jesus among the people. We must read and believe.

Today, as Christians, we must believe in the living Jesus.  Our belief then is made manifest in how we conduct ourselves in everyday life.  We do not return evil for evil.  We seek fairness and justice for all people.  But first and foremost, we must love God.  For some of us, without regular Church services during the restrictions of this pandemic, it is difficult.  But church was never intended to be first.  First faith starts at home and in the heart of the individual. The story of Jesus is shared so that the hearer might grab on and believe.  And in believing, the faithful might come together in Church community.  But even without the gathered Church, we are still held accountable to the precepts of our Baptismal Covenant, our allegiance to the teachings of Christ.  

Peter reminds us, “This Jesus God raised up, and of that all of us are witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you both see and hear” (Acts 2: 32 – 33).  Peter’s words are not limited to his time and day: they are meant for us today as well.

Peter continues, “Therefore let the entire house of Israel [and indeed the world] know with certainty that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified”(Acts 2: 36).  We might also ponder about any acts we do today that are inconsistent with the faithful covenant we have made to be a Christian and amend our lives accordingly. Our Christian duty also includes praying for Ukraine that they may be safe and sovereign.

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 12: Year 2

Morning, Psalm 69:1-23(24-30)31-38; Evening,  Psalm 73

Judges 5:1-18; Acts 2:1-21; Matthew 28:1 – 10

Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me.”  (Matthew 28: 10)

Encounters with the Resurrected Jesus differ according to the Gospel we read.  In Matthew, the disciples are instructed to return to Galilee and there, Jesus will meet them.  Luke and John have Jesus meeting them in Jerusalem of Judea.  Mark is unclear about location in his extended version.  I like the Galilee meeting.  Galilee is where Jesus began his ministry and walked throughout Galilee preaching the Good news, and healing many, and casting out demons, for three years.  This place moved me as I sat in a boat in Lake Galilee in February of 2018 with a full view of the land that Jesus walked.  I took a picture of it and it is the scene at the top of each new One Who Ponders blog.

So Jesus says return to your beginnings and you will see me.  They were Galileans, for the most part, fishermen by trade.  Galilee is where they were grounded in their faith.  How about you?  Where were you when you were first told about our Lord Jesus?  Where is your Galilee?

Your Galilee may be more than a single, physical location.  Jesus’ instruction to return to Galilee may be an invitation to go back to the time (and place) when you first decided to follow him.  As Galilee is a vast area with several notable towns where our Lord Jesus taught and performed signs and wonders; like the Sermon on the Mount at Mount Tabor; the raising of a woman’s son in Nain; where he was raised by Mary in Nazareth; the feeding of the multitudes near Capernaum where he chose to live, and other places as well. 

Your Galilee may be a vast area or collections of life-altars also.  Going back may be a serious meditation on your own Galilee experience.  My own Galilee includes St Vincent de Paul Catholic School in Nashville, Tennessee; Paris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot in South Carolina; St Anne’s Episcopal Church in Memphis Tennessee; Virginia Theological Seminary in Alexandria, Virginia; and St Paul’s in Pines Episcopal Church in Fayetteville, North Carolina. All of these are the building blocks of my spirituality.

What and where are your life-altar places that make up your Galilee experiences?  These are the places that Jesus is asking you to return to in order to meet him again. Ponder on these places.

Please keep Ukraine in your prayers.

“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. 

What is Shabbat? Intro to the Jewish Sabbath – YouTube

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 Thursday of Proper 12: Year 2

Morning, Psalm  71; Evening, Psalm  74; 

Judges 4: 4 – 23; Acts 1:15 – 26; Matthew  27: 55 – 66

“At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment.”  (Judges 4: 4 –  5)

Women, in particular the strength of women, is often overlooked in the Bible.  Today, in our Daily Office Readings from the book of Judges we have two women who are revealed as very strong human beings.  Deborah the Prophet and Jael who I would bet was a builder of tents inasmuch as she could drive a tent peg with the best of men.

While the Bible says that Deborah sat under a tree named after her, I believe it was her presence that gave the tree the name after her time with us.  And all Israel came to her for judgment, for guidance and direction. They needed her presence so much that Barak, son of Abinoam, would not go to war unless she accompanied him. (verse 6). 

God has always included women in the carrying out of life and in the promise of salvation.  Men have too often overlooked this important fact. But this does not negate what God intends for all people in the fulfillment of what God is doing. This is true even in the conflict of war itself.

During a battle with Sisera, who was the cowardly leader opposing Barak and Deborah, he fled to the protection of Jael.  “But Jael wife of Heber took a tent-peg, and a hammer and went softly to him as he slept and drove the peg into his temple, until it went down into the ground—he was lying fast asleep from weariness—and he died.” (Judges 4: 21)

Some of this language never comes up in “polite” company or our Sunday Lectionary.  But it is among our holy writings. It definitely shows God’s hand at work in women and that God’s wrath can also be made manifest in the leadership and courage of women.  We need to see, and be aware of, God’s will being made manifest in all human beings.  This is the way God, has worked, is working, and always will work.

Let us pray to see God’s salvation for Ukraine in our lifetime.

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 12: Year 2

 Morning, Psalms 72; Evening, Psalm 119:73-96;  

Judges 3:12 – 30; Acts 1:1 – 14; Matthew  27:45 – 54

“In the first book, Theophilus, I wrote about all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning until the day when he was taken up to heaven, after giving instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. After his suffering he presented himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over the course of forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God.”  (Acts 1: 1 – 3)

When I read scripture, I remember that I am standing behind the writer.  I am watching Luke, a man who never knew Jesus the way the other apostles did.  He learned from Paul and Peter.  I remember that his teacher Paul did not know Jesus in the flesh either, Paul met the resurrected Jesus while he, (Paul) was traveling to Damascus.

Even with this insight, I know that the “Acts of the Apostles” is Luke’s second book, his Gospel being the first.  Acts starts out with heavy input from Peter but ends with Paul speaking. It wasn’t until I saw the movie “Paul, Apostle of Christ” (with James Faulkner as Paul and Jim Caviezel as Luke), that I realized how significant Luke was in providing these writings to us.  He put himself at great risk going into and out of confinement with Paul. I highly recommend the movie.

Luke was an educated man, a physician.  He was accustomed to writing and taking notes.  God used the gifts of Luke to ensure we, of today, knew the history of Jesus and the first apostles, disciples and Christians. It must be remembered that he never met Jesus personally. He received his information from Peter and Paul. God still gifts a few of us with what we need as a community.  We get what we need for now, and we get what we will need for the future – like Luke.

The only thing you have to do to please God is live, believe, have courage when it seems dangerous, and make use of the gifts God has graced you with. This leads to the kingdom of God that Jesus spoke of through Luke. Thank you Lord Jesus.

Please keep your prayers for Ukraine going. Thanks

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 12: Year 2

Morning, Psalms 61 and 62, Evening, Psalm 68; 

Judges 2:1-5,11-23; Romans 16:17-27; Matthew 27:32-44

“Whenever the Lord raised up judges for them, the Lord was with the judge, and he delivered them from the hand of their enemies all the days of the judge; for the Lord would be moved to pity by their groaning because of those who persecuted and oppressed them.  But whenever the judge died, they would relapse and behave worse than their ancestors, following other gods, worshipping them and bowing down to them. They would not drop any of their practices or their stubborn ways.” (Judges 2: 18 – 19)

Perhaps judges were prophets of sorts but they seem to take on more of a military role in many cases.  God was with them for the good of the people.  But what’s important here is that the judges were raised by God for the well being and direction of the people.

I think it was through the feelings of the judges that God could feel what the people were going through. This would be kind of a pre-Jesus experience for God where the Creator felt a little of what the people were feeling. 

There is a timeless truth at work with the book of Judges.  There was no School of Theology or Seminary for human- selected young ones to attend, or a human crafted degree of certification.  God graced who God raised up as a judge. I believe this is still true today.  There are God-selected people, men and women, in our midst like Deborah and even Samson, who are graced by God for the strategic purpose of moving us to where God wants us to be.  Denomination or religious tradition notwithstanding, God will choose who God will choose. God always has, God always will.  According to the words that our Lord Jesus gave us to pray, “God’s will be done.”  You might be such a person.  No person can say that he or she is not good enough.  Such thoughts and words are not limiting who you are; such thoughts and words attempt to limit the ability of God: for which, there is no limit and for Whom nothing is impossible.  Pray to discern if God is raising you up for the purpose of Leadership. It is entirely possible and it matters not who you are to this point in your life. God will choose who God will choose, and nothing is impossible for God.

I pray for more good leaders to help President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine with the leadership and rebuilding of Ukraine.

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 12: Year 2

Morning, Psalms 56 and 57; Evening, Psalms  64 and 65;

Joshua 24:16-33; Romans 16:1-16; Matthew  27: 24-31

“So when Pilate saw that he could do nothing, but rather that a riot was beginning, he took some water and washed his hands before the crowd, saying, ‘I am innocent of this man’s blood; see to it yourselves.’ Then the people as a whole answered, ‘His blood be on us and on our children!’ So he released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified.”   (Matthew 27: 24 – 26)

Pilate washed his hands, but his heart was still filthy. He had our Lord Jesus beaten before being handed over to be crucified.  However, a literal interpretation of this translation implies that Pilate himself whipped Jesus.  Most readers (myself included) would assume that Pilate had his soldiers do the dirty work. In any case, Pilate re-soiled his “baptized” hands. Dirty hearts make dirty hands. 

The opening prayer for Sunday Holy Eucharist says it all; “Almighty God, to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen”  (BCP 355). We must first want our hearts focused on wanting good for ourselves and others. It may be that we need help even wanting to think good.  Therefore, we ask the Holy Spirit of God to cleanse the thoughts of our hearts.  There is too much hate and evil taking place in the world; just watch the news.  Our hands and words follow our hearts. Brushing our teeth and washing our hands won’t help if our hearts are soiled. Let us want to heed the Holy Spirit of God and love and care for one another.

Let us also continue to hold Ukraine in our prayers. I pray for them to have peace.

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

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of  Proper 12: Year C

Colossians 2:6-15, (16-19) and  Luke 11:1-13:

“And he said to them, “Suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves of bread; for a friend of mine has arrived, and I have nothing to set before him.’ And he answers from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot get up and give you anything.’  I tell you, even though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, at least because of his persistence he will get up and give him whatever he needs.” (Luke 11: 5 – 8)

God has hard-wired us to seek and to assist. It is our human nature to solve mysteries, be it the rotation of the universe or the cure for cancer. We look for answers.  We have inquiring minds and we want to know stuff. Today Google is flooded with people finding information about myriads upon myriads of all kinds of things.  We are born to ask, both for what we need and for what we want. 

Within the tradition of humanity is also the concept of hospitality.  From time to time we all find ourselves in need.  When thus found, we need the help of others. It is nothing to be ashamed of. It is our human condition.  Every person that hears the request of another has to deal with how they will respond to each situation.  I have a very dear friend who carries in his upper left pocket 2 or 3 small envelopes which contain a dollar and a Bible verse in each.  When a person approaches him for money he hands the person an envelope and bids them peace. I myself will adopt this response. A dollar or two is not much but it is a response. It helps satisfy that human need to respond. Even if the timing is bad, we will help if we listen to our hearts. We have this drive to respond to the need of others (friend or stranger). I believe there are more Good Samaritans among us today than there used to be.  We are born to help.

So we ask for help, and when we can, we render help to others.  This is God’s desire for us to be a loving community.  Yes, we still have way too many bad apples.  But we don’t give up because of them.  We endure. We pursue what is good and upright.  When we need help we ask for it.  It is not a matter of pride that we should suffer loss.  We ask someone to help us and we also may help another down the road.  All resources come from God.  We’re just borrowing from God anyway.  And we should keep our eyes open for our brothers and sisters who may not ask yet be in need.

Being born to ask, and born to help, means that we are born to live in harmony with each other.  I know people who are too proud to ask for the help they need.  And perhaps if they are criticized about it, they ought to feel reluctant to ask.  So those of us who can help must be vigilant in making sure that we are “grateful” to know when an unexpected opportunity has come to us. And never, never shame, or in any way speak down or look down on anyone who needs our help.  One day it could be us.  If we can Google about the universe, we surely can ask about, and respond to, our needs, and the needs of others in our midst.  We want to take comfort in knowing that we live in a community that takes care of God’s own. We are all God’s own.

Ukraine too is God’s own.  Let us help them where and when we can .

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