onewhoponders

Gospel Reading for Sunday of proper 7: Year B

Mark 4: 35 to 41

“Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?” (Mark 4: 40)

When I was stationed in Saudi Arabia during the Liberation of Kuwait in 1991, Iraqi forces were sending missiles at us. Some time later we found that the scud missiles were not all that they were alleged to be. But my fear of what might happen was real. I walked in the sands of Saudi Arabia everyday praying the Lord’s Prayer. Jesus was with me (us).

There have been other such times in my life of high stress. And I have prayed in those times also. Fear happens. But fear does not have the last word. Our Lord does. However, we must make known to our Lord Jesus what our fears are.  I have seen road signs that say, “Faith over Fear.” That is easily said, but fear is real and can consume us if we don’t find Jesus and wake him up to what’s troubling us.  Fear may appear at the front of our boat, but we have Jesus resting in the back of our boat. Call Him! He will save us if we call him.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

O Lord Jesus, help me daily to step forward in a trusting faith, rather than to the side in an avoiding fear. Sustain in me that abiding and blessed assurance that you are with me at all times, and will be with me through the storms and uncertainties in my life until I have joined you in that heavenly realm where you live and love, forever and ever, Amen.

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 6: Year 2

Morning, Psalms 87 and 90; Evening, Psalm 136;

Numbers 13:31 to 14:25; Romans 3:9 to 20; Matthew 19:1 to 12:

“Lord, you have been our refuge from one generation to another.” (Psalm 90:1)

God is our timeless Parent.  We have a beginning and an end, at least in this earthly life.  God is circularly infinite: no beginning, no end.

The Psalmist says, “The span of our life is seventy years, perhaps in strength even eighty; yet the sum of them is but labor and sorrow, for they pass away quickly and we are gone,” (Psalm 90:10).  As I have now passed the seventy six mark and moving towards eighty, this Psalmist has my full attention.  I don’t consider my life only labor and sorrow while at the same time I acknowledge there are some things I could have done better.

Over my years of life I have become more and more aware of living in the “Dash.”  I have conducted many funerals as an Episcopal Priest.  Normally the inclusive dates of the deceased are inscribed by; month, day and year, born; then the dash; and then closes out the life with the ending; month, day and year. So it’s what we do with our hearts, minds, hands and mouths (or don’t do) in the dash time, that makes all the difference.

The Psalmist continues, “So teach us to number our days that we may apply our hearts to wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12)  The hands (as well as the tongue) follow the heart.  We Pray at our Sunday Morning worship, “Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of  your Holy Spirit.” We only have so many days on this earth. Numbering our days may indeed help us to be more lovingly responsive to the needs of others as we await the coming of the other end of our dash.

God is our timeless Parent.  We have a beginning and an end, at least in this earthly life.  God is circularly infinite: no beginning, no end. Through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, we have an invitation to join God in eternity.  How shall we RSVP to this divine invitation?

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

“May the graciousness of the Lord our God be upon us; prosper the work of our hands; prosper our handiwork;” Amen. (Psalm 90:17)

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 6: Year 2

Morning, Psalm 88; Evening, Psalms 91 and 92;

Numbers 13:1 to 3 and 21 to 30; Romans 2:25 to 3:8; Matthew 18:21 to 35:

“For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is true circumcision something external and physical.  Rather, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real circumcision is a matter of the heart—it is spiritual and not literal.” (Romans 2: 28 and 29)

I want to thank Paul for this important clarification.  He says “circumcision is a matter of the heart—it is spiritual and not literal.” This is so important to understand.  Since it is spiritual and not literal, this kind of circumcision is inclusive of women also.  Further, the spirituality of it opens the idea of being inclusive of all humanity, regardless of skin tones, hair texture, language, nationality, gender or sexual orientation.  Thank You Lord Jesus and thank you Paul.

While Paul was addressing what it means to be a Jew, he was really deconstructing the argument about the difference between being a Jew and being a Gentile, to whom he was sent. His whole point is, that that makes us a holy people, is what is on the inside of us, not how we are packaged. It is that that is inside each of us that is both holy and eternal through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Paul still favored using the term Jew to mean God’s chosen and could not come up with a more inclusive identifier. I do believe that through the Body and Blood of our Savior we are made one with Him and therefore, with God. I have no problem being called a Jew through Jesus. At some point in our spiritual journey we must take on new identities. We must become new creatures in Christ Jesus. I believe this was God’s plan from the creation of all things.

“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

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, Israel, Palestine and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

O Holy God, you walked among us in the person of Jesus Christ to model for us how to love you and one another. Teach us still to let the seeds of love you planted inside each of us, produce your fruit outside of us, making us one in Christ Jesus, Amen.

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 6: Year 2

Morning, Psalm34; Evening,  Psalms 85 and 86;

Numbers 12:1 to 16; Romans 2:12 to 24; Matthew 18:10 to 20:

“Then the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud, and stood at the entrance of the tent, and called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forward. And he said, “Hear my words: When there are prophets among you, I the Lord make myself known to them in visions; I speak to them in dreams. Not so with my servant Moses; he is entrusted with all my house. With him I speak face to face— clearly, not in riddles; and he beholds the form of the Lord.” (Numbers 12: 5 – 8)

Moses’ brother and sister are called to the carpet for their jealousy of God’s relationship with Moses. It does not turn out good for them, especially for Miriam.  What I want to point out in this passage is the almost hidden way of God as is made manifest throughout our Old and New Testaments; and this is still God’s way of communicating with us, that is, through us; in visions and dreams.

In Genesis God appears to Jacob in a dream as Jacob sees the vision of a ladder extending to heaven; (Genesis 28: 10 – 17).  Also, in the Gospel of Matthew, Joseph was about to separate himself from Mary when an angel appeared to him “in a dream” and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins;” (Matthew 1:20 – 21). There are other such biblical cases as well. This is God’s Way.

I think it is important to be attentive to our dreams as well as what might seem like random messages that come to us from persons, known and unknown by them.  Prayer and the desire for the presence of God is very close to meditation , pondering and dreaming.  God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow.  God is unchanging but causes all good changes. Occasionally God still gives the prophetic message to some of us, for the benefit of all of us.  We never know who gets the message. It could be anybody, not necessarily a seminary graduate or an ordained person. This is why we must always listen to anyone who comes to us with a message.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

“Almighty and eternal God, so draw our hearts to thee, so guide our minds, so fill our imaginations, so control our wills, that we may be wholly thine, utterly dedicated unto thee; and then use us, we pray thee, as thou wilt, and always to thy glory and the welfare of thy people; through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.”  (BCP 834 and 835)

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday of Proper 6: Year 2

Morning, Psalm 119:97 to 120; Evening,  Psalms 81 and 82;  

Numbers 11:24 to 33 (34-35); Romans 1:28 to 2:11; Matthew 18:1 to 9:

“For he will repay according to each one’s deeds: to those who by patiently doing good seek for glory and honor and immortality, he will give eternal life; while for those who are self-seeking and who obey not the truth but wickedness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be anguish and distress for everyone who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek, but glory and honor and peace for everyone who does good, the Jew first and also the Greek. For God shows no partiality.” (Romans 2: 6 – 11)

To this New Testament reading I have some critiques and some “Amen’s.”  I believe that God will take into account what we do and what we say over what we just think about doing or saying.  We might think many things that are not noble or divine.  But as we use the discipline not to speak or act on them, we are pardoned.  Thank You Lord Jesus for helping us overcome the demons in our minds. 

Twice Paul says “the Jew first and also the Greek.”  And yet follows up with “for God shows no partiality.”  This seems partial to me however on the part of Paul.  Full disclosure, I don’t care if I am second or even last, as long as I get there.  As I have studied various cultures I have learned that some cultures use different ways to separate themselves from everybody else.  The Japanese have two different alphabets. One is used for original native Japanese society; Hiragana; and they have an alphabet used for words foreign to Japanese speaking; Katakana. The Amish also say that all persons outside the Amish community are called “the English,” regardless of where they live or originate from. So I understand Paul and his “Jew first” attitude.  I also fully understand that with God there really is no partiality.

I think what I really like here is the fact that we are held more accountable for what we do and say rather than what randomly crosses our minds, or what our ethnicity is.  Our minds are free and sometimes wild, but left to be regulated by our sense of a moral plumb line. Giving in to the temptations of saying or doing wickedness is ungodly. Self seeking and self-serving is ungodly. By patiently doing good works and seeking glory and honor for God, we will have immortality, and God will give us eternal life. Thank You Lord Jesus.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

O holy Spirit of the living God, please help us all with our patience and discernment regarding the things we say and do. And dear Lord, even as we devise ways to designate those who are different than ourselves, enable us to see your holy presence in them and love them accordingly. Amen.

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 6: Year 2

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

Numbers 11:1 to 23; Romans 1:16 to 25; Matthew 17:22 to 27:

“And say to the people: Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you shall eat meat; for you have wailed in the hearing of the Lord, saying, ‘If only we had meat to eat! Surely it was better for us in Egypt.’ Therefore the Lord will give you meat, and you shall eat. You shall eat not only one day, or two days, or five days, or ten days, or twenty days, but for a whole month—until it comes out of your nostrils and becomes loathsome to you—because you have rejected the Lord who is among you, and have wailed before him, saying, ‘Why did we ever leave Egypt?’” (Numbers 11:18 – 20)

All of the prescribed readings for today are very good.  But the presence of God in the manna in our Numbers reading was particularly interesting to me.  They are told that they “rejected the Lord who is among you.” This manna was the food of faith and freedom.  They were living in the wilderness without taskmasters. All they had to do was breathe and eat the simple meal that was provided for them.

It doesn’t take us long to become bored and complain does it?  Meat is nice but bread is our staple.  I see the communal nature of what’s going on with the manna, the Emanuel of it, the God with us in it.  Today, again in our Episcopal Diocese of East Carolina, we are back to full Holy Communion. Never have I been so glad to receive it as now. Lest we forget that Covid was a real lesson about the importance of coming together and having Holy Communion.  While I keep up with our Daily Office as shared in this, my daily blog, there is no way to receive the manna, the bread and wine via streaming electronic services. We must be together for that. Thank You Lord Jesus.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:                                  

“Be present, be present, O Jesus, our great High Priest, as you were present with your disciples, and be known to us in the breaking of bread; who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, now and forever. Amen. (BCP 834)

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 6; Year 2

Morning, Psalm 80; Evening, Psalm 77;

Numbers 9:15 to 23 and 10:29-36; Romans 1:1 to 15; Matthew 17:14 to 21:

“Paul, a servantof Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy scriptures, the gospel concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be Son of God with power according to the spiritof holiness by resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith among all the Gentiles for the sake of his name, including yourselves who are called to belong to Jesus Christ,  To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 1:1 – 7)

Wow! Paul: What an intro! I need to break this down in order to digest it.  First of all, I do believe Paul was called to be an apostle of the Gospel of God.  That whole experience on the road to Damascus was proof of that. I also believe that the prophets of the Hebrew Testament foretold of the coming of the Messiah, the Lord, our Lord Jesus, who was brought up according to the human household code of David, and then sanctified by the Holy Spirit of God, by which he survived death, and that self-same Holy Spirit is with us today as the Spirit of God.

It is through the risen Lord that we receive grace and apostleship and all we will ever need to bring about the obedience of faith among all the inhabitants of earth. This obedience of faith is a slow process by human understanding but it is the work we are called to do nonetheless. You and I must keep the faith no matter what.  And so Paul dubs us as saints. Therefore, “Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.”

This call that God has on us brings us out of death into everlasting life. For our part we must have faith, we must believe. Faith is the handle by which heaven grabs us and brings us before the Holy Presence of God. All of us are products of God’s unending love and we have the invitation through faith to continue to be with God after this life. Our faith secures our final destination.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

Most Holy Jesus Christ, to believe in you and follow your lead is our sanctification. Keep us ever mindful of your presence in our everyday lives. Help us daily to spread our love in the world; Amen.

The Gospel Reading for Sunday of Proper 6: Year B

Mark 4:26-34

“He, (Jesus) also said, ‘With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.’ (Mark 4:30 to 32).

When I was young, in my early teens, my dad saw the type of young boys I hung around with and he did not approve of them. Rather than tell me simply not to continue to be with them he said to me, “you know son, water seeks its own level.” It struck me curious at first. But I learned that when water is added to a multiport system, the water will level out as does the seas of the earth until all of it is at the same height. So it was with my so-called friends and me. I will only grow to the point of our combined limitations.  I thought, perhaps I should find more elevated friends. Thanks Dad.

Today is Father’s Day. I miss my dad. He was a truck driver from Chattanooga, Tennessee, of humble beginnings but of great compassion. He worked with my mom to maintain a home where we took in other children who were left without parents. We called them cousins, but truthfully, they just needed a home and dad “put forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

Most Holy Lord Jesus, who taught us through parables and stories about faith and understanding, teach us still, to learn from holy writings how to best work and best agree. Enable us to find faithful fellowship and thrive in true love. In your Name Lord Jesus we pray: Amen.

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 5: Year 2

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

Numbers 3:1 to 13; Galatians 6:11 to 18; Matthew 17:1 to13:

“While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved;with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’”  (Matthew 17:5)

This is the second time we hear this proclamation from heaven.  In chapter three of Matthew after Jesus was baptized a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved,with whom I am well pleased;” (Matthew 3:17). We also read these words in 2^nd Peter, chapter 1, verse 17 about the mountain top experience.  The big difference here is the addition of the words, “listen to him,” in this Matthew account.  I am currently putting together a book wherein listening is the first of five “L’s” that leads to life enhancement and leadership.  More on that at another time.

Inherent in listening is learning and the expectation of amendment of life. Our duty here on earth, in this lifetime, is to prepare ourselves for our eternal time with God.  As much as the Book of Ecclesiastes talks about “all is vanity under the sun,” the writer sums the whole thing up in the last words from the Book of Ecclesiastes; “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God, and keep his commandments; for that is the whole duty of everyone.” (Ecclesiastes 12:13)

Peter, James and John, on the Mountain, listened to God say who Jesus is. Their listening led them to learning, and loving. They then lived out their new Truth and became leaders in the Jesus movement.

As a spiritual person, I love exploring the spiritual realm. Today we remember Evelyn Underhill.

 “Evelyn Underhill’s most valuable contribution to spiritual literature must surely be her conviction that the mystical life is not only open to a saintly few, but to anyone who cares to nurture it and weave it into everyday experience, and also (at the time, a startling idea) that modern psychological theories and discoveries, far from hindering or negating spirituality, can actually enhance and transform it.” (Great Cloud of Witnesses for June 15)

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Palestine, and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:                                                                                  

Most holy Lord Jesus, teach us daily to humble ourselves in order that God the Creator and Sustainer of all life may dwell within each of us in order that we all might listen to your instruction that comes to our hearts and minds, as well as through the words of your gifted mystics like Evelyn Underhill and others, from whom we learn about your divine plan for our salvation. Amen.

Daily Office Reading for Friday of Proper 5: Year 2

Morning, Psalm 69; Evening,  Psalm 73;

Ecclesiastes 11:9 to 12:14; Galatians 5:25 to 6:10; Matthew 16:21 to 28:

“Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:26)

Sadly, we have become tribal team members. Maybe our school athletic programs and teams have programmed us to think in this way for everything else we encounter.  Perhaps we are too team oriented. I can remember once when I went to a high school basketball game wherein my school played an undefeated school that in fact had not lost a basketball game in years.  We beat them that night and one of their cheerleaders fainted. She just couldn’t believe it. There were also physical altercations from students from both schools after the game. So sad.

I think we need to check ourselves.  Sports are fine, but still, just sports.  Is it possible that our lessons about sports team loyalty has taken control of all allegiances, for example, political party, church denomination, the so-called “race” we happened to be born into, and so forth? We are always competing against one another.  It’s silly and shameful.

There is the one team of God; and then there is the sorted little made-up human teams. In our Gospel lesson for today our Lord Jesus makes a clear distinction between the human team and the team of God.  When Peter began to rebuke Jesus about the God ordained path he was about to take, “He [Jesus] turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’ (Matthew 16: 23)

It is often uncomfortable, but we too must look beyond human, made-up distinctions, to that divine allegiance we have with God.  We must realize that being created in God’s Image we are all on the same team.  Anything less than allegiance to God is just sports and should “get behind us Satan.”

“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

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, Israel, Palestine and our schools including St. Augustine in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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

Let us pray:

Most Holy Lord God, who created all human life and instructed us to live together in loving harmony, come to us again and let your Holy Spirit assist us in showing us what really matters in your kingdom. Help us dear God to put aside all thoughts of selfish pride so that we will not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another. Help us to truly love and help each other always. Amen.