onewhoponders

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 17: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 31; Evening,  Psalm 35;
1^st  Kings 11:26 to 43; James 4:13 to 5:6; Mark 15:22 to 32:

“You do not even know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.  Instead you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that:” (James 4:14 and 15).

These are very interesting words from James.  We are not promised tomorrow. We must live the best life we can today.  And even today if the Lord wishes.

Our 1^st Kings reading shows once again that jealousy regarding God’s choice causes us to want to destroy one another.  It happened with Cain and Abel, it happened with Saul and David, and in our 1st King’s reading today with Solomon and Jeroboam.  If God is acting in our midst, why should we be angry with God’s choice and wish harm to the person?  God always chooses the best for the community.  If anything, we are all going to benefit from the fruit of God’s choice. Believing in God requires us to accept God’s works among us and then be comfortable with, and thankful for, what God is doing.

James is right, we do not know what tomorrow will bring. We should plan for the worst and pray for the best. But above all, we must learn to be contemplative enough to discern the presence of God at work in our lives and in our communities. Out of Covid chaos, fires and floods, God will save us as God sees fit.  There is no time for jealousy of those who seem to be favored. For we are all a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes, at least in earthly form.  While we are in our earthly form, we ought to say, “If the Lord wishes, we will live and do this or that.”

Friday evening is the perfect time to start to contemplate the presence of God in our lives. It is the eve of the time God has gifted us with in order that we might rest, reflect and ponder. We Christians are not excused from observing the Sabbath rest as our Lord Jesus also kept the Sabbath. Let us make it a time of ridding ourselves of all potential jealousy and prejudice. The Sabbath is a cleansing time for our souls.

Today our Church remembers The Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Nativity of Mary, or the Birth of the Virgin Mary, and celebrates the birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine and Russia, and our schools.

 “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 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

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 17: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 37:1 to 18; Evening, Psalm 37:19 to 42;
1 Kings 11:1 to 13; James 3:13 to 4:12; Mark 15:12 to 21:

“Pilate asked them, ‘Why, what evil has he done?’ But they shouted all the more, ‘Crucify him!’ So Pilate, wishing to satisfy the crowd, released Barabbas for them; and after flogging Jesus, he handed him over to be crucified:” (Mark 15: 14 and 15).

There is so much senseless evil here. The clergy of the temple want to crucify one of their own, a fellow Israelite. Pilate, the Roman authority, goes along with the local majority rather than stick to his conviction that Jesus has done nothing warranting the death penalty. And even though Jesus is going to be crucified, he is made to undergo flogging first, why?.  So much evil, is there a lesson for us?

First of all, none of us should seek to take a life, and especially those of us whose vocation is to live and teach the godly life.  And second, if you are in a place of authority, you need to not yield to mob rule just to satisfy the crowd.  You need to stick to following Micah’s instructions, “To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God. (Micah 6:8) The Hebrew and Christian Testament really does contain all things necessary for salvation but it should be approached with prayer, caution and inclusive minded believers. 

While Pilate never had the injunction to love neighbor, the temple authorities did.  They were under the Commandment to love neighbor as self, as are we also. Being tolerant and merciful is a trait of love.  We are not to judge others but rather, see in them the love of God, regardless of how they act. So I go back to how I started this reflection and make a correction; all evil is senseless. Our senses were given to us to connect us, not divide us.

We were brought into being by Love, to love. The next person that you meet, try to stretch out with your heart and sense them. Do not use words, just spiritually feel them. It is amazing what God has empowered us to do.  Harming another, outside of self defense or the protection of the weak, should never find a place in your heart. Our calling is justice, mercy and humility.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools.

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

Daily Office Readings for Wednesday of Proper 17: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 38; Evening, Psalm 119:25 to 48;
1^st Kings 9:24 to10:13; James 3:1 to 12;  Mark 15:1 to11:

“How great a forest is set ablaze by a small fire!  And the tongue is a fire.” (James 3:5 and6)

I live in the country in North Carolina. Occasionally a neighbor will burn their rubbish rather than take it to the dump.  My prayer in such situations is that they are watching it closely.  As James says, a small fire out of control can burn down a neighborhood. This is what they are experiencing in many places around the world: and that is, both real out of control fires as well as out of control words produced by out of control tongues.

The point that James is making is about our tongues and how left unguarded they can cause more harm than we can repair.  This is especially true today where lives are ruined because someone “posted” something said by a person years ago on a social media platform.  I have witnessed sports journalist fired because of some statement they said which was often taken out of context, or was their own entitled opinion.  The opinion a person had years ago may not be the opinion they have today.  Hopefully, we all evolve over time. What our tongues have expressed in the past may not be what we feel today. We should be asking people where they are now, not where they were then.

To the point James is making, we can’t be too careful about what we say, privately or publicly.  The line between private and public today may be blurred by re-sent or forwarded emails, and by what was thought to be fun videos.  These are what small fires look like today that can also make people lose all they have, except for the mercy of God.

James also talks about mistakes in today’s reading.  I teach. And I’m here to tell you, we teachers also make mistakes.  The real test of the tongue is in what was intended.  If love and respect and decency was the intent, then it will come to light.  This is why the tongue must be well guarded. The rule I try to keep is, if I don’t say it or do it from love, then try not to say it or do it at all. It may be better to take it to the dump rather than burn it.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools

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

Daily Office Readings for Tuesday of Proper 17: Year 1

Morning, Psalms 26 and 28; Evening, Psalms 36 and 39;
1^st Kings 8:65 to 9:9; James 2:14 to 26; Mark 14:66 to 72:

“So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” (James 2:17)

The biggest and most important word in this verse has only two letters, (i and f).  I was once told that “if” is half of l-if-e.  I know that in my life I have looked back and said, “If I had only known;” or, “If I had only done this or that, life would have been better for me.”  Faith is a word that means “belief in.”  If we believe something then, for the most part, we act on that belief or faith.  If we believe that the earth is flat, and we are sailors, then we restrict how far out we sail. If we believe in, and have faith in God, who wants the best for us, then we act on that faith also. Our actions, that is, our works are guided by our faith, that is, what we believe in.

In the English translations of the Gospel according to John the word faith is not used.  Faith is a noun. The writer of the Gospel according to John uses a verb (believe) because the writer wants “action.” Faith is “belief in action,” that is, works: hopefully, good works.

We help the homeless by assisting them, and, the organizations that help them with our money. This is one example of works following faith. So, what is faith without works?   It is merely “wishing” everything goes well.  Wishing is for fairytales. It is as James says when we see someone in distress and say to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill’, and yet you do not supply their needs, what is the good of that? There is no good in that. It’s fairytales.  Faith is for the believer.

James uses the story of Abraham and his faith, in the almost sacrifice of his son Isaac. The point being made is that Abraham followed his faith with dedicated works, until he was stopped by God. “You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness’, and he was called the friend of God:” (James 2: 22 and 23).

The faith of the human being is also the soul of the human being. Therefore, it is also the spirit of the human being. It is what makes us different among all God’s creation.  This is why James, the brother of our Lord Jesus says, “For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.” (James 2:26)

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools.

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

Daily Office Readings for Monday of Proper 17: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 25; Evening, Psalms 9 and 15;
2^nd  Chronicles 6:32 to 7:7; James 2:1 to 13; Mark 14:53 to 65:

“Peter had followed him at a distance, right into the courtyard of the high priest; and he was sitting with the guards, warming himself at the fire.  Now the chief priests and the whole council were looking for testimony against Jesus to put him to death; but they found none.” (Mark 14: 55 and 56)

I often ask myself, “Who witnessed the arrest of Jesus and told it, or wrote it for us to have today?  In this case, my question is answered; Peter is sitting within earshot of what is taking place. Too often we focus only on the three denials of Peter. We should pay attention also to the logistics of the Gospel and Peter’s closeness of Jesus’ interrogation. 

They held court on our Lord Jesus trying to convict him to death even knowing that to murder another human being was against God’s Law. Let this be a lesson to us to keep God’s Law at the forefront of our conduct. In their shallow testimony , “Some stood up and gave false testimony against him, saying, ‘We heard him say, “I will destroy this temple that is made with hands, and in three days I will build another, not made with hands;”  (Mark 14: 57 and 58).

St Paul will later write in his Second Letter to the Church in Corinth,  “For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens:” (2^nd Corinthians 5:1).  Too often we can’t grasp the deeper meaning of the Gospel of God in Christ Jesus because we are so full of self-serving tendencies.

The not so secret mantra of God is to love each other.  This love that we are supposed to have, is to extend to those who are like us, as well as those who are different. We can disagree without disengaging. It’s not easy at first, but it is absolutely possible, and pleasing to God. We are certainly not called to devise ways to put a person to death because of disagreement. Have we evolved spiritually in the last two thousand years?  I pray that we have, and continue to become more and more like Jesus our Lord.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools.

 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

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 17: Year A

Romans 12:9 to 21   and Matthew 16:21 to 28

“But he 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)

Who of us can really set aside our own yearnings, even to do the will of God, that is, if we even knew the will of God?  Divine things are about the welfare and benefit of both creature and human community.  Our Lord Jesus came among us to be the moral light.  To model for us the way we can live harmoniously with one another. We first must rid ourselves of all sordid self-centeredness and look for the good of all of us. 

Looking out for the good of all of us is the Divine thing to do.  Anything short of community enhancement should be considered a stumbling block to us. At the end of the day, we need to each ask ourselves “how have I made my house, my neighborhood, my parish or the world a better place today?”

I sometimes stop and marvel at an ant colony.  The individual ant is never concerned about the individual self – only the life and wellbeing of the colony.  As fellow citizens and neighbors of the same planet, we too should be concerned about the livelihood of the whole human population and creation itself.

Our Lord Jesus has informed his followers that he is aware of what is going to happen to him but he is going to go through with it anyway. Peter wants to get Jesus to change his mind about following what God wants of him and pick a more personally glorified role of leadership. Jesus says no in a way that cast Peter in the role of the devil because it suggests that self glorification is better than saving our brothers and sisters from destruction. God in Christ Jesus wants as many as possible to have eternal life.

Who of us can really set aside our own yearnings, even to do the will of God, that is, if we even knew the will of God?

The will of God is to have believers to come and join God in eternal life.  The Peters of today would have us believe that our individual and temporal lives are more important than our communal invitation  to eternal life.  But as Jesus explains, this is not the divine plan. God’s plan is “his will done on earth as it is in heaven.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools

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

New Testament Eucharistic Readings for Sunday of Proper 17: Year A

Romans 12:9 to 21   and Matthew 16:21 to 28

“But he 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)

Who of us can really set aside our own yearnings, even to do the will of God, that is, if we even knew the will of God?  Divine things are about the welfare and benefit of both creature and human community.  Our Lord Jesus came among us to be the moral light.  To model for us the way we can live harmoniously with one another. We first must rid ourselves of all sordid self-centeredness and look for the good of all of us. 

Looking out for the good of all of us is the Divine thing to do.  Anything short of community enhancement should be considered a stumbling block to us. At the end of the day, we need to each ask ourselves “how have I made my house, my neighborhood, my parish or the world a better place today?”

I sometimes stop and marvel at an ant colony.  The individual ant is never concerned about the individual self – only the life and wellbeing of the colony.  As fellow citizens and neighbors of the same planet, we too should be concerned about the livelihood of the whole human population and creation itself.

Our Lord Jesus has informed his followers that he is aware of what is going to happen to him but he is going to go through with it anyway. Peter wants to get Jesus to change his mind about following what God wants of him and pick a more personally glorified role of leadership. Jesus says no in a way that cast Peter in the role of the devil because it suggests that self glorification is better than saving our brothers and sisters from destruction. God in Christ Jesus wants as many as possible to have eternal life.

Who of us can really set aside our own yearnings, even to do the will of God, that is, if we even knew the will of God?

The will of God is to have believers to come and join God in eternal life.  The Peters of today would have us believe that our individual and temporal lives are more important than our communal invitation  to eternal life.  But as Jesus explains, this is not the divine plan. God’s plan is “his will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools

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

Daily Office Readings for Saturday of Proper 16: Year 1

 Morning, Psalms 20 and 21:1 to 7; Evening, Psalms 110:1-5 and 116 and 117;
1^st Kings 7:51 to 8:21; Acts 28:17 to 31; Mark 14:43 to 52;

“He lived there for two whole years at his own expense and welcomed all who came to him, proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.” (Acts 28:30 and 31)

Acts is a summary of Paul’s life and ministry as recorded by Luke the physician.  He has finally been delivered to Rome, from whence he will never leave, at least as his mortal self.

And while Paul was promised by God that no harm will come to him, (Acts 18: 9 and 10), he was beheaded with a sword.  Christianity is not for the faint of heart.  How is it that we follow our Lord Jesus seeing that most of his first apostles and disciples were martyred?

We have a faith that informs us that this life is not the end-all of life.  We await the greater glory of eternal life with our Savior. This Christian faith informs us, leads us, enlightens us, and keeps us going no matter what. Paul proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about our Lord Jesus who himself also was martyred. 

At the heart of Christianity, the emphasis is on the Resurrection, the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus. And through his Resurrection, we too come to glory. Such is the love that God in Christ Jesus has for us, all of us.  Jesus says to Martha and to us “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25 and 26). Yes Lord I believe, and Thank You Lord Jesus.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools and the families of Maui, Hawaii.

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

Daily Office Readings for Friday of Proper 16: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 16 and 17; Evening, Psalm 22;
1^st Kings 5:1 to 6:1 and 6:7; Acts 28:1 to 16; Mark 14:27 to 42:

“My heart, therefore, is glad, and my spirit rejoices; my body also shall rest in hope” (Psalm 16:9)

As we enter the eve of our God-given Sabbath Day, I look for words in our readings that suggest rest.  Our Sabbath (Saturday), is our gift from God. 

In our Gospel reading from Mark our Lord Jesus reprimands Peter, James and John for sleeping and taking their rest while he, (Jesus), was praying. However, I believe prayer can, and should be done while at rest, especially on the Sabbath. Of course, the day that Jesus was arrested was by all accounts, a Thursday.

Maybe the Sabbath should not be for public worship. A worship service requires work.  I believe the original worship services conducted on the Sabbath were a way for the clergy leadership to ensure people were not at their normal avocations or occupations.  God did not give us the Sabbath as a day of worship; but rather, a day of rest.  So, shouldn’t we all hold Saturdays aside as a day to remember the Goodness of God, and be thankful? I realize that not everybody can.  First responders, medical staff, the military, police, detention staff and others must have a way of rotating a Sabbath observance.  But that does not mean we should just ignore it altogether. We need to take time weekly to just ponder about our relationship with God and one another.

My heart, therefore, is glad, and my spirit rejoices; my body also shall rest in hope, and more especially for us on the Sabbath Day.

“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 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

Daily Office Readings for Thursday of Proper 16: Year 1

Morning, Psalm 18:1-20; Evening, Psalm 18:21-50;        
1^st  Kings 3:16 to 28; Acts 27:27 to 44; Mark 14:12 to 26:

“Take, bless, divide and share”

We have a Eucharistic meal taking place in two of our readings for today.  I will start with our Gospel according to Mark. And while this Gospel account took place first chronologically, we read our Acts account first as we pray through the Daily Office.  But the point to the lesson remains; Both Paul and our Lord Jesus (albeit at different times), took bread, blessed the bread, divided it up and handed it out to those needing the healing food of Communion.

Our Lord Jesus instituted the gathering at a meal as Christian sign of love and hospitality.  I was gathered among friends last night where I was asked to say the blessing. I was asked again at the close of our gathering. I am always honored to do it.  Our Lord Jesus was intentional about using food as a way to remember his presence among us for all time.

In Acts, There were about two hundred fifty persons on the ship sailing for Italy. This ship could be considered to be a Church of two hundred fifty souls.  Before the ship ran aground and begin to crumble, Paul took bread, gave thanks to God for it, and shared the meal.  This is what we do in our Church every Sunday in remembrance of our Lord Jesus.

 The ship was destroyed.  Some could go on by their own ability to swim. Some had to stay clutched to pieces of the church-ship wreckage  in order to come to safety. The ship-church itself was taken, blessed, split up and then parts given as needed for those who needed it. Let this be a lesson to all of us.  Some of us have been fully well-informed by the Church and can go on in life being led by the Holy Spirit. Many of us must hold on to parts of the Church in order to arrive safely before our Lord Jesus.  Paul was not a sailor but he knew and loved and trusted in the Lord. As it turns out, Paul lost no one to death even though it was the plan of the soldiers to kill the prisoners rather than to let them escape. Where is the love in that response?

When you are among friends, perhaps some who have not as yet been recognized as such, and refreshments, or a meal is served, be the good spiritual host and give thanks to God for it first.  This does not mean to be offensive to those who do not yet understand the meaning of Thanksgiving to God.  It simply means remembering and being thankful to God for faith, food and fellowship.

Please keep up your thoughts and prayers and hopes for Ukraine, Russia, and our schools and the families of Maui, Hawaii.

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