Reading: Psalm 105: 1-11 and 45b Verse 4: “Look to the Lord and his strength; seek his face always”. The psalmist celebrates God’s presence among his people. God entered into covenant relationship with Israel early in the stages of humanity and has kept the covenant with Israel through a succession of leaders. Abraham and Jacob are mentioned in today’s Psalm. The psalmist encourages us to celebrate through song all the “wonders he has done”. To remember and celebrate God’s lo

Reading: Matthew 13: 1-9 and 18-23 Verses 3 and 4: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed…” Today’s parable is one of my favorites. The parable of the sower is one of my favorites because of the underlying message and directive. On a surface, practical level, it is the story of a farmer who probably wasn’t very successful – at least be farming standards. No farmer worth his weight in seeds would plant seeds in shallow soil or amongst rocks, nevermin

Reading: Matthew 11: 25-30 Verse 29: “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart”. In the second section of this week’s passage from Matthew 11, Jesus begins by reminding us that faith comes to those who are pure in heart and who have a childlike heart. Faith is, after all, a thing of the heart, not of the head. The wise of this world have no need for faith in Jesus – at least in their minds. Only those whom God chooses to reveal the Son to w

Reading: Matthew 11: 16-19 Verse 18: “John came neither eating or drinking… The Son of Man came eating and drinking”. Today’s passage from Matthew is part of Jesus’ response to John the Baptist asking if Jesus really is the one to come, “or should we expect someone else”? John is in prison for speaking the truth against the political leader. From prison he sees Jesus’ ministry as much different than his own. John had gone into the wilderness, away from the trappings of the wo

Reading: Genesis 22: 1-14 Verse 5: “We will worship and then we will come back to you”. In yesterday’s reading, we focused on Abraham’s trust and obedience. There is also a second person who demonstrates a great deal of trust and obedience. Isaac accompanies his father Abraham and plays his role as son, obedient to the father. In other ways we see Isaac as an example of the kind of faith and trust that Jesus modeled on his way to death. Only then, the son was not spared. Thro

Reading: Genesis 22: 1-14 Verse 5: “We will worship and then we will come back to you”. In yesterday’s reading, we focused on Abraham’s trust and obedience. There is also a second person who demonstrates a great deal of trust and obedience. Isaac accompanies his father Abraham and plays his role as son, obedient to the father. In other ways we see Isaac as an example of the kind of faith and trust that Jesus modeled on his way to death. Only then, the son was not spared. Thro

Reading: Genesis 22: 1-14 Verse 8: “Abraham answered, ‘God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering'”. Our passage from Genesis 22 is one of those stories of faith that we read and wonder if we could do what that Biblical hero did. For me, this passage is right up there with David facing Goliath, Daniel facing the lions’ den, Esther facing the king, and Peter taking that step out onto the water. When our faith feels strong, these are actions we too could take for

Reading: Psalm 86: 1-10 and 16-17 Verse 5: “You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in love to all who call on you”. In our Psalm for this week, David cries out to God and he praises God for all God has done. The emotions and feelings in the Psalm cover a wide spectrum of our faith and of our lives. In the opening lines, for example, David asks for protection and mercy and to experience joy. In the next stanza we read, “You are forgiving and good, O Lord, abounding in l

Reading: Romans 5: 1-5 Verse 5: “Hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit”. Chapter 5 begins by reminding us of some truths of our faith: peace through justification, access to Jesus Christ through grace, and rejoicing in the glory of God. Walking in faith certainly fills this life with peace, grace, and joy. A life of faith, however, does not shield us from the hard or difficult side of life. Because we are humans, m

Readings: Genesis 18: 9-15 and Genesis 21: 1-7 Verse 12: “So Sarah laughed to herself as she thought, ‘After I am worn out and my master is old, will I now have this pleasure'”? As the news of an impending birth falls upon Sarah’s ears, a chuckle forms in her heart. She has lived a long life, one full of scorn and shame surrounding her barrenness. Giving a family children was one of the few ways that women were valued by society. For most of her 89 years this barren womb has

Reading: 2nd Corinthians 13: 11-13 Verse 11b: “The God of love and peace will be with you”. As we return to Paul’s closing words in his second letter to the Corinthians, we focus in on God’s love and peace. Paul promises the church in Corinth that the “God of love and peace will be with you”. This promise remains true for us today. Christianity does not have the corner on love and peace. People without faith have love in their lives. They fall in love and they feel loved. Peo

Reading: Matthew 28: 16-20 Verse 18: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me”. Jesus begins his final words reminding the disciples that he has authority over all things – both in heaven and on earth. He has demonstrated this authority. In walking on the water and with the calming of the storm he demonstrated authority over nature. By raising Lazarus and others and by walking out of the tomb Jesus demonstrated authority over life and death. Through many hea

Reading: 1st Corinthians 12: 3b-13 Verse 12: “The body is a unit, though it is made up of many parts… they form one body”. Paul is writing today about the balance of unity and diversity. Whether in church or politics, whether on a team or in a family, this balance is essential if that organization or group is going to be its best. An organization or group can function in total unity but it is less than it would be with some diversity. Yet if one swings to the other extreme an

Reading: Acts 2: 1-21 Verse 4: “All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them”. As we continue to look at Acts 2 we focus in today on communication. A small group of Jesus followers is gathered together and the Holy Spirit bursts in and settles on each one. At that moment, “all of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them”. The languages that they spoke mat

Reading: Acts 2: 1-11 Verse 11: “We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues”. Today and for the next two days we will focus on Pentecost – the day largely accepted as the birthday of the church. A small group of Jesus’ followers were gathered together for worship. A loud and powerful wind announced the arrival of the Holy Spirit. Represented by what appeared to be “tongues of fire” that lit on each one, the followers were filled by the Holy Spirit. Meanwhile

Reading: 1 Peter 4:12-14 and 5:6-11 Verse 10: “The God of grace… after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm, and steadfast”. Peter is writing to encourage the followers of Jesus Christ who are in trials and sufferings. As foreign as this sounds to us, suffering for their faith was a regular event. For much of the first 300 years of the church, it was dangerous to be a Christian. The Jews and the Romans were both openly hostile t

Reading: John 17: 1-11 Verse 11: “Holy Father, protect them by the power of your name… so that they may be one as we are one”. Sometimes people think a trial or time of hardship will draw a group closer together. Someone may cite a sacrifice made by someone to save a dear friend or fellow soldiers. Another may tell of how this church surrounded a family that experienced that traumatic event. While all of these things do occur, they are predicated on one fact: there was a bon

Reading: 1 Peter 3: 13-22 Verse 21: “This water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also… the pledge of a good conscience toward God”. Peter touches a little bit on the idea of being saved through the water in today’s passage. In verse twenty he recalls Noah and family and how they were saved through the water. They were saved but all others perished as God, in a way, started over. In the next verse Peter speaks of baptism, using the story of Noah as a metaphor for baptism.

Reading: Psalm 66: 8-20 Verse 16: “Come and listen, all you who fear God; let me tell you what he has done for me”. The first half of our Psalm text dealt with the times when hardship or trial came and with how God was with the people of Israel. Each of these times of suffering or refining are part of the story of God’s people, just as are the stories of how God acted on our behalf. Each of our churches and each of us as followers of Jesus have these same experiences. When wa

Reading: 1st Peter 2: 2-3 Verse 2: “Like newborn babies, crave pure spiritual milk, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation”. Today’s short passage is a powerful metaphor that is packed with meaning. On the surface level our faith must be fed if we are to grow in our faith. We must nourish our faith with practices such as worship, prayer, meditation, and study. Investing in our relationship with God leads us to “grow up into our salvation”. There are two roles in toda