Joyful

“Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth. Worship the LORD with gladness; Come before him with joyful songs.” (Psalm 100 vs. 2) The Psalmist who wrote this knew what Christianity was all about. We must be happy, enjoy our love, and sing it aloud! Can we do that every day? Each day is unique, and some are awful. Our day was bright under the clouds. We had not seen the sun in four days and had drizzle, hoar frost, and ice. Bah, humbug to a joyful noise. However, it was Sunday morning, so we went to an early church service and communed with friends in the chapel with our pastor. It was a joyous time. Then, we had breakfast together and discussed our weekly plan, including a pool party with the youth and several visits with old friends. Gloomy is a mindset. Keeping the Lord in your life can turn a day bright and make it easy to make a joyful noise. Thought for Today: When you are feeling down and out, think about the joy of your faith. Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father, today we pray that we can keep our focus on the joys of our faith and that we may share those joys with those around us. Amen

Style Change

Style Change? “For the waywardness of the simple will kill them, and the complacency of fools will destroy them; but whoever listens to me will live in safety and be at ease, without fear of harm.” (Proverbs 1:32/33) The more we change, the more we seem to stay the same (adapted from Alfonse Karr). When we focus on our spirituality, we can live “…without fear of harm.” Negatives build when we lose focus and create a slippery slide. Putting oneself first part of each day is critical to maintaining sanity and personal growth. It is essential to take time to grow every day to be a good parent, employee, and friend. How do we do all we need to do to meet our obligations? The answer is priorities and including the Lord on the list. When we do not have time for God, it is a sign of over-commitment, reacting to our “to-do” lists rather than planning our day. Pat McNamara, a former Olympian from Minneapolis, once advised me that if I was going to stay in shape, I had to give fitness a priority part of every day. Make it a calendar item and follow Nike’s advice, “Just Do It.” The same applies to faith. Schedule a time to listen to the Lord’s message so we “…will live safely and be at ease, without fear of harm.” Thought for Today: Recognize the internal conflict between our over-committed “to-do” lists and the time required for personal growth. The concept is simple: we all want to be better in spirit, mind, and body but lack time. Let’s try placing the Lord first for a few minutes and feel the difference. Prayer for Today: Father, you are at the top of my list today. I look forward to the piece that you will bring. Amen

A Still Place

It is easy to go through a busy day without acknowledging the presence of God in our lives. Sometimes when we get to the end of a day and look back, the day seems un-Godly. We have not done the best job of caring for ourselves when that happens. That is our fault. Confusion and stress seem to find their way into our lives. We will have busy and stressful days, and bad things will happen to us. It is advisable to put ourselves first for a part of each day, which requires a bit of selfishness. Alone time shared with God will make us better workers, parents, and people. There is nothing selfish about that. Henri Nouwen called it a still place “…This still place is where God can dwell and speak to us. It also is the place from which we can speak in a healing way to all the people we meet in our busy days.” We all need to think about that. Thought for Today: Let us remember to be selfish, take a break, and allow God to support us. Prayer for Today: Let us pray that God will be present in our lives as we pursue the opportunities before us. Amen

Becoming Like Him

Becoming Like Him “I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him.” (Philippians 3 vs. 10 & 11) “Becoming like Him” is a great goal, and it speaks of faith, hope, and charity, three beautiful assets. Fortunately, we all have and experience them, Just not all of the time. Sometimes, we are not faithful and occasionally let our minds drift away. There are times when disappointment or depression leads us to lose sight of the hope we need. And charity often takes a back seat to perceived necessity. Ok, this is not Sunday, and I do not do sermons. None of us are perfect, and we will probably never attain anything like perfection. However, if you are reading this, you are doing the right thing now: meditating, enjoying a quiet moment, hopefully drinking your favorite beverage, and thinking about “What Would Jesus Do Today?” As Christians, our lot in life is striving for perfection, working daily on our spiritual growth, and being comfortable through Jesus. Thought for Today: Let’s look at our calendars for the next 24 hours and ask ourselves: What would Jesus do today? Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, we want to thank you for resurrection today. It is spring, and the message is all around us; holy week speaks about the roots of our faith, and the coming of spring reminds us of the wonder of your powers. We are blessed and give thanks.

Worst Enemy

Worst Enemy “Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” (Psalm 51 vs. 2 & 3) Self-forgiveness is always a challenge. My worst characteristic is holding on to my transgressions and errors, feeling bad about things that happened 50 years ago! I believe most people are that way, but I pray they are not. In twelve-step recovery programs making amends to people you may have harmed is part of the process. Working with people over the years has shown me that at least half of those contacted do not remember the offense! That has always intrigued me. If my first statement is a fact, at least half of our internal remorse is unnecessary. We hang on to things that do not matter; we are our own worst enemy. That is not the case written by the Psalmist above. David talks about his affair with Bathsheba, and his conscience is bothering him deeply. He is praying for cleansing and forgiveness and will receive it. The question is, can he accept it? We are very hard on ourselves in our human world and need to develop more robust spiritual growth to find acceptance. Thought for Today: Today, let’s move on with our activities unencumbered by our internal memories. Let’s leave remorse behind and generate some positive memories! Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father, like David, we have been holding on to past transgressions. Today, we pray that we may let them go and escape so that they do not affect the work we can do for you in the future. We know you will forgive us, and that is not our issue. Amen

Saint Patrick's Day!

00317 St Patrick’s Day “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5 vs. 1) Growing up in Boston, there was always a large St Patrick’s Day parade and celebration. It was great, mythical fun without a grain of truth. There were stories about a saint who drove the snakes out of Ireland, green beer, and buttons that said everyone was Irish today. Wikipedia does not mention green beer or parades but describes a great man who converted a country. St Patrick was an Irish saint who lived from 387 to 461. He is credited with bringing Christianity to Ireland. He allowed the Irish to become free of their demons (maybe snakes?) and experience the grace of Christ. We need to honor him for that today. Thought for Today: Today, let us honor a person who spread our faith and the grace of Jesus to the heathen population. Ok, let’s do it by drinking a toast with green beer. Prayer for Today: Dear Lord and Father, we thank Saint Patrick and the many saints of the first millennium. They brought the grace of Christ to the world and made our lives special. We pray that, in some way, we carry on their work. Amen

Hope Through Prayer

 

Hope Through Prayer 

“Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.

Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, and faithful in prayer.”

(Romans 12 vs. 11 & 12) 

            Hold on to your faith; keep holding on. When the going gets tough, choices are hard, and stress builds, pray about it; turn it over to God. Paul’s letters repeat that repeatedly, and we often do not hear it. Our faith is not always strong, and we can be confused.           

In his message above, he talks about a great way to get through a day, week, or month. He is preaching a way of life through faith to confidence and peace.           

Memorize this one, try it, and you will like it. 

Thought for Today: Let’s attack today with “fervor,” being “joyful,” and by all means prayerfully. 

Prayer for Today: Dear Lord, we thank you for the day you made for us. We thank you for the opportunity to do your will and contribute to each other’s peace.

Amen