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Thursday, 7 December 2017
Psalm 126:1 (0) A song of ascents:
(1) When Adonai restored Tziyon’s fortunes,
we thought we were dreaming.
2 Our mouths were full of laughter,
and our tongues shouted for joy.
Among the nations it was said,
“Adonai has done great things for them!”
3 Adonai did do great things with us;
and we are overjoyed.
4 Return our people from exile, Adonai,
as streams fill vadis in the Negev.
5 Those who sow in tears
will reap with cries of joy.
6 He who goes out weeping
as he carries his sack of seed
will come home with cries of joy
as he carries his sheaves of grain.
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Israel’s long history included incredibly low times of misery at the hands of tyrants (notably slavery in Egypt—cf. Exodus 1:8-11, and exile in Babylon—cf. 2 Kings 24:13-14, 25:11). But it also included God’s action to deliver them in the Exodus and in the return from exile. Psalm 126 poetically recalled the joy they felt when God lifted them up from their lowly status, and prayed trustingly that God would again allow them to live in the joy of divine deliverance.
• The first half of this psalm was a journey in memory. The Israelites never forgot the Exodus from Egypt—their “defining story”—nor their jubilation when God set them free from exile. “Yes, the Lord has done great things for us,” the psalmist affirmed. God lifting them up from captivity was a permanent part of their history. What do you remember as a time when God did “great things” in your life? How do you keep that memory alive?
• The second half of the psalm became a prayer that the same God who did great things in the past would do them again. It used harvest language, picturing the ideal conditions for agricultural people. Are there parts of your life in which you want to ask God (perhaps a
more urban version of) “Let those who plant with tears reap the harvest with joyful shouts”?
Prayer: Lord God, thank you for the times—like Jesus’ first coming—when you did great things for your people. Help me to live in the confidence that, sooner or later, you always act to lift us up and bring us joy. Amen.
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Joshua CloughJoshua serves as one of the Congregational Care Pastors at Church of the Resurrection. He is a competitive runner, and because he grew up in Seattle, drinks a lot of coffee.
Finding joy is a daily practice. Finding joy in our day to day lives is a kind of pilgrimage we begin each morning. We do not need to travel to distant locations to encounter joy, new insights, or find spiritual awakening. Rather, a pilgrimage is a practice or journey--sometimes painful or difficult, often wonderful and full of mystery--toward the heart of God.
Recently, members of the church excitedly introduced themselves to me after worship to tell me that we had passed each other on one of the local walking trails. I was running in the opposite direction as we waved to each other. I remember running past my pastor one morning in college and thought how odd it was to see my pastor running. Now, I am that pastor! Running is something that gives me a lot of joy. How can this be, you might ask? Isn’t running painful? Well, yes, it can be. However, at the end of an early morning run I find a sense of accomplishment, life-giving joy, and the belief that anything is possible. A recent article in Runner’s Worldsuggests that running can improve mental health, help manage depression and anxiety, and even change the chemical reactions in our brains. It also has great physical benefits.[1]
As much as I love running, it is also a daily pilgrimage and spiritual discipline that leads me into the heart of God. It takes time. Some days my legs are sore. Some days are too hot while others are too cold. And, the first step is usually the most difficult.
Living with joy is also a daily pilgrimage. It is not always easy. Finding joy in the face of adversity or remaining hopeful in despair is a challenge, but it is possible.
The Israelites understood the significance of pilgrimage. Fleeing from slavery in Egypt, Moses led his people through the wilderness in search of the Promised Land. Generations later, after the destruction of Israel, then Judah, the Israelites became exiles in Babylon. There was little joy to be found in leaving their homes and land. Roughly 50 years later, the Persian King Cyrus allowed the exiled Israelites to return home. They traveled the 800 miles and in the subsequent years, about three or four waves of exiles made this pilgrimage home. They would find joy at long last! However, the temple in Jerusalem needed to be rebuilt, the city lay in ruins, the walls of the city needed to be restored. I imagine the Israelites losing hope and struggling to find joy against the obstacles before them.
The 126th Psalm is important because it captures how, through pilgrimage, the Israelites return to the heart of God to find joy. The Psalmist wrote first in the past tense, “When the Lord changed Zion’s circumstances for the better, it was like we had been dreaming. Our mouths were suddenly filled with laughter; our tongues were filled with joyful shouts.” The writer recalled how God intervened to help them. They were exiled, but God had not forgotten them. Then, facing new obstacles upon the return to Jerusalem, the Psalmist changes the tense of the request by saying, “Lord, change our circumstances for the better!” The pilgrimage was not over--it was just beginning. It was a daily practice as they rebuilt and learned to worship God again in their homeland.
What is significant is the belief that joy and hope are possible even if the present circumstances are not ideal or preferred. The Psalmist points to the hope and promise of restoration. In the season of Advent, this Psalm reminds us that God’s people find joy in remembering how God intervened in our life and world while looking toward a future hope in the promise of renewal and restoration.
The question, then, is: what daily practice or pilgrimage leads you to the heart of God where joy is found?
[1] https://www.runnersworld.com/rw-selects/for-depression-and-anxiety-running-is-a-unique-therapy?utm_content=2017-11-14&utm_campaign=Rundown&utm_source=runnersworld.com&utm_medium=newsletter&smartcode=YN_0001320605_0001643752&sha1hashlower=6f904f9cb68061cd95f766d62131d3c57863f27d&md5hash=534aa300589b6bdc2b19a1b2158c90f0
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"The day when 'all the trees of the field will clap their hands'”
Friday, 8 December 2017
Isaiah 55:6 Seek Adonai while he is available,
call on him while he is still nearby.
7 Let the wicked person abandon his way
and the evil person his thoughts;
let him return to Adonai,
and he will have mercy on him;
let him return to our God,
for he will freely forgive.
8 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
and your ways are not my ways,” says Adonai.
9 “As high as the sky is above the earth
are my ways higher than your ways,
and my thoughts than your thoughts.
10 For just as rain and snow fall from the sky
and do not return there, but water the earth,
causing it to bud and produce,
giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater;
11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth —
it will not return to me unfulfilled;
but it will accomplish what I intend,
and cause to succeed what I sent it to do.”
12 Yes, you will go out with joy,
you will be led forth in peace.
As you come, the mountains and hills
will burst out into song,
and all the trees in the countryside
will clap their hands.
13 Cypresses will grow in place of thorns,
myrtles will grow instead of briars.
This will bring fame to Adonai
as an eternal, imperishable sign.
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Two chapters earlier, Isaiah 52:13-53:12 declared that the person God called “my servant” would conquer evil, not by brute force, but by taking all of evil’s worst upon himself, absorbing and destroying its power to lastingly hurt others. Chapter 55 built on that, telling readers that God’s superbly merciful acts are very different from our usual human patterns. As we choose to respond to God’s mercy, we join in a cosmic celebration full of peace, joy and song.
• How does Isaiah’s description of the gap between God’s mercy and our usual human ways of relating speak to your heart? Sometimes when we read Isaiah’s words, or Jesus’ teaching about loving enemies, we might think, “Sounds nice—but it would never work.” Are you convinced that God’s ways are indeed higher than ours? Do you believe God’s way is the only path to ultimate peace and good, or just hopelessly naïve idealism?
• In verses 12 and 13, “while much more than deliverance from physical captivity is being talked about, that imagery would communicate most immediately in the circumstances of the Exile. All nature will rejoice in the redemption of humanity (cf. 42:10; 44:23; 49:13), and in place of sorrow and sighing there will be ‘joy’ and ‘peace’ (cf. 35:10; 51:11) as the captives return to their God.” How did the prophet’s vision of God’s sweeping redemption and restoration of the human family create a solid foundation for living with joy?
Prayer: Lord, did your servants 500 years before Christ read these words and think, “Just how will that work?” I know more about the story of Jesus, but it still contains a lot of wonder and mystery. Thank you for the story and the promise of your saving work for me. Amen.
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Ginger RothhaasGinger is a graduate of Saint Paul School of Theology. She and her husband Rob have a son, a daughter, and a high energy dog. She loves writing, conversations over coffee, and teaching spiritual classes.
Finding joy can feel like chasing a moving target. Just when we get a taste of it, something happens to "puncture our balloon" of joy. And we have to search for it again.
One of my favorite perspectives on joy comes from Saint Augustine’s fifth centurywritings. He taught about “disordered love,” and described sin as having your loves out of order. In Confessions and City of God, he said that joy is found in having our loves in order.
Augustine understood that all bad decisions, hurtful behavior, and forms of evil trace back to loving power, money, recognition, fame, and gratification above a love of God and people. Once I discovered this teaching, I began to really think about the order of my loves. I ask myself if a love for God and other people are always at the top? It is a constant practice for me, but this idea of reconciling my order of loves has been a tool to help me find a deeper sense of joy.
Charles Dickens’ epic story, A Christmas Carol, helps us see how this concept of ordering our loves plays out in our own lives. Ebenezer Scrooge is Dickens’ main character, and he disorders his loves early in life. On his list of loves, money ranked higher than people. As he aged, this love of money above people left him unmarried, estranged from family, overworking his employees, living in isolation, and grumpy towards any holiday joy. Scrooge didn't realize that the disordering of his loves resulted in a life that caused himself and others deep pain.
In Dickens’ story, the only way Scrooge can learn this lesson is through a startling night of visits from spirits. Scrooge was guided through the events of his past, present, and future so that he could see the impact his closed heart was having on those around him. He learned that not only was he hurting himself, but he was deeply wounding others. Within minutes of clarity from this vision, he began his transformation.
He opened his heart to life again. He began to repair the damage he'd done in his relationships. He had ideas for anonymous charitable acts. He changed his business practices. In doing these things, he began to taste joy again. Scrooge now acknowledged his opportunity to choose joy.
And Dickens' lesson for us all--joy is a decision we make every moment. Scrooge woke up the next day and decided to live differently. He decided to re-order his loves. He decided to choose joy. We can too.
And in the words of Tiny Tim, “God bless us, everyone!”
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“When I go…I will return”
Saturday, 9 December 2017
John 14:1 “Don’t let yourselves be disturbed. Trust in God and trust in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many places to live. If there weren’t, I would have told you; because I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 Since I am going and preparing a place for you, I will return to take you with me; so that where I am, you may be also., Acts 1:10 As they were staring into the sky after him, suddenly they saw two men dressed in white standing next to them. 11 The men said, “You Galileans! Why are you standing, staring into space? This Yeshua, who has been taken away from you into heaven, will come back to you in just the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
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In John 13:33, Jesus told the disciples, “I’m with you for a little while longer.” Peter almost immediately asked, “Lord, where are you going?” To what was probably a circle of worried faces, Jesus said, “Don’t be troubled…I will return.” Jesus’ talk of going away puzzled his disciples. But he promised that he would return, and that when he did his followers could always be with him. He gave them a vivid picture of God’s house as a spacious place with plenty of room for everyone.
• At times we tend to ‘sell’ people on heaven by listing benefits—golden streets, no death, mansions. (Actually, “my Father's house has room to spare” conveys the same message that “many mansions” did in the 1611 English of the King James Version.) What one specific feature of the future life did Jesus mention in verse 3? How appealing do you find the promise of being with Jesus? Have you faced and dealt with your fear of death and what comes next? Jesus came to “set free those who were held in slavery their entire lives
by their fear of death” (Hebrews 2:15). In what ways can your model of finding greater freedom from that pervasive human fear help others you care about overcome their fears?
Prayer: Lord Jesus, thank you for your message that “the best is yet to come.” Help me to live in trust, hope and joy as I follow you all the way to your Father’s spacious house. Amen.
Family Activity: Mary and Joseph were full of joy at the birth of Jesus. Then the angel joyfully told the shepherds that Jesus had been born and the shepherds joyfully told others! How can you joyfully tell others about the birthday of Jesus? First, create a list of people with whom you want to share the good news of Jesus. Consider neighbors, community workers, store clerks, family and friends. Next, discuss fun and creative ways you could share the exciting news of Jesus’ birth and His love. You might bake treats, design cards, create a simple craft or write a simple note. Deliver your items to people. Let each person know you are praying for him or her during this Christmas season and throughout the year. Share the joy of Jesus with everyone!
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Brent MessickBrent Messick is Resurrection’s Managing Executive Director of Operations.
“Don’t be troubled. Trust in God. Trust also in me.”
I like to watch movies. When I read this Scripture passage, it made me think of a movie called “The Book of Eli.”
The movie setting is in a post-apocalyptic world. The star of the movie is Denzel Washington. Eli (Denzel) is on a journey where he is walking across a desolate United States to deliver the world’s only remaining Bible to a destination on the west coast. He faces all kinds of obstacles, evil, and physical danger. (Warning: there is some graphic violence in the movie.)
The movie is entertaining, but the underlying theme is more about faith and trust. Eli is a man of strong faith and trusts that God will protect him on his journey. His faith is put to the test, and when questioned, he says, “I walk by faith, not by sight.”
In the end, Eli completes his mission, and before he dies, he says this prayer: “Dear Lord, thank you for giving me the strength and the conviction to complete the task you entrusted to me. Thank you for guiding me straight and true through the many obstacles in my path. And for keeping me resolute when all around seemed lost… Thank you for finally allowing me to rest… I go now to my rest at peace.”
I was struck by Eli’s complete trust in God. I was also struck by his spirit of gratitude. And, finally, how he finds comfort in his death. These attributes tie in so well with today’s Scripture passage.
It made me think about my own trust in God and my spirit of gratitude.
We have all been through or are going through some rough patches in our lives. Like Eli, I thank God for helping me to get through my rough patches. I realize now that I could not have done it without His strength and love. I thank God for the many blessings in my life today. I fully realize and appreciate that my blessings come from Him, not from me. And, finally, I pray every day for God to help me live my life as He created me to be.
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Prayer Requests – cor.org/prayer
Prayers for Peace & Comfort for:
•Family and friends of Mark Griffith on his death, 11/24
•Dick Radford and family on the death of his wife Dorothy Radford, 11/21
•Tim Ehinger and family on the death of his aunt Helen Lucille Harding, 11/19
•Susan Peters and family on the death of her grandmother Maxine L. Towne, 11/17
•Glenda Bishop and family on the death of her husband Eddie E. Bishop, Sr., 11/2
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- Giving thanks to God eternally
- Thanks for God’s forgiveness, healing, rescue and faithful love
- Giving thanks every day
- Giving thanks when we worship
- Giving thanks for God’s bountiful creation
- Or download this week's printable GPS.
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The United Methodist Church of the Resurrection
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