P – Paying attention. Cultivate a nonjudgmental, nonreactive awareness of whatever agitation is present within you.
U – Understanding empathically. Listen for and be moved by the suffering hidden within the cry of this agitation – the fear, longing, or aching wound in need of tending.
L – Loving with connection. As you are moved by the suffering within you, extend tender care toward the need or wound that presents itself.
S –Sensing the sacredness. Recognize and savor the expanse of compassion that holds and heals every suffering within you.
E – Embodying new life. Notice the gifts and qualities of restored humanity that are being birthed within you.
In taking our PULSE, we not only relax the reactivities, repulsions, fears, and drives that distort our natural humanity but also tend to the wounds and needs hidden within them. In so doing, we are restored to ourselves – selves that are naturally compassionate.[Frank Rogers Jr., Practicing Compassion]
From pages 29-30 of Practicing Compassion by Frank Rogers Jr. Copyright © 2015 by Frank Rogers Jr. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Fresh Air Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.
Today’s Question:
If you took your PUSLSE now, how would you describe it?
Today’s Scripture:
When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.[Luke 4:28-30, NRSV]
This Week: pray for world leaders.
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Did You Know?
In need of prayer? The Upper Room Living Prayer Center is a 7-day-a-week intercessory prayer ministry staffed by trained volunteers, call
1-800-251-2468 or visit The Living Prayer Center web site.
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This week we remember: Thomas Aquinas (January 28).
St. Thomas Aquinas was born around AD 1225, and was made to join the Benedictine friars of Monte Casino when he was just five years old. In 1244, Thomas decided that he was more attracted to the life of the Dominican monks, and joined the order, much to the dismay of his family. The Dominicans in Thomas' day were looked down upon as beggars, and his family tried many different times to break Thomas of his attraction to the Dominican lifestyle. But Thomas' resolve was unswerving.
Thomas went next to Cologne to study theology with St. Albert the Great, who first gave him the nickname "dumb ox." This nickname, though it referred more to his great size and silent ways, could not have been further from the truth concerning Thomas' intellect. His widely read unfinished work, the Summa Theologica, spans five volumes, and exhaustively describes his own faith and understanding of Christian doctrine. While on his way to the Second Council of Lyons, in 1274, St. Thomas Aquinas became ill and died at a Cistercian monastery.
If St. Thomas had taken the Spiritual Types Test, he probably would have been a Sage. Thomas is remembered on January 28.
The Upper Room Daily Reflections, daily words of wisdom and faith "Catch Your Breath" for Saturday, 30 January 2016
Saints, Inc.:
St. Thomas Aquinas was born around AD 1225, and was made to join the Benedictine friars of Monte Casino when he was just five years old. In 1244, Thomas decided that he was more attracted to the life of the Dominican monks, and joined the order, much to the dismay of his family. The Dominicans in Thomas' day were looked down upon as beggars, and his family tried many different times to break Thomas of his attraction to the Dominican lifestyle. But Thomas' resolve was unswerving.
Thomas went next to Cologne to study theology with St. Albert the Great, who first gave him the nickname "dumb ox." This nickname, though it referred more to his great size and silent ways, could not have been further from the truth concerning Thomas' intellect. His widely read unfinished work, the Summa Theologica, spans five volumes, and exhaustively describes his own faith and understanding of Christian doctrine. While on his way to the Second Council of Lyons, in 1274, St. Thomas Aquinas became ill and died at a Cistercian monastery.
If St. Thomas had taken the Spiritual Types Test, he probably would have been a Sage. Thomas is remembered on January 28.
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Lectionary Readings
Sunday, 31 January 2016
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Jeremiah 1:4-10
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Luke 4:21-30
Lectionary Readings
Sunday, 31 January 2016
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Jeremiah 1:4-10
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Luke 4:21-30
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Lectionary Texts:
Jeremiah 1:4 Here is the word of Adonai that came to me:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;
before you were born, I separated you for myself.
I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim, I don’t even know how to speak! I’m just a child!” 7 But Adonai said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m just a child.’
“For you will go to whomever I send you,
and you will speak whatever I order you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you, says Adonai,
to rescue you.”
9 Then Adonai put out his hand and touched my mouth, and Adonai said to me,
“There! I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have placed you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.”
Psalm 71:1 In you, Adonai, I have taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
2 In your righteousness, rescue me;
and help me to escape.
Turn your ear toward me,
and deliver me.
3 Be for me a sheltering rock,
where I can always come.
You have determined to save me,
because you are my bedrock and stronghold.
4 My God, help me escape from the power of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and ruthless.
5 For you are my hope, Adonai Elohim,
in whom I have trusted since I was young.
6 From birth I have relied on you;
it was you who took me from my mother’s womb.
1 Corinthians 13:1 I may speak in the tongues of men, even angels;
but if I lack love, I have become merely
blaring brass or a cymbal clanging.
2 I may have the gift of prophecy,
I may fathom all mysteries, know all things,
have all faith — enough to move mountains;
but if I lack love, I am nothing.
3 I may give away everything that I own,
I may even hand over my body to be burned;
but if I lack love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind, not jealous, not boastful,
5 not proud, rude or selfish, not easily angered,
and it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not gloat over other people’s sins
but takes its delight in the truth.
7 Love always bears up, always trusts,
always hopes, always endures.
8 Love never ends; but prophecies will pass,
tongues will cease, knowledge will pass.
9 For our knowledge is partial, and our prophecy partial;
10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass.
11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child,
thought like a child, argued like a child;
now that I have become a man,
I have finished with childish ways.
12 For now we see obscurely in a mirror,
but then it will be face to face.
Now I know partly; then I will know fully,
just as God has fully known me.
13 But for now, three things last —
trust, hope, love;
and the greatest of these is love.
Luke 4:21 He started to speak to them: “Today, as you heard it read, this passage of the Tanakh was fulfilled!” 22 Everyone was speaking well of him and marvelling that such appealing words were coming from his mouth. They were even asking, “Can this be Yosef’s son?”
23 Then Yeshua said to them, “No doubt you will quote to me this proverb — ‘“Doctor, cure yourself!” We’ve heard about all the things that have been going on over in K’far-Nachum; now do them here in your home town!’ 24 Yes!” he said, “I tell you that no prophet is accepted in his home town. 25 It’s true, I’m telling you — when Eliyahu was in Isra’el, and the sky was sealed off for three-and-a-half years, so that all the Land suffered a severe famine, there were many widows; 26 but Eliyahu was sent to none of them, only to a widow in Tzarfat in the land of Tzidon. 27 Also there were many people with tzara‘at in Isra’el during the time of the prophet Elisha; but not one of them was healed, only Na‘aman the Syrian.”
28 On hearing this, everyone in the synagogue was filled with fury. 29 They rose up, drove him out of town and dragged him to the edge of the cliff on which their town was built, intending to throw him off. 30 But he walked right through the middle of the crowd and went away.
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John Wesley's Notes-Commentary for Jeremiah 1:4-10
Verse 4
[4] Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Then — When he was first called to his office.
Verse 5
[4] Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
[5] Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
I sanctified — I ordained thee for this public service. He speaks thus to Jeremiah, not to the other prophets, because he stood in need of greater encouragement than they, both in respect of the tenderness of his years, and the difficulties which he was to encounter with.
The nations — To other nations besides the Jews.
Verse 7
[7] But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
Thou shalt speak — Fear not, I will make thee eloquent and courageous.
Verse 9
[9] Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
Then — God having excited the prophet by command and promise, now in a vision confirms him, either by the hand of an angel, or by himself in some visible shape.
Verse 10
[10] See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
The kingdoms — Having now received his commission, he is directed to whom he is to go; to the greatest, not only single persons, but whole nations, as the Babylonians, Persians, and Egyptians.
To pull down — That is, to prophecy that I will pull down; which I will as certainly effect, as if thou hadst done it thyself: for, according to scripture-usage, the prophets are said to do that which they foretell shall come to pass.
To plant — Metaphors taken from architects and gardeners: either the former words relate to the enemies of God, and the latter to his friends; or rather to both conditionally: if they repent, he will build them up, he will increase their families, and settle them in the land; if they do not, he will root them up, and pull them down.
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Verse 2
[2] And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
And though I have the gift of prophecy — Of foretelling future events.
And understand all the mysteries — Both of God's word and providence.
Verse 21[2] And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
And all knowledge — Of things divine and human, that ever any mortal attained to. And though I have the highest degree of miracle working faith, and have not this love, I am nothing.
Verse 3
[3] And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
And though I — Deliberately, piece by piece. Give all my goods to feed the poor, yea, though I deliver up my body to be burned - Rather than I would renounce my religion.
And have not the love — Hereafter described.
It profiteth me nothing — Without this, whatever I speak, whatever I have, whatever I know, whatever I do, whatever I suffer, is nothing.
Verse 4
[4] Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
The love of God, and of our neighbour for God's sake, is patient toward, all men. It, suffers all the weakness, ignorance, errors, and infirmities of the children of God; all the malice and wickedness of the children of the world: and all this, not only for a time, but to the end. And in every step toward overcoming evil with good, it is kind, soft, mild, benign. It inspires the sufferer at once with the most amiable sweetness, and the most fervent and tender affection.
Love acteth not rashly — Does not hastily condemn any one; never passes a severe sentence on a slight or sudden view of things. Nor does it ever act or behave in a violent, headstrong, or precipitate manner.
Is not puffed up — Yea, humbles the soul to the dust.
Verse 5
[5] Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
It doth not behave indecently — Is not rude, or willingly offensive, to any. It renders to all their due - Suitable to time, person, and all other circumstances.
Seeketh not her own — Ease, pleasure, honour, or temporal advantage. Nay, sometimes the lover of mankind seeketh not, in some sense, even his own spiritual advantage; does not think of himself, so long as a zeal for the glory of God and the souls of men swallows him up. But, though he is all on fire for these ends, yet he is not provoked to sharpness or unkindness toward any one. Outward provocations indeed will frequently occur; but he triumphs over all. Love thinketh no evil - Indeed it cannot but see and hear evil things, and know that they are so; but it does not willingly think evil of any; neither infer evil where it does not appear. It tears up, root and branch, all imagining of what we have not proof. It casts out all jealousies, all evil surmises, all readiness to believe evil.
Verse 6
[6] Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
Rejoiceth not in iniquity — Yea, weeps at either the sin or folly of even an enemy; takes no pleasure in hearing or in repeating it, but desires it may be forgotten for ever.
But rejoiceth in the truth — Bringing forth its proper fruit, holiness of heart and life. Good in general is its glory and joy, wherever diffused in all the world.
Verse 7
[7] Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love covereth all things - Whatever evil the lover of mankind sees, hears, or knows of any one, he mentions it to none; it never goes out of his lips, unless where absolute duty constrains to speak.
Believeth all things — Puts the most favourable construction on everything, and is ever ready to believe whatever may tend to the advantage of any one character. And when it can no longer believe well, it hopes whatever may excuse or extenuate the fault which cannot be denied. Where it cannot even excuse, it hopes God will at length give repentance unto life.
Meantime it endureth all things — Whatever the injustice, the malice, the cruelty of men can inflict. He can not only do, but likewise suffer, all things, through Christ who strengtheneth him.
Verse 8
[8] Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
Love never faileth — It accompanies to, and adorns us in, eternity; it prepares us for, and constitutes, heaven.
But whether there be prophecies, they shall fail — When all things are fulfilled, and God is all in all.
Whether there be tongues, they shall cease — One language shall prevail among all the inhabitants of heaven, and the low and imperfect languages of earth be forgotten. The knowledge likewise which we now so eagerly pursue, shall then vanish away - As starlight is lost in that of the midday sun, so our present knowledge in the light of eternity.
Verse 9
[9] For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part — The wisest of men have here but short, narrow, imperfect conceptions, even of the things round about them, and much more of the deep things of God. And even the prophecies which men deliver from God are far from taking in the whole of future events, or of that wisdom and knowledge of God which is treasured up in the scripture revelation.
Verse 10
[10] But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
But when that which is perfect is come — At death and in the last day.
That which is in part shall vanish away — Both that poor, low, imperfect, glimmering light, which is all the knowledge we now can attain to; and these slow and unsatisfactory methods of attaining, as well as of imparting it to others.
Verse 11
[11] When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
In our present state we are mere infants in point of knowledge, compared to what we shall be hereafter.
I put away childish things — Of my own accord, willingly, without trouble.
Verse 12
[12] For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
Now we see — Even the things that surround us. But by means of a glass - Or mirror, which reflects only their imperfect forms, in a dim, faint, obscure manner; so that our thoughts about them are puzzling and intricate, and everything is a kind of riddle to us.
But then — We shall see, not a faint reflection, but the objects themselves.
Face to face — Distinctly.
Now I know in part — Even when God himself reveals things to me, great part of them is still kept under the veil.
But then I shall know even as also I am known — In a clear, full, comprehensive manner; in some measure like God, who penetrates the centre of every object, and sees at one glance through my soul and all things.
Verse 13
[13] And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Faith, hope, love — Are the sum of perfection on earth; love alone is the sum of perfection in heaven.
Luke 4:21-30
[21] And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
To-day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears — By what you hear me speak.
Verse 22
The Upper Room Ministries
To-day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears — By what you hear me speak.
Verse 22
[22] And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?
The gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth — A person of spiritual discernment may find in all the discourses of our Lord a peculiar sweetness, gravity, and becomingness, such as is not to be found in the same degree, not even in those of the apostles.
Verse 23
[23] And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country.
Ye will surely say — That is, your approbation now outweighs your prejudices. But it will not be so long. You will soon ask, why my love does not begin at home? Why I do not work miracles here, rather than at Capernaum? It is because of your unbelief. Nor is it any new thing for me to be despised in my own country. So were both Elijah and Elisha, and thereby driven to work miracles among heathens, rather than in Israel.
Verse 24
[24] And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.
No prophet is acceptable in his own country — That is, in his own neighbourhood. It generally holds, that a teacher sent from God is not so acceptable to his neighbours as he is to strangers. The meanness of his family, or lowness of his circumstances, bring his office into contempt: nor can they suffer that he, who was before equal with, or below themselves, should now bear a superior character.
Verse 25
[25] But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
When the heaven was shut up three years and six months — Such a proof had they that God had sent him. In 1 Kings 18:1, it is said, The word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year: namely, reckoning not from the beginning of the drought, but from the time when he began to sojourn with the widow of Sarepta. A year of drought had preceded this, while he dwelt at the brook Cherith. So that the whole time of the drought was (as St. James likewise observes) three years and six months. 1 Kings 17:19; 18:44.
Verse 27
[27] And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
2 Kings 5:14.
Verse 28
[28] And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
And all in the synagogue were filled with fury — Perceiving the purport of his discourse, namely, that the blessing which they despised, would be offered to, and accepted by, the Gentiles. So changeable are the hearts of wicked men! So little are their starts of love to be depended on! So unable are they to bear the close application, even of a discourse which they most admire!
Verse 30
[30] But he passing through the midst of them went his way,
Passing through the midst of them — Perhaps invisibly; or perhaps they were overawed; so that though they saw, they could not touch him.
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PO Box 340004
Nashville, Tennessee 37203-0004, United States
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Sermon Story "God's Hesed" by Gary Lee Parker for Sunday, 31 January 2016 with Scripture: Jeremiah 1:4 Here is the word of Adonai that came to me:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;
before you were born, I separated you for myself.
I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim, I don’t even know how to speak! I’m just a child!” 7 But Adonai said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m just a child.’
“For you will go to whomever I send you,
and you will speak whatever I order you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you, says Adonai,
to rescue you.”
9 Then Adonai put out his hand and touched my mouth, and Adonai said to me,
“There! I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have placed you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.”
---------------------
The word Hesed in the title is defined as: [Lovingkindness (02617)(Hesed/Chesed/Heced) is the idea of faithful love in action and often in the OT refers to God's lovingkindness expressed in His covenant relationship with Israel (His "loyal love" to His "Wife" Israel [cp Hos 2:18, 19, 20-see note, Is 54:5, Je 31:32] = His "loyalty to covenant"). God's hesed His denotes persistent and unconditional tenderness, kindness, and mercy, a relationship in which He seeks after man with love and mercy (cp God immediately seeking man Ge 3:9, who was immediately hiding Ge 3:8 trying to cover their shame Ge 3:7 - contrast God's lovingkindness manifest by spilling blood to provide skins to cover their shame! Ge 3:21). Hesed expresses both God’s loyalty to His covenant and His love for His people along with a faithfulness to keep His promises.]
The four passages of Scripture we have this week are all sharing of God's Love to His people while I may concentrate on the Jeremiah passage with God sharing with Jeremiah that He knew him while he was being knitted together in his mother's uterus or womb. God was calling him from this point to be an instrument of God's to His people about God's love for them. We too often look at this passage and others similar to it and say that this is a one time experience for this person that Scripture is talking about, but in reality this occurence is for each person who has been conceived in the womb of a woman. Even the babies that have been miscarried or aborted are known by God and have been given a purpose to build His kingdom while the knowledge of this may not come but later on in a person's life as they become more open to God's Spirit and Love for them as people chosen by God. Have you ever known a woman or even a man long after the occurence to go into a depressive state of mind and dwell on what could have been? Could this be God's Holy Spirit speaking to them that they are truly loved and maybe even forgiven that their child is all right in the presence of Him. We look at the immigrant, refugee, people of different races, people who have different sexual orentation, or people who are differently abled and need to realize that God knitted them in their mother's womb to call them for His purpose to build the KIngdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven. Father Henri J. M. Nouwen learned this when he first began living in a L'Arche community in Toronto, Ontario, Canada called Daybreak. He realized that all he had accomplished meant nothing to the people who were differently abled, but how he reacts and acts towards each of them at the moment. How do you understand this? How will you react and act towards others who are different from you? How will you live out the Unconditional Love that God gives each of us to pass on to all other people? Too often, we have rejected people who are different from us from being a part of our churches, but God is telling us through His Holy Spirit and these people that we are sinning against God with our excludiionary tactics. God says include all with the same Unconditional Love that He gives each of us and more as we grow in our relationship with Him and all other people. How have you been living? We come to receive more of God's Unconditional Love as we take and eat the Body of Jesus and take and drink His Blood through the Holy Sacrament of the Holy Eurcharist. As we come, we sing the Hymn "A Father's Love" by Ken Bible
1. Hear a child demand his freedom,
Grasping for life,
Careless with his greatest treasure:
All his Father's love.
2. Through the years of waste and wandering
So far from home,
Still a waiting heart is watching
With a Father's love.
3. How the Father runs to meet him!
See their embrace!
Sin is turned to joy and promise
By a Father's love.
4. Still a waiting heart is calling
All far from home.
Come and know this sweet forgiveness.
Find your Father's love.
Benediction:
Go out into the world in peace;
Be of good courage;
Hold fast to that which is good;
Render to no one evil for evil;
Strengthen the faint hearted;
Support the weak; help the afflicted;
Honor all God’s children;
Love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen
The word Hesed in the title is defined as: [Lovingkindness (02617)(Hesed/Chesed/Heced) is the idea of faithful love in action and often in the OT refers to God's lovingkindness expressed in His covenant relationship with Israel (His "loyal love" to His "Wife" Israel [cp Hos 2:18, 19, 20-see note, Is 54:5, Je 31:32] = His "loyalty to covenant"). God's hesed His denotes persistent and unconditional tenderness, kindness, and mercy, a relationship in which He seeks after man with love and mercy (cp God immediately seeking man Ge 3:9, who was immediately hiding Ge 3:8 trying to cover their shame Ge 3:7 - contrast God's lovingkindness manifest by spilling blood to provide skins to cover their shame! Ge 3:21). Hesed expresses both God’s loyalty to His covenant and His love for His people along with a faithfulness to keep His promises.]
The four passages of Scripture we have this week are all sharing of God's Love to His people while I may concentrate on the Jeremiah passage with God sharing with Jeremiah that He knew him while he was being knitted together in his mother's uterus or womb. God was calling him from this point to be an instrument of God's to His people about God's love for them. We too often look at this passage and others similar to it and say that this is a one time experience for this person that Scripture is talking about, but in reality this occurence is for each person who has been conceived in the womb of a woman. Even the babies that have been miscarried or aborted are known by God and have been given a purpose to build His kingdom while the knowledge of this may not come but later on in a person's life as they become more open to God's Spirit and Love for them as people chosen by God. Have you ever known a woman or even a man long after the occurence to go into a depressive state of mind and dwell on what could have been? Could this be God's Holy Spirit speaking to them that they are truly loved and maybe even forgiven that their child is all right in the presence of Him. We look at the immigrant, refugee, people of different races, people who have different sexual orentation, or people who are differently abled and need to realize that God knitted them in their mother's womb to call them for His purpose to build the KIngdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven. Father Henri J. M. Nouwen learned this when he first began living in a L'Arche community in Toronto, Ontario, Canada called Daybreak. He realized that all he had accomplished meant nothing to the people who were differently abled, but how he reacts and acts towards each of them at the moment. How do you understand this? How will you react and act towards others who are different from you? How will you live out the Unconditional Love that God gives each of us to pass on to all other people? Too often, we have rejected people who are different from us from being a part of our churches, but God is telling us through His Holy Spirit and these people that we are sinning against God with our excludiionary tactics. God says include all with the same Unconditional Love that He gives each of us and more as we grow in our relationship with Him and all other people. How have you been living? We come to receive more of God's Unconditional Love as we take and eat the Body of Jesus and take and drink His Blood through the Holy Sacrament of the Holy Eurcharist. As we come, we sing the Hymn "A Father's Love" by Ken Bible
1. Hear a child demand his freedom,
Grasping for life,
Careless with his greatest treasure:
All his Father's love.
2. Through the years of waste and wandering
So far from home,
Still a waiting heart is watching
With a Father's love.
3. How the Father runs to meet him!
See their embrace!
Sin is turned to joy and promise
By a Father's love.
4. Still a waiting heart is calling
All far from home.
Come and know this sweet forgiveness.
Find your Father's love.
Benediction:
Go out into the world in peace;
Be of good courage;
Hold fast to that which is good;
Render to no one evil for evil;
Strengthen the faint hearted;
Support the weak; help the afflicted;
Honor all God’s children;
Love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen
---------------------
Gary Lee Parker
4147 Idaho Street, Apt. 1
San Diego, California 92104-1844
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Forcing an open heart toward others while closing our own hearts to ourselves is as internally contradictory as screaming our way into silence, straining our way into relaxation, or battling our way into inner peace. The cry within us will only intensify and demand our attention in other ways, such as compassion fatigue, an intractable resentment, or a chronic knot in our neck.[Frank Rogers Jr., Practicing Compassion]
From page 28 of Practicing Compassion by Frank Rogers Jr. Copyright © 2015 by Frank Rogers Jr. All rights reserved. Used by permission of Fresh Air Books. http://bookstore.upperroom.org/ Learn more about or purchase this book.
Today’s Question:
What do you do to find inner peace?
Today’s Scripture:
And he said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown.”[Luke 4:24, NRSV]
This Week: pray for world leaders.
---------------------
Did You Know?
In need of prayer? The Upper Room Living Prayer Center is a 7-day-a-week intercessory prayer ministry staffed by trained volunteers, call
1-800-251-2468 or visit The Living Prayer Center web site.
---------------------
Saints, Inc.:
This week we remember: Thomas Aquinas (January 28).
St. Thomas Aquinas was born around AD 1225, and was made to join the Benedictine friars of Monte Casino when he was just five years old. In 1244, Thomas decided that he was more attracted to the life of the Dominican monks, and joined the order, much to the dismay of his family. The Dominicans in Thomas' day were looked down upon as beggars, and his family tried many different times to break Thomas of his attraction to the Dominican lifestyle. But Thomas' resolve was unswerving.
Thomas went next to Cologne to study theology with St. Albert the Great, who first gave him the nickname "dumb ox." This nickname, though it referred more to his great size and silent ways, could not have been further from the truth concerning Thomas' intellect. His widely read unfinished work, the Summa Theologica, spans five volumes, and exhaustively describes his own faith and understanding of Christian doctrine. While on his way to the Second Council of Lyons, in 1274, St. Thomas Aquinas became ill and died at a Cistercian monastery.
If St. Thomas had taken the Spiritual Types Test, he probably would have been a Sage. Thomas is remembered on January 28.
Saints, Inc.:
St. Thomas Aquinas was born around AD 1225, and was made to join the Benedictine friars of Monte Casino when he was just five years old. In 1244, Thomas decided that he was more attracted to the life of the Dominican monks, and joined the order, much to the dismay of his family. The Dominicans in Thomas' day were looked down upon as beggars, and his family tried many different times to break Thomas of his attraction to the Dominican lifestyle. But Thomas' resolve was unswerving.
Thomas went next to Cologne to study theology with St. Albert the Great, who first gave him the nickname "dumb ox." This nickname, though it referred more to his great size and silent ways, could not have been further from the truth concerning Thomas' intellect. His widely read unfinished work, the Summa Theologica, spans five volumes, and exhaustively describes his own faith and understanding of Christian doctrine. While on his way to the Second Council of Lyons, in 1274, St. Thomas Aquinas became ill and died at a Cistercian monastery.
If St. Thomas had taken the Spiritual Types Test, he probably would have been a Sage. Thomas is remembered on January 28.
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Lectionary Readings
Sunday, 31 January 2016
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Jeremiah 1:4-10
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Luke 4:21-30
Lectionary Readings
Sunday, 31 January 2016
(Courtesy of Vanderbilt Divinity Library)
Jeremiah 1:4-10
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Luke 4:21-30
---------------------
Lectionary Texts:
Jeremiah 1:4 Here is the word of Adonai that came to me:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;
before you were born, I separated you for myself.
I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim, I don’t even know how to speak! I’m just a child!” 7 But Adonai said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m just a child.’
“For you will go to whomever I send you,
and you will speak whatever I order you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you, says Adonai,
to rescue you.”
9 Then Adonai put out his hand and touched my mouth, and Adonai said to me,
“There! I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have placed you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.”
Psalm 71:1 In you, Adonai, I have taken refuge;
let me never be put to shame.
2 In your righteousness, rescue me;
and help me to escape.
Turn your ear toward me,
and deliver me.
3 Be for me a sheltering rock,
where I can always come.
You have determined to save me,
because you are my bedrock and stronghold.
4 My God, help me escape from the power of the wicked,
from the grasp of the unjust and ruthless.
5 For you are my hope, Adonai Elohim,
in whom I have trusted since I was young.
6 From birth I have relied on you;
it was you who took me from my mother’s womb.
1 Corinthians 13:1 I may speak in the tongues of men, even angels;
but if I lack love, I have become merely
blaring brass or a cymbal clanging.
2 I may have the gift of prophecy,
I may fathom all mysteries, know all things,
have all faith — enough to move mountains;
but if I lack love, I am nothing.
3 I may give away everything that I own,
I may even hand over my body to be burned;
but if I lack love, I gain nothing.
4 Love is patient and kind, not jealous, not boastful,
5 not proud, rude or selfish, not easily angered,
and it keeps no record of wrongs.
6 Love does not gloat over other people’s sins
but takes its delight in the truth.
7 Love always bears up, always trusts,
always hopes, always endures.
8 Love never ends; but prophecies will pass,
tongues will cease, knowledge will pass.
9 For our knowledge is partial, and our prophecy partial;
10 but when the perfect comes, the partial will pass.
11 When I was a child, I spoke like a child,
thought like a child, argued like a child;
now that I have become a man,
I have finished with childish ways.
12 For now we see obscurely in a mirror,
but then it will be face to face.
Now I know partly; then I will know fully,
just as God has fully known me.
13 But for now, three things last —
trust, hope, love;
and the greatest of these is love.
Luke 4:21 He started to speak to them: “Today, as you heard it read, this passage of the Tanakh was fulfilled!” 22 Everyone was speaking well of him and marvelling that such appealing words were coming from his mouth. They were even asking, “Can this be Yosef’s son?”
23 Then Yeshua said to them, “No doubt you will quote to me this proverb — ‘“Doctor, cure yourself!” We’ve heard about all the things that have been going on over in K’far-Nachum; now do them here in your home town!’ 24 Yes!” he said, “I tell you that no prophet is accepted in his home town. 25 It’s true, I’m telling you — when Eliyahu was in Isra’el, and the sky was sealed off for three-and-a-half years, so that all the Land suffered a severe famine, there were many widows; 26 but Eliyahu was sent to none of them, only to a widow in Tzarfat in the land of Tzidon. 27 Also there were many people with tzara‘at in Isra’el during the time of the prophet Elisha; but not one of them was healed, only Na‘aman the Syrian.”
28 On hearing this, everyone in the synagogue was filled with fury. 29 They rose up, drove him out of town and dragged him to the edge of the cliff on which their town was built, intending to throw him off. 30 But he walked right through the middle of the crowd and went away.
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John Wesley's Notes-Commentary for Jeremiah 1:4-10
Verse 4
[4] Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Then — When he was first called to his office.
Verse 5
[4] Then the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
[5] Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.
I sanctified — I ordained thee for this public service. He speaks thus to Jeremiah, not to the other prophets, because he stood in need of greater encouragement than they, both in respect of the tenderness of his years, and the difficulties which he was to encounter with.
The nations — To other nations besides the Jews.
Verse 7
[7] But the LORD said unto me, Say not, I am a child: for thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt speak.
Thou shalt speak — Fear not, I will make thee eloquent and courageous.
Verse 9
[9] Then the LORD put forth his hand, and touched my mouth. And the LORD said unto me, Behold, I have put my words in thy mouth.
Then — God having excited the prophet by command and promise, now in a vision confirms him, either by the hand of an angel, or by himself in some visible shape.
Verse 10
[10] See, I have this day set thee over the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to build, and to plant.
The kingdoms — Having now received his commission, he is directed to whom he is to go; to the greatest, not only single persons, but whole nations, as the Babylonians, Persians, and Egyptians.
To pull down — That is, to prophecy that I will pull down; which I will as certainly effect, as if thou hadst done it thyself: for, according to scripture-usage, the prophets are said to do that which they foretell shall come to pass.
To plant — Metaphors taken from architects and gardeners: either the former words relate to the enemies of God, and the latter to his friends; or rather to both conditionally: if they repent, he will build them up, he will increase their families, and settle them in the land; if they do not, he will root them up, and pull them down.
Psalm 71:1-6
1 Corinthians 13:1-13
Verse 2
[2] And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
And though I have the gift of prophecy — Of foretelling future events.
And understand all the mysteries — Both of God's word and providence.
Verse 21[2] And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries, and all knowledge; and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, and have not charity, I am nothing.
And all knowledge — Of things divine and human, that ever any mortal attained to. And though I have the highest degree of miracle working faith, and have not this love, I am nothing.
Verse 3
[3] And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, and have not charity, it profiteth me nothing.
And though I — Deliberately, piece by piece. Give all my goods to feed the poor, yea, though I deliver up my body to be burned - Rather than I would renounce my religion.
And have not the love — Hereafter described.
It profiteth me nothing — Without this, whatever I speak, whatever I have, whatever I know, whatever I do, whatever I suffer, is nothing.
Verse 4
[4] Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up,
The love of God, and of our neighbour for God's sake, is patient toward, all men. It, suffers all the weakness, ignorance, errors, and infirmities of the children of God; all the malice and wickedness of the children of the world: and all this, not only for a time, but to the end. And in every step toward overcoming evil with good, it is kind, soft, mild, benign. It inspires the sufferer at once with the most amiable sweetness, and the most fervent and tender affection.
Love acteth not rashly — Does not hastily condemn any one; never passes a severe sentence on a slight or sudden view of things. Nor does it ever act or behave in a violent, headstrong, or precipitate manner.
Is not puffed up — Yea, humbles the soul to the dust.
Verse 5
[5] Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil;
It doth not behave indecently — Is not rude, or willingly offensive, to any. It renders to all their due - Suitable to time, person, and all other circumstances.
Seeketh not her own — Ease, pleasure, honour, or temporal advantage. Nay, sometimes the lover of mankind seeketh not, in some sense, even his own spiritual advantage; does not think of himself, so long as a zeal for the glory of God and the souls of men swallows him up. But, though he is all on fire for these ends, yet he is not provoked to sharpness or unkindness toward any one. Outward provocations indeed will frequently occur; but he triumphs over all. Love thinketh no evil - Indeed it cannot but see and hear evil things, and know that they are so; but it does not willingly think evil of any; neither infer evil where it does not appear. It tears up, root and branch, all imagining of what we have not proof. It casts out all jealousies, all evil surmises, all readiness to believe evil.
Verse 6
[6] Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth;
Rejoiceth not in iniquity — Yea, weeps at either the sin or folly of even an enemy; takes no pleasure in hearing or in repeating it, but desires it may be forgotten for ever.
But rejoiceth in the truth — Bringing forth its proper fruit, holiness of heart and life. Good in general is its glory and joy, wherever diffused in all the world.
Verse 7
[7] Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Love covereth all things - Whatever evil the lover of mankind sees, hears, or knows of any one, he mentions it to none; it never goes out of his lips, unless where absolute duty constrains to speak.
Believeth all things — Puts the most favourable construction on everything, and is ever ready to believe whatever may tend to the advantage of any one character. And when it can no longer believe well, it hopes whatever may excuse or extenuate the fault which cannot be denied. Where it cannot even excuse, it hopes God will at length give repentance unto life.
Meantime it endureth all things — Whatever the injustice, the malice, the cruelty of men can inflict. He can not only do, but likewise suffer, all things, through Christ who strengtheneth him.
Verse 8
[8] Charity never faileth: but whether there be prophecies, they shall fail; whether there be tongues, they shall cease; whether there be knowledge, it shall vanish away.
Love never faileth — It accompanies to, and adorns us in, eternity; it prepares us for, and constitutes, heaven.
But whether there be prophecies, they shall fail — When all things are fulfilled, and God is all in all.
Whether there be tongues, they shall cease — One language shall prevail among all the inhabitants of heaven, and the low and imperfect languages of earth be forgotten. The knowledge likewise which we now so eagerly pursue, shall then vanish away - As starlight is lost in that of the midday sun, so our present knowledge in the light of eternity.
Verse 9
[9] For we know in part, and we prophesy in part.
For we know in part, and we prophesy in part — The wisest of men have here but short, narrow, imperfect conceptions, even of the things round about them, and much more of the deep things of God. And even the prophecies which men deliver from God are far from taking in the whole of future events, or of that wisdom and knowledge of God which is treasured up in the scripture revelation.
Verse 10
[10] But when that which is perfect is come, then that which is in part shall be done away.
But when that which is perfect is come — At death and in the last day.
That which is in part shall vanish away — Both that poor, low, imperfect, glimmering light, which is all the knowledge we now can attain to; and these slow and unsatisfactory methods of attaining, as well as of imparting it to others.
Verse 11
[11] When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.
In our present state we are mere infants in point of knowledge, compared to what we shall be hereafter.
I put away childish things — Of my own accord, willingly, without trouble.
Verse 12
[12] For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.
Now we see — Even the things that surround us. But by means of a glass - Or mirror, which reflects only their imperfect forms, in a dim, faint, obscure manner; so that our thoughts about them are puzzling and intricate, and everything is a kind of riddle to us.
But then — We shall see, not a faint reflection, but the objects themselves.
Face to face — Distinctly.
Now I know in part — Even when God himself reveals things to me, great part of them is still kept under the veil.
But then I shall know even as also I am known — In a clear, full, comprehensive manner; in some measure like God, who penetrates the centre of every object, and sees at one glance through my soul and all things.
Verse 13
[13] And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.
Faith, hope, love — Are the sum of perfection on earth; love alone is the sum of perfection in heaven.
Luke 4:21-30
[21] And he began to say unto them, This day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.
To-day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears — By what you hear me speak.
Verse 22
The Upper Room Ministries
To-day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears — By what you hear me speak.
Verse 22
[22] And all bare him witness, and wondered at the gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth. And they said, Is not this Joseph's son?
The gracious words which proceeded out of his mouth — A person of spiritual discernment may find in all the discourses of our Lord a peculiar sweetness, gravity, and becomingness, such as is not to be found in the same degree, not even in those of the apostles.
Verse 23
[23] And he said unto them, Ye will surely say unto me this proverb, Physician, heal thyself: whatsoever we have heard done in Capernaum, do also here in thy country.
Ye will surely say — That is, your approbation now outweighs your prejudices. But it will not be so long. You will soon ask, why my love does not begin at home? Why I do not work miracles here, rather than at Capernaum? It is because of your unbelief. Nor is it any new thing for me to be despised in my own country. So were both Elijah and Elisha, and thereby driven to work miracles among heathens, rather than in Israel.
Verse 24
[24] And he said, Verily I say unto you, No prophet is accepted in his own country.
No prophet is acceptable in his own country — That is, in his own neighbourhood. It generally holds, that a teacher sent from God is not so acceptable to his neighbours as he is to strangers. The meanness of his family, or lowness of his circumstances, bring his office into contempt: nor can they suffer that he, who was before equal with, or below themselves, should now bear a superior character.
Verse 25
[25] But I tell you of a truth, many widows were in Israel in the days of Elias, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land;
When the heaven was shut up three years and six months — Such a proof had they that God had sent him. In 1 Kings 18:1, it is said, The word of the Lord came to Elijah in the third year: namely, reckoning not from the beginning of the drought, but from the time when he began to sojourn with the widow of Sarepta. A year of drought had preceded this, while he dwelt at the brook Cherith. So that the whole time of the drought was (as St. James likewise observes) three years and six months. 1 Kings 17:19; 18:44.
Verse 27
[27] And many lepers were in Israel in the time of Eliseus the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, saving Naaman the Syrian.
2 Kings 5:14.
Verse 28
[28] And all they in the synagogue, when they heard these things, were filled with wrath,
And all in the synagogue were filled with fury — Perceiving the purport of his discourse, namely, that the blessing which they despised, would be offered to, and accepted by, the Gentiles. So changeable are the hearts of wicked men! So little are their starts of love to be depended on! So unable are they to bear the close application, even of a discourse which they most admire!
Verse 30
[30] But he passing through the midst of them went his way,
Passing through the midst of them — Perhaps invisibly; or perhaps they were overawed; so that though they saw, they could not touch him.
---------------------The Upper Room Ministries
PO Box 340004
Nashville, Tennessee 37203-0004, United States
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Sermon Story "God's Hesed" by Gary Lee Parker for Sunday, 31 January 2016 with Scripture: Jeremiah 1:4 Here is the word of Adonai that came to me:
5 “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you;
before you were born, I separated you for myself.
I have appointed you to be a prophet to the nations.”
6 I said, “Oh, Adonai Elohim, I don’t even know how to speak! I’m just a child!” 7 But Adonai said to me, “Don’t say, ‘I’m just a child.’
“For you will go to whomever I send you,
and you will speak whatever I order you.
8 Do not be afraid of them,
for I am with you, says Adonai,
to rescue you.”
9 Then Adonai put out his hand and touched my mouth, and Adonai said to me,
“There! I have put my words in your mouth.
10 Today I have placed you over nations and kingdoms
to uproot and to tear down,
to destroy and to demolish,
to build and to plant.”
---------------------
The word Hesed in the title is defined as: [Lovingkindness (02617)(Hesed/Chesed/Heced) is the idea of faithful love in action and often in the OT refers to God's lovingkindness expressed in His covenant relationship with Israel (His "loyal love" to His "Wife" Israel [cp Hos 2:18, 19, 20-see note, Is 54:5, Je 31:32] = His "loyalty to covenant"). God's hesed His denotes persistent and unconditional tenderness, kindness, and mercy, a relationship in which He seeks after man with love and mercy (cp God immediately seeking man Ge 3:9, who was immediately hiding Ge 3:8 trying to cover their shame Ge 3:7 - contrast God's lovingkindness manifest by spilling blood to provide skins to cover their shame! Ge 3:21). Hesed expresses both God’s loyalty to His covenant and His love for His people along with a faithfulness to keep His promises.]
The four passages of Scripture we have this week are all sharing of God's Love to His people while I may concentrate on the Jeremiah passage with God sharing with Jeremiah that He knew him while he was being knitted together in his mother's uterus or womb. God was calling him from this point to be an instrument of God's to His people about God's love for them. We too often look at this passage and others similar to it and say that this is a one time experience for this person that Scripture is talking about, but in reality this occurence is for each person who has been conceived in the womb of a woman. Even the babies that have been miscarried or aborted are known by God and have been given a purpose to build His kingdom while the knowledge of this may not come but later on in a person's life as they become more open to God's Spirit and Love for them as people chosen by God. Have you ever known a woman or even a man long after the occurence to go into a depressive state of mind and dwell on what could have been? Could this be God's Holy Spirit speaking to them that they are truly loved and maybe even forgiven that their child is all right in the presence of Him. We look at the immigrant, refugee, people of different races, people who have different sexual orentation, or people who are differently abled and need to realize that God knitted them in their mother's womb to call them for His purpose to build the KIngdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven. Father Henri J. M. Nouwen learned this when he first began living in a L'Arche community in Toronto, Ontario, Canada called Daybreak. He realized that all he had accomplished meant nothing to the people who were differently abled, but how he reacts and acts towards each of them at the moment. How do you understand this? How will you react and act towards others who are different from you? How will you live out the Unconditional Love that God gives each of us to pass on to all other people? Too often, we have rejected people who are different from us from being a part of our churches, but God is telling us through His Holy Spirit and these people that we are sinning against God with our excludiionary tactics. God says include all with the same Unconditional Love that He gives each of us and more as we grow in our relationship with Him and all other people. How have you been living? We come to receive more of God's Unconditional Love as we take and eat the Body of Jesus and take and drink His Blood through the Holy Sacrament of the Holy Eurcharist. As we come, we sing the Hymn "A Father's Love" by Ken Bible
1. Hear a child demand his freedom,
Grasping for life,
Careless with his greatest treasure:
All his Father's love.
2. Through the years of waste and wandering
So far from home,
Still a waiting heart is watching
With a Father's love.
3. How the Father runs to meet him!
See their embrace!
Sin is turned to joy and promise
By a Father's love.
4. Still a waiting heart is calling
All far from home.
Come and know this sweet forgiveness.
Find your Father's love.
Benediction:
Go out into the world in peace;
Be of good courage;
Hold fast to that which is good;
Render to no one evil for evil;
Strengthen the faint hearted;
Support the weak; help the afflicted;
Honor all God’s children;
Love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen
The word Hesed in the title is defined as: [Lovingkindness (02617)(Hesed/Chesed/Heced) is the idea of faithful love in action and often in the OT refers to God's lovingkindness expressed in His covenant relationship with Israel (His "loyal love" to His "Wife" Israel [cp Hos 2:18, 19, 20-see note, Is 54:5, Je 31:32] = His "loyalty to covenant"). God's hesed His denotes persistent and unconditional tenderness, kindness, and mercy, a relationship in which He seeks after man with love and mercy (cp God immediately seeking man Ge 3:9, who was immediately hiding Ge 3:8 trying to cover their shame Ge 3:7 - contrast God's lovingkindness manifest by spilling blood to provide skins to cover their shame! Ge 3:21). Hesed expresses both God’s loyalty to His covenant and His love for His people along with a faithfulness to keep His promises.]
The four passages of Scripture we have this week are all sharing of God's Love to His people while I may concentrate on the Jeremiah passage with God sharing with Jeremiah that He knew him while he was being knitted together in his mother's uterus or womb. God was calling him from this point to be an instrument of God's to His people about God's love for them. We too often look at this passage and others similar to it and say that this is a one time experience for this person that Scripture is talking about, but in reality this occurence is for each person who has been conceived in the womb of a woman. Even the babies that have been miscarried or aborted are known by God and have been given a purpose to build His kingdom while the knowledge of this may not come but later on in a person's life as they become more open to God's Spirit and Love for them as people chosen by God. Have you ever known a woman or even a man long after the occurence to go into a depressive state of mind and dwell on what could have been? Could this be God's Holy Spirit speaking to them that they are truly loved and maybe even forgiven that their child is all right in the presence of Him. We look at the immigrant, refugee, people of different races, people who have different sexual orentation, or people who are differently abled and need to realize that God knitted them in their mother's womb to call them for His purpose to build the KIngdom of God on earth as it is in Heaven. Father Henri J. M. Nouwen learned this when he first began living in a L'Arche community in Toronto, Ontario, Canada called Daybreak. He realized that all he had accomplished meant nothing to the people who were differently abled, but how he reacts and acts towards each of them at the moment. How do you understand this? How will you react and act towards others who are different from you? How will you live out the Unconditional Love that God gives each of us to pass on to all other people? Too often, we have rejected people who are different from us from being a part of our churches, but God is telling us through His Holy Spirit and these people that we are sinning against God with our excludiionary tactics. God says include all with the same Unconditional Love that He gives each of us and more as we grow in our relationship with Him and all other people. How have you been living? We come to receive more of God's Unconditional Love as we take and eat the Body of Jesus and take and drink His Blood through the Holy Sacrament of the Holy Eurcharist. As we come, we sing the Hymn "A Father's Love" by Ken Bible
1. Hear a child demand his freedom,
Grasping for life,
Careless with his greatest treasure:
All his Father's love.
2. Through the years of waste and wandering
So far from home,
Still a waiting heart is watching
With a Father's love.
3. How the Father runs to meet him!
See their embrace!
Sin is turned to joy and promise
By a Father's love.
4. Still a waiting heart is calling
All far from home.
Come and know this sweet forgiveness.
Find your Father's love.
Benediction:
Go out into the world in peace;
Be of good courage;
Hold fast to that which is good;
Render to no one evil for evil;
Strengthen the faint hearted;
Support the weak; help the afflicted;
Honor all God’s children;
Love and serve the Lord, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen
---------------------
Gary Lee Parker
4147 Idaho Street, Apt. 1
San Diego, California 92104-1844
---------------------
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