- Genesis 12: 1-4a
- Psalms 33: 4-5, 18-19, 20, 22
- 2 Timothy 1: 8b-10
- Matthew 17: 1-9
- Leaving it all
- Abram likely had a pretty good life back in Ur of the Chaldees. He likely had the warm embrace of family, familiar places, a community that supported him. His wife Sarah was from there. Journeys can take many forms, the difference between "here" and "there" can be vast in some ways, barely noticeable in others.
- What is a journey that you have been on, one which changed you profoundly?
- How did you get started on that journey?
- How much did you know about where you were going?
- Are you still glad that you went?
- What made you start?
- Earn my trust
- Trust is precious. Without it, working with someone else becomes nearly impossible. Trust grows slowly, sometimes over years. Yet if that trust is violated it is gone in a moment. Sometimes that trust can never be recovered.
- Do you trust God?
- What has He done to earn that trust?
- If you could dictate terms with God, what would you like to have Him do to prove to you that He can be trusted?
- Has God ever violated your trust?
- Have you forgiven Him?
- Our share of hardship
- Do you think that hardship can be rewarding?
- If you are totally "in the right place at the right time" with God, is it easy? Does our following God in such circumstances "just flow", or is that too much to ask?
- How do you tell whether hardship in life isn't just because you "took a wrong turn" somewhere in your following God?
- How do you tell that you're where you're supposed to be?
- Rise and do not be afraid
- Human touch has been corrupted by violence so much of late. We were meant to be healing for each other, a means of connection, our very bodies a living invitation into a larger community. Instead, so many use their flesh to threaten and coerce.
- Think of a time when human touch meant a great deal to you. It might have been a hug that you received during a tough time, the gentle embrace of a loved one, a blessing given you by a friend.
- Would that have been as meaningful without the actual contact?
- When was the last time that you healed anyone with your touch?
- Why do you think that the Gospels record so many instances of Jesus touching others?
- How can we be more like that?
- Preparation for Reconciliation
- What is God calling me to journey toward this Lent?
- Where do I need to talk about God about my lack of trust in Him?
- Is God calling me to a new right place and time?
- Where is God calling me to find courage to touch another?
One Last Star Rise
My father used to tell me that the stars are always there.
We just cannot see them during the day because their light
Is drowned out by the light of the Sun, so much nearer than they.
I watch the sun setting one last time over the familiar hills
Of my homeland, the burial place of my ancestors.
Turning the nearby lake into liquid gold with the last rays of day.
Then, one by one, some more boldly than the others,
The stars begin to show, as if summoned by the sun's quiet exit,
They take their places on the stage of the night, to say good bye.
Tomorrow I, my family, flocks, and herds will leave this place,
This gentle vale that has sheltered me all my life.
To make our way to a new home, in a distant land that I have never seen.
My wife has said her good byes already, for we start at dawn.
She looks to me with anguish and determination in her eyes -
Knowing that we will never return. Determined to find what I'm looking for.
All that I really want is the peace of place -
Of being in the right place, doing what's needed, at the right time
Hitting just the right note at the right time in the orchestra of life.
Being totally at home, at peace, ineffably holy before God
Able to live totally His, all out, no holds barred.
I just never thought it would be so fearful, hurt so much.
The stars tell me that even if I travel so far away
That they will no longer rise above the curve of the horizon
That they are there for me, just as present as ever.
So I memorize their shapes, the pictures in the sky that they paint.
Knowing that my old friends will be ever faithful to me.
Even if I cannot see them.
The tell me that God is always faithful, always there.
Even when the immanent, the day to day blot out his face from view.
He is there, He is here, supporting me, just as surely as this staff in my hand.
All that I have to do is lift up my eyes to see Him,
Stretch out my hand to grasp His,
And let my trust run riot, my faith burn furious, and my feet -
Let my feet carry me over the next horizon, beyond imagination
Beyond all sight,
Into what only He can see.
Shalom!
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