Category: Meditations

Meditation 251

John 11: 1-45

The gospel of John is the one in which we find the “I am” statements of Jesus.

I am the bread of life.

I am the light of the world.

I am the door of the sheep.

I am the resurrection and the life.

I am the good shepherd.

I am the way, the truth, and the life.

I am the true vine

These statements are unique to John, and they would have had significance for the Jewish hearers of his day. “I am” is God’s name as it was revealed to Moses, and it was a phrase that was understood to identify the holy one. The “I am” statements of Jesus were a definite introduction to others of who he was. When the writer of John’s gospel, used these “I am” statements in the gospel of John, he was bearing witness to who Jesus is. Jesus is God.

When Martha comes to greet Jesus after her brother Lazarus had died she and Jesus have a talk about the resurrection, and Martha says that she believes that her brother will rise again in the resurrection on the last day. She can believe that in the future when an apocalyptic event happens at the end of time that her brother will be raised again. In response to this rather broad statement of what will happen sometime down the road, Jesus says “I am the resurrection and the life.” Right here in front of Martha was the resurrection and the life. Martha tells Jesus that she believes that he is the Messiah, the Son of God. She then goes to get her sister Mary. They all go to the tomb, and here Jesus prays and calls Lazarus out of the tomb. Still wearing the grave clothes Lazarus walks out to them.

We may wonder why Jesus called Lazarus back from death but not others. In verse 4 Jesus said that the illness that Lazarus had would not lead to death, but rather was for God’s glory. This act of Jesus showed that the glory of God is not overcome by death, but rather that God is stronger than death. And so we have hope and so we may believe. There are things that can happen in our lives that have us feel lifeless, but then we can hear the voice of Jesus saying “I am the resurrection and the life.” Each day we live with Jesus who embodies this truth that “Goodness is stronger than evil, Love is stronger than hate, Light is stronger than darkness, Truth is stronger than lies.” (A Wee Worship Book. Iona Community)

Meditation 250

John 11: 1-45

This story of the raising of Lazarus from death has a long introduction. We are given some information about Lazarus’ family, we are told that they sent word to Jesus of Lazarus’ illness, we hear of the leisurely way that Jesus takes to get to Bethany, and of the interaction Jesus has with the sisters of Lazarus, Mary and Martha. The scene is well set before the miracle happens.

As I was thinking about this story and wondering what aspect to share today, I began to think about Mary and Martha. They were friends of Jesus and they asked for help when their brother was ill. They had lived in a time when the certainty of recovery from illness was slim. There were fewer treatment options than we have, and no understanding of germs and the spread of disease. Lazarus was ill and his sisters sent word to Jesus. They knew that Jesus was a loved friend, they knew that Jesus had healed others, and they probably hoped that Jesus would rush to Bethany and heal their brother. In spite of the hopes that Mary and Martha had, Jesus had a different plan, and he waited two days longer before he started to go to Bethany.

If I had been in the place of these sisters, I know I would have wondered why Jesus was taking his time. I would have prayed and questioned, and asked why Jesus could be there for strangers, but not for a friend. When Jesus arrived in Bethany, Martha said “Lord if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” Martha then goes into the house to fetch Mary, who we are told got up quickly and went to Jesus. Mary said the same thing to Jesus that Martha did, and Jesus then asks to be taken to where Lazarus had been laid.  The sisters were full of grief and probably full of questions and Jesus meets them where they are.

The day that Lazarus died was probably one of the worst days in the lives of Mary and Martha. In their worry they had turned to Jesus for help, and the help they had in mind did not arrive. In their grief they met Jesus and told him that if he had been there their brother would not have died. We don’t know the tone of voice they used when they said this. They may have been angry, they may have been sobbing, they may have been so overwhelmed that their voices were toneless and their eyes dull. We do not know exactly how the sisters were feeling, but we do know that Jesus met them where they were, and he wept with Mary.

We, like Mary and Martha, can bring our lives to Jesus. Whatever it is we are feeling, we can bring it to Jesus with confidence that Jesus will meet us as he did Mary and Martha. Our worries and sorrows can be shared with Jesus as well as our joys and hopes. As the hymn writer said, we can take it to the Lord in prayer.

Meditation 249

Romans 8: 6-11

This week’s lessons have to do with new life in the Spirit. This passage in Romans tells us that “if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.” (verse 10). We have life in the Spirit because of righteousness. The word that is translated as righteousness here is dikaiosune, which means justification.

For most people in the Greek speaking world of the apostle Paul’s day this word means moral uprightness or justice as it is pratised by an individual, but Paul used this word as describing the duty that God required of people and human behaviour in harmony with God’s will. (“Dikaiosune in the Usage of Paul.” Leland Jameson). In Paul’s understanding of righteousness, it is the condition of being in a right relationship with the Lord.

Throughout the writings in the gospels and epistles we are told of the life in the Spirit. The life that we have in Jesus. The life that is for those whose mind is set on the Spirit. To have the mind set on the Spirit is to have life and peace. It is a way of looking at the world that has us give thanks for all that God has done and will do, rather than to be worried about our own gain.

The following prayer poem that I shared about this time last year describes an aspect of what it means to live in harmony with God’s will.

The Path

God bless the path on which you go

God bless the earth beneath your feet

God bless your destination.

God be a smooth way before you

A guiding star above you

A keen eye behind you

This day, this night, and forever.

God be with you whatever you pass

Jesus be with you whatever you climb

Spirit be with you wherever you stay.

God be with you at each stop and each sea

At each lying down and each rising up

In the trough of the waves, on the crest of

the billows.

Each step of the journey you take.

When we have the righteousness that comes by the Spirit we are invited to life from God’s point of view. To see God as the smooth way before us, to know that we are in God’s company each day, to rest in the truth that we are not left to our own devices, this righteousness is a way of being before God that can give us peace and wholeness.

Meditation 248

Ezekiel 37: 1-14

When I turn to this passage, the first thing that comes to my mind is the Spiritual “Dem Dry Bones” that tells of the dry bones coming together. The song is lively and sticks in the memory, but it is only the beginning. It speaks of all the bones being connected, but it leaves you with the image of a reconnected skeleton.

In the lesson in Ezekiel the Lord shows Ezekiel a valley of dry bones, then the Lord tells Ezekiel to prophesy to the bones. The bones come together, but they also have flesh come upon them, and then they have breath come into them, and finally they have the Spirit of the Lord God put within them. The bones were the “whole house of Israel” (verse 11). The people of Israel had given up hope, they are in exile in Babylon, and when they were feeling dry and completely cut off, the word of the Lord came to them. They were given the promise of the Spirit of the Lord within them, so that they would live. They would “know that …the Lord [has] spoken and will act” (verse 14)

This is how God gives life. God gives life abundantly. The valley of dry bones was not simply made into a valley of skeletons, but into people who had the spirt of God within them. When God saw that the people were distressed, and hopeless to the point of feeling lifeless, God sent a prophet with a message of hope. The message was not something the people had planned to hear. If they had been asked about their future they would have said that they were cut off from God because they were in a foreign land. They were far from the temple of the Lord; they were no longer in the Promised Land, and they had been conquered by a nation that did not worship the Lord God. The people of Israel were as dry as a valley of bones, but God spoke into this environment through the prophet Ezekiel who gave the people the word of the Lord.

We too may have times and seasons in our lives when we feel like a valley of dry bones. When we feel hopeless and so consumed with worry that it is as if we are dry bones with no life. The presence of God is always there, and even if we are past being able to ask for help, it may be that God will send a message through the words or actions of another, or in the beauty of creation. Some of us may need more than one reminder that when God puts the Holy Spirit upon us that we will live. Our lives of faith show us that God does give us the number of reminders that we need.

It seems that those who have been to the valley of dry bones are among those whose faith shines. We all have the frustrations of living in a fallen world, a world where mistakes happen, and when we turn to God for strength in the times of hurt, of worry and of distress we will find the hope and life needed to go from hopelessness to life.

Meditation 247

Psalm 130

It has been about a year since I started writing these daily meditations. A friend had suggested that it would be a good thing to do during the pandemic, and it seemed to me to be a good way to keep in touch with people in the pastoral charge where I serve. The audience has expanded beyond the people in the Charlotte County Pastoral Charge, which has been a reminder of how widely spread the Church is. Here we are, a year after the declaration of a pandemic, with restrictions still in place for us, and with the hope for vaccines to be widely administered close at hand. It has been an interesting year.

The psalmist is writing of a time when he called to the Lord out of the depths. Many did just that in the last year. This year was a year that brought depths of worry, illness and in some cases, shortage of money. Maybe one of the great obstacles to us in the pandemic was the loss of independence. Most of us are used to deciding where we will go, who we will have over to our homes, and whether or not to wear a mask. Even when we accept that the limitations are in place for the common good, it has been a challenge to live differently. Songs have even been written about the need to “stay the blazes home!” and so we have been finding new ways to keep in touch as we listen to the news and pray that the disease will slow in its spread. We have prayed for those infected to get well, we have prayed for the creation of a vaccine, and we have prayed for strength to make it through. Out of the depths we have cried to the Lord.

The psalmist speaks of waiting for the Lord, more than those who watch for the morning. In the next verse we read that with the Lord there is steadfast love, so the psalmist’s time of waiting has been worth it. Some of us who wait for the Lord do so with grace and quiet, praying, meditating, even singing songs of praise. Others of us may cry and implore and walk the floor, but still we do so in the presence of God with whom there is steadfast love. God is like a parent who looks upon us with love, some of us may need a caring presence to help us sleep through the night, helping us through the long night to the morning. Others do not have such a peaceful night, there may be a fever or bad dreams, still the good parent calms the child and brings that child to the morning. God who has steadfast love gives hope.

The psalmist ends by reminding us that with the Lord there is great power to redeem. Over and over in the history of Israel God redeems the people. The steadfast love of the Lord causes God to seek out the people that God loves, to forgive them and give them a new day to walk in the path of God. It is to this trustworthy God of mercy that we turn now. We can give thanks for the progress that has been made this year, we can ask for the grace to encourage us, and we can look for ways to share this loving God with others.

 

Meditation 246

John 9:1-41

In verse 5 Jesus says “I am the light of the world.” Earlier this week we read in Ephesians 5:8 that “in the Lord [we] are light.” When we follow Jesus we become more like him, so when we are light in the darkness we are sharing Jesus with our world. Later in John’s gospel Jesus says that he is the vine and we are the branches, we are joined to Jesus just like branches are grafted into a vine.

In this story of the man who is healed of his blindness we see that Jesus acted in the man’s best interests, that he sought the man out when he was driven from the synagogue, and he spoke against the wrong things that were being said about the law of God. If we take Jesus as our example, we too will find opportunities to help others, to seek out the ones who have been pushed aside and to speak up against false teaching.

It is easy to find people who need help. We can be involved with people who are close at hand, or we can donate time and money to help those who are further afield. It is simply a matter of choosing how to best use our time and talent to help in Jesus’ name. It may be a bit more of a challenge to seek out those who are pushed aside. They may no trust us, or we may feel insecure in going beyond the boundaries of our community. Again, if we look for ways to help, they will be given to us, whether we befriend new comers to Canada, or volunteer with parolees, or befriend the one who is the playground pariah. When we are in the Lord, we will share the light of the world.

Standing up to false teaching can be something that most do not want to take on publicly.  It is not always necessary to be like Jesus and debate with recognized leaders in a public forum. We can stand for what we know to be truth in our friendship circles, or in communicating with politicians, or in supporting ethical businesses, or in how we conduct ourselves in a community of faith. Sometimes the spirit of God is inviting us to look at the things we believe and maybe come to some new conclusions. In the story of the man who was healed of blindness, the Pharisees in the story held to a very strict observance of the Sabbath. This is how they had been raised and it was what they felt to be correct religious practice. Jesus was showing that a person could still observe the Sabbath and be helpful. Being faithful to God did not mean overlooking the need of others. Jesus knew that he was obeying God and he showed gospel love to a helpless man. Similarly, we need to re-examine our faith practice from time to time, to be sure we are following God. Over the centuries there have been changes in the way congregations do things, from using instruments other than voice in worship, to ordaining women to being more open about who we invite to share communion with us.

Jesus is the light of the world, he is the one who shows us the way to God, so that we can show the way to others.

Meditation 245

John 9: 1-41

The story of Jesus healing the man born blind from birth takes a whole chapter in John’s gospel. It is a detailed story that tells of a miracle and a discussion about keeping the law of God. The way the man and his disability are introduced is attention getting. Jesus and his disciples were walking along, and they saw a man born blind. The disciples ask Jesus who sinned that this man was born blind, him or his parents. Jesus answers that no one did, he says “he was born blind that God’s works might be reveled in him.” What if we took that attitude to what happens in our lives, that happenings are an opportunity to show God’s works?

I do not mean to trivialize tragedy or sorrow by making the suggestion that these happenings might be ways to reveal God, but often when something goes wrong, we spend time trying to figure out “why is this happening?” The disciples figured that either the man or his parents must have done something wrong, to have sinned, for him to be blind. That was not the case. We live in an imperfect world and bad things happen. Bad things happen to both bad people and good people. We do not cause everything that happens to us. We do have choice about how we respond to the troubles that life brings to us, and in this way we can show God’s works.

In the book “The Hiding Place”, Corrie Ten Boom writes of her family’s experience of smuggling Jewish people out of Holland in World War II. Corrie, her sister Betsy and their father have a secret room, the hiding place, built in their home to hide people who are being moved to safety. They know that they are defying the law of the land to do this, but they are convinced that they are following God’s law at the same time. Their deep faith compels them to help as many innocents as possible to escape. When they are captured and sent to one of the camps, Betsy’s faith is one of the ways God’s works are shown. In spite of being a frail spinster who has really done no wrong, she is treated as harshly as the most obstreperous inmate, and yet she is always loving. She is gracious to the guards, and she is compassionate toward the other prisoners. In her witness to God there is comfort for others.

Along the same line, I also find that often when I spend time with those who are bereaved, that I find a witness to God. People who are bereaved are sad and they need to talk about the one who has died and they talk about their loss as they weep. This is not all. They also know that God will be their comfort. They have certain scriptures that they want read at the funeral, they ask for prayer, they are gracious to those who express sympathy through visits, gifts of food, or the sending of cards. There are so many that I have met who are able to show the glory of God as they mourn.

I think there is a kind of deep peace that comes to us when we turn to God to help us show God’s works in times of trouble, rather than rail against circumstances. This is not something done lightly or with no questions asked by the person who turns to God. This choice allows us to let God’s strength be our strength. It reminds us that God is the shepherd who will care for us well.

Meditation 244

Ephesians 5: 8-14

Now in the Lord you are light. Doesn’t that just take your breath away? It’s a pretty amazing thing to be told that you are light. Light is hopeful and inspiring. It helps us to see where we are going and it can give courage and motivation. Now that spring is almost here we are beginning to see more light at the beginning and the end of the day, and it lifts the heart. In the letter to the Ephesians Paul is telling the believers that they are light, they are no longer darkness. Verse 8 is a call to action as the believers are being encouraged to live as children of light. In our common vernacular we might say they “walk the talk.” Those who are followers of Jesus are given a new way of looking at the world.

The writer of Ephesians goes on to list some of the things that the children of the light should do, namely to find out what is pleasing to the Lord, and expose the works of darkness.

The things that are pleasing to the Lord are many. Jesus taught us to love one another as he loves us, and we know that when we love someone we act in that one’s best interest. Being made new by Jesus and becoming children of light we are able to show gospel love to the world. Ephesians also says to expose the works of darkness, which can sound like we are supposed to be on the look out for the mistakes of others. There is another way to expose works of darkness.

This week in the program “The Good Doctor” the main character, Shaun, is in a dilemma. He has Asperger’s syndrome and as such he is direct, factual and honest. He is incapable of deceit, and in the latest episode of the program he is conflicted when his girlfriend, Leah, wants his support when her car has been towed, she thinks unnecessarily. The tow truck driver, let’s call him Max, has the letter of the law on his side because she parked in the wrong spot. She was not blocking anyone, she was not obstructing traffic, and she was about to go to work. She argued with the driver, which had him increase the money she would have to pay to get her car back. Leah is angry at Shaun for not backing her up, and also determined to not pay what she feels is an unjust fee. She decides to unleash her fury in an internet character assassination if her car is not given back. Shaun is perplexed because he feels that in backing Leah up he will be participating in extortion. Then a co-worker points out that his choices are more than to either back Leah up or not, he also had the choice of showing another way to handle things. At the end of the show Shaun and Leah go to the lot where the car is being held, Leah makes her threat, Max does not back down, Shaun goes into the office as if he is going to pay, while signaling Leah to take his keys and start the car. She starts up the car, Shaun runs out of the office and jumps in the car, and they speed off. Later Shaun says that he had paid the original feel for parking in the wrong place because that is what was owed, and Leah gets his point.

We are asked to expose the works of darkness so that people will see the light. The light and goodness that we are given by Jesus can be the way others will see that they have good choices that can be made. Or as we read in 1 John, “if we walk in the light as [Jesus] is in the light we have fellowship with one another.” In the Lord we are light and our light joins the light of other believers, so that together we show God’s way.

Meditation 243

1 Samuel 16: 1-13

In some ways Samuel’s’ ministry is like the ministry of those of us who are following God in the twenty-first century. There have been societal changes and changes to the way congregations are organized. We can be grieving for what used to be, as Samuel was grieving over Saul. Samuel had been the one who was directed by God to anoint Saul to be king. The actual anointing was a private moment when Samuel took a vial of oil and poured it on Saul’s head and said “The Lord has anointed you ruler over his people Israel. You shall reign over the people of the Lord and you will save them from the hand of their enemies all around.” (1 Samuel 10: 1b) In the beginning of Saul’s reign he listened to the word of the Lord and followed it, but then he began to act to further his own interests. God told Samuel that he (God) was sorry that Saul was king and Samuel grieved over what Saul had become. There was probably also a grief over the hopes that Samuel had for Saul as king and for the possibilities for the kingdom under Saul’s reign. Similarly, we can find ourselves grieving for a time when congregational life was more settled and well regarded, but just as God wanted Samuel to stop grieving over what would no longer be, so God asks the same of us.

Samuel was directed to go and anoint the next king and as he was looking upon the young men who he thought were candidates, he was given this piece of wisdom. “The Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” (verse 7) Samuel would be directed by God to anoint the next king, and the qualities of that king would be qualities that God saw by looking into the heart. Samuel followed God’s leading, he accepted that the time of Saul was at its end, he listened to God, and David was anointed.

Those of us who love God and want to serve God find ourselves trying to discern the direction God has for us. We may be asking what does it mean to be a faithful believer in a post-modern, pandemic world? We may be worried about whether or not we will be able to resume congregational life as it was. The more helpful questions could be, where is God directing us to serve? Have we been faithful to what God is asking of us? How have people seen that we are living the gospel? What will emerge for the life of the church of Jesus Christ will be different than what we knew growing up. Just as God asked Samuel to stop grieving over what could not be, so God asks the same of us. The message we had yesterday in Psalm 23 was that with God we do not want, and that God leads us in good and safe places. As we go forward in 2021, we may do so under the protection of God and with confidence that God wants what is good for us.

Meditation 242

Psalm 23

If we say the words “The Lord is my shepherd” and stopped there, most people would fill in “I shall not want.” This psalm of David’s, the shepherd’s psalm is one of the best known and best loved of all the 150 psalms in the Bible. Psalm 23 begins with a positive statement about God. God is our shepherd, the one who cares for us all and because God is our shepherd we will not want, or as the lyrics of “The New Twenty-third Psalm” say, because the Lord is my shepherd, I have everything that I need. The psalm makes it clear that we everything that we need and that we have peace in the midst of conflict.

The first statement, that we have everything we need, puts us in conflict with our economy. Most businesses spend time convincing us that we both want and need whatever item it is that they have to sell, and that our lives are empty without their particular service or good. There are few of us who are not influenced by this approach to some degree. We do need to buy things to get along, we need food and clothing which do need to be replaced. Even if we are not caught up in a desire to shop for the fun of it, there are other services that are for sale, from insurance to assistance with the activities of day to day life. It seems there is always something more that would make our lives complete. In the face of a consumer economy the psalmist says the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want.  There is a place under the shepherd’s care where we do not want. The desire for more ceases to be the motivating factor of our living. We thrive under the care of the shepherd.

The care of the Lord as our shepherd also means that peace is ours in the midst of conflict. The conflict of the psalm is described as being in the darkest valley. Such an image conjures up fear and danger, which are made apparent in many ways. In the case of David who wrote the psalm, there was fear for his life as King Saul persecuted him. Not all fears are as definable as David’s, but a fear does not have to be a threat from another, our fears may be of the future or of the change in a relationship. A fear simply has to be felt in order to be real. As much as we may become incapacitated because of the dark valley of our life, the good shepherd will lead us through.

This coming Sunday the gospel lesson will be about Jesus healing a man who had been blind from birth. The man was controlled by his blindness, it determined how he could spend his days. The dark valley in which he found himself was the valley of disability, and into this limited reality Jesus brought the care of healing. As much as Jesus, the good shepherd, was able to heal that man of his blindness, so Jesus is able to heal us of whatever hurt, sorrow or fear we carry.