Rooted

Dear friend, do what I tell you;

    treasure my careful instructions.
Do what I say and you’ll live well.
    My teaching is as precious as your eyesight—guard it!
Write it out on the back of your hands;
    etch it on the chambers of your heart. Proverbs 7:1-3 [i]

John Wesley frequently distinguished between those who are Christian in name only and those who are real Christians. One key difference in discipline. He quoted a common saying of early Christians, “The soul and the body make a [person]; the spirit and discipline make a Christian.” (Sermon 122)

Discipline in this sense is not punishment. Instead, spiritual disciplines are practices that help us become rooted and to grow in our faith, our hope, and our love of God and neighbor. They include the means of grace (e.g., worship, Bible study, prayer, and Holy Communion) whereby God empowers us to do what God has commanded. … Following spiritual disciplines, including the wisdom of Proverbs, leads to a more fulfilling life. For Wesley, happiness came from holiness.[ii]

Etching God’s Word on the table of our hearts implies the internalization of God’s commands so that not only one’s actions but also one’s motives are pure.[iii]

In Mark 1:29-31, when Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law, we see that Jesus did not require an audience. He was never too tired to help; the needs of others took precedence over his own desire for rest. Jesus embodied this very internalization of God’s commands. He showed his authority to heal was a combination of God’s unique knowledge and unique power, the embodiment of spiritual discipline etched on his heart.  Jesus’ prayer for healing was not a combination of ritual and paraphernalia of popular magic, but a simple gesture and word of unique authority and power healed the woman.

From this action, the disciples learned the very essence of the Christian life that became the habit of a lifetime. In etching God’s word on their hearts, and writing it on the backs of their hands, they learned to take all their troubles to Jesus and to ask his help for them. In Peter’s wife’s mother they saw the response that comes through the power of prayer in using her recovered health for renewed service. Jesus helps us that we may help others.[iv] We become rooted in him. From him we are granted authority and power through discipline.

Rooted in Him                                Take It To the Lord in Prayer                                 All We Ask

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[i] The Message (MSG) Copyright © 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson.

[ii] The Wesley Study Bible (NRSV) ©2009 Abingdon Press. p.768.

[iii] NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible. Copyright © 2016 Zondervan Press. Note Proverbs 3:3.

[iv] Barclay, William. The New Daily Study Bible. Mark. pp. 42-43.

A Prayer of the People for Pentecost

As we come to this time of prayer, we set aside the worries and cares of this world to approach the throne of God, through the grace of the risen Christ, and his gift of the Holy Spirit. 

God of wind, water, word, and fire, we bless your name for sending the light and strength of your Holy Spirit. We lift to you those named and unnamed on the hearts of this gathering of your people, joined in communion with all God’s people, knowing when we cannot speak, the Holy Spirit intercedes for us.

You sent the Holy Spirit, not only as a comforter, but also to kindle the zeal of the apostles and the women, upon the mother of Jesus and his brothers, waiting in Jerusalem for Jesus’ promised gift. Pour the same inspiration on your people here and on the Church of Christ throughout the world.

We thank you, Holy Spirit, for all the gifts, great and small that you pour out upon our children. Accept us with our gifts to be living praise and witness to your love throughout all the earth.

Holy Spirit, revive the power of the gospel in our hearts, kindle the flame of love within us that it may become a sacred trust for the blessing of all creation, that all may call on you for salvation through your gift of Jesus Christ, your only son.

Protect, encourage, and bless all ministers of the cross, and prosper their words and works so that Jesus may draw all people unto him, and the kingdoms of the world may become the kingdom of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ who taught us to pray:

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

Microcosm

Miniature

Universal epitome;

Handheld caustic creation.

Triune-God’s last made quintessence:

Humankind.

Erstwhile

Erstwhile speaks of former things;

Referring perhaps to bygone days,

Sometime in the past when vanished or extinct.

Time bygone, defunct or departed;

Whilom or quondam more seldom used.

Having expired or departed, become dead or defunct,

I would rather be extant, prospective or future than

Long ago, vanished or gone;

Especially let me not be an erstwhile thought or friend.

Slowing Down to Be With God

Do you ever feel there are not enough hours in the day? Family responsibilities, job stress, home repairs, long commutes, and evening meetings seem to take up every waking moment. At times the stress of it all invades our sleep, leaving us even more exhausted when the alarm tells us another day has started. We trade the important for the urgent, moving from crisis to crisis.

It is important to consider what we leave behind when the responsibilities of the day reach their peak. We cut back on, or drop altogether, the things that do not scream at us. Prayer is often the first thing we cut back on when it should be the last to ignore. In fact, a lack of prayer may well be the reason that our days are so stressful.

There is no activity in our day, no issue that we face, no troubles we encounter that cannot be made better bathed in prayer. We often say, “I am too busy to pray.” Bill Hybels urges us to change our mindset about prayer. He reminds us we truly are “Too Busy Not To Pray."

Begin by taking baby steps. Set the alarm for fifteen minutes earlier than you need to get up. Choose a Bible verse you remember. Start by making a list of all the things calling your name. Make your list no longer than five minutes will allow. Set your list aside. Using one word or short phrases jot down how you feel - physically, mentally, spiritually. Set this record aside as well. Spend the time you have left until you would typically arise being still, being quiet, being in the presence of God. Let anything that tries to crowd in on listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit slip away.

Now look at your five-minute-list and using your Bible verse as a guide, choose the two most important things you wrote and the one most urgent item calling your name. Do nothing else until you complete those three tasks. Delegate any other critical tasks to someone else or just let them go - leave busy-ness to take care of itself.

After one week, evaluate your Bible verse, your lists, your accomplishments, your time listening to God. Do you need to continue with the same fifteen minutes, or do you need to set your alarm five minutes earlier to add five minutes to think about the Bible verse you chose?

Pensiveness becomes a passion for slowing down to be with God.