Daily devotionals

Where East Meets West

Posted on by Betsy

 I live on a small island off a narrow strip of land known as the Outer Banks in North Carolina. These barrier islands are so narrow at parts that you can easily see the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Pamlico Sound to the west without turning your head. At its most narrow part, the “east” is separated by the “west” by only 150 yards. When a storm hits, east waters meet west waters and close down the narrow two-lane road, cutting off the southern part of the island from the rest of civilization. This area may be one of the only places on earth where “east meets west” as it were.

The reality of east meeting west of course is that it never happens. If you travel east, you will continually be heading east around the globe. Such is the basis of David’s metaphor in our psalm today, as he celebrates that fact that “As far as east is from west—that’s how far God has removed our sin from us” (verse 12).

Psalm 103 (Common English Bible)

God won’t always play the judge;
he won’t be angry forever.
10 He doesn’t deal with us according to our sin
or repay us according to our wrongdoing,
11 because as high as heaven is above the earth,
that’s how large God’s faithful love is for those who honor him.
12 As far as east is from west—
that’s how far God has removed our sin from us.
13 Like a parent feels compassion for their children—
that’s how the Lord feels compassion for those who honor him.

Our sins have been banished to a place that doesn’t exist; thus we suffer them no longer. This reminder of the infinite nature of God’s saving love is a blessing when we have strayed from God’s will for our lives. David’s beautiful psalm is a strong assurance of the power of the cross to obliterate our sins. The price that Jesus paid with his life is our guarantee that past sins won’t inform our present relationship with God. As David says, God won’t be angry with us forever and doesn’t deal with us according to our sin. Indeed, God deals with us according to the measure of our confession and repentance. The power of the shed blood of the atonement is the criteria upon which we will be judged … thanks be to God! Mercy reigns.

But do we believe that, or do we cling to past sins and use them as a way of beating ourselves up over and over again? It is so easy to lay our sin at the foot of the cross and then pick it up again the next day. Repeated self-condemnation of past transgressions becomes the devil’s playground, as he whispers in our ears that we aren’t worthy.

God’s faithful love says otherwise. As far as heaven is above the earth, that is the measure of God’s forgiveness and love for us.

If you are caught in a cycle of unforgiveness of your past, ask yourself this: is your sin actually greater than Christ’s crucifixion? Do you really have that much power? Isn’t holding on to past regret a form of arrogance?

God invites us to truly let go of our past and walk cleanly into the future with hope for which his Son died. Anything less diminishes the cross.

As Far as the East is to the West by Amanda Williams

Life’s Too Short

Posted on by Betsy

 Life’s too short. 

How many times have you heard that or said that? 

Life’s too short, so eat dessert first. 

Life’s too short to stay angry at your spouse. 

Life’s too short, so spend the money now for that trip you’ve always wanted to take.

Life’s too short to be miserable all the time, so change your situation.

In this Psalm written by Moses, we see this theme in a different context. In his view, life’s too short and then you die. In the meantime, we experience God’s wrath and anger. Now that’s a sobering and discouraging thought! According to this Psalm, we toil and trouble all of our lives and in the end, we just fly away. Yikes!

Psalm 90 (Common English Bible)

Lord, you have been our help,
    generation after generation.
2 Before the mountains were born,
    before you birthed the earth and the inhabited world—
    from forever in the past
    to forever in the future, you are God.

3 You return people to dust,
    saying, “Go back, humans,”
4     because in your perspective a thousand years
    are like yesterday past,
    like a short period during the night watch.
5 You sweep humans away like a dream,
    like grass that is renewed in the morning.
6 True, in the morning it thrives, renewed,
    but come evening it withers, all dried up.
7 Yes, we are wasting away because of your wrath;
    we are paralyzed with fear on account of your rage.
8 You put our sins right in front of you,
    set our hidden faults in the light from your face.
9 Yes, all our days slip away because of your fury;
    we finish up our years with a whimper.
10 We live at best to be seventy years old,
    maybe eighty, if we’re strong.
But their duration brings hard work and trouble
    because they go by so quickly.
    And then we fly off.
11 Who can comprehend the power of your anger?
    The honor that is due you corresponds to your wrath.
12 Teach us to number our days
    so we can have a wise heart.

13 Come back to us, Lord!
    Please, quick!
    Have some compassion for your servants!
14 Fill us full every morning with your faithful love
    so we can rejoice and celebrate our whole life long.
15 Make us happy for the same amount of time that you afflicted us—
    for the same number of years that we saw only trouble.
16 Let your acts be seen by your servants;
    let your glory be seen by their children.
17 Let the kindness of the Lord our God be over us.
    Make the work of our hands last.
    Make the work of our hands last!

But take a look again at the first two verses of this Psalm, which describe the image of God as our help in all generations. This indeed is a word of comfort. What does it mean to you to have God as your help? Moses assures us that from forever in the past to forever in the future, God doesn’t change. In the midst of toil and trouble, remembering that God is God (and we are not) helps tremendously. And his final plea for the kindness of the Lord to be over us ends this reading with a note of hope. We indeed want God’s glory to be seen by our children and to know that the labor of our hands and hearts will last. Even while feeling God’s wrath, Moses is aware of God’s mercy.

Moses appropriately calls attention to the “life’s too short” conundrum and brings a certain focus to the situation. It begs the question of what you intend to do with this too-short life. Can you answer that today? Life is too short. How are you going to number your days wisely? What changes should you make today to honor your commitment to the Lord before you go? Notice that Moses points out that God is angry when we sin and are disobedient…

The sobering tone of this Psalm is a call to self-examination and reflection. We are reminded to double check our sins and do some spiritual heart surgery where needed. We need to observe the acts of God and look for God’s glory in the midst of our behaviors. The brevity of our existence on earth need not be marred by God’s anger at our sin, especially when the remedy of repentance and forgiveness is so close at hand through Jesus Christ. Life is too short to carry the burden of unconfessed sin. We join Moses’ prayer that God’s kindness would be over us and allow our works to outlive our lives. We can count on God to be kind, even when we have not been.

So in this too-short life, we need to count our days and use them well. In this too-short life, we should seek wisdom and righteousness. Having acknowledged the anger that follows sin, we should strive every day of this too-short life to walk in holiness. Life’s too short for regrets.

What are you doing with your too-short life? Spend it well.

And eat the dessert first!

Come Back to us, Lord by Michelle Robertson

Hardness of Heart

Posted on by Betsy

A good friend is going through a difficult divorce, and she grieves the loss of her marriage, the loss of her friendship with her husband, and the loss of man he was when they married. As is the case in some hard breakups, her pleas for counseling and reconciliation are rejected. He has set his face on a course away from her and there is no turning back. In biblical terms, he has become calloused, and has “hardened his heart” against her.

This phrase comes up often in the Scriptures, as the people of God hardened their hearts against the law, the Word, the love, and the mercy that God extends. We are a stubborn lot, aren’t we? Isaiah describes it as the people “growing dull” and becoming hard of hearing, and what they do hear, they refuse to understand (Isaiah 6:9-10). God must feel like it is akin to raising rebellious teenagers all the time. 

There are few things in life that sting as hard as rejection. I’m sure you have felt that sting. I know I have! Paul dealt with rejection all the time and today’s reading is no exception. He had just delivered a day-long impassioned speech about the good news of Jesus Christ as the “hope of Israel,” and some believed … but some did not. Arguing ensued, and he was reminded of the prophet Isaiah’s words that described the same rejection of God’s Word thousands of years before.

Acts 28:25-31 (Common English Bible)

25 They disagreed with each other and were starting to leave when Paul made one more statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke correctly when he said to your ancestors through Isaiah the prophet,

26 Go to this people and say:
You will hear, to be sure, but never understand;
    and you will certainly see but never recognize what you are seeing.
27 This people’s senses have become calloused,
    and they’ve become hard of hearing,
    and they’ve shut their eyes
        so that they won’t see with their eyes
        or hear with their ears
        or understand with their minds,
            and change their hearts and lives that I may heal them.

28 “Therefore, be certain of this: God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles. They will listen!”

Both men concluded that we don’t receive God and all of God’s benefits because we don’t want to turn away from our lives and be healed of our sin. We don’t want to change our hearts and behaviors. Is this true in our world today? I think the evidence is there.

Is this true in your life?

Even committed, church-going Christians can reject God, if only in little ways. While we don’t reject our belief in Jesus as the Messiah-Savior, we reject God’s call to live in unity in our churches. We reject God’s call to love our neighbors as ourselves, with an emphasis on the neighbor who doesn’t look like us. We reject the Bible’s instruction to welcome the immigrant into our homes. We reject our responsibility to take care of the widows and orphans. We reject the invitation to have the mind of Christ when we post polarizing political rants on social media. We reject the command to obey the law when we speed, cheat on our taxes, and litter. Let’s face it … we reject God’s call to change our lives every day.

Today’s passage is a wakeup call for the heart. Is Paul describing us? Where is God calling us to change our hearts so that we may be healed?

May the Holy Spirit convict us so that we might repent and be pleasing in God’s sight.

Wake Up Call by Kathy Schumacher

Testing, Testing

Posted on by Betsy

When I was growing up outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, a favorite Christmas activity was going to the John Wanamaker store in center city. My grandmother would travel by train to be with us for the holiday, and we would spend one full day of the trip at Wanamaker’s looking at the beautiful decorations, watching the magnificent pipe organ and light show in the main court, eating an elegant lunch at the Crystal Tea Room, and shopping for “special things.” One such special thing was beautiful stationary that was located in an upper-level department. As a child, I marveled that writing paper and envelopes had their own store! I have fond memories of my grandmother running her fingers over the paper and holding final selections up to the light. “What are you looking for, Grandma?” I asked. “The printer’s watermark,” she replied. “The finest linen stationary can always be proved by it’s watermark.” Pressed into the paper during the manufacturing process, each watermark identifies the paper mill’s trademark so that the maker is clearly revealed when held up to the light.

So it is with people. When you hold us up to the light of Christ, you should be able to see the watermark of our baptisms shining through our words, actions, thoughts, and deeds.

This was the subject of Paul’s cautionary letter to the Corinthians. We can tell from the very first verse that he is getting fed up with his church and is warning them that his third visit will bring his fatherly correction and discipline if they don’t shape up quickly. There is also a tone of frustration as he rebukes them for questioning his credentials when theirs are certainly in jeopardy. How dare they demand proof that Christ speaks through him when they have demonstrated that they aren’t listening anyway?

2 Corinthians 13:1-10 (Common English Bible)

 This is the third time that I’m coming to visit you. Every matter is settled on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 2 When I was with you on my second visit, I already warned those who continued to sin. Now I’m repeating that warning to all the rest of you while I’m at a safe distance: if I come again, I won’t spare anyone. 3 Since you are demanding proof that Christ speaks through me, Christ isn’t weak in dealing with you but shows his power among you. 4 Certainly he was crucified because of weakness, but he lives by the power of God. Certainly we also are weak in him, but we will live together with him, because of God’s power that is directed toward you.

5 Examine yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Don’t you understand that Jesus Christ is in you? Unless, of course, you fail the test.6 But I hope that you will realize that we don’t fail the test. 7 We pray to God that you don’t do anything wrong, not because we want to appear to pass the test but so that you might do the right thing, even if we appear to fail.

8 We can’t do anything against the truth but only to help the truth. 9 We are happy when we are weak but you are strong. We pray for this: that you will be made complete. 10 This is why I’m writing these things while I’m away. I’m writing so that I won’t need to act harshly when I’m with you by using the authority that the Lord gave me. He gave it to me so that I could build you up, not tear you down.

“Examine yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Test yourselves” (verse 5). This admonition to the Corinthians should not go unnoticed by us today. We are also to test ourselves against the light and see how we measure up. The effectiveness of our witness to the world is dependent on whether or not people can see Jesus in us. If saving the world was dependent on the light of Christ in us, would we turn people’s hearts toward Jesus?

Test yourself. Test your intentions, your actions, your grasp of Scripture, your service to the Lord, and the veracity of what you say versus what you do. As Paul reminds us in Romans 12:2, “Don’t be conformed to the patterns of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your minds so that you can figure out what God’s will is … what is good and pleasing and mature” (Common English Bible). Can you pass Paul’s test?

The Light of the Lord by Michelle Robertson

Say Hello

Posted on by Betsy

Tom Hanks starred in a wonderful movie called “News of the World” a few years ago. It was the story of an itinerant news reader who traveled all over Texas in 1870 to read news stories about presidents, queens, disasters, and all kinds of adventures to people who had no access to newspapers and most likely were illiterate. Folks would gather in the community hall or a tent to sit and listen in awe as this former Civil War veteran read to them.

 It is hard for us to imagine such a world where even a basic newspaper isn’t available. We are spoiled by an overabundance of news outlets right at our fingertips, from 24-hour television news to online sources that update every few minutes.

We also have an amazing ability to keep in touch with our family members now, thanks to technology such as FaceTime and ZOOM. During the pandemic, my family started a weekly ZOOM call to keep everyone in touch with each other. From Germany to Montana to Georgia and Virginia, we connected electronically to share our weekly joys and sorrows and to see each other’s faces. We still continue that today.

When we read Paul’s letter to Colossae, we get a rare glimpse into the difficulties of keeping a large family of followers in touch with each other. Paul had to entrust his letters to people who took months to travel with them to their intended destinations. The fact that this letter even exists to be read by modern Christians today is a miracle of God’s making. Paul writes about the men with whom he is travelling, and the common work they are doing in spreading the gospel. 

Colossians 4:7-15 (Common English Bible)

7 Tychicus, our dearly loved brother, faithful minister, and fellow slave in the Lord, will inform you about everything that has happened to me. 8 This is why I sent him to you, so that you’ll know all about us and so he can encourage your hearts. 9 I sent him with Onesimus, our faithful and dearly loved brother, who is one of you. They will let you know about everything here.

10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, says hello to you. So does Mark, Barnabas’ cousin (you received instructions about him; if he comes to you, welcome him). 11 Jesus, called Justus, also says hello. These are my only fellow workers for God’s kingdom who are Jewish converts. They have been an encouragement to me. 12 Epaphras, who is one of you, says hello. He’s a slave of Christ Jesus who always wrestles for you in prayers so that you will stand firm and be fully mature and complete in the entire will of God. 13 I can vouch for him that he has worked hard for you and for those in Laodicea and Hierapolis. 14 Luke, the dearly loved physician, and Demas say hello.

15 Say hello to the brothers and sisters in Laodicea, along with Nympha and the church that meets in her house.

He mentions two men of particular interest: Onesimus, a former slave whom he describes as a faithful and beloved brother of the church and should be welcomed as one of them; and Epaphras, who is described as a bondservant in Christ who has been laboring fervently in prayer for them. In so doing, Paul is strengthening the family ties between these diverse men and ensuring that they are all keeping up and strengthening their relationships with each other.

This gives us pause to think about our own relationships with our family, friends, coworkers, and church. Are we making it a priority to stay in touch, or do we let months (or years) go by? How hard is it to just say hello?

As people of God, we are invited to stay informed and pray with great fervor for one another. Is God calling you to pick up the phone and reach out to someone today? Don’t hesitate. You may not always have this chance.

Hello, OBX! by Michelle Robertson

Undercover Evangelist

Posted on by Betsy

Many years ago, a friend of mine underwent a series of surgeries to correct a defect in her sinuses that made Atlanta’s high pollen counts unlivable. As she was preparing for the first one, we met in my office for pastoral care and prayer. The hospital stay would be at least a week, and she fretted over leaving her four children and husband to fend for themselves. “But I believe God is sending me into a mission field” she proclaimed. She had packed thank you cards, small boxes of chocolates, and small New Testaments in her bag. “Instead of laying in the bed feeling sorry for myself, I plan to be a cheerful witness to the power of God as I heal.” A week later when she was released, her bag was depleted and she was full of stories of orderlies she had prayed with, nurses who asked questions, and more than one person to whom she had given a New Testament. This friend reminded me that wherever we go, we are being sent into a mission field.

This was Paul’s attitude as well as he made his way to Rome to appeal his arrest before Caesar. Along the journey around the Italian peninsula, he witnessed to crowds at every port. Upon arriving in Rome, he was received by the Christians there in a manner fit for an Emperor. But like the Palm Sunday processional that welcomed Jesus, the week would end with his imprisonment.

Acts 28:11-16 (Common English Bible)

11 After three months we put out to sea in a ship that had spent the winter at the island. It was an Alexandrian ship with carvings of the twin gods Castor and Pollux as its figurehead. 12 We landed in Syracuse where we stayed three days. 13 From there we sailed to Rhegium. After one day a south wind came up, and we arrived on the second day in Puteoli. 14 There we found brothers and sisters who urged us to stay with them for a week. In this way we came to Rome. 15 When the brothers and sisters there heard about us, they came as far as the Forum of Appius and the Three Taverns to meet us. When Paul saw them, he gave thanks to God and was encouraged. 16 When we entered Rome, Paul was permitted to live by himself, with a soldier guarding him.

Jesus had promised Paul that he would visit Rome in Acts 23:11, and here he was in the famous ancient city. This fulfilled Jesus’ prophecy that the Gospel would be taken to the “ends of the earth,” as Rome was the farthest point in the world as it was known.

Paul was not confined in a normal jail cell but was kept in a rented house chained to a guard that would rotate out every four hours. Can you imagine the conversations he had with them? Here was Paul, held in captivity, yet he had a captive audience for his testimony that changed throughout the day.

My friend’s and Paul’s story are great reminders that even in harsh or unwanted circumstances, we have opportunities to tell others the Good News of Jesus Christ and be undercover evangelists. Patients and prisoners can preach hope to those attending to them just as effectively as Billy Graham did in the stadiums.

Where is God calling you to be an undercover evangelist? Are there people in the grocery store or the hair salon who need to hear what you have to share? 

Both my friend and Paul were prepared for any opportunity that God opened up. They practiced their stories and were winsome and sincere. So get ready! Your time is coming, too. Watch for it.

Undercover Evangelist by Michelle Robertson

Get in Step

Posted on by Betsy

One of the greatest joys and challenges of my high school years was being the Drum Major of the marching band. For two years I marched in the clarinet section, and then suddenly in my junior year I was selected to lead the band. I was blessed to receive excellent training and a lot of encouragement from the adults around me. 

The most difficult part of being a Drum Major is setting the pace. Every song was memorized and practiced so much that I immediately knew how fast or slow to direct the musicians. If you ask any Drum Major to beat a pattern for a John Philip Sousa march, they can do it, even years later. We became like human metronomes. 

I was reminded of this when I read today’s passage about the conflict between following the law verses justification by grace through faith. In marching band terms, Paul would say that like the band, people don’t set the pace. Instead it is our Drum Major God who establishes the beat which we all follow. Paul understood that following the law was akin to the band boastfully leading themselves. God doesn’t respond to our lead; we respond to God’s lead.  

Romans 3:27-31 (The Message)

27-28 So where does that leave our proud Jewish insider claims and counterclaims? Canceled? Yes, canceled. What we’ve learned is this: God does not respond to what we do; we respond to what God does. We’ve finally figured it out. Our lives get in step with God and all others by letting him set the pace, not by proudly or anxiously trying to run the parade.

29-30 And where does that leave our proud Jewish claim of having a corner on God? Also canceled. God is the God of outsider non-Jews as well as insider Jews. How could it be otherwise since there is only one God? God sets right all who welcome his action and enter into it, both those who follow our religious system and those who have never heard of our religion.

31 But by shifting our focus from what we do to what God does, don’t we cancel out all our careful keeping of the rules and ways God commanded? Not at all. What happens, in fact, is that by putting that entire way of life in its proper place, we confirm it.

Paul had to address this again and again in his letters to his churches, and some of our best theology of salvation by grace comes from his writings. He had a clear understanding that you could not boast of your salvation because you had nothing to do with it. We are not saved by our own merit or good works, but by the one God who saves both the circumcised and uncircumcised alike. It is by faith we receive forgiveness, not by the law.

When we get in step with God’s will and purpose for our lives, we find it much easier to follow the pace God has set for us. The law always pointed to a Messiah who would come to fulfill it, and Jesus is that fulfillment. Even the law quickens or slows to Jesus’ direction and works in harmony to keep us on a parade route of righteousness. 

Remember the conversation Jesus had with the Pharisees about keeping the law that prohibited working on the sabbath? He reminded them that the sabbath was meant for people, not the other way around. Thus the ox could be saved from the ditch in an act of mercy on the sabbath, because the law itself was under Jesus’ direction.

Where are you in the parade? Are you anxiously trying to lead it in an effort to have control, or are you letting God direct your feet into places outside of your comfort zone? Are you marching to the beat of the world or the Lord’s cadence?

Maybe it’s time to stop marking time and follow Jesus. He will guide your steps onto the path of righteousness.

Shifting Focus by Michelle Robertson

Accuracy Counts

Posted on by Betsy

The movie “Hidden Figures” is a wonderful story about three women who worked for NASA during the space race of the 1960s. They were expert mathematicians and analytical geometry specialists who performed the complex calculations that enabled the United States to accomplish its first successful launches and orbits before computers were in place at Mission Control.

Work of that nature has to be done with great precision. One wrong equation could lead to disaster and the death of the astronauts. It is mind-boggling to me that paper, pencil, chalk boards, and slide rulers could put a man into orbit, and yet that is exactly how the early space program began.

Our reading from Acts today addresses a different type of accuracy which should be a goal of every Christian. We read about Apollos, who was described as well-educated and instructed in the Scriptures, which enabled him to speak and teach accurately about Jesus Christ as the fulfillment of the messianic prophecies. Apollos spoke effectively and boldly and was said to have “watered what Paul had planted” in Achaia. Along the way he received further instruction from Priscilla and Aquila and was received into their circle of friends.

Acts 18:24-28 (Common English Bible)

24 Meanwhile, a certain Jew named Apollos arrived in Ephesus. He was a native of Alexandria and was well-educated and effective in his use of the scriptures. 25 He had been instructed in the way of the Lord and spoke as one stirred up by the Spirit. He taught accurately the things about Jesus, even though he was aware only of the baptism John proclaimed and practiced. 26 He began speaking with confidence in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they received him into their circle of friends and explained to him God’s way more accurately. 27 When he wanted to travel to Achaia, the brothers and sisters encouraged him and wrote to the disciples so they would open their homes to him. Once he arrived, he was of great help to those who had come to believe through grace. 28 He would vigorously defeat Jewish arguments in public debate, using the scriptures to prove that Jesus was the Christ.

There are so many learning points in this short passage!

First, we learn that Apollos was instructed in the word, which is a reminder to us of our need to be sitting under a teacher’s instruction on a regular basis. Sunday School is not something we ever outgrow! Our need for daily and weekly Bible study is a life-long venture.

Second, we see that Apollos was “stirred up by the Spirit” which enabled him to speak with confidence (verse 25). This indicates that Apollos spent quiet time with the Spirit in prayer and meditation. When is the last time you pulled away from your busy life to seek the guidance and power of the Holy Spirit?

Third, we see that Apollos was open to further instruction by other followers. This is an indication of a humble attitude that led him to further learning. Are you a humble learner? Even those who teach the Scriptures are constantly learning.

Finally, Apollos spoke boldly enough to vigorously defeat Jewish arguments and prove that Jesus was the Christ. Are we vigorous in our witness? Are we bold like Apollos?

 The early church benefited from people like this who followed God’s direction to go and tell the good news. The present church demands the same of us: to boldly speak with well-informed accuracy the truth of the gospel of our Lord to all who will hear. 

Boldly Go by Becca Ziegler

The Cleansing

Posted on by Betsy

Do you remember your baptism? Like many people, I was baptized as an infant, so I have no recollection of mine. My baptism took place at the Huntingdon Methodist Church in Huntingdon, PA. My parents met in the choir at that church and were married there, so it was fitting, if not memorable. In my career I have participated in hundreds of baptisms, and the sacrament is one that is joyful and bathed in hope every single time.

Methodists mark the baptism of Jesus with a special service where we invite people to remember their own baptisms. This is an invitation to remember not so much when of your baptism, but the why. Why do Christians baptize? What happens in baptism?

First, it is important to remember who the agent is in a baptism, and here is a hint: it’s not you. Even if you were an adult and took your own vows, you are not the star of the show. God is the focus, and we acknowledge that he is the one who has called you to that moment. This is the reason why United Methodists do not re-baptize. We understand that a baptism is a result of the power of God in a person’s life and thus does not need to be repeated, regardless of whether or not the person stayed on a righteous path. People may falter, but God doesn’t make mistakes. There is no need to re-do what God has already done.

And so the vows renouncing the spiritual forces of wickedness; repenting of sins; accepting God’s freedom and power to resist evil, injustice, and oppression; putting your whole trust in Christ’s saving grace; pledging to serve God and all God’s people, etc. all come together in that holy moment. Water is used symbolically to signify a new beginning…. a cleansing, as it were….and an acknowledgement of God’s mighty acts of salvation through water and the Spirit. We are named and claimed.

When John baptized people in the Jordan River, he spoke of Jesus, who would perform baptisms of the Holy Spirit, not just water.

Mark 1:4-8 (The Message)

4-6 John the Baptizer appeared in the wild, preaching a baptism of life-change that leads to forgiveness of sins. People thronged to him from Judea and Jerusalem and, as they confessed their sins, were baptized by him in the Jordan River into a changed life. John wore a camel-hair habit, tied at the waist with a leather belt. He ate locusts and wild field honey.

7-8 As he preached he said, “The real action comes next: The star in this drama, to whom I’m a mere stagehand, will change your life. I’m baptizing you here in the river, turning your old life in for a kingdom life. His baptism—a holy baptism by the Holy Spirit—will change you from the inside out.”

9-11 At this time, Jesus came from Nazareth in Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. The moment he came out of the water, he saw the sky split open and God’s Spirit, looking like a dove, come down on him. Along with the Spirit, a voice: “You are my Son, chosen and marked by my love, pride of my life.”

The Spirit, like a dove, descended and God claimed Jesus as his son. I think God says the same thing with every baby, confirmand, squirming teenager, and wide-eyed adult whom we baptize. I think heaven opens up every time and God looks at that person and says, “You are my child, whom I dearly love; you are the pride of my life.”

Ponder your baptism today and remember why you were baptized. As you remember, be thankful. And if you’ve never been baptized and you’re ready, find a preacher with a pitcher! It’s never too late.

Come to the Waters by Jill Selfe

Every Good Gift

Posted on by Betsy

If you had all the money and the power in the world and could bestow a gift on everyone you know, what would it be? Would you give them wealth? Prosperity? Fame? Good health? What do your friends need that you would grant if you could? What would you ask for yourself if your friend could give you anything?

Today’s reading from 1 Thessalonians reveals things that were on Paul’s mind as he writes to his young church. The content of this letter includes an explanation of the fundamentals of Christian life, an assurance that their suffering would increase their faith, and a word of encouragement about the example they are setting as those who are sounding forth the word of God.

He asks them to pray for him.

1 Thessalonians 5:25-28

25 Brothers and sisters, pray for us. 26 Greet all the brothers and sisters with a holy kiss. 27 By the Lord’s authority, I order all of you to have this letter read aloud to all the brothers and sisters. 

28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you.

He ends his letter with a very strong instruction that the epistle be read to everyone. This is the first of his letters to this community and so public readings weren’t the norm yet. The letter is acting as a substitute for a personal visit from Paul, so he wants to be sure everyone hears from him through the letter. He also may have been concerned about the letter being abridged or mis-stated, so he wanted the people to hear it for themselves. And then he finishes by offering them a word of grace.

A study of Paul’s letters reveals a pattern of his greetings and endings. The phrase “grace and peace” appears in five of his letters. We might assume then, that these things are important to him. It follows that of all the things Paul wanted to give his followers, grace is the most important thing.

Grace is the bestowal of God’s love and acceptance of us as we are invited to come just as we are. Grace is the magnanimous gift of unmerited favor that allows us into the kingdom of God. Grace is gift that can’t be earned but must be received. Grace is the best gift a friend could wish upon another.

Every good gift from heaven came in the form of Christ’s grace on the cross; his gentleness, his tenderness, his patience, and his sacrificial love are poured out from the pitcher of grace onto a hurting world. Can anything beat that? What grace doesn’t have is judgement, arrogance, privilege, bias, oppression, or favoritism. Grace is offered to all through the blood on the cross, and we as the church must do all in our power to ensure that everybody has an opportunity to receive it.

This is why Paul begins and ends his epistles with a wish for peace and grace to be experienced in his churches. He loved them like a parent loves a child and only ever wanted the best for them.

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you today!

Fountain of Grace by Kathy Schumacher