Daily devotionals | At Water’s Edge

Getting Stoned

Posted on May 11, 2020 by Betsy

Have you ever had an argument where you could tell with a hundred percent certainty that the other person was not listening to you? Have you ever told your child to do something and you were positive that they did not hear a single word you said? How about communicating with your teenager…ever feel like they have invisible hands over their ears as you are trying to talk to them?

Despite our best efforts to communicate, there are times when we simply aren’t heard. People tune us out because of anger, lack of interest, lack of respect, obstinance, ignorance, and a host of other reasons. Many of those reasons don’t even have anything to do with us or what we are saying…people are dealing with their own internal demons, which can render them deaf.

In our scripture this week, a Jesus-follower named Stephen was trying to communicate the good news of Jesus’ resurrection. Empowered by the Holy Spirit, he shared a vision of heaven. But the council members were not swayed. They were deeply threatened by his revelation, as it challenged their power structure and a status quo that put them at the top of the food chain. So they shouted and covered their ears when he spoke.

Then they did the unthinkable:

Acts 7 (Contemporary English Version)

⁵⁵But Stephen was filled with the Holy Spirit. He looked toward heaven, where he saw our glorious God and Jesus standing at his right side. ⁵⁶Then Stephen said, “I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right side of God!”

⁵⁷The council members shouted and covered their ears. At once they all attacked Stephen ⁵⁸and dragged him out of the city. Then they started throwing stones at him. The men who had brought charges against him put their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul.

⁵⁹As Stephen was being stoned to death, he called out, “Lord Jesus, please welcome me!” ⁶⁰He knelt down and shouted, “Lord, don’t blame them for what they have done.” Then he died.

It is extraordinary to see Stephen’s reaction to their violence. Rather than defend himself or fight back, he turned his eyes upon Jesus and asked for a homecoming. Then he absolved them of blame, asking God to forgive his murderers.

Stephen is remembered for his martyrdom and compassion. His willingness to proclaim Jesus in the midst of rejection and violent retaliation is remarkable. He didn’t stop, even knowing that nobody was listening.

There may be people in your life to whom you are speaking a word of love who aren’t listening. Tell them anyway. Others reject your offer for help. Help them anyway. Some are covering their ears as you try to give sound counsel. Keep trying. Sometimes carrying a message of hope results in being attacked for no reason. That’s when it’s important to ignore the ignorant comments and keep pressing forward with what the Holy Spirit is telling you to do. Just ask me.

May we all have a smidge of the enormous compassion Stephen felt for his attackers. In that way, we might have the peace that he had, and reflect back to the world the visible image of Christ’s forgiveness at the crucifixion.

Whenever we reflect Jesus, we honor God.

The Classics

Posted on May 8, 2020 by Betsy

Sometimes in life, you just want the classics. A classic New Jersey hoagie…Italian of course, not tuna and avocado. A pepperoni pizza, not Hawaiian with pineapple. (Who does that??) A ‘63 Mustang convertible, not a Mini Cooper. Beethoven’s Fifth, not the Electric Slide.

If I were to ask you which scripture you think is the most recognized, you would probably default to the classics. John 3:16. Genesis 1:1. Psalm 23. These passages are well known because they are memorable and timeless.

One of the reasons that the 23rd Psalm pops up to the top of the classics chart is our familiarity with it. Many of us memorized it as children. Bible Study writer Dick Murray once said that it was while crouching in a foxhole in the war that he realized that the only available “bible” he could access in that moment was the one he had in his mind, and it was sadly limited to the few passages he had memorized. He was trying to calm himself by reciting scripture, only to discover that the ones he had memorized were few and far between. This motivated him to go back and memorize more when the war was over.

So, what’s in your bible?

The 23rd Psalm is said at every funeral in my denomination. It conveys a timeless message of beauty, hope, assurance, and peace. It is a classic for a reason.

Psalm 23 (New King James Version)

The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
²He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
³He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

⁴Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil;
For You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

⁵You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
My cup runs over.
⁶Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever.

My challenge for you today is to spend time memorizing this beautiful piece. Take it apart, study it line by line, make picture-memories of it, walk around your house saying it out loud, and add it to your mind. This one will never let you down. We need it now more than ever.

Like you, it‘s a classic!

Still Waters at Sunset by Bonnie Bennett

Great Assembly

Posted on May 7, 2020 by Betsy

OK, here’s the truth. I am tired of everybody’s online worship. I am tired of watching myself on TV on Sunday mornings in my jammies, with a cup of coffee in my hand. We are all tired of trying to think of new and creative ways to tell the story of Jesus while making eye contact with the cold, hard lens of a camera.

I guess I’m just tired of the isolation of attending church in my living room. I bet you are, too. I need my people.

I believe we were created for corporate worship. I believe heaven rejoices when God’s people gather in a place and raise their combined voices as one melody of adoration. I believe kids should be noisy and fidgety, older people should snooze, and young people should text each other during church…like we normally do every Sunday!

(Look, I’m like Santa sitting up there in the front….I see you when you’re sleeping, I know when you’re awake…)

I also believe we should listen with open hearts and minds, and in my church, that is what we do every Sunday together. I miss my congregation’s attentiveness to the Word as it is spoken, proclaimed, sung, and experienced. You see, I also see people leaning in when the Word is offered.

So today’s Psalm sent a ping straight to my heart with the very first verse:

Psalm 22 (New King James Version)

My praise shall be of You in the great assembly;
I will pay My vows before those who fear Him.
²⁶The poor shall eat and be satisfied;
Those who seek Him will praise the Lord.
Let your heart live forever!

But then we get to a verse that reminds us that we worship as all the families of the nations. In that context, we couldn’t possibly be together in one place, and thus we are reminded that God’s kingdom is so much larger than the sanctuary that we are all missing:

²⁷All the ends of the world
Shall remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations
Shall worship before You.
²⁸For the kingdom is the Lord’s,
And He rules over the nations.

²⁹All the prosperous of the earth
Shall eat and worship;
All those who go down to the dust
Shall bow before Him,
Even he who cannot keep himself alive.

So what do you suppose our children are learning from this? Parents, what you are doing right now is teaching your children, who are the “posterity and the next generation,” about what YOU really feel about worship. Are you finding it less and less convenient to set Sunday morning aside for family worship? Is the beach, a sunny walk, picking strawberries, a bike ride to the woods, etc. more enticing to you as this pandemic wears on? Be careful with your priorities. The children are watching.

³⁰A posterity shall serve Him.
It will be recounted of the Lord to the next generation,
³¹They will come and declare His righteousness to a people who will be born,
That He has done this.

If you are a regular church goer, please hang in there. Your pastor did not receive training as a televangelist in seminary. We are doing the best we can. God still requires that we keep the Sabbath holy, even in a pandemic.

The good news is, the great assembly will return! So in the meantime, let us continue to set Sunday mornings aside for “corporate” worship. God is still here, and he is worthy of our praise.

Jesus Freaks

Posted on May 6, 2020 by Betsy

I suppose every generation has a version of religious zealots that takes on a unique persona. In the early 1800’s, the Second Great Awakening produced charismatic Camp Meetings, where fiery Revivalists converted the masses. Salvation was their focus.

In the prohibition era, we had lace-hatted ladies who marched with the Women’s Christian Temperance Union, proclaiming that “lips that touch liquor shall never touch mine.” (I had a grandmother who was a proud WCTU card-carrier.) Sobriety was their focus.

In the ‘60s, we had free-spirited “Jesus Freaks,” a counter-cultural group who shared things in common and proclaimed a message of love. Community was their focus. All these groups in their own way were Jesus Freaks of a sort, but the hippie culture may have been the closest to the original:

Acts 2:42-47 (English Standard Version)

⁴²And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. ⁴³And awe came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. ⁴⁴And all who believed were together and had all things in common.

⁴⁵And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. ⁴⁶And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts,⁴⁷praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

One of the blessings to arise from the pandemic is that the Jesus Freaks among us have revived the notion that we should share our possessions and belongings, and break bread across our community with those who are hungry due to losing jobs. Several restaurants in the Outer Banks have taken the lead with offering free breakfasts, chicken and dumplings lunches, and hearty meatloaf dinners, all free of charge. Some have set up tents for distribution.

Our local homeless ministry has extended their program during a time when they would normally be closed, and churches continue to take turns volunteering and delivering meals.

Churches are expanding their Care Ministries to include any need that comes to their attention. Last week my church had a request to help a non-member who lives almost an hour away from our location. She is hospitalized in another state with a high risk pregnancy, and her husband is struggling to care for their children on his own while working and trying to visit his wife. So my church will deliver meals for the next four weeks, because that’s what Jesus Freaks do.

In the passage above, we see that these acts of community were met with awe, which came upon every soul. This witness of sharing resulted in people coming to Christ in great numbers every day. That is what happens when people see the love of God in action.

Where is God calling you to be the evidence of his love today? Where can you invite awe into someone’s soul by sharing what you have in his name?

God calls us to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and offer water to the thirsty. There is a need in your community that you can meet. You can produce many wonders and signs of God’s reign right where you are. Go out and find a way to be a Jesus Freak for someone today!

Free Chicken N Dumplings Photo courtesy of the Jolly Roger Restaurant

Driving out Fear

Posted on May 5, 2020 by Betsy

Are you a person with a great capacity to love? Do you believe that we are called to love one another? What does the Bible say about love?

1 John 4 may be the most love-saturated passage in the entire Bible. Take a look at this and see how many times the word “love” appears:

1 John 4 (Common English Bible)

⁷Dear friends, let’s love each other, because love is from God, and everyone who loves is born from God and knows God. ⁸The person who doesn’t love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹This is how the love of God is revealed to us: God has sent his only Son into the world so that we can live through him. ¹⁰This is love: it is not that we loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son as the sacrifice that deals with our sins. ¹¹Dear friends, if God loved us this way, we also ought to love each other.

Love is from God. If you don’t love, you don’t know God. The charge is so simple: if God loves us so much that he sacrificed his son for us, we ought to love each other in the same way.

12 No one has ever seen God. If we love each other, God remains in us and his love is made perfect in us. ¹³This is how we know we remain in him and he remains in us, because he has given us a measure of his Spirit. ¹⁴We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the savior of the world. ¹⁵If any of us confess that Jesus is God’s Son, God remains in us and we remain in God. ¹⁶We have known and have believed the love that God has for us.

So what do we make of “love” that abuses, shuns, or condemns? What evidence of love can be found in the person who refuses to accept the “other?” Where is love when judgment is being spewed?

God is love, and those who remain in love remain in God and God remains in them. ¹⁷This is how love has been perfected in us, so that we can have confidence on the Judgment Day, because we are exactly the same as God is in this world.

We will be judged by how we followed the commandment to love as God loves in this world. And God is the only one qualified to judge. He calls us to offer love to one another, not judgment. Perfect love is designed to drive out fear, even fear of people who are drastically different from us. If you claim to love God but hate a certain section of God’s people, you are a liar.

¹⁸There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear expects punishment. The person who is afraid has not been made perfect in love. ¹⁹We love because God first loved us.

²⁰Those who say, “I love God” and hate their brothers or sisters are liars.

After all, those who don’t love their brothers or sisters whom they have seen can hardly love God whom they have not seen!²¹This commandment we have from him: Those who claim to love God ought to love their brother and sister also.

Those who claim to love God have to love their brother and sister WITHOUT JUDGMENT. This is the Word of God for the people of God. If your response to this is “Yeah, but what about the people who….” then you have totally missed the point.

Pandemic Dreams

Posted on April 30, 2020 by Betsy

My pandemic dreams are getting wilder and louder. Some mornings I wake up exhausted by my dream-saturated sleep. Even in my tiredness, I am grateful for the silence that wakefulness brings. My deep consciousness is flooded with turbulence. I have read that others are experiencing this as well. How about you?

We understand that dreams are the mind’s way of unburdening itself of the daily pressures and disturbances that get shoved away throughout the day so that we can focus on what is at hand. Some posit that dreams are a form of memory processing, or are a type of protective act, i.e. a way to prepare the brain for danger and challenges. In any case, it stands to reason that the current pandemic would result in people having vivid dreams all night long.

In 1 Peter, we read a beautiful picture of life being ”a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God.” That image is profound for us pandemic people. Oh, how we long to replace our deep consciousness of despair with the deep consciousness of God’s peace!

And I like that it reminds us that this is a journey, which implies that there is a destination. I am ready, as I’m sure you are, for us to ARRIVE at the end. Let me off this bus!!

Even better, we find God on this journey:

1 Peter 1 (The Message)

¹⁷You call out to God for help and he helps—he’s a good Father that way. But don’t forget, he’s also a responsible Father, and won’t let you get by with sloppy living.

^18-21Your life is a journey you must travel with a deep consciousness of God. It cost God plenty to get you out of that dead-end, empty-headed life you grew up in. He paid with Christ’s sacred blood, you know. He died like an unblemished, sacrificial lamb. And this was no afterthought.

YOU are not an afterthought to God. You call out to him for help, and he responds like the good, responsible father that he is. He has removed us from our sloppy, dead-end, empty-headed way of life.

Even though it has only lately—at the end of the ages—become public knowledge, God always knew he was going to do this for you. It’s because of this sacrificed Messiah, whom God then raised from the dead and glorified, that you trust God, that you know you have a future in God.

Don’t miss that…we have a future in God. This is comforting news in the midst of recent information that we might see a spike in COVID cases in the fall. A second wave may be imminent, and we are so weary of the first. But hang on. We have a future in God.

^22-25Now that you’ve cleaned up your lives by following the truth, love one another as if your lives depended on it. Your new life is not like your old life. Your old birth came from mortal sperm; your new birth comes from God’s living Word.

What must change immediately is that we must “love one another as if our lives depend on it.” We are utterly failing at this. The vitriol, anger, and downright hatred that we see every day on our streets, on the news, and especially on social media must stop. We condemn ourselves with every post.

Just think: a life conceived by God himself! That’s why the prophet said,

The old life is a grass life,
its beauty as short-lived as wildflowers;
Grass dries up, flowers droop,
God’s Word goes on and on forever.

This is the Word that conceived the new life in you.

Today is a day to seek the deep consciousness of God. Today is an opportunity to allow God’s Word of hope, salvation, and unconditional love to bring forth a new life in us.

THIS is what I dream of: a world-wide community unified as one body, loving each other through this pandemic, and offering only words of comfort and peace to each other until this is over.

What do you dream of? Are you experiencing disturbing dreams right now? Do you wake up tired? Do you long for peace?

Listen. Stay in the Word, and get out of the world. Find ways, especially at bedtime, to turn everything off and go deep into the consciousness of God. Pray like you’ve never prayed before.

God will deliver us, of that I am sure. The Word will bring new life in us.

Heart-Change

Posted on April 29, 2020 by Betsy

It has long been said that it is a woman’s prerogative to change her mind. Any woman married to a man would probably add that it is also a man’s prerogative to change his mind. Changing your mind is not gender-specific. Changing your shoes, maybe, but not changing your mind.

As we follow along with our post-resurrection storyline, we discover the disciples continuing their work in Jerusalem, explaining and revealing the meaning and mystery of the resurrection. Peter is addressing a crowd in Jerusalem who is keenly aware of what has transpired. Not all were eyewitnesses to Jesus’ ministry, death, and resurrection, but they know the rumors and have heard the stories.

Such a crowd is listening now to Peter speak, who is inspired by the Holy Spirit:

Acts 2 (Common English Bible)

³⁶“Therefore, let all Israel know beyond question that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”

³⁷When the crowd heard this, they were deeply troubled. They said to Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”

³⁸Peter replied, “Change your hearts and lives. Each of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.³⁹This promise is for you, your children, and for all who are far away—as many as the Lord our God invites.”

Change your mind. Use your prerogative. Change how you think about this, how you feel about this, and most importantly, change your life to reflect your new belief. The power of repentance to bring us closer to God can never be understated. It is the only way to receive complete and utter forgiveness of sins.

⁴⁰With many other words he testified to them and encouraged them, saying, “Be saved from this perverse generation.” ⁴¹Those who accepted Peter’s message were baptized. God brought about three thousand people into the community on that day.

Three thousand were brought into the community that day. Can you imagine their profound relief to know that Christ had died for their sin, and they carried that burden no more?

What burden of sin are you carrying right now? What heavy load can you remove with sincere repentance? Where is God calling you to change your mind, heart and LIFE?

This message wasn’t just for Peter’s audience that day, but is a living testimony to the power of God in YOUR life. It is never too late to repent. It is never too late to be cleansed of sin. It is never too late to unburden yourself of something you have carried for years.

It is never too late to change.

Songs of the Pandemic

Posted on April 28, 2020 by Betsy

The Psalms were originally written to be sung as songs. They provide a glimpse of ancient Hebrew life when we read them and hear what the people were experiencing. Music has always been a way to record the joys, sorrows, angst, and fears of a generation. In the Psalms, we experience the hope and sadness of that generation, and surprisingly, they translate into songs for our current circumstance as well.

As you read this, think of those who have lost a loved one to COVID 19. Think of the exhaustion of the front line workers who are taking care of us, feeding us, providing services for us, and putting their own lives at risk for us.

Psalm 116 (New King James Version)

I love the Lord, because He has heard
My voice and my supplications.
²Because He has inclined His ear to me,
Therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

³The pains of death surrounded me,
And the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me;
I found trouble and sorrow.
⁴Then I called upon the name of the Lord:
“O Lord, I implore You, deliver my soul!”

In every circumstance, God’s people have called upon the name of the Lord, and in every circumstance, God has inclined his ear. Wherever we find trouble and sorrow, we also find God, right there in the midst of it.

What shall I render to the Lord
For all His benefits toward me?
¹³I will take up the cup of salvation,
And call upon the name of the Lord.
¹⁴I will pay my vows to the Lord
Now in the presence of all His people.

¹⁵Precious in the sight of the Lord
Is the death of His saints.

Many have died. Many more will die. All are precious in the sight of the Lord. We are one day closer to the end of this thing, but we aren’t finished yet. How can we continue to sing in the middle of this pandemic? What should our lyrics be?

I think we should join the chorus of the original Psalmists, and sing praises. We should lift our voices high in harmonies of thanksgiving. Let us simply praise the Lord. Praising God in the storm reminds us of who he is, and whose we are. God loosed our bonds so that we might be free of all fear and sadness. Yes, there is death, but death has no sting. Praise the Lord!

¹⁶O Lord, truly I am Your servant;
I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant;
You have loosed my bonds.
¹⁷I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving,
And will call upon the name of the Lord.

¹⁸I will pay my vows to the Lord
Now in the presence of all His people,
¹⁹In the courts of the Lord’s house,
In the midst of you, O Jerusalem.

Praise the Lord!

Singing Alone in the Pandemic by Wende Pritchard

Coming Out of It

Posted on April 24, 2020 by Betsy

We are in soft shell crab season on the Outer Banks. Here on Colington, the shedders are being watched day and night, and crab harvesters are working under the hanging bulbs to capture these delicacies the minute they are ready. The dilemma is that the restaurants aren’t ready. So while the harvest is happening on its own timeline, there is not the usual demand. Friends of these hardworking folks are trying to help them sell their soft shells to locals to cook at home, and the community is responding. But this is just one small sadness in the midst of all that is sad about the economic impact the pandemic is having on our beautiful island.

What will you do first when we come out of this? Eventually we can go back to hugging, eating at a favorite restaurant with our friends, taking the kids to a real playground, getting on a plane…until then, this time of isolation and quarantine certainly feels like being in exile. If the pandemic ends in time, I would rush out and eat a fried soft shell crab sandwich at the Salt Box Cafe.

Today’s scripture invites us back to the time when Israel lived in exile. They had been overrun and carried away into Babylon, where they couldn’t live life as usual and were forced to adapt to a completely different culture. Jeremiah dreamed of the time when their exile would be over and they would return to a normal life:

Jeremiah 36 (Contemporary English Version)

At that time, declares the Lord,
I will be the God of all the families of Israel,
and they will be my people.

²The Lord proclaims:
The people who survived the sword
    found grace in the wilderness.
As Israel searched for a place of rest,
³    the Lord appeared to them from a distance:
I have loved you with a love that lasts forever.
    And so with unfailing love,
        I have drawn you to myself.

This picture of God appearing to Israel from a distance as they are returning from the wilderness is profound. We are immediately reminded of the story of the Prodigal Son, where the father was waiting at the edge of the field every day for his wayward son to return. God indeed has gone before us, and waits there to welcome us back to normal life when our exile is over. And notice the phrase “found grace in the wilderness.” Have you found grace in your pandemic wilderness? Can you list some “silver linings?”

⁴Again, I will build you up,
    and you will be rebuilt, virgin Israel.
Again, you will play your tambourines
    and dance with joy.
⁵Again, you will plant vineyards
    on the hills of Samaria;
    farmers will plant and then enjoy the harvests.

The hope in these verses make me tingle. God will build us up again. We will dance for joy again. We will plant vineyards and farmlands and harvest them again. We will have life as normal again. Gosh, I can’t wait for Again to begin. How about you?

⁶The time will come when
    the watchmen shout from
        the highlands of Ephraim:
“Get ready! We’re going up to Zion
    to the Lord our God!”

Hold on to these words. There will be a time when this virus is completely gone from this earth. Get ready! And in the meantime, look for grace in the wilderness.

Grace in the Wilderness by Michelle Robertson

Enduring Love

Posted on April 23, 2020 by Betsy

One of the harder aspects of being a member of the clergy is doing marriage counseling. Two people sit before you, having declared their enduring love for one another at one point in their lives, and are now are questioning everything. Especially when infidelity has broken all trust, a love that was once expected to endure forever is now shattered and lying in pieces on the ground.

Some couples make it through, if they submit to raw honesty, painful truth-telling, a lot of deep soul searching, and prayer. Sadly, many do not. The breach of trust that occurs is extremely difficult to rebuild. Most couples give up before they can reach that point.

What is enduring love anyway? Can we really have it in our earthly relationships? I believe we can, if people are willing to yield their lives and passions to the image of love that God provides. God’s love is unconditional, eternal, and sacrificial. God offers us a steadfast love that indeed endures forever.

Psalm 136 (New Revised Standard Version)

O give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.
²O give thanks to the God of gods,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.
³O give thanks to the Lord of lords,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;

⁴who alone does great wonders,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁵who by understanding made the heavens,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁶who spread out the earth on the waters,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;

⁷who made the great lights,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁸the sun to rule over the day,
    for his steadfast love endures forever;
⁹the moon and stars to rule over the night,
    for his steadfast love endures forever.

The key to steadfast, enduring love is to realize that it is a CHOICE. To love as God loves is something we choose to do (or not) everyday. To be willing to be humble and put someone else’s needs first leads to enduring love. To love unconditionally, even when you have been betrayed and dismissed, is enduring love. To offer loving forgiveness in response to true repentance is Christ-like love. To give shelter and provision with no expectation of return is God-like love.

We are invited to love as God loves. Steadfastly. Enduringly. Sacrificially. Hopefully. And most of all, unconditionally.

Where is God calling you to love the way he loves?

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