Tag: Holy Saturday

Hold On

Jeff6 Comments

Today is Saturday, the fourth day of April, 2026, in the sixth week of Lent, Holy Week. Today is the final day of Lent. It is Holy Saturday.

Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.
(John 14:27 ESV)

It is the 94th day of 2026. There are 271 days left in the year.

Tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday!

Four days until Mama’s birthday!

Day 24,859 of my life

Today is 404 Day. Now hear me out. It is supposed to be to focus on “internet censorship in public schools and libraries.” And if you click on that link, well, you’ll see what you get. How cool is it that it fell on this day? Holy Saturday. The one day when Jesus is “not found” and the disciples are cowering in fear in the upper room? I love it when the “world” unintentionally points to Jesus.

If you don’t know the significance of “404” it’s that annoying error you get, sometimes, when a link you click on doesn’t work.

It is also St. Lazarus Day.

Daily writing prompt
What Olympic sports do you enjoy watching the most?
View all responses

I love ice skating in the Winter Olympics, and my favorite in that sport is the ice dancing. I love how beautiful and creative they can be in ice dancing. (I was watching the live broadcast the day Tonya Harding landed the first ever triple axel for a female skater. What a tragic story that turned into.) I might be weird, but, for some reason, I also enjoy curling. I’ve also always been fond of bobsled and other sports of that same variety, luge and whatnot. Anything involving speeding down an ice track on some kind of vehicle, at break-neck speed. Oh, and ski-jumping! May be the closest thing a human will ever get to flying. In Summer Olympics, gymnastics has always been my favorite. Mostly floor exercises, balance beam, uneven bars, and that vault thingy.

Today, as mentioned previously, is Holy Saturday. It is, fortuitously, an off-work Saturday for me. The only plans I have for this day involve cooking burgers for dinner tonight, and going out to get our Sonic drinks, of course.

This may be the most “Sabbath” Saturday of the year.

JESUS TIME

Faithful Father in heaven, I have neither the power nor the ability to praise and thank You enough for all the loving-kindness that You have so graciously shown me my entire life. I am but flesh and blood that can do nothing but evil. Yet You allow an abundant flow of gifts to come to me every day, especially in the past night when You were my shield and my support. Were that not so, the power of the devil surely would have struck me so severe a blow that I could not have hoped to arise again in sound condition. Yet through Your gracious protection I have been defended in a manner unsurpassed. I beseech You from the utmost depths of my being that You would let Your grace flow over me and defend me. I am Yours by the blood of Christ, from now unto eternal life. Amen. Amen. Lord Jesus, take my soul into Your hands and let me be commended unto You. Amen.
(Lutheran Book of Prayer, Prayer 44, Saturday Morning)

Father, today is another gift from You. Every good thing I enjoy is from You, and I thank You for Your abundant blessings. All I own is Yours, to be used for Your good purposes and especially for the good of others. Where I would take these blessings and use them selfishly, move me instead to generosity, kindness, goodness, and love. Among the greatest gifts You’ve given me are the people in my life—especially my family, friends, and neighbors. I want them to know Your love and to feel cared for and blessed when they are with me. Fill me with Your Spirit that they see Jesus through me today. In His name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Saturday Morning)

Lord God, on this Holy Vigil, we thank You for sending Your mighty servant Moses to fearlessly baptize Your people by delivering them from Egypt’s army when they passed between the waters of the Red Sea. As You drowned Pharaoh’s host, You still drown all our enemies, including Satan’s host, sin, death, and hell, through Holy Baptism. Thank You for this gift in Jesus Christ, who died and rose for us. In His name we pray. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Holy Saturday)

Almighty and eternal God, You created all things in wonderful beauty and order. Help us now to perceive how still more wonderful is the new creation by which in the fullness of time You redeemed Your people through the sacrifice of our Passover, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.
(For All the Saints, Saturday of Holy Week, Opening Prayer)

In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace.
(Ephesians 1:7 ESV)

By this we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.
(1 John 3:16 ESV)

Today I am grateful:

  1. For a beautiful Good Friday service, last night, full of beautiful music, Scripture, and prayers
  2. For this day of rest, Holy Saturday, as we wait in hope for Resurrection Sunday
  3. For “redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace”
  4. That we live in perpetual Sabbath, having entered into the rest of our Savior, who has invited us into His easy yoke, that we might find rest for our wear souls
  5. That “The love that’s poured in silence at old graves Renewing flowers, tending the bare earth, Is never lost. In him all love is found And sown with him, a seed in the rich ground.” (Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness)
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

Psalm of the Day – Psalm 42:1-5

As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
When shall I come and appear before God?
My tears have been my food day and night,
while they say to me all the day long,
“Where is your God?”
These things I remember, as I pour out my soul:
how I would go with the throng
and lead them in procession to the house of God
with glad shouts and songs of praise,
a multitude keeping festival.

Why are you cast down, O my soul,
and why are you in turmoil within me?
Hope in God; for I shall again praise him,
my salvation and my God.
(Psalms 42:1-6a ESV)

One wonders if this psalm was echoing in Jesus’s mind when He said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6) The psalmist “pants for a drink of God,” here, and his only food has been his tears. In addition, he is being mocked by others, and his memories taunt him.

“In the arid land of exile, where demons spit slurs, memories stab deep, and our souls, like the tongue of a panting deer, hang there, gasping, thirsting, craving relief from heaven’s crystal streams, we sit. Hurting. Needing. Waiting. The arid land of exile can be a doctor’s office. An empty bedroom. It can be a hustling, bustling workplace where, every day, we feel a little more unalive inside. Where. Are. You. God? we silently scream.”

That arid land might also be Holy Saturday. Again, I find myself pleasantly surprised at the timing of this psalm, this particular season. I wonder if the disciples had any hint of remembrance of this psalm as they huddled in the upper room on that day. We pretty much know that they were not expecting what happened the next morning. But the psalmist, here suddenly realized, as evidenced by verse 5, “that this is not just god we are talking about. This is my God. My salvation. My hope. My everything. And because he is mine, I am his, come what may. Do we dare presume that the Lord who willingly died for us will abandon us when we feel dead? Heaven forbid. Though for a time, we struggle, we thirst, Jesus will soon place his cup of mercy to our parched lips, the cup brimming with life, hope, and yes, even praise.”

And let us remember that Jesus Christ drank the cup of God’s wrath exactly so that we could drink His cup of mercy, “brimming with life, hope, and yes, even praise.”

“A panting hart run to the desert
Brays for water, no stream near,
And beagles, yipping, lap
His customary spring.
My soul licks salt tears as the pack
Gives tongue, baying,
‘Where is God?’
This vacant lot in earshot
Of cartwheels, tumblers, loose change at their festival.

Why lose heart?
Hear bottom now?
I still can call out,
Still praise him.”
(Excerpt from Laurance Wieder, Words to God’s Music, Psalm 42: BAY)

Therefore, while the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them, but the message they heard did not benefit them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest, as he has said,

“As I swore in my wrath,
‘They shall not enter my rest,’”

although his works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way: “And God rested on the seventh day from all his works.” And again in this passage he said,

“They shall not enter my rest.”

Since therefore it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience, again he appoints a certain day, “Today,” saying through David so long afterward, in the words already quoted,

“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”

For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.
(Hebrews 4:1-16 ESV)

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
(Romans 8:1-11 ESV)

“His spirit and his life he breathes in all.
Now on this cross his body breathes no more.
Here at the centre everything is still,
Spent, and emptied, opened to the core.
A quiet taking down, a prising loose,
A cross-beam lowered like a weighing scale,
Unmaking of each thing that had its use,
A long withdrawing of each bloodied nail.
This is ground zero, emptiness and space
With nothing left to say or think or do,
But look unflinching on the sacred face
That cannot move or change or look at you.
Yet in that prising loose and letting be
He has unfastened you and set you free.”

“Here at the centre everything is still,
Before the stir and movement of our grief
Which bears its pain with rhythm, ritual,
Beautiful useless gestures of relief.
So they anoint the skin that cannot feel
And soothe his ruined flesh with tender care,
Kissing the wounds they know they cannot heal,
With incense scenting only empty air.
He blesses every love that weeps and grieves,
And makes our grief the pangs of a new birth.
The love that’s poured in silence at old graves
Renewing flowers, tending the bare earth,
Is never lost. In him all love is found
And sown with him, a seed in the rich ground.”
(Malcolm Guite, The Word in the Wilderness, Holy Saturday, “XIII Jesus’ body is taken down from the cross, XIV Jesus is laid in the tomb)

My Lord, I thank You for the hope of Resurrection Sunday. Today is a day of desolation, of surrender, of nothingness. We wait, with Your disciples, but we cannot know what they experienced; we cannot know the despair that they must have felt.

I also thank You for Sabbath. I realize, Lord, that we live in perpetual Sabbath, as we have entered into the rest that was purchased for us by Your Son. He, Himself, invited us into that rest when He said, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” And we have been in that rest ever since He rested on the Sabbath. But did He rest? His body rested, but He, apparently, was busy.

May we, in our rest, also be about Your business. Our rest is a rest of spirit, a rest from worry, a rest from anxiety. For we truly have nothing to worry about, nothing to fear, because everything is settled. Our only source of worry or anxiety simply comes from the fact that we do not know in what manner things have been settled. We do not know certain outcomes. Therefore, we wait in hope and in trust that You, our God, our Father, are truly, according to the Scriptures, working all things out for good for those of us who love You and are called according to Your purposes.

And in that light, my God, I can, with all confidence, say to You, do with me as You like; use me in any way You deem necessary. I am not my own, but belong to You, body and soul, in life and in death.

Thank You, Lord, that in You, “all love is found and sown . . . a seed in the rich ground.” May You grow our love, and make it ever new as we offer our lives up to You.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Grace and peace, my brothers and sisters! Drink deep of the deep, deep love of Jesus!

CHRIST IS EVERYTHING!!!

Fun with Angels

Jeff2 Comments

Today is Saturday, the nineteenth day of April, 2025, in Holy Week of Lent. Today is Holy Saturday. It is the last day of Lent.

May the peace of Christ surround you, today, and guard your hearts and minds!

It is the 109th day of 2025, with 256 days left.

It is day 24,509 of my life.

Tomorrow is Resurrection Sunday!

Last night’s Good Friday service was beautiful, and, as expected, ended with me in tears. The string quartet did a beautiful job with “Adagio for Strings” as the altar was veiled at the end of the service. The choir, I think, sounded really good on the cantata. C said it was beautiful. At the end, we hugged and cried together a little bit.

Time is running short. I should be getting ready to go to work, as I switched Saturdays with a co-worker so she could be off today. Fortunately, I have all my readings done and just need to copy and paste my notes into this blog. Yes. I do that. I write my notes in One Note as I go through my devotional, and then when it’s time to compose the blog, everything is pretty much written. Anyway . . . here we go.

One more note. The main source for my devotional this morning was Thy Kingdom Come, again, by David H. Petersen. The reading was for “Easter Vigil,” which, I am aware, isn’t supposed to happen until late tonight. But I read it this morning. So, yes, I’m talking about the resurrection, which isn’t supposed to happen until tomorrow.

But here’s the thing. It has already happened, two thousand plus years ago!! Jesus is already alive! I refuse to spend this day being sad, being “pretend” sad, because “Jesus is in the grave between Good Friday and Easter.”

JESUS IS NOT IN THE GRAVE!! HE IS ALIVE, and I will rejoice! So there.

JESUS TIME

Father in heaven, through Your Holy Spirit, help me shine with faithful love for You as a delight to all around me. Show me all the beauties of Your world. Countless details of my life are blessings from You. Help me notice each one: the care You put into making my body, the air I breathe, the sun, and the clouds filled with rain. You make people who care for me and give me gifts so I can care for them in return. Remind me how amazing Your love for me is, so amazing that You gave Your Son into death to forgive all my sins so I can live now as Your child. In His name I pray. Amen. 
(Portals of Prayer – Prayer for Saturday Morning) 

giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,  
(Ephesians 5:20 ESV) 

Today I am grateful:

  • For the beautiful Good Friday service last night 
  • For a rainy day 
  • For my morning coffee 
  • For hope 
  • For faith, without which it is impossible to please God
  • That Christ is not dead, but is risen!

Dear Father in heaven, accept our thanks today for all you allow us to learn and to receive from you. Help us, your children, to follow the Savior with a right spirit and with true understanding. Protect us from evil, from all the works of Satan. In our generation may we experience your rulership and your wonders. In the name of Jesus we pray, reveal yourself with power. May your will be done on earth as in heaven, that all may realize they are in your hands and that it is your will to set everything right. Be with us this night. Bless and strengthen us for all the work entrusted to us. Amen. 
(Daily Prayer from Plough) 

Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

For I know that my Redeemer lives,  
and at the last he will stand upon the earth.  
And after my skin has been thus destroyed,  
yet in my flesh I shall see God,  
whom I shall see for myself,  
and my eyes shall behold, and not another.  
My heart faints within me!  
(Job 19:25-27 ESV) 

Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.  
 
Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.  
(Hebrews 4:11-16 ESV) 

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.  
You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.  
(Romans 8:1-11 ESV) 

Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow. And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for he has risen, as he said. Come, see the place where he lay. Then go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and behold, he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him. See, I have told you.”  
(Matthew 28:1-7 ESV) 

The following is from Thy Kingdom Come, by David H. Petersen. See the above disclaimer.

Most of our translations, just like the ESV, use the word “for” in verse 2, saying, “And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended . . .” But that word can also be translated “because.” The angel, it seems, was the cause of the earthquake.  

The earthquake was also for show. It’s possible that the quake didn’t loose the stone, because the sequence of events that Matthew writes seems to indicate that the quake happened, then the angel rolled back the stone. And then, he sits on it. 

Thanks to Petersen’s description, here, I can visualize the angel sitting on the stone, just kicking his feet back and forth, with a big grin on his face. What a showman! What a jokester! The angel is having the time of his life!  

Petersen says, “My favorite part is when he sits on the stone. He is not tire. He . . . having just shook the ground for no good reason except to be a spectacle, now sits on the stone. He sits there to mock it.” 

There’s something else humorous, here. Matthew mentions the guards . . . they are almost scared to death. “But the angel said to the women . . .” The angel didn’t even acknowledge the presence of the guards. He totally ignores them, instead, comforting the women, “Do not be afraid.” 

In Psalm 126, verse 5 says, “Those who sow in tears shall reap with shouts of joy!” Shortly before that, it says, in verse 3, “The LORD has done great things for us; we are glad.”  

“Our sowing is complete. Jesus lives. Let us reap in joy, our mouths filled with laughter, as the angel sits upon that stupid, weak, and lying stone.” Jesus has “sapped the devil of all his strength.”  

And here’s another thing. The devil has no accusations left. “He hurled every last one of them at the Christ, and the Christ has answered for all of them, and there are none left for us or for anyone. Jesus died to take them all away.” 

How glorious is that? Any accusation that the devil throws at me, at you, has already been answered!! We need not let them fester in our brains or in our hearts, for they have been answered, and we are free!  

Oh, how I needed to hear this good word, this morning! For my heart was truly downcast. Not because of Good Friday. I will not divulge the details of this, but simply say that I know, now that Christ has dealt with it, and the devil has no power over me. He tries to steal my joy; he tries to undo what God has done in the past two months. But he has no more power over me than that stone had over Jesus Christ!  

“Jesus has crushed his head. The devil has nothing left. He cannot speak. He cannot lie anymore. Jesus died, but Jesus lives. 

“The angel sits on the stone, looking like lightning, clothes as white as snow, laughing at the devil. The grave is open. It won’t hold Jesus. It won’t hold your loved ones who have departed with the sign of faith. It won’t hold you. Those who sow in tears, reap with joy.” 

Hallelujah! 

Father, I praise You that the devil has no power over me, and cannot do on bit of damage to destroy what You have done! He could not hold back the resurrection of Christ with a silly stone and a couple of puny temple guards! And he cannot undo the work You have done in me in the last two months. My faith is in Christ alone; my hope is in Christ alone; my joy is in Christ alone. My salvation, and my forgiveness, and my life, are all IN CHRIST! And nothing shall separate me from the Your love in Christ Jesus! Nothing!

Christ is EVERYTHING!

I thank You, Lord, for that nameless angel (Petersen hopes we will know his name, someday). I thank You for the attitude he displayed as he made an earthquake happen, coolly rolled that stone back up the hill, and sat on it, mocking the devil and his attempts to hold back the inevitable. Thank You for giving us a little fun in that account. After all, why should we not have fun when we are considering the most important event that has ever happened?

Mostly, though, I thank You that Jesus is alive! I know . . . I’m supposed to be “sad” today, along with all the other people who are pretending to be sad. But I’m not. I certainly do not make light of the suffering and death of Jesus. I believe that I acknowledge that sufficiently, last night. But Jesus is alive! He is not in the grave, waiting to be resurrected again, tomorrow.

He is alive!

Hallelujah!

He is not here,
for he has risen,
as he said.

Grace and peace, friends.

Soul Hunger

Jeff3 Comments

Today is Tuesday, the eighth day of April, 2025, in the fifth week of Lent.

May the peace of Christ surround you, today, and drive away all of your anxieties and fears.

Day 98 of 2025; 267 days left

Day 24,498 of my life

Only twelve more days until Resurrection Sunday. Lent is beginning to wind down. However, as Lent “winds down,” it really kind of “ramps up.” As we approach Palm Sunday, Lent gets serious. Next week is “Holy Week,” which includes Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Holy Saturday, known as the “Triduum.” Maundy Thursday is observed as the day of the Last Supper, also the night that Jesus washed the feet of His disciples. Good Friday is observed as the day that He was crucified. Holy Saturday is observed as the day that the disciples stayed in hiding, as Christ’s body lay in the grave.

This is the most somber time of the entire Church year, but ends with the biggest celebration of the Church year.

I can’t remember if I have mentioned this or not, so I will mention it today. I decided a couple days ago to give this Lenten season a name. It shall be known as “The Season that God DID!” Because He most certainly did, my brothers and sisters. He did miracles in me, and I’m not going to apologize for continuing to talk about it.

Today is a somewhat normal Tuesday, but not quite. C still works from home, but I will be at my usual four-hour shift at the library, this evening. I will say that I am currently talking with the circulation manager about possibly switching my every-other-Wednesday to a different day and time. She has suggested the possibility of every-other-Monday, instead, which I am certainly open to. We are going to talk further about it, this evening.

The reason for this is so that I can go to choir practice every week instead of having to miss every other week.

C is trying to not take any pain medication today. She’s doing okay, but feels stiff and aches some. But tomorrow is only five weeks from the date of her surgery. I think she’s doing great, for that length of time, and she really feels that way, as well. We’re going to go for a walk right after I finish this.

JESUS TIME

Oh, Lord, I praise You because You are God. You are mighty and compassionate. Your steadfast love never ceases. Your mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning. Great is Your faithfulness. Holy Spirit, remind me of these truths today as I seek to follow Your will. Remind me that You are good to those who wait for You, to the soul who seeks You. In every circumstance, let me have a thankful heart as I go about my daily tasks. Let Your light shine in me and through me onto everyone I meet today. May my praises glorify You alone. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 
(Portals of Prayer – Prayer for Tuesday Morning) 

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you.”  
(Matthew 17:20 ESV) 

Today I am grateful:

  • For this new day, fresh with Your new mercies, Lord 
  • That You are good to who wait for You and seek You 
  • For the gift of faith 
  • That You have given me a soft heart, filled with compassion; may I be faithful to display that to all, showing the same mercy that You have shown me in my life 
  • That You, O Lord, have remade me 

Lord our God, we thank you for revealing your rulership, which is for the good of each of us. Each one of us will become what we ought to be when our faith is united with your divine power. Protect this faith in us through every temptation and through all we have yet to endure in this earthly life. Free us again and again for one thing alone, that your kingdom may come into being within us and around us, to the praise and glory of the everlasting truth you have given us in Jesus Christ. Amen. 
(Daily Prayer from Plough) 

Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?

“Hear, O Israel:  
The LORD our God, the LORD is one.  
You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart  
and with all your soul and with all your might.  
And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.” 
(Deuteronomy 6:4-6 ESV) 

May I love all whose lives intersect my own, today. 
May I choose to serve rather than to be served, 
to be wounded rather than to wound, 
to bear patiently with the failings of others, 
extending them the same kindness, mercy, 
and compassion that You, O Lord, in Christ,  
have so graciously offered to me. 

May I seek to choose only that which pleases You, Lord. 
(Adapted from Every Moment Holy – A Liturgy of The Hours: Daybreak)

For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. For, being ignorant of the righteousness of God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.  
(Romans 10:2-4 ESV) 

But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith that we proclaim); because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. For the Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek; for the same Lord is Lord of all, bestowing his riches on all who call on him. For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”  
(Romans 10:8-13 ESV) 

He answered, “Whether he is a sinner I do not know. One thing I do know, that though I was blind, now I see.”  
(John 9:25 ESV) 

“O Lord, my God, Light of the blind and Strength of the weak; yea, also Light of those that see, and Strength of the strong; hearken unto my soul, and hear it crying out of the depths. 
“O Lord, help us to turn and seek Thee, for Thou hast not forsaken Thy creatures as we have forsaken Thee, our Creator. Let us turn and seek Thee, for we know Thou art here in our hearts, when we confess to Thee, when we cast ourselves upon Thee, and weep in Thy bosom, after all our rugged ways; and Thou dost gently wipe away our tears, and we weep the more for joy; because Thou, Lord, who madest us, dost remake and comfort us. 
“Hear, Lord, my prayer, and grant that I may most entirely love Thee, and do Thou rescue me, O Lord, from every temptation, even unto the end. Amen.” 
(For All the Saints – Tuesday of the Week of Lent 5, Closing Prayer, Augustine, Bishop of Hippo) 

I will bless the LORD at all times;  
his praise shall continually be in my mouth.  
(Psalms 34:1 ESV) 

I sought the LORD, and he answered me  
and delivered me from all my fears.  
Those who look to him are radiant,  
and their faces shall never be ashamed.  
This poor man cried, and the LORD heard him  
and saved him out of all his troubles.  
The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, 
 and delivers them.  
 
Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good!  
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!  
(Psalms 34:4-8 ESV) 

Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, 
 in whom there is no salvation.  
When his breath departs, he returns to the earth;  
on that very day his plans perish.  
 
The LORD will reign forever,  
your God, O Zion, to all generations.  
Praise the LORD! 
(Psalms 146:3-4, 10 ESV) 

These psalms really spoke to me, this morning, more than any of the other resources that I read. Psalm 34 is a favorite of mine, especially verse 8, because I have most certainly tasted and seen that the Lord is good! I have taken refuge in Him, and I am blessed.

But even more than this, today, I can say that I sought the Lord and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears. I have experienced this, personally. And, in actuality, I can even say that He delivered me even when I was not seeking Him! Okay, that is not 100% accurate. I was, in some way, seeking God.

By the time this miraculous event of 17 February occurred, I was, in fact, engaging in two “Jesus times” a day. I had already started having one in the morning and one in the evening, right before going to bed. And it was during the one on that Monday evening, that all of this started. I was “seeking God” during these times. But I was not seeking what I got, which turned out to be the shattering of walls and the shaking down to my foundations of faith.

The deliverance from fear happened a bit later, probably a couple of weeks. And I wasn’t seeking that. I was simply having my morning Jesus time when it happened.

So, yes, I sought the Lord, and He answered me and delivered me from all my fears, even though that wasn’t exactly what I was seeking.

And I know that His angels have encamped around me ever since. Or angel. I don’t know how many there are, because He hasn’t shown them to me. To be honest, I’m not sure I want to see it/them. I say, sometimes, that I want to see an angel. But then I remember that, pretty much ever time one appears to a human in Scripture, the first thing it has to say is “Don’t be afraid.” Which tells me that the appearance of an angel must be pretty frightening.

Anyway, because of these truths, because of what I have experienced, and continue to experience, I can echo verse 1 of Psalm 34. “I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.” And I can continuously proclaim that I have tasted and seen that He is good!

One other word, this morning, though, from New Morning Mercies, by Paul David Tripp. (This will be the evangelistic portion of today’s message.)

“God uses the picture of physical food to point to universal spiritual hunger. Life is all about what we look to to fill us.” 

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters;  
and he who has no money, come, buy and eat!  
Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.  
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread,  
and your labor for that which does not satisfy?  
Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good,  
and delight yourselves in rich food.  
Incline your ear, and come to me;  
hear, that your soul may live;  
and I will make with you an everlasting covenant,  
my steadfast, sure love for David. 
 Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples,  
a leader and commander for the peoples.  
Behold, you shall call a nation that you do not know,  
and a nation that did not know you shall run to you, 
 because of the LORD your God,  
and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you.  
 
“Seek the LORD while he may be found;  
call upon him while he is near;  
let the wicked forsake his way,  
and the unrighteous man his thoughts;  
let him return to the LORD,  
that he may have compassion on him,  
and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon. “ 
(Isaiah 55:1-7 ESV) 

Everyone knows what it is like to be hungry. Some are in that state perpetually. We also know what it is like to eat a meal that does not satisfy. But here, we are reminded of the fact that there is a deeper hunger within us than physical hunger. There is a deep hunger of the soul, longing to be filled. Everyone, at some point in their lives, works to fill this soul-hunger. 

And there are “only two banquet tables from which you can eat: the costly, unsatisfying table of the physical world or the soul-satisfying table of the Lord of abundant mercy and grace.” God asks us, via the prophet Isaiah, “Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy?”  

And that is the question, indeed. What will you spend your money and energy on? Obviously, we have to have real, physical food. And that is not the point. The point is where we will go to fill our souls. And if you are going anywhere but Jesus, you are wasting time, energy, and your life.

Father, I praise You for the deliverance that You have provided in my life. I thank You that, because of Your great mercy and grace, I have tasted and seen that You are good. Not only have I tasted, but I continue to taste, every day. You are continuing to feed me with Your Word, and then on Sundays, with the blessed Sacrament. I rejoice in this feeding, Lord, and pray that I will never stop coming to You for my “food.”

I thank You for the angel (or angels) that encamp around me and protect/deliver me, Lord. I pray for Your continued deliverance in my life, that this will not stop. I don’t ever want to get used to this, or let it become passe. May it never be! I want to continue to experience every morning’s fresh, new mercies, and that they will never get stale to me.

I thank You for the people in my life who have guided me and encouraged me and supported me through this. And I pray that, when the time is right, that I will be able to guide, encourage, and support someone else through the same (or similar) growth in Christ.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. To him be the power forever and ever. Amen.
(1 Peter 5:10-11 NRSV)

Grace and peace, friends.

Waiting

Jeff

Today is Saturday, the 30th day of March, 2024, in Holy Week, the final week of Lent. It is the final day of the Lenten Season.

May the peace of Christ dwell within you today!

Day 24,124

Resurrection Sunday is tomorrow. But today is the darkest day of the Church calendar. Last night, as our Good Friday service ended in darkness and silence, we left Jesus in the sealed tomb. Today, we wait.

I’m actually glad, as I shared with my pastor last night, that I am scheduled to work today, as it keeps me occupied, and I won’t be sitting around at home with nothing to do.

The service last night was beautiful but gut-wrenching. I wasn’t quite as torn up as last year, because I knew what was coming. And I was doing pretty well until they started turning lights out. S did go with me, which was great. I didn’t warn her, though, about the slamming shut of the missal at the end, and that startled her. And when the choir exited the sanctuary, after everyone else was gone, she was in tears in the narthex. So we hugged real good for a minute before I went to take my robe off.

The music for the service was beautiful, as well. As the altar was being stripped at the end, the string quartet was playing “O the Deep, Deep Love of Jesus,” one of my favorite hymn tunes. I will share that when the video becomes available.

Speaking of videos, here is the video of just the choir piece from Maundy Thursday. I know I share the whole service, yesterday, but this is just the choir piece.

JESUS TIME

Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; 
according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.
Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.
For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.
Against you, you only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.
Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
Hide your face from my sins and blot out all my iniquity.
Create in me a pure heart, O God, 
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
Do not cast me from your presence or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation 
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.
(Based on Psalm 51)
Spirit of God, 
let Your light pierce the darkness of our lives. We rest in You today, waiting patiently for the resurrection that we know – we can feel – is coming. Take the burdens we bear and transform them as Jesus transformed the Cross into salvation. Let tonight be the first stirring of our new lives to walk (and remain walking) in the holy will of Christ.
 It is in Your good and holy Name we pray, amen.
(Prayer for Holy Saturday, Psalm91.com)
Lord Jesus Christ, on this day, You rested in the tomb and thus transformed our graves into a place of sleep from which we shall awaken at Your return. As we labor and live under the burden of the curse in this fallen world, grant that we may always seek and find our rest in You. You alone can bring us true peace and contentment and relief, for You live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Prayer for Holy Saturday)
We put our hope in the LORD. 
He is our help and our shield. 
In him our hearts rejoice, 
for we trust in his holy name. 
Let your unfailing love surround us,
 LORD, for our hope is in you alone.
(Psalms 33:20-22 NLT)

Today I am grateful:

  • that my hope is in the Lord alone; He is my help and my shield, and I trust in His holy Name
  • for the beautiful Good Friday service, last night, and that, even though it ended in darkness and silence, hope remains, and the darkness shall not prevail over the Light
  • that we may find our rest in Jesus Christ and His life
  • for the glory of the Lord, more majestic than the mountains
  • for the steadfast love of the Lord, reaching beyond the heavens

“Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
(John 1:29 NRSV)

O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; 
and by night, but find no rest. 

But you, O LORD, do not be far away! 
O my help, come quickly to my aid! 
Deliver my soul from the sword, 
my life from the power of the dog! 
Save me from the mouth of the lion! 

From the horns of the wild oxen you have rescued me. 
I will tell of your name to my brothers and sisters; 
in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: 
You who fear the LORD, praise him! 
All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him; 
stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel! 
(Psalms 22:2,19-23 NRSV)
Now there was a good and righteous man named Joseph, who, though a member of the council, had not agreed to their plan and action. He came from the Jewish town of Arimathea, and he was waiting expectantly for the kingdom of God. This man went to Pilate and asked for the body of Jesus. Then he took it down, wrapped it in a linen cloth, and laid it in a rock-hewn tomb where no one had ever been laid. It was the day of Preparation, and the sabbath was beginning. The women who had come with him from Galilee followed, and they saw the tomb and how his body was laid. Then they returned, and prepared spices and ointments. 

On the sabbath they rested according to the commandment.
(Luke 23:50-56 NRSV)

Then Joseph bought a linen cloth, and taking down the body, wrapped it in the linen cloth, and laid it in a tomb that had been hewn out of the rock. He then rolled a stone against the door of the tomb. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of Joses saw where the body was laid.
(Mark 15:46-47 NRSV)

“Though we may find ourselves with dwindling hope, we have a perfect example in Christ Jesus, who hoped that all things would work for the good of God – and His hope was perfectly fulfilled when His blood was shed for the sins of all time and space. Christ Jesus still hopes – since it is the Father alone who knows the day of His return – that there will be a day where there is no more hunger or thirst or pain or suffering, and when every tear is wiped away.”

"O God, our Heavenly Father, 
as the sun begins to set this evening, we can already hear the drums, the cymbals, and the lyres making a joyful noise to the God who defeats death. Though we are about to enter into the feast which knows no law, teach us in the coming days to strive after Prudence, Justice, Courage, and Temperance. Teach us to treasure in our hearts the faith You have given us, the Hope You have promised us, and above all the love that lasts into eternity. To You, O God, who raised Your Son from the Dead, who sent the Holy Spirit to guide the Church, be all glory now and forever. 
Amen."
(Spiritual Contemplation of Christs Suffering, Holy Saturday)

“For all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
(Luke 14:11 NRSV)

“Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven. “So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.”
(Matthew 6:1-4 NRSV)

In Judah God is known, his name is great in Israel. 
His abode has been established in Salem, 
his dwelling place in Zion.
 There he broke the flashing arrows, 
the shield, the sword, and the weapons of war. 
[Selah] 

Glorious are you, 
more majestic than the everlasting mountains. 
The stouthearted were stripped of their spoil; 
they sank into sleep; 
none of the troops was able to lift a hand. 
At your rebuke, O God of Jacob, 
both rider and horse lay stunned. 

But you indeed are awesome! 
Who can stand before you when once your anger is roused? 
From the heavens you uttered judgment; 
the earth feared and was still 
when God rose up to establish judgment, 
to save all the oppressed of the earth. 
[Selah] 

Human wrath serves only to praise you, 
when you bind the last bit of your wrath around you.
 Make vows to the LORD your God, and perform them; 
let all who are around him bring gifts 
to the one who is awesome, 
who cuts off the spirit of princes, 
who inspires fear in the kings of the earth.
(Psalms 76:1-12 NRSV)
Lord, grant us to find our rest in You, that we may share in Your life forever. In Jesus' name. Amen.
(Portals of Prayer, Holy Saturday)

Father, again I have no words to add to the Scripture readings for this day. None are necessary. We wait, along with the disciples of Jesus. But we wait with more hope than they, because we know the end of the story. They did not. I pray that our faith is strengthened during these days, as we wait, not for Christ’s resurrection, as that has already happened, but for His return. We are tempted, Father, to allow our hope to wane because it has been so long. We see world situations becoming increasingly fragile and hostile. And yet Jesus tarries. But He tarries at Your command, as You alone know the day and the hour of His return.

May we wait faithfully, Father, and while waiting, be faithful to share Your Good News with the world around us. Let us not become distracted by politics and worldly “causes” as we wait. The Good News is that Your kingdom is here, now, available for anyone to walk in because of Jesus Christ and His life, death, burial, and resurrection. 

"Forsaken God, 
you really did die. The cross was no theater or mere metaphor; you weren't whisked away badly injured yet alive. You set out to save, and you went all the way to death, fulfilling God's justice and truth, fully paying for my sin. And so today, between the cross and the resurrection, I wait for your salvation to dawn again in my life. 
Amen."
(Seeking God's Face - Holy Saturday)
"Worthy is the Lamb that was slaughtered 
to receive power and wealth 
and wisdom and might 
and honor and glory and blessing!"
(Revelation 5:12 NRSV)
Lord, in Your mercy, hear, now, the prayers lifted up to you for all who need strength, healing, comfort, and peace. 

If you are reading this, I encourage you to stop and pray for someone, at this time. Or, if there is something on your heart, please leave a comment. What can I pray for you?
Wait for the LORD; 
be strong, and let your heart take courage; 
wait for the LORD!
(Psalms 27:14 NRSV)

Grace and peace, friends.

What If . . .

Jeff5 Comments

Today is Saturday, the eighth of April, 2023, in Holy Week. Today is Holy Saturday, perhaps the saddest day on the Church calendar.

Nevertheless, I pray that the peace of Christ can find you and hold you today.

Day 23,767

My Wordle score for today:

Wordle 658 3/6*

🟨🟩⬛⬛⬛
⬛🟩🟩⬛⬛
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩

Current streak – 19; yesterday’s word was “locus.” I feel somewhat lucky that I guessed that.

Nathan Eovaldi had a good start, yesterday, but the bats failed to show up, so the Texas Rangers lost to the Chicago Cubs 2-0. This puts the Rangers at 4-3 for the season, and they are still tied for first place with the LA Angels, in the AL West. The will play the Cubs again, this afternoon, in Chicago, at 3:05 CT. Martin Perez will start for Texas.

The Boston Red Sox did not play yesterday, and will continue their series with the Detroit Tigers, this afternoon at 4:10 ET, in Detroit. Tanner Houck will start for Boston.

Could someone please beat Tampa Bay today?? They continue their winning streak of seven games, now, and are atop MLB with their 7-0 record. The St. Louis Cardinals now have the longest losing streak, at four games. However, the Washington Nationals and KC Royals are tied with the worst record, at 2-6. The Rays also still have the best run differential, at +35, and the Tigers and Athletics are tied with the worst, at -23.

Now that the trivialities are out of the way . . .

Today is Mama’s birthday! So it’s not going to be the saddest day, here. While the attitude of the season will remain in our minds, we will be celebrating today. We plan to go to Hoffbrau Steakhouse for lunch, and then take a trip to the local Half-Price Book store. There will, I’m sure, be both selling and buying of books. Then there will be cake. The cake is not a lie. Strawberry cake, lovingly prepared by C, my wife, yesterday. It looks delicious. We also have a ton (not literally, but perhaps almost) of wonderful snacks that were delivered in a care package, yesterday, sent from R and J, in Indianapolis. There were gigantic carrot cake muffins, some chocolate chunk cookies, some “Girl Scout Thin Mint Pretzels” (who knew such a wonderful thing existed???), the biggest box of raisins I have ever seen, and some berry tarts.

Happy birthday to Mama!!

Last night, I experienced the most moving worship service I have ever experienced in my sixty-five years. The Good Friday service at Living Word Lutheran Church was unlike anything I have ever seen. I can’t really describe it, so here is the video of it, if you care to watch. I was part of the choir, and we sang a cantata (or most of it . . . we omitted the final song, because it was a resurrection song). There were several moments that I found myself unable to sing, due to emotions. If you don’t care to watch the whole hour, perhaps you would like to scroll forward to about 54 minutes, and simply watch the end. I was already pretty much an emotional wreck, but the way it ended did me in.

I’m pretty sure I cried for at least half of my twenty-minute trip home. During part of that, I was expressing my shame and unworthiness to Jesus. A friend on Facebook said these words: “Did you ever feel so loved and simultaneously so deeply grieved by how much you don’t deserve even the tiniest fraction of it?”

JESUS TIME

I long for your salvation, O LORD, 
and your law is my delight.
(Psalms 119:174 NRSV)

Daily Prayer from Plough.com

Lord our God, we thank you for revealing your rulership, which is for the good of each of us. Each one of us will become what we ought to be when our faith is united with your divine power. Protect this faith in us through every temptation and through all we have yet to endure in this earthly life. Free us again and again for one thing alone, that your kingdom may come into being within us and around us, to the praise and glory of the everlasting truth you have given us in Jesus Christ. Amen.

He said to them, “Because of your little faith. For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.”
(Matthew 17:20 NRSV)

Today I am grateful:

  • for the gravity of the Good Friday service experienced last night
  • that today’s followers of Christ don’t have to experience the fear and sorrow that Jesus’s disciples felt on that Saturday between the crucifixion and the resurrection
  • that the darkness of Good Friday will soon be overcome by the Light of Resurrection Day
  • that all of our “what ifs” are answered in Christ
  • for the anticipation of tomorrow’s communion
LOVE TO JESUS

LORD JESUS,
If I love thee my soul shall seek thee,
but can I seek the unless my love to thee is kept alive to this end?
Do I love thee because thou art good,
and canst alone do me good?
It is fitting thou shouldst not regard me,
for I am vile and selfish;
yet I seek thee,
and when I find thee there is no wrath to devour me,
but only sweet love.
Thou dost stand as a rock between the scorching sun and my soul,
and I live under the cool lee-side as one elect.
When my mind acts without thee
it spins nothing but deceit and delusion;
When my affections act without thee
nothing is seen but dead works.
O how I need thee to abide in me,
for I have no natural eyes to see thee,
but I live by faith in one whose face to me
is brighter than a thousand suns!
When I see that all sin is in me,
all shame belongs to me;
let me know that all good is in thee,
all glory is thine.
Keep me from the error of thinking thou dost appear gloriously
when some strange light fills my heart,
as if that were the glorious activity of grace,
but let me see that the truest revelation of thyself
is when thou dost eclipse all my personal glory
and all the honour, pleasure and good of this world.
The Son breaks out in glory
when he shows himself as one who outshines all creation,
makes men poor in spirit,
and helps them to find their good in him.
Grant that I may distrust myself,
to see my all in thee.
(From The Valley of Vision)
O my strength, I will watch for you; 
for you, O God, are my fortress.
(Psalms 59:9 NRSV)
As a father has compassion for his children, 
so the LORD has compassion for those who fear him.
(Psalms 103:13 NRSV)
O LORD, who may abide in your tent? 
Who may dwell on your holy hill? 
Those who walk blamelessly, 
and do what is right, 
and speak the truth from their heart; 
who do not slander with their tongue,
 and do no evil to their friends, 
nor take up a reproach against their neighbors; 
in whose eyes the wicked are despised, 
but who honor those who fear the LORD; 
who stand by their oath even to their hurt; 
who do not lend money at interest, 
and do not take a bribe against the innocent. 
Those who do these things shall never be moved.
(Psalms 15:1-5 NRSV)
Lord, have mercy on us
Christ, have mercy on us
Lord, have mercy on us

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 and ever. Amen.
"O God,
whose blessed Son made himself known 
to his disciples in the breaking of bread:
Open the eyes of my faith,
that I may behold him in all his redeeming work;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God,
now and for ever.
Amen."
(The Divine Hours--The Prayer Appointed for the Week)

First of all you must understand this, that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and indulging their own lusts and saying, “Where is the promise of his coming? For ever since our ancestors died, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation!”
(2 Peter 3:3-4 NRSV)

And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid." 
Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."
(Matthew 14:25-33 NRSV)

for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
(Philippians 2:13 NRSV)

So many “what ifs.”

I have asked that question so many times in my life . . . what if, what if, what if?

It shouldn’t be difficult to imagine what was going through the minds of Jesus’s disciples on this day, the darkest day in history.

The sun went dark for three hours while Jesus hung on the cross. It did return, but the darkness remained, if not literally, then figuratively.

I wonder what they thought. Scripture is purposefully silent about that day. All we know is that, after they ran away when He was arrested (we do know that John and Peter followed after the mob), and after He was crucified, they gathered in the Upper Room, huddled together in fear.

Did they all believe that all hope was lost? Or did some of them, at least, remember what He had promised them, that He would, in fact, rise from the dead?

What if? What if this was all just a sham? What if He wasn’t really the Son of God? What if He wasn’t really the Messiah? What if we have wasted three years of our lives, and gotten the religious leaders all angry with us?

What if He is really dead, and all hope is gone?

Father, I have had many such thoughts in my head and heart, over the years. I confess that I have doubted, just as Jesus’s disciples must have doubted on that day. Because I am no less human than they were. They walked with Jesus for three years, constantly, and still they doubted; still they seemed to have lost hope. I am certainly no better than they.

But You have always come through. You, Father, are faithful, and will do what You say You will do. In spite of my doubts, I have also experienced this truth. So doubts are quickly dispelled. You have put brothers and sisters around me, always, that support me (just as I will also support them). There have always been people in my life who have held me up and reminded me of Your promises, Your grace, Your mercy, and, above all, Your love for us.

It is no different now. What is different, though, is that doubts are fewer. Sure there are still questions, there always will be, because I am still looking at this cloudy mirror, or through a dirty window. Someday, I will see my Savior, face-to-face, and there will never be doubts again. How I long for that day.

Until then, I will dwell in the country of what-if, but walk in Your kingdom, living by faith, and not allowing (hopefully) the what-ifs to distract me.

Even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus!

O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world, 
have mercy upon us.
O Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us.
O, Lamb of God, that takes away the sins of the world,
grant us Your peace.
(Agnus Dei)

Grace and peace, friends.

Wait; Hope; Be Still and Know

“If the word God or the experience of God is tribalized or nationalized or privatized, it is falsified. A packaged god is no god at all.”

Jeff

Today is Holy Saturday, the sixteenth of April, 2022, in the sixth week of Lent.

May the peace of Christ flood your soul today.

Day 23,410

Yesterday certainly didn’t feel like a day off work for either of us. But it was a good day. We picked up C’s friend (that she used to work with) at 11:30, and headed over to Posada’s for lunch. We had a great lunch, along with some great conversation, mostly M and C catching up on things. Then we went to the funeral, which was a great celebration of a good man’s life. A couple of his family members gave a great eulogy of his life and their experiences with him. The family was huge. There were more family members there than non-family members.

I intended to compliment the pianist who played, but didn’t get a chance to. He was very good, and during the prelude to the funeral, he launched into a minor-key variation of “Rock of Ages” that was phenomenal!

After the funeral, we took M home, then went to Tom Thumb, nearby, because I had accidentally ordered the wrong kind of fruit for my fruit pizza that I was planning to make to take to work today. We bought some other stuff while we were there, including some flavors of Nick’s ice cream that we had never seen before. I wish our Albertson’s carried more of those flavors!

I made the fruit pizza, and while I was putting all that together, C made our regular pizzas for dinner. I did not attend the Good Friday service, as I had already decided while we were on our way home from the funeral. There was no way I could have done it, after everything else. We watched one episode of a British series called Vexed (we are in season 2 of 2). Then we watched the Rangers almost beat the Angels. I say “almost,” because at one point they were ahead 6-2, but then gave up 5 runs in the very next inning, and 2 more later, to lose 9-6. In Boston’s home opener, the Twins beat the Red Sox 8-4.

The Rangers play the Angels again today, at 6:05 CDT, with Taylor Hearn taking the mound. The Sox play the Twins again, at 4:10 EDT, with Tanner Houck taking the mound for Boston.

I will be working from 9:30-6:15 today. We will be gathering at our house church in the morning, and we need to pick up some supplies for the Supper so we can have communion together.

JESUS TIME

"O God, Creator of heaven and earth: Grant that, as the crucified body of your dear Son was laid in the tomb and rested on this holy Sabbath, so we may await with him the coming of the third day, and rise with him to newness of life; who now lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen."
(The Book of Common Prayer, Collect for Holy Saturday)

“Know,” by Daryl Madden

I heard a soft whisper
Here, surrounding me
With peace in the quiet
Of simply to “be”

What should I do?
Surrender my will?
A comforting Word
Just simply “be still”

A rising desire
Of wisdom bestow
A simple lesson
“Be still and know”

What should I know?
To simply be awed
“Be still and know
That I am your God”

A prayer of perfection
This dialog shows
With patience and grace
His love overflows

I love this treatment of Psalm 46:10, one of my favorite verses. This my prayer, this morning, that, in all of my life, I could “be still and know.” Please support this poet by checking out his other poems at the link provided.

But those who wait upon GOD get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, They run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind.
(Isaiah 40:31 MSG)

Today I am grateful:

1. for the celebrations of life that this weekend brings
2. for Easter cookies
3. for hugs and the warmth that being loved can bring
4. for waiting, because it makes us trust in You while we are waiting
5. for the potential in my life to be stretched, as I look for new challenges, new people, and new experiences

The prayer word for today is “warmth.” The context appears to be that of being loved, and the need for human touch in our lives.

“The consciousness of loving and being loved brings a warmth and richness to life that nothing else can bring.” ~ Oscar Wilde

The writer of the reading, Carolyn, speaks of her husband and his habit of hugging. I, too, am a hugger. I love giving hugs; I love receiving hugs. Hugs bring a warmth to one, that is almost indescribable. “For me,” says Carolyn, “warmth equates to love, contentment, and safety.”

I once felt as though I had received a hug from God. I will cherish that moment for all of my days, as I have never felt anything else like it.

(From Pray a Word a Day)

Father, may I not fail to give out warmth today, in the form of love and acceptance toward those around me. I pray that I might display Your great love toward others, as I walk through my day. Let them see it on my face; let them feel it radiating from me. And maybe there might be a hug or two, as well.

As his body was taken away, the women from Galilee followed and saw the tomb where his body was placed. Then they went home and prepared spices and ointments to anoint his body. But by the time they were finished the Sabbath had begun, so they rested as required by the law.
(Luke 23:55-56 NLT)

There are some very wise words, in today’s Guideposts reading, written by Logan Eliasen. “Waiting means acknowledging events aren’t under our control.” That made me do a double-take. He’s right, you know. When you are waiting for something, you do not have control over that thing, at that moment in time.

Last night, I had to wait a couple of times. First, I had to wait while the cookie dough cooked (for my fruit pizza). Then I had to wait for it to cool, before I could spread the cream cheese mixture over it. During those times of waiting, there was nothing I could do to speed things up. Those events were completely and utterly out of my control.

But then, Logan brings it home. “But waiting doesn’t mean events are out of control.” (emphasis mine) “Because, ultimately, God is in control.”

So simple, so true, and so profound.

I wait for the LORD, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; my soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen for the morning, more than watchmen for the morning.
(Psalms 130:5-6 ESV)

The LORD is good to those who wait for him, to the soul who seeks him.
(Lamentations 3:25 ESV)

(From Daily Guideposts 2022)

Father, help me to be a better “wait-er.” I don’t like waiting. Logan is right. It means that, while I’m waiting, I have no control over the thing for which I am waiting. Tom was also right. The waiting is the hardest part. I’ve waited for test results before. I remember struggle to sleep, while waiting on test results that would not be delivered in less than two weeks. That was excruciating, because I had no control over it; I had no control over the outcome. But, what I do have control over is my trust in You while I am waiting. Help me to trust in You when I have no control over things in my own life. Help me to only “worry” about things over which I have control, which is not much. I trust in You, Father. My times are in Your hands.

“If the word God or the experience of God is tribalized or nationalized or privatized, it is falsified. A packaged god is no god at all. This fact is not always easy to live with.”

Read that again. I will wait.

This is a serious issue, and the modern church (institution) in the USA is really struggling with this. Getting it to admit that struggle would be an entirely different thing.

“Our tendency, most of the time,” says Peterson, “is to reduce God to the dimensions of our lives and make him the custodian of our comforts. We get a piece of the gospel that makes us feel good, and we decide to specialize in that part, leaving out everything else.”

But if we want to be a “real church,” we can’t disregard others, as we like to do when we create our little like-minded groups and exclude others from them. (I’m stomping on my own toes, here, folks.)

“We have to reach out, letting our lives be stretched with new challenges, new people, and new experiences.”

(From On Living Well, by Eugene H. Peterson)

Father, I pray that You help us to not be guilty of reducing You and Your truth to the “dimensions of our lives.” I pray that we not be guilty of just hanging out with like-minded people and excluding others. I confess that this is very difficult. We get too comfortable, and we want to stay that way. Help me to stretch myself, as I walk in Your kingdom, and as I walk through this world. May the rest of this year be a benchmark year for me, Father. I am fully aware of what I am asking for. Well, maybe I’m not. Maybe I’m not aware at all, because I have no idea what is coming. But I am willing to wait for You and to watch for Your hand in my life as You move and act.

Even so, come, Lord Jesus!

As we move toward Resurrection Sunday, may we patiently wait for God, considering what the disciples endured during these couple of days that must have seemed like an eternity to them, having lost all hope. May we not lose hope; may we believe!

Grace and peace, friends.

Hope

Jeff

Today is Holy Saturday, April 11, 2020. Peace be with you!

Day 22,675

Resurrection Sunday is tomorrow.

Yesterday was quite busy at work. Between working the unreceivables and my new task with SOS/Expedites, I was hustling pretty much all day. At the end of the day, though, it felt like it had been a good day.

I think I forgot to mention that our company bought us lunch Thursday. And while the first batch of us were eating (we can’t all eat at the same time, due to the “social distancing” rules), our manager told us that, as long as this was going on, lunch was on him one day a week. I have to admit I was shocked by that. Pleasantly, of course. I will probably miss the next “free lunch” (TANSTAAFL, remember), as I will be on PTO Thursday and Friday. While we have decided not to travel over the next weekend, we are still taking the vacation days.

We will have our weekly virtual WW workshop on Zoom in a little while. I’m not sure, yet, what weight I will report on the WW app, as I will wait until at least 10:00 to get dressed and weigh. But my “at home” loss over the past three months is 32.6 pounds! I’m also very close to a “benchmark.” Today, I weigh 302.8. I’m so close! I haven’t been under 300 pounds since 2013.

TODAY’S DEVOTIONAL AND PRAYERS

Before I get into the daily Scripture readings from The Divine Hours and other sources, I want to remind us of the fact that this day represents the single most hopeless day in all of history. Day or days, depending on your theory of when Jesus was actually crucified. While I observe it on Good Friday, I don’t see any logical way He could have died on Friday. There is no way to make the math work. But that’s a subject for another conversation. Today, I want to focus on what the disciples’ reality was on this day.

It is Saturday, the day before the Resurrection. Judas has already hung himself out of guilt over what he has done. The other eleven (and possibly more, as indicated in Luke 24.9 (the women returned and told “the eleven and all the rest”), were, apparently, in hiding somewhere. We aren’t really sure where, I don’t think, but it might be safe to assume that they were in the “upper room” where they had the last supper with Jesus. Can you pause today, for a few moments, and try to “get into their heads?” What might they have been thinking as they huddled together, in lockdown, in those days between the crucifixion and when Mary burst in to tell them the Good News?

Again, I say that this day must have been the most hopeless day in the history of mankind.

Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the LORD!
(Psalms 31:24 ESV)

Today I am grateful:
1. To be seeing the faces of people in my Weight Watchers community on Zoom.
2. For the promise of hope, even when we feel hopeless.
3. That my times are in Your hand; all of them! (Psalm 31.15)
4. That Jesus has broken down any barriers that hinder us from seeking the Father.
5. That the mystery and terror of death are made bearable by Jesus.

In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me; incline your ear to me, and save me!
(Psalms 71:2 ESV)

O LORD, I am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant. You have loosed my bonds. My times are in your hand.
(Psalms 116:16; 31:15 ESV)

I had said in my alarm, “I am cut off from your sight.” But you heard the voice of my pleas for mercy when I cried to you for help.
(Psalms 31:22 ESV)

Since it was the day of Preparation, and so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), the Jews asked Pilate that their legs might be broken and that they might be taken away. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe. For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”
After these things Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.
(John 19:31-42 ESV)

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David.
In you, O LORD, do I take refuge; let me never be put to shame; in your righteousness deliver me! Incline your ear to me; rescue me speedily! Be a rock of refuge for me, a strong fortress to save me! For you are my rock and my fortress; and for your name’s sake you lead me and guide me; you take me out of the net they have hidden for me, for you are my refuge. Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O LORD, faithful God.
(Psalms 31:1-5 ESV)

Glory be to God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, so it is now and so it shall ever be, world without end. Alleluia. Amen.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Your Name. May Your kingdom come, and Your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for Yours are the kingdom and the power and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

“Almighty God, who through your only-begotten Son Jesus Christ overcame death and opened to us the gate of everlasting life: Grant that I, who celebrate with joy the day of the Lord’s resurrection, may be raised from the death of sin by your life-giving Spirit; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.”
(The Divine Hours, The Prayer Appointed for the Week)

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.
(Hebrews 10:19-25 ESV)

“Jesus has completely eliminated any barriers that might hinder anyone seeking access to God–even our sin (10:17). Just as the temple curtain was torn in two at the moment of Christ’s death (Matthew 27:50-51), His crucified body has torn away all obstructions to God’s presence. There’s no barrier that need separate any believer from experiencing the glory and love of the living God.”
(Lisa M. Samra, Our Daily Bread)

Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews.
(John 19:39-40 ESV)

Let my prayer be counted as incense before you, and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!
(Psalms 141:2 ESV)

Oil and perfume make the heart glad, and the sweetness of a friend comes from his earnest counsel.
(Proverbs 27:9 ESV)

Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love. Like your name, O God, your praise reaches to the ends of the earth; your right hand is filled with righteousness. Mount Zion rejoices, the villages of Judah are glad because of your judgments. Walk about Zion, go around her, count her towers, consider well her ramparts, view her citadels, that you may tell of them to the next generation. For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.
(Psalms 48:9-14 NIV)

According to John 2.21, Jesus is our true “temple,” and “when we unite with him by faith we receive his Spirit and become a living temple in which God dwells” (see Ephesians 2.19-22).

When we “count her towers” (verse 12), we “thank God for the church and joyfully wonder at what [we] have become in Christ.” Then we can show generations to come the way to enjoy life in Christ, in the kingdom of heaven.

Verse 14 says that Jesus will be our guide “even to the end.” The end of what? Indeed, we see many “endings” in our lives, and the greatest of these is death. “Its mystery and terror are made bearable by the knowledge that Jesus will be with us, into death and out the other side.”

“Lord, I need to be melted by spiritual understanding of the greatness of what we have become in you. We are your flock, your dwelling, your body, your kingdom, your people, your love. Teach me how to love your church and fully participate in its life and mission. Amen.”
(From The Songs of Jesus, by Timothy and Kathy Keller)

Father, as we sit at home on this day when the disciples were huddled together in despair, with no apparent hope to lead them on, may You appear to us, just as You did to them on the next day. Show us Your grace and Your power as we depend on You to get us through these dark, uncertain times. Make the mystery and terror bearable to us, and help us to clear our minds of anything that would hinder us from worshiping and loving You.

May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 2 Peter 1.2

Grace and peace, friends.