Advent Day 18

From my daily advent reading:

Thank you, God, that even when I feel empty and dry, I know that the springs of joy are there, buried deep within me. I ask you to tap those springs now, release them, and carry me away on their fullness

Thank you, O God, for joy.
  Joy that overcomes all else.
    Joy that is more powerful than the darkest powers.
      Joy that is more abundant than the waters in the seas.
        Joy that is mine.

This spoke to me this morning.

And some random things I've learned and experienced lately.

Every night before going to sleep, I read a section of the Common English New Testament on my Kindle. I'm in ACTS. I've been reading about Paul's evangelism and how he made as many people mad enough to kill him as he brought to salvation.  Paul was concerned about the Jewish Christians who wanted Gentile Christians to obey all the old Hebrew Laws (like circumcision).  Paul and some buddies came up with the basic things Christians need to do; are you ready?

ACTS 15:28-29: The Holy Spirit has led us to the decision that no burden should be placed on you other than these essentials: refuse food offered to idols, blood, the meat from strangled animals, and sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid such things. Farewell.

That's a lot easier than the big ten, don't you think?

At the Beth Moore Bible Study I've been going to, I learned the power of the spoken word. Praying out loud has a spiritual power that doesn't exist in silent prayer. She quoted from these scriptures; I can't say which ones are actually relevant to the power of speech.  But if you want to look them up, here they are: Joshua 1:8, Proverbs 18:21, Numbers 13:31-32 & 14:1-4 & 14:20-23, John 15:7-8, Romans 10: 8-10, Matthew 17:19-20 and Psalms 18:19.

Meanwhile, back to joy... Yesterday was Elder Day of Homecoming Spirit Week.  Elder Day, really?  I went as myself but I wore pearls and put my hair up in a bun.

In my last class of the day, a boy asked me, "Mrs. Perry, are you trying to look old?"

"Well, I'm not really trying, but yeah."

"I don't think you look old.  You never look old.  Except for maybe the pearls."

He nailed it and showered on me both emotional and spiritual joy.

Advent Day 8

Week 2 - Today we light the candle of Peace.

Or we would be lighting it if we were having church.  Another snow storm blew through our area on Thursday. The problem isn't really the snow but the snow melting a bit during the day and then freezing at night becoming a sheet of ice instead of soft, lovely snow.


It got down to 1 degree on Friday night which is very cold to those of us in Southwest Oklahoma. A congregant from North Dakota commented, "Y'all never would go to church if you lived in North Dakota."

So today I've read my first day of the second week of advent devotion and am drinking my coffee out of my Peace coffee cup.

The scripture in today's devotion comes from Isaiah and includes these verses:

The wolf shall live with the lamb,
     the leopard shall lie down with the kid,
the calf and the lion and the fatling together
     and a little child shall lead them.

Isaiah 11:6

I am very literal minded and have always read this scripture literally. It paints a beautiful picture of natural enemies in the animal world living in peace together.  But today my concrete mind cracked a bit, moved outside the box and wondered, could these animals be symbolic?  Be wary of wolves in sheep's clothing.  Some people are bold as lions while others are timid as kids.  People as different as these animals can live in peace together when they are led by the Christ child.

One of my favorite hymns is the peace song:

Let There Be Peace on Earth.

Click on the title to view a sing-along version on YouTube.

Things that make you go "Hmmmm..."

(Luke 12:51) - "Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth? I tell you, no, but rather division."  (New American Standard Bible, 1995)

(John 16:33) - "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace..."  (New American Standard Bible, 1995)

So did Jesus come to bring peace or not?  I'd say He brings peace to those who want it.  Sometimes you've got to shake things up first.  Get people to decide what is important and what is truth. And finally, the peace Jesus brings is not of this world.

John 14:27 - “Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful."  (American Standard Bible, 1995)

Advent Day 3

I love today's scripture verse.

Last night at Bible Study, Beth Moore (on DVD) taught about taking up the shield of faith and wielding the sword of God's word. A war is coming, the church will be tested and refined. Oh boy! I can hardly wait!

I found these words comforting:

Come let us go up to the mountain of the Lord,
   to the house of the God of Jacob;
that he may teach us his ways
   and that we may walk in his paths.
For out of Zion shall go forth instruction,
   and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem.
He shall judge between the nations,
   and shall arbitrate for many peoples;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
   and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
   neither shall they learn war any more.

Isaiah 2:3-4

This is a time of peace; a quiet time to be still and know that He is God. A God who can transform into a human being and live with us.  Anticipating the arrival of God as a baby, I enjoy the quiet, the peace, and the joy. Amen.

A Funeral

I attended a somewhat unusual funeral recently. It was held at the local Baptist church, performed by a former pastor and the current one. Friends and family gathered in the church. There was music and praying, tears and laughter.

The unusual part was the scripture that the former pastor used to bring comfort to the family, the Book of Jonah. To refresh your memory or give you a first time synopsis: God calls Jonah and tells him to go preach to the people in Nineveh. Jonah promptly gets up and runs away from God. He tries to escape on a ship. God creates a storm that scares the daylights out of the other passengers, so much so that they throw Jonah overboard. God provides a fish to swallow Jonah. Is this a great story or what?! Jonah has time to think about things, sitting at the bottom of the sea in the belly of a fish. Jonah makes amends with God and the fish vomits Jonah out on dry land. God gives Jonah another chance to do what he is supposed to do, go preach to the people of Nineveh. This time Jonah does as he is told and does such a great job that the people of Nineveh repent and are saved.

There are all kinds of wonderful messages in this scripture, but maybe you are like I was, wondering how it would apply to a funeral.

The funeral honoree was Mike. He was born into a strong Baptist family 55 years ago. He heard the word of God from a very young age. But when he was able, Mike ran from the Lord. We agreed with the preacher when he said, "You know you'll be running into a storm whenever you run away from God." Mike's life was always stormy. He wasn't a hard core criminal, but he got into a lot of trouble. His mom and dad prayed for him throughout the years.

Earlier this year Mike's daughter almost died in childbirth. It was a wake up call, maybe like being thrown out to sea. The fish God sent to swallow Mike was pancreatic cancer. Faced with his own mortality, unable to work or do much of anything, Mike had time to think and listen. God gave Mike a second chance and he took it. The hospital staff who got to know Mike, told his family that he was a blessing to them. He made them feel like they were in the presence of God. I guess Mike's Nineveh was Memorial Hospital.

Mike's family is grieving but they also rejoice because they know for sure where Mike is. I will think of Mike, and smile, every time I hear the story of Jonah.

Mary and Martha

Luke 10:38-42

This is one of my favorite scriptures and was the inspiration for today’s sermon, “A Messy World.” You can plan and plan and plan (like Martha) but things don’t always turn out the way we plan. If you’re like Mary and have discovered the One Important Thing, then when plans go awry, it doesn’t matter. You still have your joy and your focus.

Mary and Martha: two sisters, two personalities, both serving one Lord. Martha had their home warm and welcoming for Jesus when he arrived. I wonder if Mary helped. Jesus entered their house and Mary sat down with him. She spent time with him. Martha carried on preparing the meal without the help of her sister. Martha got annoyed. I know the feeling. Thanksgiving Day: women in the kitchen, busy cooking abundant food of every variety, putting leaves in the table, bringing in extra chairs, setting a beautiful table, pouring drinks, putting food in serving dishes, bringing the food to the table and when it’s time to eat, the men, who have been relaxing and watching football on TV, are called to come and enjoy the meal. Have the men discovered the important thing? Apparently, because it gets them out of doing the dishes too.

But back to Mary and Martha. Jesus appreciated Mary’s presence and her attention to what he had to say. That’s why he came to see them, to be with them. He wasn’t really upset with Martha when she asked for Mary’s help. THE MESSAGE puts it this way, “Martha, dear Martha, you’re fussing far too much and getting yourself worked up over nothing.” This is the Jesus I know. When I’m doing something that does not please him, he doesn’t turn me into a pillar of salt but gently turns me in the right direction. And he’s very patient.

I used to wonder what they would’ve eaten if Martha hadn’t busied herself getting the meal ready. But the dinner isn’t important. The fact that Jesus is at their house is important. And it’s the same with any visitor. People don’t come over to eat your food and inspect your house, they come to see you and spend time with you. If Martha didn’t get a meal prepared, they could’ve ordered a pizza or eaten crackers out of the box. You know what I mean.

Martha missed out on being with Jesus. Jesus was in her house and she chose to work instead. There’s a lesson here for us. I wonder if your lesson is the same as mine.