Psalm 8:1-2

“O Lord, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.” vs. 1

When gospel and praise singers began making records and albums not too many years ago, many received their inspiration from scripture. As a result phrases from literally dozens of psalms have made it into their catchy choruses and refrains. That’s why this verse from Psalm 8 sounds so familiar. Sandi Patty, one of the most popular gospel singers of the last fifty years sang its words beautifully in “O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!” It’s a song most believers have heard, and the refrain calls us to sing along. And as we sing we are carried back to the psalmist who first composed the words for temple worship. There is no better way to show our appreciation for the universe than to sing the praises of the Creator. The same psalmist wrote, “Out of the mouths of babes and infants you have founded a bulwark because of your foes, to silence the enemy and the avenger.” The most powerful sounds of praise come in the gurgling and the cooing of those who have no words, and that’s similar to what gospel singing does for us. The lyrics are simple and repetitive but as they are sung our hearts burst with joy and we’re drawn to sing along. They may be the best words we have to honor the Divine Mystery.

Thought for the Day: What’s my favorite praise song?

Proverbs 8:21-31

“The Lord created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of long ago.” vs. 22

No wonder humans have valued wisdom since the beginning. According to the book of Proverbs she was the Lord’s first creation! And as the Lord then brought the universe into existence, Wisdom was put in charge of construction, giving shape to suns and moons and their orbits, even molding the earth with all its land and oceans, mountains and plains. As the Master Engineer of all that is, Wisdom put all things together with incredible precision and accuracy. And as humans began to be aware of Wisdom they marveled that everything worked so well–every little detail of temperature and gravity was exactly as it had to be to sustain life on earth and insure the integrity of the universe. And ever since people began to explore the sciences and discover all these ancient truths about the world we live in, we have used the scientific principles of Wisdom to advance technology and invent ever more wondrous things. Sadly, because of our broken nature we’ve also used those principles to create ever more destructive weapons of war and even ravage the environment in which we live. But Wisdom remains as God’s companion and bids us to follow her in another way, the way of mercy, justice, and truth. And those who listen to Wisdom and avoid the voice of the foolish, can be restored to the image of God, and once again bask in God’s unconditional love.

Thought for the Day: How is Jesus related to Wisdom?

Proverbs 8:1-4

“Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice?… ‘To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live.’” vss. 1, 4

Wisdom has been valued from the beginning by every tribe and nation, and the Hebrews were no exception. That wisdom took the shape of proverbs, teachings, and stories that were passed from generation to generation. We can see samples of this wisdom literature in our scriptures in the books of Proverbs, the Song of Solomon, and Ecclesiastes, as well as some of the Psalms. It’s interesting that while those who the teachers of wisdom in the community were probably men, wisdom itself is a feminine word, “sophia” in the Greek, and women seem to have been the keepers of wisdom. That’s not an entirely foreign notion among us either. While men often have been the public face of wisdom, often serving as leaders and writers of books, the contributions of women cannot be disregarded. As the book of Proverbs puts it in chapter 31, “A capable wife who can find? She is far more precious than jewels…She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” While such such distinctions between males and females have been rightfully critiqued in recent decades, the powerful influence of women cannot be denied. And since the writer of Proverbs described Wisdom as a woman, perhaps it’s time for all of us to start listening to them.

Thought for the Day: Why do men often discount the voices of women?

John 14:12-17

“I will do whatever you ask in my name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If in my name you ask me for anything, I will do it.” vss. 13-14

Though these words from John’s gospel are used regularly by prosperity preachers as part of their health and wealth message, many others read them with a strong dose of healthy skepticism. They’ve had too many experiences with unanswered prayer and have come to  know that, whatever Jesus meant, he didn’t mean that he’d do whatever we asked for. But still we wonder! Because through the 2000 years of the Church’s history countless believers have taken Jesus at his word and have asked him for any number of things. Might it not be that the rapid expansion of Christianity around the globe and the fact that there now are millions of faith communities and over 2.3 billion adherents be an indication that Jesus has kept his promise? Jesus did tell his disciples that they would never be alone and that his Spirit would be with them as an Advocate. They believed him, continually prayed for the Spirit’s guidance, and the praying and asking is still going on. Today, the day of Pentecost is a time to celebrate and recognize that we are part of a dynamic, Spirit-filled body that is a force for good in this otherwise broken world. Despite our bickering and flaws, the Church is alive and well! Praise God!

Thought for the Day: Why do we doubt that our prayers are effective?

John 14:8-11

“Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.’” vss. 8-9

The end was approaching and Philip was beginning to panic. He’d been following Jesus for some time, at least a year, and he’d evidently been thinking that soon Jesus was going to reveal God to them. So he got up his nerve and asked for the big reveal, “Show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” And Jesus, showing some exasperation, looked him in the eye and said, “Come on, Philip. Open your eyes. Whoever has seen me has seen the Father.” John doesn’t bother to tell us how Philip felt about this rebuke, but we can presume that he was disappointed. Imagine yourself in that situation! When we’re looking for a glimpse of God, it might be a letdown to discover that God looks just like us. Yet that is exactly what we live with as followers of Jesus. It’s true, the Divine Presence is among us, but when we look closely we discover that the Divine Presence is exactly what we see in the mirror every morning, wrinkles, warts, and all. To put it another way, God is hiding in plain sight among us. In fact there is nowhere where God is not. But wherever we see sacrificial love, abundant joy, and peace beyond understanding, we can be certain we have seen the face of God.

Thought for the Day: How is Jesus different from me?

Romans 8:14-17

“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” vs. 14

When we read Paul’s letter to the Romans it’s not easy to understand his carefully reasoned arguments and admonitions. Even when we engage in serious study there are some things that we miss–the words he uses are not familiar to us and we may not even care much about the things he’s passionate about. In general what he wanted his readers to know was that everything had changed with the death and resurrection of Jesus. Their relationship to God was no longer contingent on their obedience to the law. Instead they would be directly connected to God through the Holy Spirit–they would in fact be the children of God, set free in Christ to live a new life, now and forever. Now we’ve grown accustomed to thinking of all people being the sons and daughters of God, but here Paul is speaking particularly of those who are believers. And what he wants us to know is that this is not a relationship to be taken casually. He believed that if we were being led by the Spirit our lives would be discernibly different–the fruits of the Spirit would be obviously present. And if they weren’t, something was very wrong! We get that! Being free in Christ is not being free to do as we please. Rather it’s a relationship based on love, and where that love is present, lives will be changed–the Spirit doesn’t mess around!

Thought for the Day: How has the Spirit changed me?

Psalm 104:27-34, 35b

“When you send forth your spirit, they are created; and you renew the face of the ground.” vs. 30

From the beginning believers have associated the gift of life with the breath of God. Certainly that’s the central theme of the creation story in Genesis 2, where the Lord, having formed the man from the dust of the earth, breathed into his nostrils the breath of life. The psalmist goes further and credits that same breath or spirit of God with the origins of all life. It’s obvious then that creation itself is an ongoing process fueled by the Spirit of the Divine Presence, with life being continually breathed into every living thing. It’s no wonder then, that through the centuries humans have been so protective of life in all its forms. We lament over the extinctions of whole species, especially when it’s due to our careless destruction of habitat. We’ll spend millions of dollars to rescue whales and protect salmon on the way to their spawning grounds. We seem to know innately that life is precious and to be protected. Which makes it strange then that at the same time we maliciously destroy the lives of human beings, seemingly without a second thought. Still, even with these obvious reminders of the brokenness of creation, we continue to celebrate its goodness, and even dare to believe in the gift of new life beyond our own mortality. 

Thought for the Day: What will I do to continue my life?

Psalm 104:24-26

“O Lord, how manifold are your works! In wisdom you have made them all; the earth is full of your creatures. Yonder is the sea, great and wide, creeping things innumerable are there, living things both small and great.” vss. 24-26

The psalmist believed that he could glimpse the Divine Presence by observing the creation and he’s absolutely right. Even the most jaded among us can’t help but be amazed at the variety and surprises the earth offers every time we bother to look. And when we open some of the nature magazines and see the photographs of the animals who live in different parts of the earth we are stunned at the beauty and variations among the species. It truly is a gift to watch our co-inhabitants enjoy the life that God has given. The intricacies boggle our minds! Even a short sit or a walk in a park or a garden with eyes and ears wide open allows us to see the sheer joy of the birds as they sing their songs and fly about searching for food and water. The psalmist saw these things and more and gave thanks and praise to the Creator God. Of course many of us, those with scientific minds, are well acquainted with the processes of evolution, and that’s okay. But we should never let our human wisdom block the spontaneous joy we feel in observing and experiencing the wonder of creation. It’s a big part of the joy of being alive in this universe!

Thought for the Day: What amazes me about nature?

Acts 2:14-21

“In the last days it will be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams.” vs. 17

Luke decided that the best way to describe the explosion of Holy Spirit power that had occurred in Jerusalem after Jesus’ resurrection was to go back to the Hebrew scriptures and the words of the prophet Joel. Peter and the other disciples were actually seeing the outpouring of the Spirit that Joel had pointed to, and it was more spectacular than they had even imagined. And what’s even more amazing is that the story is continuing. The young and the old continue to dream and see visions. Men and women are being given opportunities to be pastors and preachers. We’re hearing the voices of those who once lived in slavery and poverty. The oppressed are being set free. The miracle of Pentecost continues! Of course there is opposition. Spirit-filled people continue to be discounted and ignored. The forces of oppression are grabbing headlines and getting attention. But people of faith are on the march in every nation and in every social class, and their work is not being fueled by those drunk with new wine! This revolution is different and what happened in Jerusalem was only the beginning! One day all flesh will know God and all people will find their home in Christ!

Thought for the Day: What blinds my eyes to the work of the Spirit?

Acts 2:1-13

“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.” vss. 1-2

It’s not surprising that John and Luke would describe the coming of the Holy Spirit in different ways. If accounts of such a mysterious and wondrous event written down decades apart were identical we’d likely be suspicious. As it is we can be grateful for the differences and appreciate the similarities. John reports that the Spirit came directly from Jesus just after the resurrection, while Luke says that the outpouring occurred after the Ascension. Both report that it took place in Jerusalem. Luke says that the Spirit’s coming was like the rush of a violent wind, a phrase that reminds us of Jesus’ words to Nicodemus in John 3, “The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” And that’s exactly what happened in Jerusalem! The gospel of Jesus Christ was unleashed with the power of a tornado and the velocity of a hurricane. The Spirit was breathed on humanity and continues to blow where it wills. We’ll be celebrating Pentecost in our congregations on Sunday. Some say that this explosion of energy and love is the birthday of the Church, and there’s little reason to disagree. Maybe we’ll even sing Happy Birthday!

Thought for the Day: What’s the best way to celebrate Pentecost?