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"Running in Faith" is an electronic devotional guide written by members of Abiding Presence Lutheran Church. Each week, writers use their personal interpretation of scripture to write an inspirational message they hope will help readers take their Sunday faith into weekday lives. Your comments are appreciated and, when related to a particular devotion, passed to the writer. We hope you will share these devotions with friends and coworkers. We are always happy to add new names to our e-mail list. Please contact us if you wish your name to be added. |
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Devotion for the week of July 4, 2000 "With a voice of singing, Singing is very important to me. When did it begin? When God created me. It started with the downbeat of the sperm meeting the egg that led to pulsating rhythm with definite meter flowing within me -- my heart beats, blood sloshing through my veins, etc. As I was expelled from my mother's womb, rhythmic breathing was added to the panoply and accompanied by sound. Yes, He "..was there to hear my borning cry.." When did my crying turn to singing? I know not, but I can't remember a time in my life without song. There are songs for all of life's experiences. I believe those based upon biblical text and Christian belief are the most enduring. They carry the Christian message for both the singer and the listener. The plain songs, the mass, the liturgy, the hymns, the anthems, the Bible school favorites, and the camp songs provide a wonderful venue for joy, lament, support, praise, and peace. The many musical versions of the Magnificat teach us an important way to express our joy -- by praising God. "..My soul does magnify the Lord." My favorite Magnificat is by Stanford. Lifting my voice in this beautiful piece of music reminds me of the Biblical text -- i.e., Mary's joy when learning she would be a mother -- and my own joy when learning I too would be a mother. Looking into a beautiful blue sky with a few patches of white clouds, I immediately connect with Haydn. Yes, "..The heavens are declaring the glory of God.." During those times when life seems almost more than I can face, singing has helped me endure. The haunting rendition Rutter has given us for Psalm 100: At the death of our child, solace that permits tears was -- and is still given to me 35 years later -- by a beautiful hymn "..Though he giveth or he taketh, God his children ne'er forsaketh.." In times of trouble, such as when I have known I made a mistake and must confess it, my anxieties were brought to a realistic level with pre-confession preparation -- i.e., by first singing something such as "..He will bear you up on eagle's wings..and hold you in the palm of his hands.." The longer one sings, the more times one gets to discover new things in the Biblical texts that have inspired composers throughout the ages. For example, I found a new understanding of the Apostle's Creed when learning the Porter anthem, On The Third Day. Just like Handel's "..Every valley shall be exhaulted..", the music rings in my head and I must make concentrated effort to be able to read these texts without using the rhythms the composers used to set the words to music. What joy singing can bring to family relationships. Being one of three Ervins in our senior choir just feels right. One of my favorite family experiences, however, happened last December when we visited our grandson in Maine. He was preparing for the children's Christmas service at his church. His group had been chosen to sing several well known Christmas carols. First, I witnessed our son teaching these to him and singing them with them. Later, I was thrilled when he asked me to sing them with him as we traveled from place-to-place in the car. The carols of Christmas have always been special but never so much as in that time and place. Those who write music and the text to accompany it have been given a special gift from God. They, in turn, give us the way to express ourselves. But, those who brain wash us -- indoctrinate us so intensively as to make a radical change in our beliefs -- are the true heroes. When we are privileged to sing under the direction of a Christian choir director, we are truly blessed. They indoctrinate us like nobody else. Our younger son sang in a professional men and boys choir for 13 years under just such a man, James Litton. Jim's heavenly brain washing was demonstrated when one of the boys was in a serious bicycle accident. After being in a coma for a long period of time, the boy's journey to return to consciousness was signaled by his singing the anthems over and over that the choir had been rehearsing during the weeks before his accident. What a spiritual blessing that was for his parents; holding his hand; hearing that his subconscious was bringing forth a message of Christian hope for their son and them. Although no miracle event such as this has been part of my own singing, my exposure to Christian music has found a way to "..guide me all the days of my life.." and, "..when from death I'm free, I'll sing on.."
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Devotion for the week of July 11, 2000
My mother and I share a very simple devotional book that has continued to sustain us for many, many years. I would like to share one of those devotions with you. Forgive yourself.
Such torturing thoughts accomplish nothing. It's often hard to forgive ourselves for stupid mistakes, careless acts, wrong decisions. But regrets cannot undo the past. They only weigh us down and lower our self-esteem. God forgives our sins and mistakes. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin. We confess our sins and desire not to commit them again. Since God offers complete forgiveness, we should accept it and forgive ourselves. God does not always remove the consequences. We may have to live with memories of wasted opportunities, wasted assets, wasted years. Sometimes we can make amends, but reparation is not always possible. Still we can be optimistic:
We need to learn to pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off and start all over again. We can learn from past experiences and determine for the future:
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Devotion for the week of July 18, 2000 "Thy will be done." A couple of weeks ago, our family spent a very nice week at the Jersey shore for vacation. One windy evening, we brought out the kite to fly on the beach. Casey and I kept trying desperately to get the kite in the air. I would hold the spool of string and she would throw the kite up in the air to get it started. I found myself tugging every which way on the string and running up and down the beach, back and forth. Nothing seemed to work despite the strong ocean breeze. The more I tried to control the kite, the more it seemed to nose dive into the soft sand below. Finally, after about 15 minutes, Casey and I got into "our positions" and she threw the kite up in the air. This time, a little breeze lifted the kite upward. Casey began to yell..."It's working!!!" I started to guide the string and then Casey yelled, "Mommy, just let it go...let more string out!!" PRESTO! Houston, we have lift off. The crowd goes wild! And so, the string unraveled and the kite ascended gracefully and effortlessly. How easy that was...just let it go...let the winds do their thing. As I stood there, looking up, watching the kite, I thought about how so many times in my daily life I try to control things. I run around or back and forth, stressing out about things that are not working out the way I think they should. Yet, when I trust in the Lord, when I stop and say to God.."Thank you, God, for being the source of my strength" and as I pray The Lord's Prayer.."Thy will be done," I am reminded of the Holy Spirit's presence each day. How wonderful it is to let God lead us and guide us down the path of His Word. God is with us on that path every step of the way- whether beside us or carrying us. We are not alone. And this is such a relief especially when I try to be an octopus and do eight things at once. We all find ourselves doing this so often. But we are not alone! He will lift our "kites" up higher than we could have ever imagined. Thanks be to God!
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Devotion for the week of July 24, 2000
On a recent trip to southern New England, my children were in the back seat of the car counting the money they had managed to save from birthdays, tooth fairy visits and other gifts. They were excitedly figuring how much they had and trying to decide how much, if any they were willing to spend on trinkets from our trip. As they had finished counting their fortune, Olivia was putting her bills and change back into her little purse and declared in an exasperated tone: "My dollars block my cents". What she said was that she could not easily fit all her bills into her little purse because the change was in the way. What I heard, however, was a profound stewardship lesson. I heard, "My dollars block my sense". And oh how right she was. Our dollars often block our sense. They get in the way of seeing all the precious gifts God has given us. While focused only on the dollars, we lose sight of the real treasures we have been given. Just a few come to my mind -- precious children, loving husband, caring friends, compassionate congregation, adequate housing, beautiful sunsets and sunrises, abundant flowers in the garden, the smell of a neighbor barbecuing, swimming in cool water, rain watering the earth and I could go on and on. I am sure you could add to the list as well. Today, I am especially mindful of all the treasures of heaven that are mine through Jesus Christ. I am grateful for the love which is poured out to me and to you each and every day, whether we see it or not. I am thankful that God calls me by name and bestows on me treasures too grand to count.
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Devotion for the week of July 31, 2000 Scripture Readings One God and Three Asses The story in Numbers 22:21-35 is one of the more comical episodes in Scripture. The story involves a professional seer, Balaam, who is hired out to place a curse on Israel. As Balaam rides his ass to deliver his curse, the ass sees the angel of the Lord and tries three times to divert Balaam's course. Balaam beats his donkey and forces him to continue the journey. Finally the angel of the Lord appears directly to Balaam and points out the irony that a simple ass can see the things of God when a professional prophet cannot. After Balaam sees the error of his ways, he blesses Israel and proclaims that "a star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel" (Numbers 24:17). These words were later taken to be a prophecy of the Messiah and applied to Jesus birth in Matthew 2:1-12. But Matthew 2:1-12 leaves out one thing that always appears in our Christmas pageant: An ass in the manger. Why is it that our pageants always include donkeys in the manger when they don't appear in Scripture? The story goes that one day God was looking for the proper animal to appear with Baby Jesus in the manger. The lion volunteered and said, "I am King of the Beasts. Only a Lion is worthy to be in the company of King Jesus." But God said, "No, my son's birth is not a royal event. I must find another animal." The peacock then appeared and said, "I have the most beautiful plumage in all the world. My majestic colors can provide the only proper backdrop for Jesus' birth." Again God said, "No, you are too proud. My son's birth is not an occasion for vanity." After a lot more searching, an ass was found but he declined saying, "I have nothing to offer the Messiah. I am lowly and a mere servant." Then God said, "No one but you has understood the servanthood nature of my son's birth. You shall be present in the manger." There is a story of a preacher who was very depressed with the course of his ministry. He was discouraged, he saw no fancy results from his efforts, and he felt he was letting God down. In his discouragement he prayed out loud, "Lord, I'm such an ass." Immediately after, the preacher went to his Bible to read. He opened his Bible to Mark 11:1-6 where Jesus sends two disciples into a village where they will find an ass who has never been ridden. The disciples are to bring it to Jesus. Jesus tells the disciples that if anyone questions what they are doing, to say "The Lord has need of an ass." The pastor realized that even an ass has a place in God's plan. All three of these stories have their comic dimension: a donkey who sees better than a professional seer/prophet; donkeys in the Christmas pageant; and the Lord having need of a donkey. But behind these stories are very basic truths: God will turn curses into blessings; servanthood is one of the basic messages of Jesus' birth; and yes, God needs us and uses even when we feel like an ass.
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