Welcome to the March 2025 Archive. You are welcome to read the entire archive, or find a topic on the list below that is of interest to you. Just click the link, and you will be taken directly to the day it was written. Enjoy, and may you know God's peace as you read His Word.
    You are welcome to use these writings or pass them on. All we ask is that in all things you remember the Author and give Him the glory, and remember this vessel which He has used to bring them to you. Peggy Hoppes

A WORD FOR TODAY, March 2025

March 3, 2025

“Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Behold, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all kinds of workmanship, to devise skillful works, to work in gold, and in silver, and in bronze, and in cutting of stones for setting, and in carving of wood, to work in all kinds of workmanship. Behold, I myself have appointed with him Oholiab, the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan; and in the heart of all who are wise-hearted I have put wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded you: the Tent of Meeting, the ark of the covenant, the mercy seat that is on it, all the furniture of the Tent, the table and its vessels, the pure lamp stand with all its vessels, the altar of incense, the altar of burnt offering with all its vessels, the basin and its base, the finely worked garments - the holy garments for Aaron the priest, the garments of his sons to minister in the priest’s office - the anointing oil, and the incense of sweet spices for the holy place: according to all that I have commanded you they shall do.’” Exodus 31:1-11, WEB

I have been reading through the Bible with an online teacher, and we are currently reading the book of Exodus. As the Israelites waited at the foot of Mount Sinai, God spoke to Moses for forty days and nights, giving him the commands the people of God’s chosen nation were to obey. These commands included instructions about the tabernacle and furnishings which would be the focus of their worship. It would be God’s house among them, to be carried from place to place until God established them in the Promised Land. God was very specific about every detail because it was based on the true Tabernacle in Heaven. In Exodus 25, God said to Moses, “See that you make them after their pattern, which has been shown to you on the mountain.” The writer of Hebrews tells us that the earthly Tabernacle built by Moses was merely a copy and a shadow of the true.

The expectations seem extraordinary. If you have ever been involved in a capital campaign for the new construction of a church, you know that there are a million details, and that it isn’t easy to pay the bills. There are always people who disagree with the plan, who would prefer to use different materials and craftspeople. God hasn’t handed the church blueprints for our buildings so we argue about every detail. We especially argue about the money. “Do we really need gold cups for communion? Does the font, lectern, and altar need to be made with the most expensive wood? We know we are honoring God, but where will we get the money?

Reading the description of God’s instructions for the Tabernacle is almost shocking. God demands the finest, most expensive materials in the world. As a matter of fact, the word “gold” is found more than twice as many times in the book of Exodus than in the entire New Testament, and more than half are found in Exodus chapters 25-30. Everything related to God was to be covered in gold, from the Ark of the Covenant to the poles that were used to carry the furniture. Where would they get so much gold?

Israel plundered the Egyptians when they left Egypt. I used the word plundered, but the reality is that God gave the Egyptians the heart to give Israel great wealth. They left Egypt with many beautiful things because God told them to ask their neighbors for gold, silver, and clothes. Would they need gold where they were going? Perhaps not, but God provided for what was to come.

In the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, God specifically tells the people that they shall not make idols to worship (verses 4-5) and then a few verses later, reminds them not to make gods of silver or gold (verse 23). Unfortunately, the people of Israel were fickle and quick to lose sight of the God who saved them from slavery in Egypt, the Deliverer who would finally fulfill the covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob of the Promised Land. While Moses was on that mountain for forty days and nights receiving the instructions from God, they began using these gifts to create a false god, a golden calf to worship. Shockingly, they even said, “These are your gods, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt.”

At the beginning of Exodus 25, God gave Moses the outline for His capital campaign. It was not a tax. It was not forced. “For everyone whose heart makes him willing...” The materials Moses was to collect included gold, silver, bronze, blue, purple, scarlet, fine linen, goats’ hair, rams’ skins dyed red, sea cow hides, acacia wood, oil for the light, spices for the anointing oil and for the sweet incense, onyx stones, and stones to be set for the ephod and for the breastplate. Some of those materials would have been easily accessible like the animal hair and skin and the acacia wood, but they had been freed from slavery and ran from their homes just weeks before God spoke to Moses on the mountain. Where would they have gotten any of those precious materials?

God demanded the best of everything, but God provided everything they needed to accomplish His expectations, even the skilled helpers who would create and build everything for the Tabernacle. We may question the practicality of gold covered poles or the justification for expensive furnishings; this is a question that the Church has asked throughout history. Should we spend money building a beautiful cathedral when there are more practical uses for our money? Does art have a purpose? Is it useful? Is it important? The truth is that art does have a purpose. Art moves us. Art engages us. Art helps us see the world through new eyes. Art allows humans the opportunity to create for God’s sake. Art comes in many forms: music, literature, architecture, furnishings, media as well as sculpture, weaving and painting.

God created, and He didn’t just make His creation practical. He also made it beautiful. He made the flowers more than pollen factories and gave birds bright and colorful feathers. He gave the leopard spots and the tiger stripes. He carved the mountains and the rock formations, directs the rivers and paints the rainbows in the heavens after it rains. He makes the world in which we live beautiful for the sake of beauty. Should we not do the same for Him, especially since He provides everything we need?

I love today’s passage because in it we see that God did not simply call a man who could organize the building of a building for His Temple. He called a man who was gifted in the arts and crafts. Bezalel was appointed to build a place where God is honored by the wonderful things that can be created by human hands. It wasn’t meant to be strictly practical. It was designed to move God’s people, to engage worshippers and help those who believe to see the world through new eyes.

We may not be talented like Bezalel, but we are each gifted with some ability to make the world beautiful. There may be more practical ways of using our gifts, but sometimes God calls us to move beyond what is sensible to what is beautiful. Yes, the gold might be used to feed the poor, but we must learn to find the balance between body and spirit, to do what feeds both with the resources we have. Who knows? That art might just be the thing that moves us, engages us and helps us see the world through those new eyes that will lead us into actions that will change the world.

Top

March 4, 2025

“As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, even as you were taught, abounding in it in thanksgiving.” Colossians 2:6-7, WEB

Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, the first day of the church season called Lent. Many people are asking the question, “What are you giving up for Lent?” I often ask, “Why?” respond by asking, Many people answer that it is what you are supposed to do. Others say it is about tradition. I’ve learned over the years that there is more to Lenten fasting; we are to consider the things in our life that do not glorify God and think about ways that we can live a better life. Sometimes that Lenten fasting leads us to a better life, but it should always lead us into a deeper relationship with God.

Today is Shrove Tuesday, the day when believers went to confession and were shriven. This means they received forgiveness and were given a penance to begin Lent with a clean slate. All over the world people are indulging in some traditional food as a part of Shrove Tuesday celebrations. In my home region, the food of choice is doughnuts or fastnachts (which means fast night). Fastnachts are a special yeast raised potato doughnut that are deep fried and then covered with sugar or syrup. Other places make similar foods, like pancakes in England. These foods are made with the ingredients that were forbidden during Lent such as flour and grease. These ingredients were removed from the home so that there would be nothing to tempt anyone to sin through Lent. After eating all the food, the people attended worship to be shriven - receive reconciliation - so that they could enter Lent free from guilt.

Today is also known as Fat Tuesday. In many places this is a national holiday and is a day of celebration. The parties begin on Three Kings Day, January 6 and end with Mardi Gras. The carnival reaches a peak on Fat Tuesday with parades, feasts and costumes. The modern celebration of Fat Tuesday is wild, self-indulgent and sinful, seeming far from the Christian tradition of Shrove Tuesday. However, evidence of the Christian foundations of the day is still found in the fact that the party ends abruptly at midnight when Ash Wednesday officially begins.

This hedonistic party seems like an attempt to enjoy oneself as much as possible before the season of fasting, as if the partiers are trying to get it all out of their system before they have to spend forty days fasting. Giving up something is a sacrifice, and it is easy to suffer want when we can’t have the things we enjoy. Lent is a time of repentance, a time of reflection, and a time of preparation. Because of the seriousness of the Lenten journey, Fat Tuesday is seen as a last bastion of fun until Easter.

Carnival, Mardi Gras, Donut Day, Pancake Day are all celebrations that help us get sin out of our system before we walk with Jesus to the cross. At these celebrations we tend to overeat, over drink, and act in ways unbecoming of children of God. Then after they sin for a day, many go to church to receive forgiveness for their willful disobedience so that tomorrow they can begin a new walk with our Lord.

Fasting can be a wonderful experience, when done with the right heart. The decision should be made with the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The next six weeks are reminiscent of the forty days Jesus spent in the wilderness being tempted by the devil. This was a time of preparation for Jesus. Temptation is a testing, and the devil tempted Jesus with the very things that would tempt Him during His three years of ministry: filling bellies, showy miracles, becoming an earthly king. Jesus overcame those temptations and grew in confidence so that He would overcome the true tests when He revealed God’s Kingdom to the people. The devil intended to turn Jesus away from His given path, but God used that time to build Him up for the good of the mission.

The practices of Shrove Tuesday and Lent have become less common in our day; too many Christians prefer to go from Christmas to Easter without walking with Jesus during His life in between. We need the disciplines of Lent so that we can be transformed. We need to fast and pray so that we can see that the manger is pointless without the cross. We can’t go from birth to life without facing the realities of life, the temptations of this world and the testing of God which builds us in confidence and strength. We can choose to fast the many distractions of this world but let us go deeper during these forty days in the wilderness with Jesus, seeing how the devil tries to direct our lives away from the will and purpose of God so that we can face the cross with a renewed sense of assurance that is the way of God. That will lead us to a thankful life of faithful living following Jesus.

Top

March 5, 2025

Lectionary Scriptures for March 9, 2025, First Sunday in Lent: Deuteronomy 26:1-11; Psalm 91:1-13; Romans 10:8b-13; Luke 4:1-13

“Jesus answering, said to him, ‘It has been said, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.”’” Luke 4:12, WEB

We have some land in Pennsylvania. The land is undeveloped, but it is not untouched. Nearby family members take care of it for us, cleaning out the brush and cutting down some trees. A local farmer rents some of the land to plant feed for his animals. Family and friends use it during hunting season if the deer travel that way. Though the land is well used, we have not come to possess it. It is ours, but we have not made it our own.

From the time of Abraham, God promised the Israelites that they would have a home of their own. He showed Abraham and the other patriarchs the land that would be their own. In today’s Old Testament lesson, God showed them how to make that land their own. Possessing the land meant more than just owning it. It even meant more than inhabiting it. The land had been given by God, and in response to God’s grace the people were called to dedicate all they had to God by offering the first fruits of the land to Him.

The ritual behind presenting the first fruits is found in this passage. The people are not to simply thank God for what they are able to give, but also to remember everything God had done for them. The exodus was more than an event in their history. God used the time in Egypt, the escape from slavery, the forty years of wandering, and the victories over their enemies to mold them into the nation they were meant to become. Those experiences, even the hard ones, were gifts from God. Everything they had in the present was theirs by the hand of the same God who did so much for their ancestors.

When they presented the first fruits, not only in that first generation, but in every generation to follow, they were to remember their roots. How they got to that moment was as important as what they had to give. It was in the recitation of their history that they praised God for every incredible gift. It did not matter that a future generation were not the ones who escaped and wandered; those gifts of God were given to every generation that followed.

We tend to forget the past, that what we have today has nothing to do with what our parents and grandparents might have had. Yet, I can’t help but think about that land in Pennsylvania. It came from Bruce’s family – not only his parents, but from his ancestors who have lived on that land for hundreds of years. Their history is our history. Their successes have become ours; their failures are a part of how we have gotten to this time and place.

I wonder if any of us really think about our ancestors and what God has done for them as we offer our gifts to God. Do we consider how God’s hand was in their lives, and do we praise Him for all that He did for them? Perhaps we should. We may not be able to claim the story of the Exodus for ourselves, but we have a story, too. We have a story in which God saved His people - our own ancestors - and blessed them in this world. As we present our offerings, whether they are the tithe of our weekly paycheck or the first fruits of some harvest, let’s remember where we came from and thank God for the history that has brought us to that moment.

Our land in Pennsylvania has been in the family for a long time, but when we moved to Texas, we bought a house in a new neighborhood. The oldest houses at the time were less than five years old. We were the first owners of our house. There were still many plots on which houses would be built, the development continued to grow for several years after we moved in. The thing I found interesting is that some of the older houses were already for resale when we purchased ours. I wondered why people would buy a used house when there were plenty of new ones available.

The reasons these houses were already for sale were many. We lived in an area that had heavy turnover from military families moving to new duty stations. This happened to non-military families, too. We knew one family that decided they wanted a different house in our development, so they sold their old one to move a few blocks. Unfortunately, some families have financial reasons for moving. They thought they would be secure when they purchased the house, but for one reason or another, the mortgage payments became unbearable. They bought a house beyond their means and realized after a few years that they could not continue. If it weren’t for the grace of God, we might have been in the same situation, but the housing market was good, so they were able to get out of a bad situation and find something better.

We put so much energy into taking care of ourselves and satisfying our deepest desires. We look for the perfect house, thinking that we will find happiness and security and contentment if only we get exactly what we want. I’ve known way too many people who have purchased above their means and then struggled for years. They never really knew the security they thought they would find in the perfect dwelling. We are tempted by the things of this world, hoping that God will provide what we want, not what we need.

After Jesus was baptized and filled with the Holy Spirit, He was led into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. He was there for forty days, eating nothing. Though He was alone, He was never far from God, always dwelling in the presence of His Father. He was hungry at the end of the forty days. Satan came and taunted Jesus, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.” Note the way Satan questioned Jesus’ very identity. “If” was a way for Satan to goad Jesus into proving Himself. Jesus answered with the Word of God.

Satan taunted Jesus by showing Him all the kingdoms in the world, saying, “I will give you all this authority and their glory, for it has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I want.” This promise required action: he wanted Jesus to worship him. Satan did not have the authority to grant what he promised. It was a lie to get Jesus to turn from His Father. Again, Jesus answered with the Word of God.

A third time Satan taunted Jesus. “If you are the Son of God, cast yourself down from here.” Again, Satan questioned Jesus’ identity, but he went even further using the scriptures to make his point. “He will put his angels in charge of you, to guard you” and “On their hands they will bear you up, lest perhaps you dash your foot against a stone. He twisted the scriptures to tempt Jesus into testing God’s love for Him. Our faith is given not to test God but to love and worship Him.

Again, Jesus answered with the Word of God. Each time He faced Satan’s taunts, Jesus had an answer that came from God. Jesus was secure not because He thought God would save Him from trouble, but because He dwelled in the shadow of the Most High God who dwelt within Him. He had the power to change stones to bread, to command the nations of the world, and to call the angels to His aid. Yet that moment was neither the time nor the place to prove Himself. Satan took God’s Word and twisted it, claiming for himself the authority that he did not have.

Unfortunately, Satan continues to twist God’s Word, even in our churches. Too many take God’s Word and fit it to meet their needs and desires. They seek God’s power for all the wrong reasons, to bring wealth and fame and power, rather than to glorify God. Jesus knew the temptations we would face today; He faced them Himself in that wilderness experience. Satan did not just offer Jesus a loaf of bread, a kingdom, or angelic protection. He offered Jesus an incredible ministry of miracles, authority, and power. Satan was trying to prove Jesus was nothing more than any other man, easily tempted away from God’s will to a self-centered ministry.

Jesus proved He was the Son of God, dwelling within the presence of God and secure in His calling to save the world. Jesus did not come to feed the hungry, to rule over the nations, or to be a famous preacher. He came to die, to bring forgiveness and healing to a world that was sick and dying from sin. He was Immanuel, God with us, and from then until now God no longer lives in a temple. Instead, He lives within the hearts of those who believe.

Today’s Psalm is difficult because we know that we will probably suffer even if we have the greatest faith. Does God protect us from difficulty? Sometimes, yes. We find comfort in the reality, however, that God makes all circumstances, whether good or bad, work out to the best for those who love Him. The Psalm seems to suggest that no matter what we do, we will not suffer or be harmed if we have faith. This is a mistaken understanding that many Christians believe, even to the point of taking unnecessary risks. This Psalm isn’t a call for us to tread on lions or cobras because we are assured of God’s presence in and through our lives. Satan used this psalm to tempt Jesus into jumping off the pinnacle of the Temple, using God’s Word of promise that He will put His angels in charge of our lives, guarding us from harm.

God’s grace does not give us the encouragement to take risks with our lives. Our assurance that God will take care of us does not give us permission to test Him. Jesus knew this, which is why He answered the Satan’s temptations by quoting Deuteronomy 6:16. We can trust God but we need also remember that dwelling in Him will not necessarily buy us the perfect home. God’s grace gives us hope for the future and the strength to see ourselves through. When we know that God is with us, we live with an assurance that He will guard us, lift us, hear us, and deliver us from evil, a promise that not always seen in our earthly lives, but is ultimately fulfilled in eternity. We are called to trust in God, not to do something stupid like tread on lions or cobras or buy houses above our means to test God’s faithfulness.

We don’t need to test God because we have seen Him working in the world, through those who came before us, through God’s Word as it is written and preached and taught be the faithful throughout the ages. We are who we are because of what has come from the past, not only our immediate past, but the generations of faithful witness that came first. All this builds like bricks in a building, one thing upon another. We don’t have a relationship with God based solely on the Bible, but also on how it applies to our life. We also don’t have a relationship with God based solely on our personal experience of Him, but on what has come before us. Jesus used God’s Word to reject Satan’s temptations, and we can do the same.

We have to know God’s Word to use it confidently. This is why we spend time in Bible study and listening to preachers and teachers who can help us understand. Throughout the ages, the Church has established certain statements, or creeds, that give us a foundation on which to build our lives of faith. Creeds define the relationship of God with His people. Some people would rather not use creeds because they seem too limiting and too rote for a true relationship. Yet in our scriptures this week we see the speakers all looking back to the Word as was given by God and experienced by His people. When offering the first fruits, the people were to give it in the knowledge and praise of God for what He has done for His people. They were not to give the offering based on their goodness or accomplishments, but on God’s goodness in the past.

In the Epistle lesson, Paul reminds us that our faith in Christ is not just a heart thing or a head thing. It is both. Jesus Christ is Lord and as Lord He is the foundation on which a new covenant or relationship with God is built. Paul looks to the past, to the scriptures, to explain this new covenant of God. The people of the past personified wisdom as the manifestation of God, Paul identified Jesus as that manifestation. The past established what would be, and Jesus fulfilled the promises.

I don’t know about you, but I sometimes wonder if I really know what is good, right, and true. We can find strength, hope, and peace in Jesus Christ, but what does that mean? Why doesn’t He make it clear? As you look at the way people interpret the scriptures, you’ll see that one church says one thing while another says something entirely different. Which one is twisting His Word? Which one is falling for the lies?

Our strength, hope, and peace are found in Jesus Christ. He is Lord. We dwell in Him but dwelling in Him does not mean that we should test His faithfulness. God will protect us, save us, empower us. However, we see in Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness that we can be tempted by things that appear good. We find rest in what God has done for us, which we know through His Word, His promises, and through our past. He will teach us how to discern what is right and do what is truly good.

There is an old movie that starred Julia Roberts, Susan Sarandon, and Ed Harris called “Stepmom.” The movie is about a woman (Julia Roberts) who falls in love with a divorced man (Ed Harris). Susan Sarandon plays the ex-wife. Two children complete this very modern family. Early in the movie Susan Sarandon’s character does everything she can to make it difficult on the loving couple. She even goes so far as to turn the hearts of her children away from the new woman in their father’s life. The young boy even says to his mother, “Mom, if you want me to hate her, I will.”

Julia Roberts does not know how to be a mom. She is young and inexperienced but willing to learn. The boy got lost one day because he wandered off, leaving Julia’s character scared and his mother angry with her for not caring. She even threatens to restrict visitation. The girl who is a teenager that willfully fights her own mother is rude and mean, trying to get the “stepmom” in more trouble so she will be forced out of the picture altogether. They both think that if Julia Roberts is gone, then their family will be right again.

However, Susan Sarandon was diagnosed with incurable cancer which made her very sick. Though the doctors tried to make her well, her condition progressively worsened. She did not tell her family until it was too late. One day, when she was feeling very ill, she realized that Julia Roberts offered some hope for her family. She would not be around forever, so she began treating the “stepmom” with more respect. The children saw her change and also began treating her differently.

The mother told her daughter, “Try to see something good in her.” One day, Julia Roberts and the daughter were in their home and the daughter was frustrated by an art project she was working on. Julia asked her what was wrong. At first the daughter pushed her away, but then admitted her problem. Patiently and graciously Julia, who was an artist herself, showed her a technique that would work. That moment of grace from both of them was a turning point in their relationship. In the end, the entire family accepted Julia Roberts, even Susan Sarandon, and they all dealt with the future together.

It wasn’t easy. The young Julia Roberts wanted to do things one way, while the older Susan Sarandon wanted to do things her way. However, they found a way to co-exist in a right relationship that helped the children adjust to the inevitable. It took not only an intellectual understanding of one another, but also a love that was beyond their understanding.

It takes heads and hearts for us to live in a right relationships, which is what righteousness is. Paul wrote about the righteousness that is between God and His people. The Old Testament understanding of righteousness came from obedience to the Law. However, Paul explains in the book of Romans that we can’t be right with God based on our works. Human flesh will never be good enough to do enough to be in that right relationship with God. We want to reject the temptations of Satan. We want to know God’s Word so well that we flee from Satan’s lies. We don’t want to test God, but we fail all the time. Sin is a part of our life, whether we want it to be or not.

So, God made it possible in a new way, with a new covenant. That covenant is found in Jesus Christ. God’s Word, which is Jesus, dwells in us and it is He that makes it possible for us to be right with God.

Susan Sarandon grasped the importance with her head of welcoming Julia Roberts into her world, but she didn’t know how to make it happen. There was a scene in a restaurant, the two women opened up about their fears and hopes for the children. They learned to see each other differently. To know each other more deeply. They knew each other with their hearts which led to a right relationship.

We love God. We know God. But it is not enough to just love God or to just know God. For a right relationship, our hearts and our heads must be involved, confessing with our mouths and believing in our hearts that Jesus is Lord.

We begin Lent with the story of Jesus’ temptation because we are encouraged during this time to face our own temptations and fight them with God’s Word, just as Jesus did in the wilderness. Jesus did not prove Himself to be the Son of God by doing foolish things. Jesus proved He was the Son of God by dwelling in the presence of God and relying on His faithfulness. He was secure in His calling to save the world. He was Immanuel, God with us, and from then until now God no longer lives in a temple. Instead, He lives in the hearts of those who believe and by His grace we can get through our wilderness, holding fast to His Word.

We don’t do this on our own. He gives us the gift of faith, and then with that faith we can confess that we believe He is Lord. We believe in our hearts and confess with our mouths because God first loved us. Through grace, we dwell in the shelter of the Most High, resting in the shadow of the Almighty. He is our refuge and our fortress. In Him we can trust.

Someone once said (and many continue to say), “It does not matter what you believe, only that you are sincere in your belief.” This might sound good, a way of tolerating other people in a world where there is such diversity. Yet, the scriptures are very clear when they tell us that it does matter what we believe. Jesus is Lord. Salvation comes from no one else. We can’t earn heaven by doing good works, even if we fill our schedules with the busy-ness of our ministry. We can’t prove ourselves to be faithful by our actions. We are called to live in the assurance that God is faithful. He has given us faith, and by His grace we are saved. His Word is on our lips and in our hearts. We won’t be put to shame because He is faithful, but we need not test God on this.

The instructions for entering the Promised Land do not mean much to us. The Exodus is not our story, nor is the taking of the Promised Land. However, it is part of who we are in Christ, because it is part of who He was as a man in flesh and blood. We remember, but that is just part of the story. We have another story on which our faith is built: the story of Jesus Christ. He is the fulfillment of the promise; it is in Him and through Him our salvation comes.

Lent is a time to follow Jesus into the wilderness, to learn how to abide in the shelter of God so that when Satan taunts us, we will trust that God can pull us through. We may use this time as a time for fasting, as Jesus fasted during His forty days in the wilderness. But even more so, let us take this Lenten season to listen to God’s words, to keep His Word on our lips and in our hearts so that we, too, can face the devil with God’s truth when he tries to tempt us to go by a different path. God has promised to be with us through our troubles and to save us from all that means to do us harm. We may thing we want things our way, but we’ll learn that our deepest desire is a relationship with the God who loves us forever, not by testing Him, but by trusting that He will make all things right. We may suffer, after all Jesus suffered, but we know that God will deliver us to the place He has prepared for us in eternity. Through it our relationship with God will grow deeper as we know Him more with our hearts.

Top

March 6, 2025

“See how great a love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God! For this cause the world doesn’t know us, because it didn’t know him. Beloved, now we are children of God. It is not yet revealed what we will be; but we know that when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him just as he is. Everyone who has this hope set on him purifies himself, even as he is pure. Everyone who sins also commits lawlessness. Sin is lawlessness. You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and no sin is in him. Whoever remains in him doesn’t sin. Whoever sins hasn’t seen him and doesn’t know him. Little children, let no one lead you astray. He who does righteousness is righteous, even as he is righteous. He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. To this end the Son of God was revealed: that he might destroy the works of the devil.” 1 John 3:1-8, WEB

I know we are already a day into Lent, but I’m still deciding the devotional practices I will follow for the next seven weeks. I’ve already begun a reading plan from our church, and I think I’m going to follow another book that works on body, mind, and spirit as the reader walks with Jesus. As part of this, I am going to try to be more conscious and purposeful with my health, trying some new, focused exercises. I’ve committed to limiting my online activities (I’m trying!) and sweets.

I am also going to be more purposeful about my prayers, especially confession and pondering my sinfulness. After, that’s what Lent is all about, right? I found a website with a reflection that will help guide my prayer time. There are several different focuses, but I’ve decided to do an examination of conscience as related to the seven deadly sins. I will focus one devotion on the sin I’m pondering each week.

The seven deadly sins are pride, envy, sloth, lust, covetousness, gluttony, and anger. I once read an article that suggests that the seven deadly sins, in moderation, are not really all that deadly, and that in some cases they can be good. The article justified the seven by showing ways which those sins can make the world a better place. Andrew Carnegie pursued wealth like a demon, but he used so much of his wealth for altruism that it is seen as something positive. The harm he did to others in pursuit of that wealth is forgotten because he did so much good work with it.

Another example from the article was about the sin of anger. It suggested that it is healthy for a person to take out their anger in some way, particularly on inanimate objects, so that the person does not take it out on an innocent human being. The deadly sin, however, is not simply being mad about something, it is rage. This is anger that takes matters into one’s own hands, like revenge or self-destructiveness. This is a sin because it puts judgment into human hands rather than God’s. Yes, dealing with our anger can be healthy. Jesus got angry. But this kind of anger is a deadly sin because it causes us to turn away from God’s grace, to ignore mercy, and to cause undo harm. The key is learning what these words mean. How are they sins? What is it about our motivation that makes them harmful to others.

I think we must beware of the language we use when talking about sin. Yes, getting angry can be healthy and pursuing wealth for the sake of others is good, but is this what is meant when talking about the deadly sins? We should not try to justify our actions by lessening the reality of their sinfulness. Pride, envy, lust, sloth, covetousness, gluttony, and anger hurt our relationships with other people and thus hurt our relationship with God. Sin is self-focused, and they are deadly because they destroy our spirit.

This week’s sin is pride. What I found interesting about the list of questions from the examination of conscience is that they help us delve more deeply into our motivations and actions. I do not often think of myself as being guilty of these deadly sins until I think about the many ways they can manifest in my life. I don’t think I’m proud; I think I’m pretty humble (which can be a manifestation of pride!) As I read the questions, I found myself often saying, “I don’t do that,” but then I realized from other questions that I am often guilty, that I sin against God and my neighbor with my opinion of myself. Sadly, as I read these questions, I can easily see pride in others, even while I ignore my own. As you read these questions, remember that you are examining yourself, not others. When you judge your neighbor, see it as a mirror into your own soul, and ponder your own sinfulness in light of that judgement. “Yes” to even one of these questions makes you guilty of pride.

Question from the website to ponder: “Pride is an untrue opinion of ourselves, an untrue idea of what we are not.” Have I a superior attitude in thinking, or speaking or acting? Am I snobbish? Have I offensive, haughty ways of acting or carrying myself? Do I hold myself above others? Do I demand recognition? Do I desire to be always first? Do I seek advice? Am I ready to accept advice? Am I in any sense a “bully”? Am I inclined to be “bossy”? Do I speak ill of others? Have I lied about others? Do I make known the faults of others? Do I seek to place the blame on others, excusing myself? Is there anyone to whom I refuse to speak? Is there anyone to whom I have not spoken for a long time? Am I prone to argue? Am I offensive in my arguments? Have I a superior “know-it-all attitude” in arguments? Am I self-conscious? Am I sensitive? Am I easily wounded?

I must confess, these questions really strike deeply in my spirit and give me a purpose for my prayer. “God forgive me for my pride and teach me to truly be humble like Jesus.” Thanks be to God for His mercy, grace, and forgiveness, without which I would be truly lost forever.

Top

March 7, 2025

“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like treasure hidden in the field, which a man found and hid. In his joy, he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who is a merchant seeking fine pearls, who having found one pearl of great price, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.” Matthew 13:44-46, WEB

One of the oldest and most notable Christian texts is a diary written by a woman who was arrested by the Romans because she sought baptism. Vivia Perpetua was imprisoned in Carthage with her servant Felicity and several men in 203 A.D. Perpetua was a young wife and mother, her baby still suckling, and Felicity was pregnant. Perpetua wrote about their sufferings until she died, and then the diary continued with the story of Saturus, one of the men. It was finished by an unknown person. It is an emotional account of Perpetua’s fears for her baby and the birth of her servant’s daughter. The story tells of the firm stance of all the prisoners, none of which wavered despite the many tactics to make them deny their faith. They answered the tests with this warning: “You judge us now. God will judge you.”

Perpetua reported that she experienced incredible visions of heaven, including a visit with an old man milking sheep and the elders before the throne of God. They told her “Go and play,” she observed. “I was happy in the flesh. Now I am far happier,” she wrote. Perpetua, Felicity, and their companions were cast into the amphitheater to face scourging by a line of gladiators and then attack from a leopard, a boar, and a bear. When they were wounded by the animals, Perpetua and Felicity comforted each other with the kiss of peace, and then they were put to the sword.

The final editor of the diary described the women’s deaths. “But Perpetua, that she might have some taste of pain, was pierced between the bones and shrieked out; and when the swordsman’s hand wandered still (for he was a novice), herself set it upon her own neck. Perchance so great a woman could not else have been slain (being feared of the unclean spirit) had she not herself so willed it.”

The text of the diary records several encounters that Perpetua had with her father. Her father was a pagan and knew that the best way to end the imprisonment would be for Perpetua to recant her faith. He entreated her to deny she was a Christian. She refused. “Father,” she said, “do you see this vase here? Could it be called by any other name than what it is?” “No,” he answered. “Well, neither can I be called anything other than what I am, a Christian.” Her father visited her a second time and begged her to have pity on him, to consider his reputation, her family, and her child who would have no life after her death. He finally said, “Give up your pride!” She answered, “It will all happen in the prisoner’s dock as God wills, for you may be sure that we are not left to ourselves but are all in his power.” Her father was dejected but still tried to intervene at her trial. In the end, the martyrs all stood firm, and their lives ended in that amphitheater.

The two parables in today’s passage have one main point: the Kingdom of God is of immeasurable value. The Kingdom of God is worth more than anything of this world. Many people will read stories about martyrs like Perpetua, Felicity, and their companions and think that they were foolish. Why die when you can just conform to the expectations of the world and live? They could still worship God in private, right? Shouldn’t they try to live to continue God’s work in the world? A dead Christian is worthless, right?

That’s what the world thinks. Can you imagine the family of the man who found the treasure in the field or the pearl? “Are you crazy? What are you doing? If you sell everything, we won’t have any money to buy bread for dinner!” It is crazy to give up everything for something that many people think is merely a fairy tale. But for the one who has found the incredible grace of God, it is worth even giving up our very lives to honor God. It may seem foolish to the world, and the world will try every tactic to make us deny or recant our faith. You can’t get deeper into a woman’s heart than to entreat her to have pity on her own beloved child. Yet, we learn from these parables that the Kingdom of God is worth more than anything; it is worth every possible sacrifice. We can’t buy our place in God’s Kingdom, but we are encouraged to give up everything so that we can possess it with our whole beings. This might mean, as it did for Perpetua, Felicity, and their companions whose martyrdoms are remembered today, even giving up our very lives.

Top

March 10, 2025

“But the end of all things is near. Therefore be of sound mind, self-controlled, and sober in prayer. And above all things be earnest in your love among yourselves, for love covers a multitude of sins. Be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God in its various forms. If anyone speaks, let it be as it were the very words of God. If anyone serves, let it be as of the strength which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.” 1 Peter 4:7-11, WEB

Today we remember two women who were black slaves that gained their freedom and then protested against slavery.

Sojourner Truth was born in 1797 and was named Isabella Baumfree by her parents. Sojourner was an obedient slave; even when her master was cruel, she did everything she could to please him. She believed that he could read her mind. She did more work than the other slaves and did not agree with those who talked about slavery as an injustice. Her freedom came in 1826; her master had promised to set her free on July 4th, but he reneged because he claimed she did not fulfill the work required of her. New York began the process of emancipation in 1799, which was completed in 1827. Though he did not let her go when he promised, one day she finished her work and walked away. She didn’t run, she walked, believing that it was right. She was able to take her infant daughter but left her other children because they had not yet been legally freed. She found a home with a family who paid her master a sum to buy her services until emancipation took effect. She later sued for her son who had been sold illegally and won, making her the first black woman to win against a white man in court.

Sojourner worked within the system, believing it to be the best way to make real change happen. She worked for an evangelist and befriended others who had similar ideas about poverty and abolition. She had a life changing religious experience and became a devout Christian. She changed her name on Pentecost in 1843, believing that God had called her to preach the truth. She did not work against slavery until she became free, and even then, she was patient. She knew that it would take time to change the way of the world, and she believed that it could be overcome peacefully. She became an antislavery and woman’s suffrage speaker, appearing at rallies and convincing her listeners of the truth. Her most famous speech “Ain’t I a Woman” was spontaneous and she had a very real impact with her words.

Harriet Tubman was born in 1826 and was named Araminta Ross by her parents. She also changed her name when she gained her freedom. She was respected by many because of her courage and wisdom. Harriet was also known as “Moses” because she delivered hundreds of slaves into freedom. Born a slave, her master hired her out to other people. She met a freeman, fell in love, and got married. In time her master’s family was forced to sell her. Since she had been seriously injured and her health was failing, no buyer could be found, and her future was uncertain. She escaped to the North and freedom. Eventually she earned enough money to rent a room, furnish it, and buy clothes for her husband. She went back to convince him to join her in Philadelphia, but he refused because he had remarried.

Harriet was much different than Sojourner. She was a disobedient slave, fighting back when she was beaten by her master. One slave owner whipped her every morning, so she wore extra clothing and pretended she was hurting from the whipping. She was not patient, and she worked to set other slaves free. She risked her life repeatedly helping others escape. During the days of the Underground Railroad, Harriet made at least 19 trips into the south; she helped 300 slaves escape. On one occasion, she hopped aboard a southbound train to fool her pursuers. On another, she was close enough to a former master for him to recognize her, but she dropped the chickens she had just purchased and chased them around to hide her identity. There was a $40,000 reward posted for her capture, but she managed to remain free. She used wisdom to accomplish a great work, never turning away from God’s laws. She always prayed to God, “make me strong and able to fight.”

Both women had an incredible impact on their world, though they approached their work much differently. Their style of dress reveals their differences. Sojourner wore a white bonnet on her head, light weight dress, and a shawl over her shoulders. Harriet wore a bandana on her head and heavy coarse cotton dresses. Sojourner was demure and a powerful speaker, using her story to move the audience to tears. Harriet fought outside the system, carried a weapon, and encouraged disobedience. It is said that Harriet once “pointed the revolver at the head of the tired runaway slave who wanted to turn back, and she said, ‘Dead niggers tell no tales; you go or die!’”

Was one way better than the other? I often teach about being obedient, even in the face of suffering and injustice. Sometimes the best way to make change happen is to be patient and work subtly toward the goal. Sometimes, however, it is best to fight for what is right. One of the most interesting differences between the two women is their opinion of President Lincoln. Sojourner told him that he was doing a good job, Harriet thought he was dragging his feet and refused to meet him. They were very different, they worked differently, and yet both led the way to change.

There are still people working for change who have very different methods. Some are like Sojourner; others are like Harriet. Is one better than the other? They were both obedient to the God they loved. I have to admit that sometimes I think my way is the better way, but we all have different gifts and personalities. We each have a purpose. God gave faith to two very different women and sent them out into the world to do their own unique ministry for Him. The person who is approaching an issue in a much different manner than you might just be called and gifted by God to do it that way, just as you are called and gifted according to His will. It took both types to end slavery, and it might take both types to end whatever struggles we are facing today. Trust God, pray for all those who are fighting, and walk as God has called you to live. Together we can make a difference.

Top

March 11, 2025

Part of my prayer life during Lent will be an examination of conscience using the seven deadly sins. I will daily pray through a number of questions for each sin: Pride, Envy, Sloth, Lust, Covetousness, Gluttony, Anger. Will you join me? Remember, this is about examining yourself, not seeing others in these questions. If you see others, consider it as a mirror and ponder your own life in light of that judgment.

This week is “Envy.”

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you won’t fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, that you may not do the things that you desire. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the deeds of the flesh are obvious, which are: adultery, sexual immorality, uncleanness, lustfulness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, strife, jealousies, outbursts of anger, rivalries, divisions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these; of which I forewarn you, even as I also forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit God’s Kingdom. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts. If we live by the Spirit, let’s also walk by the Spirit. Let’s not become conceited, provoking one another, and envying one another.” Galatians 5:16-26, WEB

I used to be in retail management, but I left that career when I married my husband. He was in the military and I moved three thousand miles when we began our life together. I wanted a job, but I didn’t want seventy-hour work weeks or the responsibilities of management. I just wanted a part-time job that would give me a few extra dollars (and the store discount didn’t hurt) to set up my home and provide a way to spend a few hours outside the house. I found a wonderful job at a mid-level retail chain store that had a home fashions department. The department manager was excited to hire me because of my retail experience and hired me immediately, happy to have someone on her staff with experience.

She wasn’t very good at her job, however, which became obvious pretty quickly after I was hired. She also realized very quickly that I was an excellent employee and very good at my job. We often had the owners of small businesses visit to buy what they needed for their establishment, including people who were decorating bed and breakfasts. They needed everything from towels and linens, but also pots and pans, dishes, silverware, and even decorative pieces for their rooms. It was not as unusual as you might think for me to ring up sales worth thousands of dollars. I loved the work. I loved helping a customer choose which colors would go together, to help them think about everything they would need to make their business comfortable and successful. More than one of my customers sent letters praising my work to the General Manager, who called me into his office more than once to thank me for being such a good employee.

My manager didn’t like it. She thought I was trying to steal her job even though I told her repeatedly I was happy and satisfied with a part-time position. I didn’t plan on working there long term; I became pregnant a few months after I began, and I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. I also knew that the military could move us at any time. I didn’t want or need her job.

Instead of embracing my willingness to do a good job for the sake of the store and her department, she became paranoid. She did everything she could to make it difficult for me to my job; she even tried to make me quit. She lorded over me with her power and authority. She changed my work schedule at the last minute and denied the time off that she had promised weeks earlier. She sent me into the warehouse to move heavy boxes and other things that were meant to be done by the stock boys, even to the point of endangering my pregnancy. I eventually left that job, partially because she treated her employees so poorly.

It is possible that my actions appeared to the manager as though I were trying to get her job, although she hurt other employees during the ten months I was there. Employees never lasted very long in her department, either transferring elsewhere in the store or leaving the company altogether. She was fired shortly after I left.

In the Examination of Conscience that I am using as a prayer practice this Lent, envy is defined as “a sadness which we feel, on account of the good that happens to our neighbor.” My boss hated every time one of her employees succeeded, and she eventually came to hate anyone she feared. That might sound too harsh, but her actions proved her envy. She was discontented and held a grudge against every employee who did well. Unfortunately for her, that was most of her employees. Her envy, for whatever reason, led to her own downfall.

The word “envy” made me think about coveting; I wondered if there is a difference. The Bible tells us we aren’t to covet anything of our neighbor. Covetousness is a sign of discontent. Envy is worse because it leads to bitterness and hatred towards those who have what we want but can’t have. In his Small Catechism, Martin Luther not only talks about the prohibition of acts like coveting but also tells us that we are to fear and love God so that we’ll do what we can to help our neighbors. The opposite of envy is kindness. When we see something about someone that makes us envious, we are to be happy for them, to embrace their joy. My boss would have done so much better if she had encouraged her employees to do their best. Her department would have shined, she would have been more successful as a manager. She would not have been fired when the truth of her envy became obvious to her boss.

My story today is about envy from the point of view of the one who was envied, but as we consider our questions for this week, we need to remember that we are meant to consider how we envy others. As we examine our conscience, let’s ask, “Do I feel sad at the prosperity of others? At their success in games? In athletics? Do I rejoice at their failures? Do I envy the riches of others?” Note that it isn’t just about envying the tangible things of life. How do we respond to the successes of our neighbors? Do we treat them with kindness, help them be the best they can be, rejoice when they do well?

Top

March 12, 2025

Lectionary Scriptures for March 16, 2025, Second Sunday in Lent: Jeremiah 26:8-15; Psalm 4; Philippians 3:17-4:1; Luke 13:31-35

“Stand in awe, and don’t sin. Search your own heart on your bed, and be still. Selah..” Psalm 4:4, WEB

Jeremiah is known as “the weeping prophet” and it is no wonder when you think about the life he lived. At the beginning of the book of Jeremiah, in his call story, God says, “They will fight against you, but they will not prevail against you; for I am with you”, says Yahweh, ‘to rescue you.’” And fight him, they did, but they never prevailed. He was attacked by his own brothers, beaten by a false prophet, imprisoned by a king, threatened with death, thrown into a cistern, opposed by another false prophet. He was in prison when Nebuchadnezzar took Jerusalem, and he was freed. He eventually escaped to Egypt.

Despite the threats and the horrific acts against Jeremiah, the biblical record does not tell us when, where or how he died. Jewish tradition holds that he was stoned to death in Egypt. Other traditions suggest that he died naturally in Babylon. Yet other sources insist that Jeremiah spent time in Ireland, though this is not likely. Whatever happened to Jeremiah in history, in the biblical record we see that God’s promise held true: though they fought him, they never prevailed.

It is hard to juxtapose the life of Jeremiah to the Gospel lesson for today where Jesus says, “...for it can’t be that a prophet would perish outside of Jerusalem.” Jeremiah was a prophet, one who remained obedient despite his frustration continued to speak the Word of God. It was not good news. He lived and preached during the decline of the Judean kingdom. His message screamed repentance, but the priests and prophets did not want to hear what he had to say especially since the others were preaching peace. Jeremiah was unmoved by the threat of death. He said, “I am in your hand: do with me as is good and right in your eyes.”

They didn’t kill him. In verse 16, which follows our lectionary text, the princes and all the people said to the priests and to the prophets, “This man is not worthy of death; for he has spoken to us in the name of Yahweh our God.” Jeremiah’s words hit their mark; they saw the truth of his warning. The priests and prophets changed their mind because they realized that if they killed him, they would have innocent blood on their hands. They accepted that Jeremiah was speaking God’s word and so they did not turn him over to be stoned. God remained faithful to His promise; they fought Jeremiah, but they did not prevail. Ultimately it didn’t change the course of events. They fell under the yoke of Nebuchadnezzar, but those who accepted it survived as God promised.

Jeremiah may have spoken words like those in today’s psalm. Under the surface of his frustration, self-doubt, and depression, he had an unwavering faith. He trusted in God’s promise that his enemies would never prevail. He had peace that is beyond understanding. Just like the psalmist, Jeremiah called the people to a life of faithfulness so that they might live in that peace, too. He spoke God’s word because He wanted the best for his people, just as God always wants the best for us.

Jeremiah’s story shows us that God is faithful. I’m sure he probably hoped for better times, but he also knew that God put gladness in his heart. He could lie down in peace and sleep easy because God is his help and refuge. We don’t know what happened at the end of his life. Jeremiah certainly died but we do not know when, where, or how. Tradition holds that Jeremiah was stoned to death in Egypt by frustrated Jews. Whatever happened to Jeremiah, we know that God keeps His promises, so we can trust that God will be faithful to us.

The princes and all the people believed the word Jeremiah spoke and saved his life, but ultimately it was God who turned the hearts of the priests and prophets. His word and promise saved Jeremiah, just as His word and promise saves us.

Whenever I read the passage from Luke, I think about the story that has circulated on the Internet for years about a mother bird in Yellowstone. The post claims that an article in National Geographic describes an incident following a major forest fire in which a forest ranger found a scorched bird in the fire zone. He knocked over the bird with a stick and discovered three tiny chicks beneath their dead mother’s wings.

This story has been used as an inspiration in many sermons and devotions. It is a parabolic image of Jesus the mother hen protecting His chicks. We are awed by the overwhelming love of a mother bird who gives her life for her babies. Unfortunately, the story is not true. National Geographic hates to debunk inspirational stories like this, but they repeatedly report that they have never published it. The rangers of Yellowstone have no record of such an event; some of the rangers were present at the time of the fire and none of them knew it to be true. Ornithologists say that it is impossible, that the bird’s body could never protect the chicks through such intense heat.

There is another story about a mother bird’s sacrificial love that has been shared by Indian evangelist Sundar Singh who was traveling through the Himalayas when they were trying to put out the fire. Along with a group of men he noticed a bird circling above a nest in a tree. She was frantic, knowing it was impossible to save her babies from the fire and yet unwilling to leave them alone. When the nest began to burn, the mother swooped in on top of the chicks and covered them with her wings. Everything was gone in seconds.

We prefer the first story because it has a happy ending, even if it isn’t true. It ends with the babies saved from death and the mother bird is a hero who willingly sacrificed her life for her chicks. There is no winner in the second story. The chicks are dead, the mother is dead, and the nest is gone. We are amazed at her sacrifice, but find it foolish because we know that if she had stayed away, she would have survived for another day. She could have built a new nest and hatched more chicks. The story has an ending with no new beginning.

Yet, the second story is more truly the story of the work of Christ in our lives. Yes, Jesus covers us with His wings and He dies in our stead, but in Christian faith we are called to die also, to share in His death to share in His glory. Our death is not like His: we do not die a horrific death on a Roman cross. We aren’t burned to ashes like the birds. However, in baptism we enter into His death into new life through water and the Word.

Jesus mourned the unbelief of Jerusalem. He wanted the best of God’s Kingdom for them; He wanted them to experience hope, peace, and joy. He wanted to gather them under His wings, to give them fully and freely the gift He has to give. Perhaps He even wants all this without having to face the cross. Wouldn’t it have been better if Jerusalem had repented like Ninevah? That was not how it would be. He knew He was destined for the cross, for death. Salvation had to happen according to God’s time, in God’s way. Jesus refused to be moved from the path that would lead to true life for all those who would believe in Him.

In the passage immediately before our Gospel lesson, someone asked Jesus, “Lord, are they few that are saved?” (Luke 13:23b) Jesus answered that many would try to enter into the kingdom of God in their own way, and they would wait until it was too late. The only way in is by faith in Jesus Christ. We might think that we can fulfill the covenant on our own, with our own strength and abilities. Self-righteousness has always been a problem for human beings; it is only those who realize that it is in relationship with God that we are made citizens of heaven. Faith in Christ is the open door to enter into God’s Kingdom. And faith does not come from our actions but from God’s grace.

We don’t know very much about the Pharisees who went to see Jesus in today’s Gospel lesson. Were they friends concerned about Jesus? Or were they enemies who just didn’t want to deal with Jesus? Perhaps Jesus’ teaching didn’t bother them, but they just wanted Him to go somewhere else to do it. By sending Jesus away from Jerusalem, they would not have to deal with questions and accusations. They wanted Jesus to quietly disappear into the wilderness to teach and preach to the animals. Outside Jerusalem, He would not rock so many boats. Jesus was unwilling to submit to the temptation. He knew His task took Him to Jerusalem. The covenant that God made with Abram in Genesis 15 was broken; it was time to pay the price.

Jesus called Herod a fox. Foxes are not trustworthy, and that was certainly true of Herod. But the word “fox” is understood among the religious leaders as being someone who was worthless and insignificant. Herod Antipas might have been the ruler, but he was a puppet prince with no authority, a pretentious pretender, doing someone else’s bidding. Herod might have seen himself as a lion, a king, but in reality, he was just a fox, an insignificant flunky.

Herod would try to kill Jesus, but it wouldn’t be his will but God’s. Jesus had no need to fear, He was in a right relationship with His Father. He dwelt in the Temple, lived daily in His presence. He knew His purpose and knew that it was necessary to finish His journey to Jerusalem and the cross. The promise to Abraham depended upon it. Our future depended upon it.

It made Jesus sad.

His death must happen, but it was not what He wanted. It pained Him to see that they did not understand. He cried out to them that He was the shelter where they could live in peace. Living under the Law did not ensure God’s faithfulness. God is faithful without our works. He is faithful to His promises and calls us to believe and trust in Him, which leads to a life of obedience.

You can almost hear Jesus echoing the words of Jeremiah, “Do with me as seems good and right to you.” He knew that He would die at their hands, but He also knew that it would come at the right time. He answered them, “I tell you, you will not see me until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!’” Jesus dwelt in God’s presence and willingly submitted Himself to His plan; they could do nothing to stop Him until God allowed it to happen.

Unlike Jeremiah, we know exactly when, where, and how Jesus died. The promise for Jesus was not that He would prevail against the world. The promise for us was that He would prevail against sin and death. He died and was raised so that we might live. We join in His death and in His resurrection. We join in His glory. His life, death and resurrection has made an impact on our lives forever, and this is the purpose for which He came.

This does not mean that His teachings were unimportant or that we should ignore them. We have seen throughout history that ideas and people can impact the world. In the right circumstances, one person can change the course of an entire nation. One designer can design clothing that millions of people will wear. One reporter can introduce an idea that will become a standard of policy and practice for many. One politician can set the agenda for the entire government. Good or bad, right or wrong, we can easily be led down a path of achievement or destruction by someone whom we look to as a role model.

It is not that we are blind or ignorant followers; it is simply that the human flesh looks for someone to emulate. Even the most powerful, intelligent people look to someone to help them become the person they hope to be. Based on that ideal, we grasp onto ideas, policies, or practices that seem right, and we use them to change the world. Sometimes, unfortunately, we grasp onto ideas that are not good, right, and true. With all good intention, we sometimes follow examples that are not centered in Christ.

Jesus is our ultimate role model, although it is impossible for us to live or die as He did. We can look to the people whom God has put in our life, to emulate how they lived in trust that God will be faithful. Paul encourages us to emulate those who hold firm to the Gospel of grace. Some people in Philippi were enemies of the cross. They did not mean to destroy Christians or Christianity, they chased the things of the world. They chose to live a life of self-fulfillment. Some chose to live out their faith by continuing to satisfy their earthly lusts, trusting in God’s forgiveness. Others chose to satisfy the Law, thinking that obedience would bring blessing. Both were concerned with the flesh; they trusted in themselves rather than God.

We are not created or saved to live in either extreme which do not reflect the life which Christ lived as an example for us. Paul reminds us not to get stuck in a pattern of self-indulgence or self-righteousness. We can follow the example of people who have come before us that were, and are, transformed daily into the image of Christ. According to Jesus, the world will not prevail against us. Like Jeremiah we can be at peace as we go forth in faith doing what God has called us to do, even when we are faced with threats and our own imperfection because we know that God will be faithful. We do not know when, where or how we will die, but we can know that it will be according to God’s good purpose for us.

Lent may seem to be a depressing time to some folk because it is a time of self-examination, self-control, and self-sacrifice. It is a time for looking at our sin, for understanding our sinfulness and for being transformed into something new. This is a strange perspective in our world which focuses on the self in much different ways. We tend to be more self-centered and selfish. We spent at least a generation raising our children to be narcissistic by focusing on creating strong self-esteem. We taught our children to see themselves as special, good, and gifted, but we erred by not teaching them what they needed to do about their inevitable failures. We need to know when we are wrong so we can grow and transform. To many people have learned to blame others for their faults.

Don’t get me wrong: it is important that we uplift our children to help them to be the best they can be by encouraging them in their gifts and talents. It is ok to tell a child that they are special, good, and gifted. However, we have gone overboard by training the children that they deserve whatever they want. This leads to the hedonism we see so often on reality television. Bridezillas think they deserve the wedding of their dreams even when it is impossible. Cooking show contestants think that the judges are wrong because they believe that no one could beat their food. Competitors on other shows are willing to lie, cheat, and steal to get the win that they are certain they deserve.

You’ve seen it on American Idol and other performance shows. There are always some auditioners that do not belong on the stage. They are awful. The audience knows that they are there for the laugh, but they believe they were the best. They think that it isn’t fair. The cameras show their family comforting them and agreeing with their delusion. Other reality television shows claim to give average people the chance to be extraordinary, but most reality shows use paid actors or expect the contestants to fit a character the producers think will make the show a hit. Too many reality show contestants do whatever is necessary their own self-interest.

We point fingers at those who are on television, but do we ever consider how we are living in self-centered and selfish ways? What do we think we deserve? What are we willing to do to our neighbors to ensure we get what we want? These are some of the questions we are meant to be asking during this season of Lent. This is the kind of self-examination that leads to repentance, confession, and forgiveness. It isn’t very uplifting to realize our own sinfulness, especially if we don’t understand that this self-examination leads to a realization of God’s mercy and grace.

Lent is also a time to test our self-control. I haven’t given up sweets for Lent, but I am trying to moderate my sugar intake. The store shelves are covered in hundreds of special candies for Easter, even though Easter is many weeks away. I love white chocolate, which is very common during this season, and I have been craving white chocolate covered Reese’s eggs. I found them on the shelf the other day, but didn’t buy because it was a multipack. I wanted one, just for the taste, but knew if I bought more than one I would eat them all. Every trip to the grocery store is filled with temptation.

We are dealing with so much stress these days, and some folks often give up the things they use to deal with stress like coffee or video games. Do we have the self-control to continue our fast even when the world tempts us to do the very things we are fasting? As we examine our lives during Lent, it is helpful to consider what is motivating our fasting and why we can’t control ourselves. We need to pray for God to help us. He will, if we let Him.

Self-sacrifice seems almost impossible. How can I give to others when I barely have enough for myself. We know that there are others at home and around the world who are dealing with much harsher problems, but if I can’t afford to fill my car, I can’t get to work, and then I can’t feed my kids. Those who have difficulty living a Lenten fast are not just those who are selfish and self-centered. We all struggle because we are facing tough times. How do we give up everything when it seems like we have nothing? Our self-examination should lead us to the reality that we are greatly blessed even when we struggle, and that God will help us through the bad times if we trust in Him.

Paul writes, “For our citizenship is in heaven, from where we also wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will change the body of our humiliation to be conformed to the body of his glory, according to the working by which he is able even to subject all things to himself.” The cross and its benefits are ours today, but they will not be fully realized until the Day of the Lord.

As we journey through Lent, we are reminded that we are meant to be examining ourselves, controlling our bodies, and sacrificing for the sake of others. We are meant to consider our own sinfulness and trust that God can transform us into what He has created and redeemed us to be. Though we have been transformed by the Gospel of grace, there is still work to be done. We continue to be transformed daily through our prayer, study, worship, and devotions. Though we share in His glory, there will come a day when that promise will be fully realized. For now, we have to wait and remember that we are dust and to dust we shall return. Though this might be a depressing point of view to the people of this world, for those of us who have our citizenship in heaven, it is the very foundation of our hope and our faith.

During Lent, search your heart. We will never be expected to give our lives the way Jesus gave His for us, but we are called to examine our hearts and live our faith while we wait for that day God promised. We live that life of faith by building relationships with people, living not for ourselves but for others. We begin in the heart of God, following Jesus, and then sharing His grace with the world.

Top

March 13, 2025

“For it is like a man going into another country, who called his own servants and entrusted his goods to them. To one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his own ability. Then he went on his journey. Immediately he who received the five talents went and traded with them, and made another five talents. In the same way, he also who got the two gained another two. But he who received the one talent went away and dug in the earth and hid his lord’s money. Now after a long time the lord of those servants came, and settled accounts with them. He who received the five talents came and brought another five talents, saying, ‘Lord, you delivered to me five talents. Behold, I have gained another five talents in addition to them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ He also who got the two talents came and said, ‘Lord, you delivered to me two talents. Behold, I have gained another two talents in addition to them.’ His lord said to him, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant. You have been faithful over a few things. I will set you over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.’ He also who had received the one talent came and said, ‘Lord, I knew you that you are a hard man, reaping where you didn’t sow, and gathering where you didn’t scatter. I was afraid, and went away and hid your talent in the earth. Behold, you have what is yours.’ But his lord answered him, ‘You wicked and slothful servant. You knew that I reap where I didn’t sow, and gather where I didn’t scatter. You ought therefore to have deposited my money with the bankers, and at my coming I should have received back my own with interest. Take away therefore the talent from him and give it to him who has the ten talents. For to everyone who has will be given, and he will have abundance, but from him who doesn’t have, even that which he has will be taken away. Throw out the unprofitable servant into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’” Matthew 25:14-30, WEB

There was a commercial on television for a credit card company that began with a very pregnant woman sitting in the midst of a pile of shopping bags. When her husband entered the room, she told him that she went to the doctor and then shopping. He praised the convenience of their credit card, because it gave them the opportunity to pay off the items slowly, spreading out payments at a time when need extra cash to deal with life's surprises. The couple walked to the baby's room, and when they opened the door, the father fainted at the sight of three of everything: triplets!

It was a commercial, but not very believable from my point of view. How could a very pregnant (with triplets!) woman manage to accomplish everything suggested in the commercial in just one day? She had a doctor's appointment, an exhausting experience that must have lasted several hours. They she went shopping, filling her car with a mountain of stuff. Then she took it home and set up an entire nursery with three cribs built, complete with sheets and other accessories.

I don’t know about the other women who’ve had children who read this writing, but I wouldn’t have had the energy to do all that in one day. I certainly would not have been able to put together those cribs all by myself, and the woman was pregnant with triplets. She probably shouldn't have been doing that sort of lifting. The store may have been able to deliver and build the furniture for her, but it never would have happened that afternoon. I definitely would not have wanted to make the beds and decorate the room. She accomplished work that most of us would have done in days, perhaps even weeks. When I saw the commercial, I wondered if the producers even had a real concept of time. The commercial wasn't about time, it was about money, which is a whole different devotional.

I read an article that suggested that with so many modern conveniences, we should have more time on our hands, but we are busier than ever. We constantly feel like we do not have enough time. As we consider our lives during this season of Lent, we ask ourselves, how we spend our time? Is time an enemy or is it a friend? Do we use our time well or do we waste too much time?

One of the things I am trying to avoid during this Lent is the reels and videos that are recommended for me on my Facebook page. I tend to watch cat videos, bakeries icing cakes, area rug cleaning, and woodworkers lathing bowls. It is amazing how much time I end up spending with my nose in my tablet. Every video takes time away from doing what I could be doing. We usually talk about today's Gospel lesson in terms of creating a windfall for the Master, accomplishing great things with the gifts He has give us. It encourages us to use our gifts (and our time) for the sake of others. It is also a message about using our time well.

The people thought that Jesus was speaking of a time that would come quickly, immediately. They were anxious for God’s promises to be made complete, for Israel to be restored and for God to be honored once again in the world. They were anxious to see the Kingdom of God rule over all the nations. The two servants did a good job at using their talents in the time they had to accomplish great things for the Master. The third servant hid the talent until the Master returned because he was afraid it would be lost. Perhaps if there were more time, the servant would have found the courage to do something. Perhaps he was just piddling away the hours watching cat videos on the Internet and would never have accomplished anything. Whatever the reason, time ran out and he failed.

I suppose we could try to accomplish all the things that woman did in that commercial, even if it seems impossible. What we learn from the scriptures is that time is limited. It might not be limited in the way we expect. The Kingdom of God may not arrive today, but Jesus is coming. We might have many years to accomplish the work God has called us to do. But the reality is that we don’t really know how much time we have, and that means we do not have time to waste. The Master is coming and He expects to see something to show for our time and talents.

How will you spend your time today?

Top

March 14, 2025

“For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which will devour the adversaries. A man who disregards Moses’ law dies without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment do you think he will be judged worthy of who has trodden under foot the Son of God, and has counted the blood of the covenant with which he was sanctified an unholy thing, and has insulted the Spirit of grace? For we know him who said, ‘Vengeance belongs to me. I will repay,’ says the Lord. Again, ‘The Lord will judge his people.’ It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.” Hebrews 10:26-31, WEB

I like to do word studies in the Bible. This means choosing a word in a concordance and reading the scriptures listed for it. I will often look for the number of times a word is used in a particular book, or look for the different ways the word is used in the Old and New Testament. Seeing those words in different contexts can help clarify the meaning. A lexicon can make the study even more interesting as you learn the many different ways Greek and Hebrew words can be translated. Those different translations can help broaden the understanding of the text.

I once focused on the word “apostasy” which led me to today’s passage. It is a hard one, interpreted in many different ways by many different experts. Who is the writer of Hebrews addressing? Who are the apostates? What is this judgment? Can we, who have had faith, become an enemy of God again?

I had an online friend who had been a passionate, active Christian. He was devoted and zealous, often deeply involved in the study of the scriptures. Unfortunately, he discovered what he considered discrepancies between what he believed and what he read in the Bible. His experience of Christianity did not fit into his understanding of the faith. He saw contradictions that bothered him. “How can it be both this way and that way?” He asked solid, intelligent questions, but the answers never satisfied him. He lost his faith and rejected Jesus. He rejected Christianity and all religion. He considered himself an agnostic on some days, willing to admit that there could be something, but he just did not know what it was. Some days, which came more and more frequently at the end of our friendship, he rejected everything to do with faith, including many people who cared for him. Sadly, we haven’t talked for many years.

I don’t know what happened, or will happen, to my friend. Today’s passage does not offer much hope. All I know is that it is up to God, and I have to believe He is always faithful. We can reject what Christ has done. I don’t know how anyone who has known the grace of Jesus and the hope that comes from faith in Him can reject the Gospel, but we can reject Jesus Christ, even if we have experienced and embraced His amazing grace.

We find comfort in the fact that God can do the impossible, and though hell is real for those who reject Him, we can hope that God can overcome even our unfaithfulness. It is fearful thing to fall into the hands of a living God, but there is always hope.

It is appropriate for us to think through a difficult text like this one during Lent, and to consider the problem of apostacy in the Church. Our prayer life and devotions are often focused on self, reflecting on our sinfulness and repentance, not on the faith of others. However, since we are spending more time in prayer, we can take a few moments to pray for those who were once faithful but have fallen away. We are all just a doubt or question away from apostacy ourselves. Though we have faith, we can become lost in the cares or temptations of the world. It is not up to us to judge their place in God’s kingdom even if they have seemingly rejected Jesus so completely that they are not even willing to have Christians in their lives. God can do the impossible, He can change their life and faith. It is our calling to pray and seek God’s hand in their life. Condemned or not, it is our responsibility to love them. God will do what God will do. Our job is to believe and trust, living hope for what can be through God’s mercy and grace.

Top

March 17, 2025

“For though I was free from all, I brought myself under bondage to all, that I might gain the more. To the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might gain Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law, that I might gain those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law. To the weak I became as weak, that I might gain the weak. I have become all things to all men, that I may by all means save some. Now I do this for the sake of the Good News, that I may be a joint partaker of it.” 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, WEB

I’ve never done an ancestry search, but from what I’ve heard through family, I’m a bit of a mutt. This means that I have heritage from several different countries. We aren’t entirely sure about all the details, but it has been generally agreed that my father’s family came from Germany. Our last name as it is spelled appears to be from Normandy, but many of the immigrants changed the spelling from the German. There is some evidence that my grandmother had a Native American ancestor, but it has never been proven. I probably should do the research and see what I can find. My mother’s family is less complicated. Her grandparents emigrated from Wales and Cornwall. We visited their hometowns with my mom when we lived in England.

The relationship between the Welsh/Cornish and the Irish is complicated, there were moments when they were allies and other times when they were enemies. They were all Celtic, but they had different ways of governing and speaking. This caused conflict between tribes and societies, which often led to war. The relationship became even more complicated when invaders from mainland Europe became involved, like the Roman and then Anglo-Saxon cultures and subsequent Germanic migrations. Some of the Celts allied with the foreigners against the other Celts. Because of this history, my mom always had an issue with St. Patrick’s Day. She would tell me that we don’t celebrate an Irish saint, we celebrate St. David, the patron saint of Wales.

It never really mattered one way or another to me one way or another. I always wore green on St. Patrick’s Day. As a matter of fact, I wore green today. I have written about St. Patrick and taught about St. Patrick’s Day when I was a preschool teacher. They say that everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, and though that is not literally true, it is fun to join in the wearing of the green. When I was in school, wearing green was a necessity if I didn’t want to get pinched!

While I’m not Irish, there is something fascinating about the St. Patrick story of faith. The irony is that St. Patrick was not even Irish. He was living on the Isle of Britannia, the son of Roman parents; he was sixteen when he was kidnapped by Irish marauders. He served as a slave in the hills of Ireland until he was able to escape on a boat to Gaul. In Gaul, which is now France, Patrick was educated. He returned to Britain to live with relatives and while there he had a vision calling him to serve as a missionary to the people in Ireland. He went back to France to study and was eventually consecrated as Bishop of Ireland. He returned to the land of his captors and preached the Gospel to the people there. His preaching against the pagan religion was first met with resistance but he was eventually able to convert the high king. The rest of the Irish followed.

It must have been difficult to face his enemies. How would you have felt if you had been given a vision from God calling you to go to a place where you only knew oppression and pain? Would you have listened and done all that was necessary to do the task to which you were called? Or would you have run in the other direction? Could you live in the midst of your enemies and share the love and forgiveness of Christ with them? Patrick went back to Ireland and became part of the community that made him captive so that he could share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with them. Eventually they listened.

I’m not Irish, and perhaps at some point in history the Irish were enemies of my ancestors, but Paul tells us to be all things to all men so that we may by the means save some. I imagine it was difficult for Patrick, just as it was for Paul, to be surrounded by people who did not think or believe or live as they did. Yet, they both heard God’s voice and responded with humility and grace. I’m not Irish, but it does not hurt for me to wear a little green on this day, to join in the history and remembrance of a man who willingly stood firm in the Gospel until those to whom He was sent, believed. Patrick remained faithful in the midst of his difficulty so that his enemies might come to know the love of God. Through it all, he trusted that God would keep him safe. This is the life we are called to live, glorifying God as we share our faith with the whole world.

Top

March 18, 2025

Top

March 19, 2025

Top

March 20, 2025

Top

March 21, 2025

Top

March 24, 2025

Top

March 25, 2025

Top

March 26, 2025

Top

March 27, 2025

Top

March 28, 2025

Top

March 31, 2025

Top