Tag: prayer

Together As One (Philippians 1:1-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Exploring Church Ministry Blog, Year ALeave a comment

From Paul and Timothy, servants of Christ Jesus—

To all God’s people in Philippi who are in union with Christ Jesus, including the church leaders and helpers:

May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace.

I thank my God for you every time I think of you; and every time I pray for you all, I pray with joy because of the way in which you have helped me in the work of the gospel from the very first day until now. And so I am sure that God, who began this good work in you, will carry it on until it is finished on the Day of Christ Jesus. You are always in my heart! And so it is only right for me to feel as I do about you. For you have all shared with me in this privilege that God has given me, both now that I am in prison and also while I was free to defend the gospel and establish it firmly. God is my witness that I tell the truth when I say that my deep feeling for you all comes from the heart of Christ Jesus himself.

I pray that your love will keep on growing more and more, together with true knowledge and perfect judgment, so that you will be able to choose what is best. Then you will be free from all impurity and blame on the Day of Christ. Your lives will be filled with the truly good qualities which only Jesus Christ can produce, for the glory and praise of God. (Good News Translation)

One In Purpose

The Church is the community of the redeemed, the Body of Christ. In order to maintain health, the spiritual body needs unity, joy, and fellowship. This happens through a shared purpose of embracing the good news of Jesus Christ and proclaiming it to others.

Paul emphasizes throughout his letter that the church is to be a common community, sharing life together, working on supporting one another and reaching out to others.

Every pronoun, “you,” used in today’s text is plural, not singular. And that’s significant. We’re in the Christian life and the Christian Church together. Just as God is one, we too, in union with Christ, are one Body.

Wherever there is an absence of shared purpose, there you will find complaining, arguing, and a bunch of crotchety curmudgeons who nobody wants to be around. Without being one in purpose, we become divided and fight one another.

A Common Mission

Our common life together as believers, revolves around a shared mission of gospel proclamation, namely, that the kingdom of God is near. Through repentance and faith in the person and work of Jesus, there is forgiveness of sins, new life, and participation in the life of God.

Christian mission is not for larger church attendance, although that is nice and may happen; it isn’t to do more, or to get other people to stop swearing, avoid tattoos, or vote Republican.

The Apostle Paul knew without a focus on mission, on encouraging one another with the good news and sharing the gospel with others, the lack of purpose would create spiritual sickness. Apart from a deliberate focus on centering life and mission around the person and work of Christ, a group of people will nit-pick one another to death with their various opinions and wants.

Conversely, with a polestar on mission, the community of the redeemed work closely together and enjoy one another. Happy people are a breath of fresh air to be around. A good healthy spirit is a delight to others. Folks will inevitably find hope and healing through a common purpose of life together which imbibes liberally from the redemptive events of Jesus.

Good news is fun to share. It is joyful. The gospel of Jesus Christ is wonderful news, worthy of exuberant celebration. The Apostle Paul had fond memories of his partnership in the gospel with the Philippian believers. Although he had been jailed and beaten in the city of Philippi, Paul joyously sang in the prison – to the point where the jailer took notice and listened to the gospel of new life in Christ. The jailer and his entire family became followers of Jesus. (Acts 16:16-34)

Shared Experiences

The Philippians were Paul’s spiritual children. They had sacrificed with Paul toward the shared vision of proclaiming good news. So, Paul wanted them to remember their own significant events of coming to faith, enjoying fellowship together, and working toward common objectives.

In reminding the Philippian believers, Paul hoped to help get their heads screwed on straight again. He was confident this would happen, having an unshakable belief that God would continue the good work started within them.

This confidence was the basis of Paul’s prayers for the church. He beseeched God to unleash the Philippians’ collective love in a grand experiential knowledge of the divine so that they might discern well, making solid decisions which place the gospel as central to all of life.

There is an incredible depth to human need – a deep spiritual longing for what is good and beautiful. Relational unity brings out the beauty and majesty of humanity. Sometimes, when we are facing hard circumstances, we need to recall our collective shared experiences, to remember why we were joyful.

In difficult times of injustice, we need a vision of humanity which locks arms in unity without vilifying one another. When we place priority on the good news, I believe we will again discover the joy of life, of knowing Christ.

Perhaps, with a watching world observing basic human kindness and joyful relations, we will find ways of being better together and working toward the common good of all persons. And methinks, Jesus wants to help with this, if we will only let him.

God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: Give us grace to set aside our cranky unhappiness and divisive spirits. Take away all hatred and prejudice, and everything which hinders us from godly union and connection: that, as there is but one Body, and one Spirit, and one hope of our calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all; so we may be all of one heart, and of one soul, united in one holy bond of truth and peace, of faith and love, and with one mind and one mouth to glorify you, through Jesus Christ our Lord, and in the strength of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Guide Me By Your Good Spirit (Psalm 143)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

Listen to my prayer, Lord!
    Because of your faithfulness, hear my requests for mercy!
    Because of your righteousness, answer me!
Please don’t bring your servant to judgment,
    because no living thing is righteous before you.

The enemy is chasing me,
    crushing my life in the dirt,
        forcing me to live in the dark
            like those who’ve been dead forever.
My spirit is weak inside me—
    inside, my mind is numb.

I remember the days long past;
    I meditate on all your deeds;
    I contemplate your handiwork.
I stretch out my hands to you;
    my whole being is like dry dirt, thirsting for you.

Answer me, Lord—and quickly! My breath is fading.
    Don’t hide your face from me
        or I’ll be like those going down to the pit!
Tell me all about your faithful love come morning time,
    because I trust you.
Show me the way I should go,
    because I offer my life up to you.
Deliver me from my enemies, Lord!
    I seek protection from you.
Teach me to do what pleases you,
    because you are my God.
Guide me by your good spirit
        into good land.
Make me live again, Lord, for your name’s sake.
    Bring me out of distress because of your righteousness.
Wipe out my enemies because of your faithful love.
    Destroy everyone who attacks me,
        because I am your servant. (Common English Bible)

Many Westerners tend to think about sin as bad individual actions which are quite personal. However, sin is much bigger than that. Primarily, sin is a force, a power in this universe which weighs on every molecule within it. None of us can escape having to deal with it.

For persons like the psalmist, they strive to be good and live a just life, yet they are continually dogged by others who have given into the “dark side.” The wicked discern the force of sin in the world, and then decide to move with it – believing that good guys finish last.

Yet, there is another powerful force in the universe – and it’s a greater power than sin.

Everywhere we look, we see a bad spirit. And that sinful spirit is behind the injustice, oppression, war, conflict, ignorance, and avarice which exists in every nation, community, and even home. Entrenched opinions, yelling at each other, the refusal to consider evidence, and narrow thinking have permeated our societies and pitted people against one another.

This evil spirit of the age is captured in the Apostle Paul’s words as he reflected on this and other psalms:

As it is written:

“There is no one righteous, not even one;
    there is no one who understands;
    there is no one who seeks God.
All have turned away,
    they have together become worthless;
there is no one who does good,
    not even one.”
“Their throats are open graves;
    their tongues practice deceit.”
“The poison of vipers is on their lips.”
    “Their mouths are full of cursing and bitterness.”
“Their feet are swift to shed blood;
    ruin and misery mark their ways,
and the way of peace they do not know.”
    “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in God’s sight by the works of the law; rather, through the law we become conscious of our sin. (Romans 3:10-20, NIV)

The psalmist doesn’t want to be a part of the sinful force and the bad spirit. He, instead, knows that sometimes he’s part of the problem, along with being a victim of sin, and thus, knows he needs deliverance from this awful power.

Promises to do better and personal willpower won’t cut it, when it comes to changing a life and a society. Rather, we must tap into a good spirit, which is ultimately, the Spirit.

Even though all have been both victim and victimizer, and fall short of God’s glory, all are justified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. (Romans 3:23-24)

Once we were blocked from prayer because of obstacles existing unaware among us and within us. But now we see the world for how it’s been touched by foulness and degradation, so we pray.

The spirit of the age will fail us. Our own spirit will be fickle. God’s Spirit, however, is continually living and active with the force of grace and mercy.

In our fear, it’s okay, even good, to flee from evil. Yet, we must complete the process by not only fleeing from the bad spirit, but also fleeing to God’s Spirit.

Prayer, then, becomes our lifeline. It’s our connection to what is right, just, and good. In Christianity, the Spirit is the one who conforms us to the glory of God and the image of Jesus. The Spirit is our Teacher, Guide, and Advocate, keeping us on God’s good path.

We need to live according to the Spirit – which is a continual journey of removing obstacles to faith and allowing God’s good gifts to awaken within us.

My counsel is this: Live freely, animated and motivated by God’s Spirit. Then you won’t feed the compulsions of selfishness. For there is a root of sinful self-interest in us that is at odds with a free spirit, just as the free spirit is incompatible with selfishness. These two ways of life are contrary to each other, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. Why don’t you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence? (Galatians 5:16-18, MSG)

Yes, sin is a powerful force, manifesting itself in a host of bad spirits all around us. But grace is greater than all sin, and God’s good Spirit shall overwhelm and overcome all evil.

Visit this place, O Lord, we pray, and drive far from it the snares of the enemy; may your holy angels dwell with us and guard us in peace, and may your blessing be always upon us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Pain, Stress, and Chickens (Psalm 32)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment
A modern mosaic of a mother hen protecting her chicks—on the altar of Dominus Flevit Church on the Mount of Olives, Jerusalem

Oh, what joy for those
    whose disobedience is forgiven,
    whose sin is put out of sight!
Yes, what joy for those
    whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt,
    whose lives are lived in complete honesty!
When I refused to confess my sin,
    my body wasted away,
    and I groaned all day long.
Day and night your hand of discipline was heavy on me.
    My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat.

Finally, I confessed all my sins to you
    and stopped trying to hide my guilt.
I said to myself, “I will confess my rebellion to the Lord.”
    And you forgave me! All my guilt is gone.

Therefore, let all the godly pray to you while there is still time,
    that they may not drown in the floodwaters of judgment.
For you are my hiding place;
    you protect me from trouble.
    You surround me with songs of victory.

The Lord says, “I will guide you along the best pathway for your life.
    I will advise you and watch over you.
Do not be like a senseless horse or mule
    that needs a bit and bridle to keep it under control.”

Many sorrows come to the wicked,
    but unfailing love surrounds those who trust the Lord.
So rejoice in the Lord and be glad, all you who obey him!
    Shout for joy, all you whose hearts are pure! (New Living Translation)

The body knows the truth of what is happening in the spirit. Our physical selves carry the weight of our mental thoughts and emotional feelings.

Our bodies have their way of making sounds of protest and pain if our spirits are silent. For example, physical weariness and tiredness can be a lighthouse, alerting us to pay attention to our inner suffering.

In other words, stated positively, pain and stress are a gift.

“I imagine one of the reasons people cling to their hates so stubbornly is because they sense, once hate is gone, they will be forced to deal with pain.”

James Baldwin

What is stress?

Stress is any type of change that causes physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual strain. Stress is a normal reaction to everyday pressures. However, stress can become unhealthy when it upsets our daily functioning and ability to live well. Stress itself is neither good nor bad. The issue is the appropriate amount of tension we need to live a healthy life.

Where do you typically carry stress in your body?

Whenever we are under a great deal of stress – and are having difficulty either recognizing it or managing it – the body gives us clues about how to pay attention to that stress. Our mental, emotional, relational, and spiritual issues usually show up in the body as physical problems.

Why do individuals handle stress differently?

The combination of past trauma, abuse, and neglect within families and communities is unique to the individual – as well as variations in personality traits and inherited genetics.  In other words, how we deal with stress is a result of both nature and nurture.

What are some common connections between stress and the body?

  • Shoulders: Feeling overwhelmed through carrying the weight of the world’s problems.
  • Gut (stomach and intestines): Feeling anxious for not letting go of a problem.
  • Vomiting or diarrhea: Feeling emotionally sick about a situation and wanting to be rid of it once and for all.
  • Hemorrhoids or constipation: Straining or working very hard to make something happen in your life and it doesn’t come to pass.
  • Headache: Feeling afraid through overthinking that something bad will happen.
  • Chest/heart: Feeling angry or sad through either trauma or secondary trauma.
  • Lungs: Feeling suffocated, like you cannot breathe, because of difficult circumstances, e.g. asthma
  • Spine/knees/hips: Feeling discouraged and wanting to give up because you cannot take one more step.
  •  

How can I deal with my stress in a healthy way?

  1. Let go. Ask for help. Talk to God, as well as a friend, faith leader, or other about why you are stressed.
  2. Reach out. Connect with family members. Get involved in a faith community. Volunteer in an organization you care about.
  3. Eat well. Make healthy choices about food. Find someone or a group of people who share your nutrition goals.
  4. Meditate. Focus on the present moment because there is only now. Read Scripture. Pray.
  5. Walk. Take daily strolls through nature. Walk the dog. Walk with a friend. Walk with the Lord.
  6. Read. Read or listen to a good book. Do it with a cup of coffee or tea.

“The truth is that stress doesn’t come from your boss, your kids, your spouse, traffic jams, health challenges, or other circumstances. It comes from your thoughts about your circumstances.”

Andrew Bernstein

The psalmist went on to release his silence and give voice to his spiritual stress and emotional pain, thus finding relief.

Who is the stress reliever?

God. The Lord is akin to a mother hen who protects her chicks.

My youngest daughter once had a pet chicken named “Gina” (I have no idea why she named the chicken this). Gina would lay an egg or two and keep them warm and nestled underneath herself. Indeed, the eggs were in a special hiding place, protected from outside forces.

My daughter also sang to Gina (which helped her to lay more eggs) and made sure she had plenty of space to find grubs, worms, shrews, and other delectables from the ground. Gina wasn’t the only pet chicken; there were others, too. Chickens are very social and require other chickens to be happy; a solitary hen is likely to not lay any eggs, at all.

Whenever we are “chicken” and run about with anxiety and fear, God gathers us together with other believers, protects us from trouble, surrounds us with songs of deliverance, and makes sure we have everything we need for life and godliness in this present age.

The Lord will take care of us – no matter the situation, the stress, or the pain it produces.

Blessed heavenly Father and Mother Hen, your Divine presence, power, provision, and protection gives us grace and truth. May this season of Lent – a time of repentance and faith – bring us the blessing of your forgiveness and the joy of salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Be Merciful (Jonah 4:1-11)

On By Tim EhrhardtIn Christian Spirituality Blog, Daily Bible Reading Blog, Year ALeave a comment

Jonah was really upset and angry. So he prayed:

Our Lord, I knew from the very beginning that you wouldn’t destroy Nineveh. That’s why I left my own country and headed for Spain. You are a kind and merciful God, and you are very patient. You always show love, and you don’t like to punish anyone.

Now let me die! I’d be better off dead.

The Lord replied, “What right do you have to be angry?”

Jonah then left through the east gate of the city and made a shelter to protect himself from the sun. He sat under the shelter, waiting to see what would happen to Nineveh.

The Lord made a vine grow up to shade Jonah’s head and protect him from the sun. Jonah was very happy to have the vine, but early the next morning the Lord sent a worm to chew on the vine, and the vine dried up. During the day the Lord sent a scorching wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head, making him feel faint. Jonah was ready to die, and he shouted, “I wish I were dead!”

But the Lord asked, “Jonah, do you have the right to be angry about the vine?”

“Yes, I do,” he answered, “and I’m angry enough to die.”

But the Lord said:

You are concerned about a vine that you did not plant or take care of, a vine that grew up in one night and died the next. In that city of Nineveh there are more than 120,000 people who cannot tell right from wrong, and many cattle are also there. Don’t you think I should be concerned about that big city? (Contemporary English Version)

Fear and anger go hand in hand. The fear of what sort of evil might happen often leads a person toward angry vitriol, even violence.

I once dealt with a woman who was so upset with her husband that she was literally shaking with anger. There was a time when her husband had been abusive, but thankfully, he gave his life to God, changed, and became a loving person. 

The thing that was so upsetting for the wife is that God saved her husband without punishing him for all the abuse he had dished out. She wanted some divine payback! The woman was actually furious about God showing grace and compassion.

This is not a novel or new experience. In the ancient world, the Assyrians were notorious for their brutality toward conquered peoples. They thought up forms of torture as a creative past-time. It was a violent culture, full of inhumane practices, and soldiers who were the scourge of the Middle East.

The violent ways of the Assyrians caught the notice of God. Divine judgment was hanging over the capital of the Assyrian Empire, Nineveh. So, God told the prophet Jonah to go and give the powerful empire a message of impending doom. (Jonah 1:2)

Jonah did not immediately obey God. However, he eventually went to Nineveh (after the infamous being in the belly of a great fish for three days and nights). The result was a great repentance of sin from the Assyrian people. 

The entire city turned from their evil ways. God saw this mass repentance and relented from sending disaster. Instead of destroying the city, with all its inhabitants and animals, the Lord was merciful and spared them. After all, God delights in seeing humility and the courage to admit evil and turn from it.

But Jonah had a serious problem with God’s grace toward the Assyrians. He was so upset and angry about the whole affair, that he wanted to die. Jonah was actually annoyed and greatly displeased by God’s goodness. Jonah wanted justice; he was looking for judgment. The last thing he wanted was divine mercy toward the very people who were experts at killing Jews. 

Yet, we must come to grips with the reality that God’s grace is so massive that it even extends to some of the most evil people in history. And Jonah wanted no part of that sort of theology.

God asked Jonah twice, “Do you have a right to be angry?” Jonah wanted destruction and pay-back for all the sin of the Assyrians. But God searches our hearts and exposes our expectations. Often, when those expectations do not happen, we are disappointed and become angry, even livid over the lack of retribution from God.

God wanted Jonah to share the same heart of mercy. And God still desires God’s people to have a heart that has grace and compassion, even in the face of terrible evil. Sometimes, God calls us to do what we least want to do in order to reveal what is really in our own hearts.  

Hating people to the point of wanting nothing but destruction upon them does nothing to bring about the righteous life that God desires. In Christian understandings, the blood of Jesus Christ has the power to bring healing and hope, even to the worst of sinners.

Whenever our fears turn to anger and we believe that God should bomb evil people off the face of the earth… or if we think our neighbors might be harboring ill-intent just because they are of a different race, ethnicity, or religion… or if we harbor bitterness because of real evil present in this world and want at least a little payback; then, we are no better than Jonah.

We end up looking just as ridiculous as Jonah, sitting at the edge of the city, pouting like a little kid.

Let’s grow up and rise above the current rancor that exists in so many places. Be concerned for the billions of people on this earth who need a merciful divine intervention and the grace of repentance that leads to new life. 

Pray for your enemies. Do good works for those who oppose you. Gain a bigger for the nations of the world. Remember what is really important in life. 

Any fool can rant and rave with anger against another; but the wise and gracious follower of God patiently and carefully prays and acts in ways that brings mercy and grace to others.

Merciful God, your presence of love in this world is truly amazing. Despite the real existence of evil on this earth, your grace cuts through it all and has the last word. Work in my life in such a way that fear is done away with and sinful anger vanishes, to be replaced with the love of Jesus Christ. Amen.