Sunday, September 6

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
Genesis 1:1

How do you begin your day? When my husband and I wake up, we remind ourselves of the Creator of the earth and all that is within it by saying, "This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24  .

Some days joy comes readily; on others, discomfort, loneliness, inadequacy, fear, or questioning prevails. Then I look to the One who created the heaven and the earth and all that is within – including me and the day ahead. I look to the lives of Adam, Eve, and their inadequacies in following God's law, to Abraham and his fear that Sarah would be taken from him, to Sarah's hopelessness expressed in laughing at God, to David and his trust in God to slay a giant and his shame in murdering Uriah to bed Bathsheba. More contemporary figures come to mind, also – Eleanor Roosevelt, a beautiful soul committed to social and economic justice contained in a less than perfect body, Mother Theresa and her faithfulness in comforting the afflicted while questioning God's attentiveness to what was happening in the world, or Farrah Fawcett and her courage in living and dying with rectal cancer.

Through others, God clearly shows and tells us that we need not be perfect people. God was with those we read about in the Bible through their ups and downs and the imperfections in their lives. God saw modern women through their struggles. God will see us through the day whatever it may bring. Such assurances are cause for rejoicing!

Thank you, God for all the companions and soul mates you provide us and for being our Companion and Soul Mate this day and every day. Amen

Monday, September 7

Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Psalm 34:8

What an amazing variety of items are available to us – artichokes, anchovies, beets, burgers, carrots, caramel, deli meats, donuts, eggs, eclairs, etc.  Stuff to eat also comes fresh, frozen, canned, ready to eat, bagged, boxed, etc.  How blessed we are by God's creativity to have so many choices about what to put into our bodies!
 
At a time when we were becoming more conscious of what we ate, we had a family joke about there being 4 basic food groups – sugar, salt, caffiene, and alchohl.  Our bodies are God's temple, God's residence, and what we put into them is of interest to the One who loves us and wants the best for us.  With every bite we take, we make an offering to God.  God gave us so much to taste and see that He is good!

For all the bounty offered us, we thank you, God.  Help us choose food that nourishes and sustains Your temple. Amen

Tuesday, September 8
 
"...do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God...
Put away all bitterness and wrath and anger and
wrangling and slander, together with all malice and
be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another,
as God in Christ has forgiven you."
Ephesians 4:30-32

What comes out of our mouth can be as problematic as what we put into it.  Words stemming from impatience, thoughtlessness, annoyance, hurt, jealousy, judgment, etc. does impact others and "grieve the Holy Spirit." Following Churchwide Assembly and the discussions about sexuality, we need to be especially mindful of what we say and how we say it.  Concerned Christians can read scripture and come to differing conclusions.
 
What others say can have an effect on us.  Perhaps a parent angry with aging, a spouse who has lost a job, a teen having less freedom that desired,  all take out their frustrations on us.  Then we are called to  forgive others as God has forgiven us.
 
God does not give up on any one of us.  When we are short with others, we can admit our mistake, our grieving of the Spirit, we can say we are sorry.  When others grieve us, we can forgive them even if they don't ask for it.  God's forgiveness is big enough to cover everyone's errors, and we can begin each day anew.

We rejoice in the Spirit's kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness.  Thank you, Holy Spirit, for these gifts. Amen.

Wednesday, September 9

The morning mist rises from the surface of the lake, the cry of the loon breaks the dawn's silence, a bright orange and black Baltimore oriole flits by the window. A sense of peace, comfort, and grace prevails.
 
Sitting quietly observing nature, ambling along the shore of a lake, pulling weeds and planting flowers, hiking through the woods, all these help us feel at one with the world around us. What makes us feel at one with Jesus?

After opening worship services with confession and forgiveness and praising God in a hymn, we hear the New Testament blessing, "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all." 2 Corinthians 13:14. After telling God how human, how small, how powerless we are, after being forgiven for all our imperfections, we are assured of God's favor, God's eternal smile in Christ, and the Holy Spirit's perpetual embracing guidance.  Accepting those assurances, we can be at peace wherever we are.

We praise you, Jesus, for the grace and peace that you offer us.  Amen.

Thursday, September 10
 
"There is a time for everything and
a season for every activity under heaven ..."
Ecclesiastes. 3:1

As I write this devotion for today, I am watching a female not so ruby throated humming bird sip nectar from the red bee balm 10 feet away.  The wings of this tiny bird flap over 200 times a second, so fast they are a blur.  Soon the flowers will fade, she will migrate, and the season of nature's year will change from summer with perfect 55 degree nights and 75 degree days to the cooler days and nights of fall.  Then there will be frost, then snow.
 
The church year also has seasons, Pentecost now followed by Advent, Christmas, Epiphany, etc.. Our lives encompass its own seasons, babyhood, youth, young  adulthood, middle age, seniority, death, and resurrection.  There is comfort, predictability, and reassurance in the cycles of nature, the seasons of the church year, and the passing of our lives, the circling around from one fall to the next, one Christmas to the next, from birth to death to new life.  The cycles are a piece of the eternity of God's care stretching back farther than we can imagine and bringing incomprehensible joy in the future.

Thank you, Lord, for the cycles of life that connect us to Your eternal care.  Help us to share our conficence in you with others.  Amen.

Friday, September 11
 
"Be careful then how you live ... making the most of the time ...
be filled with the Spirit ... sing songs and hymns ..."
Ephesians 5:15-19

Most of us, regardless of age, are busy people. Children start sports activities or various lessons at 4 or 5, youth have electronic games, Facebook, Twitter, parents have work and family life, adults have aging parents, retired folks travel, are community and church volunteers. Whatever our age, there never seems to be enough time.

Our time is our life. How we choose to spend time reflects our values. Do we choose wisdom, life, and God's way or do we choose folly, death, and our way? Ephesians tells us to be careful, to choose wisely, to make the most of time, to sing psalms and songs. Where in the demands of daily can we squeeze in time for that?

Perhaps it isn't that we need to do as much as we do. Perhaps being more Spirit filled can help and guide us. We become more Spirit filled through worship, singing songs and psalms. There is a saying that one who sings, prays twice. Worship, singing, and praying won't help us accomplish anything materially visible immediately. There are no instant results – or are there? Studies show that prayer which can be in the form of psalms and hymns helps lower our blood pressure, making us calmer and more centered. By centering on Christ, all kinds of pressures ease and we need not fear the ticking of the clock.

Thank you Lord, for the peace that only You can give. Amen.

Saturday, September 12

"I urge you ... in view of God's mercy,
to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God –
this is your spiritual act of worship."
Romans 12:1

A farmer's market we have attended with our 6 year old grandaughter has locally grown produce, baked goods, and samples of those items. As we left, she said that her favorite part was the "free examples." Jesus is our free example.  God freely sent him to show us how to live each day in a way that is pleasing and holy.   Just as Jesus put aside his own desires – Father, let this cup pass from me – we too can say "Thy will be done," trust God to guide us, and put our energy, resources, and our very lives at His disposal.

Dear God, help us joyfully give ourselves as living sacrifices in Your service.  Amen