I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. - Philippians 3:10-11

I wanted to share some excerpts from the narrator's comments in today's devotion from the Lenten Reader.

To Lament means embracing grief with hope, but not the sort of hope that sings a happy song. Though Hope sings the song of the future, Lament teaches us that song in a minor key. This week we face the most grievous event in the history of the world, the murder of Jesus of Nazareth. Story #1 (Adam) catastrophically crashes into Story #2 (Jesus).

Ask God to gift you with tears over your own sin and brokenness; not shame but grief. Now ask God to gift you with mourning over the sin and brokenness around you, in the world. Might lament be the doorway into "the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings?"

WARNING: Don't mistake lament for despair or depression. Lament opens us up to feel grief and sadness. Renounce Satan and Despair! Embrace Jesus and Lament. The gift of lament, practiced over time, delivers us from Story #1 and all its broken promises and ever deeper into Story #2 and a promising life. - JD Walt

Peter replied, "Man, I don't know what you're talking about!" Just as he was speaking, the rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter. Then Peter remembered the word the Lord had spoken to him: "Before the rooster crows today, you will disown me three times." And he went outside and wept bitterly. - Luke 22:60-62

- Rob

Above all else, guard your heart,
for it is the wellspring of your life.
Proverbs 4:23

The question for us is: Are we doing all we can do to guard our own hearts?

-Angela

A brief summary of the Lenten Reader over the past week. Hopefully, you have been engaged with the reader daily. If not, I encourage you to start up again in order to help prepare your heart for the week of Christ's Passion. Easter will soon be here.

"...perfection in holiness can be achieved only through humility." - John Cassian

"...I want more abundant evidence that not only many, but 'all things have become new.'" - Mary Fletcher

"...the measure we receive (of the Holy Spirit) depends on the enlargement of the vessel into which it is to be poured." - Mary Fletcher (commentary: the vessel is enlarged by faith and obedience)

"'...Thy will be done!' That is a weapon Satan cannot stand against." - Mary Fletcher

Questions of Examen:
1. Am I looking for God's presence, activity and leading in my life?
2. Am I listening to the discernment and direction of others? (Who is speaking into my life?)
3. Am I offering discernment and direction to others?
4. Am I bearing the fruit of the Spirit?
5. Are my relationships with others being shaped by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, humility and self-control?

- Rob

Years ago I was part of a group of moms from around the world, connected by internet, who prayed and fasted for our families once a week. I'll admit that fasting is hard for me and I'm trying to get back into the "habit" of fasting.

During one of those days of fasting I ran across Isaiah 58, where God talks about the kind of fast that pleases Him. I was very humbled as I read that it is a lifestyle of pouring yourself out, of giving to the point that it really costs you that pleases the Lord. My heart ached as I thought about the many homeless people I walked by daily in Paris and never thought twice about.

In the book Crazy Love, Francis Chan quotes that same chapter. He made a statement that has stayed in my mind all week:

"What matters is that we spend ourselves"

I am once again humbled and challenged. I want to spend myself, pour all of myself out for those God gives me to love and care for. I want to care more about the poor. I want my heart to ache enough to drive me to action when I see someone crying or hungry or lonely.

If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
with the pointing finger and malicious talk,
and if you spend yourself in behalf of the hungry
and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
then your light will rise in the darkness,
and your night will become like noonday.
The Lord will guide you always;
he will satisfy your needs in a sun-scorched land
and will strengthen your frame.
You will be like a well watered garden,
like a spring whose waters never fail.
Isaiah 58:9-11

We have given you only what comes from your hand"
1 Chronicles 29:14

-Angela

From the Lenten Reader on Monday:

For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. Luke 14:11

Where am I and where are you trying to exalt ourselves rather than humbling ourselves under God's authority?

- Rob

There is a woman in our church who writes poetry & short stories. I'm not sure if she wants me to use her name, but she sends me things from time to time and I wanted to share this with you.

The funniest thing happened. It would have gone unnoticed by most but it suddenly struck me as funny.

I had seen a dad walking with a young child, maybe four or five years old. The little girl was talking about something that was very exciting to her as she was waving her hands about. But the store was crowded and noisy so the man was having a hard time hearing his daughter. Finally, he stopped and knelt down in front of the little girl so that he could be eye level with her and give her his full attention. She heaved a sigh that sounded like it would burst her tiny body. She knelt in front of her father, too. I stepped back and wondered at the scene as it unfolded before me. She told her story to him as he patiently listened. When she was done, she stood, and they exchanged a hug. He stood only after he was sure that she had said all there was.

And God said, “It is good.”

I have several things to share this morning that are all over the place, but I'll be brief so bear with me.

I'm grateful that the David Crowder band did not put on a show but created a worship experience. Words for every song were available and we were asked to participate and not consume.

Being a part of the Feed My Starving Children food packing day was such a joy. I was helping finish and then dedicating a Habitat House the last time we packed food and did not get a chance to help. I'm so thankful that La Croix is incredibly generous and that we got another opportunity to pack food. (Side note: my particular job yesterday - hauling bins of rice and soy and hauling full boxes of meals around for 90 minutes - is the best kind of workout I could imagine).

Lenten Reader on Saturday included this suggested examination of ourselves.

Are all our hopes on Jesus, looking only to him for salvation?
Does the spirit of prayer grow more lively?
Does sin appear more dreadful; and holiness more lovely in our eyes?
Does our hunger and thirst increase after righteousness?
Are we more ready to live under the feet of all, and to acknowledge the faults we have fallen into?
Am I serving God by serving my neighbor, bringing the gospel to them in word and deed?

But you, dear friends, build yourselves up in your most holy faith and pray in the Holy Spirit. Keep yourselves in God's love as you wait for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to bring you to eternal life. - Jude 1:20-21

- Rob

From our Lenten Reader on Friday:

Now he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the Sabbath, and a woman was there who had been disabled by a spirit for eighteen years. She was bent over and could not straighten herself up completely. When Jesus saw her, he called her to him and said, "Woman, you are freed from you infirmity." Then he placed his hands on her, and immediately she straightened up and praised God. - Luke 13:10-12

One of the crucial things we need to believe about Jesus, and it is one of the coolest things about him, is that he calls broken and sinful people to him. I love it that Jesus was less worried about the religious laws (he is rebuked by a temple leader after this for healing on the Sabbath) and more concerned about THE law - the law of love.

- Rob

Have you ever felt like the assignment God has given you is too big for you? If you have, or if you're there now, then you're in good company. I take great comfort in knowing that the Bible is full of men and women who were given assignments that were too big for them. They got to experience God in ways that they never would have if they had only been given tasks that were in the area of strength.

"My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever." Psalm 73:26

When I'm overwhelmed and feel the task at hand is too big for me, I remember the words that Gideon was told when he felt his assignment was too big for him:

"Go in the strength that you have.....I will be with you"
from Judges 6

-Angela

If you parent teenagers, or even remember your own teenage years, this quote from the Lenten Reader by St. John of the Cross will resonate with you.

...God perceives the imperfections within us, and because of his love for us, urges us to grow up. His love is not content to leave us in our weakness, and for this reason he takes us into a dark night. He weans us from all of the pleasures by giving us dry times and inward darkness.

- Rob

One of the scripture readings from today's devotional in the Lenten Reader is 1 John 1:5-8:

This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us.

What does it mean to walk in the light? I used to think that meant that we never sin again, but the context of this verse makes that unlikely. No, I believe now that this is about not letting our sin be hidden in the dark. It is when we hide our sin away to keep from being exposed that it drags us with it into darkness eventually. Therefore, walking in the light is about shining light even on our darkness so that the darkness has to leave. How do we do that?

Confession; and yes, I do mean confessing to one another. That does not mean telling everyone everything you do. But it does mean that you have a trustworthy person or persons to whom you can confess. When we confess our sins in prayer to Jesus, we receive forgiveness; but when we confess our sins to one another we walk in the light and therefore gain power over sin itself.

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 1 John 1:9

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. James 5:16

- Rob

I hope you are finding the Lenten Reader as rich as I am. It is rich and it is doing a good job of reminding me how poor I am. That may not sound good, but it is essential for right living with the Lord.

Consider the parable from this morning in which a great harvest drives the landowner to say, "I will say to my soul: My soul, you have plenty of good things laid by for many years to come; take things easy, eat, drink, have a good time." But when God shows up it becomes clear that apparent earthly security is not considered a rich soul.

For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing.
No; set your hearts on his kingdom, and these other things will be given you as well. There is no need to be afraid, little flock, for it has pleased your Father to give you the kingdom. - excerpts from Luke 12

The two stories continue. There is Adam's story, increasing one's security, power and pleasure for this life only to lose it all. Then there is Jesus' story, obediently holding none of this life back in preparation for eternal life in God's kingdom.

Here are a few of the examen questions from the past week:
Am I searching the scriptures with and for those in fellowship with me?
Am I praying with and for those in fellowship with me?
Am I being immersed in the Bible as a means of learning about the character, presence, activity and calling of God in my life?
Am I practicing the presence of God in the midst of everyday life?

- Rob

Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; you teach me wisdom in the inmost place. - Psalm 51:5-6

There is a glaring contrast present in this wonderful passage from the Psalms. In their song Dare You to Move, Switchfoot says it this way: "The tension is here, the tension is here, between who you are and who you could be; between how it is and how it should be." We are born in need of a savior - death-vulnerable to the brokenness and rebellion in every one of us. The lies and foolishness exist deep within us before our minds are even developed enough to know. This is contrasted with the offer of our Savior - freeing truth and wisdom that he wishes to deliver to the deepest parts of us - the most vulnerable parts. BUT...

Wisdom far greater than Solomon's is right in front of you, and you quibble over 'evidence.' - Luke 11:32

The Lenten Reader's narrator goes on to say, "Watch as (Jesus) becomes more and more indignant and intolerant of the Pharisees. They don't respond to his gracious invitation, so he turns to prophetic confrontation. We soon see that prideful people who build a self-righteous religious identity are the most dangerous people on Earth. He will also show us that the most financially secure people are in the greatest danger."

Folks, the problem is NOT religion and money, but what people do with them. Turtles rely almost exclusively on their shells for protection. Whenever threat comes, they hide inside those shells where nothing can enter. The goal is to never be vulnerable. What is really common in people is to use religion and wealth to construct a "shell" that we rely on. We make ourselves believe that we are invulnerable and then we become self-reliant. But as the Psalm above says - what's in the shell is already rotten and in need of truth and wisdom. But we keep that truth and wisdom from reaching the vulnerable parts by means of the shells we construct. It makes us unresponsive to the "gracious invitation."

In the seventh chapter of Luke, two people are contrasted; a Pharisee and a woman who had led a sinful life. In the exchange, Jesus points out that it is the woman who is in the best position to receive him and his grace because she knows her need. The people most responsive to Jesus are those who have had their shells cracked open or were never allowed to build a shell.

Lord, show me where I have built a shell around my inmost being; where I am relying on my own means, my own understanding, my own religion or money or power. Turn these hardened parts soft again that your truth may set me free and your wisdom transform me into your image. Amen.

- Rob

"Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it!" - Luke 11:28

The Lenten Reader had a Charles Wesley hymn that ends this way:

Come quickly, gracious Lord, and take
Possession of thine own;
My longing heart vouchsafe to make
Thine everlasting throne!

Consider the idea of your heart being God's throne. What would that look like in terms of how life plays out; how we treat others and respond to them, what we do and say? Considering something like this blows my mind a bit, but the verse above from Luke makes it pretty simple - hear the word of God and obey it!

Lord, again this morning I pray for a willing spirit; a natural inclination to obey you. Amen.

- Rob

Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. - Psalm 51:11-12

Over the past several years I've found that one way God works to transform me is by way of a verse of scripture that he has me just kind of sit in for a stretch of time. While I was away at seminary one semester I had such a verse that wound up being the center of my transformation for about a year (I know, I"m slow).

I have a strong sense these days that the last line of the scripture above (found often in the Lenten Reader we are sharing) will be such a verse. "Grant me a willing spirit..." One translation says "...make me want to obey!" The brilliance of this prayer is that it disposes of all the straining to be obedient. The writer is not asking for strength or help to do the right thing; rather to have the right thing be the natural choice within him.

Interestingly enough this request is not just about the writer; check out what immediately follows:

Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will turn back to you.

The presence of the Holy Spirit in one who has a willingly obedient spirit creates just what is needed to help people turn to the Lord. I'll close with Sunday's question from the Reader: "Has the reality of God shone through my life to others as truth that can be seen, heard, tasted, touched and smelled?"

- Rob