Daily Scripture and Prayers for January 2024
This month we live in two of the loveliest seasons of the Christian year. The season of Christmas continues until January 6th. As we continue to celebrate the incarnation of Jesus this year we will focus on the beginning verses of John’s gospel to consider the light of the world for our day. Each year on the seventh of January, when the wise men have left their gifts and the tree is down and the last of the tinsel has been swept from the hallway, we settle into the lovely and quiet season of Epiphany which takes us all the way to the journey to the cross of Lent. This season is especially lovely as it focuses our hearts and minds on the meaning of Jesus coming to earth to be with us, to save us, to model for us what human life is intended to be. The themes of Epiphany are Light (enlightenment,) Transformation (transfiguration,) and Grace (unbounded, indelible Love of God.)This year we will take a deep dive into the wonders of Grace together. For the next 38 days we will focus each day on one verse of scripture that contains the Greek word charis in one of its forms. This is the word we often translate as ‘grace’ and it literally means favor, that which brings pleasure or delight, loving kindness, goodwill freely and universally offered. Consider in these days that you are the everlasting recipient of divine grace. See if you can begin to open your heart to receive this truth. See if you can begin to see yourselves as divinely beloved, delighted in and favored. Start by reading the daily scripture aloud. If a particular word is emphasized for the day, practice emphasizing that word in different ways as you read to see if it takes on new life in you. Imagine that you are completely surrounded by love, sweetness, and delight as you read. That is God’s grace surrounding and delighting in you!
Jan. 1 – John 1:1 – “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (The word Logos, Word, refers to a special word that embodies an idea. It is a thought expressed in personal action. Here the author of John reenforces that Jesus is an action of God, an expression of God.) Since I was a small child, I have loved the Rose Parade. It was always a ritual of Christmas for us. Rarely was my college team playing in that particular game so there was an atmosphere of relaxed admiration for me as I sat before the usually black and white TV and watched bowers of roses and mechanical lifts float down Colorado Avenue in the far away west. A late sleeper as a child, I always woke early for the parade. In my child’s imagination, even in black and white, I saw the parade in color. A whole new year dawned with vibrancy, color, and promise. As I sat in front of the TV eating cheese grits and honey crusted ham, I knew that something momentous was happening. It was a whole new beginning. A New Year’s affirmation of unimagined wonders ahead. The Gospel of John opens with a truly Rose Parade worthy statement, a statement that offers a vibrant promise of new beginnings. Defying adequate language for the wonder of it, John tells us that the God who was in the beginning, who crafted the roses and equipped people to imagine them on floats, had rumbled into our lives and nothing would ever be the same. There are lots of fascinating theological reasons for John’s choice of the word logos, in this text. Perhaps we will unpack those another day. But for this New Year’s Day, take a moment to give thanks that God, in all God’s vibrant creativity, decided to take to the streets in Jesus and show you all of who God is and what God values. Perhaps you will join me in recommitting your life to Christ today and the vibrant glorious journey of the next year that God will share with you.
Prayer: Dear God, we thank you on this first day of a new year for the many ways that you express your love to us, in the words of scripture, in the beauty of nature, in roses and cornflowers and motors and lifts, in the gentlest experiences of love and, most especially, in your beloved Son our Savior Jesus in whom you express all that you are and all that you most deeply value. Thank you! In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 2 – John 1:2-3 – “He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being.” (The word we translate as ‘through’ also means ‘with’ and ‘for’. It implies that the Word (Logos, Jesus) is the basis of everything that exists.) When I think about Christ’s role in creation itself I cannot help but wonder what it was like for him to carve wood that he had conceived of in the beginning. What was it like to walk on dusty roads that divine creativity once conceived? What was it like to combine his divinity with his humanity and stand in awe as he watched the stars he spangled across the heavens millennia before. In this verse, John reminds us that there is nothing in all creation that came into being apart from Jesus’ presence in the Godhead. We could certainly have some interesting conversations about the presence of evil in light of this verse. (In my view evil is not a creation of God but rather a consequence of the perversion of God’s creation.) But today, as we continue in the season of Christmas, what would it be like for you to consider that you came into being by the very activity of God? Perhaps you are like me. You look with awe at creation, or art, or genius, or the pattern of feathers on the birds at your feeder, or the color of the eyes of your beloved and feel the majesty of God in them. Rarely, I realize today, do I look at myself with that same kind of awe. I see the lines, wrinkles, bulges, the stooping gate and the decreasing energy, and my first thought is not usually that I am fearfully and wonderfully made. It is then that I now realize that I have stepped outside of the mind of Christ. Jesus sees me as unique, adored and perfected by grace. Just as he sees you. Take a moment today to consider that you have been imagined and brought to life by the same love that spangled the heavens with stars. There has never been a moment, from the beginning, when you were not in God’s mind, when God did not smile at the thought of you, when God did not have a plan for you. You are not an accident. You are not insignificant. You are not expendable. You are formed of love and stardust. Sit with the wonder of that today.
Prayer: Dear God, you are our everything, the ground of our being, the source of our lives. Help us today to look to Jesus the Christ who was with you, in you, of you, in the very beginning of creation so that we can see all that we, too, can become in him. Thank you that we, even we, came into being at your command and by Jesus’ hand. In your holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 3 – John 1:4 – “What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people.” (The word for life here is not bios or biological life. It is zoe which refers to the life force itself that is independent of time, is eternal in its nature, and filled with creative energy. Notice that in Christ zoe came to all people. The word for ‘light’ is used throughout John as a symbol for the opposite of chaos. It is enlightenment that calms the waters, reveals the truth and settles the soul in peace.) The seasons of Christmas, and after it, Epiphany, are all about the celebration of the dawning awareness that Jesus brought, and brings, into the world. In these days of war and division, I cannot help but wonder how light dawns for us today. Perhaps that answer is as unique as every person, culture and situation. What I do believe, however, is that light must have an opening. Years ago, I used to struggle to get to sleep at night. I had a soft satiny sleep mask that I wore so that the light of the street lights would not keep me awake. When I went to sleep, I blocked that light out. But if I woke in the night and removed my mask there the light was, as constant as the night it pierced. It was when I realized that light (enlightenment, insight, Jesus himself) was always available even when for my own reasons or comfort, I tried to block it out, that I began to see the night and its lights differently. I haven’t worn a sleep mask in years because I find the promise of light in the darkness to be a comfort and not a distraction or threat. Take a moment today to think of the ways spiritual enlightenment comes to you. Give thanks for the light and commit to being more open to it.
Prayer: Dear God, in Jesus, eternal life was expressed for the whole of creation, settling our fears, calming the chaos, pointing beyond the moment with spiritual insight that is timeless. That same One, comes to us today. Help us, O God, to welcome life today, knowing, in our deep hearts, that it is endless. Help us to wake up to the light of your calming insights. In each new moment of peace, open us to recognize your hand at work. In your holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 4 – John 1:5 – “The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.” (In John, ‘darkness’ has multiple meanings. It refers to chaos, to pain and division. On its deepest level it refers to the opposite of light or insight. It is the ‘not getting it-ness’ of a world ruled by values other than those of God.) These days, this has become my favorite verse in scripture. What a declaration of hope, of promise, of a reality that often we do not see. This holiday season many of my friends and colleagues have experienced trauma. Some have lost loved ones. Some are battling cancer, or covid yet again, or the disillusionment of their ministries, or the dissolving of their marriages. Add to that the daily bombardment of news that fills our screens with the chaos of war, poverty, tribal politics, lies and fears. These days can seem dark indeed. When night falls at 4:30 in the afternoon, even the rhythms of nature can seem to conspire in the sense of pervading darkness. And yet, even in the deep winter of January, the days are getting a little longer. Even in the pain and chaos of personal grief, unsettling situations and global horror, the promise of today’s verse rings true and clear. Chaos and pain do not get the last word. They cannot overcome the light of Christ’s love even in a broken and fearful world. Perhaps today you can copy out this verse in your own hand. Place it where you can see it. Try to memorize it. Pray it as an affirmation of faith as you go about your day. Offer it as a prayer for help when your emotions seem to overwhelm you. No matter what, pain cannot overcome God’s love for you.
Prayer: Dear God, oh how dark these long winter days sometimes feel! Our world is full of chaos and pain. Our nation is divided and seems to be ruled by warring truths, as if such a thing is possible. Even our own homes and hearts can feel lost in darkness sometimes. Grief, anxiety, worries of all sorts, whisper despair in our ears. Help us today to remember that your light always shines, that truth will break forth, that pain will ebb away, and joy and integrity will emerge. We need only look at the stars at night to see you reminding us that chaos and futility will never have the last word. Thank you! In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 5 – John 1:6-8 – “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light.” The prophet Malachi, around 400 BCE, says that a messenger or angel will come to prepare the way for a major intervention of God. All four Gospels understand that messenger to be John the Baptist. These verses were included in the story to remind us that God uses many people, but we are not to substitute lesser realities for ultimate one. This week on social media I saw a photo of a sign in someone’s front yard. It took my breath away. It cut like a knife to my heart. It was a huge sign that said that God almighty bowed at the feet of this person’s preferred political candidate. Now unless somehow, that meant that Jesus knelt to wash the feet of that person, the blasphemy of that sign is truly stunning. It is very easy for us to become confused about the role of people in pointing to God. It is easy to see as godly those who agree with us and support our values. Often that is not a bad thing, but it is always a dangerous thing. It doesn’t happen to me much anymore but in the early years of my ministry I saw that kind of subtle confusion in statements like, “Eugenia will you please pray for me? I know you have a direct line.” I have no more a direct line than anyone else. Nor are my insights infallible. Nor am I somehow closer to God simply because I have spent a lifetime as a pastor. Like John, I have tried to point folk to Jesus. But unlike John I have not played a pivotal role in salvation history. The Gospel of John warns us that the pointers are never to be confused with the One to which they point. Still, we each do have a role to play in God’s unfolding plan, no matter how humble. Today think about what it means to point others to what God is doing in the world. What is necessary for you to remain humble in that task? What is necessary for you to be bold enough to take on that task? In prayer, ask God how you can be useful to the cause of Christ today and give thanks.
Prayer: Dear God, we are grateful for your prophets of old and for those of our own time who point us toward what you are doing in the world. It is humbling to imagine that you use us in prophetic ways for our time as well. Yet we know you do. Help us to be soaked in you to such an extent that where we walk, light walks, when we speak, truth speaks, when we love, You love. In your holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 6 – John 1:9-11 – “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him.” (The word ‘true’ here might be better translated ‘authentic.’ The word ‘world’ is cosmos. That is not the Greek word for the inhabited earth, but rather for the whole of creation, the universe.) Today the holy season of Christmas comes to an end. If we have not already done so, we take down our trees and wreaths and pack them away. We almost reverently remove the ornaments and wrap them in tissue paper, ready to be unwrapped with joy again next year. Traditionally, the feast day of the Epiphany has celebrated the arrival of the Magi to visit the young Jesus. Scholars tell us that, rather than arriving at the manger in Bethlehem, the trip took a couple of years, and they arrived in Jerusalem looking for a new king that they believed the stars had foretold. That set-in motion what threatened power always seems to set in motion, lies, subterfuge and violence that led to Jesus’ and his family fleeing to Egypt where they lived as refugees until it was safe to return to their homeland. The story of the Magi has come to symbolize the expansion of the gospel into the gentile world, as today’s verse from John indicates. Jesus was/is for all. But some resist. Sometimes we ourselves resist, don’t we? When Jesus challenges our status quo, our ideology, our prejudices, or way of life, we can dismiss or run him off from the hearth of our hearts as well. And we, as Herod did, can do that, banishing behind a wall of delusion. Even so, Christ continues to come, enlighten, and redeem the world he created and loves. Spend a moment today trying to identify ways that you subtly refuse the light. Can you sweep your heart clear of those impediments so that you can welcome Jesus home?
Prayer: Dear God, on this feast day of The Epiphany we seek your light! How hard is to accept your majesty, to see love as both the source and rule of the entire universe! We think it is all about us. Our egos are wily and tenacious. Help us today to see you all around us and to live in your light. In your holy name we pray. Amen.
January 7 – John 1:14 – And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (Remember that the word Logos (Word) refers to a word that embodies an idea. It is a thought expressed in concrete action. So, the author is reinforcing that Jesus is an action of God, an expression of God. Jesus embodies what and who God is, and also what humanity is intended to be.) With Word (Logos), John is seeking a common denominator to explain the Christ experience to Gentiles who don’t fully understand the Hebrew concept of Messiah. The problem did not lie in the difficulty of translating one language into another. Translation is never that simple. These folk spoke, as we all do, from their experiences. Words meant certain things because they had experienced certain things to which the words had become attached. It is experience that shapes understanding. Several years ago, I had the opportunity to take a 3 month sabbatical in Switzerland. In preparation, I learned a little bit of German and my host family knew a little bit of English. Still, communication was hard. It wasn’t my vocabulary that was the problem. It was how to convey the interiority of something, the emotion behind it. I could talk about summer evenings in the muggy south surrounded by fire flies, but I could not express what that felt like to people who had never seen fire flies. The same was true of their experiences. The beauty came when we found common denominators, like Helen Keller at the well, and truth broke out between us. That is how the word Word functions for John. It is the breakthrough word that bridges all experience and holds all divine experience. It holds at its core all the wonder and love and power of God. Jesus as Word gives full expression to who God is. Today think about all of who God is to you, all that Jesus has shown you. Imagine being so loved by God that God would find the perfect common denominator to help you experience God personally! That is grace!
Prayer: Dear God, Jesus is the full expression of your grace. You fill us with your love through him. We are so grateful. Help us today to lean into your grace and to be filled with true ‘fullness’ of your presence in heart, mind, body and soul. Help us to be like funnels of your love to the world around us today. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
January 8 – John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. (John uses the word ‘flesh’ differently from Paul. In John, it simply refers to the human condition in general. Paul uses the word to refer to all that opposes God. John does not.) A friend of mine who was adopted at birth, set about as an adult to see if she could find her birth family. It was a long and, at times, painful quest. Eventually through DNA testing she found her birth father who had no idea of her existence. Even so, he welcomed her with open arms into his family and they are getting to know each other. This last summer she was invited to attend the family reunion. With both excitement and fear, she did. While there she took lots of pictures of extended family members. One of the most poignant things she wrote to me was, “Eugenia, you cannot imagine how wonderful it feels to look like someone, to see my nose on cousins faces, my eyes and chin on my father.” In Jesus, God chooses to come to us as family, to look like us, to share what it means to be human. In turn we get to shape our lives in such a way that we rightly reflect God, in whose image we are created. Imagine the depth of the love of God, creator of the universe, to come to us, as one of us! Think today about the creative and healing power of that love. What does it mean to think of God as one of us? Perhaps it means that there is nothing you experience that God cannot understand from the experience of shared humanity. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, you came to share our humanity, all of it, every emotion, every ache and pain, every love, and every betrayal. You loved us so much that the cosmos could not contain you. You came in skin and bones to live among us. We are grateful today for this amazing truth and for your presence still with us in Spirit, Scripture, and Sacrament. Thank you, Holy One! In your name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 9 – John 1:14 - “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (The phrase ‘lived among us’ literally is ‘tenting among us.’) This year on Christmas Eve, my friend Caroline drove up from their home in Mobile Alabama to our winter home in Greenville to share the feast with us. I was as excited as a child to welcome her home for the holiday. I took special care with the decorations and table setting that I likely would not have done just for Robbie and me. The preparation and anticipation lasted for weeks! It was a complete joy to imagine what she would see first when she walked in the door, where we would sit for appetizers, what cheesy Christmas movie we would watch sitting by the tree. My friend was coming to be with us! That is the wonder and excitement that Jesus’ coming into the Bethlehem of our hearts produces as well. Even more so obviously. Think for a moment today about God loving you so much that God came to you in Jesus to share each moment of your daily life. That is how beloved you are! That is grace.
Prayer: Dearest God, you pitched your tent with us long ago and even today you do the same, picking up and moving camp when we do, kindling a fire and pushing back the night, filling us with your body for food and staying close through each of our days. Thank you! Help us to see you with us at all times, offering the sustenance of your very life to us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 10 – John 1:14 - “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (The word here for ‘glory’ is a strange one. It comes from the root for ‘opinion.’ It means the honor that comes from a good reputation, but more than that, it refers to the nature and acts of God in self-manifestation. In other words, ‘glory’ refers to God being God for all to see.) How do we see and experience the glory of God? For many of us it is in nature, the sparkle of fresh snow in the sunlight, the flash of yellow on a fully decked out goldfinch, the splash of a porpoise in an emerald wave, the closeness of the stars in winter, the majesty of a purple mountain range. Those are all expressions of God’s glory. There is more though than that. God’s glory is manifest in human love and especially, exquisitely, in justice and equity in the human family. In his great anthem, Glory, for the movie Selma, Common includes the line, “Justice for all just ain’t specific enough.” Indeed. Jesus shows throughout his life that God’s glory in manifest in meeting the needs for dignity, security, and equity for the least of these. Imagine the places in your life and world when you most hope Glory will shine. Can you be God’s glory in those situations? That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, Glory! Every day you display yourself to us in so many ways. We see you all around us in nature. We hear you squeal in a child’s delight. We know your tenderness in the eyes of those who love us. We feel your strength as we endure hardships. Nowhere is your glory as complete, however, as in the gift of your Son. Help us to look to him in all things and for all things. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 11 – John 1:14 - “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (The word ‘grace’ is a huge one in our family story. It means, love, power, blessing, kindness, favor, all unmerited and lavishly given. Grace is not just an emotion. Nor is it just an action. It is a force, a power. It is the very force of God’s love pouring out on and through the beloved.) Years ago, in a time of pain and personal failure in my life, I found myself wondering how I could ever dig out of the mess I had made. I wondered if I would ever feel whole again. I wondered if I would ever recover. On one such evening when I sat in my mostly dark apartment with one lamp burning and my blank journal in my lap, I felt God say in my Spirit, “Genie, my grace is sufficient for you.” Perhaps that is the word you need to hear today as well. Try saying that out loud, with your own name, obviously. Then try, “My love is sufficient for you.” Next, “My power is sufficient for you.” Then, “My blessing is sufficient for you.” Then, “My favor is sufficient for you.” Then, “My kindness is sufficient for you.” And finally, “My lavish unmerited favor is sufficient for you.” Do this over and over until light begins to dawn. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, Jesus is the full expression of your grace, and you fill us with your love through him. We are so grateful. Help us today to lean into your grace and to be filled with a true ‘fullness’ of your presence in heart, mind, body, and soul. Help us to share your love to the world around us in specific ways today. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 12 - John 1:14 - “And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.” (The word here for ‘truth,’ alethia, means the reality that lies at the heart of a thing, the essence of the matter distilled. It is not the simpler word for truth as opposed to lies, but Alethia cannot exist simultaneously with any lying.) Pilate famously asked, when he was called upon to judge the guilt or innocence of Jesus, “What is truth?” Was he being facetious? Was he truly dumbfounded? Did he really want to know, among all the competing philosophies and viewpoints, which one lay at the very heart of reality? We don’t know. In our day it is often hard to sort truth from lies as well. For some truth is whatever fits their ideology. Facts are, if relevant at all, manipulated or contextual. It can be hard to know up from down if someone we trust is telling us that down is up. What is the antidote? For me, at least, it is the life of Jesus who came to show us the heart of the matter, the essence of what is good and true. If you struggle to sort truth from noise, facts from spin, take a moment to think through the life of Jesus who teaches, heals, restores, tends, sacrifices for others and remains faithful to the end and beyond. That is the key code that allows you to see and recognize truth when you see it. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, in Christ you came to tent with us, and we see in him the essence of all things, the heart of you, the reality of your deepest yearning and divine working. We need nothing else. Help us today to go to the source and walk in the light of your truth. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 13 – John 1:16 – “From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace.” (Remember as we learned earlier that the word ‘grace’ is a huge one in our family story. It means, love, power, blessing, kindness, favor, all unmerited and lavishly given. Grace is not just an emotion. Nor is it just an action. It is a force, a power. It is the very force of God’s love pouring out on and through the beloved.) Once a colleague used an illustration in worship that has stuck with me for thirty years. At the baptismal font, she had two paper cups, a large pitcher of water and a sharp pencil or small knife. She first asked us to imagine ourselves as the cup she held. She filled it with water. The water she said was God’s grace. Then she began to poke holes in the cup to represent our wounds or sins. At first the water just dribbled out, before long the water streamed out of the cup and left it empty. Then she took the second cup and placed the first cup inside of it. That second cup she said represented God’s grace in Jesus. She then refilled the cup and kept on pouring until the cup overflowed into the font. That is an illustration of grace upon grace from the very fullness of God! God’s grace fills us to the brim and beyond, rendering our wounds and sins ineffectual. It has no end.
Prayer: Dear God, even when we poke holes in our lives, or our wounds blind us to the love that is all around us, you patch the holes and lavish grace upon grace upon us. We are humbled and grateful. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 14 – Acts 4:33 With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. This verse comes at a pivotal moment in the life of the early Christian community. They are about to experience their first real test of the transformative power of their faith when two important members, Ananias and Sapphira learn, with dire consequences, the cost of duplicity and wanting to be seen as better than they are. Before that scary story unfolds, the author of Acts reminds readers of the nature of Christian community. The word power here comes from the same root as the English word dynamite. It refers not to force, but rather to supernatural power that allows the one using it to accomplish God’s desired ends. Grace here refers to the winsome power of perfect, self-giving love. The early community understood that grace leveled the playing field among believers. Wealth and status became meaningless when all stood as equals in need of God’s perfect saving love. Why was it important to restate this before telling the tale of Ananias and Sapphira? Because it reminds us that, just like those two ancestors did, we too have the capacity to make better choices, even when there are areas of our lives that are not yet fully transformed. For Ananias and Sapphira that area was money and security. Because their trust was not completely in God, but also in their wealth, they were willing to lie and manipulate in order to hedge their bets. It killed them. Are there areas of your life that you suspect that God does not fully control? In what ways do you sometimes manipulate others? Have you ever found yourself lying in order to appear better than you are? If so, think about these things and offer repentance to God, remembering that God’s grace, God’s winsome powerful love, is available to you so that you can make different and better choices today than yesterday. That is grace!
Prayer: Dear God, we know that we are works in progress. We have received much grace and even made good progress in our spiritual lives. We are also aware that you still have work to do in our hearts. Loosen the tentacles of our fear. Remove any idols from their thrones, so that we may live fully into the grace you so lovingly lavish upon us. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 15 – Acts 6:8 Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. (The word translated ‘wonders’ refers to a class of miracles that are undeniable and so lovely that they will stick in one’s memory. These experiences are startling and understood as heavenly. The word for ‘signs’ refers to miracles that have an ethical purpose. These are occurrences that lead a persons beyond themselves. These occurrences have value, not in and of themselves, but because they point without doubt to God and reveal something of God’s character and work.) When I was a child, I was always cast in our church’s children’s Christmas pageants. More times than not, as a chronically ill child, I did not actually get to perform because I was unwell. Still, I always got cast with an understudy and got to attend at least some of the rehearsals. One year I remember I was to play Stephen the martyr referred to in today’s verse. Why the martyr Stephen had a role in the nativity play, I can no longer remember. What I do remember was fashioning a wonderful costume from blue bath towels tied at the waist with a cord and marching up the chancel steps as the narrator read of my grace and the power to do signs and wonders. I had no idea what that meant, but I knew it was extraordinary and I felt honored to have been chosen for that role. Alas, that year I had pneumonia and could not perform in the actual pageant, but I remember lying in bed and comforting myself that I was full of grace and could do amazing things. Stephen and I melded into one in my feverish little soul. There are worse things that can happen to believers than seeing ourselves and our lives in the people of scripture aren’t there? Even in those who seem so far superior to ourselves. Can you remember a time when you experienced the power of God in an undeniable way? Can you remember a time when God’s powerful love snatched you up and gave you hope? Can you remember a time when something or someone pointed you unmistakably to the love of God and you knew you would never forget it? If so, that is grace? If not today might be that day!
Prayer: Dear God, your wonders and grace overwhelm us and fill us with hope in every circumstance. Help us today, like Stephen, to spread your grace wherever we go. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 16 – Acts 15:11 On the contrary, we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will. (The word we translate as ‘save’ or ‘saved’ in the New Testament means to be made whole, to be put back together as intended. It refers to both this life and the next.) Sadly, it has never been hard to divide God’s people and get them arguing about points of belief. In this verse, Paul and Barnabas are preaching and people are arguing about what they are saying. Some believe that, because of God’s sacred covenant with the Jews, in order to be a Christian, one must first convert to Judaism and, if male, be circumcised. Others argue that is not the case as that would make salvation dependent on keeping the law and not on grace alone. So, they decide to send a delegation up to Jerusalem for Peter and the council to make a determination. Peter certainly had to thread the needle here. And he did. He argues that, while the covenant is not null and void, God’s grace embraces all. God’s love in Christ Jesus is enough to put human beings back together again whole. In the final analysis it is love that saves us. Nothing else can. Wouldn’t it be wonderful it that simple pronouncement had put an end to the grace versus works arguments for all time? It did not. Not even back then. Not now either. For today, though, see if you can imagine not having to somehow be good enough through trying hard. See if, for even one moment, you can see yourself as God sees you: adored, redeemed, wholly enough in yourself for no other reason than that Jesus’ made you so. Take a deep breath of that feeling. It is grace.
Prayer: God of grace, we praise you for the saving grace with which you claim us and make us whole. Help us to grasp that we need add nothing to your love. Our only task is to awaken to the wonders of it. Help us to do that today. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 17 – Acts 20:24 But I do not count my life of any value to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news of God’s grace. Paul is determined to head to Jerusalem to bring an offering to the impoverished church there before he goes on to Rome, and hopefully on to achieve his dream of taking the Gospel as far away as Spain. He knows this is a dangerous mission. He knows that he may be jailed or killed there. And yet he feels compelled to go. Today’s verse comes as he makes his departing remarks to his colleagues, many of whom have witnessed and shared in his suffering and persecutions along the way. What touches me so much about this verse is not just his courage, although that is truly amazing. Rather, what touches me is that he is willing to die for the sake of communicating grace, God’s powerful love. Many of us know what it is like to take risks for those we love. We will gladly give a kidney to our child. We will climb into bed a hold a dying friend or family member when he or she breathes their last. We will take on a night job to send a child to college. Or even, like in the marvelous old short story by O’Henry, The Gift of the Magi, we will sell our prized watch to by combs for our lover’s hair, which she has cut and sold to buy a fob for our watch. We know how to makes sacrifices for those we love, even to the death. But I wonder how many of us would be willing to risk imprisonment or death just for the joy of sharing the Gospel of grace. That is, after all, what Jesus did for us. Are there those in your life today who need a little glimpse of how beloved they are? Could you risk discomfort or rejection to share with them what you know? If you can, then God’s grace will empower you and leak from your very pores as you share the good news. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, we are so grateful for your transforming love for us. Use us today to share love in exactly the right way at exactly the right moment. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 18 – Acts 20:32 And now I commend you to God and the message of his grace, a message that is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all who are sanctified. (The word ‘sanctified’ means to be made holy, to become more Godly. It means to be cleaned up and, in a sense, set apart from those who are not yet sanctified. In some instances, it means to withdraw from the rule of the world and its often skewed values. This is the root word for saint.)
As we’ve seen, grace is not just a churchy word for a Hallmark channel kind of sweet love that wraps up with a bow in the end of each hour. Rather, God’s grace is powerful, earth and soul shakingly powerful. In this verse Paul is still taking leave of his friends as he sets off for Jerusalem. This verse is a kind of final blessing in which he wishes for them that they will continue to be built up in there faith and discover the power of being made holy and set apart for sacred purposes. The year after I graduated from college, while working as a cocktail waitress with my imminently profitable degree in creative writing, I began to feel my call to ministry. I could not quite take it in. I had never seen a woman minister. I could not imagine the change that would have to come on me in order to fit a mold I had never experienced but imagined as extraordinary. Over the years I came to understand that God has a sacred role for each of us to play. It is in accepting that role and allowing God to slowly build us up that we begin to understand what grace really is. God’s grace, no matter how we may stumble, over time, makes us exactly ourselves, set apart for the lives we are graced to live. In what ways have you noticed God’s grace building you up and fitting you for a unique purpose? Maybe it is in your job where you can help people in large or small ways. Maybe it is at home where you can share and dispense care and laughter. Maybe it is at school where you can befriend the lonely kid. Maybe it in with a ministry in the church. However, it happens, God’s grace makes saints of us all over time. That is the power of grace!
Prayer: Dear God, today we place ourselves in your hands. Build us up by your grace. Equip us with the grace we need to accomplish your sacred purpose in the world. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 19 – Romans 1:7 To all God’s beloved in Rome, who are called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul’s life dream was to take the Gospel to Spain. That was as far away as he could even imagine. He knows that he will need the help of the church in Rome if he is to accomplish this mission. The book of Romans is his letter/treatise of introduction that he sends to that church in the hope that they will welcome and support him. The church in Rome is not a church he founded. He knows few of its members. But they had surely heard of him and all of the troubles he has encountered. He has been jailed all over the Mediterranean basin during his missionary journeys. He has been run out of town numerous times and seemed to bring trouble wherever he was. In Romans he writes his most theological and well thought out letter so that they we know who he is, what he believes, what he teaches, and what he considers the essentials of faith. He begins with a traditional greeting that he used in most of his correspondence. Grace and Peace to you. What a beautiful way to greet a person! When I was a parish pastor, I began every worship service with the words: Grace and Peace to you in the name of our savior Jesus Christ and welcome to worship at….wherever I was. That little greeting came to mean so much to me over the years. It was really the prayer of my heart for my flock. I wanted most of all that they would know the grace of God and the peace that comes from it. Grace and peace go together. When we know that we are loved and made whole by God, warring ends. We cannot kill each other. Nor can we war within ourselves for self-esteem or mastery of our poorest instincts. Nor can we war with those closest to us for control or some silly win. The embrace of grace gradually produces a peace that we can barely comprehend. We learn that we are all one, part of the same body, born and redeemed of the same love. We have nothing to prove, nothing to defend and nothing to win. We are at peace. This can be a fleeting experience. We may not even actually feel it. But it is our state of being whether we feel it or not. That is grace indeed!
Prayer: Dear God, in the world, and even in our small lives, we do not always, or maybe ever, feel at peace. And yet your peace and love flow within us, in our blood, in our souls. Help us more and more to experience the peace of your grace so that we may be peacemakers in the world. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 20 – Romans 6:15 What then? Should we sin because we are not under law but under grace? By no means! Once again Paul is trying to help his readers understand what is almost incomprehensible to human beings: that we do not save ourselves by our perfect living. Paul has been making the case that those in Christ had died to sin are now alive to God. Rather than a behavioral get out of jail free card however, being saved by grace ushers in a whole new life of obedience fueled by gratitude rather than fear or even obligation. Moral behavior is no longer a dream to be feebly chased. Rather it is the result of grace infused gratitude for the unmerited love of God that does for us what no amount of trying or determination can do for ourselves. To Paul’s hearers, and to many of us today, it can seem like a mind-boggling paradox to accept that our moral behavior does not make us acceptable to God, but that being acceptable to God leads to a more natural and durable morality. Trying to live our lives perfectly according to God’s perfect values is doomed to failure as quickly as our New Year’s resolution to diet and exercise fails annually before the end of the Rose Parade. And yet. What grace brings to life within us is the desire to return love for Love. When that takes root, behavior and priorities follow almost effortlessly. Almost but not quite. We still constantly need grace to grow in grace. Some in Paul’s day argued that because grace was lavished all the more on our failures, that we should not worry about moral failings because they would be the vehicles for even greater grace. Paul was scandalized by that idea. Paul knew, and we know, that we don’t have to try to sin. We can manage that without trying. Still, the grace that meets us in our failures also transforms us in ways that, if nothing else, break the spell and open us up to the Divine plan and purpose for our lives. That is grace!
Prayer: God of Grace, we are so grateful that you do not hold our failures against us, that they can no longer damage our relationship with you. At least not from your side. Your love for us is irrevocable. That alone can change our hearts. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 21 –Romans 11:6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace. Throughout the book of Romans, Paul circles again and again to the mystery and power of God’s grace. In this verse he helps his hearers understand that grace is not something that we work to earn. It cannot be earned, and it need not be. It is lavish and unquenchable. It is the very character of God, and any impediment to a lifetime and eternity of Divine love has been overcome by Jesus himself. The work is done. If we believe that we must earn God’s love then that love is no longer love. It is a quid pro quo payment for behavior. Unconditional love is hard for us humans to imagine or to accept. For most of us, even our deepest and most lasting loves have moments of self-serving. We cook a special meal for a family member who is hurting out of love to be sure. But we secretly hope for a thank you, or a smile or to be seen as special or indispensable. (By the way, this is what Calvin was talking about when he talked of total depravity. Our motives are rarely 100% pure.) God is not like that. Granted, we are created in God’s image and capable of extraordinary love and heroism. Still, we are not God and our motives are sometimes mixed. God does not have mixed motives. God’s motive is simple: to love us, save us, and enjoy intimacy with us for all eternity, beginning in the here and now. God’s love for us cannot be thwarted, even if we try. It is unchangeable, eternal, free from need and big enough to change even the most stubborn heart. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, we thank you that there is nothing we can do to make you love us less. And there is nothing we must do to make you love us more. Your grace does it all. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 22 – 2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.” So, I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me. In this section of his letter to the troubled church in Corinth, Paul is talking with them about the role of humility and suffering in the spiritual life. Paul had a tendency to be boastful sometimes. He was proud of his pedigree as a devout Pharisee. He was proud of his zeal and his capacity to withstand hardship and failure for the sake of the Gospel. He was proud of his closeness to Christ and the ecstatic spiritual experiences he had. In this chapter he is sharing about how he holds back from boasting so as not to elevate himself and his experiences above others. Even as this is a struggle for him, he knows that that kind of boasting would damage those he has been called to serve. He tells them that to help him with that, he has been given a thorn in the flesh. We have no idea what this affliction was. We don’t know if it was a physical problem, a mental problem or something else. He prayed throughout his life that this affliction be removed from him, but so far as we know, it never was. Whatever the issue, he believes that it was given to him (by Satan) to stop him, but also used by God to keep him humble and dependent on God’s grace. In Paul’s day, and to an extent in our own, people believed that power and prosperity were signs of God’s grace and favor. Here Paul tells us that that is often not the case. Christ’s power is often most present and transforming when we are most helpless and cannot fix our lives or our problems. He is clear here that God does not send the affliction. He is also clear that when we are hurting, the power of Divine love can be used to help us grow, survive and even thrive. Our strength rarely does that. Our weaknesses drive us to our knees every time. And we are always met there by grace.
Prayer: Dear God, sometimes we think that power and blessing are the most important things. We think that they are the bonus points of a life well lived. Sometimes, however, it is our failures and weaknesses that are the making of us. Whatever we face today, remind us that your grace is sufficient for it all. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 23- Ephesians 1:7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace. Scholars do not agree on who wrote the letter to the church in Ephesus. Some say it was actually the apostle Paul. Others argue that it was a later writer who was a student of Paul’s teachings and viewed the faith through that lens. Today’s verse comes from a beautiful opening greeting/prayer that is really one long shout of praise to God for the amazing grace of redemption in Jesus Christ. (Remember that ‘redemption’ refers to a transaction with a price to purchase back a slave or indentured servant for freedom.) Here the writer links the grace of God to the forgiveness of sins. The word translated as ‘trespasses” here is an interesting word. It literally means ‘faults.’ In everyday Greek of the time, it was used to describe transgressions not of the deepest enormity, but rather, the breach of a known way of life that leaves one feeling or being guilty. It is the falling short of ones ideals or commitments. The writer is not only elated about the eternal redemption that grace accomplishes. He is also elated that grace also forgives (covers over, or sends away) the daily stumblings of life. The image of forgiveness as sending guilt away is one of profound love on the part of God. God does not want us to stew over our failings. God does not want the memory of them to haunt us. God does not want our faults to halt us as God continues to work on our daily transformation. Once in seminary I was talking with my spiritual director about some fault that was haunting me. I told him that I had confessed over and over but it still bothered me. He said, “Genie don’t you know that God doesn’t, by choice, even remember that? Every time you confess it, it comes as news to God. That is how grace works. You no longer need to ruminate on your faults. When you do that, you make them more important to yourself than God does. That is grandiosity. That is saying that even the blood of Christ was not enough to cover your everyday failings. Grace does not want you to suffer in that way and thereby take your eyes off Christ.” That was one of the most profound moments of my life. And guess what? I no longer even remember whatever it was that tormented me so. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, we thank you for the grace of forgiveness. We thank you that you want us not to be bound by that from which you have already released us. We praise you today with wonder and gratitude. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 24 – Ephesians 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God. Sometimes we focus on the fact that we are saved by faith, but look carefully at this verse. It is not our faith that saves us. That would just be another work. No. It is grace that saves us. It is faith that awakens us to that reality and sets us on a path of living it out. Here, the writer makes the point even more explicit. Faith itself is a gift of God. We don’t manufacture it. We awaken to it. We release into it. We embrace it. The word ‘faith’ does not refer to a set of beliefs or bullet points that must be understood and accepted. Far from it! In Greek it refers to trust. Faithfulness is living daily soaked with trust in God. Faith trusts that God is. Faith trusts that God is good. Faith trusts that God is always, and in all things, up to something good. Faith acts accordingly. Faith (trust) is like the wheels upon which grace takes us to our destination. Sometimes, sadly, we substitute believing in a set of principles for trusting in the One who lies behind those principles. It is perfectly possible to believe that God is, that God is good and up to good and not trust that for one second of your life. Today, think for a bit, not about what you believe. Rather, think about what you actually trust. Is it your bank account? Is it your physical strength? Your wits? Your family? Your country? Your worldview or politics? If you place your first trust and reliance upon any of those things, or others unique to yourself, then they have become your pantheon of little gods. And they will never open your way to grace.
Prayer: Gracious God, today we thank you for your redeeming grace. Fill us with renewed trust that we may experience the wholeness and wonder that you have to give us. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 25 – Ephesians 4:29 Let no evil talk come out of your mouths, but only what is useful for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear. Chapter 4 of Ephesians focuses on what a grace redeemed and imbued lifestyle looks like. The author uses beautiful imagery, that comes from ancient baptismal customs, of taking off old clothes and putting on new clothes. In this last section of the chapter, the writer talks about the importance of speech in the Christian life. He urges Christians to put away all lies and to only ever speak the truth. After a list of other character traits to develop, he comes to today’s verse. What captures me here is that he indicates that the way we speak can actually bestow God’s grace like a gift to those who hear us. I am writing this reflection during the season of Christmas and the images of gift giving and receiving are fresh in my mind. My mother is nearly 98 years old, and she is showing her age in many ways. On Christmas Day, I went to her care home to take her a stocking that I had made for her with little trinkets and remembrances: special soap, a little snow globe with Santa, a seafood gift certificate, a tiny creche, a tube of hand lotion. I had never seen her so excited. She unwrapped each little gift like if was a pearl or diamond. “I never expected this,” she said again and again. “I didn’t know I would get a stocking.” That is the wonder and joy that our words are to bring to others. Everything we say is a tiny snow globe of grace that opens our hearers to a love they never even expected to come their way. That is grace.
Prayer: Gracious God, govern our speech today so that we may offer love with every word we say. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 26 – 1 Timothy 1:14 and the grace of our Lord overflowed for me with the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. The author of 1 Timothy ( a short pastoral letter to a younger member of the Jesus movement,) again, may or may not have actually been Paul. Regardless, the author here is sharing the wonder of his own life of faith and the transformation that grace has brought about. He has narrated a list of some of his most notable failures and the mercy that he received when he came to faith in Christ. The grace and love that poured into him was more than enough, more than he could have dreamed. He had no way to contain it, it was so remarkable. Many of us have moments that we can look back on the lavishness of God’s grace for us. Sometimes we can only see in hindsight. Other times we are overwhelmed by it in the moment itself. In either case, a hallmark of God’s grace is God’s mercy. The word used in the previous verse for ‘mercy’ refers to the outward manifestation of pity. It assumes need on the part of the one who receives it and sufficient resources on the part of the giver to meet all that need. It is God’s grace flowing out in mercy that compassionately moves to mend our broken past and fit us for a new and sacred now. Sometimes we think that we are not much in need of mercy. We are pretty good and being pretty good most of the time. We can also convince ourselves that our particular habits and choices are normative and appropriate. Sometimes they are. Sometimes they aren’t. Sometimes they are a function of our blindness, prejudice of lazy spiritual growth. In this chapter, the author speaks of having been a terrible persecutor of the early Christians himself before his conversion. He did not see what he did not see. And he did not see what he did not want to see. Until he did. Just like us. Still mercy abounded. Think today about your need for mercy and God’s constant willingness to offer more and more. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, we constantly stand in need of your mercy, even, or especially, when we do not think that we do. Even in our blindness we are surrounded by your grace. We live in it. We move in it. We have our being in it. Thank you for the gift of mercy and grace that is fresh every day. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 27 – Titus 2:11 for the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all The season of Epiphany, which takes us all the way to Ash Wednesday next month, is all about appearing. The word epiphany itself means appearing or manifestation. It traditionally focuses on Christ’s manifestation to the Gentiles represented by the Magi. Given that, the crucial word in today’s verse in ‘all.’ The grace of God has appeared, been made manifest, in Jesus Christ for the salvation (wholeness) of all. Sometimes in contemporary American Protestantism, we act as if grace is only for the chosen few. In my own Reformed tradition, Calvin argued that atonement was limited to the chosen. Granted, this was his way of trying to account for why so many did not seem to be snatched up into grace, or actually preferred hostility to grace. But still. There are indeed a number of verses in the scripture from which that argument can be made. This in not one of those verses. Here Paul tells us that God’s desire in coming in Jesus was so that every single human being and the created order itself could be made whole by Divine Love alone. Being a Christian is not a club membership. It just isn’t. Being a Christian is about being caught up in a movement of Divine Love so unimaginably powerful and inclusive that nothing and no one stands outside of its embrace. Being a Christian is about waking up to love. And as Jesus prayed for his friends on the night before his crucifixion, being a Christian is about awakening to the reality that we are one, as God is One. We are bound up together. Like Mother Teresa once said, “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.” In these war-ravaged days, grace reminds us that not only do we belong to God, we profoundly belong to each other, all of us, without exception. Tiny Tim got it right: God bless us every one.” That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, we thank you that you are one and you make us one. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 28 – Titus 3:7 so that having been justified by grace, we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. (The word ‘justified’ means to be pronounced free from the consequences of sin, to have right standing before God as holy before the Holy One.) There is a lot in this tiny verse of this tiny letter! It is addressed to Paul’s traveling missionary companion, Titus. Titus was probably a Gentile who was converted to Christ by Paul in his early days in Ephesus. Paul calls him his ‘true child’ which indicates the closeness that the two shared. In this letter he offers his companion lots of specific pastoral advice. He gives guidance about how to deal with generation gaps, the continuing problem of slavery for those freed in Christ, the role of a Christian with regard to secular rulers and many aspects of Godly living. In today’s verse he connects grace with the inheritance of the hope of eternal life. Grace’s traveling companion is hope. Hope is not a wish. Nor it is simple wishful thinking that allows us to wish to win the lottery or to wish for a miracle, or even a clear pathway forward when we are in trouble. There is nothing wrong with wishes! They just are not the same thing as Biblical hope. Hope is a steadfast assurance upon which one bases one’s life and which cannot be uprooted by life’s difficulties. It is a gift from God that is planted and watered by grace. Hope rests on the assurance that God is true to God’s word and that the best is always yet to come. In this verse Paul reminds us that hope in our inheritance. It cannot legally be denied us. Not only is the assurance of God’s promises and trustworthiness our inheritance, but hope of life eternal is ours as well. It is not unusual for Christians to approach the subject of eternal life with a combination of confusion and concrete images of what that state will be like. It is not unusual for wonder about it or even to doubt it. Some of us look forward to mansions and streets of gold while others can think of nothing they’d want less. Some of us look forward to singing, finally on key, in heavenly choirs, or serving as guardians or emissaries to those we leave behind on earth. Some of us look forward to being reunited with those that have gone before. Others think of eternal life as our ashes being used as compost to plant new trees. Some of us think of eternal life as the continuation of the family or the faith itself. The truth is we don’t know exactly what to expect, and the few times his friends asked him about it, Jesus was pretty enigmatic. What we do know, though, is that eternal life, a continuation of our discreet life, is our inheritance in Christ. And it will be, as everything has always been, perfect for us. That is grace for all time.
Prayer: Eternal God, we praise you for the inheritance of life eternal. Help us to trust you as we live today knowing that the best always lies ahead. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 29 – Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. The book of Hebrews is not written in the form of a letter. Rather, it was probably a sermon or teaching text that circulated among a number of related but distinct house churches throughout the early community. There is no agreement as to authorship, but what is clear is that it was written to a Jewish Christian audience as a way of reassuring them that their faith in Jesus as Messiah was reasonable and trustworthy. Today’s verse comes after the beautiful description of Jesus as our sympathetic high priest and mediator, and a section warning about the devastation of an unbelieving heart. In chapter four the author seeks to quiet the fear that some believers have about their circumstances and growing persecution. Perhaps even more, the author seeks to calm their fear of wrong belief. Today’s verse touchingly reminds us that no matter what we fear, even if it is the rightness or wrongness of our own thinking, we are so loved that God invites us to bring any and all of it to the throne of grace where we will receive mercy for our errors and strength and resources when we are in trying times. The image of the throne of grace is important to Hebrews emphasis on Jesus’ dual status as human being and son of God. It is an image of power and the capacity to render justice and set priorities for those who follow. This ruler, however, is not like others. He is approachable, sympathetic, and constantly ready to forgive. Perhaps you have had moments when you hesitated to go to God in prayer. Maybe you were taught that God was a cruel punisher of even the smallest infraction so the last thing you wanted was to go to that one for help, forgiveness or even blessing. I once had a parishioner who had been raised in a brutal so-called Christian school in which he had been beaten, abused, and denigrated. When it came time for his wedding he asked if I could not use the word Jesus in the service. He had been taught that Jesus was a tyrannical warrior who was never pleased, and he did not want to invite that one to his wedding. Today’s verse provides consolation to people like my friend and others who may have learned that God was angry, to be feared and always ready to pounce. Hebrews tells us that while Jesus is powerful, powerful enough to make up for our shortcomings, he is always and completely merciful and ready to help in any circumstances. Today take a moment to go to Jesus Christ with anything you need and with any burden you want to release. You will be welcome and blessed. That is grace.
Prayer: Dear God, today we humbly approach the throne of grace. This is what I need….This is the forgiveness I long for…… Thank you! In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.
Jan. 30 – James 4:6 But he gives all the more grace; therefore, it says, “God opposes the proud, but give grace to the humble. The book of James is very different from others in the New Testament. As a matter of fact, at various times in Christian history, arguments have been made that it should not be included in the Bible at all. The problems some have is that James seems to link works with salvation. He doesn’t speak of the basic tenets of the faith, and he only mentions Jesus twice. Martin Luther calls it a book of straw. Thankfully those arguments did not prevail! What we find in James is a work of immense ethical practicality. James is not an evangelist in the ways of other New Testament writers. He is a pastor who is speaking to those who are already believers about how they are to live a transformed ethical life. By the time we reach today’s verse, James has already told us that how we live is how people will know our faith. He has told us of the evil of discrimination, especially due to wealth or status. He has spoken at length about the importance of taming our tongues. In this chapter, James, who has throughout cautioned believers about being double minded, that is trying to live in God’s world while also holding to the values of a culture that often disguises very different values as God’s own, talks about the conflict of friendship with the world and friendship with Christ. James sees pride as friendship with the world and humility as friendship with Christ. He knows how hard that is and makes clear that the capacity to live humble ethical lives itself requires an outpouring of God’s grace. Take a moment today to ponder your friendship with God. Are there assumptions that you make about who God is and what God values that have more to do with cultural values than with Biblical ones? How can you be both bold and confident in the grace of God, and humble about your own understandings? If this is hard remember that God’s grace is unlimited and if you ask for more, more will be given. It may, however, call you to change. That is what grace does.
Prayer: Dear God, help me today to see myself and my priorities through your eyes. Show me if I need to change and give me the grace to do so. In Jesus’ holy name I pray. Amen.
Jan. 31 – 1 Peter 5:10 And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. One of the stumbling blocks for many Christians throughout the ages has been that many believers suffer as much or more than they did before they became followers of Jesus. This was certainly the case of those to whom Peter addresses this letter. He begins by reminding them of the living hope they have in Jesus. He talks about the new life they now live in Christ, telling them that they are like new born babes who will only grow strong by drinking the milk of the word. He gives practical advice about authority and Godly living. In chapters 4 and 5 he reminds us of Christ’s suffering and links it with our own. Even more importantly, he places suffering in a context of growth. In today’s verse, he reminds us that suffering is temporary. It has an end point. This too shall pass. When it does, the God of grace, will restore, support, strengthen and establish us. That is not always comforting on the emotional level when we are in the midst of travail. Sometimes it sounds flat and can feel like empty words. What Peter knew, and what I have come to believe over a lifetime, is that suffering, eventually, can offer unexpected benefits. Those benefits do not come from the suffering itself. I do not believe that God wills us to suffer, nor sends us suffering as a teaching tool. What I do believe is that when we suffer, God is intimately at work restoring, supporting, strengthening, and establishing us for days of wonder and glory to come. Looking back, I would certainly not want to repeat any of my times of greatest suffering. Nor do I look forward with some kind of false piety to suffering that may lie ahead. Even so, I know that God is with me in all things. That grace bursts forth from rubble and ruin today, just as it did from the cross. God will never abandon. God will always restore, even if we ourselves are responsible for the rubble in which we find ourselves. Grace is powerful. Grace is the currency of both this life and the next. Grace is unbowed by pain and can even transform it. That is grace.
Prayer: God of Grace we praise you for this journey we have shared in exploring the wonders of your grace. We know that we have only scratched the surface! Open us this day to receive all the grace you have to offer, and make us vehicles of your grace in our love starved world. In Jesus’ holy name we pray. Amen.