December 5, 2022 – Devotions to Prepare Us For Christ’s Coming

“The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt: This month shall mark for you the beginning of months; it shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell the whole congregation of Israel that on the tenth of this month they are to take a lamb for each family, a lamb for each household.  If a household is too small for a whole lamb, it shall join its closest neighbor in obtaining one; the lamb shall be divided in proportion to the number of people who eat of it. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a year-old male; you may take it from the sheep or from the goats. You shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month; then the whole assembled congregation of Israel shall slaughter it at twilight. They shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it.  They shall eat the lamb that same night; they shall eat it roasted over the fire with unleavened bread and bitter herbs Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted over the fire, with its head, legs, and inner organs.  You shall let none of it remain until the morning; anything that remains until the morning you shall burn. This is how you shall eat it: your loins girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and you shall eat it hurriedly. It is the Passover of the Lord.  For I will pass through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both human beings and animals; on all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments: I am the Lord.” Exodus 12:1-12

Why are those who are hungry, thirsty, naked and in need seemingly anonymous in our community? How do they remain so hidden from us – or why do we seem to pass over them as we live our lives? Are there ways we can feed, clothe, care for, and visit these people in need in new and exciting ways? We have so many good ministries in our church, yet we cannot become complacent in the calling to serve the needy. How can we expand our ministries to those who are under-served?  How can we expand our understanding of who is our neighbor? 

Moses was forced to look beyond his own situation, happy as he was living his life as a shepherd and trying to remain anonymous. But G-d needed him to expand his understanding of himself and to expand his idea of how he was to serve G-d no matter how unprepared he felt. Moses was forced to understand that his “family” was more than just those whom he knew – his “family” was an entire people in need. 

Let us pray: Dear G-d, as your people we should always try to understand who it is we are passing over – to whom we should be offering ministries and how we can serve others.  Amen.

Pastor Dave

December 6, 2022 – Devotions to Prepare Us For Christ’s Coming

“Jesus, full of the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit in the wilderness, where for forty days he was tempted by the devil. He ate nothing at all during those days, and when they were over, he was famished. The devil said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread.”  Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘One does not live by bread alone.’” Then the devil led him up and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world.  And the devil said to him, “To you I will give their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please.  If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours.”  Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.’”   Then the devil took him to Jerusalem, and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you, to protect you, and ‘On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.’”  Jesus answered him, “It is said, ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”  When the devil had finished every test, he departed from him until an opportune time.” Luke 4:1-13

In Bavarian Alpine Folklore, the Krampus is a horned, “half-goat, half-demon”, figure who, during the Christmas season, punishes children who have misbehaved, in contrast with Saint Nicholas, who rewards the well-behaved children with gifts. The origin of the figure is unclear; some folklorists and anthropologists have considered him to be a Devil figure. 

The whole purpose of an “Anti-St. Nicholas” figure is to scare children into behaving all year long. Of course, there is nothing more empowering as a parent than to scare your children into thinking a “half-goat half-devil man will steal them away at Christmas if they have been rotten”.  It is tempting, but not very Christian. 

For forty days, Jesus was tempted by the devil.  Temptation is a universal human experience. For Jesus to be tempted gives evidence to his humanity, gives evidence that Jesus was tested just as we are tested every day. What truly gives us hope and should strengthen our will to sustain temptation is the amazing fact that Jesus was able to avoid sinning in the face of such temptation. 

Time generally wears a person down, physically, emotionally, and spiritually. Jesus could not have been prepared to remain in the wilderness with the Devil, but the longer he was there the more that his own will would have been tested. What gives us hope is that we worship the one who, in being human just like us, has given us a model for withstanding temptation, and the instructions for how to prepare: through G-d’s word and love.

Let us pray: Dear Lord, even in the most difficult of trials and tribulations we can receive strength and hope knowing that Jesus was fully human, like us, and knew what it meant to be tempted, like us.  And Jesus will be the one to take all of that sin upon himself and win for us eternal life. Amen.

Pastor Dave

December 3, 2022 – Devotions to Prepare Us For Christ’s Coming

“Keep awake therefore, for you do not know on what day your Lord is coming.  But understand this: if the owner of the house had known in what part of the night the thief was coming, he would have stayed awake and would not have let his house be broken into.  Therefore you also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an unexpected hour.” Matthew 24:42-44

Keep Awake! Jesus says; for You do not know when the Lord is coming, the day or the hour is only known by the Father. Keep awake can mean two different things. One is to try not to fall asleep. Living your life and your faith life in a drowsy existence or sleeping your life away is no way to live. The other way to consider staying awake is to be alert. Being alert is to be attentive to everything in your presence. Every sound, every movement is listened to, seen, and examined. Which way do you think G-d wants us to “keep awake”? Does G-d seek a drowsy existence with us where we barely hear a word, and always need G-d to nudge us back into awareness? Or does G-d seek a relationship with you and me where we are attentive and aware?  I believe G-d wants us to always watch, always listen and always learn – for our wakefulness will strengthen our relationship with G-d and with each other.

Let us pray: Dear G-d give me the strength and the will to stay awake and to prepare for Christ’s coming. Amen.

Pastor Dave

December 4, 2022 – Advent 2A

“In those days John the Baptist appeared in the wilderness of Judea, proclaiming, 2“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” 3This is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke when he said, “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.’ ” Matthew 3:1-3

While I was convalescing with the flu this past week, I did a lot of reading and watched a lot of soccer while shivering under a quilt. As I was perusing the news one day I saw this headline: “Jane Fonda is Preparing to Die”. It was the usual bare-bones MSN article – but it couldn’t have had a truer topic – too few people are willing to accept the fact that one day they are going to leave this earthly plane. And while it may have taken a cancer diagnosis to push Jane Fonda to her current contemplation, at least it has put her into a place of preparing for the end. Now G-d has tried to help people prepare for this inevitable reality for millennia – G-d has sent prophets and G-d has sent messengers – warning the people to prepare for the Messiah.

For Matthew’s Gospel, the word repentance means to “change one’s ways” – or more importantly to completely change directions. John the Baptist also suggests that repentance requires a change of heart – demonstrating a change of behavior. And it is true – repentance needs to come from the heart. Of course the question we need to ask is this: do we need repentance? And what are the benefits of repentance? Well, as I see it, the benefits of repentance are: Giving up control in our lives and allowing G-d to set us upon a new path.

St. John of the Cross, a mystic and Saint writes: “repentance requires complete trust and obedience. If we want to be united with God, we must empty ourselves.”

The question we ask here is: “How do we empty ourselves?” Well, by: Giving up control in our lives and allowing G-d to set us on a new path. What better way is there to prepare for Christ to come again than to listen to Christ and allow Christ to set us on a new path of trust and obedience.

Let us pray: Dear G-d, open my heart to allow you to lead me down paths not anticipated – nor paths I am prepared for – as we wait, expectantly, for the coming of Christ. Amen.

Pastor Dave