Priorities

•February 20, 2013 • 2 Comments

The things we talk about, the things we are proud of, say a lot about what is important to us.

2013-02-17 15.35.04This was a photo I shared on Sunday afternoon.  It certainly shows one of my priorities!

Philippians 3:17-4:1

17 My friends, I want you to follow my example and learn from others who closely follow the example we set for you. 18 I often warned you that many people are living as enemies of the cross of Christ. And now with tears in my eyes, I warn you again 19 that they are headed for hell! They worship their stomachs and brag about the disgusting things they do. All they can think about are the things of this world.

20 But we are citizens of heaven and are eagerly waiting for our Savior to come from there. Our Lord Jesus Christ 21 has power over everything, and he will make these poor bodies of ours like his own glorious body.

4 Dear friends, I love you and long to see you. Please keep on being faithful to the Lord. You are my pride and joy.

What are we proud of in our lives?  What do I worship?  To whom and to what am I faithful?

Lord,

may my priority be you,

my pleasure come from living out your ways,

may the important things in my life

be the things that matter to you.

May I hold loosely to all other things,

and never lose sight of you

obscured by them

Posted in bible, faith, God, Jesus, Lectionary, lent, Religion, theology
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Prayer

•February 19, 2013 • 2 Comments

The purpose of prayer is praise (p35)

This is not, Stephen Cottrell reminds us, because God needs our thanks, but because without God there is nothing.

When we encounter God, and all that he freely gives to us, what can we do, but respond in praise and thanks?

But, Cottrell goes on:

The voice of thanksgiving must soon turn to silence (p35)

Not because we run out of things to say, but because in prayer we also receive from God.

Our minds and hearts can be fed and replenished; we can begin to know God’s mind; there can be alignment between our wills and the will of God.

Lent, in the desert, can be our opportunity to take that time.  To spend time hearing God, seeing what he has to say to us, and in doing so being more “at one” with him.  How quick we are to come to God with a shopping list of wants and needs – often very worthy – how slow we are to listen to what his wants and needs might be in our life.  We would be a poor friend if we met with our friend and did nothing but talk about ourselves, never asking them about themselves or giving them space to say what they wanted to – yet so often we think nothing of doing that with God.

By Steve Evans from Citizen of the World (Bhutan) [CC-BY-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)%5D, via Wikimedia Commons

In the picture, Rising from Sleep in the Morning, Jesus is reaching, waiting, ready to receive

Am I?

This year for Lent, I am reading Christ in the Wilderness by Bishop Stephen Cottrell, published by SPCK, reflecting on Stanley Spencer’s paintings of that title.

I’m not necessarily going to blog every day on it, just when something leaps out at me – and they will be thoughts rather than full blog posts

Posted in faith, God, lent, Religion, theology
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In Trust

•February 19, 2013 • Leave a Comment

Trust:

1
a: assured reliance on the character, ability, strength, or truth of someone or something
b: one in which confidence is placed

(http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trust)

Trusting in God

Psalm 27

(By David.)

A Prayer of Praise

27 You, Lord, are the light
that keeps me safe.
I am not afraid of anyone.
You protect me,
and I have no fears.
2 Brutal people may attack
and try to kill me,
but they will stumble.
Fierce enemies may attack,
but they will fall.
3 Armies may surround me,
but I won’t be afraid;
war may break out,
but I will trust you.

4 I ask only one thing, Lord:
Let me live in your house
every day of my life
to see how wonderful you are
and to pray in your temple.

5 In times of trouble,
you will protect me.
You will hide me in your tent
and keep me safe
on top of a mighty rock.
6 You will let me defeat
all of my enemies.
Then I will celebrate,
as I enter your tent
with animal sacrifices
and songs of praise.

7 Please listen when I pray!
Have pity. Answer my prayer.
8 My heart tells me to pray.
I am eager to see your face,
9     so don’t hide from me.
I am your servant,
and you have helped me.
Don’t turn from me in anger.
You alone keep me safe.
Don’t reject or desert me.
10 Even if my father and mother
should desert me,
you will take care of me.

11 Teach me to follow, Lord,
and lead me on the right path
because of my enemies.
12 Don’t let them do to me
what they want.
People tell lies about me
and make terrible threats,
13     but I know I will live
to see how kind you are.

14 Trust the Lord!
Be brave and strong
and trust the Lord.

I long to dwell in the house of the Lord, to be safe in his arms.  When all around is going crazy, and when it is calm – in him is my reliance.  He neither rejects or deserts anyone.  He is kind, and can be relied upon.

In trust I come to you Lord.  You are the only truly safe place.  I know you won’t reject me.  I turn to you now

Posted in bible, faith, Lectionary, lent, Religion, theology
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