Lent Daily Devotions 2019 Above All. Through All. In All.

Transcription

1 Lent Daily Devotions 2019 Above All. Through All. In All. Theme Verse: There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-6 Week Three Contents: One Hope. Above All. Through All. In All 3.1 Wednesday Hope Sees with Two Eyes (poem and picture) 3.2 Thursday Embodied Hope (story) 3.3 Friday More Than a Million (story and picture) 3.4 Saturday Love Makes Hope Possible (story) 3.5 Sunday Golden Cracks (story and picture) 3.6 Monday Resurrection is for the Living (story) 3.7 Tuesday A Seed Awaiting Life (poem and picture)

2 3.1 Wednesday, March 20, 2019 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all and through all and in all. Ephesians 4:4-6 Hope Sees with Two Eyes She waits quietly, Huddled against the storm Holding fast, Hidden within the chaotic clamor. She sits through rattling thunder, Gale force winds, flagging trees Remaining inside the darkness. Calm. Present. Unseen within the tormented soul. She stirs closer in the final stillness, Slowing approaching through the tears, Leaning into the sighing, Joining the agony of the pain unwilling to leave. With two eyes she ponders Through the pause of the quiet, Hope emerges. One eye remembers past storms. Acknowledging the pain, darkness, wind, chaos. Aware of survival Moving into living; Living into resilience; Resilience into loving; Loving into life. And with the other eye, She invites a future vision. Feeling a healing breeze. Smelling a scent of freshness. Sensing a glimmer of light on the horizon Watching a flower pushing through the rocks, Hearing the call to dance, Bidding come. Hope abides. Hope awaits. Hope affirms tomorrow. Again. And again. And yet again. Reflection: Remember a difficult time when hope broke into your life Photography by Elaine K Olson

3 3.2 Thursday, March 21, 2019 Likewise, the Spirit helps us in our weakness; For we do not know how to pray as we ought, But that very Spirit intercedes with sighs too deep for words. Romans 8:26 Embodied Hope Depression pulls down the blinds blocking out the light into one s spirit; hovers overhead with a foreboding whirl; closes the walls around one s heart and blocks out the presence of Abiding Love seeking to enter. It creeps into one s soul as a thief in the night stealing inner peace, personal worthiness and joy leaving a grey melancholy echoing into the emptiness. For weeks a current wave of depression tightly holds Marie within a quiet cocooned existence. Few know of her plight as she tries to keep this affliction secret, ashamed of living with an illness that never completely goes away and few people understand. Friends tell her to just buck up with one exception. Nancy, a friend since childhood remains present as the depths of depression move in and out of Marie s life. When the weight of the dis-ease is at its worst, Nancy shows up each Friday afternoon with a bowl of Marie s favorite - homemade mac and cheese. No conversation is expected as they sit silently together on the porch looking into the back yard, watching the birds, listening to Marie s favorite music for more than an hour. Her friend Nancy embodies the hope Marie cannot find on her own. Her persistent presence and gifts of her tasty food and loving kindness break through the fog, gently pushing the melancholy effecting Marie s soul away from of the darkness reminding her that she is not alone. Reflection: Who brings hope to you?

4 3.3 Friday, March 22, 2019 The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts; So, I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. Psalm 28:7 More than a Million Humberto s wooden shanty overlooks a mountain valley with what a realtor would call a million-dollar view. Its dirt floor is lit by a single light bulb connected to a cord linking him to his neighbor s electricity. Outside his windowless walls are pots of healing herbs, a few pepper plants and blooming yellow flowers. Chickens keep him company, clucking with excitement to find a delicious grub, gobbling it down quickly. Humberto stands at a simple wire fence watching a few foreigners pound nails building a neighborhood latrine for his village. Curious, thoughtful as he watches and wonders who they are. Photography by Elaine K Olson Surrounded by natural beauty, he has no job, meagerly existing by selling a few eggs and chickens at the local market. Assisted by kind neighbors, he lives mourning his family. His son died in a protest several years ago; a daughter in child-birth; his wife of pneumonia because they could not afford the medicine to heal her. Though Humberto cannot read, he knows life. He knows hard work. He knows grief. He knows the goodness of a kind gesture. He knows gratitude, thankful for the friends who help each other, for a new latrine built by strangers, for this day. And for the coming rain. His life is as hard as the soil beneath his feet, yet Humberto waits with a grateful heart and watches for glimpses of goodness. Humberto knows hope and for him, hope makes life possible. Reflection: What glimpses of good bring hope to you?

5 3.4 Saturday, March 23, 2019 May the God of hope Fill you with all joy and peace in believing, So that by the power of the Holy Spirit You may abound in hope Romans 15: 13 Love Makes Hope Possible Maggie pours a cup of coffee and sits at the kitchen counter opening her iphone to check the day s news. Scrolling through a news app Maggie wonders why she repeats this routine each morning. The headlines don t seem to change from one day to the next. Clean Water Still Not Available for Families in Michigan Gridlock Remains in the Workings of our Government The Wars in the Middle East Continue to Escalate Climate Change Intensities the Effects of the North Easter Several People are Killed by a Shooter at a Bar A Recorded Shouting Match on a Cable TV News Show Draws 1 Million Likes Sighing, she closes her phone and thinks, This is so overwhelming. I used to believe that if we had enough money, enough knowledge, enough wisdom or influence or enough of whatever, we could fix the world, calm the chaos or at least find some way through it, but it seems impossible. The weight of the problems is so large and I am so small. Into the quiet she prays and wonders, warming her hands on the cup she holds seeking to warm her heart as well. I do have a deep longing for hope, for love, to live love, to share love. She mused. Given this reality of living in a world that doesn t work, where can I make love known in some small way. With this prayer, Maggie begins her day with hope - for loving makes hope possible. Reflection: Given your own reality when life doesn t work, where can you make love known?

6 3.5 Sunday, March 24, suffering produces endurance, And endurance produces character, And character produces hope, And hope does not disappoint us, Because God s love has been Poured into our hearts Through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. Romans 5:3b - 5 Golden Cracks Her two children stand by her side handing her a gaily wrapped box with wide smiles on their faces. Margie wonders what this surprise could be, especially as their hearts are so heavy with grief. Their father John, Margie s husband of thirty years died just six weeks before. Pulling the wrapping apart and lifting the lid, Margie sees a beautifully crafted pottery jar kilned in a dusty ash glaze and a large crack down its side. She immediately understands its meaning as they weep together remembering a shared story. John, had often talked about Kintsugi the Japanese art of putting broken pieces back together with gold creating a more beautiful and durable piece of art. He told the story to remind them that by embracing the brokenness of our own life we can heal into unique and resilient beauty. This was the promise of hope that John had lived through his own history of depression, hurt and painful death. John knew this as a promise of God s light. Margie s children gave this gift for her to remember and embrace. The Light of God s Love is for the brokenness, because through the cracks Love has a way to shine, affirming a golden promise of hope. Photography by Elaine K Olson Reflection: Our lives can break us open in painful ways. How have you been surprised with a golden light of hope shining into your cracks?

7 3.6 Monday, March 25, 2019 I am about to do a new thing; Now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness And rivers in the desert. Isaiah 43: 19 Resurrection for the Living I sit in the hospital cafeteria, TV news blares to mute the conversation of strangers and to fill the void for lone eaters. None of this halt the foreboding reality of my husband Mark losing his battle to cancer. He will now come home to die. I stare into the face of our friend Tom who sits across the table as I hold a cup of coffee, its steam caressing my tear stained cheeks, warming my shivering body. Tom s wife died of cancer just a year before so he knows the helplessness of loving someone through the dying, and the fear of the unknown journey beyond their death. He understands my blank stare, shaking hands and racing heart. Because Tom knows, I trust his presence, silence, words. We talk about his life as he models how survival is possible. We share stories of Mark s laughter, intensity, fading soul. I breathe to find the strength to go upstairs and face the reality of what lies ahead. As I leave, Tom takes my hand, looks me in the eye and says, I have learned many things since my wife s death. Most importantly, I ve learned resurrection is for the living as well as the dead. Not understanding, I walk away engulfed by sadness and fear. Yet a seed of hope is planted within my heart awaiting its readiness to grow. Reflection: Resurrection is for the living, too. Where have you known resurrection?

8 3.7 Tuesday, March 26, 2019 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; And through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; When you walk through fire you shall not be burned And the flame shall not consume you. For I am the lord your God Do not fear, for I am with you Isaiah 43; 2, 5a A Seed Awaiting Life The stone remained in the stream for ages. Having fallen into a river from a distant ledge, Breaking the grasp from a bolder far away. Pushed by raging floods into an easy stream. Left behind in the resending waves remaining undisturbed motionless. Waters moved Smoothly, Steadily, Caressing the hardness, Touching, Loving A seemly unyielding surface. Hour upon Hour Day upon day. Time upon time Over. Under. With. Divine Love Surrounding. Washing. Weeping. Soothing. Splashing. Sacred water breaking into the hardness. Hollowing the core. Creating a separate hallowed stone Tossed by Omnipotent Powers Formed into a seed Cocooned inside a womb awaiting life. Hope. Reflection: Hope finds a way to grown within the continual washing of God s grace. Describe a seed of hope that has grown within you? Photo by Sara Dyrud Bryan