Never Take It for Granted
Father, before I begin this evening, I would lift up friends and family who are going through so much right now – loss of loved ones, recovering from strokes, cancer, complicated pregnancies. And You know each and every detail of every person right where they are at right now. Please be close by their sides. May they feel Your presence even as these words are typed and as they are read. Amen.
Mark 14:22-26 (<<click to read the passage)
I feel that coming together to commemorate the Last Supper is one of the most important things we do as a body of believers. Unfortunately, it may be something that is sort of taken for granted. We frequently hear the words being spoken – body, bread, blood, wine, cup, vine, covenant – but how often do we really take them to heart. It’s not just broken-up bread and juice in little cups. It’s not just wafers being placed on our tongues and us sipping the fruit of the vine from the chalice.
Each aspect of this commonly practiced ritual is so uncommonly special and rich and deep and so, so truly life-changing.
As I read through the notes in my study Bible* I had to slow down and process each statement…each word. Would you do the same?
The celebration of Communion…
- …humbles us before God. We confess our sins and restate our need for Christ to guide us.
- …reminds us that we are forgiven. We remember that his shed blood paid the price.
- …expresses our oneness in Christ. We are unified in our faith.
- …encourages us to recommit. We are reminded to pledge ourselves to serve him who died for us.
For many, this next Sunday morning will be a time when we will once more partake of this time together. I would challenge us all to slow down…process each statement…each word. Listen to the one that stands before you. And even more importantly, listen to the One, who once and for all, stood in your stead so that your salvation would be assured. May we never take it for granted again.
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
July 29th, 2019, Mon, 7:57 pm
Not a Meadow Vole
Father, another beautiful last couple of days in Ohio! Thank you for safe travels, good food, and good times as we celebrated Karen’s parent’s 62nd anniversary yesterday. And am grateful for Your palpable presence in our worship services today. I would pray that You would continue to speak to our hearts. Amen.
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Have you ever seen a meadow vole? In the almost 30 years we have lived here, I have only seen one a handful of times. And even then, I just catch a fleeting glance as they scurry to avoid the clutches of my weed trimmer or mower – as was the case this past Friday.
It is also called the field mouse or meadow mouse. They are most certainly a rodent. The ones I have seen have dark brown fur and they are about 6 or 7 inches long and weight about 2 ounces.
If you are the kind of person who is not bothered by the fact that they are rodents, they are cute little critters but I wouldn’t want to be one. An interesting fact I found on Wikipedia under the header of Ecological importance states,
“As with many other small mammal species…the meadow vole is an important food source for many predators. In Ohio, meadow voles comprised 90% of the individual prey remains in long-eared owl pellets on a relict wet prairie.”
One of the main reasons for their ecological importance is that they are prey for larger animals! I sure won’t want that on my job description!
But, if we are not careful, it is very easy for us to become prey, as well. 1 Peter 5:9 in the Amplified Bible reads,
Be sober [well balanced and self-disciplined], be alert and cautious at all times. That enemy of yours, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion [fiercely hungry], seeking someone to devour.
The devil’s sole desire is to eat us up! He wants us to fail. He wants us to live our lives in a perpetual state of defeat. And if we are not grasping Jesus’ hand in ours, if we are not wearing the armor He has made available to us (Ephesians 6:10-18) we will fall…we will fail!
Lord Jesus, may we lean upon You to assure that we are not meadow voles in the spiritual realm. May we, with Your wisdom and strength, be the valiant warriors You have made us to be. May we see that old lion – the devil – running with his tail between his legs, knowing that he better not fool with this child of God because if he does, he’s just setting himself up for a woopin’!
July 28th, 2019, Sun, 5:54 pm
Do They Match?
Father, I am grateful for a wonderful “day”cation with Karen! We enjoyed a nice meal together and some poking around looking for bargains. Thank You again for the opportunity to switch jobs which has given us the blessing of more time to enjoy being together!
Mark 14:17-21 (<<click to read the passage)
This evening we grabbed a bite at one of our favorite eateries, Skyline Chili. We don’t go there too often anymore but it was a treat!
Shortly before we left a family of 6 came and sat in the booth behind us. We were in the last booth on one wall and they were in the last booth on the other wall so I could plainly see their interactions.
The father was a big burly man and I quickly saw that he was in charge…and not in a nice way. Before they all got situated, very quietly he spoke to the oldest child, a boy. He spoke softly but I could tell from the boy’s flinching that what was being said normally came with physical contact – not a hug but probably a slap.
As they got seated the father made the boy move to the other side of the booth while he got a highchair for the youngest child. Before the server even made it to the table, he laid into the oldest boy again – once more it was in a voice just above a whisper but the boy’s face communicated that he was being berated. His eyes were downcast in shame. And reading the father’s lips, he was ready to drag them all out of the restaurant right there and then. The whole time, the mother’s eyes were downcast and her face was straight but strained. The server saved the day by her arrival and things seemed to settle after that.
It was a very disturbing interaction and it was not the least bit surprising that when the server arrived, the father was all smiley and jovial, even, as if nothing at all was wrong with his “happy” little family.
How often do our words and our actions not match? Others see one thing and reality is something totally different…and most distressingly it may very well be something so very wrong.
Jesus reclined at this last supper with those whom many would have called his closest friends, and many were…but one was a traitor. The traitor knew it. Jesus knew it. But none of the others had a clue.
Read what my study Bible* had to say about verse 19,
“It is easy to become enraged or shocked by what Judas did; yet professing commitment to Christ and then denying him with one’s life is also betraying him. It is denying Christ’s love to disobey him; it is denying his truth to distrust him; it is denying his deity to reject his authority. Do our words and actions match?”
That is one great thing about a regular observation of Communion – we should come face to face with answering that question in our own lives. Lord Jesus, do our words and actions match? And if they don’t, if they are askew in some way, that is when we should make amends and set things right with the One we have hurt the most…our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
July 25th, 2019, Thurs, 9:39 pm
*Life Application Study Bible New Living Translation
Love Like There’s No Tomorrow
Father, I am absolutely exhausted after an all-day outdoor project! But I don’t want to miss out on our time together. May I clearly hear what You have for me this evening. Amen.
Mark 14:12-16 (<<click to read the passage)
Just another day at the office? No way! Yes, the Festival of Unleavened Bread – the Passover – was a special event observed once a year but this time would be different!
Our lives are like that. I watched a video posted on someone’s Facebook page yesterday and it stressed the importance of loving each other and basically not sweating the small stuff. We tend to blow so much out of proportion – the whole “mountains out of molehills” thing. In the video, a handful of characters were boarding a plane and three of them that sat in the same row were all having issues. Short curt words were spoken between them and also two of them shared tense words with loved ones via phone and text before taking off.
The point of the short story is driven home when the flight encounters severe turbulence and they begin preparations for a potential crash landing!
The last words spoken to each other and to loved ones prior to taking off were less than kind and in no way communicated love. And now they were in a situation where they may never be able to speak to anyone…ever.
The disciples thought this was just going to be another observance of the Passover – no big deal…right? But Jesus knew that this time together would be like no other – in fact, the next passage we will look at has “Last Supper” in the header.
We all go through the motions of daily routines. And most of the time things don’t change. But other times?
My friend’s funeral yesterday? There was no advanced warning of his death.
A 24-year-old Ohio State Patrol officer is in critical condition in the hospital after he collided with a wrong-way driver on an interstate highway near here. Neither he nor his family knew what that day was going to hold.
We just don’t know what tomorrow may bring. For that matter, we don’t know what the next second will bring! Life can change in a heart-beat!
Lord Jesus, help us to love each other with an unending love. May we put aside selfishness and hurt feelings over misunderstandings. May we live out “forgive and forget” every moment of our lives. Life this side of eternity is too short to spend it wastefully. May we keep You in our hearts and minds so that every opportunity is taken to love You, with all of our heart, soul, mind, and strength and to love others as we love ourselves. Help us love like there’s no tomorrow. Amen.
July 24th, 2019, 7:48 pm
Crossing Paths
Father, I paid my final respects to an old friend today. I was a face in the crowd but he was a faithful servant of Yours in all aspects of his life and it was the least I could do. I am sure You welcomed him home with outstretched arms. Thank You, Father, for the privilege of knowing him here and for the gift of eternity that You give to all who follow You.
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As I sit here pondering his memorial service, I remember the many gracious things said of my friend. I had no reason to disbelieve anything that was stated, for every time our paths crossed his spirit testified of his walk with You. He was kind. He was compassionate. He was forthright – he had no fear of telling you like it was but he did so with a great permeation of love.
I call him friend, and I don’t think he would have disagreed but, in truth, we were not close. Some years ago, we had pretty regular interaction but life had moved on and only by Your good will had we run into each other in recent years – the most recent being within the last month or so.
Certain people with whom our lives intersect bring a smile to our hearts when we see them…and my friend was one of those people.
My ponderings, this morning and tonight, lead me to think…am I one of those people? People who know me, are they eager to interact with me? To catch up on our lives after we have gone our separate ways? Or if they can do so without giving themselves away, do they avoid seeing me so as to not have to speak with me? I’m sure there are people on both sides whom I know.
I strive to follow You, Lord Jesus, but where I struggle is that I may have put some people off because unfortunately my personality and my attitudes may have overshadowed Your presence in my life.
As I heard my friend’s pastor and granddaughter speak today, I very much believe that You very clearly shined through his life. He lived as You want us all to live – genuine, loving, a life of serving others above self.
Lord Jesus, may we diligently seek to replace our hearts with Yours. May we be a people who bring a smile to the heart of others. Amen.
July 23rd, 2019, Tues, 8:05 pm