Reality, Hope and Proof

20 Mar 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

Faith is the reality of what we hope for, the proof of what we don’t see. The elders in the past were approved because they showed faith. By faith we understand that the universe has been created by a word from God so that the visible came into existence from the invisible. ~Hebrews 11:1-3 (CEB)

“Many of our tame hopes are fulfilled on a daily basis: the hope that the sun will shine, of that the pay check will arrive as planned, or that we will get sufficient nourishment for the day. Though one is disappointed once in awhile, our anticipation of these ‘small’ things though not insignificant, is frequently realized.

By contrast, some of these same issues for people in other cultures are ‘wild hopes.’ Many of our sisters and brothers do not receive a salary nor do they get three square meals a day nor does the sun of freedom shine in their lives. Born into poverty or oppressed by social systems, these people find little joy and peace. If they are fortunate in avoiding violence they still must struggle with resentment and bitterness in their awareness of the consumption and materialism of the wealthy.

We must pray like Jesus that hope might be restored and that the earth might be recast. Only the gift of the Holy Spirit can empower us to trust in the future and to assume our rightful responsibility for the common good. Renewing the face of the earth is the work of the Holy Spirit through those people who say yes to being the Spirit’s agents of knowledge, love and kindness. Our hope, wild or tame, is grounded in God’s promise of presence. Herein is our joy and peace.” ~From Resurrection to Pentecost by Robert F. Morneau

I thank You Heavenly Father, for the gift of the Holy Spirit. Through Its guidance may we renew the earth. May I be the Spirit’s agent of knowledge, love and kindness. May it embolden me to hope and to dream wild dreams for Your Kingdom. Amen.

Unveiled

09 Mar 2013 Leave a comment

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But whenever someone turns back to the Lord, the veil is removed. The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Lord’s Spirit is, there is freedom. ~2 Cor. 3:16-17 (CEB)

“Here, O God, I pray for a realization of my condition in your eyes. Help me to see and know myself as you see and know me. Give me clear insight into my relationship with you. Let me know myself as you know me.

Give me assurance that I belong to you. Remove from me those nagging doubts and needless fears that I may not be good enough to be numbered with the great company of heaven.

On the other hand, if I am living in separation from you, if I am more a creature of evil than a child of God, O Great Physician, use your convicting scalpel on me. Perform within me the surgery necessary to heal me of all soul-sickness.

Christ, I abandon myself to you. Do with me every necessary thing to assure my entrance into eternal lif- and the heaven already prepared for me.” ~Norman Shawchuck

Amen.

Questions and questing

04 Mar 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

And all of us, with unveiled faces, seeing the glory of the Lord as though reflected in a mirror, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another; for this comes from the Lord, the Spirit ~2 Corinthians 3:18 (NRSV)

“Our questions can serve us well in a time such as this, a time of grave uncertainty, of soaring potential, of fragile yet resilient hope. Our questions and questing are crucial, because they can help us live into the answer of the future. I am certain of one thing: the love that is God is at the heart of the answer, just as it is at the heart of each moment- past, present, and future. Faith today, tomorrow, and always seeks to live, to love, and to be loved fully. It seeks the Holy and waits (though not always patiently) to be found; it nurtures and activates wisdom and compassion. It chooses to embrace hope and to be embraced by hope, even when overwhelmed by despair; it seeks life even in the face of death. We act in faith, knowing that we see only dimly. But living in faith, we act anyway, choosing and doing the best we can. We act and live in confidence that someday we will see face to face, that we will live into the answers. For God’s grace embraces our questions as well as our answers and our blindness as well as our vision, just as the sun shines steadily through the night, waiting to illumine the sky at dawn.” ~From Wrestling till Dawn by Jean M. Blomquist

I cannot run from the questions that haunt my heart. I must not assume that God criticizes me for even having questions. It is when I wrestle with the questions that I come to find the answers. I must remember that God is big enough to handle all my questions. He knows that it is in my questions that the veil begins to life. Through my questions I begin to be transformed.

Heavenly Father, Thank You for Your patience in all the questions I have. Thank You for pointing me in the right direction to discover the answers. Help me to see more clearly and to have the patience to wait out the answers. Amen.

Living transfomed

02 Mar 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , , ,

“You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, how will it become salty again? It’s good for nothing except to be thrown away and trampled under people’s feet. You are the light of the world. A city on top of a hill can’t be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a basket. Instead, they put it on top of a lampstand, and it shines on all who are in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before people, so they can see the good things you do and praise your Father who is in heaven. ~Matthew 5:13-16 (CEB)

“When we think of models of the transformed life, we naturally turn to the saints of the past or look at more contemporary heroes of faithfulness like Mother Teresa or Douglas Steeve. Because we do, we often overlook those near us who daily claim the power of God to live life at a higher level than it could be lives alone.

Living a transformed life is not possible on our own. Most of us do not live up to the best that we know how to live. Deep within we know that there is room for improvement. We can do better. Connecting our desire to do and be better with God’s amazing grace creates a partnership that transformation.

We know that living a transformed life means living at God’s direction with grace-given capacity. This is more than we can do on our own, and, in fact, living the transformed life does not mean trying harder. It means trusting more and staying close to the only One who can make us more than we are.

As we learn to put our trust and faith in God, we become open and available to receive God’s forming and transforming power in our own lives. In our better moments we know that it is God at work within us that provides the transformation. This is the day to claim God’s leads to presence and help as you live the transformed life.” ~From A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God, Ruben P. Job

May Your Presence be in my life today O Lord, transforming me into a light that shines for others to see. I thank You for the grace you so freely give me every moment. Thank You for making me more than I am on my own. Amen.

To live intentionally

26 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

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Large crowds were traveling with Jesus. Turning to them, he said, “Whoever comes to me and doesn’t hate father and mother, spouse and children, and brothers and sisters—yes, even one’s own life—cannot be my disciple. Whoever doesn’t carry their own cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

“If one of you wanted to build a tower, wouldn’t you first sit down and calculate the cost, to determine whether you have enough money to complete it? Otherwise, when you have laid the foundation but couldn’t finish the tower, all who see it will begin to belittle you. They will say, ‘Here’s the person who began construction and couldn’t complete it!’ Or what king would go to war against another king without first sitting down to consider whether his ten thousand soldiers could go up against the twenty thousand coming against him? And if he didn’t think he could win, he would send a representative to discuss terms of peace while his enemy was still a long way off. In the same way, none of you who are unwilling to give up all of your possessions can be my disciple. ~ Luke 14:25:33 (CEB)

“The Christian way is different: harder, and easier. Christ says, ‘Give me All. I don’t want so much of your time and so much of your money and so much of your work:  I want You. I have not come to torment your natural self, but to kill it. No half-measures are any good. I don’t want to cut off a branch here and a branch there, I want to have the whole tree down . . .  Hand over the whole natural self, all the desires which you think innocent as well as the ones you think wicked- the whole outfit. I will give you a new self instead. In fact, I will give you Myself:  my own will shall become yours.’” ~From Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis

Christ wants our hearts, but he also wants us to count the cost. He wants a life time full-fledged commitment from us that is lasting. I also think we need to count the cost every day. To give my whole life to Christ requires me to live my life intentionally. If I am to live for Christ I cannot walk through this world aimlessly.

Heavenly Father, Help me to focus my actions on Your will for this day. May all I do be for Your glory. Help me as I try to be a true disciple. Help me to show Your love to those I meet this day. Amen.

The cost of discipleship

24 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

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Then Jesus said to his disciples, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? For the Human One  is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One r coming in his kingdom. ” ~Matthew 16:24-27 (CEB)

“Salvation is free, but the cost of discipleship is enormous. I try to hide from the truth, but when I read the Gospels and seek to live in communion with God, I discover both parts of the statement are dead-center truth. I can do nothing to earn my salvation. My redemption is a pure gift of grace, a gift offered to me without qualification or reservation. I am God’s child and no one or no thing can change that facet. Jesus Christ lived, died, and lives again to bring this gift of salvation to me in all of its fullness. My faith can appropriate this gift, but even my greatest doubt cannot change its reality. I am God’s beloved, embraced in God’s love for now and eternity. All words are inadequate to describe the extravagance and grandeur of the gift of salvation. Our hums of praise and gratitude fall lifeless before the immensity of this gift. We simply and humbly offer all that we are to the One who offers us the option of becoming more than we are.

In offering ourselves as fully as we can, we discover the cost of discipleship. For to bind our lives to Jesus Christ requires that we try to walk with him into Jesus Christ, we see barriers broken down and we are led to places we have never been before and to carry loads we have not even seen before. Having offered ourselves to Jesus Christ, we may expect to become the eyes, ears, voice and hands of Jesus Christ in the world and in the church. The cost of salvation? It is completely free and without cost. The cost of discipleship? Only our lives- nothing more and nothing less.” ~From A Guide to All Who See God, Rueben P. Job

Give my strength O Lord to live up to the cost of discipleship. Help me to align my steps with Your will for my life. Amen.

A true fast

13 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , ,

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled. ~Matthew 5:6 (NIV)

Today begins the season of Lent. Many churches observe this time of preparation that leads up to Easter. Some people even choose to use the season as a time for penitence and self-examination, study, and spiritual discipline. Perhaps the discipline most commonly associated with Lent is fasting, which can take many forms, such as giving up entire meals, or certain foods (like meat), or radically changing a diet, in order to be made mindful of one’s humanity and of God’s providence.

Isaiah 56 tells us “Isn’t this the fast I choose: releasing wicked restraints, untying the ropes of a yoke, setting free the mistreated, and breaking every yoke? Isn’t it sharing your bread with the hungry and bringing the homeless poor into your house, covering the naked when you see them, and not hiding from your own family? … If you open your heart to the hungry, and provide abundantly for those who are afflicted, your light will shine in the darkness, and your gloom will be like the noon.” (Isa. 56:6,7,10)

So I ask you, do you hunger and thirst for justice? True fasting is not just depriving ourselves of privilege but also sharing sacrificially to bring an end to the cycles of inequality, an end to violence and solution to starvation.

Heavenly Father, create in me a hunger and thirst for Your righteousness. Enable me this day to be Your hands and feet to those who live in darkness.  Help me love with Your heart and shine with Your light so that the darkness may be like the noon day sun. Amen.

Through the valley

08 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

 

You will be secure, for there is hope; you will look around and rest safely. You will lie down without anyone to scare you; many will beg for your favor. ~Job 11:18-19 (CEB)

Solitude is the garden for our hearts, which yearn for love. It is the place where our aloneness can bear fruit. It is the home for our restless bodies and anxious minds. Solitude, whether it is connected with a physical space or not, is essential for our spiritual lives. It is not an easy place to be, since we are so insecure and fearful that we are easily distracted by whatever promises immediate satisfaction. Solitude is not immediately satisfying, because in solitude we meet our demons, our addictions, our feelings of lust and anger, and our immense need for recognition and approval. But if we do not run away, we will meet there also the One who says, “Do not be afraid. I am with you, and I will guide you through the valley of darkness.” ~ From Bread for the Journey by Henri J. M. Nouwen

O Heavenly Father, I know that You hear me out of the depths of my solitude. Help me stand my ground so that I meet my demons head on. Hold my hand as I walk through this valley. Steady my steps so that I won’t stumble and fall. I know You are my God and I am Your beloved child. Amen.

Spirituality

05 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , ,

He replied, “You give them something to eat.”

But they said to him, “Should we go off and buy bread worth almost eight months’ pay and give it to them to eat?”

He said to them, “How much bread do you have? Take a look.”

After checking, they said, “Five loaves of bread and two fish.”

He directed the disciples to seat all the people in groups as though they were having a banquet on the green grass. They sat down in groups of hundreds and fifties. He took the five loaves and the two fish, looked up to heaven, blessed them, broke the loaves into pieces, and gave them to his disciples to set before the people. He also divided the two fish among them all. Everyone ate until they were full. They filled twelve baskets with the leftover pieces of bread and fish. About five thousand had eaten. ~Mark 6:37-44 (CEB)

“Spirituality includes seeing our work as more than making a living (as important as that is): work becomes a genuine opportunity for service, a way of contributing to other people’s lives. Spirituality is the responsibility we show our surrounding and our environment, the respect we have for our forests, mountains, rivers, lakes, and seashores. It is especially involves our attitude toward our everyday life, the way we spend our time. Are we merely wasting or killing time, or are we attempting to discover the sacred dimensions of life all around us?

In a basic sense spirituality is about the quality of our relationships, the ways we care for each other, including the ways we welcome those who are different form us into our lives and families. All the great spiritual traditions agree that spirituality encompasses all those dimensions of our lives that make us human; that is, not only prayer and worship, but our work, play, sexuality, gifts, talents, and limitations too.

Spirituality is influenced for the Christian in a most significant way by the person and ministry of Jesus; the Sacred Scriptures, which tells his story; and the life of the ongoing community that bears his name. Through Jesus we have been given an awesomeness that our time on this earth is sacred, that we share a sacred journey, that our God has entered human history and taken on a human face. Christian spirituality includes the many ways throughout history that Christian individuals and communities have responded and continue to respond to the awareness of God’s transforming love.” ~From Mentoring by Edward C. Sellner

Through involvement with others I find blessings. God never intended for us to journey through this life alone. It is through our interactions with one another that we can glimpse God.

Heavenly Father, help me to be Your hands and feet to the world. May all I do this day be reflection of Your loves to those I meet. May I be a blessing to others. Amen.

 

Solitude

04 Feb 2013 Leave a comment

by jennifermcintyreblog in Devotions Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

“Come to me, all you who are struggling hard and carrying heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Put on my yoke, and learn from me. I’m gentle and humble. And you will find rest for yourselves.  My yoke is easy to bear, and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (CEB)

“Solitude is the furnace of transformation. Without solitude we remain victims of our society and continue to be entangled in the illusions of the false self. Jesus himself entered into this furnace. There he was tempted with (“turn stones into loaves”), to be spectacular (“throw yourself down”), and to be powerful (“I will give you all these kingdoms”). There he affirmed God as the only source of his identity. (“You must worship the Lord your God and serve him alone.”) Solitude is the place of the great struggle and the great encounter- the struggle against the compulsions of the false self, and the encounter with the loving God who offers himself as the substance of the new self…

…Solitude is not a private therapeutic place. Rather, it is the place where the old self dies and the new self is born, the place where the emergence of the new man and the new woman occurs.” ~From The Way of the Heart by Henri J. M. Nouwen

Solitude is not something to be fought. It is in the deserts of life that I figure out what I am made of and who I am. These are not moments to run from but to embrace. Here is where I will encounter myself. Here is where I will find God.

Heavenly Father, I thank You for encountering me in the silences of life. Strengthen me for the trials that help me to untangle who I am and who I am meant to be. Thank You for showing me that I can be more than I ever thought I could be through Your blessings on my life. Amen.

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