Tanya Marshall    

Pilgrimage Reflections:  The Crippled Man by the Pool

When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”  “Sir,” the invalid replied, “I have no one to help me into the pool when the water is stirred.  While I am trying to get in, someone else goes down ahead of me.”  (John 5:6-7)

During our pilgrimage in Israel, we visited the pools of Bethesda (or Bethsaida), the traditional site of Jesus’ healing of the man who was crippled for 38 years.  Again I tried to picture Jesus and the man in this setting.  After seeing the site and hearing the Biblical story, we were challenged to reflect:  “What would Jesus ask me if I were in this story?” (i.e. what is my area of need?)  and also, “What would my excuses be?” 

I thought that Jesus would say to me, “Do you really want to learn to trust me totally with your future, and with all those people/family members you worry about so much?”  My excuses would include:  I doubt I’m important enough for God to care about my issues, and I try to fix and control everything myself.

My challenge is to trust Jesus, to really believe Jesus who says over and over, “Do not be afraid, I am with you.”

Prayer:  O Lord, help me remember the promise in Isaiah 41:10:  “So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.  I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”  Amen.

Walt Gorr -EVEN JESUS NEEDED QUIET TIME

"After He dismissed them, He went up on a mountainside by himself to pray." Matthew 14:23

Is our society afraid of the sound of silence? Do we need music in elevators, doctors' offices, car radios, department stores?

Does our society think that we are failures if our calendars are not crammed with appointments, committee meetings, car pools, etc.? Does our TV have to be blaring all day long?

Maybe what we should hear each day is the sound of silence... A time to step away from life's distractions and spend quiet time with God... A time to praise and thank Him... A time to listen for His still, small voice.

Prayer:   Lord, help us to slow down and take time to be with You. Help us to realize that Business is not Godliness. Amen.

Bearing Fruit-  LIVING AS CONTENTED PEOPLE

"...I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." Philippians 4:11-12

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Philippians 4:19

"For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that." 1 Timothy 6:7-8

Have you ever fantasized what it would be like to win millions in a lottery? If you were a multimillionaire, you could have virtually everything you wanted. The sixty-four thousand dollar question is: "Would you be better off than before you won the lottery?" Does winning the lottery bring contentment? What is the secret of contentment? Is contentment found in satisfying every desire? According to the Apostle Paul, the key to contentment is to be found in God, not in ourselves and what we possess. At times Paul lived with an abundance of things and, at other times, he lived in need. However, he said that he had "learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.

If we are not content with what we have now, we will not be content with what we have in the future... We will find contentment when we realize our greatest need is not for more material wealth but a need of the heart, a need for God. Contentment, therefore, comes from God and not from things. We can remain content even in the absence of material things. Only Christ can take away our appetite for things for he fills us with himself. He removes our attitude of greed and replaces it with the spirit of contentment. Jesus fills our lives, filling the inner void that material things cannot satisfy.

Prayer:   Dear heavenly Father, I thank you for providing for my needs and for the promise that you will always provide for me. I pray, Lord, that you will teach me to find my contentment in you. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen.

Judy Lentz   JEALOUSY

Exodus 20:5-6 “You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the fathers to the third and fourth generations of those who hate me, but showing love to a thousand generations, of those who love me and keep my commandments.”

As I was preparing a Bible Study to share with some Christian sisters, the lesson was on jealousy, one of the ugly sinful emotions in our world. Jealousy is the green-eyed monster, so says Shakespeare in Othello -- being envious of someone or something that one person has but another person doesn’t have.

It is a sin because it breeds envy, greed, covetousness, selfishness, or hostility because our heart isn’t satisfied with what we have. We want what someone else has -- the ‘better’ job, more pay, bigger house, bigger diamond, more of the material things in life, etc. I am sure you can name many other ‘things’ that we worship/covet. These are examples of sinful jealousy.

So how do we interpret the words of Exodus 20:5-6 – “I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God”? Is the jealousy described here different than the jealousy that Shakespeare was talking about? The word ‘jealous’ in Exodus 5 is translated the same as the word ‘zealous’. God is zealous for His people – the love He has for us is zealous. He zealously desires us to be exclusive to Him in our devotion, study, worship, prayer.

Striving to change our sinful jealousy into the righteous jealousy of faithfulness to our Lord should be our focus.

Prayer: Dear Lord - May the jealousy that is our sin because we want something that is not ours be changed into God’s jealousy -- zeal for our Lord and love for Him as deep as the love he has for us. In the name of Jesus Christ, we pray.  Amen.

Pastor Doug Marshall

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son..." John 3:16 (RSV)

One of my favorite hymns, which we don't often sing (only twice in the past 10 years) is "Of the Father's Love Begotten." The song is simple yet ethereal (the tune name is apt - Divinum Mysterium, the Divine Mystery). The words were written at the end of the 4th Century by a Spanish lawyer who had experienced God's love in Jesus. Near the end of his life he gave up his public career to live a life of poverty and prayer. These words describe how God, who is mysterious and beyond us, chooses to enter our world in the person of Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the Alpha and Omega, the one who gives us life (the source) and the goal (the end) of our life, the one toward whom our lives are headed. "He the source, the ending He, Of the things that are, that have been, and that future years shall see." Honestly, I'm still trying to figure out what that means. All I know is that Jesus is the one who brings my life meaning and hope. My job is to seek Christ and to worship Him.

One of these days we will need to sing this again in worship!

Prayer:   Christ, to Thee with God the Father, And, O holy Ghost to Thee, Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving and unwearied praises be: Honor, glory, and dominion, And eternal victory, Evermore and evermore! Amen. (v3)

Ann Mizer       

“Be Still”

He says, "Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth."  Psalm 46:10 NIV

I think often it is in our nature to try to fix things – our problems, other’s problems, things that aren’t really problems.  I think this one line in Psalm 46 gives us assurance that we don’t have that

responsibility, that we are not actually in control and we should be still.  Being still can be difficult, it can take practice and it can be so gratifying. 

I looked up the word exalted, and it means to lift up.  God is telling us that he will be lifted up among nations and in the earth.  We need to trust this and find comfort in it.

Lord help me to learn to be still and to know that you are God!  Amen

Bearing Fruit    

TIME WASTERS

"Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom." Psalm 90:12  NRSV

The lack of goals, priorities, and plans contributes to a loss of time. There are other time wasters, such as procrastination, excess television and/or computers, wrong priorities, and never saying "no." All of these habits steal time and keep us from pursuing the best God has for us.

What are we doing with our time? We are often less productive than we want to be because we are trapped in the "emergencies" of the moment. Possibly one of our biggest problems with controlling our time is letting the urgent crowd out the important, which has been termed the "tyranny of the urgent." Those things that confront us the most loudly are likely not the most important. ...

Having our goals and priorities in place will help us not to get bogged down in the urgent and less important things. When we fail to prioritize, we are deciding not to make needed decisions as to what is important and what is not. Proverbs 25:28 reads, "Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control." Self-control allows us to stay focused and on track, able to accomplish the important things. Self-discipline helps us keep our priorities straight. If we are too busy to attend church or pray or too preoccupied to read God's Word, we need to take another look at our priorities. The primary consideration in the use of time is to do the will of God and to live in harmony with God's plan for us.

Prayer:    Dear heavenly Father, from your hands I graciously receive all things. Give me wisdom to use the time you've given me wisely. Teach me to seek your guidance in all my choices. In your precious name I pray. Amen.