The Faith that leads to God
Psalm 121:1-8
A song of ascents.
1 I lift up my eyes to the mountains—
where does my help come from?
2 My help comes from the Lord,
the Maker of heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot slip—
he who watches over you will not slumber;
4 indeed, he who watches over Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The Lord watches over you—
the Lord is your shade at your right hand;
6 the sun will not harm you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—
he will watch over your life;
8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going
both now and forevermore.
The Lenten season provides us with so many opportunities to draw close to God and others. As we read prescribed scriptures there is a recognition that people all over the world are reading the same verses, and there is comfort in such community.
Psalm 121 is the second of fifteen psalms known as the “Songs of Ascents.” Called “Pilgrim Songs,” these psalms were sung on the way up to Jerusalem. When I read of these communal songs, I am reminded of the spirituals the slaves sang as they worked the fields. The workers sang these songs with no fear, with the words and the rhythm building as the song progressed. The meaning was often disguised as a longing for heaven’s shore, but as the people sang in unison, the work progressed more quickly.
“Swing low, sweet chariot, coming for to carry me home…” was one of the first such songs I recall. The Old Testament story of Elijah was referred to in a rhythmic pattern that moved the work forward. Similarly, the Song of Ascents moved pilgrims closer to the Temple, building the travelers up in their most high faith.
May we, as we continue our Christian journey, be assured that our help does, indeed come from the Lord and may our faith build as we progress toward that heavenly city.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
WHO IS A GOD LIKE YOU
Micah 7:18-20 18 Who is a God like you, who pardons sin and forgives the transgression-of the remnant of his inheritance? You do not stay angry forever-but delight to show mercy.19 You will again have compassion on us; you will tread our sins underfoot and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.20 You will be faithful to Jacob, and show love to Abraham, as you pledged on oath to our ancestors in days long ago.
I have missed posting my devotionals this week due to illness but am finally on the sunny side of living. On our Lenten journey today, we visit Micah’s story where he reminds God that there is no other god like our God. Why would we have to remind God of who He is and what He has done? Surely He has not forgotten.
In Isaiah 43:25 we hear God declare of himself, “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will not remember your sins.” So the answer is that there is no forgetfulness in God, but He chooses not to remember our sins.
May we, as we walk the pathway of holiness, likewise choose not to remember others’ sins against us.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Day 4:Fasting and Praying
58 “Shout it aloud, do not hold back.
Raise your voice like a trumpet.
Declare to my people their rebellion
and to the descendants of Jacob their sins.
2 For day after day they seek me out;
they seem eager to know my ways,
as if they were a nation that does what is right
and has not forsaken the commands of its God.
They ask me for just decisions
and seem eager for God to come near them.
3 ‘Why have we fasted,’ they say,
‘and you have not seen it?
Why have we humbled ourselves,
and you have not noticed?’
“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please
and exploit all your workers.
4 Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife,
and in striking each other with wicked fists.
You cannot fast as you do today
and expect your voice to be heard on high.
5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
only a day for people to humble themselves?
Is it only for bowing one’s head like a reed
and for lying in sackcloth and ashes?
Is that what you call a fast,
a day acceptable to the Lord?
6 “Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
to loose the chains of injustice
and untie the cords of the yoke,
to set the oppressed free
and break every yoke?
7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
when you see the naked, to clothe them,
and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?
8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
and your healing will quickly appear;
then your righteousness[a] will go before you,
and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.
9 Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;
you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
There was a time when fasting and praying were staples of the church. Christians understood they were not empty rituals but instead were a major part of our Christian experience.
Isaiah’s words look like they could be written to today’s churches. Fasting without sacrifice is form without substance. Praying without drawing close to God is like whistling into the wind.
Paul told Timothy in his second letter to stay away from those who have a form of godliness but deny the real power. So when we go through the motions of praying and fasting, yet we fail to put our prayers into action, we are in essence mocking God. .
May we, during this Lenten Season, be so intentional in our discipleship that we pray not just for what God can do for us, but what we can do for God. May we take the money we would use for a meal and donate to a food pantry. And may each action we take during Lent help us to learn more about who God is who we are in Him.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Prayer Changes things
Jonah 3:4-10 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s journey. And he called out, “Yet forty days, and Nineveh shall be overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God. They called for a fast and put on sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least of them.6 The word reached the king of Nineveh, and he arose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 And he issued a proclamation and published through Nineveh, “By the decree of the king and his nobles: Let neither man nor beast, herd nor flock, taste anything. Let them not feed or drink water, 8 but let man and beast be covered with sackcloth, and let them call out mightily to God. Let everyone turn from his evil way and from the violence that is in his hands. 9 Who knows? God may turn and relent and turn from his fierce anger, so that we may not perish.”10 When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God relented of the disaster that he had said he would do to them, and he did not do it.
In the Christian world, prayer is a part of who we are. We pray in the morning, thanking God for another day and asking Him to help with provision and direction. We thank Him before our meals. And then at night we thank Him for our day.
Jonah was in a bind. He knew if he proclaimed God’s Word to these terrible people that they would repent, God would relent, and the Ninevites would be saved. So the next time someone says. “Why pray? God doesn’t change” remind them of this.
During Lent our prayers become even more focused. We choose something to give up for 40 days, and then as we think of our sacrifice we turn to prayer. It is a time of concentrated, and indeed consecrated communication with our Creator.
May we meet God early while He may be found, pausing to hear His voice in the stillness.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The second day of Lent—Taking our Thoughts Captive
Have mercy on me, God, according to your faithful love!
Wipe away my wrongdoings according to your great compassion!
2 Wash me completely clean of my guilt;
purify me from my sin!
3 Because I know my wrongdoings,
my sin is always right in front of me.
4 I’ve sinned against you—you alone.
Create a clean heart for me, God;
put a new, faithful spirit deep inside me!
11 Please don’t throw me out of your presence;
please don’t take your holy spirit away from me.
12 Return the joy of your salvation to me
and sustain me with a willing spirit.
13 Then I will teach wrongdoers your ways,
and sinners will come back to you
On this second day of Lent we look at David’s plea for mercy and forgiveness. David had sinned by having sex with Bathsheba, whose husband was on the battlefield fighting on behalf of David. But David stayed home.
Looking down on the houses below he saw a beautiful woman bathing on the rooftop. He could have turned away, he should have turned away. But he lingered, allowing his thoughts to become desire, and his desire drove him to sin.
Why was David called a man after God’s own heart? Not because he never sinned, but because he knew where to turn after he sinned.
May we, during this season of repentance, turn our eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face. And may we take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, that we might not sin against our God.
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Seeking Holiness 