Peace in Troubled Times– Musings and Prayer

Is it possible to be at peace when there is so much trouble all around? Jesus tells us that he gives a kind of peace that can keep us steady even in the midst of trying circumstances and trouble in the world.

“Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.”  John 14:27

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

Monday: Let’s read these words of Jesus’ over and over, meditating on his statement that we will have trouble in this world, but that, even so, he gives peace. Let’s pray for his peace for ourselves and for our nation and world throughout this week.

Tuesday: How or what does the world give? How is that different from what Jesus offers?

Wednesday: Ask Jesus to help you receive his peace, even when there is trouble all around. He tells us that he gives so that our hearts won’t be troubled and so we won’t be afraid. I appreciate the realistic words that there will be trouble. That tells me I don’t have to work myself up to some kind of denial of reality to have faith or peace. There is trouble of all sorts, but Jesus offers us a kind of peace that can exist and calm us in the midst of trouble.

Thursday: Meditate on Jesus’ words, allowing them to fill your heart and mind. Sometimes it helps me to write out and memorize some verses that help me receive his peace. Some verses I find helpful are Psalm 23; Psalm 27:1-4; Psalm 46: 1; Isaiah 43: 1-2; and Philippians 4:7.

Friday: Jesus tells us we can expect to have trouble and difficult times and yet somehow still have peace. Talk to him about your troubles and fears, asking him how you can have peace even in the midst of them. I sometimes go for a walk and pour out my heart or even rant to him about what’s troubling me.

Saturday: Let’s pray together that Jesus’ peace and love will overcome the strife and conflict that is raging in our country and around the world. How can each of us share that love and peace in our circles, whether local or far-flung?

Imaginary Mountain View 0111

Justice and Mercy: Musings and Prayers

Injustice and violence sparking anger and retaliation, leading to more anger and violence… The news has been dismaying, sad, and overwhelming. A lot of change is needed and often the issues seem so big and so deeply rooted that I feel helpless to do anything about them, but my thoughts these past few days have been returning again and again to the question of what can I do where I live to make a difference in some small way. In that vein, I want to meditate on the following verses this week, keeping in mind all sorts of people, situations and contexts.

17-18 Real wisdom, God’s wisdom, begins with a holy life and is characterized by getting along with others. It is gentle and reasonable, overflowing with mercy and blessings, not hot one day and cold the next, not two-faced. You can develop a healthy, robust community that lives right with God and enjoy its results only if you do the hard work of getting along with each other, treating each other with dignity and honor. James 3:17-18 (The Message)

He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
    And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
    and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

Monday: Let’s read and meditate on these verses throughout today, allowing the words to sink deeply into our minds and hearts. Thank God for his wisdom that shows us how to live in peace and in a way that helps others live in peace.

Tuesday: Ask God to make you holy in such a way that your thoughts and attitudes would reflect his grace and mercy toward all who cross your path, helping you to get along with people, being gentle and reasonable.

Wednesday: Evaluate your actions, words, and thoughts, asking yourself if they are contributing to peace or to strife, to justice or to injustice.

Thursday: Are you willing to yield to others, putting their interests ahead of your own?  Ask God to help you humble yourself before him and before others, honoring him with your actions as you treat others with honor and dignity.

Friday: How do you tend to react to those who have been broken in some way, whether by injustice done to them or through their own mistakes, or through some other difficulties of life? Thank God for his mercy toward you and pray that you would be full of mercy for others.

Saturday: Where and how can you contribute to building healthy community where justice and mercy prevail? Pray for guidance and discernment about this. 

But let justice roll on like a river, righteousness like a never-failing stream! Amos 5:24

Musings and Prayer on Creative Abilities and Work

This coming week I’ll be attending a workshop on Chinese painting and watercolor, and I’m looking forward to a great week of creativity, art, and learning. I know that God has given me a love for art, whether quick sketching, careful and detailed drawing, or watercolor painting, and I greatly appreciate any opportunity to increase my skills by learning from a master.

I often find that it is through art that I most naturally connect with God. A few years ago when I was experiencing a long, spiritually dry spell, God seemed far away, if there at all, and I had little inclination to pray, and there was no passion in it. I spoke with a wise friend, whose first, seemingly irrelevant, question was, “How’s your art these days?” When I replied that I had been too busy to do any, she said that God had made me to be an artist and that sketching or painting was an important part of worship for me. If I neglected that, my spiritual life would suffer. That afternoon I set aside all my “important” tasks for the day, pulled out my long-neglected sketchbook, and started sketching birds and trees, soon becoming fully absorbed in what I was observing. And then in a little while, I found myself praying– for others, for myself, and just in wordless connection with God.

This week, since I’ll be focusing on my art so intently, I want to ponder a variety of Bible verses that speak of God’s gift of creative ability, of connecting with him through the abilities he gives us, and of how I can use the abilities he’s given me to do good and honor him.

Monday: “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”   Ephesians 2:10

This is one of my favorite verses. I know how much I enjoy doing a careful drawing or painting and how special it is to me, so I am awed at the thought of God making me as his handiwork. Let’s let our imaginations run with the picture of God carefully crafting each of us, like a master artist or craftsman making a special creation.

Tuesday: God created each of us, as his handiwork, to do good works. What kind of work has he made you to do? What kind of work delights you and feels meaningful? Ask God to show you what he has made you to do, what special works he has prepared you for and for you to do.

Wednesday:Then the Lord said to Moses,  “See, I have chosen Bezalel… and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, with understanding, with knowledge and with all kinds of skills— to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood, and to engage in all kinds of crafts.‘  Exodus 31:1-5

Is there any kind of creative work that you do or would love to do? Writing? Computer programming? Gardening? Cooking? Working with animals? Solving problems? Too often we minimize the value of our skills or passions. Ponder the thought that God may have given you your interests in order to accomplish his work on earth.

Thursday: Ask God to give you wisdom, understanding, and knowledge, as well as creative skill, so that all your work can be done in a way that honors him and does good.

Friday: Ask God to help you connect with him more and get to know him better through doing whatever work he has given you a passion for. See if you can use some of that time to talk with him about your needs and desires, and your concerns for yourself and others.

Saturday: How can you approach your work, whether a hobby or a responsibility, as a way of partnering with God to accomplish his work on earth? Let’s meditate on this today, especially as we engage in the work we do or think about what we long to do.

 

Forget-Me-Not Pond

The Gift of Sleep– Musings and Prayers

 

I took the red-eye home from California last Wednesday, and I didn’t sleep at all on the flight (because I was fascinated watching out the window, seeing the brilliantly lit cities, solitary lights shining in the dark, and the deep dark of uninhabited regions). Consequently I was as tired as I can remember all day Wednesday and am only now caught up on sleep, so sleep has been very much on my mind.

I love the way Milo curls into a ball when he sleeps

Because of my sleep-deprived state, the following verses about God giving sleep to those he loves came to mind when I thought of what to ponder this week. Then I decided to look up my old records and see what verses I had written on around this date in previous years, and I found that on June 26, 2011 I had written on these same verses! I don’t know why I had, since this was my first red-eye flight and probably my first completely sleepless night since college days, but it seems very timely, so I’m using it again on June 26th, just slightly revised.

Unless the Lord builds the house,
    the builders labor in vain.
Unless the Lord watches over the city,
    the guards stand watch in vain.
In vain you rise early
    and stay up late,
toiling for food to eat—
    for he grants sleep to those he loves.” Psalm 127: 1-2

Monday: What different kinds of work do you do, whether as a job, or in your home, or in some capacity as a volunteer? Bring it all before God and ask him to work with and through you, making your work effective and good and of eternal value.

Tuesday: Ask God for wisdom about your work. Are there any changes you could be making in what you’re doing? How about in how much you’re doing? I know that I tend to say yes to too many requests for my time, so this is a question I need to ask myself often, remembering that it is ultimately God’s work and not all my responsibility. Let’s listen carefully for his guidance today.

Wednesday: What or who do you try to protect or safeguard? Yourself? Someone or something else? Ponder the statement that unless the LORD watches, our watching is in vain, and commit yourself and that which is precious to you into his care.

Thursday: Does anxiety drive you to work too much? If so, think about God’s promise to supply your needs and protect you, then entrust yourself and your needs to him.

Friday: As you go to bed tonight, thank God for the gift of sleep, and ask him to help you receive it peacefully.

Saturday: God wants us to be fruitful in our work and to have peace and rest. Praise him for his love and goodness that bless our lives every day.

The sweet sleep of a newborn 🙂

Invitation to come and rest– Musings and prayer

I am in San Francisco this week meeting my new granddaughter, Elizabeth, and helping my son and daughter-in-law adjust to life with a toddler and a baby–a time of much joy, and I am filled with gratitude. I am also being reminded of how exhausting it is to care for an energetic toddler, and I know my son and daughter-in-law will often be tired in the coming weeks and months. So weariness and rest are on my mind, and this week I want to meditate on Jesus’ invitation to those who are weary to come to him and rest.

Sometimes when I read and meditate on Jesus’ words, they present a different picture of what he’s like than I’ve thought, whether because of my own experiences, or society’s view of him, or even from how’s he’s been represented by the church. That’s one reason I read and reread and ponder his words as recorded in the gospels and why I also always appreciate hearing the thoughts of others who are reading them with fresh eyes. I’m including the passage in two very different translations, since that also sometimes helps me get a fresh perspective on what I’m reading.

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Matthew 11:28-30 (NIV)

28-30 “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matthew 11:28-30 (The Message)

Monday: Of all the voices around you, how many invite you to rest? How often do you actually rest in a way that leaves you refreshed in both body and soul?

Tuesday: What burdens are you dealing with? Are you weary from carrying them? If so, Jesus’ invitation is for you, to come and rest. Take some time today to really rest, receiving whatever opportunity you have to rest as a gift.

Wednesday: At times, when I’m really wound up or on the go, I find it hard to slow down and rest, even when I have the opportunity. Jesus invites us to learn how to rest from him. So many of the voices around us are telling us to work harder, produce more, make ourselves better, but Jesus invites us to come as we are and receive from him. Ponder this thought today and think about how Jesus’ words differ from the world’s demands.

Thursday: Jesus is gentle and humble. Let’s meditate on that today, thinking about what that means for our relationship with him and also for how we live in relationship with others.

Friday: What might the “unforced rhythms of grace” look like in our daily life. Let’s ponder this throughout the day today.

Saturday: Do your life or responsibilities sometimes feel too heavy? Jesus tells us that his yoke is easy and his burden light– that he doesn’t lay loads on us too heavy for us to bear. Ask God to help you know what is from him and what are actually demands from others that aren’t something God is calling you to deal with. Jesus calls us to walk and work with him, so that we don’t have to do it alone and so we can get the rest we need.

A bundle of sweetness
Paul stopping to smell the flowers

May light shine in the darkness…

‘The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’ John 1:5

‘Blessed be the God and Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.’ 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

We’ve been made very aware of darkness in the world this past week, and many lives have been shattered. Let’s seek God’s comfort and then share that comfort with those who are hurting, so that we can help reflect the light of Christ into the darkness.

Monday: Thank God for the assurance that his light is not overcome by darkness. Ask him to help you focus on the light every day in the face of dark news.

Tuesday: Pray for others who feel overwhelmed by evil and darkness, that they would keep their eyes on God’s light and receive his comfort.

Wednesday: Think of times God has comforted you in the past, and ask him how you can share that with those who have suffered losses.

Thursday: Thank God for first responders and others who give sacrificially to help in terrible situations. Pray that many people would experience God’s love and seek his light as they see the evil wrought by darkness.

Friday: Pray that God would show you how you can reach out with his light to touch broken and hurting people in our communities, so that they would experience the support of true community.

Saturday: Praise God that he is a God of light and love and comfort. Ask him to help you become more like him.

Moon, stars, and the wonder of creation– Musings and prayers

“O Lord, our Lord,
    how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory above the heavens.
When I consider your heavens,
the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars
which you have set in place,
what is man that you are mindful of him,
the son of man that you care for him?
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.

O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!”
                                                            Psalm 8:1, 3-5, 9

God reveals his glory in all of his creation, and this coming week I will be reveling in the glory of creation as I spend time on the Maine coast. We’re close to a new moon, when the sky is dark, with stars  unobscured by moonlight, so, weather permitting, I am planning to go to a location with no lights and stand in wonder under a dazzling canopy of stars.

With an abundance of natural beauty all around me, I’ll be pondering the magnitude and splendor of the universe and what that says to me of the God who created it all. I hope you will also be able to make time to go outside some clear night to look at the stars and meditate on what they reveal of our great God. Here is the url for a website that puts the size of Earth in perspective with the rest of the Universe- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nroo-i8t8vg

Monday: Ask God to open your eyes and your mind to what he is telling you through the world he created. Slow down long enough to look about you and savor some aspect of creation.

Tuesday: Take some time today to consider the vastness of creation. What does it tell us of God’s power? Praise God for his creation and for what it reveals to you of who he is.

Wednesday: Meditate today on the wonder of God’s love for us, small as we are in the world he has made. What does that reveal to you of your worth to God? Let’s carry that thought with us throughout the day today.

Thursday: Think of the many peoples of the world who are treated as though they have no value or honor for any of a variety of reasons. Ask God what you can do as an individual to make a difference in some small way. What can you do to help the people you encounter on a daily basis have a better sense of their inherent value?

Friday: Recently I’ve been stepping outside several times a day on overly busy or stressful days to simply focus on the sun shining on treetops, or dewdrops sparkling on morning grass, or on stars watching over the earth at bedtime. Doing this has calmed me and has often helped me regain perspective on who God is and who I am. Think about how you can plan in some intentional moments of creation observation today and in the coming days.

Saturday: Let’s wrap this week up by looking for things great and small in creation that fill us with wonder and awe at God’s greatness. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Full moon sketch
Night sky sketch

 

Shelter and Refuge– Prayers and Ponderings

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
    will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress,
    my God, in whom I trust.”

Surely he will save you
    from the fowler’s snare
    and from the deadly pestilence.
He will cover you with his feathers,
    and under his wings you will find refuge;
    his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.
Psalm 91:1-4

As I mentioned last week, I loved hearing this psalm read in Hebrew when I was at a funeral recently. Psalm 91 is one of my favorite psalms and I especially I love the imagery of the first few verses. Seeing a small tree growing in the shadow of a large one or a mother bird sitting on her nest sheltering her young always brings the words of this psalm to mind for me. Here in New York, we tend to welcome sunshine most of the time (except maybe for this week of blazing heat), but the idea of a shadow being a safe place makes a lot of sense when I remember that David, who wrote this, lived in the blazing sunshine of the Middle East, where shade could mean the difference between life and death. This week let’s meditate on these images and also look for reminders of God’s care for us in the natural world.

I was halfway through writing this last week, when I got a call that a deer had leaped onto the driver’s side of the windshield of my parents’ car, when they were going 60mph on a highway (which is why this didn’t get posted last week). Amazingly, despite the shattered windshield and many small pieces of glass in his eyes, my almost 92 year-old father was able to drive 100+ yards till there was a safe place to pull over. There also just happened to be an EMT right behind them, so they got immediate assistance. Both my parents are doing fine now, and this was a big reminder to me of how God doesn’t keep us from hassles and difficulties, but is with us through them.

Of course we are all very thankful for how this experience turned out, but even when things don’t turn out as we would like, God is, in some way, our refuge and fortress, our God in whom we can trust. I haven’t always understood or recognized God’s care at the time, but, looking back, I know he has sheltered me and brought me through to the present.

Monday: From what do you need or want protection? Think about what it means that God is the Most High, greater than anything that could threaten us, and that he offers us shelter.

Tuesday: Throughout Scripture we are urged to dwell in God’s love, care, and presence. Meditate on what it might mean in your life to dwell in God’s shelter.

Wednesday: Are you tired, weary? God invites us to rest. How can you accept that invitation and rest in his refreshing shadow?

Thursday: Meditate on the imagery of a hen watching over and sheltering her chicks- they run to her whenever danger threatens and find safety and comfort under her wings.

Friday: Where do you run when you feel threatened or afraid? Take some time today to think about the things that stress or frighten you, and then imagine how you could find shelter, comfort, and peace in God’s care, even while the danger lurks nearby.

Saturday: Let’s look for images in nature or the world around us that can remind us of God’s care and protection– a Robin covering her young with her wings; a sapling standing in the shadow of larger tree; a woodchuck standing guard at the mouth of her burrow… and please comment if you have images to suggest.

“In the Shadow”

The Lord is my Shepherd– Prayers and Ponderings

This past week I attended the first Jewish funeral I’ve been to–a moving experience, as it was the funeral of a gentle and kind man, whom I met through dog training. The prayers and psalms were read in both Hebrew and English, and as I listened to the 23rd Psalm and Psalm 91, of course I didn’t understand the words in Hebrew, but I listened to those words with a feeling of awe, knowing that these were the words as they were originally written, thousands of years ago, and as Jesus would have heard and prayed them in his time on earth.

The 23rd Psalm, with which we are so familiar, was written by David about 3,000 years ago. Psalm 91, one of my favorite psalms, was written by Moses about 3,400 years ago. Hearing these psalms read in Hebrew reminded me that we are part of a long, long history of people of faith. This week I’d like to ponder and pray through a few verses of Psalm 23, and next week we might look at Psalm 91.

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul… Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” Psalm 23:1-3, 6

God loves us with a nurturing love that meets our deepest needs, by providing rest and refreshment so that our souls will be restored. This week let’s avail ourselves of what God so graciously offers us—his leadership as a shepherd who leads us to what we most need.

Monday: Good shepherds are gentle with their flock, as well as strong and protective of them when danger threatens. Thank God for being both gentle and protective, and entrust yourself to his care for the day.

Tuesday: Because our shepherd meets our deepest needs, we can truly be content. Thank God for the many riches he’s blessed you with— a sense of belonging, friends, forgiveness, access to him, love, peace, and much more.

Wednesday: As shepherds want their sheep to feel safe enough to lie down and rest, God wants us to trust him, so that we can rest from our work and not live with constant stress. Ask God to help you trust him more fully and let go of your anxiety.

Thursday: Take time today to drink deeply of God’s thirst-quenching water for your soul as you read your Bible and spend time in prayer.

Friday: Think about the many ways God has restored your soul in the past. Allow him to refresh and restore your soul today. Praise and thank him!

Saturday: Take some time today to meditate on God’s goodness and mercy. Rest quietly, knowing that you are loved and cared for and will be always.

He makes me lie down in green pastures…

Fingerprints of God in Springtime– Prayer Guide

Last year’s Robin’s nest

This time of year is exciting for birders, as spring bird migration is in full swing, and there are also numerous birds courting, gathering nesting material, and sitting on eggs. I’ve been watching a pair of Robins in my yard in the past week; each day for four days the female laid an egg, then sat on them keeping them warm. Now there are two little nestlings and two eggs, which I expect will be hatching over the next couple of days. As I see new life unfolding with the leafing out of shrubs and trees, the blooming of all sorts of flowers, and the exuberant life of birds, I am reminded of God’s creative work that is constantly happening in this world. This week let’s look at some passages that tell of God’s work in the natural world and how creation can speak to us about God.

The birds of the sky nest by the waters;
    they sing among the branches.
 He waters the mountains from his upper chambers;
    the land is satisfied by the fruit of his work…
The trees of the Lord are well watered,
the cedars of Lebanon that he planted.
There the birds make their nests…
Psalm 104: 12-13, 16-17

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made… Romans 1:20

Monday: Ask God to open your eyes and heart to see his invisible qualities in the ways he makes them apparent through his creation.

Tuesday: Think about ways in which God’s eternal power has been made evident in creation recently. Let your mind dwell on God’s power. Worship him in awe!

Wednesday: Look around at springtime unfolding. Meditate on what you see and ask yourself what it tells you of God’s divine nature. Praise God for the ways he reveals his nature in nature.

Thursday: Ask God to renew a sense of wonder in you, so that as you observe his creation, you will be seeing reminders of God and be drawn closer to him.

Friday: Look for opportunities to share about God’s nurturing and creative nature with others as you share your appreciation of and joy in springtime.

Saturday:  Praise God that he leaves his fingerprints in the world as a means of revealing himself to those who have eyes to see. Take time today with God, enjoying some aspect of his creation with him.

This year’s Robin’s nest