Tune in, Turn on, Drop Out

As we tune into God, 

He turns our anger into forgiveness, 

our selfishness into servanthood.

From the book "Live Like a Jesus Freak"

Fear

Psalm 67

May God be gracious to us and bless us

and make his face to shine upon us,

Selah 

that your way may be known on earth,

your saving power among all nations.

Let the peoples praise you, O God;

let all the peoples praise you!

Let the nations be glad and sing for joy,

for you judge the peoples with equity

and guide the nations upon earth.

Selah

Let the peoples praise you, O God;

let all the peoples praise you!

The earth has yielded its increase;

God, our God, shall bless us.

God shall bless us;

let all the ends of the earth fear him!

I don't like the word fear here, but that's what it says. Revere, honor, in awe of, those words shake the Earth less. But fear is the word chosen by the translators who understood the intent of the original. Why fear? The Earth does move, doesn't it? Even now, under our feet, like waves. 

Passover Seder

Luke 22:7-16

Then came the day of Unleavened Bread 

on which the Passover lamb had to be sacrificed. 

Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, 

“Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

“Where do you want us to prepare for it?” they asked.

He replied, 

“As you enter the city, a man carrying a jar of water will meet you. Follow him to the house that he enters, and say to the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher asks: Where is the guest room, where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?’ He will show you a large room upstairs, all furnished. Make preparations there.”

They left and found things just as Jesus had told them. 

So they prepared the Passover.

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. 

And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again 

until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

Isaiah 60:1-3

Arise, shine, for your light has come,

and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

For behold, darkness shall cover the earth,

and thick darkness the peoples;

but the Lord will arise upon you,

and his glory will be seen upon you.

And nations shall come to your light,

and kings to the brightness of your rising.

Ark

"Faith builds an ark 

when it has never rained before."

Dr. David Jeremiah

Open it

Faith 

is 

a 

gift.

Ask 

for 

it.

It is warmth personified, 

encouraging, lifting, world-changing. 

It will fill your life and your heart with music.

Favorite Karl Lagerfeld Quote

"I am very much down to earth. 

Just not this earth."

What would it say?

3 John 1:12

Demetrius has received a good testimony from everyone, 

and from the truth itself.

Who is this mysterious Demetrius? 

What did he do? Or what didn't he do?

We have just this one line about him.

If each of us had just one line, what would it say?

You Are Loved

Bless Those

1 Peter 3:9

Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult. On the contrary, repay evil with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing.

Matthew 5:43-44

You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you...

I read today that a new member of Congress, Ilhan Omar, 

has been accused of making anti-Semitic statements. 

I read them, they were pretty awful. It hurts my heart 

to think she feels comfortable saying that. 

Some things to pray for Ilhan Omar:

Peace

Kindness from an unexpected place

Good dreams

That she would know the Lord loves her

Why do this? 

Why not ignore her or say something offensive as well? 

Because those things would be heavy in my heart. Who wants to feel that way? Besides, I do want her to know the Lord loves her. He also loves Israel.

Forgiveness

I will not take your guilt 

with me when I leave this place. 

I will not carry it 

in my heart 

or 

on my back 

or 

on my face. 

I forgive. 

I will forgive. 

I am forgiving. 

I will say it 

a thousand times 

and then once more. 

I will lay it down.

I will let it go. 

It is not mine.

I will not take it with me.

And you...

Will you leave mine here as well?

Safe

A

ship 

in port

is safe,

but that's not

what ships 

are built for.

I love this saying. I'm not sure who said it! Benazir Bhutto, maybe. Grace Hopper, possibly. John A. Shedd? 

Romans 12:21

Do not be overcome by evil, 

but overcome evil with good.

Mortar

I am new to the stories on these walls. The gold stuns me. Curves and turns and wonders are painted on the ceiling, the doorways, and the hearts of the parishioners. 

"I've never been in a temple like this," I tell one of them, an elderly woman with more years than I can count. She smiles knowingly and says, "A temple like this is inside of you."

I see an evil man, deceptive, or was, cruel, or was, stolen from the light and placed in the dark, or was. He blends with the gold now in this place. He fits in here. How? Just rescue. His darkness lifted. 

"He's mine," says the Lord.

Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch. Luke 5:4

There is hope for those in the deep. There is hope for those in darkness. Let down your nets, down into the deep. He wants to save us and also our enemies. 

There is an army assembled by the Lord. It is not to destroy, like other armies, but to restore. You can tell by the outcasts among them, the worshippers in front, and the weakest among them carrying the heaviest equipment.

They come from the darkness themselves, having been stolen away at one time, but are now restored. They are angry, the good kind of rage that says move, now, no more. 

Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there be any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting! Psalm 139:23-24

They move in the way of everlasting. No one can stop them from placing one stone upon another and rebuilding. The bad guys you fear will be rescued too and they will pour the mortar. 

I didn't believe it at first, not really, but I do now.