Grove Presbyterian Church 2022 Lenten Devotional

 You Are Never Alone Jesus entered the garden all alone. He needed some time with God on his own. He needed time to pray. Time to process what was happening these coming days. Alone and afraid he asked for any other way. He knew he would suffer and would have to be alone another day. When God made him aware that the only way was to take on the sins of man, Jesus accepted his responsibility and followed God's holy plan. Jesus hung there on the cross again afraid and alone. Why have you abandoned me and left me on my own? He suffered and died for our sins so we could be set free. He died for you and me... In this terrible pandemic we all feel so alone and afraid. Isolated, we reflect how hope has left us all betrayed. It is hard not to live in doubt and dwell on our fears, To wallow in self pity and fight to blink back tears. When Easter came, Jesus was reunited with us all. His gift of salvation is waiting for us if we but hear his call. Easter is our chance for those who live on ea

Scripture:  “Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, his praise in the assembly of the faithful. Let Israel be glad in its Maker; let children of Zion rejoice in their King.” Psalm 149: 1-2 (NRSV)   Devotional Thought: In my spare time I crochet using leftover yarn. I even have been known to unravel an old sweater or scarf only to reuse the yarn turning it into a new useful item. A few pieces of new yarn are added to give a new look, but very rarely do I purchase all new yarn for a project. I gain immense joy out of this work resulting in numerous lap-afghans for the VA hospital and gifts for others.    Weaving the old with a bit of new. Getting as much as possible out of the old while seeing new possibilities. Is this why Jesus quoted the Hebrew scriptures? Is this what Jesus’ life does? He leads us to hold true to the steadfast God of the Old Testament while recognizing the new possibilities through him.  Is this what God calls us to do with God’s story? Is this how we hold on

  David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works:   “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven,   whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.   Romans 4: 6-8 There are three pillars of Lent; Prayer, Fasting and Almsgiving .   Almsgiving is really just another name for charitable giving. Alms comes from a word that means pity, while charity comes from the Latin word “caritas”, that means love. Giving to charity is showing caritas, love, for our neighbor just as Jesus told us to. St. Francis of Assisi said, “In giving we receive.” This is very true. When you have love for someone, and you give to them something in love, it is better than any gift you could ever receive. I believe that giving of time and money can be easily lumped into works.   With that in mind, we have to be careful that we are not giving and doing for the wrong reasons.   What I

He was in the Garden afraid, asking for any other way.   He cried, he wept as he spoke to God that day. He asked his disciple stay awake and pray. They were sound asleep unable to support him that day. For a few silver coins he was betrayed with a kiss and an embrace. I wonder what was the look he had upon his face. As the soldiers led him away, peter tried to resist. Jesus had told them to turn the other cheek and not fight with a closed fist. Do you know him?  Peter asked.  He denied knowing Jesus Christ. Peter was afraid that he too may have to give up his life. Two more times he was asked, and each time he denied.   Ashamed when he heard the cock crow, he bowed his head and cried. Jesus calls each of us to be vigilant and pray. We make excuses and are forgetful to bow and give thanks throughout the day. Attracted by wealth we take shortcuts to make some extra coin. Knowing that with each shortcut it's the ranks of sinners we join.   We deny Jesus when we're ashamed to bow o

Matthew 11:28-30 NIV “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.”   As we go through life we are exposed to many facts and a lot more fiction.  It is often hard to tell the difference.  For example, what foods are we supposed to eat?  There are lots of theories out there.  I always figured I could eat and drink what I wanted (in moderation) and I would be fine as long it was balanced around the prescribed food groups.  In the past, giving-up small food pleasures was impossible for me (my work nickname was “The Locust” because I ate everything in my path!).  The thought of going to a restrictive diet seemed implausible.  However, last January I was diagnosed prediabetic.  Combine that with the Lenten season and a faith-based book on the topic of a low-carb diet and fasting and I decided to take a l

I remember being so fascinated to learn in nursing school about the built-in 24 hour program our bodies cycle through every day called the “circadian rhythm”. Our bodies are designed to wake in the morning, put in a day, then spend the night refreshing in order to do it all over again. It’s very complex and involves hormones, glands, chemicals and requires periods of dark and light at certain times, so our bodies are also tied in to the natural rhythms of the earth and sun. The beauty of it is that we have a fresh start each day.  We also cycle weekly;    six days of work followed by a Sabbath day of rest to start the new week. The moon waxes and wanes monthly - and affects ocean tides, seasons, and growth.    Nature’s seasons cycle annually; verdant summers of growth, cool  autumns for harvest, cold dark winters to rest, and bursting new growth when the earth warms in springtime. Ecclesiastes 3:1 says “there is a season for everything, and a purpose for everything under heaven”.

John 2:1-12 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there.  2 Jesus and his disciples had also been invited to the wedding.  3 When the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to him, “They have no wine.”  4 And Jesus said to her, “Woman, what concern is that to you and to me? My hour has not yet come.”  5 His mother said to the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”  6 Now standing there were six stone water jars for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons.  7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim.  8 He said to them, “Now draw some out, and take it to the chief steward.” So they took it.  9 When the steward tasted the water that had become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward called the bridegroom  10 and said to him, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and then the inferior wine after the gues

Grove high school mission trips were phenomenal times. Although it wasn't 40 days, we at least had 7 to 10 days of spiritual growth.  Cherished heirloom growth.  Departing from the church was a game of tetrus of both people into cars/vans and massive amounts of luggage and box fans.  Of course we had usual musical instruments and cookies.  Thank goodness for Cassie who would always grab several dozen for protection.  Quick picture of the motley group and off we went to our first stop, usually a church to bunk and eat at mid point, sometimes in the middle of nowhere.   Usually we would try to do something fun like white water rafting, theme park, beach, or fishing allowing somewhat of a mini vacation.  The time was very purposefully designed.  Bonding, fellowship, and breaking down all barriers created through the year of high school drama and social hierarchy.  It really was amazing how well that process happened when they revealed their real self.  Of course FOOD, always cooking t

  Scripture: Philip found Nathanael and said to him, “We have found him about whom Moses in the law and also the prophets wrote, Jesus son of Joseph from Nazareth.” Nathanael said to him, “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” Philip said to him, “Come and See.”   (John 1: 45-46 NRSV)   Devotional Thought: One of the joys of being a parent, a grandparent, or an early childhood educator is the experience of a small child grabbing you by the hand and tugging you off to “Come and See”. “Come and see, Mommy.” “Come and see, Mamaw”.   “Come and see, Teacher”.   The sparkle in their eyes, the enthusiasm in their gestures, the awe they exude. Sometimes it is to see something created and sometimes something newly discovered. These are the moments missed most during COVID while unable to be physically with children. I regret those moments when I like so many busy adults reply, “Just a minute” or “Wait I am working.” or “That’s nice” in an uninterested tone.   In this scripture,

2 Timothy 4: 3-4 3 For the time will come when people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4 They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.                                                                                     Lent is a time of deep reflection.  A time for us to ‘re-center” ourselves on God.  The world can easily draw us in the direction of “It’s all about me”.   In this scripture, Paul is providing a caution that we live in a world that subscribes to “Tell me what I want to hear”.  As you reflect this Lenten Season ask God to move you from a “Tell me what I want to hear” to “Tell me what I need to know” so that you can live a life pleasing to Him and not like the person described by Linda Winchell below:   TELL ME WHAT I WANT TO HEAR Just tell me what I want to hear, not what I really need to know

Psalm 27:1,4    The LORD is my light and my salvation;            whom shall I fear?       The LORD is the stronghold of my life;            of whom shall I be afraid?   One thing I asked of the LORD,            that will I seek after:       to live in the house of the LORD            all the days of my life,       to behold the beauty of the LORD,            and to inquire in his temple.       I love my house.  It’s the type of house that is full of hand-me-down furniture where nothing matches.  It’s the kind of house that is decorated with family photos, thrift store finds, and arts and crafts.  The longer we live in this house, the more like home it feels.  This is the first house we have owned and it was so nicely finished and clean when we moved in.  Now, when I look at the scuff marks on the wall, I am almost proud because they were made by us because this is our house.  We have been spending time at home more this year.  This house is a safe space for us.     What does it mean t

Psalm 51:7 Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Welcome to the season of Lent! Today is Ash Wednesday, the first day of the season.  Traditionally Ash Wednesday is the day that we are reminded to "remember our mortality."  What does that mean?  In many ways it's a way for us to reflect on our human nature, our lives, and the fact that we will all one day come fact to face with God.  The ashes help us to reflect upon a Biblical idea: from dust we came, and to dust we shall return.   Another way we can think of Ash Wednesday is to reflect on the cleansing nature of God's love.  Our relationship with Christ cleanses us our hearts, souls, and minds and frees us to follow God.   However we reflect upon Ash Wednesday, it's the beginning of an important journey in our spiritual lives. It's a journey that happens, year after year, as we walk the Via Delarosa toward the cross.  It can be difficult to make this journey al