A Table For One

Lenten Reflection on Psalm 23

Loma De Luz, Honduras

I love eating with family and friends. I love a good dinner party.  And every once in a while, I enjoy getting a table for one. Whether this table is at home, a restaurant or on a mission trip, I enjoy the calmness of a table for one.  There are no expectations or awkward silences. The table for one usually involves some of the following: a legal pad, pen, coffee, my water bottle and my Bible.

As I engaged in my lenten reading for last week, the verse "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies" keeps coming to mind.  What if this table is a table for one?  What if this table is just for me and God, face to face? What if I sit at the table in the presence of my enemies that lie within?

What if the enemy is my own selfishness, my own apathy, my own comfort, my own pride?  What if I sit at the table in the presence of my enemy and can only confess to God that I have fallen short? What if at the table for one I am reminded of Romans 3:23, that all have fallen short? I believe that at that table for one, there is confession. There is forgiveness. There is grace.  There is bread for me to eat and a cup overflowing.  There is oil being poured out on my head.  There at the table for one I learn that goodness and mercy are following me. Even when I get so comfortable that I am unwilling to sacrifice my time, talent and treasure for His Kingdom, there is grace.

Maybe you can find grace at a table for one.

Heart of Worship

Weekly Lenten Reflection

Today, I chose to focus on the Gospel reading from the Lectionary as I did last week.  For many Christians, John 4 is a familiar passage.  As I have reflected on this passage, I keep returning to the phrase "you must worship in spirit and truth."  The greatest times of worship in my life have not occurred because of an awesome worship band or the ambiance of the room.  The most life changing times of worship have taken place when my heart was ready to receive whatever God desired to give me.  Trust me, I do enjoy great authentic worship in song. During a song, my hand is usually raised once or twice - even when hymns are being sung. It is important to remember that worship is not only feel good emotion. Worship is not only singing to God. I must remember that it's not what I do (or don't do) with my hands but worship is what I do with my heart and mind because of the one who has captured my heart and my mind.

Germany 2005

We must worship in spirit (heart) and truth (mind!) Finding a quiet place or admiring God's creation

directs my heart and mind to the right place. I challenge you to consider what helps turn your heart and mind to the right place so you can receive what you need from the Maker of all Good Things!

I love the song, The Heart of Worship. Here are the lyrics....

When the music fades
All is stripped away
And I simply come
Longing just to bring
Something that's of worth
that will bless your heart.

I'll bring you more than a song, for a song in itself
is not what you have required
You search much deeper within through the way things appear
You're looking into my heart

I'm coming back to the heart of worship
And it's all about you, it's all about you, Jesus
I'm sorry Lord for the thing I've made it
When it's all about you, it's all about you, Jesus!

God So Loved the World...

GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD...

Meet Roberto...A kid we've known for nearly 10 years now. In his darkest hours, we remind him that God loves him so much...even when he is hostile to God

John 3:16 was the first Bible verse I memorized as a child.  I can recall how this verse brought me comfort and hope as a young kiddo.  Today, it still brings me comfort and hope. In the face of death, it has brought me comfort and hope. In the face of disease, it has brought me comfort and hope. In the face of confusion, it has brought me comfort and hope.  In the face of failure, it has brought me comfort and hope. And, I have witnessed how it has brought comfort and hope in the face of addiction and depression.

Who is this "world" that Jesus loves?  I first want to point out that it may be helpful to remind you that the Greek word for “world” – kosmos – designates throughout the rest of John’s Gospel a group of people that is hostile to God (see, for instance, John 15:18-25; 16:8-10, 20, 33; and 17:9-16). This means that we might actually translate these verses, “For God so loved the God-hating world, that he gave his only Son…” and “God did not send the Son into the world to condemn even this world that despises God but instead so that the world that rejects God might still be saved through him.” 

When I began to understand who the world really was, I began to witness that God’s love is audacious and unexpected. (Which is why, according to Paul, it probably seems both scandalous and a little crazy – see 1 Cor. 1:18-25.) And that audacious, unexpected, even crazy character of God’s love is exactly why it saves!

As Christians we must remember that the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing in their sins - their self righteousness, their hate, their idolatry, their addiction - but to us who understand that God's grace is available to all people even those who are hostile to God - it is the manifestation of the power of God.

Servant Leadership

Thankful for these great reminders from Senior Pastor, Tyler McKenzie at Northeast Christian!

As leaders, we forget:
-It's not our kingdom we're building, it's His.
-Leadership isn't currency owned, it's a divine investment.
-Talent doesn't make you special, it makes you responsible.
-Influence isn't yours to keep, it's yours to give.

We forget there is a kind of greatness that you descend into. It's the greatness of servitude, the greatness of God.

Discovering God

Lenten Reading:  Matthew 4:1-11

"If you are the Son of God..."

Have you ever struggled with your identity? Have you ever questioned your role as a friend, a student, a parent or an employee? Maybe you have said, "If I am a great student then I would make straight As or score perfect on the ACT." Maybe you have said, "If I am a good friend then I would not be bullied, right?" Maybe you have said, "If I am an exceptional employee then I would get a raise." Or, maybe you have said, "If I am a good parent then my child would be different."

Here in this passage, I am reminded that Jesus knows who he is by remembering whose he is. Might it be that a part of being human is being aware that we are insufficient. As Christ followers and as beloved sons and daughters of God, our identity is rooted in Christ. It is not rooted in our identity as a student or friend or a parent. Blaise Pascal once described the essential condition of humanity as having a God shaped hole. This story for me illustrates that my relationship with Christ (having his peace, joy and love) is the only thing that will fill that hole.

When we are tempted to chase after an identity other than one rooted in a relationship with God through Christ, the hole will not be filled. Success and power in any position we hold (whether parent, coach, friend, employee) will leave us restless until we find rest in God.

I'm thankful Jesus refused to establish his own worth and identity on his own terms (by turning the stone into bread, jumping from the temple, worshiping another) but instead remained dependent on God!

You see, every time we place our complete trust in God and not in ourselves - we discover God amid our needs and learn that God's Grace is sufficient.

Saying No; Saying Yes

Ash Wednesday Meditation

Rising from the ashes...

The kind of Lent Jesus desires for us is the kind that prepares our hearts for a Savior who rises from the ashes of death to bring new life.

The ashes on the forehead remind me that human life has limits, that it comes to an end, that we all die. The ashes speak of my need for a Savior, my need for God.

Lord I need you, oh I need you, every hour I need you.....

Many people see Lent as "giving up something." But I think it's more than saying "no" to chocolate or sodas for a few weeks.  When we answer Christ's call to say no, we should answer his call to say no to destructive practices. Saying no means there is energy to say yes to positive disciplines. We can fill the space and time left by our saying no with some positive disciplines to help us respond to God's love more intentionally. John Wesley called them the means of grace: prayer, searching the scriptures, fasting, acts of kindness aimed at justice, and regular attendance at corporate worship where we participate in the sacraments of baptism and communion and meet God as the scriptures are read and proclaimed.

Will you prepare your heart for the Lenten Journey?