Lead me in your path…

To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me. Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous. Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all the day long. Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O Lord! Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies. (Psalm 25:1-10, ESV)

Every time I read this psalm I can’t help but start singing! (see the video below…) We are to trust in the Lord no matter where we are or where we go. He is our rock and our foundation, our salvation and our guide for our life’s journey.

It is interesting though that this psalm speaks not of the rules we must follow, but the paths that we take…

For instance, “Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation…” Teach me your paths! Help me to go where you would have me go. Lead me and help me to do the things that You would have me do. Not what the rules say I have to do, or the organization says is right, but where God is leading me.

Don’t get me wrong, there is something to the organization that helps to keep us on track knowing we are not going off on our own, but God is leading us down the path of our life, not asking us to follow anything but Him. All of the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, He will not lead us wrong if we will but follow where He is leading us!

So trust in the Lord and follow where He leads!

Creating a team covenant

Jim LaDoux's avatarSurface To Soul

SkydiversVibrant Faith Ministries has a ritual of regularly recites our mission statement and the following covenant at our weekly meetings. This 60 second agenda item reminds team members how we intend to treat one another as we fulfill our mission. It provides a foundation for describing what is appropriate behavior and what isn’t, giving members permission to raise concerns if they feel the covenant has been broken.  It reminds participants of the important role they play in creating a healthy team. Here’s what we read every Tuesday.

Our COVENANT: As members of this faith community, we commit to:

  • Affirm, encourage, support, pray for, and bless one another.
  • Appreciate and affirm each other’s gifts, backgrounds, and viewpoints.
  • Speak well of each other to build up the body of Christ.
  • Communicate with each other in honest, open Christ-like ways.
  • Commit to ongoing personal, professional, and spiritual growth.
  • Be open to new ways…

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Can faith save you?

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you? If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that? So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I by my works will show you my faith. You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe — and shudder. Do you want to be shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works is barren? Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was brought to completion by the works. Thus the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. Likewise, was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by another road? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead. (James 2:14-26, NRSV)

Ok… This is a hard text for Lutherans because “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9). So we kind of get hung up on the works part, much to our detriment. I have heard it said that the average Lutheran invites some one to worship once every 27 years… Now that is resting on your faith!

James here asks “Can faith save you?” My answer when I saw that was yes! absolutely faith is the only thing that can save me. This past Sunday before worship, someone asked me about a devotional they had read in which a person had died and gone to heaven and God asked them what they had done to get here. She asked me what I would say, and I replied, “nothing. I have done everything in my power not to be here, but I am here because of Jesus.” And that my friend is the only thing that can save us. Belief in the promises that Christ died for you and because of what He did you can be in a right relationship with God.

Now does that mean that James is wrong? NO! We have to have works. But not because works can save us, but because as James says, “So faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead.” We have to have works and we have to be filled with love for the other so we are moved to be there and cloth the naked and feed the hungry.

And the continuation of Ephesians 2:8-9 is verse 10 “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works,which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” God had prepared good works for us to through the love of Christ to light and season the world.

So do not allow your relationship with God to be dead… Do the works He has prepared for you before you were conceived and shine a light in the darkness!

God in the Alley by Greg Paul

“However, these stories of my friends reveal a peculiar paradox: I am more likely to find Jesus revealed to me and through me in weakness than in strength, sinfulness than in purity, or doubt than in perfect faithfulness.”

Greg Paul takes you on a ride through the streets of Toronto to meet and see Jesus. He goes to places those of us who are “christian” think Christ would never go, but Paul takes us there and introduces us to Jesus in the characters and people of every day life in Toronto. He shows us that Christ is present and active in the lives of people most church people have written off as fodder for hell.

This book is a must read to help us all understand that God truly does work in strange and mysterious ways!

Hold Fast

A long time afterward, when the Lord had given rest to Israel from all their surrounding enemies, and Joshua was old and well advanced in years, Joshua summoned all Israel, its elders and heads, its judges and officers, and said to them, “I am now old and well advanced in years.And you have seen all that the Lord your God has done to all these nations for your sake, for it is the Lord your God who has fought for you. Behold, I have allotted to you as an inheritance for your tribes those nations that remain, along with all the nations that I have already cut off, from the Jordan to the Great Sea in the west. The Lord your God will push them back before you and drive them out of your sight. And you shall possess their land, just as the Lord your God promised you. Therefore, be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left, that you may not mix with these nations remaining among you or make mention of the names of their gods or swear by them or serve them or bow down to them, but you shall cling to the Lord your God just as you have done to this day. For the Lord has driven out before you great and strong nations. And as for you, no man has been able to stand before you to this day. One man of you puts to flight a thousand, since it is the Lord your God who fights for you, just as he promised you. Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God. For if you turn back and cling to the remnant of these nations remaining among you and make marriages with them, so that you associate with them and they with you, know for certain that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you, but they shall be a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from off this good ground that the Lord your God has given you. “And now I am about to go the way of all the earth, and you know in your hearts and souls, all of you, that not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed. But just as all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you have been fulfilled for you, so the Lord will bring upon you all the evil things, until he has destroyed you from off this good land that the Lord your God has given you, if you transgress the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them. Then the anger of the Lord will be kindled against you, and you shall perish quickly from off the good land that he has given to you.” (Joshua 23, ESV)

When things go your way for a while it is hard to remember when you had to rely on the promises of someone else. Joshua is telling the whole of the people of God to remember the promises that God had made to them, now that they have been living in peace for some time. They need to remember when they were wandering in the wilderness and needed to rely on God for everything.

Even now when live is peaceful and good, we still need to rely on God. We need to hold fast to the promises He has made us. He will be good to His word and uphold the promises He made, for our benefit and for our demise. He will give us everything He has promised us in His word.

So if things have gone well for you, that is wonderful you have lived in the peacefulness that has been provided to you, but you still must hold fast to the promises of God. And if you are still walking in a valley that seems to have no end, remember that His people (of whom you are one) wandered in the wilderness for 40 years without a home, but not without Him! Hold fast, for He is holding fast to you.

faithful is He…

You shall say to them, Thus says the Lord: When people fall, do they not get up again? If they go astray, do they not turn back? Why then has this people turned away in perpetual backsliding? They have held fast to deceit, they have refused to return. I have given heed and listened, but they do not speak honestly; no one repents of wickedness, saying, “What have I done!” All of them turn to their own course, like a horse plunging headlong into battle. Even the stork in the heavens knows its times; and the turtledove, swallow, and crane observe the time of their coming; but my people do not know the ordinance of the Lord. How can you say, “We are wise, and the law of the Lord is with us,” when, in fact, the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie? The wise shall be put to shame, they shall be dismayed and taken; since they have rejected the word of the Lord, what wisdom is in them? Therefore I will give their wives to others and their fields to conquerors, because from the least to the greatest everyone is greedy for unjust gain; from prophet to priest everyone deals falsely. They have treated the wound of my people carelessly, saying, “Peace, peace,” when there is no peace. They acted shamefully, they committed abomination; yet they were not at all ashamed, they did not know how to blush. Therefore they shall fall among those who fall; at the time when I punish them, they shall be overthrown, says the Lord. When I wanted to gather them, says the Lord, there are no grapes on the vine, nor figs on the fig tree; even the leaves are withered, and what I gave them has passed away from them. (Jeremiah 8:4-13 NRSV)

the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie…

…from prophet to priest everyone deals falsely…

…from the least to the greatest everyone is greedy for unjust gain…

We are all guilty of doing wrong. Of turning from the Lord to the wickedness of our flesh. Jeremiah hears from God that He has always upheld His end of the deal. He has always been there. “I have given heed and listened…” God is always there for us to return to. He has always been a friend to His enemy, you and me. He has loved us before we should have been loved and still loves us when we turn our backs on Him and run where our little hearts want to take us. He loves us no matter what.

We need to heed the Lord and follow where He is leading us. Not just blindly following the priest or the prophet, for they can deal falsely when led by their own desires. Nor should we heed the scribe for they have made the truth into a lie. We can not hold to what has always been when God is clearly telling us to go a new way. We need to heed God and follow where He lead us, for traditions will not save us, only Jesus could do that…

So trust not in man, but put your trust in God alone and know what He promises will always stand strong.

wonderfully made…

Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word. I know, O Lord, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant. Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight. Let the insolent be put to shame, because they have wronged me with falsehood; as for me, I will meditate on your precepts. Let those who fear you turn to me, that they may know your testimonies. May my heart be blameless in your statutes, that I may not be put to shame! (Psalm 119:73-80, ESV)

Do you have any issues that seem to be insurmountable?

Recently as an ordained pastor of the ELCA, who is looking for a call, I have watched several friends receive calls and move on to other places and opportunities in ministry, as I seem to wait for the next phase of life God has in store for me and my family. This might sound like I am concerned or upset. And to say that I am not would not admit the humanness that makes me up. It is upsetting, and I worry about the well being of my family, and my wife, and how I will continue to minister.

But my life is not all dark clouds…

I read the psalm for today and I am reminded that God formed me with His hands. He fashioned me to be a part of His plan, a part only He completely understands and knows how it will play out. So I fear nothing, and worry only in my humanness, because I know that I am made by my creator and He is watching over me. His mercy will come to me and my enemies will  not stand before Him.

So trust in the one who formed you before you were a twinkle in the eyes of your mother and delight in His mercy.

Piece of the puzzle…

After this the Lord appointed seventy others and sent them on ahead of him in pairs to every town and place where he himself intended to go. He said to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest. Go on your way. See, I am sending you out like lambs into the midst of wolves. Carry no purse, no bag, no sandals; and greet no one on the road. Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace to this house!” And if anyone is there who shares in peace, your peace will rest on that person; but if not, it will return to you. Remain in the same house, eating and drinking whatever they provide, for the laborer deserves to be paid. Do not move about from house to house. Whenever you enter a town and its people welcome you, eat what is set before you; cure the sick who are there, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.” But whenever you enter a town and they do not welcome you, go out into its streets and say, “Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet, we wipe off in protest against you. Yet know this: the kingdom of God has come near.” ‘Whoever listens to you listens to me, and whoever rejects you rejects me, and whoever rejects me rejects the one who sent me.’ The seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord, in your name even the demons submit to us!’ He said to them, ‘I watched Satan fall from heaven like a flash of lightning. See, I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you. Nevertheless, do not rejoice at this, that the spirits submit to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.’ (Luke 10:1-11, 16-20, NRSV)

Today’s lesson is easily read for many different things.

We read it and hear we should have the power to cure diseases, heal the ill, and cast out demons… Well can’t we all do this? Jesus gave the disciples the power to do what He had done and even greater things… So why are we not casting out demons and curing the sick? We are, we just may not realize we are…

Jesus also tells us that we will tread on snakes and scorpions and nothing will hurt us. As one little man said this morning, “Jesus gives us the power over the bugs!” We can tread on evil and it will not effect us.

Or how about Jesus said, “do not be over joyed because the evil spirits obey you, but rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”

These are all great things, but what is really the thing Jesus is getting to in this text?

I see 2 things…

1. We are sent out in pairs. We are not to go it alone.
2. We are to rely on the generosity of others. We are to take nothing with us.

We are not in this alone. I use the analogy of a puzzle. If you put the border together you see the boundaries that God has set for the body and the image He has designed. Now each of us is a piece in the puzzle. The picture is not complete without all of us. We need everyone else to make the picture that God has designed come to life. We can not go it alone, and we have to rely on others, and that is number 2. We have to more than us, and we have to rely on others. We are to be interdependent.  We are individuals, only in the sense that we are unique people God has created to be a part of His picture. Our individualism will only get us so far. As Benjamin Franklin said at the signing of the Declaration of Independence, “We must hang together, or assuredly we will all hang separately.”

We are interdependent on each other. We are not created to be alone, we are a part of the body, and we need each other, just as the others, need us.

Without your piece, the puzzle is incomplete.

Vunerable

20130706-094148.jpgAnd he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal. And he said to them, Take nothing for your journey, no staff, nor bag, nor bread, nor money; and do not have two tunics. And whatever house you enter, stay there, and from there depart. And wherever they do not receive you, when you leave that town shake off the dust from your feet as a testimony against them. And they departed and went through the villages, preaching the gospel and healing everywhere. (Luke 9:1-6 ESV)

Jesus is sending out the twelve to heal and power over demons, to proclaim the kingdom of God. They were told to take nothing for their journey.

Have you ever gone on a trip and not packed a bag? Or made sure that you had extra money to get the things you will need? You plan for a trip just going across town or for the day. Jesus told the disciples to go and not to take anything with them but to make themselves vulnerable and to depend upon the generosity of others for everything.

Jesus is sending us out and asking us to be vulnerable as well. We need to depend upon others. We can not do it alone. We are not self made people, we need others to help us and to get us to the places we need to be. We need others, just like they need us.

So do not think of yourself as a self made person, but remember you need others, just like others need you.