I was asked to do the Easter sunrise service meditation.  Here it is, complete with scripture. We had a powerpoint slide show with this on a big screen (done by Deanna Etienne).  Try to picture appropriate scenes where they come to mind.  I read this very slowly - took 6 - 7 minutes so it was SLOW and reflective! John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 1 John 4 9-10, 19 : This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. 10 This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 19 We love because he first loved us. Wonderful God, we praise you and ask that you guide our thoughts. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our heart s be pleasing in your sight, O LORD.  Amen. Please join me by reflecting on the significance and eve...

Philippians 2: 5-7 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:   6 Who, being in very nature God,    did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing    by taking the very nature of a servant,    being made in human likeness.  I bet you never thought of humans as being the same thing as servant. I didn't either until I noticed that is what Paul insinuated or even stronger, that humans were nothing ....but servants. He said that Jesus made himself nothing because he came in human likeness which is the very nature of a servant.  Most of us don't like the idea of being a servant. Some of us can stand to serve others for a short period of time. Some can do it for longer periods but I'd say that most people would prefer NOT to be a full-time all-the-time servant. But Paul said that when Jesus came, He became human, in the nat...

I've been wondering about fasting for quite some time now. I've fasted a few times for a day or two and once for a week. I had no expectations so experiencing it was interesting. I had a headache for a day or so. Since I was fasting as a spiritual practice, I found it relatively easy to do.  (You know. I can do everything through him who gives me strength. Phil 4:13 )  There were a few discomforts. Strange taste in my mouth. A deep chill.  (I had to wear sweaters when under normal circumstances I wouldn't have to.) No one ever asked me why I was grouchy - which is my usual symptom when I'm hungry. My husband didn't even notice and he always knows when I'm grouchy and needing to eat. He was not aware I was fasting. It was a private thing between me and God. There were perks. The biggest was that I was constantly thinking of God. I was working at the time so thinking of God frequently at work was a real plus. I don't remember why I had decided to fas...

Romans 8:28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, have been called according to his purpose. Late last week, I had an interesting job interview. I knew by the time I left that I was not chosen for the position. The interview was a joint interview with several applicants.  As a result I understood why I wasn't chosen. The problem was that I had thought it was perhaps THE job I was going to get. So I left with the knowledge that I was not the best person and the feeling that perhaps I won't be the best person for another job.  Yes, I know that is pessimistic. I'm working on that. The thing is, I was behind on my readings and devotions. On Saturday, I went to a formation - which is a planning/work session for an upcoming Walk to Emmaus three day event.  I am part of the team. During the session, someone talked about Romans 8:28.  I've heard it before, many times. As I caught up with my readings, I read that passage 2 more time...

My book is full. Almost exactly a year ago, I started writing down passages or verses of the Bible in my little wire-bound book on September 29, 2009.  The journal has a beautiful blue cover with a pair of yellow flowers. The cover says "He has made everything beautiful in its time". ( Ecclesiastes 3:11 NIV)   That is only part of the verse but that is the way I've been writing passages.  Writing these down this past year has helped me remember where some passages are.  Now if someone references Jeremiah 29:11, I know what that verse is, even if I can't remember the whole, exact sentence. I've also grown in appreciation for the diversity of the Bible. There are poems, songs, stories, biographic tales, autobiographic entries, commands, comforts. There are cries for help, justice and pleas for mercy and grace. There are bits that we can't fully appreciate. For example, since we don't know the Hebrew alphabet that was used for a particular acrostic we can...

I wrote a post a couple of weeks ago called Jesus and the Holy Spirit .  Someone read it and made a comment that included a link to a 2-hour video called The Human Jesus .  I did watch the video over time. I couldn't devote 2 continuous hours of sitting at my computer to watch but I did watch it.  From the wording of the comment the commentator wanted to change my mind about the Trinity. The comment said "prayerfully it will aid you to reconsider 'The Trinity'". Well, it worked. I did reconsider and am reconsidering The Trinity. I can't say that my mind has been changed but it has been opened up. There are a lot of things that we take for granted as fact without actually looking into them ourselves. What the church teaches is full of those things that we take as fact. The Trinity is certainly one of those. Preachers preach about it from the pulpits. It is part of Bible study materials. The book 52 Words Every Christian Should Know is an example. We looke...

Philippians 3:10 (NLT) I w ant to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead.  Paul said this in the letter to the Philippians. The statement scares me a little bit.  Think of the power required to raise Jesus from the dead.  In order for me to experience that kind of power, what would the circumstances be?  I fear that it would be some amazing, terrible, awesome catastrophe. Like the tornadoes in Mississippi, or past hurricanes like Katrina, or the recent earthquakes.  Those event s are all examples of God's power. Now I'm not getting into whether God CAUSED those things to happen but we do know that He created the heavens and earth and everything in them so He created the weather systems and the gravity and tectonic plates where these events originate. God's power is amazing, far beyond our comprehension.  Paul can want to experience that mighty power but I prefer to take it on faith that Jesus was raised from the de...

Isaiah 57:21 (NIV) "There is no peace," says my God, "for the wicked."   I wondered when I read this verse if there are people who misinterpret it.  This verse does not say that the "wicked" will be unsuccessful or unhealthy or unhappy. It says there is no peace. My interpretation is that those who are wicked or evil do not know Jesus and therefore do not know the peace " which transcends all understanding ". (Phil 4:7)  When bad things happen to them, they feel rage, bitterness, despair. Those who know Jesus, can feel this unfathomable peace when the same bad thing happens to them.  This is not to say that they don't feel rage, or bitterness, or despair.  But they have hope that comes from the peace of God that brings about release to the captives of rage, bitterness and despair. Also, this verse does not say that if a person has no peace that they are wicked.  Wickedness comes from not knowing or wanting to know God to be a follower.  I...

Philippians 1:29 (New Century Version) God gave you the honor...of believing in Christ..... We are given the honor, the privilege, the gift of believing in Christ.   God calls us.   God pursues us.   God loves us. And because of His mighty love for us, He gives us the gift of believing.  How utterly amazing that God gives us salvation AND gives us the honor of believe in that salvation, in believing in the peace offered by Christ, in believing in His creation, in believing in His love for us. Nothing else can be said.   We believe because He gave us the gift of belief.   Amazing. Thank you, Father God, for Christ and for belief in Christ.

Philippians 2:3b -4 (ESV) ... but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. The important items of this passage, to me, today, are humility and "count others more significant" and "the interests of others".  If everyone would practice humility towards others all the time, counting others as more significant than ourselves, and look to the interests of others instead of ourselves, the world would be a much gentler place.  I would have more purpose.  I would be more giving. I would be more aware of other people's needs and wants.   Jesus, please transform me into a humble doer of Your will.  Create in me the will to put others ahead of myself.  I am Your servant.  Amen.