AUGUST ABUNDANCE continues with ten more scripture
If you are just joining us you may choose to learn about the "Liturgical Year" of readings. Scroll through the previous blog notes, August 1-10to understand why these scriptures were chosen.
Also, the question that is often asked: “Why is the word “Saint” before many of these historic names?”
The “communion of saints” is stated in the Nicene Creed and is said by all Christians, usually before receiving Holy Communion. The communion of saints is the spiritual solidarity which binds together the faithful unto Christ, on earth and in heaven, by partaking of the fruit of redemption (1 Corinthians 1:2 Greek text). Those who are named Saints (big S) are those set apart by their
St. Francis is one who comes to mind who is known by all Christians for his godly works and expansion of the Gospel. Read his story. His life will surprise you.
8-11 Ninth Sunday after Pentecost,
Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary time.
Isaiah 1:1, 10-20 or Genesis 15:1-6; Psalm 50:1-8, 23-24 or Psalm 33:12-22; Hebrews 11:1-3,8-16; Luke 12: 32-40
Luke 12:32-40 Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has chosen gladly to give you the Kingdom. :34 Where your treasure is there your heart will be also. :35 be dressed in readiness and keep your lamps lit.
It’s difficult to focus on one part of these scriptures because the story unfolds from all of today’s readings. Jewish followers of Jesus knew their Salvation history. God’s declaration at the Passover to the Hebrew people implored them to be dressed and ready to flee at any moment.
Jews still celebrate their salvation history at the Passover annually. In this passage, Jesus declared that the long awaited messiah would be with them when they least expected.
Not only did Jesus followers anticipate this Anointed One would free them from Roman bondage, but this message is for us today.
We could be face to face with God in Christ at any time. . . today or decades from now. Just as Jesus’ disciples anticipated this joyous moment, so can we.
Think about it: Are you ready to meet our Lord face to face?
Are you ready to come into His presence with song and praise?
Are you ready for an eternal-life change?
His treasure is before us.
We only have to accept Him and live daily as a full fledged member of God’s kingdom.
8-12 2 Samuel 13:23-39; Ps.89; Acts 20:17-38; Mark 9:42-50
Acts 20:28 Paul must leave after building a ministry of Christian leaders in Ephesus. A few of his last words: “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among
which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the Church of God which He purchased with His own blood.”
Christian leaders had to be steadfast so those they taught would be steadfast. Most Christians in the first century were martyrs for the faith.
For example, Nazarius and Celsus (1st c.) were early Christian martyrs, put to death for their Christian faith in Milan, Italy, perhaps during the persecution of the Emperor Nero.
Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, 395 A.D., discovered the body of St. Nazarius, with severed head, along with a vial
of his blood, still as fresh as the day it was spilled, in a garden outside the city gates. St. Ambrose (teacher of St. Augustine) carried the body in procession to bury in the city's Basilica of the Apostles.
In the same garden Ambrose also discovered the body of St. Celsus, and likewise had the body taken to the same basilica. Miracles occurred in the church at the presence of the relics of these two holy martyrs. According to one account, Nazarius was the son of St. Perpetua, the child she bore prior to being executed for her faith. Celsus was a youth given to the care of St. Nazarius by the boy's mother, who desired for the saint to teach her son the Christian faith. The two traveled and preached the Gospel together zealously before being
tortured and executed in Milan.
"Friendship is the source of the greatest pleasures, and without friends even the most agreeable pursuits become tedious.” St. Thomas Aquinas
Think about it: We might ask ourselves, “Am I strong enough to withstand persecution for my faith?” “Am I rooted enough in my Christian faith to withstand the greatest of challenges set before me while still giving praise to God?”
I’m singing along with the Psalm and suddenly my soul halts. I’ve read this Psalm three times each year and yet, this time, it hit me between the eyes!
Jesus told the rich young ruler, who knew and lived by the Law, some challenging words regarding entering the kingdom of God. It’s not our wealth that keeps us from entering God’s presence but our heart. Many people in history have changed their hearts drastically in order to commit their lives to Christ.
Think about it: It’s easy to say, “I want Jesus to be Lord of my life.” The difficult part is LIVING the Christian life, ‘doing’ the will of God. To die to selfish desires and to live only as God desires us to live is a life-long challenge.
Picture yourself as Mary, full of new life, called by God to be the Ark of the New Covenant, carrying God in the flesh.
8-13 2 Sam.14:1-20; Psalm 97,99,94; Acts 21:1-14; Mark 10:1-16
Ps. 94:17 If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would soon have dwelt in the abode of silence.
Every single word of scripture has some impact on us no matter how many times we’ve read the passage. For me, this one is no exception.
The Lord was my “help” at a very positive time in my life. Everything was going my way. I had a great job, lived in an incredible location, was healthy, had just purchased my own home, and enjoyed dating great guys.
I just ‘happened’ to meet others with a JOY and so
much love in their hearts that showed a fullness of life I’d not seen before. I could not resist following their invitations to join them in various activities.
I considered returning to school for another degree just to learn more. And what a ‘school’ I ended up joining . . . the school of living in the kingdom of God. That was over forty years ago and I’m still in school! The Lord helped me to know His love, His precepts, His power, His gift of life, His Presence and so much more.
I could have said, “NO” to those silly invitations. I could have chosen another path. If I had, my soul would be empty, dry, disconnected, hollow . . . silent. Oh how I would have missed singing these Psalms.
Think about it: Have you ever read a Psalm out loud? I mean LOUD!
Find a time and place you can do this.
Listen to your beautiful voice. Then wait. Listen to God’s voice. It’s an amazing adventure that might take you down a new path of discovery. Is the Lord whispering to you to go deep, seek more?
Pray that you can ‘read, mark, learn and inwardly digest’ God’s Word in new ways as you PRAISE Him through the Psalms . . . aloud . . . LOUD!
8-14 2 Sam 14:21-33; Ps.101,109,119:121-144; Acts 21:15-26; Mark 10:17-31
Mark 10:24 Jesus said to His disciples,”Children, how hard it is to enter the kingdom of God!”
Sometimes thought of as “mothers” and “fathers” of the church, often called ‘saints,’ they are great examples for us today in their devotion to God. These men and women dedicated their lives to God’s work as they loved the unlovable and lived according to God’s will. Their exemplary lives helped to spread the Gospel so that generations after them would know Christ Jesus as Lord.
Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556) is a well know ‘father’ of the church. He was born at the castle of Loyola in Basque country, Spain, the youngest of thirteen children. In keeping with the young aristocrats of his day, Ignatius sought after military prowess, and fame, and became a knight at the age of seventeen. He was known as a fancy dresser, an expert dancer, a womanizer, sensitive to insult, and involved in criminal behavior.
During a period of convalescence after being wounded in battle, he read a collection of biographies of Saints and a “Life of Christ.” These books profoundly affected him as he experienced a conversion of heart. He desired to pattern his life after the great Saints, and ceremoniously hung up his military garments before an image of the Virgin Mary.
After experiencing a vision of the mother Mary with the infant Jesus, Ignatius lived for a time as an ascetic in a cave. It was during this time that he formulated his famous “Spiritual Exercises”, the spiritual centerpiece of the religious order he would later establish.
St. Ignatius then went on pilgrimage to the Holy Land and studied theology for many years. During his studies he gathered a group of six like-minded men and founded the “Society of Jesus”, today known as the Jesuits. They went as missionaries all over the world to spread the Gospel, especially focusing on education. Today the Jesuits have over 30,000 members and 500 universities.
We may not be great theologians like St. Ignatius but we are able to grow our love toward God so that it spills out into the lives of others. All who serve God through His Son, Jesus Christ are saints but many Saints have sacrificed immeasurably for the spread of the Gospel.
Are you ready to share your story of commitment to Christ to anyone who is curious? You may have many. Know them in your heart. Be ready.
8-15 Celebration of St.Mary,the Virgin[A Feast Day]
Isaiah 61:10-11; Psalm 34:1-9; Galatians 4:4-7; Luke 1:46-55
Luke 1:45 Elizabeth said to Mary,”And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.”
:46-:55 and Mary responded with words now called the “Magnificat” . . .
”My soul proclaims the goodness of the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my savior; for He has looked with favor on his lowly servant.
From this day all generations will call me blessed: The Almighty has done great things for me and holy is His Name.
He has mercy on those who fear Him in every generation.
He was shown the strength of His arm; He has scattered the proud in their conceit.
He has cast down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the lowly.
He has filled the hungry with good things and the rich He has sent away empty. He has come to the help of His servant, Israel, for He has remembered His
promise of mercy, the promise He made to our fathers, to Abraham and his children forever.” [Also found in the Book of Common Prayer, page 91.]
Think about it: This is a song, a psalm, and can be compared to the song of Hannah in 1 Samuel 2:1-10.
Magnificat, from the Latin Vulgate translation, means “glorifies.”
Read this song OUT LOUD, s l o w l y.
Picture yourself as Mary, full of new life, called by God to be the Ark of the New Covenant, carrying God in the flesh.
Take time to think how you would feel, as Mary, giving your life to God and bearing a Son who would be the ultimate ‘blood sacrifice’ for all who believe.
8-16 2 Samuel 15:19-37; Ps.102, 107:1-32; Acts 21:37-22:16; Mark 10:46-52
2 Samuel15:21 Ittai answered the king and said, “As the Lord lives, and as my lord the king lives, surely wherever my lord the king may be, whether for death
or for life, there also your servant will be.” :22 Therefore David said to Ittai, :Go and pass over [the Jordan river].” So Ittai the Gittite passed over with all his men and all the little ones who were with him.
David was so admired for his sincere awe of God that pagan tribes wanted to follow him . . . and follow the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
They saw how David rescued the Ark of the Covenant that was a symbol of God’s presence in order to return it to its rightful place on Mount Zion, Jerusalem. They saw the power of God bringing forth Good in the midst of false prophets and evil deeds taking place within David’s very large family.
Even in the days of David, God’s Presence was sought by those who were not Jewish. The nation was divided but God was like a magnet to those who were seeking.
God is bigger than the Tribes of Israel, bigger than all of Israel, bigger than the Chosen of God can
comprehend. Some seek God and want to follow. Some do not even know when the Lord, thy God, is in their midst.
Think about it: The old adage, “Actions speak louder than words,” continues to prevail today. In spite of evil deeds of those who may surround us, are we living such a godly life that others want to ‘join us’ in our Christian walk?
Think of the ways you are a ‘Magnate for Christ.”
8-17 2 Sam 16:1-23; Ps.107:33-43; 108:1-6; 33; Acts 22:17-29; Mark 11:1-11
Psalm 108:4-5 “For Your lovingkindness is great above
the heavens, and your truth reaches to the skies. Be EXALTED, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth.”
I stop for a moment. My heart sings. I recall singing these lyrics decades ago in the worship service. The accumulation of hundreds of voices praising the Lord set our hearts on fire. Oh JOY!
Decades later I’m singing a little less loudly but with just as much enthusiasm. No matter how old I grow, this verse makes my heart stir as the fire of the Holy Spirit surges through me.
YOUR lovingkindness is great ABOVE the heavens . . . far beyond my comprehension! Your TRUTH reaches the skies . . . God’s truth, Jesus, THE Truth, the Truth that has been planted in me at Baptism through the power of the Holy Spirit.
WOW!
My heart SOARS with exaltation as I GLORY in God’s power working in and through me and spills out to all I
meet.
What a glorious beginning to my day as I sing this Psalm deep in my soul.
Think about it: Sometimes we think of Psalms as boring and dry. Take time to seek the emotion in some of these Psalms . . . anger, frustration, fear, joy, blessing, exaltation . . . every God-given emotion.
Read this Psalm all the way through. Pray for the Lord to bring forth from your soul those feelings, emotions, planted in this Psalm.
Review the previous Psalm and ask yourself what feelings come forth as you read. Each Psalm is quite different from the other but both tug at our emotions.
8-18 Jeremiah 23:23-29; Psalm 82; Hebrews 11:29-12:2; Luke 12:49-56
Jeremiah 23:23 “Am I a God who is near, declares the Lord, and not a God far off?” :24 “Can a man
hide himself in hiding places so I do not see Him?” declares the Lord. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the Lord. :25 “They [false prophets] intend to make My people forget My name by their dreams which they relate to one another, just as their fathers forgot My name because of Baal?” :29 “Is not my word like fire,” declares the Lord, “and like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces?”
Jeremiah, a great prophet, lived in a world no different than the world we live in today.
Jews, once faith-filled, turned to other gods like Baal.
Sin against God is just as rampant as it was back then. Disinterest in things of God is the norm.
Jeremiah endured agonizing days, weeks, months, years, trumpeting God’s Word on the street. He held fast to his mission knowing that God was with him . . . even though he cried out to God many times to relieve him of this ‘gift.’
Yet, God’s Word is like fire. It scorches dark souls and creates new vigor in those faithful to Him.
Think about it: Is Holy Boldness of some preachers overwhelming to you?
Is the Fire of the Holy Spirit so burning in you that you must act on what the Lord is moving you to do?
Or, are you comfortable right where you are and fear asking the Lord where and how you can be used in such a way that others see the "Fire of God’s Love" pouring out of you?
Perhaps you can determine if the ‘fire' in you is a flicker or a bold beacon by the way you worship.
When you worship our Lord, Pray, Sing, Listen with all that is in you. Are you ‘on fire’ with the Presence of the Lord, being drawn into the ‘fire’ of HIS love?
These wanderers became impatient when Moses went up Mt. Sinai to meet with God for just forty days. They needed a god they could touch. So they made a ‘calf-god’ and mingled with pagans’ gods and practices.
8-19 2 Samuel 17:24—18:8; Psalm 106:1-48; Acts 22:30—23:11; Mark 11:12-26
Psalm 106: God parted the sea to “save” His people
but they soon forgot and tempted God in the desert. They made a calf in Horeb . . . they forgot God their Savior :35 They mingled with the nations and learned their practices. :39 They were unclean in their practices :44 Nevertheless, God looked upon their distress when He heard their cry :48 ‘Doxology’
Psalms, songs, tell stories. This song reviews the history of the wilderness journey of the Hebrew people. A short time after God’s Chosen People crossed the Red sea into desert, their salvation experience, they began a new journey with God.
It was long and hard and B O R I N G . . . gathering manna daily for sustenance, finding enough grazing land in the desert for their animals.
Forty days!
God’s grace was always with them.
God was there for His Chosen People no matter how often they turned their backs on Him.
And then, at the end of the psalm is a DOXOLOGY . . . a phrase of thanksgiving . . . for the offering of freedom and sustenance God gave His people daily.
Think about it: Has anything changed in our lifetime?
Do we still turn our backs on God and lean on substitutes to get us through a tough time?
When bored with life do we go to our Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us into something new?
Do we ask our Lord to sustain us during tough times?
And when everything is going our way do we give thanks . . . a doxology . . . to God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit . . . for never leaving us nor forsaking us?
8-20 2 Samuel 18:9-18; Psalm 121,122,123,124,125,126; Acts 23:12-24;
Mark 11:27—12:12
Psalm 121:2 My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.
Another favorite Psalm of mine.
This one I memorized in third grade.
Notice that several Psalms are listed for today’s reading. It’s because each one is only a few verses long, compared to Psalm 119, the longest of the Psalms. These are meant
to cling to the heart, to be memorized. Many people read all 150 Psalms within a month.
Think about it: Did you memorize this Psalm when you were young? You can do it now.
Never say you are ‘too old’ to memorize.
We memorize where we put things in the refrigerator. We memorized a list of chores we must take care of daily or weekly. We know where every dish, fork or pan is in the kitchen.
Try it. It’s a delight-filled way to keep God’s word close to your heart.
Here is another who may have memorized the Psalms. She was a zealous Christian convert whose son became
Roman Emperor and spread Christianity to the far corners of the Roman Empire.
Helen, also known as St. Helena (d. 327 A.D.), was a woman of humble means from Asia Minor. She married the future Roman Emperor Constantius Chlorus, and their son Constantine was born in c. 272. Constantius divorced Helen in c. 293 to marry Emperor Maximian's daughter for the sake of political gain. When Helen's son, Constantine, became the Roman Emperor, Helen was given the imperial title “Augusta” and was treated like royalty [queen mother].
After Constantine legalized Christianity across the
Roman Empire, Helen, a Christian convert, went to the Holy Land in search of the actual cross on which Christ was crucified, despite being in her 80's.
Helen questioned local Christians and Jews and learned that the cross was buried under the Temple of Venus. Helen had the temple demolished and excavated. There she discovered the Holy Sepulcher, three crosses, the board with Pilate's inscription, and the nails which pierced Jesus' Sacred Body.
Tradition says that in order to determine which cross was the Lord's, the Bishop of Jerusalem touched them to a corpse, causing the man to come back to life. A second miraculous healing of a sick woman confirmed the
discovery of the True Cross. St. Helen then visited all the holy places of Jesus' life and built many churches over their locations such as in Bethlehem, the Mount of Olives, and the Garden of Gethsemane.
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