JANUARY JEWELS 2020 24-31

The days are flashing before us as we near the end of January.  

Morning skies glow a little earlier and light remains longer as we embrace the beauty of a colored sky and read bedazzling jewels of wisdom.  

Hopefully your soul feels lighter as God’s tidbits nestle within.  

Perhaps these cool, crisp days of winter afford the opportunity to linger a little longer in the presence of God.

Again, a few words of wisdom before we continue gleaning further epiphanies that will ‘lighten’ our journey.

"O my God, teach me to be generous, to serve you as you deserve to be served, to give without counting the cost, to fight without fear of being wounded, to work without seeking rest, and to spend myself without expecting any reward, but the knowledge that I am doing your holy will. Amen.”    Ignatius of Loyola

"One should not say that it is impossible to reach a virtuous life; but one should say that it is not easy. Nor do those who have reached it find it easy to maintain.”   Anthony of the Desert.

1-24     Genesis 11:27—12:8; Psalm 31,35; Hebrews 7:1-17; John 4:16-26 

 Genesis 11:31 Terah took his son Abram and his grandson Lot, son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, his son Abram’s wife, and they went out together from Ur of the Chaldeans to go into the land of Canaan but when they came to Haran they settled there. :32 The days of Terah were 205 and Terah died in Haran.  

12:1-8 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you.  I will make of you a great nation and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing.  I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.  So Abram went as the Lord had told him and Lot went with him.  Abram was 75 years old when he departed from Haran. When they came to the land of Canaan, Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land.  Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him.  From there he moved on to the hill country east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east; and there he built an altar to the Lord and invoked the name of the Lord.

A new beginning, walking into the land God promised to Abram took decades.  Just to leave Ur was a wonder.  National Geographic enlightened the world when, a few decades ago, a library was discovered in Ur, the most sophisticated city of that time.  Hundreds of small clay tablets with symbols representing words were discovered in one place in some sort of order as if they had been conserved for reference.  What we might think to be modern conveniences centuries later were found here in Ur.  Why would God instruct Abram and his father, Terah, to leave?  Terah did not believe in ‘one’ God but Abram must have sensed a ‘higher being’ beyond any pagan gods.

      And so they traveled by way of the Euphrates river, across the fertile crescent to Haran where they would reside for some time.  Then Abram sensed the need to move on after his father died.  By this time the voice of God was strong and the promise of a ‘new land’ drew Abram and his extended family into a desert-like dustbowl populated by scattered clans, descendants of Ham, the one called “Canaan.”

Abram, Sarai, Lot, other family members, servants, sheep, goats and whatever else belonged to this massive group, traveled into Canaan slowly.  This journey may have taken years as this nomadic family settled in one place, made peace with the clan whose land they ‘borrowed’ for their stay and moved on.  

         It’s the journey that established in Abram a solid

relationship with God.  It’s as if God were saying to this mass of humanity, “Keep going after you rest in this place and build an altar to recognize My presence with you.  Yet, I have another special place set aside for you to rest more permanently.” 

So Abram built an altar of thanksgiving to the Lord with whom he had become more intimate, the One who became very present to him.  This altar in Schechem would become a focal point, a place of worship and a place of contention in history for generations to come.  

     The altar represents God’s promise to Abram and to his offspring, the twelve tribes of Israel, that this is a land promised to Abram by God, a land that would eventually be named after Abram’s grandson, Jacob. 

 [Remember Jacob’s fight with the angel of God at the Jabbok river?  When Jacob finally realized his fight was with God and when he finally submitted his life to the God of his grandfather, Abraham, Jacob was given a new name, “Israel,” which means "wrestle with God." ]  

       In the mean time, Abram moved further south to a place between Beth-el and Ai and settled there.  Abram, through friendly persuasion, made peace with the clan leader where he settled in land he did not own.  By this time the ‘family’ of servants and animals had grown extensively even though Abram and Sarai had not yet produced offspring.

Think about it:  Find an ancient map of the area that shows Babylon and Israel.  Most study bibles have these maps. Make a copy for yourself.  Draw a line from Ur to Haran and then continue the line into Canaan to Shechem and Bethel.   Imagine yourself on this journey.

      To move from wealth and sophistication, fertile land on the Euphrates river, and easy life into baron nothingness seems to boggle the mind.  Yet, Abram followed God.  

Indeed, we are called in the opposite direction when we accept Jesus, the Christ, as Lord of our lives.  If we truly seek understanding in our journey and follow God’s lead, we will very soon learn that we are invited to leave the baron dustbowl of secular life and journey into the fertile regions of God’s presence.  

What we knew and loved and considered the ‘bling’ of life before our journey into Christianity, eventually should seem desolate and barely habitable.

That’s why the journey is what it’s all about.  If we follow Abram’s example, we will simply move forward knowing God will lead us where we are suppose to go.  If we keep our eyes on our Lord, He will show us where to stop, take a breath and be refreshed until we are ‘called’ to move into the next space of our growth.  Abraham moved to a new ‘place’ and new destination.  We may be called to move to the next level in our Christian growth.

Do you recall the beginning of your journey or a renewed journey with Christ?  

Did your heart move to a new place?  

Was your physical journey into a church?  

Did God call you to step away from some life-style?

Were you drawn into a new life-style that was like imbibing in a banquet of delicious morsels that taste of new life?

Map out your emotional, spiritual, ‘soul’ journey into new life in Christ.  Then map out your physical journey, if

there was any physical change, as you moved more deeply into your faith and responded to God’s call to serve others.

May we each experience new understanding of our faith-journey and keep moving forward according to God’s lead.  

1-25  Acts 26:9-21; Psalm 67; Galatians 1:11-24; Matthew 10:16-22

Conversion of Paul, the Apostle

Acts 26:9-12  “I, Paul, was hostile to the name of Jesus . . . I locked up many saints . . . I voted for their killing . . . I tried to force them to blaspheme . . . I was enraged at them, I pursued them to foreign countries . . . even to Damascus.  :13 At mid-day I saw a light brighter than the sun shining around me and when I fell to the ground I heard a voice in Hebrew dialect  [Aramaic] saying, “Saul . . . why are

you persecuting Me?”  :15 “I am Jesus whom you are persecuting . . .  Get up.  I appear to you to appoint you a minister and witness in things you have seen and things that will appear to you. . . “  :17-18  “I’m sending you to Jews and gentiles to open their eyes so they may turn from darkness to light and from dominion of satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.” 

Paul’s conversion was not only a turning point in his life but it was also a turning point for the Christian movement.  Jews who became Christ-followers were being stoned to death for their belief.  Paul truly thought good Jews were turning away from God and giving their lives to a mere mortal named Jesus. Paul jumped right into the fray of eliminating ‘unfaithful’ Jews.  As bull-headed as Paul was in his pursuit of Christ-followers, God knew this same determination could be used to further the kingdom of God.

Yet, it took a stroke of powerful light to bring Paul to his knees.  Paul melted.  Paul, the bloviator.  Paul, the pharisee of pharisees.  Paul the one who was brilliant in his knowledge of God and the Law and the Old Covenant scriptures.  Paul, the unshakable one . . .  shaken . . .  to the ground . . . blinded . . . in need of another to take him into the city of Damascus, to a safe place.  
God planned Paul’s turn of events well.  

In this passage Paul relates his story to others who do not understand his plight.  Jews do not know what to

make of him.  First, Paul is a zealot for cleansing the world of those who worship one whom Paul thinks is ‘other than God.’  Then, in one instant, Paul’s life changes. 
 God comes to him in a flash.  God speaks to Paul.

          Almost instantly Paul is totally at the mercy of others who lead him to safety.  For four days Paul sits, blind, refusing food, refusing any hospitality that is right there for him.  Paul simply sits . . .  contemplates what just happened to him . . . listens to voices who may be sharing with him but mostly to the voice of God.

Paul finally “got it.”  He finally understood what God was telling him and stepped into this new life with just as much zeal as before.  This is not the first time Paul shared his conversion story.  At the beginning if this ‘new life in Christ’ Paul jumped in with all he had.  Wise leaders, including Peter, the Apostle, encouraged Paul to step back, study, contemplate, learn more about his walk with Jesus, which Paul did.  When the timing was right, Paul began his ministry, surrounded by great Christian leaders who supported him and prayed for him daily as Paul spread the ‘Good News’ not only to other Jews but to the Gentiles all over the known world.

        

Think about it:  We know the story of Paul’s journey.  Some of us wonder how this guy could be so bull headed. 

Others of us can totally identify with him.

That’s the whole point. 
 Paul is just a regular guy who is brilliant and loves God.

           Paul set his eyes on God as he swept through the land making sure fellow Jews remained faithful to God.  Paul just got one little part wrong: the fact that God sent His only begotten Son to be “The” sacrifice, once, for all, through Jesus’ crucifixion and then resurrection.  This huge turning point in history seemed to evade Paul’s world.

        Some people are so hard-headed they cannot understand God’s soft, intuitive nudges to look in His direction.  
Sometimes we are so set in our ways that we cannot see that which is right in front of our eyes.  
Paul needed an intervention and God provided.

Do you think Christ-followers were praying for Paul’s salvation?  

Do you think God heard immediately but had to deal with Paul’s very strong will?  
Do you know any who are like Paul?  

Do you know of any who could be used by the Lord to spread Jesus’ love to others in mighty ways but who cannot understand submitting to God, the Son, Jesus Christ?  

Even if the person thinks they are in a ‘great’ place

physically and emotionally, the soul is what needs God's presence.  When people shared their stories with me about Jesus Christ, I was in a great place and simply listened patiently.  I did not need this ‘Jesus’ whom they leaned upon . . .  or so I thought.  
        I was definitely as hard-headed as Paul.  It took many people, years of their prayers and loving influence, to bring me to the foot of the Cross.  When I did, my world changed completely . . . 180 degrees . . . from a good life to the best life ever!

If you do known of any who are ripe for the Lord’s intervention, set up a prayer/action plan.  
On a 3X5 card, print the name of the person.  
Draw lines that divide the rest of the card into 4 parts.  Quadrant 1: write that person’s interests, 
2: write that person’s physical, emotional and/or spiritual needs.  
3:write your personal action beyond prayer . . . act of love . . . phone call, personal note, activity together if possible.  4: write the date of your action and then response to that action.  ie. 1/25 sent a text “Thinking of you, hope all is well.”  Response comes quickly: 1/25 “Thanks for thinking of me, I’m great!”   
Continue #4, action and responses on the back of the card.  Use this card as a bookmark in your bible so you can pray through the responses and create new 'actions'.  

God will do the rest.

1-26    Isaiah 9:1-4; Psalm 27:1, 5-13; 1 Corinthians 1:10-18; Matthew 4:12-23

Third Sunday of Epiphany 

Isaiah 9:2 “Those who walk in darkness will see a great light . . .  the light will shine on them.”

Psalm 27:1  “The Lord is my Light and my salvation.”  

Matthew 4:16 “Those who were sitting in darkness saw a great light . . .  a light dawned upon those sitting in the shadow of death.  :17 Jesus began to preach, “Repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  :19-:21 When Jesus saw Andrew and Simon fishing He said,  “Follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.” Immediately they left their nets and followed.  Jesus then saw James and John, sons of Zebedee, mending nets in their boat.  Immediately they followed.”

        I have read and heard this story dozens of times. “Come, follow Me and I will make you fishers of men.”  This time my eye caught ‘the light’ because I gleaned highlights from the verses selected for today.   Epiphany is like turning on a light bulb in our soul . . .  we see something more clearly than we would without the light.  So, Isaiah, the Psalm and the Gospel of Matthew seemed to ‘light up’ as I read them together.

It’s like the Lord has been telling us from the very beginning of creation, all the way through the Old Covenant scriptures, through the Psalms and into this New Covenant scripture, “When the light turns on, you will really see what God wants you to see; the darkness of your soul will see something new when the Light shines in!”  The prophecy of Isaiah becomes a reality in Matthew.

        Indeed, when Jesus began to preach, he stated the same words John, the baptist, had been preaching for months before he baptized Jesus.  There was one difference.  A light turned on inside souls when Jesus said the same words.  It’s like a bolt of lightening shot through Andrew who went home to tell his brother, Simon.  Both Simon and Andrew were ready to follow when Jesus encountered them fishing.  It seems as if Jesus mere presence became a bolt of lightening to their fellow fishermen, James and John.  All of these young men were ready to “immediately” answer Jesus’ call.

       The word, “immediately” is important in this story. 

These young men did not give Jesus a date when it would be best to follow Him.  They did not ask questions regarding what Jesus wanted of them, how long they would be with Him, what they should take with them, where they were going or whatever else we might say in preparation for an extended trip away from current way of life.  ‘Immediately’ they followed Jesus.  

      Jesus’ magnetic power pulled these fishermen into a whole new world where they would learn to let go of their own agenda and become ‘fishers of men.’   Immediately, life changed for Andrew, Simon, James and John (the beloved, not John the baptizer).  

Immediately, they became Christ’s own forever.

          It may have taken a bit longer, like three years, to become ‘fishers of men’ but after Jesus death, resurrection and ascension, Jesus' Apostles were filled with a bolt of lightening to become ‘fishers of men.’  The power of the Holy Spirit moved these fearless disciples into ‘full power’ mode.  They spoke, they healed, they taught and grew other disciples who would, in turn, fill others’ souls with the Light of Christ.  These fishermen made others fishers of men.  And so it will continue, through the power of the Holy Spirit, for centuries to come.  There is still a lot of fishing to do.

Think about it:  What if Jesus dropped by and said, “Follow Me?”  What if we were asked to let go of the world we had carefully carved out for ourselves?  Would we immediately follow Jesus call?  

         Each of us has a different story regarding the length of time it took for our soul to be ‘en-Lightened’ and turn our full attention to following Jesus as Lord.  It may have taken even longer to become Christ’s own forever and still longer to become ‘fishers of others’.  Some of us have yet to have that holy boldness to ‘go fishing’ for souls.

        God is patient.  There is no timeline.  We can make choices that leave our soul in the darkness.  We can choose to reject those flickers of light or even a bolt of lightening that the Holy Spirit sparks within us to enlighten our soul.  The Lord will not love us less.  

        We just miss out on so much more we would be able to see and do and be when we are fully enlightened.  

We miss out on that joy that draws others into the love of Christ.  We miss out on that ‘holy boldness’ that enables us to tell others of our wonder-filled life in Christ.  We miss the fishing.

Ask yourself what is holding you back.  What excuses have you created to keep you from responding ‘immediately’ to what the Lord wants of you?  We are never asked to do anything that is not a logical next step in our Christian growth.  We are not asked to give up anything.  We are only asked to ‘follow’ . . . and to become ‘fishers’ of those whose souls are darkened and crave the ‘light of Christ’.

Talk to a Christian leader you trust if you have something deep in your soul that keeps you from receiving the full light of Christ, that keeps you from the joy that comes from a natural ‘holy boldness’ to share Jesus’ love with others.  Our Lord wants us to enJOY fishing!

1-27  Genesis 14:8-24; Psalm 41,44,52; Hebrews 8:1-13; John 4:43-54

Genesis 14:17 After Abram’s return, King Sodom met Abram at Kings valley.

:18 and Melchizedek, King of Salem, brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High. 

:19-:20  He blessed him and said, 

“Blessed be Abram by God Most High, 

maker of heaven and earth; 

and blessed be God Most High 

who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”

:21  and Abram tithed to him ten percent of his spoils. 

:22  Sodom told Abram to keep the goods but give him the people.  Abram took nothing.

       This story shows us another side of Abram, the peacemaker, Abram the easy-going friend to his pagan neighbors.  If you read the whole story you will see Abram as focused, directed in one purpose . . .  to rescue his nephew Lot, who resided in Sodom and Gomorrah.  This is only one story where Abram drew Lot out of the pit of danger but it is not the one we usually read.  This time Abram took 318 of his ‘trained men’ to meet the ‘enemy’ who kidnapped Lot and destroyed many villages from the Dead Sea all the way to Damascus.  Many ‘kingdoms’ and much land was destroyed in Canaan but a remnant was saved.

Abram returned with his men, the king of Sodom, and Lot.  On the way back to “the Oaks of Mamre” where Abram resided, he stopped in what we now know as Jerusalem to give thanks.  Most theologians tag “Salem” as Jerusalem, where Melchizedek, the Priest of the “God Most High” resided.   

     Melchizedek is an enigma, one who has no beginning and no end, no generational history.  He just is.  Abram sees Melchizedek as one sent by God to receive offerings, a tithe, from the ‘spoils’ obtained through all these battles.  Abram wants none of the spoils, only his nephew, Lot.  But before the king of Sodom disburses them, Abram stops to give ten percent to “God Most High” through the priest, Melchizedek.

To learn more about Melchizedek, read today’s

selection in the book of Hebrews.  Melchizedek brought out bread and wine for all those present.  And he blessed it saying, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, maker of heaven and earth; and blessed be God Most High who has delivered your enemies into your hand!”       

            Melchizedek gave blessing to the bread and wine but most important, he gave blessing to Abram who had not yet made ‘covenant’ with God. Abram’s  name had not yet been changed to ‘Abraham.’  This blessing is a ‘setting apart’ for Abram.  It’s a pre-curser of all future blessing that is to come upon Abram and his household.  Abram knew only to give a portion to God.  He was faithful to the God Most High before he experienced his intimate time, pleading with God, for another rescue of Lot . . .  when Sodom and Gamorrah turned to a sea of salt.  But that is later in the story.

Think about it:  Abram honored God with action.  He rescued Lot, dealt with the king of Sodom and stopped to give thanks and offering to the God Most High through God’s intermediary, Melchizedek.  This story gives us an idea what is to come in covenant relationship with God.  Jesus, our High Priest, “broke the bread and gave blessing . . . and it multiplied.”  Abram’s blessings would multiply exponentially after this point.

Throughout the old covenant scriptures we see God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit weaving Himself into history.  God is.  God is working in and through Melchizedek.  God is present as we see future blessing that will come to Abram.  

    Has anyone prayed a blessing over you?  

Was it early in your Christian journey?  

Do you remember words of affirmation, encouragement, promise from friends or from those leading you and showing you the right path in Christ?

         If you cannot recall words of blessing, ask someone in your accountability circle to give you a blessing.  It’s OK for peers to bless one another.

      If you are a leader of a group who is growing in Christ, give blessing to others.

Read Aaron’s blessing, a benediction prayer, Numbers 6:24-26.  It’s a blessing that makes life more full and helps us anticipate the abundance God has in store for us if we remain focused on Him.

“The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace.”   Amen.

  

1-28  Genesis 15:1-11, 17-21; Psalm 45,47,48; Hebrews 9:1-14; John 5:1-18

Genesis 15:1  The word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, “Do not be afraid, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.”  :2 Abram said, “O Lord, God, what will you give me, for I continue childless and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus, a servant. :4-:5 “One who comes forth

from your own body shall be your heir . .  . count the stars . . .  so shall the number of  your descendants be.”  :6 Then Abram believed in the Lord and reckoned Him as righteousness. :7 God said, “I am the Lord who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land, to possess it.”  God then tells Abram what to sacrifice and how to prepare the burnt offering, by dividing each animal in half and laying them upon one another. :17-:18 A flaming torch passed through the sacrifice .   That day the Lord made a Covenant with Abram, “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the Euphrates River.”

      And God made a covenant with Abram.  

This story is the focal point of all the stories regarding Abram up to this point.  This is a major turning point in Abram’s life.  Abram has visions, hears the Lord’s voice and acts upon God’s requests.  He is obedient and faithful to God’s word.  Thus God makes covenant with Abram and is forever faithful to all generations who follow the God of “Covenant.”

Two versions of this story appear in Genesis, chapters 15 and 17.  This is the ‘Yahwist’ version which focuses on Descendants and Land.  Abram has developed a trusting relationship with God and was obedient to the visions God brought to him.  In turn, God made ‘covenant’ with Abram with no obligation required from Abram.  Abram was obedient to God’s request to find the best of each of his varied flocks and added a couple of birds to the pile.  All but the birds were divided in half, splayed open and laid out so that one could walk through the middle of this bloody offering.

       This way of making offering of thanksgiving was

common among pagans.  One difference.  The person making the offering to their many gods would burn a fire under the offering, walk gingerly through the middle, and hope he was not engulfed in the flames that would consume the offering.  If his life was spared, he would make a covenant with a god of his choosing but would always have to maintain that covenant if he and generations beyond him would prosper.

In this case, God walked through the middle of the blood offering as a flaming torch.  God, the flame that would consume the sacrifice, would be the One making covenant with Abram, never to break His promise that He would be with Abram and never leave or forsake him. And all generations of Abram who choose to follow the One God who made covenant with him will multiply from Abram’s seed.  New generations of life, abundant land as far as one could walk, the promised land, were only part of this Covenant Life with God.  

         This is not a contract where one side can break the promise and all is null and void.  This ‘covenant relationship’ is God’s promise to Abram and his descendants; God would never turn away from us even if we, humanity, turn away from Him.  God promises to always be with us in covenant relationship.

This covenant relationship changes Abram’s life in such a way that God gives him a new name, Abra-ham.  Remember the good son of Noah named Ham, the one who was with God?  This ‘new breath’ of Ham, Abraham, will become the father of people, kingdoms, nations, generations, who glorify the Lord, thy God.  This covenant relationship will pass down to Abraham’s son, Isaac, his grandson, Jacob (Israel), the tribes of Israel and all generations who call upon THE Lord, thy God, the God of Covenant Relationship.

Think about it:  We are people of the New Covenant.  God so loved us that He cut through the old covenant by

sending His only begotten Son, Jesus, to all who believe in Him.  God did not erase old covenant promises but enhanced them.  God over-layed the sacrifice of His Son upon that bloody heap of Abraham’s covenant sacrifice.  The blood sacrifice of the old covenant was enhanced, made new, by the forever sacrifice of Christ’s shed blood on the cross.

Covenant relationship is God’s offering to us.  We can choose to abide in this covenant relationship or not.  Our baptism brings us into God’s covenant relationship and fills us with the Holy Spirit but that’s only the beginning.  It’s up to us to say ‘yes’ to God, to say ‘yes’ to believing that God’s Son, Jesus Christ, is the One with skin on, who touched lives, healed souls, gave words that we read today.  A covenant relationship with Jesus, the anointed one, brings the same promises as God gave to Abraham.  Jesus promises an abundant life if we choose to remain in covenant relationship with Him.

So what does that mean for us, here, today, now?
  Be faith-full.  
     Fill your heart and soul with God’s eternal presence through His son.  Fill yourself with God’s love by being in continuous, active (abiding) relationship with our Lord.

Hear, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest Jesus’ presence through the reading of scripture, through Holy Communion, through prayer, through fellowship in a growth group, and so much more throughout your whole life.

The only ‘works’ we are called to do is to be faith-full, give away that love of Jesus that overflows from our faith-full-ness, have mercy and be grace-filled as we tell

our ‘covenant relationship’ story to others.  
Embrace the Lord’s presence and give your overflowing abundance of grace and love to others.  That’s it. 

You will grow into a new person if you have not already.  

You will gain a new name as you gain newness in Godly life.  

Give yourself a new name.

       Hint: My name was ‘introspective, withdrawn’ before I came into covenant relationship with Jesus Christ.  As I said “yes” and grew, I took on a new name, “Joy-filled and open.”  

Make a list of your "new names" as you grow.  

Your "name" may change many times.

1-29  Genesis 16:1-14; Psalm 49, 119:49-72; Hebrews 9:15-28; John 5:19-29

Genesis 6:9-13 The Angel of the Lord told Hagar, “Return to your mistress and submit to her authority . . .  I will greatly multiply your descendants . . .  too many to count . . .  and you will call your child Ishmael.”  . . . “He will be a wild donkey of a man.  His hand will be against everyone and all will be against him and he will live east of his brothers.” 

And this is the rest of the story.  Sarai gave Abram permission to conceive a child with their servant, Hagar.  In the heathen culture, this was a common practice so that the actual ‘seed’ of Abraham would inherit all that Abram had.  Yet, God promised an heir that Sarai would carry.  God promised covenant relationship would continue through the seed of Abram and Sari.  Did Abram not hear?  Or did Abram not trust enough?  Who could blame him.  After all, the time between God’s promise and the birth of their child to Sarai would be ten years.  That’s a long time to wait. Ishmael was born when Abram was 89. 

When one does not wait for God’s promise to unfold and takes action, there are consequences.  Of course there would be jealousy when Hagar is filled with life and Sarai, who received the promise that she would bear life, is still baron.  A woman’s identity, purpose and status rested on the ability to bear a child.  Not only did Hagar mock Sarai but she bore a legacy of Abram.  Of course she would be shunned by Sarai and sent into the desert to die.  

God had a plan that could not be changed.  Yet, when Abram intervened with his own plan, God stepped in.  The Angel of the Lord ‘redirected’ Hagar’s path, told her

to return and humble herself as the servant she was meant to be but with a caveat.  Ishmael would also inherit blessings, an abundant life and the promise that his offspring would multiply exponentially.  Yet, God did not promise covenant relationship through Ishmael.  This promise, meant for the descendants of Abram and Sari, together as one, would come through the son God promised to them.

Ishmael will grow strong and be “wild as a donkey” and will live a contentious life east of where Abram’s offspring through Sarai would reside.  Tradition says that the generations that came from Ishmael were warriors, with a reputation as the best ‘archers’ in the land. He and his offspring lived a good life with God but not a ‘covenant’ life with God.

Think about it:  Can you imagine being in that story?  Imagine yourself as Hagar, Sarai or Abram.  Stand in each of their places for a moment.  Each is called to be part of God’s plan or God’s “fix” when we humans intervene with our own ideas.  God knows we must make a daily choice between instant gratification and waiting for God’s perfect timing.  
       Too often we think we have waited long enough, especially if time is ticking and we feel the expanse of time for God to work is exponentially long. 

Covenant relationship is God’s choice for us.  The only decision we can control when we say ‘yes’ to covenant relationship with God.  God has a plan for us every day in which our relationship with Him will spread to others if we listen, trust, follow and obey.  Just as Abram was promised the impossible . . .  generations as expansive as the stars in the sky . . . we are a recipient of God’s “impossible” promises today.  

        The promises God destined for us to receive are well documented in scripture.  
However, these promises come to pass in God’s timing, not ours.  
If we feel we ‘deserve’ a better life, we may have to wait a little longer for understanding.  If we try to grab a better life, outside of our Lord’s timeline, we may think we are doing well but, in the end, we miss the mark that the Lord set for us.

     God wants abundant, joy-filled life for each of us, overflowing with the immeasurable love and grace promised to us.  Yet, we must wait if we do not yet think this promise has been fulfilled in and through us.  

Make a list of God’s promises that you find as you chew on God’s Word. 

If you recall being the recipient of at least one promise, write it down with a notation of the scripture and the date this promise became vivid to you. 

        “I will never leave you nor forsake you . . . "

         "Come to me all of you who are weary and heavy laden and I will give your rest . . ."  
         "Trust in Me with your whole heart, acknowledge My presence, and I will give you peace. . . . " 

          "Come to me and pray to me and I will listen to you.”  

These are just a few of the many promises from scripture that roll around in my soul. 

Fill your soul with God’s promises and you will be content to wait on the Lord for more.

In covenant relationship God gives us promises that never will be broken so that our ‘brokenness’ will be mended, with our consent, in His timing.

1-30    Genesis 16:15—17:14; Psalm 50; Hebrews 10:1-10; John 5:30-47

Hebrews 10:1 “Since the Law has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who approach.  :4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.  :9 Jesus said, “See, I have come to do Your will.”  He abolishes the first in order to establish the second.  :10 And it is by God’s will that we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

The book of Hebrews provides a quick summary of the

 Hebrew people's salvation history.  Most chapters echo old covenant passages or parts of the Psalms.  This section of Hebrews echos Psalm 40, a song of thanksgiving.

This chapter in Hebrews expresses the fact that Moses’ law is but a ‘shadow’ of the great sacrifice God would provide through His Son, Jesus Christ.  

It’s like God is saying, “You think your blood sacrifice given from year to year for your sin is enough?  
It’s not.  
That’s why I am sending a part of Myself, my Son, Jesus Christ, to take all your sin upon Himself . . .  just once . . .  for all who seek relationship with Me.”

God, through His son, abolishes the old covenant sin offering in order to establish one, forever, sin offering, Jesus Christ.  
Jesus not only ushered in the new covenant, He IS the New Covenant.  
Jesus Christ, the bloody sin offering, crucified for us, who died an excruciating death for us, who was resurrected from the dead to show us that we, also, will have resurrected life if we believe in Him, God’s only begotten Son.  
Jesus, the anointed One, is the final sacrifice to end all other sacrifices. 

God purposely sent His son to live for us and to die for us so that we who believe are sanctified through the offering of His body.  The writer emphasizes this by giving us words from Jesus, “I have come to do His [my Father’s] will.”  The Psalmist praises God for the happiness of those who trust in Him.  

Proper sacrifice is the obedient self, not a sacrificial system.   It’s the sacrifice of obedience that God wants from us since the beginning of creation.  It’s not what we do but what we ‘BE.’  God reads our heart. 

Think about it: The blood sacrifice was an act of obedience for the Hebrew people until, over the decades, the people lost the true reason for sacrifice.  It was no longer a sign of obedience and way to cleanse sin from the tribe but a duty.  The heart of many turned numb and sacrifice became an effort, not a joy.

We might ask ourselves, “Has obedience to my commitment of faith in Christ become a mindless habit?”  Or, do I look forward to our daily time set aside for

worshipping our Lord?"  
What if we stay up too late and cannot get up early the next morning?  
What if we just do not feel like attending the worship service on Sunday when we’ve had a very hard week and even had to work on Saturday?  

Obedience is not a feeling.  
It’s an action.  
Jesus was obedient onto death.  

Some weeks it’s not easy but we ‘show up’ for Jesus.   Because we 'show up' in obedience to our Lord, we discover a blessing we would have missed had we not been obedient.  
Living the Christian life is not easy.  
God calls us to rejoice in Him, not sleep in.  
God calls us to love only Him, not all the distractions that keep us from sacrificing a little bit of time for Him.

So what is God’s call for us?  
To be obedient.  
Numerous options are set before us to build our desire to come before our Lord with praise and thanksgiving.  
Every opportunity we take to cry out to Jesus with our petitions is welcome.  
As much time as we choose to dive into the depth of scripture is welcome in order to solidify our faith-commitment, our obedience to our Lord and Savior. 

Obedience is more than creating rigid habits in order to place the Lord front and center in our lives.  
Obedience comes from the heart.  
Our heart lets us know if we are stuck in the ‘doing’ or 'being' full of the Lord’s presence that overflows into others’ lives.

God knows that deep joy of obedience even if we also must say, “I am here to do Your will.”  

Ask yourself: 
(1) Am I stuck in a rut of obedience that seems boring and dull?

(2) Am I so filled with the desire to live in a way that glorifies God, that I overflow with JOY each day?

Assess your 'condition' with the Lord.
Take steps to enhance your sacrifice of time with Him,  even if it is only a few minutes each day.
This small step of obedience may reap a multitude of blessings.  
See what happens.  

1-31     Genesis 17:15-27; Psalm 40,54; Hebrews 10:11-25; John 6:1-15

Hebrews 10:18 “Where there is forgiveness there is no longer offering for sin.  :22 Let us draw near with a full heart and with full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.  :23 Let us hold fast to our confession of Hope without wavering for He who promised is faithful.  :24 and let us consider

how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds :25 not neglecting to meet together as is the habit of some but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching”

There is so much meat in the book of Hebrews that I tend to linger a little longer with these words.  The writer walks us through the result of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross.  We look into the temple and see the heavy covering, that was hiding the Holy of Holies, torn in two, open to us to walk through.  There are no more secret places in the ‘heart’ of the temple.  It’s all ours to embrace because our Lord, Jesus Christ FORGAVE us as He died on the cross.

“Where there is forgiveness there is no longer offering for sin.”  Jesus did it all, for us.  Through baptism “our hearts are sprinkled clean from evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”  We are ready to go out into the world speaking to others as we cling to the Hope that was and is and is to come, as we know from Corinthians 13 . . . “and now faith, love and hope abide, these three . . . “  This is the faith, hope and love that is given to us through our ‘triune’ God:Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

With the Love of Christ within us we are then able to encourage, stimulate, excite others to also abide in the

faith, hope and love of Christ.  As we love one another and take action with that love through good deeds, we enable others to see Christ’s mighty work in and through us.  By encouraging others with holy boldness we then encourage one another to be public about our faith.  After Jesus’ resurrection, persecution was filling new Christians with fear so they hid their faith.  These words encouraged one another to remain bold in their faith and to meet together to strengthen one another no matter the consequences.

Our soul is forever alive with the presence of God.  Our soul cannot be killed.  Only our body can be destroyed.  If we have our soul intact, nothing else matters.  We are called to LIVE our faith, not hide our faith.  These days we are only ‘persecuted’ if we remain faithful to God’s precepts given to us through scripture and let others know what is Truth.  We are to live pure lives, holy onto Him, gathering together continuously to encourage one another, to worship our Lord together, to actively share our faith with others.  

Being a Christian is not a stagnant affirmation of faith and we’re done.  We are called to be ‘active’ in our faith, according to God’s will, because the Day is near when Christ will return.  When we worship and prepare ourselves to receive Holy Communion we are always reminded that, “Christ has died, Christ is risen, Christ will come again.”  

Think about it:  Are we truly living our faith?  

Do we set aside time to gather together as Christians with the focus on encouraging one another in our faith?  

Attending church is not what I mean here.  When we worship our Lord we receive and give one-on-one.  Our personal relationship with Christ is being renewed.  Our hearts receive and give back to the Lord as we listen, sing, pray, receive all we are given within this one to two hours.  Only then can we go out and “encourage one another with love and good deeds.”

To encourage one another in love and good deeds, set aside a specific time with 

two or three, or more, friends who are willing to come together weekly for one hour.  This might be on a Saturday morning or some time other than Sunday.  Begin with a prayer to draw your focus on the Lord.  

Then ask two questions of each.  

1. What was your greatest, praise-worthy, moment you had this week?
2. What challenge did you face this week and how did the Lord help you through it?

Allow each to share without interruption 

Listen hard.

Allow time for that person to resolve what might seem to be an unresolved challenge.  Then encourage that person and move to the next.

      Too often we have a ‘light bulb’ moment as another is speaking and know how to ‘solve’ the problem.  Our GREATEST encouragement is simply to listen and wait for the other to finish speaking.  More often than not, the mere speaking, sharing with others, brings forth a viable solution if there is, indeed, a problem.

Our little group meets weekly, and has done so for over 22 years.  I was gone for ten of those years when we moved but when we vacationed in the vicinity I always joined them.  We have returned to the ‘fold’ now and it’s like I never left.  It’s the highlight of my very busy weeks.  I have encouraged as they have encouraged me.  Our bond of love and trust will never be broken.

Try it . . .  you’ll like it!

If you'd like to linger a little longer with my monthly blog, feel free to read "Altar Time" at lingerlongerwithgail.blogspot.com