August 25: Enjoy hearing the Scriptures read aloud in church

August 24: Isaiah 55-57; Psalm 43; Titus 3

O send out your light and truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling.    Psalm 43:3

I open my morning prayer with this verse almost every day.  There are so many agendas and voices vying for our attention---calling us to let them be our guide.

We who follow Jesus, we have only one guide: God in Christ Jesus.  Prayer and conversation with God, the study of Scripture, hearing God speak to us through others---this is how we can experience God as our guide and compass.

How will you follow in the "blessed steps of Jesus' most holy life" today?

August 23: Isaiah 52-54; Psalm 42; Titus 2

As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.  My soul thirst for God, for the living God.  Psalm 42: 1-2

My soul thirsts for the living God

I will find the living God:
  ---in prayer
  ---in worship
  ---in each person I meet
  ---in silence
  ---in Creation
  ---in music
  ---in my waking
  ---in my sleeping
  ---in my doing
  ---in my resting

God never leaves us; God is always present.  The question is: are you making yourself available to the everflowing fountain of God and God's grace?

August 22: Isaiah 49-51; Psalm 41; Titus 1

It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the survivors of Israel; I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.    Isaiah 49:6

It wasn't enough for God to simply save the Jewish race.  It wasn't enough to save a people.
God is bound and determined--that through Jesus, through humanity infused with the Divine--all people shall see and know that they are redeemed, saved, loved, and reconciled to our Creator.

So, if God wants all people, what does that mean for us--our actions, our words and our choices--today?  How will you live this Good News today?

August 21: Isaiah 46-48; Psalm 40; 2 Timothy 4

I solemnly urge you; proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favorable or unfavorable; convince, rebuke and enoucourage, with the utmost patience in teaching. 2 Timothy 4:2

We are called to be evanglists---to spread the Good News of Christ.  There are many ways to do this.  Some think that it's a matter of having the most persuasive language.

However, our actions often speak louder than our words.  And our presence, our willingness to listen without correcting, is another important aspect.  Our job isn't to tell people how they are wrong; our job is to tell people what we believe, what we have experienced, what our hearts know.  Our job is to live our faith through our actions because how we treat one another and how we respond to situations is far more revealing of our beliefs than words.

Evangelism isn't something we do from time to time or by going door to door.  Evangelism is how we live.

August 20: Isaiah 43-45; Psalm 39; 2 Timothy 3

2 Timothy 3:1 -5
You must understand this, that in the last days distressing times will come.  For people will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable, slanderers, profligates, brutes, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding to the outward form of godliness by denying its power.

Goodness!  I can relate to this...can you?  I'm willing to bet that most of us can.  And sometimes, when life and people distress us, it can diminish all our energy, hope, and joie de vivre!  But, there is an answer to this distress.

Isaiah 43:1-3

But now thus say the LORD, he who created you....Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.  When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.  For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior.

Today (and every day), let us use Isaiah 43 as the ground on which we stand and the lens through which we view our distress and struggles.  God's movement and dwelling in our lives is the counterbalance to the weight of worry and fear and anxiety that life places on us.

August 19: Isaiah 40-42; Psalm 38; 2 Timothy 2

Isaiah 40:4-5:
Every valley shall be lifted up, and every mountain and hill made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain.  Then the glory of the LORD shall be revealed, and all people shall see it together, for the mouth of the LORD has spoken.

God's plan and desire isn't for the lowly to be raised above the lofty, but for the imbalance to become balanced.  God means for us to "level the playing field," so that everyone has a chance to live and grow and flourish.

So, today as you go about your business, watch for the valleys----not just your own, but others.  How might you be a part of making the rough places plain (or smooth) for another?  It is when we assist one another in making this land of life a passable terrain for all that God's glory is revealed.  It is when we work for the flourishing of the whole that God's Kingdome is made known.

August 18: Enjoy hearing the Scriptures read aloud in church

August 17: Isaiah 37-39; Psalm 37: 19-41; 2 Timothy 1

"Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord...." 2 Timothy 1:8

O God, help us this day to declare our love of You through word and action.  Holy Spirit, protect our hearts and our mouths so that when the world would rather we don't speak of your love and mercy, that we do so anyway.  Grant us strength to act as You, Lord, would have us act....even if no one around us will understand...even if our neighbor will find us strange....even if it brings us discomfort.  Let our lives be our testimony.  Let our actions be our worship.  Let our choices reveal You to the world.  That thy Kingdom come and Thy will be done.  This is our prayer today.  Amen.

August 16: Isaiah 34-36; Psalm 37:1-18; 1 Timothy 6

In the book of Isaiah, we have been reading about our exile.  About our great separation from God and God's displeasure at this outcome.

But today, today we begin to hear about our salvation....our return....our restoration.
  And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

This is our promise......for each and every one of us.  If we can commit to turning and re-turning (and this is a journey of a lifetime, not a one-time altar call) to God and God's Way for us, then we will have a new life.  A life that isn't controlled by fear and hurt and anxiety and sorrow.....but a life that is centered on hope, life, love, grace, mercy and forgiveness.

This new life doesn't drop down from the sky and appear on our doorstep. It is a way of life.  It isn't about Sunday mornings only....it's about Sunday mornings turning into daily conversion....changing bit by bit.....becoming more and more like the One who came to show us how to be human: Jesus.

This salvation has already been given; the secret has long ago been revealed.  Now it is up to each one of us to choose it and to keep choosing it......and to live it.  Live Jesus.  Choose life!

August 15: Isaiah 31-33; Psalm 36; 1 Timothy 5

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!  All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.
--Psalm 36:7

God loves us through it all.  Through all our mistakes, our missteps, our cruelty to one another, our neglect of God and the other, our shortsightedness, our selfishness, our ignorance, our blunders.....through it all, God loves us.  And when we lay it before God and seek reconciliation, God forgives it all----removing our sins as far as the east is from the west.

But, forgiveness is not just about us and God; it's about us and all others.

My grandmother used to be able to take knitted blankets or sweaters that were falling apart and put them back together...like they were brand new.  She would re-bind stitch to stitch, making the holes disappear and restoring the item to wholeness.  I could never tell, when she was done, where the faults had been.

Forgiveness works just like this.  Between God and us.  Between us and one another.  Between humanity and the Divine.  We are made whole through the gift of reconciliation.  Shalom.

August 14: Isaiah 28-30; Psalm 35; 1 Timothy 4

"...we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people..." (1 Timothy 4: 10)

If our hope is set on God, then this means:

---we want what God wants
---we believe the way forward is God's Way
---we trust that God means what God says
---we believe that God will give us what God promises

If our hope is set on God, then this means:

---things and possessions will not save us
---things and possessions do not make us whole
---we cannot save ourselves
---we cannot make ourselves whole

If our hope is set on God, then this means:

---we are bound to God
---we are bound to all others
---we are in community
---we are, therefore, called to be outward-focused

That is.......if our hope is set on God.

August 13: Isaiah 25-27; Psalm 34; 1 Timothy 3

"I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth." (Psalm 34: 1)

Hmmmm.....I wonder what would happen if each one of us could live this promise today?  How would it change our disposition and attitude if we were to think of blessing God all day long....in each and every second?

What would we say (and what wouldn't we say) if God's praise were continually in our mouths and on our lips?  There would be no gossip, no slander, no putting one another down.

We wouldn't have words of division, much less decisions taken to divide us.
We wouldn't have words of hate and fear thrown around the airwaves, our social media and our office spaces, homes, neighborhoods, and gathering places.

Okay, so we can't expect the entire world, or even our entire family, to actually live this promise today.

But we could.  You and I.  We could call upon the Holy Spirit to empower us to live this vow.  This day.  We could.  We can.  Will we?

August 12: Isaiah 22-24; Psalm 33; 1 Timothy 2

"First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for everyone, for kings and all who are in high positions, so that we may lead a quiet and peacable life in all godliness and dignity." (1 Timothy 2: 1-2)

Pray for everyone.  Supplicate and intercede for everyone.  Give thanks for everyone.
This is a much harder task than it seems from the first read.
These prayers, intercessions and thanksgivings include our enemies.
They include those who hurt us and others.
They include those with whom we are angry and disappointed.
They include those with whom we disagree.

Hard stuff.

But I have found that when I feel negative feelings toward anyone, that is exactly when that person needs to be included in my prayer list.  And not so I can pray that God will change that person, but I pray that through God's grace, my attitude and view of that person may change, that my heart may be softened, that my eyes may be enabled to see that person as God sees that person.

Pray for everyone....so that we may lead a peacable life.  This is some Good News.

August 10: Isaiah 19-21; Psalm 32; 1 Timothy 1

While I kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long.  For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.

Psalm 32:3

Why do we hold our sin in?  Why do we grasp our guilt and shame close to our heart and refuse to release them?  God knows them anyway---we cannot hide them from the Creator.  "to you all hearts are open, all desires known, and from you no secrets are hid." (BCP, 355)

Confession, the act of reconciliation, allows us to be rid of the poison and toxins that sin contains.  We are granted the ability and mercy to cleansed, renewed and restored.  And when we refuse that gift, we pay dearly for it...my body wasted away....guilt and shame and regret can eat us alive.

Give thanks to God for the gift of confession and reconciliation.  And then, take advantage of the gift.  God will make you "upright in heart."

August 9: Isaiah 16-18; Psalm 31; 2 Thessalonians 3

Isaiah 16:4-5

When the oppressor is no more, and destruction has ceased, and marauders have vanished from the land, then a throne shall be established in steadfast love in the tent of David, and on it shall sit in faithfulness a ruler who seeks justice and is swift to do what is right.

I think most of us are yearning for this vision to become reality.  Most of us want the same thing.  How many Miss America pageant contestants have said all they want is "World Peace?"

We want it, but we seem to think it's going to fall from the sky.  That God is going to make it happen.....like a magician waving a wand.  Yes, God is the source of peace, but God requires our participation.  Peace---which means wholeness---happens through humanity's actions and choices---which God has left to our free will.  God empowers us and provides the tools and skills necessary.  God even provided us with a living, breathing example of what it looks like if each one lives in the Way necessary for Peace to be a reality.

As Mahatma Gandhi said: Be the change you wish to see in the world.
As Jesus said: Love your neighbor as I have loved you.

"Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth.....And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven....." (Revelation 21: 1-2)

August 8: Isaiah 13-15; Psalm 30; 2 Thessalonians 2

"...because God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth." (2 Thessalonians 2:13)

God is a farmer.  He plants us---seeds.  Each seed God plants has within it the image of the Divine.  Just like an acorn becomes an oak tree due to what's inside it, we are destined to become as God dreamed for humanity----Jesus----the image of humanity infused with the divine.  The first fruits for salvation.  The harvest.

Sound impossible?  It is.  Without God's initiative, without God's inspiration of the Holy Spirit.  For by the Holy Spirit we are sanctified.  First, through Creation; second, through Baptism; third, through Sacraments (what Thomas Aquinas called a "Spirit-infusion system"); fourth, through a life of service---being turned outward like Jesus; fifth, through community---being rubbed to smoothness by our neighbors and companions; sixth, through prayer---the windows of grace when we open ourselves and make ourselves vulnerable to the transforming power of God; and so on and on and on and on.

God provides so many vehicles and opportunities for sanctification---being made holy.  Let's soak up the holiness set before us so that we may be changed within.  This is how we truly worship God----living lives that glorify God.

August 11: Enjoy hearing the Scriptures read aloud in church

August 7: Isaiah 10-12; Psalm 29; 2 Thessalonians 1

"Surely God is my salvation; I will trust, and will not be afraid, for the LORD GOD is my strength and my might; he has become my salvation. "

The First Song of Isaiah, Canticle 9 from the Daily Office of the Book of Common Prayer

Surely, it is God who saves me; I will trust in him and not be afraid.  For the Lord is my stronghold and my sure defense, and he will be my Savior.

I love this Canticle.  I pray it every Monday morning (and other times) during Morning Prayer---alone or in company of others.  What a great way to start the "work" week----reminding myself that God is my strength.  That God saves me, has saved me, and that no matter what life hands me this week, I have a stronghold and a sure defense that cannot be shaken.

We have an unending spring from which we can draw renewal and sustenance.  An unending fountain of grace and mercy to refill us whenever life and struggles and others deplete our resources.

Jesus calls to us: Come, you who are thirsty.  Come and be renewed by the very Creator of Life.

"Cry aloud, inhabitants of Zion, ring out your joy, for the great one in the midst of you, is the Holy One of Israel."

August 6: Isaiah 7-9; Psalm 28; 1Thessalonians 5

"If you do not stand firm in faith, you shall not stand at all." (Isaiah 7:9)

The Hebrew words (for stand firm/ and stand) here are wonderful.  The word is the verb: amn (yes, like our amen).  And it can be translated several ways:

If you do not believe, you shall not be established.
If you do not believe, you are not being faithful.
If you do not stand firm in faith, you will not be secure.

We all deeply desire to be established with a firm foundation....to be grounded.  Security is one of our strongest desires.  So, today, how will our beliefs be made manifest?  How will we stand firm on our core tenet that Jesus is Lord?  How will our actions and choices display that we believe Jesus is Lord and not us, not our possessions, not making money, not moving up in the world, not being the most powerful or popular or admired?

Listen deeply for God to give you a sign of how you shall live and move and have your being today.  The Holy Spirit hovers within and around us as our guide and inspiration.  Have an open heart and mind and soul for God today.  And then, stand firm.

August 5: Isaiah 4-6; Psalm 27; 1 Thessalonians 4

Psalm 27: 1
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom shall I fear?
The LORD is the stronghold of my life;
of whom shall I be afraid?

Life often hands us struggles, and being a Christian does not release us from pain, suffering, and struggling.  Being united in Christ.....raised to a new life in Christ.....gives us the way through pain, suffering and struggling.  I also believe, that if we live the life of Christ, some of the pain and suffering that is caused by our own brokenness will not be caused.....because we live differently.

However, some pain and suffering happens in life....no matter how one lives.....because we live in this world that doesn't always recognize God in its midst.  So, when pain and suffering come, we know that Christ is with us.  Christ is for us.  And that somehow, if we can truly lay the pain at God's feet, we will be guided through the suffering.  And in that passage, we will meet God.  God will dwell with us in our times of trouble, bringing light to the darkness.

The LORD is our light and our salvation;
whom (or what) shall we fear?

August 4: Enjoy hearing the Scriptures read aloud in church

August 3: Isaiah 1-3; Psalm 26; 1 Thessalonians 3

"Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool." (Isaiah 1:18)

Here is our great promise: that we can be restored to our original design.

People are fascinated with restoration.  Look at all the shows on HGTV, the History Channel, and other channels where old things are given new life....restored.  We love that stuff.

We have the opportunity, through Christ, to be restored to a better version of ourselves than we have ever met.....the version God intended.  Without blemish.

Granted, the completion of the restoration will not happen in this lifetime, but why put off the wonderful work that can be done now?  Open yourself to the transforming grace of God through prayer, Scripture, sacrament, fellowship, study, and forgiveness.  Oh, what a gift we have been given.  Oh what promises and riches are ours for the reaping!

August 2: Song of Songs 7-8; Psalm 25; 1 Thessalonians 2

Imagine God saying this to you:

"Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave."

Jewish interpreters typically read this book, the Song of Songs, as an allegory of the relationship between God and God's people.

Now read the verse again.  And say it to God.

"Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm; for love is strong as death, passion fierce as the grave."

God deeply desires to be in intimate relationship with each one of us.  How's that for some Good News?

August 1: Song of Songs 4-6; Psalm 24; 1 Thessalonians 1

"The earth is the LORD's and all that is in it, the world and those who live in it;" (Psalm 24:1)

Wouldn't it be nice if we could simply remember this?  If we could remember, as the Native American cultures do, that we don't own the land.  It's not ours to destroy or plunder, but God has asked us to sustain it and cultivate it and take care of it.  Not deplete it.

And, if we could remember each time we encounter another person----by chance or by design---that the other is God's child, same as me.  Same as me.