My Story

Hey everyone! Here's another video blog from me - a vlog. Vlogging isn't really my forte, but I'm trying to get more practice at telling my story. If you watch this and have questions or comments, I'd love to talk to you, so please reach out.

Reading the Bible like Jesus Did

Do you want to become more like Jesus? The way we become like Jesus is doing the things that Jesus did, and one of things he did was knowing and loving and thinking about scripture.

All this week, we as a church are reading a short passage or two from the Bible, and you can do it, too! There are a few reflection questions after each reading.

Can you do all five days? Maybe you could set a reminder in your phone as something to do right before bed each night - you can give up 15 minutes of time to grow closer to God, right?

Day 1
1 John 3:1
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

1 John 4:19
19 We love because he first loved us.

Reflection: The truth is God loves you. How do these verses make you feel about God? Spend a few minutes talking to God about your experience of His love.


Day 2
Psalm 107:43
43
Let the one who is wise heed these things
    and ponder the loving deeds of the Lord.

Ephesians 3:17-19
17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, 18 may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, 19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.

Reflection: Spend time thinking about being rooted and established in love. How does that make you feel? Does it bring an image to mind or stir something in you? Spend a few minutes writing down what comes to mind.


Day 3
Romans 5:6-8
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous person, though for a good person someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Reflection: There is so much to learn about the nature of God’s love for us. What do these verses tell you about God’s love for you? How would you describe God’s love for you?


Day 4
Ephesians 2:1-5
2 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our flesh[a] and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature deserving of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.

Reflection: God’s love for us comes with great mercy and grace. Think about God as the giver of these things. What do these verses tell you about who God is?

Day 5
Psalm 103:1-14
Praise the Lord, my soul;
    all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2
Praise the Lord, my soul,
    and forget not all his benefits—
3
who forgives all your sins
    and heals all your diseases,
4
who redeems your life from the pit
    and crowns you with love and compassion,
5
who satisfies your desires with good things
    so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.
6
The Lord works righteousness
    and justice for all the oppressed.
7
He made known his ways to Moses,
    his deeds to the people of Israel:
8
The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
    slow to anger, abounding in love.
9
He will not always accuse,
    nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10
he does not treat us as our sins deserve
    or repay us according to our iniquities.
11
For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
    so great is his love for those who fear him;
12
as far as the east is from the west,
    so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13
As a father has compassion on his children,
    so the Lord has compassion on those who fear him;
14
for he knows how we are formed,
    he remembers that we are dust.

Reflection: The writer of this Psalm reminds us to remember God’s benefits— the fruit of his unconditional love. Make a list of some of the benefits you have experienced of God’s love. Are there at least two that you have experienced in 2020? Talk to God about what is on your list.

These passages and questions are from the book Journey With Jesus by Larry Warner, and are modeled after the Spiritual Exercises developed by Ignatius of Loyola more than 500 years ago. The Spiritual Exercises have stood the test of time because they've helped generations of Christians enter into God's presence and become more like Jesus.

Can you be alone and be quiet for 5 minutes a day?

 The church is embarking on a series of 9 challenges that will help us make space in our lives to be transformed by God. Here's the first one! Can you do this 5 minutes a day this week?

Lessons

As we start to very slowly re-open here in Illinois, and we begin to step forward into our new normal, what have you learned? What are the lessons God has taught you in lockdown? What do you want to take with you?

God's Justice and Peace for a World on Fire

Some honest, unpolished remarks for middle schoolers about the murder of George Floyd and the protests and civil unrest hat has followed, the problem of racism in our country, and what God might be calling us to.

1. God made each of us in his image.
2. God brought ALL of us, every race, into his church, his community of believers.
3. We should all, especially white people, consider where we need to repent for participating in or allowing unjust systems.
4. We offer God's comfort and love, plus our repentance, to people of color in this country.
5. We strive to help bring God's kingdom of justice and healing here on earth now.

Strong Enough to Withstand the Storm

Did anyone get caught in today's thunderstorm? It seemed to come out of nowhere - it was warm and pleasant and then suddenly we were in a raging thunderstorm with pelting rain.

COVID-19 feels like that to me. Even with advance warning that a dangerous virus was infecting people in a Chinese province, I still never could have imagined the scope and scale of this devastating virus, and how it would tear through the world at lightning speed, ravaging not only health but also world economies. Just as a severe storm rips across the Midwestern prairies as this one did today, so the coronavirus has ripped across the world, and life is forever altered.

As I note in this video, however, we who follow God are called to stand strong. There are several places in the Bible where God refers to his people as trees. The righteous who choose the life of trusting God in faithful obedience are described in Psalm 1 as trees planted by a stream, whose leaves don't wither and who bear fruit at the right time. The prophet Isaiah refers to the people of God as oaks of righteousness.

Spend time meditating on these two passages. Read through them slowly a couple of times. What word or phrase is God highlighting to you? Spend time thinking about that, ask God to speak to you. Is there any action he might be asking you to take? What will help you become strong enough to withstand the hard times? Who does the good work in you to help you do that?

The first passage, the psalm, is a poem that was used in the ancient Hebrew church. The second is prophecy about the coming Messiah, Jesus, and what he would do for all people who trust in him. It's also a prophecy about God's coming kingdom, which we'll get to experience when Jesus returns and kicks Satan out, and restores all the broken things about this world - including coronavirus.

Psalm 1

1
Blessed is the person who does not
    follow the advice of wicked people,
        take the path of sinners,
            or join the company of mockers.
2
Rather, he delights in the teachings of the Lord
    and reflects on his teachings day and night.
3
He is like a tree planted beside streams—
    a tree that produces fruit in season
        and whose leaves do not wither.
He succeeds in everything he does.[a]

4
Wicked people are not like that.
Instead, they are like husks that the wind blows away.
5
    That is why wicked people will not be able to stand in the judgment
        and sinners will not be able to stand where righteous people gather.

6
The Lord knows the way of righteous people,
    but the way of wicked people will end.

The Lord Will Anoint His Servant with His Spirit

    The Spirit of the Almighty Lord is with me
    because the Lord has anointed me
        to deliver good news to humble people.
    He has sent me
        to heal those who are brokenhearted,
        to announce that captives will be set free
            and prisoners will be released.
²     He has sent me
        to announce the year of the Lord’s good will
            and the day of our God’s vengeance,
        to comfort all those who grieve.
³     He has sent me
        to provide for all those who grieve in Zion,
        to give them crowns instead of ashes,
            the oil of joy instead of tears of grief,
                and clothes of praise instead of a spirit of weakness.

They will be called Oaks of Righteousness,
    the Plantings of the Lord,
        so that he might display his glory.

Note: In the video you'll see that I keep referring to the tree on my front lawn as an oak tree. Actually after I filmed it I remembered it is an elm tree, not an oak. I thought it was an oak at first, but after the leaves and seeds came out I realized it is an elm! Ooops :) Just in case anyone can see it closely enough in the video to recognize the tree, I thought I had better be accurate. But my analogy still holds!

Moment of Joy

Sorry it’s been so long! We’re packing up and getting ready to move, no small feat with two very young children.

So I wanted to post a devo for you all but as I started to write it, my little guy woke up from his nap. And he wanted to snuggle. He started telling me all about making a happy face with this matching puzzle he has, which made me start humming an old song called Put On a Happy Face, so then he wanted to hear the song and Alexa played it for us, which then reminded me of the 1963 musical it’s from, called Bye Bye Birdie. I loved that old movie when I was in high school in the 90s, and so I pulled up the soundtrack and sang along, that’s when I remembered that we performed a Bye, Bye Birdie medley in our show choir’s Broadway Concert my senior year. (I was a total drama and choir girl all through junior high and high school, I did all the shows for 6 years!) Anyway, that’s how I came to record the above video for my devotional for middle school. It was me and my sweet 3-year-old sharing a peaceful, loving moment (except when he knocked the phone out of my hand) and it brought me great joy.

Is there a special, fun thing that you can stop and do today? Just something small that brings you joy? God knows you inside and out, and he knows the small things you like, your hobbies, your good memories, all of it. Even if, in my case, it meant bringing to mind a favorite choir performance from 23 (!!!) years ago.

Check out this sweet, short little Psalm. What little gift is God giving to you to help you calm your soul today?

Psalm 131 GOD’S WORD Translation (GW)

1 O Lord, my heart is not conceited.
    My eyes do not look down on others.
    I am not involved in things too big or too difficult for me.
2 Instead, I have kept my soul calm and quiet.
    My soul is content as a weaned child is content in its mother’s arms.
3 Israel, put your hope in the Lord now and forever.

By the way, that quiet moment turned into my son throwing his little cars across the living room :) (next week we’ll have our own yard!) Guess where I went to find another quiet moment to write this? Wishing you all peaceful moments!