Lent Day 29: March 26

Lenten Reflection for Day 29

Date: March 26, 2012

Author: Pastor Pat Harris

Bible Passage: Jeremiah 1:4–8 (NRSV)

⁴ Now the word of the Lord came to me saying, ⁵ “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” ⁶ Then I said, “Ah, Lord God! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy.” ⁷ But the Lord said to me, “Do not say, ‘I am only a boy’; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you. ⁸ Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the Lord.”

Reflection:

As I read this passage and the longer story of Jeremiah’s call in the Biblical book that bears his name, I realize that most of us can identify with his situation. Most of us, have at one time or another, been called on to do something that we didn’t feel qualified to do, or which we didn’t want to do.

I know that many times when I started a new job, I would figuratively look around and think to myself, they want me to do what???? I would look at the files that came with the job and look at the mail coming into the office and wonder how I would ever catch on. Even worse, when I accepted the position in Germany, I had to use a German-English dictionary to read the files, the paperwork and the mail. I wondered what I had gotten myself into, and if I would end up looking like a fool.

Jeremiah is having some of the same thoughts. God has acknowledged that God has had his sights on Jeremiah since before birth. God now expects him to be a prophet to all the nations. (Notice that this assignment is not limited to Israel). Jeremiah has that “who me” kind of reaction. “I’m just a boy; I wouldn’t even know what to say.” In yet one more case of God qualifying the called, God explains to Jeremiah who is calling the shots. ‘You’ll go where I send you and say what I tell you to.’ It seems pretty clear that Jeremiah’s excuses aren’t going to work.

God calls us to do many kinds of things that we don’t feel qualified for, or for which we feel we don’t have enough time or energy. When we mumble our excuses to God, the Lord thinks that most of our excuses are pretty lame, also. God knows us and the ways in which are capable of growing and developing. God wants us to be able to do the things that are expected of us, and somehow God manages to give us the energy, tools and capabilities that are needed. Our role is just to believe that God will provide for us and somehow to find the courage to take that first step, trusting in God’s providence.

The things God calls us to do are not always, or even mostly, “church work”. In our everyday lives, God calls us to be a visible presence in the world. It may be standing up for someone who is being treated unfairly. It may be doing something related to our everyday work. It may be giving a volunteer effort to help someone who lives on the margins of society. The word “vocation”, which describes our work in the world, is from the Latin word “vocatio”, which means to call. God calls us to be God’s presence and hands in the world, as we live out our everyday lives.

Prayer: Gracious and Giving God, help me to hear your call to work in the world. Give me the courage to proceed and the faith to know that you will support me in what I am being asked to do. Amen

The Servant of the Lord

Advent Day 22

Fourth Sunday in Advent

December 18, 2011

Reading: Luke 1:38 (NRSV)

³⁸ Then Mary said, “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

Theme: The Servant of the Lord

Reflection:

How many of us have heard Mary’s words: “Here I am the servant of the Lord” and wondered at her faith. She has just been given ‘mission impossible’ by the Angel Gabriel—the task of carrying God’s son—as an unmarried teenager. Her amazing response is: “Here am I, the servant of the Lord; let it be with me according to your word.” Her faith is so strong that she willing submits to the role that God asks of her.

I don’t know that I could respond in the way Mary does. I think that I would be tempted to don my size 7.5 ASICS running shoes to get out of town. “Not me God, I’m not up to this; I have other plans for my life. My dream wedding is coming up, and I don’t want to be pregnant for it. Can’t you find some other Mary, one who is willing to do this. I know someone, maybe I could fix you up with her.”

And so it goes with many of us. When God calls you to do something, whether it is to teach Sunday School, to write a devotion, to sing in the choir or to serve on the Church Council, do you find yourself looking over your shoulder to see if maybe, just maybe, you overheard the call intended for someone else. Do you find all kinds of excuses why you’re not the right person. If Mary is a typical example, God often calls us to do things that are far out of our comfort zones. God often sees things in us that we don’t see in ourselves. God also supports and guides us when we do reach beyond our self-imposed boundaries to do God’s work.

Pray that when you hear God’s call to action, you, too, can answer: “Here I am, the servant of the Lord.”

Prayer: Challenging God, when I hear your call to service, help me to see myself in the ways that you see me. Help me to realize that you will be there to “bear me up” when I meet challenges in your service. In your son Jesus’ name I pray. Amen

Lent Day 20: March 31

Lenten Reflection for Day 20

Date: Thursday March 31, 2011

Author: Pastor Pat Harris

Bible Passage:

Mark 1:16–18 (NRSV)

¹⁶ As Jesus passed along the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁷ And Jesus said to them, “Follow me and I will make you fish for people.” ¹⁸ And immediately they left their nets and followed him.

Reflection:

Whenever I read this passage about Jesus calling the disciples, the word that always jumps out at me is immediately. I can certainly understand Simon and Andrew following Jesus. There was undoubtedly something compelling in his manner, words and persuasion. But immediately they left their nets!!! Those nets were their livelihood. I wonder if they thought about washing the nets and putting them away first. I wonder if they didn’t feel like they had to run home first and tell their families. Some powerful force moved them to respond immediately.

I am amazed at the level of faith that would allow these men to follow Jesus so quickly. Their faith let them take the first step in responding to Jesus’ command, and their obedience reinforced their faith. This reinforcement of their faith following their initial response was important for challenges that would face them toward the end of Jesus’ ministry on earth. I wonder if Simon and Andrew could have taken that first step of following Jesus if they could have seen the cross at the end of the road.

For us, taking the first step toward following Jesus’ call may be difficult, but often more thorny challenges arise. Very few of us can take this first step immediately. For instances, agreeing to take a lay leadership role at church may require much soul searching. When a call is prayerfully followed, God gives us a faith boost to help us get started. However during the course of this work, if obstacles come up such as program changes, financial difficulties, or the loss of other volunteers, the commitment to serve can be challenged. Reliance on God, accompanied by prayer is what sustains us through these challenges.

Prayer, the faith that is a gift from God, and our response to God’s call to serve are all intertwined. We are unable to serve or even pray without the Holy Spirit who intercedes on our behalf.

Prayer:

Gracious God, may your faith encourage and sustain me and may you grant me the listening ears to hear your call and the obedience to follow it. Amen

Immediately...

“Immediately, they left their nets and followed Him”

¹⁸ As he walked by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea—for they were fishermen. ¹⁹ And he said to them, “Follow me, and I will make you fish for people.” ²⁰ Immediately they left their nets and followed him. ²¹ As he went from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John, in the boat with their father Zebedee, mending their nets, and he called them. ²² Immediately they left the boat and their father, and followed him. Matthew 4:18–22

Reflection:

I find it a little hard to wrap my head around the idea of four people immediately leaving their life’s work and following Jesus. In one sense, in our culture, we understand immediacy. We are really into instant gratification. I can download a song from iTunes in under a minute, and I can have a Kindle book ready to read in only few minutes. Instantly, I can connect with friends all over the world. Information flows seamlessly at incredible speeds.

But on the other hand, the easy access to information can make choices more difficult to make. If I want to make a career change, I can immediately find out all kinds of information about job prospects, salary ranges and long term career potential. With all that information, I can spend almost endless time weighing the pros and cons of any possible change.

Even when I, personally, felt called to ministry, I had internet access to programs of study at multiple seminaries and access to the details of the ELCA candidacy process. I “knew” what I was getting into (or so I thought)!!!

Jesus’ potential disciples had no such access to information. They met Jesus, he called them to follow him, and immediately they left their nets and followed him. What was it about Jesus that drew them to him? How did they know what an impact Jesus was going to have? How did they deal with the fallout from their decision to follow Jesus? Who cleaned the nets they dropped? Who provided support for their families, and what did Zebedee think when his sons suddenly abandoned him?

Although it is hard to picture dropping everything and immediately following Jesus, are there things we can learn from these disciples’ actions? When we, personally, come up with all kinds of objections to a call that God gives us, how might the experience of the disciples influence us? How might we calm our quest for one more piece of instantaneous information to logically support our decision making, and instead, let God act in and through us?

Prayer:

Gracious God, you call me to do things that sometimes I can’t understand. Sometimes the things seem to difficult to take on. Help me Lord to learn from the immediacy of the disciples call response and help me to calm my need for “one more” piece of information. Let me respond for Jesus’ sake and not on the basis of human logic. Amen