Devotional 2-20-09

TRANSFORMATION

The risen, living Christ calls us by our name;
Comes to the loneliness within us;
Heals that which is wounded within us;
Comforts that which grieves within us;
Releases us from that which has dominion over us;
Cleanses us of that which does not belong to us;
Renews that which feels drained with us;
Awakens that which is asleep in us;
Names that which is still formless with us;
Empowers that which is newborn with us;
Consecrates and guides that which is strong with us;
Restores us to this world which needs us;
Reaches out in endless love to other through us;
The risen, living Christ calls us by our name.




Grace to you, grace to you.
May grace abound in all you do.
Grace to do the will of the father.
Grace, grace to you.

Peace to you, peace to you.
May peace abound in all you do.
Peace to do the will of the father.
Peace, peace to you.

Joy to you, joy to you.
May grace abound in all you do.
Joy to do the will of the father.
Joy, joy to you.

Rev. Jeremiah Jasper

Devotional 2-13-09

Spring Thaw
You gaze out at the snowcapped mountains and feel the warm sun on your skin. Spring rains kiss your flower garden. Birds flock in pairs, fluttering, chirping merrily as they gather twigs. Trees burst forth with new life. The fresh smell of flowers penetrates your stuffy nose. You can't help but be taken in by the beauty of spring. You love retreating to the cabin just as the deep freeze begins to thaw.

Although this is a normal part of the cycle of life, and it's magnificent to watch, adverse effects often occur. Melting snow along with heavy rains can produce flash floods, washed-out roads, and flooded homes that leave whole towns in disarray. It can't be helped. Sometimes even the most beautiful things can have adverse effects. Just like spring, adversity is part of life. You can count on it!

What adversity or hardship are you facing in your life? Hopefully it's not as devastating as a flood caused by melting snow. But even if it is, you won't have to face it alone. God promises to be there with you to enjoy the spring thaw in whatever area of life it comes--physical, emotional, mental, or spiritual--and help you face any of the adverse effects you might encounter in the process. He knows that even the floods leave fertile soil behind, enriching your life and decorating it with beautiful springtime flowers.

So drag a chair out onto the deck, have a seat, and take it all in. Listen and enjoy as the spring thaw comes to your cabin and to your heart. It's magnificent!

Taken from: Mountain Prayers:A Vacation for Your Soul
2007 Honor Books

Kay Lewis

Devotional 2-6-09

Lift your eyes and look to the heavens: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, and calls them each by name. Because of his great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing.--Isaiah 40:26

The first fall of snow is not only an event, it is a magical event. You go to bed in one kind of world and wake up in another quite different, and if this is not enchantment then where is it to be found?--J.B. Priestley

Many Sunday nights you can find me in worship in front of the TV, watching a show that doesn't preach the Gospel or promote any religion. The show is Nature on PBS stations. As I ponder these programs I am constantly in awe of a God who planned for glaciers and volcanoes, deserts and oceans, rain forests and mountain ranges. I see God's hand in a fig tree in Africa that could not exist without the pollination of a wasp so small it can fly through the eye of a needle. I see an amazing God in tiny hummingbirds who eat their weight in nectar every day and a 2-ton mother elephant who tenderly cares for her 300-pound baby.

I find it extremely sad that some people want to pit God against science. Albert Einstein said it better than I ever could: "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."

As I am writing this, snow is blanketing our town again. It is beautiful, magical, pure. It is God.

Anita Gardner Farrell