Devotional 3-30-18

Never Again

I like the gadgets. I like the cars. Perhaps it’s the fact that one particular super-secret agent debuted to the cinema going public the same year that I debuted to the world that I have an affinity for the character of James Bond. Sean Connery was that Bond. I have seen every one of his movies (many times) including the one he made twelve years after his ‘last’ one saying - Never Again > Never Say Never Again. Great movie…great title.

Work, friendship, church, school, sports, vacation, a purchase, a speeding ticket, an interaction with our children…a thousand different scenarios in our lives that have resulted in the same exasperated exhale – Never Again.

Christ came to earth to help – and instead of welcome, endured some very awful things. How easy would it have been to say, “You people don’t get it. This last week has been terrible. I’m going home. Never Again.”

But we know that that is not how the story goes. I give Jesus a thousand reasons every day to abandon me. But it is never, “Look how this guy behaves. Look how he treats others. After all I’ve done for him. Never Again!”

Perhaps a shift is in order – bring it to the front; Never Again will I walk by someone I think needs help. Never Again will I judge someone because of what I “think” is happening in their life. Never Again will I fire back with a mean comment without stopping to collect myself first. Never Again will I be the instigator of gossip. Never Again…

Psalm 118; 24 says, This is the day that the LORD has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.

Never Again will I take the gift of Easter for granted.
Steve Matthews

Devotional 3-23-18

Dancing with the Grizzly
 

Psalm 31:9-16 (NRSV)
⁹ Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
    my eye wastes away from grief,
    my soul and body also.
¹⁰ For my life is spent with sorrow,
    and my years with sighing;
my strength fails because of my misery,
    and my bones waste away.
¹¹ I am the scorn of all my adversaries,
    a horror to my neighbors,
an object of dread to my acquaintances;
    those who see me in the street flee from me.
¹² I have passed out of mind like one who is dead;
    I have become like a broken vessel.
¹³ For I hear the whispering of many—
    terror all around!—
as they scheme together against me,
    as they plot to take my life.
¹⁴ But I trust in you, O Lord;
    I say, “You are my God.”
¹⁵ My times are in your hand;
    deliver me from the hand of my enemies and persecutors.
¹⁶ Let your face shine upon your servant;
    save me in your steadfast love.

I hope you actually read the psalm written above before dropping down here to read my words. If you didn’t, go back and do it now. I’ll wait.

I know. It’s depressing. As a matter of fact, if you read this in the Common English Bible Version, the words “in distress” are replaced by the word depressed. That was why I tried to write about five other scriptures before I was led back to this one. Remember in last week’s devotional when Jeff Taylor said he chose his dog, Cooper, and Cooper chose him? Well, this scripture chose me, so I had no choice but to choose it right back.

When you read the words above, what did you see in your mind’s eye? I saw what I see daily in Huntington, WV, and what you probably see wherever you live.  A young woman in need of warm clothing and a bath is accompanied by an unkempt young man carrying a backpack. They are probably homeless, hungry, and addicted.

I have no personal knowledge of their lifestyle, but I’ve read enough and have gone to enough young adult funerals to know that even though they chose the drug, the drug is now in charge.

I could tell them to pray for healing, practice self-control, just say no, but that would sound rather lame coming from one who can’t even stop biting her fingernails. I could also tell them that my thoughts and prayers are with them, but those would not get them into a rehab program.

A headline in today’s Herald Dispatch newspaper says, “Wayne County groups tackling addiction issues.” “Coalfield Development Company, Stepping Stones Inc. and the Wayne County Economic Development Corporation are collaborating to provide guidance, support, and connections to disengaged youth ages 16-21 so that each will reach their potential and prosper.”

Reach their potential? We just hope they reach the next birthday. Their time is truly in God's hand.

Individually these agencies have hit dead ends when trying to help addicted youth. Now they hope that sharing information and resources will enable those addicted to find the way out. Collaboration is the name of the game. We must be part of that collaboration.

My family has a saying that applies to this task.  “You can’t stop dancing with the grizzly bear just because you’re tired.” No, you won’t find it in the Bible, but if we are to end the opioid cycle, we must be willing to do whatever it takes. We must be willing to offer our prayers, presence, gifts, service, and witness. We made a promise long ago. We must keep that promise.

Would you join me in singing or praying the last stanza of the hymn “Draw Us in the Spirit’s Tether”? (The United Methodist Hymnal p.632)

All our meals and all our living make as sacraments of thee, that by caring, helping, giving, we may true disciples be. Alleluia! Alleluia! We will serve thee faithfully.

Amen
Becky Warren

Devotional 3-16-17

I will be their dog, and they shall be my people.

I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. (Jeremiah 31:33b)

One evening, as usual, Mary showed me a picture of a dog she had helped earlier that day as part of her volunteer work at the animal shelter. The little boxer mix with blue eyes had been rescued from a neglect situation, and Mary had taken him to be neutered so he could be adopted by a loving family. We thought we would probably not get another male dog. And we definitely didn’t want a puppy. We weren’t quite settled in our new home. We hadn’t yet fenced the yard. But, when I saw that picture it was all over. Cooper came home on March 16, 2017.

Cooper turned out to be a couple months younger than we had thought, and he quickly grew a little bigger than we anticipated. He torments Rufus the Cat. He jumps when he gets excited. He’s chewed a few pieces of furniture. He digs holes in the yard and leaves very large muddy paw prints. Cooper is not perfect. But, he’s perfectly Cooper. He is our dog and we are his people.

Part of my Saturday morning routine this past summer was to take Cooper for a walk at Valley Park where the farmer’s market is set up. We would make a few laps around the path, and on the last leg, I would pick up some fresh produce. People—especially kids—are drawn to Cooper, just like we were. One morning, we met a woman with four toddlers. One of the little girls asked politely if she could pet my dog. I held his harness while all four kids petted and hugged Cooper and giggled as he kissed them.

“Why do you have a dog?” she asked me.

I searched for the right words and was a little surprised by what came out. “We needed a dog, and Cooper needed some people. So we adopted him, and he adopted us.” The mom clutched her heart as she whispered to me, “Thank you so much for explaining it that way! We adopted all four of these children!” She is their mom, and they are her children.

In today’s Hebrew Bible reading, the prophet Jeremiah offers hope to the people of Israel who were suffering. Victims of exile whose cherished theologies and nationalism had failed them, the Israelites are promised a new covenant with God. They needed rescued from a neglect situation. “I will be their God, and they will be my people,” God promises (v.34). Under the new covenant promised by God through Jeremiah, each of us can live in hope because we are all God’s people.

I am not perfect, far from it. Against my list of transgressions, Cooper comes out looking pretty pious. But I am perfectly Jeff. God is my God, and I am God’s people.

Happy  Gotcha Day, Cooper!

We give thanks, O God, for your promise of presence with us, your people. Thank you for mothers and dogs to serve as tangible reminders of unconditional love. Amen.

Jeff Taylor