praise and power

Good evening friends,
Maggie and I are safely back in Rochester after a lovely few days with my family and an easy flight home. As we get ready for New Year's and continue to celebrate Christmas, we think about the limits of human power and God's wonderful love for the powerless. This Psalm reminds us of these things and encourages us to trust God while we give him praise.
Blessings on your evening,
Sam

Psalm 146

¹Praise the Lord! Praise the Lord, O my soul!

²I will praise the Lord as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God all my life long.

³Do not put your trust in princes, in mortals, in whom there is no help.

⁴When their breath departs, they return to the earth; on that very day their plans perish.

⁵Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord their God,

⁶who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that is in them; who keeps faith forever;

⁷who executes justice for the oppressed; who gives food to the hungry.

The Lord sets the prisoners free; ⁸the Lord opens the eyes of the blind.

The Lord lifts up those who are bowed down; the Lord loves the righteous.

⁹The Lord watches over the strangers; he upholds the orphan and the widow,

but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.

¹⁰The Lord will reign forever, your God, O Zion, for all generations. Praise the Lord!

praising God

Good morning sisters and brothers,
I chose this Psalm of praise for today so we could spend some time just praising God. Christ is born and rather than moving on to learning something else in scripture I'd rather dwell in the amazing love and surprising grace we see in the birth of our savior. So read the Psalm slowly and give yourself a moment to just sit in praise. Our God is amazing and full of love.

God bless,
Sam

Psalm 147:1-11

¹  Praise the Lord!
     How good it is to sing praises to our God;
     for he is gracious, and a song of praise is fitting.
²  The Lord builds up Jerusalem;
     he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
³  He heals the brokenhearted,
     and binds up their wounds.
⁴  He determines the number of the stars;
     he gives to all of them their names.
⁵  Great is our Lord, and abundant in power;
     his understanding is beyond measure.
⁶  The Lord lifts up the downtrodden;
     he casts the wicked to the ground.

⁷  Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving;
     make melody to our God on the lyre.
⁸  He covers the heavens with clouds,
     prepares rain for the earth,
     makes grass grow on the hills.
⁹  He gives to the animals their food,
     and to the young ravens when they cry.
¹⁰ His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
     nor his pleasure in the speed of a runner;
¹¹ but the Lord takes pleasure in those who fear him,
     in those who hope in his steadfast love.

Magnificat

Good morning friends,
Soon after Mary heard the angel's message about her calling to be the mother of Jesus, she went to visit her cousin Elizabeth. She was probably hoping for some wisdom and support from this older woman who was also a part of God's amazing plan. When she got there Elizabeth heard Mary's voice and felt her own baby jump for joy. She praised God for the wonderful thing God was doing.

Mary responds with praise of her own. This passage is sometimes known as the song of Mary because it is beautifully poetic. It is also called the Magnificat because in Latin that is the first word Mary says (it means magnify or praise). Mary's words of praise are a beautiful expression of God's love for the oppressed and desire to bring justice to the world. This is a passage that rewards rereading because of its beauty and because it crystallizes how God's love in Jesus turns the world upside down.

God bless,
Sam

Luke 1: 46-55

46And Mary said, "My soul magnifies the LORD, 47and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

the Spirit of the Lord

Good morning friends,
This is a favorite passage of mine from Isaiah. Isaiah reflects on his calling from God to be a prophet of hope and challenge: hope to those who are pressed down by injustice and challenge for those who are comfortable with the way things are. We also see something of a dialogue: Isaiah thinks about his calling and God proclaims that the future will be hopeful as justice grows and flourishes. The setting for the passage is probably when the people of Judah returned from the Babylonian exile to find their cities destroyed. It offers a word of hope for us as we seek to build up our troubles city in the power of God's justice.

One more thing I love about this passage is from the New Testament. During Jesus' ministry we often read that he went into the synagogue on a Sabbath to teach, but we only once hear much about his teaching: Luke 4. Jesus is teaching in his hometown of Nazareth and the beginning of this passage is the one he reads. As the first thing we read about his ministry, it is something of a mission statement: preaching good news to the poor and oppressed and comforting those who mourn. Jesus tells the crowd, "Today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." May we follow in his footsteps.

God bless,
Sam

Isaiah 61:1-4, 8-11

1The spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me;

he has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed, to bind up the brokenhearted,

to proclaim liberty to the captives, and release to the prisoners; 2to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all who mourn; 3to provide for those who mourn in Zion— to give them a garland instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.

They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, to display his glory.

4They shall build up the ancient ruins, they shall raise up the former devastations; they shall repair the ruined cities, the devastations of many generations.

8For I the LORD love justice, I hate robbery and wrongdoing; I will faithfully give them their recompense, and I will make an everlasting covenant with them. 9Their descendants shall be known among the nations, and their offspring among the peoples;

all who see them shall acknowledge that they are a people whom the LORD has blessed.

10I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my whole being shall exult in my God; for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation, he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with a garland, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. 11For as the earth brings forth its shoots, and as a garden causes what is sown in it to spring up, so the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.

holiness and perfection

Good morning friends,
As we continue to keep our brothers and sisters in Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Libya and Tunisia in prayer for peace, wisdom and freedom, we turn to God's calling to us. Today's reading from Leviticus calls us to be holy as God is holy. Holy means set apart for God and somehow like God. In this case we show that through how we live each day, in particular how we conduct ourselves with integrity and justice, especially for the vulnerable. The admonition to pay a worker each day especially calls to mind the often oppressive conditions under which many of our sisters and brothers, especially those without documentation, labor each day.

Jesus takes things a step further, calling us not only to holiness but to perfection. By perfection he means love without limit, boundary or fear. He means loving even those who hate and persecute us. He means loving when it is inconvenient, too expensive, dangerous and foolish. A calling like that can only come from a savior like Christ who loved us all the way to the cross and loves us even when we casually ignore his calling for us. Christ lived it and calls us to follow. It's a good thing we are not alone but go strengthened by the Spirit.

Blessings on this Lord's Day,
Sam

Leviticus 19:1-2, 9-18

1The LORD spoke to Moses, saying: 2Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them: You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy.

9When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. 10You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien: I am the LORD your God.

11You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; and you shall not lie to one another. 12And you shall not swear falsely by my name, profaning the name of your God: I am the LORD.

13You shall not defraud your neighbor; you shall not steal; and you shall not keep for yourself the wages of a laborer until morning. 14You shall not revile the deaf or put a stumbling block before the blind; you shall fear your God: I am the LORD.

15You shall not render an unjust judgment; you shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great: with justice you shall judge your neighbor. 16You shall not go around as a slanderer among your people, and you shall not profit by the blood of your neighbor: I am the LORD.

17You shall not hate in your heart anyone of your kin; you shall reprove your neighbor, or you will incur guilt yourself. 18You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against any of your people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.


Matthew 5:38-48

38“You have heard that it was said, ‘An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.’ 39But I say to you, Do not resist an evildoer. But if anyone strikes you on the right cheek, turn the other also; 40and if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well; 41and if anyone forces you to go one mile, go also the second mile. 42Give to everyone who begs from you, and do not refuse anyone who wants to borrow from you.

43“You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ 44But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. 46For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? 47And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? 48Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”

praising God with Mary

Good morning sisters and brothers,
This morning's reading is a traditionally known as Mary's song, though it's not clear whether Mary sung or spoke these beautiful words of praise. It's also called the Magnificat, which is the first word of the song in Latin. Luke tells the story of the angel announcing to Mary that she will have a son who will be called the Son of God. Right after this announcement, Mary goes to visit her older relative Elizabeth, who is also pregnant in a miraculous way. Elizabeth has never been able to have children and now is too old. Nevertheless, she is pregnant and will give birth to John the Baptist.

Mary goes to see Elizabeth, and Luke tells us that when Mary greets her, Elizabeth is filled with the Holy Spirit and feels the baby inside her jump for joy. She praises God for Mary's faithfulness and for the salvation Mary's child will bring Israel. Mary responds with this song of praise that proclaims how God is turning the world upside down and caring especially for the poor and oppressed. God's saving love breaks into the world in a new way in Jesus. Let Mary's praise guide your day as we prepare our hearts for Christ.

God bless,
Sam

Luke 1:47-55
47"My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, 48for he has looked with favor on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; 49for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. 50His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation. 51He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. 52He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; 53he has filled the hungry with good things, and sent the rich away empty. 54He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, 55according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever."

The Lord watches over strangers

Good morning friends,
Today's reading fits with Sunday's readings from Isaiah and John about God healing those in trouble. The psalmist praises God for the wonders of creation and for healing the sick and lifting up the oppressed. Scripture consistently teaches that God has a special heart for the poor and those oppressed by stronger people. Since God is that way, the church that follows God should also always keep a special watch out for those who are in trouble. Sometimes we do well, other times we reproduce the world's social hierarchy inside the church to our shame. How might God be calling you to strengthen the oppressed today?

God bless,
Sam

Psalm 146:5-10

5Happy are those whose help is the God of Jacob,
whose hope is in the LORD their God,
6who made heaven and earth,
the sea, and all that is in them;
who keeps faith forever;
7who executes justice for the oppressed;
who gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets the prisoners free;
8the LORD opens the eyes of the blind.
The LORD lifts up those who are bowed down;
the LORD loves the righteous.
9The LORD watches over the strangers;
he upholds the orphan and the widow,
but the way of the wicked he brings to ruin.
10The LORD will reign forever,
your God, O Zion, for all generations.
Praise the LORD!