Category: First Steps

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First Steps – February 17, 2020

rising sun

How do you start each day?  With a cup of coffee?  A trip to the gym or a bit of exercise?  An early morning news broadcast?  I’m sure you have a daily routine.  If you don’t, I want to encourage you to begin one.  I have discovered that a morning routine prepares me for the rest of day.
 
For me, I awake while everyone else in my house is still asleep.  I like a quite house.  I grab a cup of coffee, sit in the same seat every morning, practice reflective prayer by focusing on a passage of scripture or a theological concept, and then sit in silence for a period of time.  Lastly, I will watch a morning news show to catch up on the events of the world.  Granted, there is nothing fancy about this other than it is my routine.  When I’m not able to start each day this way, the day is muddled, and I feel like I’m walking around disjointed.
 
When I think about routines, I think of Daniel 6:10 –  
10 Daniel always prayed to God three times every day. Three times every day, he bowed down on his knees to pray and praise God. Even though Daniel heard about the new law, he still went to his house to pray. He went up to the upper room of his house and opened the windows that faced toward Jerusalem. Then Daniel bowed down on his knees and prayed just as he always had done.
 
Always, every day, just as he always had done…I like those descriptive words.
 
Routines sound mundane but they can be an anchor in a storm.  When Daniel faced adversity, it was his prayers that sustained him.  Prayers that were formed over multiple-routine-daily-moments.  Three times a day, he prayed.  It was a part of his life.
 
Here is my question for you:  Do you perceive your life as out of control?  If so, maybe you need a morning routine that grounds you and prepares you for the day ahead.  Give it a try!  All it takes is three months and it will become a daily habit. 

 

This week’s reading:

  • Monday –  Romans 12
  • Tuesday – Romans 13
  • Wednesday – Romans 14
  • Thursday – Romans 15
  • Friday – Romans 16

 

Please Pray for:

  • Our ministers and their families.
  • Those who are unwillingly absent.
  • The United Methodist Church family.
  • Our nation and our leaders.
  • The World.
  • The Lost.

 

 

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First Steps – February 10, 2020

A few months ago, someone asked me about cultivating a more meaningful prayer
life.  We talked about what that meant, what steps to take, and what to expect during the process. Reflecting on that conversation made me think of this quote from an anonymous Russian Orthodox writer from the 19th Century:

     “Silently descend into the depths of you heart. Call on the name of the Jesus Christ frequency. This is the way to experience interior illumination. Many things will become clear to you, even the mysteries of the Kingdom of God. You will discover a depth of mystery, a brightness, when you learn to descend [inwardly].
     The truth is:  we are aliens to ourselves. We have little desire to know ourselves. We run after many things in this world, and by doing so run away from ourselves. We exchange truth for trinkets. We kid ourselves [by thinking] I would like to have time for prayer and the spiritual life, but the cares and demands of life take all my time and energy.
     Which is more important?  Which is temporary?  Which is eternal?  Making this decision will lead you to wisdom or keep you in ignorance.
     Prayer is the heart of the Christian life.  It is essential.  Prayer is both the first step and the fulfillment of the devout life. We are directed to pray always.  Particular times may be set for other acts of devotion, but for prayer there is no special time.  We are to pray constantly.  
     Sit alone in a quiet place.  Take your mind away from every earthly and vain thing.  Bow your head to your chest and be attentive, not to your head, but to your heart.  Observe your breathing.  Let your mind find the place of your heart.  At first you will be uncomfortable.  If you continue without interruption it will become a joy.
     The most wonderful result of this kind of mental silence is that sinful thought which comes knocking at the door of the mind are turned away.  Pray and think what you will.  Pray and do what you want.  Your thoughts and activity will be purified by prayer.” 

I like the underlined portion. Sit alone in a quiet place, reflect on God’s love for you. Consider how He sustains all things. Invite the Holy Spirit to move you to a place of peace and joy. 

 
This week’s reading:

  • Monday –  Romans 7
  • Tuesday – Romans 8
  • Wednesday – Romans 9
  • Thursday – Romans 10
  • Friday – Romans 11

Please Pray for:.

  • The St. Paul UMC family.
  • Those who are unwillingly absent.
  • Those who are grieving and depressed.
  • The United Methodist Church.
  • Our nation and our leaders.
  • The World.
  • The Lost.

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First Steps – February 2, 2020

For nearly thirty-three years Jesus, the Good Shepherd, looked for lost sheep in difficult terrain. Is it possible for such a devoted shepherd to ignore a returning stray sheep? Would it matter where the sheep had been, the faithfulness of the sheep, or how long the sheep had been gone? Absolutely not. The Good Shepherd would look with pity, listen to its cries, evaluate the health of the sheep, place it on his shoulders and carry it back to the safety of the flock.  

I love the way the Book of Jude ends with a benediction:  “Now to him who is able to keep you from falling and to make you stand without blemish in the presence of his glory with rejoicing, to the only God our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.”

This week, I invite you to consider The Good Shepherd who seeks and saves. Consider the depth, height, and length he travels so that anyone would know of his love and mercy. It doesn’t matter where you are today, how broken you might think you are, or how fragmented your relationships are; nothing is beyond the care of the Good Shepherd.  

 

This week’s reading:
Monday –  Romans 2
Tuesday – Romans 3
Wednesday – Romans 4
Thursday – Romans 5
Friday – Romans 6

 

Please Pray for:.
The St. Paul UMC family.
Those who are unwillingly absent.
Those who are grieving and depressed.
The United Methodist Church.
Our nation and our leaders.
The World.
The Lost.

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First Steps – January 27, 2020

A few weeks ago, I had the privilege of visiting Normandy, France.  It had long been a bucket list item for me.  I have always been a World War II buff and marveled at the heroism of the Allied Invasion of Normandy and the entire war for that matter.  However, walking on Utah and Omaha Beaches, seeing the topography, having an educated guide point out the historical steps and events was not just emotional but enlightening.

How humbling it was to see and then envision the efforts made to secure freedom in the face of tyranny.  While I was there, I thought about Romans 6:17-19:

So, since we’re out from under the old tyranny, does that mean we can live any old way we want? Since we’re free in the freedom of God, can we do anything that comes to mind? Hardly. You know well enough from your own experience that there are some acts of so-called freedom that destroy freedom. Offer yourselves to sin, for instance, and it’s your last free act. But offer yourselves to the ways of God and the freedom never quits. All your lives you’ve let sin tell you what to do. But thank God you’ve started listening to a new master, one whose commands set you free to live openly in his freedom!   I’m using this freedom language because it’s easy to picture. You can readily recall, can’t you, how at one time the more you did just what you felt like doing—not caring about others, not caring about God—the worse your life became and the less freedom you had? And how much different is it now as you live in God’s freedom, your lives healed and expansive in holiness?

Because we have freedom, in fullness of the word, we are to not take it for granted but to use it to love God and others.  We are not free to simply do what feels good but to make a difference in the lives of others.  We do this most effectively when we love others as ourselves.  Jesus sacrificed for us so that we could live for him.

This week’s reading:

  • Monday –  1 Thessalonians 5
  • Tuesday – 2 Thessalonians 1
  • Wednesday – 2 Thessalonians 2
  • Thursday – 2 Thessalonians 3
  • Friday – Romans 1

Please Pray for:.

  • The St. Paul UMC family.
  • Those who are unwillingly absent.
  • Those who are grieving and depressed.
  • The United Methodist Church.
  • Our nation and our leaders.
  • The World.
  • The Lost.

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First Steps – January 13, 2020

In times of anxiety, peace is worth its weight in gold.  After a very contentious meeting, a friend of mine prayed this prayer:

Lord of the 23rd Psalm,
I have known death,
and you have refreshed my soul.
I have known fear, 
and you have comforted me.
I have known hunger, 
and you have set a feast before me.
In the darkest valley
no calamity of humankind or nature has separated us.

Teach me to walk as you walk
besides those in mourning
so that they will know joy,
besides those in fear
that they will know comfort,
besides those in hunger
that they will feast until their cup overflows.

As your goodness and love follow me,
may mine follow my neighbor
that the threat of the worst terrors
may turn to the knowledge of the comforts of
the house of the Lord,
where you have invited us to dwell forever.

And so let me strive to help build on earth
what you have promised us in heaven.
In the face of all calamity, present and yet to come,
let me lead my neighbor beside quiet waters,
the quiet waters of the Good Shepherd.  Amen.

As you begin this week, maybe a week filled with anxiety, pray this prayer.  If not, pray it nonetheless.  

This week’s reading:
Monday –  Matthew 28
Tuesday – 1 Thessalonians 1
Wednesday – 1 Thessalonians 2
Thursday – 1 Thessalonians 3
Friday – 1 Thessalonians 4

Please Pray for:.
The St. Paul UMC family.
Those who are unwillingly absent.
Those who are grieving and depressed.
The United Methodist Church.
Our nation and our leaders.
The World.
The Lost.

Please Pray for:.

  • The Ministers and St. Paul UMC family.
  • Those who are unwillingly absent.
  • Those who are grieving and depressed.
  • The United Methodist Church.
  • Our nation and our leaders.
  • The World.
  • The Lost.

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First Steps – January 13, 2020

I am often asked, “Why should I love God?”  There are multiple reasons why, but Bernard of Clairvaux gave these reasons.  He said one is to love because there is no one more worthy of your love.  Two, no one can return more in response to the love he or she has received.
 
He wrote, “God deserves our love because he first loved us.  His love for us was genuine because he sought nothing for himself.  See the object of his love:  enemies.  ‘For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him though the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!’ (Romans 5:10).  God’s love was unconditional…How much did he love?  The answer is in John’s Gospel: ‘For God so loved the world that he gave this one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.’ (John 3:16).  The Son, speaking of himself said, ‘The greatest way to show love for friends is to die for them.’ (John 15:13).  We, the wicked, then should love the Righteous One in return.”
 
Ponder the deep love of God for you.  Allow it to drench your soul.  Respond in awe at the vastness of His love. 


This week’s reading:

  • Monday –  Matthew 23
  • Tuesday – Matthew 24
  • Wednesday – Matthew 25
  • Thursday – Matthew 26
  • Friday – Matthew 27


Please Pray for:.

  • The Ministers and St. Paul UMC family.
  • Those who are unwillingly absent.
  • Those who are grieving and depressed.
  • The United Methodist Church.
  • Our nation and our leaders.
  • The World.
  • The Lost.

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