Resources for Prayer and Devotions
Meditations from Carol Dean Henn
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For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from fornication.
1 Thessalonians 4:3 This verse uses a word we’re not always sure we understand: fornication. Yes, we know what that means technically, but what does it mean as part of an instruction from God? Certainly, it means that we are to abstain from using people for sexual purposes, to gratify our physical desires with no thought of that person’s humanity, sanctity, or human needs and feelings. We know that’s wrong; no explanation needed. We know that this verse is also linked to the expectation that we will be faithful to our mates. God simply knows that, with fidelity, people have the freedom and trust that enhances their relationship and allows for true intimacy. Extremely conservative interpretations of this verse hold that any contact before marriage is forbidden. A more humane interpretation understands that this part of life – of intimacy – is too important to be an unknown or a subject of fear before marriage. What we can know is that God wants us to respect each other, value each other’s humanity, and be trustworthy recipients of another’s most intimate love. ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 epent therefore, and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. Acts 3:19-20
Today’s verse is especially interesting because it goes beyond the familiar call to repentance and changing our lives. It tells us that when we make that decision – when we turn away from the wrongs we’ve done or the sins that have hobbled us – something quite wonderful happens. We feel not only renewed but refreshed as well. That word makes us think of a welcome shower when we’ve become dirty; a swim in cool, clear water on a hot summer day; something delightful to drink when we’re thirsty—something that does more than quench our thirst, it seems to quench our spirits. That’s the refreshment that comes when we return to God. That promise should make us not just want to turn to him, but to run to him. ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 Like an eagle that stirs up its nest, that hovers over its young, the Lord spread his wings and caught
his people, he carried them on his pinions. Deuteronomy 32:11 Like Jesus, the prophets, psalmists, and teachers of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) used examples from nature to teach lessons. We may be less familiar with wildlife than our ancient ancestors were, but we have seen films and photos. We can picture an eagle hovering over its young, soaring beneath its eaglets to catch them as they learn to fly. We see adult birds feeding little ones in trees in our backyards. We watch rabbits make nests for their bunnies. We sometimes see a possum cross the road with her young hanging onto her. Nature can teach us many things about care-taking, love, and devotion. No wonder God delighted in making nature as beautiful and diverse as it is: silvery sailfish, cardinals, cats nursing orphaned kittens, and mares nuzzling foals. And in almost every species – canines (wolves), primates (gibbons), fish (angelfish), rodents (beavers) and even insects (termites) -- there are those who mate for life and care for their young as well as for others. Lessons to learn, indeed. ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 Shall we receive good at the hand of God, and not receive the bad?
Job 2:10 When Job posed this question to his wife … who was infuriated by the suffering that had descended on her good and righteous husband … he wasn’t suggesting that God has a bucket filled with good things and a bucket filled with bad things, and that when God has tossed enough good things at us from the first bucket, he starts tossing bad things from the second bucket. God doesn’t work that way, and Job knew it. Job simply recognized the realities of life. Bad things happen. Sometimes really, really bad things. To good people. Really, really good people. This is a world in which babies can be diagnosed with cancer. Young people’s lives can be cut short by a car accident. Older folks can suffer from dementia. This isn’t Eden or Heaven, and Job knew that. So should we. “Lord, I do not ask you for a trouble-free life. I ask only that you be with me to guide, comfort, and restore me, as you did Job, when troubles come.” ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 No one can serve two masters.
Matthew 6:24 When the pain of divorce hits a family, children are often caught in the middle. They feel torn between two parents. When a workplace is dysfunctional, several people can be trying to give orders and ‘be the boss.’ No one can function well in such situations. And we can’t function well in our lives when we’re trying to obey competing impulses or contradictory standards. There is room in our lives for so many joys, interests, and blessings. But we have to know what matters most. We have to know that God is at the center of our lives, and that … when conflicts arise or choices must be made… we will serve God. ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 For he delivers the needy when they call, the poor and those who have no helpers.
Psalm 72:12 Helpers are precious people. For almost 20 years, my administrative assistant, Betsy, was an extraordinary helper to me, professionally and personally. I never could have done all that I did if she had not had my work so well organized and done her own work so superbly. She had complete control of my calendar. If people wanted to see me, they knew they should call Betsy, not me. Somehow, she fitted countless meetings, events, and obligations into my schedule while still building in time for me to do my work. I trusted her to also manage large swaths of my personal life-- doctors’ appointments, community commitments, and care for my mother. In workplaces and churches, schools and organizations, there are many other Betsys who are making an enormous difference for good in our lives and our work. Working without fanfare or fame, they move the work of the world forward. Yes, the world needs its Stephen Hawkings and Steven Spielbergs, and the church needs its pastors and Popes. But the church and the world also need their Betsys. They are God’s special hands among us. God knows how important helpers are. He wants us to have helpers and to be helpers. Today, let’s give thanks for the helpers in our church, our world, and our lives. “Thank you, Lord, for Betsy; valued helper and dear friend. Thank you for all the Betsys in the church and in the world. Help me, too, to be a helper..” ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 Fathers make known to children your faithfulness.
Isaiah 38:19 In some ways, this verse relates to Saturday’s verse. It is often said that babies are not born hating others. Hate has to be learned. It has to be taught to people. We teach children many things: to brush their teeth, to make their beds, to do their homework, and to say thank-you. Mothers usually teach daughters to bake, and dads teach their sons how to fish. (Or vice versa!) All important lessons. But how often do we teach children, deliberately and consistently, to love, to accept, to be kind to all people? Have we said to them, flat out, that hatred is wrong? How often do we speak to them of our faith? How often have they seen us pray? How often do we tell them that God has blessed us? Or do we think that’s the job of pastors and Sunday School? Parents and grandparents, aunts and uncles, these are questions for you. We wonder what causes a young girl, in the Midwest of the America, to get on a plane and fly to the Middle East to be the wife of an ISIS terrorist. We wonder why a teenage boy from a small town in Oklahoma starts admiring Hitler and wearing a swastika. Maybe they were never taught about what really matters. Maybe it’s time we all began teaching. ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 Let each of you look not to his own interests, but to the interests of others.
Philippians 2:4 In the prayers which we said in church today, some words struck me: “…. all who long to hear a word of hope and kindness.” Suddenly, I pictured those who are lonely and forlorn, people with longings we don’t see as we hurry about our busy lives; longings for things as simple as hope and kindness. Perhaps the longing is felt by a widower in the congregation. A neighbor whose family lives far away. The teenager who feels lost at a con-fusing time in life. The person in a nursing home who never – never – gets a visitor. If we can’t actually visit these people, we can call. We can send a note. We can pause for a moment to talk to someone. “Lord, open my eyes to see the longing in others – not just their wants and wishes, but their longings. Then help me to respond.” ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 You know the message God sent to the people of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ–he is Lord of all.
Acts 10:36 “He is Lord of all.” We believe that or we don’t. This has been a year in which the ugly tendency of human beings to hate each other – to make judgments according to race, creed, gender, or other characteristics -- has been on full and sickening display. We may never know why some people feel the need to categorize, judge, and hate. When the natural impulse of the human heart is to love, and when the teachings of Jesus and the disciples, as in today’s verse, are so clear, how can anyone choose to hate and to harm others? We can pray for such people, but perhaps our first job is to look into our own hearts and souls, to make sure that they are aligned with Jesus, who is “Lord of all.” Not just our ethnic group. Not just white people. Not just Protestants. Not just Americans. Not just Western Europeans. Not just college graduates or blue-eyed people. “Lord of all.” ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and we will be satisfied.” Jesus said to him, have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me?”
John 14:8-9 How frustrating for Jesus! Philip and the other disciples had witnessed Jesus’s miracles. They had heard his teachings, seen his love in action, and been taught about God the Father. And yet, Philip had not understood. He had not yet realized that, in Jesus, the wisdom, the love, and the persona of God the Father was embodied. Perhaps Philip simply didn’t allow himself to believe that the very teacher with whom he walked and talked was, indeed, God himself. God is not hiding himself in an unapproachable heavenly lair. He is – in Christ and in the ever-present Spirit – here, with us, now and every day. He is in the love we feel, the prayers we offer, the answers we get, the blessings we see, the very air we breathe. “Lord, like Philip, I can be blind and ignorant. Help me to see you --- to recognize and rejoice in you – in every moment and place in my life. In all of life. Most of all, to see you in Jesus.” ©Carol Dean Henn, 2017 |
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AuthorCarol Dean Henn of St. John’s Windish Lutheran Church in Bethlehem, PA |