SATURDAY, MARCH 26

How lovely is your dwelling place, O Lord of hosts! ... Happy are those who live in your house, ever singing your praise! ... For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than live in the tents of wickedness. (Psalm 84:1-10)

How Lovely Is Your Dwelling Place

One of the advantages of aging is that you gain some perspective on life. Experience helps us to become more at ease with our stations in life. You no longer worry so much “about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will you wear” (Matt. 6:25). You realize what a wonderful gift life is and how important your relationship with God is.

Yet the good things in life continue to dazzle you. No matter how many sunrises and sunsets you see, they are amazing. The moon, the stars, waves crashing on the beach. The birds, the fish, how it all works together and renews itself. Our very lives. Children. Grand children. How insignificant we are compared with God and His creation. His love for us is unconditional and everlasting.

Our church is blessed by an army of volunteers. Every day people come in and help with big jobs and small. They donate their time, talents, and treasure to help and participate in our church's mission. They are making a statement about their own senses of wonder, and what they know is important in life. What a privilege it is to be around so many role models!

Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank you for your amazing creation, for inspiration and guidance along the way, and for allowing us to be near to you. Amen.

Carl Fische

FRIDAY, MARCH 25

“Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.” (Isaiah 41:10)

Anyone who has ever visited a patient in a hospital or rehabilitation center has located that patient with a room number followed by “Bed 1” or “Bed 2.”

Last September my dear friend from Atlanta, Susan, was diagnosed with a cerebral aneurysm which required immediate intervention. She underwent a coil procedure to clot off the artery and was then placed in a medically-induced coma to allow for brain healing. She was in ICU for 29 days and then went to a rehab center for an additional 22 days.

When Susan entered the rehab center, she was placed in room 308, Bed 2. For the majority of her stay on the unit, she was not assigned a roommate. She relished the solitude of her "single" room.

Susan comes from an energetic and out-going family where humor, quick wit and fun all play an important role in daily interactions. She also has strong Christian faith through her Southern Baptist roots. Following this neurological insult, Susan had to work extremely hard in PT, OT, and speech in order to relearn functional skills such as walking, writing, talking, and finally learning to drive. Her performance was not perfect initially, and both mental and physical errors were made.

Keeping a lighter and more playful mood within the group of family and friends, visitors were also subjected to “scrutiny.” When anyone came to visit and appeared to misspeak or make a faux pas, the family joke was “Bed 1 is open: do you need to climb in?”

As Susan relays her incredible odyssey through this terrifying ordeal, she writes, “I know that Bed 1 was never really empty during those days. For God was there with me, and all I had to do was look at that empty bed and know that I was NOT alone.” (With permission of Susan Angevine McKessy)

Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father: Help us to remember that in that empty chair, bed or corner of the sofa, we can invite you to sit quietly with us and know that we never have to face life's hardships alone. In Jesus’ name. Amen.

Linda Erickson

THURSDAY, MARCH 24

“He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk humbly with God?” (Micah 6:8)

Reflection for Lent

As we enter this time of Lent, it is a perfect time to contemplate our responsibility as Christians. Being a Christian includes kindness, compassion, and charity extended to all. So often we think our obligation ends with helping, supporting, and identifying with fellow Christians, but Jesus taught us to love, respect, and care for all those in need. At this time, I always remember a paragraph from the poem “The Ancient Mariner” by Samuel Taylor Coleridge:

He prayeth best, who loveth best

All things both great and small;

For the dear God who loveth us,

He made and loveth all.

During this time of Lent, let us renew our commitment to Jesus remembering that he included all and demonstrated devotion by extending good will, justice, empathy, and love to all.

Prayer: Dear God, during this time of Lent, let us renew our commitment to Jesus remembering that He included all and demonstrated devotion by extending good will, justice, and love to everyone. In this troubled world, let us shed light by doing good deeds and giving love and respect to all. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Nory Smith

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 23

“With man all this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” (Matthew 19:26)

Moving a Mountain One Day at a Time

Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could call on God and He would snap His fingers and make our disappointments and frustrations disappear?

I’m reminded of how God works all things together for a purpose. You can see it in all aspects of nature with God’s animal kingdom – they keep struggling overcoming daily obstacles. I think of students who toil long and hard for degrees, and patients undergoing therapy striving to regain their strength, or artists who paint landscapes, starting over and over until they’re right.

What about life’s disasters? Many thrown our way loom like mountains, but with God’s help we can work through them. Each time we take a step we grow. We feel pride, strength and satisfaction that we could never have experienced if all were handed to us so easily on that first try. There are lessons to learn and lives to touch along the way. At times our mountain prepares us to help others.

For me at this stage in life’s journey, it’s coping with aging parents – a mother who has Alzheimer and has taught me patience, acceptance, grief, and how to let go of the small stuff – a father undergoing dialysis showing me strength, humility, pain, and compliancy.

When we look back at what we have accomplished and endured with God’s help in moving that mountain and carrying our cross we can see ruts and furrows along the way. Where did they come from? I know I was not strong enough to make them on my own! I thank God for fellow Christians, for God’s almighty hand and when Jesus picked up our heavy cross and carried it for us.

Prayer: I know not what each day holds. This I do know, dear Lord, I want to leave my mark for You. Help me make every day count. Remind me to be willingly inconvenienced and used for You. Help me to shed bad habits that slow me down from doing Your will. When I rest, I open my heart that You may fill me with Your strength and spirit. Teach me to let go of yesterday, live fully today, and look with excitement toward tomorrow. Amen.

Amy Rogers

TUESDAY, MARCH 22

“For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly moved.” (Psalm 62:1-2)

Love Who You Are

My daughter is a 6^th grader this year and is writing poetry weekly for class. This one struck me, and I am sharing it with her permission.

Appreciate You

by Grace Sleder

If you don’t like how you look don’t change

You should love how you look

When you don’t do your best work

Try harder next time

You should love how you act

You should realize how amazing you are

Try not to care what others think

Just be the way you are

Appreciate You

Out of the mouth of babes comes answers that amaze me. This poem came from a difficult time where Grace was hurt from a situation she thought would be fun. She acted like an adult and moved on stronger from the hurt.

Sometimes, I find myself treating her like an adult, expecting her to do something I assume she should know. I have to stop and remember, she is only a child of 11 years. She always helps me to appreciate the person I have become, as her mother in her adult-like caring way.

Sometimes, she will let me hold her like a child. Thank God for relationships, where some roles are changing so fast, I am not sure where I am and must adjust to the new terrain.

Prayer: Dear Lord, help us to appreciate your love for us and the individual gifts you have given each one of us. Help us to appreciate those all around us today and tomorrow. Amen.

Kathleen Sleder

MONDAY, MARCH 21

“When Jesus turned and saw them following, he said to them, ‘What are you looking for?’ They said to him, ‘Rabbi (Teacher), where are you staying?’ He said to them, ‘Come and see.’” (John 1:38-39)

How often do we hear or use the expression, “Come and see”? We have all heard and used it countless times. “Come and see our new baby.” “Come and see this gorgeous sunset.” “Come and see the Big Dipper.” This expression evokes surprise and wonder. It points the way to something or someone special.

Andrew and John had been pointed toward Jesus by John the Baptist who said, “Look, here is the Lamb of God.” After Jesus’ invitation, the men followed him and spent a life-changing afternoon in his company. Afterward, Andrew told his brother, “We have found the Messiah.”

Yucatan Peninsula Mission uses the invitation “Come and See” as it seeks partners in ministries of health, education, and construction work. During this Lenten season, FPC will send two mission teams who have appointments with Jesus to go and see. The trips will be so much more than mere service or tourist opportunities abroad. They will be awe-inspiring journeys for those of us who will work, play, worship, study scripture, break bread, and live in Christian community with one another, our Mexican hosts, and Jesus himself. Lives will be changed; people in need will receive medical attention; the building of a school will progress; women will learn sewing skills; local children will share hugs and smiles and welcome strangers in their midst.

Today, prayerfully remember our mission teams. Visit ypminc.org or Yucatan Peninsula Mission on Facebook. Come and hear about our mission experiences when we return. Consider the invitation to “come and see” on a future trip. You need not be a master builder, teacher, or Spanish speaker. A willing heart and God’s grace are sufficient. Mission team members will be pointing the way.

Prayer: Loving God, open our eyes to see and our ears to hear your call to come and see, to do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly as we follow the One who comes in your name. Keep our mission team members in your care as they go out into the world. Amen.

Sheila Roebke

SUNDAY, MARCH 20

“These are the words of the holy one, the true one, who has the key of David, who opens and no one will shut, who shuts and no one opens: I know your works. Look, I have set before you an open door, which no one is able to shut.” (Revelation 3:7-8)

An Open Door

The following quotes are from a powerful video called “Through My Eyes.” The conclusion is from the sermon “The True Family of God” by The Reverend Dr. John Judson, FPC Birmingham MI, Feb. 6, 2011.

I feel “like a spiritual fraud.” I’m told I will be “cast into the Lake of Fire.” “Why isn’t God making me normal?” If this is a “test of faith,” will God keep testing and tempting me all my life?”

“Why would I choose to be this way?” “I need to be fixed.” “If you are sick, you can get better, right? I should be healed.” “I believed God would heal me.”

“Being this way is the ultimate sin. God hates this sin more than any other sin.” The counselor said, “I cannot change the way you feel but I can change your behaviors.” “What made me this way? I’m frustrated with God.” “I felt like I was a disease.”

A friend told me “The fact you are this way is challenging my faith.”

“They are hurt because I am this way.” “I need Christ in my life.”

“Do I need to choose between being this way or being a Christian?”

Who are the people who said all of these things? Who are the people who experienced all this pain? Are they the wrong color? From the wrong part of town? Criminals?

No!

They are all young Americans, raised in Christian churches and homes.

They have all found out – usually to their horror or dismay – that they are gay. And their Christian churches and homes and friends and families have turned their backs on them.

Prayer: Dear God, help us be your open door to all who want to be a part of the Family of God, to all who “seek to live lives that express the will of God as lived out in the life of Jesus, lives of love, grace, compassion, and justice.” Amen.

Diane Falconer