Welcome to the JCPC Daily Reflections Blog. Reflections are daily devotionals authored by JCPC pastors, staff and members and provide insight, guidance and comfort to help you make it through each day. If you’d like to receive Reflections each day via email, provide your email address.
I have often heard the phrase, "God is as near as your every breath." What does that mean for you? How often do you notice your breathing throughout the day? When it's so quiet, that it's the only sound you hear... or when it's more pronounced like when you are exercising (on purpose or when you are trying to hurry). I would invite you today to be more aware of your every breath, and when you do remember that God is near to you. Use the familiar scripture with maybe some unfamiliar phrasing from Psalm 23 in The Message to help you breathe and pray today.
As we continue to navigate being away from each other and still wanting to stay connected, we are continuing to look for ways to help you connect with your church family. Would you like to connect with a small group? Many are meeting online through Zoom video chat and others are connecting through phone and email. Would you like to find someone to pray with and for during this time? Are you looking for a way to do Bible study or have a daily devotion to read? Look to the left side bar of this message under Quick Links, you will find several easy to access devotionals to use during this time. Please contact me (allisons@jcpcusa.org) to connect, pray and travel this journey together.
Prayer for Today
This is a reminder that God's spirit abides in each of us.
God, my shepherd! (breathe in)
I don't need a thing (breathe out)
You have bedded me down in lush meadows, (breathe in)
you find me quiet pools to drink from. (breathe out)
True to your word, (breathe in)
you let me catch my breath (breathe out)
and send me in the right direction. (breathe in)
Even when the way goes through
Death Valley, (breathe out)
I'm not afraid (breathe in)
when you walk at my side. (breathe out)
Your trusty shepherd's crook (breathe in)
makes me feel secure. (breathe out)
You serve me a six-course dinner (breathe in)
right in front of my enemies. (breathe out)
You revive my drooping head; (breathe in)
my cup brims with blessing. (breathe out)
Your beauty and love chase after me (breathe in)
every day of my life. (breathe out)
I'm back home in the house of God (breathe in)
for the rest of my life. (breathe out)
Amen.
Life doesn't feel normal. I want life as I've known it to be normal, but I can't deny the fact that it isn't normal and might not be for some time. Each day seems to rob us a little bit more of our normal lives because of the coronavirus pandemic. What can help as our lives are influx?
A minster I highly respect, Dr. Charles Poole, wrote that in the face of our loss of normalcy we need the beauty of constancy; the type of constancy that flowers such as the azaleas awaken us to through the beauty of Spring.
The constancy of Spring is needed in this time of loss. Here is what Dr. Poole said:
"Constancy which seems so much more beautiful and important in the absence of normalcy; which is what most of us have lost. Some, sadly have lost health, loved ones, and life. Many others have lost income and work. What all of us have lost is normalcy; the privileged normalcy of going to gyms and restaurants, parties and dinners; the basic normalcy of grocery shopping with confidence; the needed normalcy of gathering for worship, fellowship, school, and recreation. And, even, the intimate normalcy of visiting, and embracing, loved ones beyond our immediate family.
If, as one wise soul once said, "Grief is the aftermath of any deeply felt loss", this present moment of social isolation and distancing is a season of global, national, local, congregational, and personal grief; grieving the loss of so much of the normalcy most of us have always taken for granted."
I've been drawn to the beauty of constancy as I've posted floral pictures on-line the past several days. How about you? Here's the beauty of spring witness through our Daffodils 4 Hope.
The psalmist speaks to the constancy of God this way: "God is our refuge and our strength, an ever-present help in trouble." Psalm 46: 1
How can we bring some beautiful constancy to our church lives during times of trouble and social distancing?
I will be offering a virtual meeting entitled Solace several times a week on the Zoom platform. Solace will be a time to check in, hear about some self-care suggestions and share faith together as well as fellowship.
Keep us safe In your constant and ever-present love, O Lord, our rock and our strength and in our loss of normalcy, grant us peace, assurance of your care, and the solace that restores our souls. Amen.
Most Fridays, I will plan to use "Reflections" to update you on upcoming events, worship, and other important information you may need to know. This Sunday, we will begin our online worship service. You can watch it anytime beginning early Sunday morning from our website at jcpcusa.org. In addition to sermon and scripture, Heidi and Christian, our Co-Directors of Music, have planned some outstanding worship music. My message is entitled "Social Distancing" and it will be based on Matthew 22:35-40. When you watch the service, it would be good to find a Bible to have with you so you can read along.
On our church website we will also have "Church at Home" resources. This will include prayers, Bible studies, videos, and other links for your spiritual enrichment at home. We also want to encourage everyone to continue with their generous giving, even though we're not meeting at the church for worship and other activities. Your staff and your church leadership are working hard every day to make a difference in the lives of our community and our members. From creating a brand new worship service online, to providing resources that anyone can use at home, to caring for the most vulnerable of our church members, to creating times for online fellowship - your giving is what makes this happen. So, please use whatever way works for you -- whether it's mailing a check, dropping it by the church mailbox or office, or giving online through the church website or our JCPC app. Thank you for your generous and faithful giving!
Please keep our session and our staff in your prayers as we have our first online virtual meeting this Saturday morning. Pray that God would guide our decisions so that we can fulfill the mission of our church in these unprecedented times.
Finally, I have included a link to a wonderful prayer I found online at Christianity Today. It can serve as a guide for us to know how we should pray during this pandemic. I am choosing to use one of the petitions each day during my devotions to guide my prayers. I am also praying for you, the members of our congregation, every day.
. . . This list isn't comprehensive, of course, but it's a good place to start. My hope is that it can provide words for us as we pray collectively (if also virtually!) as a church body. We believe there is a God who bends his ear to listen, and so we pray:
1. For the sick and infected: God, heal and help. Sustain bodies and spirits. Contain the spread of infection.
2. For our vulnerable populations: God, protect our elderly and those suffering from chronic disease. Provide for the poor, especially the uninsured.
3. For the young and the strong: God, give them the necessary caution to keep them from unwittingly spreading this disease. Inspire them to help.
4. For our local, state, and federal governments: God, help our elected officials as they allocate the necessary resources for combatting this pandemic. Help them to provide more tests.
5. For our scientific community, leading the charge to understand the disease and communicate its gravity: God, give them knowledge, wisdom, and a persuasive voice.
6. For the media, committed to providing up-to-date information: God, help them to communicate with appropriate seriousness without causing panic.
7. For consumers of media, looking to be well-informed: God, help us find the most helpful local information to equip us to be good neighbors. Keep us from anxiety and panic, and enable us to implement the recommended strategies, even at a cost to ourselves.
8. For those with mental health challenges who feel isolated, anxious, and helpless: God, provide them every necessary support.
9. For the homeless, unable to practice the protocols of social distancing in the shelter system: Protect them from disease, and provide isolation shelters in every city.
10. For international travelers stuck in foreign countries: God, help them return home safely and quickly.
11. For Christian missionaries throughout the world, especially in areas with high rates of infection: God, provide them with words of hope, and equip them to love and serve those around them.
12. For workers in a variety of industries facing layoffs and financial hardship: God, keep them from panic, and inspire your church to generously support them.
13. For families with young children at home for the foreseeable future: God, help mothers and fathers to partner together creatively for the care and flourishing of their children. For single mothers and fathers, grow their networks of support.
14. For parents who cannot stay home from work but must find care for their children: God, present them with creative solutions.
15. For those in need of regular therapies and treatments that must now be postponed: God, help them to stay patient and positive.
16. For business leaders making difficult decisions that affect the lives of their employees: God, give these women and men wisdom, and help them to lead self-sacrificially.
17. For pastors and church leaders faced with the challenges of social distancing: God, help them to creatively imagine how to pastor their congregants and love their cities well.
18. For college and university students, whose courses of study are changing, whose placements are cancelled, whose graduation is uncertain: God, show them that while life is uncertain, their trust is in you.
19. For Christians in every neighborhood, community, and city: May your Holy Spirit inspire us to pray, to give, to love, to serve, and to proclaim the gospel, that the name of Jesus Christ might be glorified around the world.
20. For frontline health care workers, we thank you for their vocational call to serve us. We also pray:
God, keep them safe and healthy. Keep their families safe and healthy.
God, help them to be knowledgeable about the diagnosis and treatment of this disease, as well as the changing protocols.
God, help them to stay clear-minded in the midst of the surrounding panic.
God, deliver them from anxiety for their own loved ones (aging parents, children, spouses, roommates).
God, give them compassion for every patient in their care.
God, provide for them financially, especially if they fall ill and are unable to work.
God, help Christians in health care to exhibit extraordinary peace, so that that many would ask about the reason for their hope. Give them opportunities to proclaim the gospel.
God, we trust that you are good and do good. Teach us to be your faithful people in this time of global crisis. Help us to follow in the footsteps of our faithful shepherd, Jesus, who laid down his life for the sake of love. Glorify his name as you equip us with everything needed for doing your will. Amen.
Prayer for Today
Prayer included in Reflections. The link to this will also be on the sidebar under "Quick Links" so you may access it daily.
Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Rise and go toward the south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza." This is a desert place. And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip, "Go over and join this chariot." So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, "Do you understand what you are reading?" And he said, "How can I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.
Acts 8:26-31
Just a few weeks ago, shortly before Marshall was born, I took Vincent out for burgers and shakes. The waiter paused a moment and said, "this may be a weird question, but did you come in here in a Jedi robe once?" It was the same day I'd worn it to preach the message about Obi Wan and Gandalf calling Luke and Bilbo to their respective quests and Jesus calling the disciples, including Phillip.
Folks, that was 3 years ago. He didn't remember me and my face from wearing a funny outfit but because that day, an outfit I wore opened a conversation and we talked at length about church and faith and reaching people in meaningful ways.
The Spirit provides us daily opportunities to engage people in authentic and meaningful and memorable ways. Are we open? Do we respond like Phillip and ask for the stories of others and tell them our most important ones too?
Some of you must go to work and stores in the coming weeks. I hope your interactions will be brief and less close. Others of us will mostly interact by phone and conference calls. Those are still opportunities to reach people with love. They may be even greater opportunities because people are so starved for them. Look for a chance to listen and share. And then do that. Listen. Share. The Spirit is among us.
Prayer for Today
Lord, make me aware of people who want to share their story and hear mine. Make me observant to see, compassionate to listen, and brave to speak in love. Amen.
"The Lord is my light and my salvation -- whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life -- of whom shall I be afraid?" (Psalm 27:1, NIV)
Peter Steinke writes these words about anxiety: "When we are flooded with anxiety, we can neither hear what is said without distortion nor respond without clarity." My sense is that now is a time in which anxiety levels are high. It certainly feels like we are "flooded with anxiety." So, how do we respond? It is not easy in times like these. And yet, we may be able to hear words that can bring some clarity to how we respond. The words above from the Psalms are some of my favorite -- providing comfort in the midst of the storms of life.
Last week, in response to "storm" of the coronavirus pandemic, we chose not to meet for worship and canceled all church sponsored activities for now. We did this out of concern for the health of our church members and in response to the request by Governor Kemp for faith communities to consider not meeting for worship.
However, this Sunday we will be worshiping online. Your staff has been working together to create a new worship experience specifically for this occasion. You should be able to view the worship service beginning this Sunday morning through a link on our church website at jcpcusa.org. I'm asking all of us in the church family to gather "in spirit" Sunday morning as we worship God together in our homes.
Sunday's online worship service will include music, prayer, scripture, a sermon, and the opportunity to give. Throughout the season of Lent, we have been focusing on Bible passages from our Old Testament. This Sunday I have decided to break with that pattern and share a message I'm calling "Social Distancing." It will be based on Matthew 22:35-40. My hope is that it will give us some clear guidance for how to live in times such as these. Please make plans to join us and pass the word along to those who might need some grace and hope.
Prayer for Today
Gracious God -- our light, our salvation, and the stronghold of our lives -- help us when we seem to be overwhelmed by fear and anxiety. You made us. You know our strengths and our weaknesses. Enable us to live into our strengths. And lift us up in our weaknesses, that we might live the lives you give us without being overcome by fear. We pray this in the strong name of Jesus the Christ, our Lord and our Savior. Amen.
We are in the season of Lent and the past few days have been a mix of emotions and change. There are many messages we see and hear and some of it may be tremendous. It is sometimes hard to tune out all of the excess. You may be already overwhelmed by all that will take place in the coming days. I would invite you into a new space, or maybe you have already found it.
What story do you have to tell? From your life so far, the lessons you have learned. The traditions or special moments that you spent with family members during the Lent and Easter season. In our culture, lots of people are sharing stories on social media, through television, and other technology. I am going to invite you to share our story, the life of Jesus Christ and its impact on your life and our world.
So how do we help children, youth and adults in our community find themselves within the Lent & Easter story? Find some time where you can look into the eyes of another person and invite them to share some of their story. Then share part of your story and how Jesus Christ has made an impact on it.
I believe we have the best story in the world to share. You may be overwhelmed with resources to us during this time at home or you may be looking for how to continue being the church.
On that site, I will be updating with resources on the home page that myself or other staff members recommend.
Prayer for Today
I give thanks, Gracious God, for all of those people over two thousand years who have inspired others and played their part in passing on to generation after generation the living heritage of their faith. Especially I give thanks for those who lived their faith through difficulties and blessings. I pray that I may continue to grow in my faith and love through good times and bad. In Jesus' Name, Amen.
Fear is in the air. I can't remember in my lifetime a series of events like the ones that have unfolded in the past week. Sporting events shuttered, air travel grounded, school systems closing their doors and Sunday worship services migrating on-line. The primary catalysis is the fear of the corona virus.
While I don't like my life being dictated by fear I found myself reflecting on other times when fear permeated our souls. I thought of 9/11. I thought of the great recession. I was talking with Heidi as we were planning worship and I remember visiting a patient in the hospital back in 1987 who was suffering from a strange, unknown illness. Later, it was named AIDS. Through each of these "outbreaks" of fear, we persevered and rose above our fears. I don't want fear to win. I want faith and the belief we will rise above to win the day.
Yesterday if we would have worshiped together we would have prayed the following confession. I chose this prayer several weeks ago yet before the corona virus fear took hold. While fear and worry are wrong in and of themselves, both can take us to dark places. Remember God's light shines in the darkness so have faith.
Eternal God, you call us to seek first your kingdom and you promise to provide for all our needs. We confess; however, that we fall short in our faith. So often our anxieties lead us down paths that are non-productive. Our worries can consume our thoughts and we fret about things that never seem to happen. Rather than experiencing delight in the gift of today, we wallow apprehensively about the concerns for tomorrow. O God of grace, free us from our anxiety and grant us peace of mind so that in the gift of this hour and the blessings of this day, we might come to know you more deeply and rest in the assurance of your promise that nothing can separate us from your great love. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
May God lessen our fears, heal the sick, comfort the grieving and create a vaccine to stop Covid 19. In the days and weeks ahead let's call upon our better angels and together we shall rise above!
Prayer for Today
God of Grace; we lift our burdens to you and ask for deliverance. Free us from irrational fear, equip us with the knowledge of how to remain healthy and touch those who are ill with your healing touch. Amen.
You might know what it's like. The bills keep arriving after a medical procedure-from the anesthesiologist, the surgeon, the lab, the facility. Jason experienced this after an emergency surgery. He complained, "We owe thousands of dollars after insurance. If only we can get these bills paid, then life will be good and I'll be content! I feel like I'm playing the arcade game Whack-a-Mole"-where plastic moles pop up from their holes, and the player hits them wildly with a mallet.
Life comes at us like that at times. The apostle Paul certainly could relate. He said, "I know what it is to be in need," yet he'd "learned the secret of being content in any and every situation" (Philippians 4:12). His secret? "I can do all this through him who gives me strength" (v. 13).
When I was going through a particularly discontented time, I read this on a greeting card: "If it isn't here, where is it?" That was a powerful reminder that if I'm not content here and now, what makes me think I'd be if only I were in another situation?
How do we learn to rest in Jesus? Maybe it's a matter of focus. Of enjoying and being thankful for the good. Of learning more about a faithful Father. Of growing in trust and patience. Of recognizing that life is about God and not me. Of asking Him to teach me contentment in Him.
Prayer for Today
God, You are good and all You do is good. Teach me contentment in You. I want to learn. Amen.
Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity.
Colossians 4:5
Ever caught a dragon? I hadn't until my son convinced me to download a game on my phone. Producing a digital map mirroring the real world, the game allows you to catch colorful creatures near you.
Unlike most mobile games, this one requires movement. Anywhere you go is part of the game's playing field. The result? I'm doing a lot more walking! Anytime my son and I play, we strive to maximize every opportunity to nab the critters that pop up around us.
It's easy to focus on, even obsess over, a game that's crafted to captivate users. But as I played the game, I was convicted with this question: Am I this intentional about maximizing the spiritual opportunities around me?
Paul knew the need to be alert to God's work around us. In Colossians 4, he asked for prayer for an opportunity to share the gospel (v. 3). Then he challenged, "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity" (v. 5). Paul didn't want the Colossians to miss any chance of influencing others toward Christ. But doing so would require truly seeing them and their needs, then engaging in ways "full of grace" (v. 6).
In our world, far more things vie for our time and attention than a game's imaginary dragons. But God invites us to navigate a real-world adventure, every day seeking opportunities to point to Him.
Prayer for Today
Jesus, thank You that You're constantly at work in the people around me. Help me to make the most of every opportunity I have to demonstrate Your love and grace. Amen.
Finn, a Siamese fighting fish, lived at our house for two years. My young daughter would often bend down to talk with him after dropping food into his tank. When the topic of pets came up in kindergarten, she proudly claimed him as her own. Eventually, Finn passed away, and my daughter was heartbroken.
My mother advised me to listen closely to my daughter's feelings and tell her, "God knows all about it." I agreed that God knows everything, yet wondered, How will that be comforting? Then it occurred to me that God isn't simply aware of the events in our lives-He compassionately sees into our souls and knows how they affect us. He understands that "little things" can feel like big things depending on our age, past wounds, or lack of resources.
Jesus saw the real size of a widow's gift-and heart-as she dropped two coins into a temple collection box. He described what it meant for her as He said, "This poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. . . . [She put in] all she had to live on" (Mark 12:43-44).
The widow kept quiet about her situation but Jesus recognized that what others considered a tiny donation was a sacrifice to her. He sees our lives in the same way. May we find comfort in His limitless understanding.
Prayer for Today
God, thank You for knowing me completely and loving me. Help me to feel Your comfort when I consider Your infinite knowledge of my life. Amen.
