Easter Sunday Devotion

Alleluia!

Christ is Risen!

Praise the Lord! Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him in his mighty firmament! Praise him for his mighty deeds: praise him according to his surpassing greatness!

Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp! Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!

Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with clashing cymbals! Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! PRAISE THE LORD! (Psalm 150)

The tomb is empty. He is not here. He is risen. Great joy and amazement fill those who see and hear!!!!!!!

And so we today are full of praise and wonder, great joy and astonishment, as we relive that Easter morning, so long ago.

Our daughter was just five years old, when she brought the little box to her daddy, wrapped as only a five year old can, in pink tissue paper. It was her present to him for his birthday.

When her daddy opened it and there was nothing in it, he laughed and said “Thanks for nothing sweety.”

She was crushed, and with tears in her eyes, she explained that the box was not empty. It was full of her kisses she had blown in the box. It was filled with her love to the very top, just for her daddy.

Her daddy never forgot about her box, so full of kisses and love. It is still in his dresser drawer today, twenty-five years later.

The tomb is empty, but the love – that love that God has for each and everyone of us – is so amazing, so astonishing, that we are filled to the very brim with joy and praise and wonder on this Easter morning. We will never forget what Christ has done for us.

Alleluia! Christ is Risen! PRAISE THE LORD! Amen.

Suzanne Ellis

April 7 Devotion

Scripture: Psalm 63:1-8

It’s the Saturday before Easter, and I am filled with anticipation. Over what, you may ask. Well, there is the obvious reason of tomorrow being the most significant day in our Christian year. The events of this day and those preceding cause us to experience a significant range of emotions. There are two particular aspects of this year’s Easter experience about which I am most excited. The first is being able to participate in our church’s 40-hour prayer vigil. This day I will have the privilege of praying for two hours, in the morning with my daughter, and in the evening with my Emmaus friends. What a wonderful way to prepare for Easter Sunday.

The second thing about which I am excited is the worship experience I will have tomorrow morning. Certainly the whole church atmosphere will exude the beauty of spring and new life, from the beautiful, fragrant flowers to the brightly colored clothes we will wear. There is no doubt that this environment will be conducive to a lovely hour spent in the sanctuary. These things do not, however, make our church service a worship experience. The more I read and hear, the more convinced I am that the key ingredient to a worship experience that leaves you exclaiming “we had church today!” is our attitude. I recently attended a worship seminar where it was pointed out that the way many of us think of worship is actually totally backwards. A great many of us, myself included, tend to look upon church as an opportunity to sit and be entertained for an hour. That places us in the role of “audience” and the pastors, choir and other participants in the role of “performer” or “entertainer.” I see now that worship is NOT a spectator sport!

Think about it. God should be for whom worship is planned, and we should be the most active participants, assisted and inspired by the choir, pastors and others involved. We should not rely on any one or any thing to make the worship service work for us or be an intimate time between us and God. For me, this idea is a radical change from the way I grew up, but I now realize it is the only way to achieve true worship, a time to praise and honor and thank God. Worship is not about socializing with our friends, although that is a nice by-product of being together. Worship is also not a time to come and be present physically but be absent spiritually because we cannot let go of all the other things going on in our lives. We should check those competing concerns at the door to the sanctuary so to speak and turn them over to God so that we can put our energy into what we came to the church to do. Finally, worship is not about how much we liked the anthem or how good or bad the pastor’s sermon may have been. It is not about what kind of music the choir sang, whether they used the organ or piano, or maybe even drums and guitar, what color the pastors’ robes are, or whether people showed their joy by clapping, raising their hands to God or even dancing. These types of things are merely elements of a service which can certainly enhance our experience, but what we get out of worship should not be dependent on them all being just the way we like them. Remember, God is the audience, and He is pleased with all different kinds of expressions of praise and gratitude, not just those that have been used for the past hundred years. While Easter Sunday , a naturally joyful day in our churches, is a great time to experience the active, enthusiastic worshipping of our Lord, it can be done on any Sunday if we bring the right attitude with us. Each time we enter into worship, we have cause to celebrate: Christ is risen indeed!

Psalm 63 paints a beautiful image of that attitude. Verses 1 and 2 reflect the psalmist’s hunger for God, a longing to be in His presence–“I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you.” Verses 3 and 4 identify why we worship God - - “Because your steadfast love is better than life” and our response to that love “I will lift up my hands and call on your name;” “my mouth praises you with joyful lips.” When we are fully present in worship, singing hymns with enthusiasm and gratitude, praying earnestly, pondering the meaning of all that is spoken and sung, we can’t help but have an amazing experience. In fact, the psalmist likens it to our souls being satisfied “as with a rich feast.” How is that for something to look forward to on any Sunday morning? The opportunity awaits us each week to eagerly anticipate our worship experiences and to make them all they can be. Very simply, we get out of it what we put into it. Our worship setting may change, the music we sing may vary (as I noted, guitars and drums are legitimate worship instruments), and those who assist in the service may also change, but our worship experience doesn’t have to.

Prayer: Dear God, thank you for continually opening our eyes to those things that enrich our relationship with you. Help us to never stop thirsting for you or praising your name with all of our being. Amen.

Mary Taylor

April 6 Devotion

Please read John 13:36-38

Before Jesus was arrested, Peter boldly and confidently proclaimed to Jesus that he was with him to the end. But Jesus warned him that, no, he would deny having anything to do with him. In fact he would deny him three times before morning.

Have you ever made a big, righteous pronouncement…only to be smacked down?

I imagine that Peter wanted to defend himself against such an outrageous claim. How could Jesus even suggest that he, Peter, would deny him? I imagine Peter rehearsing over in his mind their relationship, and Peter’s obedience, and his position within the inner circle of Jesus’ very closest friends.

After all, this was Peter who dropped his nets—no questions asked—in obedience to Jesus’ summons to follow him. This was Peter, who was with Jesus at Capernaum when Jesus first cast out demons. This was Peter, who traveled with Jesus and witnessed, first hand, how he turned water into wine, how he healed paraplegics, how he gave sight to the blind; this was Peter, who witnessed how he could calm even a storm; this was Peter, who witnessed how Jesus could give thanks for resources that appeared scarce, and then feed 5000 people; this was Peter, who when summoned, walked onto the water to meet Jesus; this was Peter, who witnessed the very Transfiguration of Jesus.

How could Peter have denied Jesus? I’m sure glad I’m not like that.

No, I’m with Jesus to the end. And shame on anyone who isn’t. I denied myself, took up a cross, and followed Jesus.

I mean, I didn’t completely deny myself. Who’s going to take care of me if I don’t? And my family? The girls have a lot of needs, and college isn’t too far in the future. Let’s not get radical. I gave up some for Jesus.

And maybe I didn’t go everywhere Jesus wanted me to go. But there are only so many hours in a day. And gas is over $2.00 a gallon. One person can only do so much. Besides, charity begins at home.

And, ok, maybe I went some places that Jesus didn’t want me to go, but let’s not meddle!

When I think of the ways I deny Jesus daily; when I think of the ways I have failed to love God or to love my neighbor as myself, I am humbled. All I can do is to seek forgiveness.

Dear God, forgive us for the ways we deny you; by your spirit give us strength to be the people who give witness to your love, that the world may be transformed.

Jeff Taylor

April 5 Devotion

Lectionary Readings: Psalms 102, 142, 143; Jeremiah 20:7-11; 1 Corinthians 10:14-17, 11:27-32; and John 17: 1-11 (12-26)

Then He poured water into a basin and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel that was tied around Him. John 13:5

“Then He took a loaf of bread, and when He had given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” And He did the same with the cup after supper, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.” Luke 22:19-20.

Today is Holy Thursday. It is also known as Maundy Thursday and is traditionally commemorated by the sharing of the bread and the cup to remember the events of the Last Supper shared by Jesus with the disciples. In preparation for this meal, arrangements for a room and the food were made, which was probably a Passover meal. As guests arrived at their destination, a servant would wash their feet to provide comfort—another customary activity. According to the Gospel of John, Jesus took on the servant’s role by washing the disciple’s feet as they gathered for this meal.

In researching this event a little further I found that the word Maundy comes from the Latin “mandatum” which is translated to the English word “commandment”. Jesus also gave the commandment at the Last Supper that the disciples should “love one another”. Jesus demonstrated a model for the expression of that love by washing the feet of His disciples as a servant would. It is one more example of Jesus’ use of the “everyday” or “common” experiences of His followers to show them a new way to act or think about something.

Many times we take worship experiences for granted. We go through the motions because the words or the sequence is familiar. Or we just say the words without pondering their meaning. Jesus asks the disciples to consider a radical behavior change: to love one another. The words are deceptively simple, but the actions required are definitely radical and life changing.

One of the anthem’s we have used in connection with communion has been In Remembrance. This beautiful musical setting helps me remember even more forcefully, the commandment to love one another. The words seem simple, but the actions suggested are also radical.

In Remembrance Words by Ragan Courtney and Music by Buryl
( Also in Faith We Sing-- # 2254)

In remembrance of me, eat this bread,
In remembrance of me, drink this wine.
In remembrance of me, pray for the time when God’s own will is done.
In remembrance of me, heal the sick.
In remembrance of me, feed the poor.
In remembrance of me, open the door and let your brother in, let him in.
Take, eat, and be comforted,
Drink and remember, too,
That this is my body and precious blood, shed for you, shed for you.
In remembrance of me, search for truth.
In remembrance of me, always love.
In remembrance of me, don’t look above, but in your heart, in your heart
Look in your heart for God.
Do this in remembrance of me.
Do this in remembrance of me.
In remembrance of me.

The line: “In remembrance of me, don’t look above, but in your heart for God” reminds me that the requirement of the commandment to love one another begins with me. I have to be willing to take responsibility for the task to love one another as an outgrowth of the sacrifice Jesus made for me. God is not sitting on a soft cloud somewhere vaguely heavenward, but is active in the world through the words and actions of his servants on earth. He has no hands, but our hands. In remembrance, let us love one another.

Dear God, guide us as we join together this day to remember you through the sharing of bread and “wine”. Quiet our minds and busyness so that we may accept the love that the elements signify. Call to us again through the familiar words. Help us to listen this time to their
true meaning. Help us to accept the challenge to love one another—to take on the mantle of servanthood. In Remembrance, Amen.

Chyrl Budd

April 4 Devotion

Trust

Lectionary Readings:
In the morning, Psalm 55, In the evening, Psalm 74, Jeremiah 17:5-10, 14-17, Philippians 4:1-13 John 12:27-36

While preparing this devotional we came across a great definition for the word “trust”: confident expectation of something; hope. We especially liked the “confident” part. Synonyms for the word trust include, certainty, belief and faith.

Our family recently made a leap of faith, moving from Virginia back to Huntington. Being “worriers by nature”, there were a great many things for us to consider (which translates into… worry about), not the least of which were logistics, logistics, logistics. These included getting the house sold, pulling the kids out of school in the middle of the year and getting them resettled, Bob giving up a great job and Jen finding employment in a new city, etc., etc., etc. Yet something (that still small voice?) was telling both of us that it was the right thing to do… that there was something better for us here once we stepped out on faith.

We’d talked about moving back for years but never really had the “conviction” until last August while on our way up for a visit. After much prayer and finally coming to the decision this was what God would have us do, we decided the summer of 2007 would be a good time to make the move (the kids would be out of school and it would give us about a year to plan things out). Well, God had a something else in mind altogether and at that point took over every aspect of the move (including changing our time table by almost a year) and all we could do was “hang on” and be amazed at what we were witnessing before our very eyes. From the house selling in a day, to Jenny having two job interviews lined up (without having worked for the last nine years!) before we even left VA, to Steve being able to fly down and help us drive one of the cars back, to all the little logistical challenges in between - all of this can only be attributed to God (we certainly didn’t do much to make all of this happen!).

Each remarkable step in this move was just one more example that proved to us when we put our total trust in the Lord and confidently expect Him to take care of things according to His will… we will continue to be amazed and experience a peace and joy that is beyond compare.

We’re still not sure why the Lord wants us here or why He made the move so quick and painless (most things like this aren’t). Maybe it’s to be near family, maybe it’s something else, we just don’t know. But what we both do know is that it feels right and that we’re all very happy.

“Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself.” Matthew 6:34 (NIV)

“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? Luke 12:25-26 (NIV)

Dear Lord,
Please forgive us when we fall short in remembering to trust you in all things. So often we “forget to remember” all those times in the past that you guided us through the tough and troubling times in our lives and that You are the answer to any hardship or worry we will ever face. From the many “little problems” in our routine, everyday lives to the “big”, life changing events, let us be reminded that all we have to do is place our full faith and belief in you and, that as long as we “confidently” trust you and are in your will… everything will work out all right. Amen.

Bob & Jenny Matthews

April 3 Devotion

“When I try, I fail. When I trust, He succeeds.”
Anonymous

Scriptures: John 18:15-27 and John 21

Foolishly, we may try to serve God depending on our own strength and willpower. We can be shocked to recognize just how weak we are without His strength.

Such was the case with the disciple Peter, whose human frailty was exposed before he learned to trust God for His strength. In the 18th chapter of John, after Jesus was arrested, Peter stood outside the court of the high priest, warming himself next to a charcoal fire. Peter was surrounded by court officers and slaves. In this lonely, frightening time, Peter must still have been troubled by Jesus’ statement to him the night before. Jesus had said, “Before the cock crows three times, you will deny me.”

“Me?” Peter must have thought. At the time of Jesus’ declaration, Peter had been bragging that he would lay down his own life for Jesus. Now, in front of this fire, his weakness came to light. Three times Peter was asked about Jesus, and three times he denied any association with Him. As Peter denied Jesus for the third time, a cock crowed signaling the dawn of a new day.

Fortunately for Peter, Jesus had a plan to overcome his weakness. In the days following the resurrection, Jesus made a startling appearance before Peter. At the dawn of a new day, Peter and his crew returned to shore from a bad night of fishing. They’d caught nothing. Jesus stood on the shore next to a charcoal fire. He called to Peter to throw out his nets on the other side of his boat if he wanted to catch fish.

Peter did as he was told and moved the nets. Immediately the nets were filled with fish. At that point, Peter recognized the man on shore as Jesus. Peter jumped from the boat and swam to meet Him. Jesus invited Peter to eat a breakfast of fish and bread He had prepared over the charcoal fire. After breakfast, Jesus asked Peter three times if he loved Him. “Yes, Lord, You know that I do,” Peter answered each time. Peter was grieved that Jesus would keep asking the same question for a second and third time.

In His wisdom, Jesus had recreated the scene of Peter’s denial. Just like “the scene of the crime,” Jesus appeared with Peter at dawn next to a burning charcoal fire. Peter, who had denied Jesus three times, was asked to profess his love for Jesus three times. Transformed by obedience, Peter changed from a powerless fisherman to an empowered Christian, able to stand as the rock of the newly formed church.

Prayer: Lord, you alone are my strength. Forgive me for trying so hard on my own when all you ask me o do is trust You or the power you have promised.

Allyson Schoenlein

April 2 Devotion

Amazing Grace
2 Samuel 12, Psalm 51

David was a king. He was the most revered king of the Old Testament. God chose him to be king, and sent Samuel to anoint him. He united his country in a way it had never been united, and never would be again. You would think that David would have "everything together."

David was a sinner. He looked out his window and saw a beautiful woman bathing. He wanted Bathsheba, and it didn't matter to him that she was married, that maybe she didn't want him, or that what he was about to do would meet disapproval in God's eyes. David wanted Bathsheba, so he took her. To cover his sin, and the paternity of the child that they had created, he had her husband killed.

David was eventually repentant. God sent Nathan to tell David, who had gone a year without recognizing his own sin, that what the king had done was wrong. What Nathan did was brave. How many of us would choose to approach a king, and say, "Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight?" (2 Samuel 12:9a). Could it be that what David did was even braver, even more full of courage than what his prophet did? David looked at Nathan and replied, "I have sinned against the Lord." (13a)

David was a child of God. Even in the guilt of his sin, he did not leave the presence of God. I imagine that he felt ashamed, naked in his guilt, and yet he still relied on his Lord. In the middle of this stuggle with God, David wrote Psalm 51, which inspired these words:

Please, father, have mercy.
I know you love me;
May you remember your love
You compassion,
And forget my sin.

I pray your love will be so large
That it will wash away my sins,
As huge as they are.
I know I have sinned.
I know I have disappointed you.
My sins are like a pile of garbage,
Impossible to miss.

I know I have disappointed you,
Done what you have told me was wrong.
You have every right to shine a light on my wrongdoings,
And to judge my faults.

I can't remember a time when I didn't sin.
My mistakes, my faults and my selfishness
Have been with me forever.

Transform me, Father.
Make me clean, from the inside out.
I have faith that you, and you alone,
Can take away the darkness in my soul.
I long to hear joy and gladness.
My crushed spirit begs to feel happiness.

Make my sins invisible,
And hide my wrongdoings.
Recreate me, God,
So that my heart beats for you,
And my spirit can fly on your wings.

Do not send me away from you,
I would die without your Holy Spirit.
Restore in me the joy of my salvation.
I have lost faith that you can save me
As I stand in the shadow of my sin.

If you can help me, Father,
I will have the courage to teach others of your glory.I
will have the means to convince others
Of your goodness.
I will sing your praises forever.

If I knew another way, dear God,
I would do it.
If forgiveness were in my power,
I would reach for it.
It lies only with you, God
I pray you will accept my repentance.
I pray you will find gladness in saving me.
My only hope is that you will forgive me.

Nathan said to David, "Now the Lord has put away your sin; you shall not die" (13b). The consequences of David's actions were not changed, but God did not turn David away, and God did not turn his back on his child, in spite of David's sin.

Do you know what that is? It's grace, and it's amazing. Philip Yancey wrote, "we are "brought back to common ground, as sinners equally desperate in our need of God." What is our common ground? It is that we are all sinners, and that none of us is considered untouchable, undesirable, or unlovable by God. Grace makes life unfair, and we should thank God for it.

Kim Matthews

April 1 Devotion

Jesus entered the temple area and drove out all who were buying and selling there. He overturned the tables of the money changers and the benches of those selling doves. “It is written,” he said to them, “‘My house will be called a house of prayer,’ but you are making it a ‘den of robbers.’” – Matthew 21: 12 – 13

Jesus had become upset because the house of God had been turned into something that was a far cry of what God intended for it to be. I think that perhaps the people thought they were doing what they were supposed to be doing. They were seeking to provide the supplies needed for sacrifices and worship of God. They were also seeking to provide the proper monies to be offered to God. However, in their attempt to make the worship setting and their offerings perfect, they lost sight of God.

Today is Palm Sunday, a day when we celebrate Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem. It is a day when we remember how the people of Israel rejoiced to see the Messiah coming into their midst. We remember how the people thought that Jesus was going to rescue them from years of foreign occupation. The people thought that Jesus was going to be some type of great warrior that would come in with an army and defeat those who persecuted them. But Jesus was not that type of leader.

In their attempts to put Jesus and who they thought he should be into a box, the true man and savior was lost. Jesus, when he cleansed the temple, told those there that they had made it a den of robbers…something that God never intended for God’s house of worship. He became indignant that God’s vision had gone so askew.

When the people saw that Jesus was going to be almost anything but the warrior they assumed he was, their attitude changed from one of praise and thanksgiving to one of anger, scorn, disappointment and revenge. They no longer sought to worship him but rather they sought to have him destroyed…to have him crucified. The attitude that people had about Jesus and who Jesus was became tainted as they sought to worship him as a strong warrior and not as the Son of God. Many missed the Messiah, the very person they were searching for, in their midst because they let their worldly opinions of who the Messiah was get in the way of true worship and devotion.

Perhaps Jesus, in his cleansing of the temple, was talking about more than just the getting things right within the temple walls. Maybe Jesus was also talking about how we need to rid ourselves of the things that seek to get in the way of true and authentic worship. Perhaps when we seek to prepare our hearts and minds for worship, we are focused on so many other things and those things obstruct us from seeing the true Messiah in our midst.

As we prepare for the most important week in the life of the church, let us rid our temple of those things that seek to separate us from God. May we open ourselves up to truly focus on God, God’s love and presence as we make the journey from Palm Sunday through the painful times of Maundy Thursday and Good Friday and finally come to rejoice together on Easter Sunday. Let us prepare ourselves to truly experience the Messiah in our midst.

Rev. Carol McKay

Evening Prayer

Clippity Clop, we hear the sound of the colt coming. Bringing you closer to the city. The city that you love. The city that will capture you and kill you. We are the people of that city, thinking we understand you and know you - we do not. We make you small and package you into our own design. As the week stretches forth and the light of the world grows dim, may we, in this time of darkness, be blessed with discernment as to who you are and what you truly want from us and for us.. In the moment when the light goes completely out, may we see clearly our savior and on that that wonderful day of new light be renewed as to heart and purpose. Lord of all, be with us, love us and show us how to love you . In Jesus name. Amen.

Steve Matthews