Devotional 3-2-13

Scripture is from 1 Corinthians 10: 1-13

Lent for me has always been a lot less than comfortable.  Perhaps the sadness of Good Friday makes this time much different from Advent.  The anticipation of something wonderful occurring is much more uplifting than anticipation of a very horrible action taking place.

The first letter of Paul to the Corinthians in the first ten verses of Chapter 10 takes us through the “Readers Digest” version of the Hebrews leaving Egypt and their time in the wilderness.  The first twelve verses, if reviewed by someone out of context, would not be a great way to say come on and join us.  It recalls the death of 23,000 people and snakes, for goodness sake.

The intent of Paul was to make an analogy for the church at Corinth and compare their attitudes to those of Hebrews in the desert.  It is an object lesson that in the beginning instructs and in the end offers encouragement, reassurance and hope.

I think this opportunity may bring light to Lent for all of us.  It does have one bad day in it that none of us would or could endure if we did not have the Hope of Easter Morning.

God bless!  

Mike Bowen

Devotional 3-19-12

Psalm 51:1-12

¹Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion
blot out my transgressions.
²Wash away all my iniquity
and cleanse me from my sin.
³For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is always before me.
⁴Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight;
so you are right in your verdict
and justified when you judge.
⁵Surely I was sinful at birth,
sinful from the time my mother conceived me.
⁶Yet you desired faithfulness even in the womb;
you taught me wisdom in that secret place.
⁷Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean;
wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
⁸Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones you have crushed rejoice.
⁹Hide your face from my sins
and blot out all my iniquity.
¹⁰Create in me a pure heart, O God,
and renew a steadfast spirit within me.
¹¹Do not cast me from your presence
or take your Holy Spirit from me.
¹²Restore to me the joy of your salvation
and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me.

In the 21^stcentury lexicon you cannot go a day without hearing about sustainability.

In terms of businesses, concerns with the environment, and finances this is a crucial point to understand and practice.

In this reading the Psalmist seeks the ultimate answer to the eternal riddle of the sustainability of our spirits and souls.

The Psalmist begins with a very candid view of where his own flaws and weaknesses have left him. That is the obvious and easy part. It is the remedy he seeks that would make this plan challenging. The key thing is that the psalmist recognizes and appreciates the payout.

In our 21^stcentury with all the “hoohah and falldurah” that occurs in our daily lives, we need to discover a sustainability plan for ourselves in our own quest for joy and a willing spirit.
The Psalmist’s plea is a wonderful template for us to start with in this Lenten season.

Mike Bowen

Devotional 3-29-11

Ephesians 5:8-14

For once you were darkness, but now in the Lord you are light. Live as children of light - for the fruit of the light is found in all that is good and right and true. Try to find out what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to mention what such people do secretly; but everything exposed by the light becomes visible, for everything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says, "Sleeper, awake! Rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you."

This past winter seemed to me to be extremely long. The grey skies and decreased length of the day does bother some people more than others. No one is immune from this phenomenon.

Behavioral and psychological experts note that a large portion of their patients that have some form of depression become affected more during the winter season. They call it seasonal affective disorder or SAD. They have observed and quantified that as the amount of daylight and sunshine decrease some of their patients’ symptoms tend to worsen. People tend to score higher on subjective measurements and tend to need their therapies adjusted accordingly. Objective measurements such as serotonin levels will also change in these conditions.

The scripture chosen from the lectionary for Lent is a wonderful adjunctive therapy for folks that find things a little more than bleak during the long days of winter.

Paul talks about darkness and light in very mild but strong language and offers hope to us when grey skies, cold temperatures, snow, sleet, and rain tend to pull our spirit down. It is time to awake and rise from our winter slumber.

My hope is, that even with the Easter season being a little later than normal, it will be a more appreciated time of awakening for all of our spirits.

God bless,

Mike Bowen

Devotional 3-1-10

It seems to me that a lot of the lectionary readings for this week have to do with being thirsty. But it just isn’t quenching your thirst -- it’s finding the right thing to quench your thirst.

We are presented and inundated with countless advertisements and endorsements for anything liquid. It is would boggle the mind to think of the money that are spent by soft drink industry to satisfy those ravenous cravings for something to satisfy those parched throats.

I am pretty sure that if you talk with most athletic and physical trainers they still say the best drink for the most serious thirst is still water. It is what God created and they may want to sell it for $1.05 for a 16 ounce bottle but it still the best thing for us.

The scriptures from Isaiah, Psalms, and Luke all speak of cautioning of what you use to quench your spiritual thirsts. During this Lenten season perhaps we should examine the labels of popular notions and return to some basics in our own spiritual lives. Daily prayer, scripture readings, meditation or service could satisfy that parched spiritual discomfort.

Mike Bowen

Devotional 2-19-08

Psalm 62

Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and steadfast love belongs to you, O Lord. For you repay to all according to their work. (verses 11-12)

Normally, starting to compose is never easy. But this assignment has come as a real blessing.

At the time this was being authored, we, as a congregation, have just lost our dear brother Jim Ray. For a fellow that did not say a lot, the living of his life would have authored an epistle that would have rivaled anything Paul ever put together.

Psalm 62 is not one that I would have run to if you asked me to pick a psalm. The nice thing about the book the book of psalms is that they are organized numerically in order and fairly easy to find if you know that there are one hundred and fifty of them. I suppose it would be terribly embarrassing to quote something chapter and verse from Psalm 151.

The other thing about the book of psalms is that parts of them are used often enough that you have “ah ha” moments would you read through them. So that’s where that came from.

This psalm resounds in affirmation and lots of positive statements. It is the verses 11 and 12 that reminded me of Jim and the way he lived his life. Jim knew that both of the statements in these verses were promises made to all. I am sure that Jim has joined all the others saints and would not want to be in front of anybody in the line but I know he has been rewarded and would want the same for all of us. May your reward during this Lenten season give you the same affirmations.

Mike Bowen