Psalm 8

1 O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

You have set your glory

above the heavens.

2 From the lips of children and infants

you have ordained praise

because of your enemies,

to silence the foe and the avenger.

3 When I consider your heavens,

the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars,

which you have set in place,

4 what is man that you are mindful of him,

the son of man that you care for him?

5 You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings

and crowned him with glory and honor.

6 You made him ruler over the works of your hands;

you put everything under his feet:

7 all flocks and herds,

and the beasts of the field,

8 the birds of the air,

and the fish of the sea,

all that swim the paths of the seas.

9 O LORD, our Lord,

how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Acts 2:1-21

1When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. 2Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. 4All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

5Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard them speaking in his own language. 7Utterly amazed, they asked: "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans? 8Then how is it that each of us hears them in his own native language? 9Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome 11 (both Jews and converts to Judaism); Cretans and Arabs-we hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!" 12Amazed and perplexed, they asked one another, "What does this mean?"

13Some, however, made fun of them and said, "They have had too much wine."

Peter Addresses the Crowd

14Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice and addressed the crowd: "Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. 15These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It's only nine in the morning! 16No, this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

17" 'In the last days, God says,

I will pour out my Spirit on all people.

Your sons and daughters will prophesy,

your young men will see visions,

your old men will dream dreams.

18Even on my servants, both men and women,

I will pour out my Spirit in those days,

and they will prophesy.

19I will show wonders in the heaven above

and signs on the earth below,

blood and fire and billows of smoke.

20The sun will be turned to darkness

and the moon to blood

before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord.

21And everyone who calls

on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

Acts 16:16-34

One day, as we were going to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit of divination and brought her owners a great deal of money by fortune-telling. While she followed Paul and us, she would cry out, "These men are slaves of the Most High God, who proclaim to you a way of salvation." She kept doing this for many days. But Paul, very much annoyed, turned and said to the spirit, "I order you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her." And it came out that very hour. But when her owners saw that their hope of making money was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the marketplace before the authorities. When they had brought them before the magistrates, they said, "These men are disturbing our city; they are Jews and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or observe." The crowd joined in attacking them, and the magistrates had them stripped of their clothing and ordered them to be beaten with rods. After they had given them a severe flogging, they threw them into prison and ordered the jailer to keep them securely. Following these instructions, he put them in the innermost cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.

About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. Suddenly there was an earthquake, so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were unfastened. When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he supposed that the prisoners had escaped. But Paul shouted in a loud voice, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here." The jailer called for lights, and rushing in, he fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. Then he brought them outside and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" They answered, "Believe on the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household." They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. At the same hour of the night he took them and washed their wounds; then he and his entire family were baptized without delay. He brought them up into the house and set food before them; and he and his entire household rejoiced that he had become a believer in God.

John 14:23-29

23Jesus replied, "If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.

25"All this I have spoken while still with you. 26But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. 27Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.

28"You heard me say, 'I am going away and I am coming back to you.' If you loved me, you would be glad that I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29I have told you now before it happens, so that when it does happen you will believe.

Acts 11:1-18

1The apostles and the brothers throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him 3and said, "You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them."

4Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened: 5"I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air. 7Then I heard a voice telling me, 'Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.'

8"I replied, 'Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.'

9"The voice spoke from heaven a second time, 'Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.' 10This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.

11"Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12The Spirit told me to have no hesitation about going with them. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man's house. 13He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, 'Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14He will bring you a message through which you and all your household will be saved.'

15"As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on them as he had come on us at the beginning. 16Then I remembered what the Lord had said: 'John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.' 17So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us, who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?"

18When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, "So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life."

Acts 9:36-43

36In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas), who was always doing good and helping the poor. 37About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. 38Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, "Please come at once!"

39Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.

40Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, "Tabitha, get up." She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. 41He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called the believers and the widows and presented her to them alive. 42This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord. 43Peter stayed in Joppa for some time with a tanner named Simon.

Acts 9:1-20

1Meanwhile, Saul was still breathing out murderous threats against the Lord's disciples. He went to the high priest 2and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem. 3As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him. 4He fell to the ground and heard a voice say to him, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?"

5"Who are you, Lord?" Saul asked.

"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he replied. 6"Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do."

7The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound but did not see anyone. 8Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing. So they led him by the hand into Damascus. 9For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

10In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision, "Ananias!"

"Yes, Lord," he answered.

11The Lord told him, "Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying. 12In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on him to restore his sight."

13"Lord," Ananias answered, "I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your saints in Jerusalem. 14And he has come here with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who call on your name."

15But the Lord said to Ananias, "Go! This man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the Gentiles and their kings and before the people of Israel. 16I will show him how much he must suffer for my name."

17Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on Saul, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit." 18Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul's eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized, 19and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Saul spent several days with the disciples in Damascus. 20At once he began to preach in the synagogues that Jesus is the Son of God.

Acts 5:27-40

27Having brought the apostles, they made them appear before the Sanhedrin to be questioned by the high priest. 28"We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name," he said. "Yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to make us guilty of this man's blood."

29Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey God rather than men! 30The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead—whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. 32We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."

33When they heard this, they were furious and wanted to put them to death. 34But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. 35Then he addressed them: "Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. 36Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. 37After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. 39But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God."

40His speech persuaded them. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.

There is no chance, no destiny, no fate, that can circumvent or hinder or control the firm resolve of a determined soul.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, 19th century American poet

Day 40

Day 39

Day 38

Day 37

Day 36

Day 35

Day 34

Day 33

Day 32

Put false ways far from me;

and graciously teach me your law. Psalm 119:29

God of truth, even if it is painful, open my eyes that I might see what is real and what is not real. Amen.

Day 31

People go out to their work

and to their labor until the evening. Psalm 104:23

Creator God, remind me each day that I am your cocreator in fashioning a world of love and justice. Amen.

Day 30

May there be abundance of grain in the land;

may it wave on the tops of the mountains;

may its fruit be like Lebanon;

and may people blossom in the cities

like the grass of the field. Psalm 72:16

Sustaining God, let me be content and confident, trusting in the “summertime truth” that there is enough for all of us to thrive if all of us share. Amen.

Day 29

He leads the humble in what is right,

and teaches the humble his way Psalm 25:9

God of the seasons, thank you for the promise of spring that can come at any time. Amen.

Day 28

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

I fear no evil;

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff--

they comfort me. Psalm 23:4

God of nature, in the cold of winter let me trust the coming warmth of the spring. Amen.

Day 27

Lord, let me know my end,

and what is the measure of my days;

let me know how fleeting my life is. Psalm 39:4

God of all comfort, open my eyes to see death as you see death. Amen.

Day 26

The eyes of all look to you,

and you give them their food in due season.

You open your hand, satisfying the deisre of every living thing. Psalm 145:15-16

God of life and death, may I have the wisdom to go with the flow of the seasons of my life. Amen.

Day 25

I commune with my heart in the night;

I meditate and search my spirit. Psalm 77:6

Holy One, may I be disciplined today in balancing my outer work with inner work. Amen.

Day 24

Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning,

for in you I put my trust.

Teach me the way I should go,

for to you I lift up my soul. Psalm 143:8

Guiding God, “teach me the way I should go,” and I will know better how to lead and how to follow. Amen.

Day 23

Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;

my eye wastes away from grief,

my soul and body also.

For my life is spent with sorrow,

and my ears with sighing;

my strength fails because of my misery,

and my bones waste away. Psalm 31:9-10

Loving God, as much as I can, I am going to acknowledge and own the truth about myself and simply be who I am. Amen.

Day 22

I kept my faith, even when I said,

“I am greatly afflicted.” Psalm 116:10

God of all newness, if I run into a closed door, let me find the yes hidden in the no. Amen.

Day 21

Be still and know that I Am God! Psalm 46:10a

Sustaining God, you who created me in your own image, may I reflect your image in all of my relationships. Amen.

Day 20

While I kept silence, my body wasted away

through my groaning all day long. . . .

Then I acknowledged my sin to you,

and I did not hide my iniquity. Psalm 32:3, 5

Forgiving God, I will not hide my liabilities, limits, trespasses, and shadow from myself or from you. Amen.

Day 19

O Lord, you have searched me and known me.

You know when I sit down and when I rise up;

you discern my thoughts from far away.

You search out my path and my lying down,

and are acquainted with all my ways. Psalm 139:1-3

Loving God, I will listen to my life; may I be fearless and honest in my listening. Amen.

Day 18

For it was you who formed my inward parts;

you knit me together in my mother’s womb.

I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.

Wonderful are your works;

that I know very well . . . .

In your book were written

all the days that were formed for me,

when none of them as yet existed. Psalm 139:13-14, 16b

Holy One, may I do nothing today that violates my true self. Amen.

Day 17

I commune with my heart in the night;

I meditate and search my spirit. Psalm 77:6

God of silence and song, today I will be fully present to myself and fully present as myself to others. Amen.

Day 16

When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,

the moon and the stars that you have established;

what are human beings that you are mindful of them,

mortals that you care for them?

Yet you have made them a little lower than God,

and crowned them with glory and honor. Psalm 8:3-5

God of life, as I move through each day, may my choices reflect a deep reverence for life. Amen.

Day 15

As a deer longs for flowing streams,

so my soul longs for you, O God.

My soul thirsts for God,

for the living God. Psalm 42:1-2a

Creator God, my soul longs for you’ let the longing of my soul be satisfied. Amen.

Day 14

Good and upright is the Lord;

therefore he instructs sinners in the way.

He leads the humble in what is right

and teaches the humble his way. Psalm 25:8-9

Creator God, I will listen as well as I can to the inner voice you created within me. Amen.

Day 13

“How very good and pleasant it is

when kindred live together in unity! . . .

For there the Lord ordained his blessing,

Life forevermore. Psalm 133:1, 3b

Loving God, May I balance my needs for solitude and community, taking time to be alone and time to be together. Amen.

Day 12

Who are they that fear the Lord?

He will teach them the way that they should choose. Psalm 25:12

Holy One, following your word---I will seek in all that I do to choose life. Amen.

Day 11

O Lord, all my longing is known to you;

my sighing is not hidden from you.

My heart throbs, my strength fails me;

as for the light of my eyes--it also has gone from me. Psalm 38:9-10

Guiding God, grant that my life will express greater harmony between who I am and what I do. Amen.

Day 10

For God alone my soul waits in silence. Psalm 62:1a

Holy One, let me be still and know that you are God. Amen.

Day 9

Teach me your way, O Lord,

that I may walk in your truth;

give me an undivided heart to revere your name. Psalm 86:11

Gracious God, you made me, love and value me; grant me grace and courage to be me. Amen.

Day 8

Those who live at earth’s farthest bounds are awed by your signs;

you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

You visit the earth and water it,

you greatly enrich it;

the river of God is full of water;

you provide the people with grain,

for so you have prepared it. Psalm 65:8-9

Holy God grant me to live with such trust in your care that I am free to care for others. Amen.

Day 7

For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised;

he is to be revered above all gods.

For all the gods of the peoples are idols,

but the Lord made the heavens. Psalm 96:4-5

Ever-faithful, ever-loving God, let me live with no God but you. Amen.

Day 6

You cause the grass to grow for the cattle,

and plants for people to use,

to bring forth food from the earth,

and wine to gladden the human heart,

oil to make the face shine,

and bread to strengthen the human heart. Psalm 104:14-15

Holy God, let me rejoice in simple things, in ordinary things, in the goods of the Spirit and the goods of the earth. Amen.

Day 5

I have not hidden your saving help within my heart.

I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;

I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness

from the great congregation. Psalm 40:10

Loving God, let me love and be loved today with the same freedom and abundance with which you love. Amen.

Day 4

How precious is your steadfast love, O God!

All people may take refuge in the shadow of your wings.

They feast on the abundance of your house,

and you give them drink from the river of your delights.

For with you is the fountain of life;

in your light we see light. Psalm 36:7-9

Gracious God, you have created a world where there is enough for everybody, let me never want more than enough until everyone has enough. Amen.

Day 3

Happy are those who consider the poor;

the Lord deliver them in the day of trouble. Psalm 41:1

Healing God, help me to find my health in seeking the health of others. Amen

Day 2

Are you a star thrower?

Answer me, O Lord, for your steadfast love is good’

according to your abundant mercy, turn to me Psalm 69:16

Holy God, let me be so open to your mercy that it through me to others. Amen.

Day 1

If I say, “Surely the darkness shall cover me,

and the light around me become night,”

even the darkness is not dark to you;

the night is as bright as the day,

for darkness is as light to you. Psalm 139:11-12

A contradiction literally means speaking against something. It identifies an inconsistency. It means that two opposing things cannot be true at the same time.

A paradox is a seeming contradiction. While it may seem that the ideas are opposite and cannot be true at the same time they actually are.

Ever loving and ever-present God, let me find you and follow you in both light and shadow. Amen.

A Lenten Journey

For this Lenten season, we will be reading, journaling our thoughts, and discussing Parker Palmer's book, 40 - Day Journey.

Luke 9:28-36

28 About eight days after Jesus said these things, he took Peter, John, and James and went up on a mountain to pray.29 While Jesus was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became shining white.30 Then two men, Moses and Elijah, were talking with Jesus.31 They appeared in heavenly glory, talking about his departure which he would soon bring about in Jerusalem.32 Peter and the others were very sleepy, but when they awoke fully, they saw the glory of Jesus and the two men standing with him.33 When Moses and Elijah were about to leave, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents—one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." (Peter did not know what he was talking about.)

34 While he was saying these things, a cloud came and covered them, and they became afraid as the cloud covered them.35 A voice came from the cloud, saying, "This is my Son, whom I have chosen. Listen to him!"

36 When the voice finished speaking, only Jesus was there. Peter, John, and James said nothing and told no one at that time what they had seen.

We are living in a world that is absolutely transparent, and God is shining through it all the time.

Thomas Merton, 20th century

Luke 5:1-11

1 One day while Jesus was standing beside Lake Galilee, many people were pressing all around him to hear the word of God.2 Jesus saw two boats at the shore of the lake. The fishermen had left them and were washing their nets.3 Jesus got into one of the boats, the one that belonged to Simon, and asked him to push off a little from the land. Then Jesus sat down and continued to teach the people from the boat.

4 When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Take the boat into deep water, and put your nets in the water to catch some fish."

5 Simon answered, "Master, we worked hard all night trying to catch fish, and we caught nothing. But you say to put the nets in the water, so I will."6 When the fishermen did as Jesus told them, they caught so many fish that the nets began to break.7 They called to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so full that they were almost sinking.

8 When Simon Peter saw what had happened, he bowed down before Jesus and said, "Go away from me, Lord. I am a sinful man!"9 He and the other fishermen were amazed at the many fish they caught, as were 10 James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners.

Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid. From now on you will fish for people." 11 When the men brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed Jesus.

Christianity without discipleship is always Christianity without Christ.

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, 20th century

Luke 4:21-30

21 He began to say to them, "While you heard these words just now, they were coming true!"

22 All the people spoke well of Jesus and were amazed at the words of grace he spoke. They asked, "Isn't this Joseph's son?"

23 Jesus said to them, "I know that you will tell me the old saying: 'Doctor, heal yourself.' You want to say, 'We heard about the things you did in Capernaum. Do those things here in your own town!' " 24 Then Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, a prophet is not accepted in his hometown. 25 But I tell you the truth, there were many widows in Israel during the time of Elijah. It did not rain in Israel for three and one-half years, and there was no food anywhere in the whole country.26 But Elijah was sent to none of those widows, only to a widow in Zarephath, a town in Sidon. 27 And there were many with skin diseases living in Israel during the time of the prophet Elisha. But none of them were healed, only Naaman, who was from the country of Syria."

28 When all the people in the synagogue heard these things, they became very angry.29 They got up, forced Jesus out of town, and took him to the edge of the cliff on which the town was built. They planned to throw him off the edge,30 but Jesus walked through the crowd and went on his way.

This is the big lie the world tells us: that the universe is connected by trade agreements, electronic banking, computer networks, shipping lanes, and the seeking of profit—nothing else. Whereas this is the truth of God: all creation is one holy web of relationships, and gifts meant for all; that creation vibrates with the pain of all its parts, because its true destiny is joy.

Julie Polter, 20th century

Too Icy for Scripture and Coffee!

Luke 4:14-21

14 Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Holy Spirit, and stories about him spread all through the area.15 He began to teach in their synagogues, and everyone praised him.

16 Jesus traveled to Nazareth, where he had grown up. On the Sabbath day he went to the synagogue, as he always did, and stood up to read. 17 The book of Isaiah the prophet was given to him. He opened the book and found the place where this is written:

18 "The Lord has put his Spirit in me,

because he appointed me to tell the Good News to the poor.

He has sent me to tell the captives they are free

and to tell the blind that they can see again. — Isaiah 61:1

God sent me to free those who have been treated unfairly — Isaiah 58:6

19 and to announce the time when the Lord will show his kindness." — Isaiah 61:2

20 Jesus closed the book, gave it back to the assistant, and sat down. Everyone in the synagogue was watching Jesus closely. 21 He began to say to them, "While you heard these words just now, they were coming true!"

The lack of material well-being among the poor reflects a lack of spiritual well-being among the rest.

William Sloane Coffin, 20th century

1 Corinthians 12:1-11

1My friends, you asked me about spiritual gifts. 2I want you to remember that before you became followers of the Lord, you were led in all the wrong ways by idols that cannot even talk. 3Now I want you to know that if you are led by God's Spirit, you will say that Jesus is Lord, and you will never curse Jesus.

4There are different kinds of spiritual gifts, but they all come from the same Spirit. 5There are different ways to serve the same Lord, 6and we can each do different things. Yet the same God works in all of us and helps us in everything we do.

7The Spirit has given each of us a special way of serving others. 8Some of us can speak with wisdom, while others can speak with knowledge, but these gifts come from the same Spirit. 9To others the Spirit has given great faith or the power to heal the sick 10or the power to work mighty miracles. Some of us are prophets, and some of us recognize when God's Spirit is present. Others can speak different kinds of languages, and still others can tell what these languages mean. 11But it is the Spirit who does all this and decides which gifts to give to each of us.

When I die, God isn't going to ask me "Did I create the Earth in six days or five days?" but "What did you do with what I gave you?"

Richard Cizik, National Association of Evangelicals, 21st century

Luke 3:15-17; 21-22

15The people were waiting expectantly and were all wondering in their hearts if John might possibly be the Christ. 16John answered them all, "I baptize you with water. But one more powerful than I will come, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. 17His winnowing fork is in his hand to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire."

21When all the people were being baptized, Jesus was baptized too. And as he was praying, heaven was opened 22and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from heaven: "You are my Son, whom I love; with you I am well pleased."

Just to be is a blessing. Just to live is holy.

Abraham Joshua Heschel, 20th century

Have you read Marilynne Robinson's book, Giliad? If not, here is a great passage that speaks to this week's reading...I like the conclusion...

The narrator of the book is an elderly minister who knows he's about to die after a long and steady but fairly quiet life as a pastor. He is writing to his young son, the child of a late-in-life marriage to a much younger woman, about things like watching his little boy play in the sprinkler, and a young couple walking in the rain. Water, the stuff of life. But he also tells the story of one of his childhood exploits as a preacher's kid who, with another "PK," decided to baptize a litter of kittens. The boys took this all very seriously, he says, but the mother cat didn't, and she interrupted their little service and took the kittens away right in mid-baptism. When the boy asked his father the pastor "in the most offhand way imaginable what exactly would happen to a cat if one were to, say, baptize it," his father gave him a stern response that the sacraments must always be treated and regarded with the greatest respect. The narrator remembers, "That wasn't really an answer to my question. We did respect the sacraments, but we thought the whole world of those cats. I got his meaning, though, and I did no more baptizing until I was ordained."

Now, at the end of his life and after many years of baptizing the faithful of his flock, the old pastor looks back on the day he baptized the cats: "I still remember," he says, "how those warm little brows felt under the palm of my hand. Everyone has petted a cat, but to touch one like that, with the pure intention of blessing it, is a very different thing. It stays in the mind. For years we would wonder what, from a cosmic viewpoint, we had done to them. It still seems to me to be a real question. There is a reality in blessing, which I take baptism to be, primarily. It doesn't enhance sacredness, but it acknowledges it, and there is a power in that. I have felt it pass through me, so to speak. The sensation is of really knowing a creature, I mean really feeling its mysterious life and your own mysterious life at the same time" (Gilead).

Have a great meeting...when I see you next, I will be much older...is it possible? Thinking of you...Priscilla