Lenten Devotionals
2016
~St. Peter’s feeds God’s people…
all are welcome at our table.~
Introduction
The Lenten Devotionals were started by Amy Salvatore in 2004 when Mike was our music director. Lis took over from Amy in 2005 after Mike and Amy moved to Wakefield, and I took over from Lis in 2012 following her passing.
It is a privilege to produce the Devotionals. In the past I would read the lections for my assigned days and try to draw out emotions and maybe insights. Now I handle the production, which means I get to preview all of your submissions, and then I get to read them again during Lent. It is exciting to watch the book fill up.
A good way to use this booklet is to read the lections for each day then read the devotional for that day. You will read the lections, which is always beneficial, and you will get more out of the devotionals.
Jim Jobes has suggested that when you read the lections it is often important to consider its context. Ask who wrote it, to whom, where, and when? What are the important issues? If you have time read before and after the given passage. Study Bibles and commentaries are valuable resources.
Thank you everyone for getting you devotionals in on time, and writing such interesting material. It makes for great reading.
Godfrey Perrott
Wed Feb 10 / Ash Wednesday
Ps 32, 143 / Amos 5:6-15, Heb. 12:1-14, Luke 18:9-14
The gospel reading from Luke for today, “The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector”, had an important message to society at the time of Jesus, and also has an important message to society today. The Pharisees thought of themselves as perfect religious practitioners, even when they were not divine. The Pharisee's prayer to God frankly sounds like bragging, and he shames people who he believes do wrong, including the tax collector. The tax collector freely, humbly, and simply admits his faults to God, even though he may have done as much wrong as the Pharisees. For this reason he is favored by Jesus.
The parables of Jesus are lessons that are relevant at all times, and this parable is no exception. All humans on Earth today have their faults, but most humans are not willing to admit at least some of them. When you think you are living an ideal life, think of the little things you have done wrong. For example, I have personally wasted food when some people in the world are starving and have bragged about what classes I have been in. Also, do not think about how you are better than others. Strive to become your best as a follower of Jesus, but realize that you should be honest to God about the unavoidable faults in life, like the tax collector. With God's help, we should learn from these faults.
Will Talbot / 1
Thu Feb 11
Ps 37:1-18 / Hab. 3:1-18, Phil. 3:12-21, John 17:1-8
This year I turned 57 years old. Something about being in my fifties has made me very reflective. I wonder about the choices in my life. I feel sad and mad about how much is wrong in the world. I worry. I feel insecure.
Psalm 37 says “trust in the Lord and do good,” “wait patiently for him,” “refrain from anger,” “do not fret”.
Habakkuk says” though the fig tree does not blossom and no fruit is on the vines…yet I will rejoice in the Lord”.
I wonder how can I obtain the trust in God shown by these Old Testament writers? How can I rejoice in the face of all I worry about?
Paul writes in Philippians, “forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”
Sometimes I grow weary of myself and my shortcomings, and I am overwhelmed by the suffering and evil in the world.
I pray that Jesus will help me press on when I am tired and try again when I fail to follow his example.
In John, Jesus prays for his disciples. He prays for us. Jesus who knew his time on earth was ending and the worst was to come, thinks not of himself, but of those he is leaving behind. He says to God “the words you gave to me I have given to them”. So I think how can I not keep trying even when I fail, even when the world seems so wrong and my actions seem so inadequate. Jesus trusted his disciples with his words, his ongoing work in the world, and he still trusts us, trusts me, to keep our eyes on the prize.
Robin Talbot / 1
Fri Feb 12
Ps 31 / Ezek. 18:1-4,25-32, Phil. 4:1-9, John 17:9-19
Many times when I am reading the Bible I am not sure of the message. These readings, however, seem clear, even to me. In Ezekiel we are told we have choices. It is our choice to sin or turn away from sin. The choice to follow the Lord’s message or not. The Lord will judge us each on our own actions. We are not expected to do it alone. We are given tools to help us:
- The Bible, to help define our way and to give us examples of what we need to do and how to do it.
- Prayer as the grounding foundation of how we define our struggles, ask for guidance and intervention, and celebrate out thankfulness.
- Each other so we can support each other when we are struggling and to celebrate together. Phil 4: verse 7 “The Peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
Marguerite Parkman / 1
Sat Feb 13
Ps 30, 32 / Ezek. 39:21-29, Phil. 4:10-20, John 17:20-26
I believe of the Gospels that they are meant to be read as a living text, not as a rulebook of meanings defined by the circumstances of the writers who set them down. This is not unlike my view of our Constitution—those rights which the drafters could not have conceived of simply must be available and adducible because of the universal concepts the drafters did express for future generations to explore.
This view of things helps me read the passion portions of John, which otherwise are so difficult for me because of the way they have been used through history to condemn the Jews.
John minimizes attention on the Passover itself, but piles on a lot of Midrash. John has Jesus washing the disciples feet, and talking and talking (and talking!) about what they are to do and what his message is. I find in today’s passage a message of universality, not exclusiveness. I hear Jesus saying, that those Last Supper attendees were not meant to be the only beneficiaries of his life and teaching, but that Jesus meant for his life to open the path to God for everyone, Jew and Gentile alike, who can be of him and with him and he in them – as servants of others. Not that all must become “Christian” to know God, but that we all must serve others as he did.
Jesus surely knew his own history – Ezekiel’s prophesy about the gathering of the lost into a new community of God – and of course, Jesus knew the Psalms, thanks be that God is available, peace is available, support is available; to you, whoever you are.
But I think John is saying you must seek to find God, you must serve to find God, you must ask.
Then as the Psalmist says: Selah. Stop and listen to it, pause and think about it, lift it up and praise it.
Ann Weeks / 1
Mon Feb 15
Ps 41, 52 / Gen. 37:1-11, 1 Cor. 1:1-19, Mark 1:1-13
Psalm 41is a precursor (I believe) to the Beatitudes. Jesus, the rabbi, would have been intimately familiar with this and reinterpreted it for his audience. My take-away is that basically people can’t always be trusted, but the Lord will always have your back – that’s a constant you can always rely on.
Speaking of not being able to rely on people, there is Joseph and his dysfunctional family. Reading this section on its own, all I could think of was what a know-it-all pain in the neck Joseph was. He’s 17 but acts younger. He’s a tattletale, he rubs his brothers’ faces in his good fortune. Does he even realize he’s doing it? In today’s parlance he’s completely tone deaf and can’t read a room. He’s not a very likeable character but it sure sets up the start of a great story!
In Corinthians the key message for me is don’t confuse the message with the messenger. We are all one in Christ. Already at that time people were creating factions. I hate to be sacrilegious (well, sort of) but anyone who has seen Monty Python’s Life of Brian will recognize this. Just focus on the message and all will be well
Suzanne Conlon / 1
Tue Feb 16
Ps 45 / Gen. 37:12-24, 1 Cor. 1:20-31, Mark 1:14-28
Today’s readings include two stories most of us heard as children. In Genesis, we read of Joseph and his multi-colored coat – a symbol of his position as his father’s favorite son. Joseph had the God-given ability to interpret dreams that foretold the future. Despite his kind and generous nature, his eleven older brothers were overcome with jealousy and anger. When his father sent Joseph far away to find his brothers and the flocks they were tending, the brothers seized the opportunity to sell him into slavery to traders from Egypt. This turns out to be the beginning of a life that takes him from prison to ruler in Egypt – Pharaoh’s right hand man.
In Mark, we read of the beginning of another young man’s journey. Jesus who is his father’s only son has gifts that defy explanation unless you know who his father is. When he approaches four young fishermen at Galilee and asks them to accompany him, they leave everything behind to follow. Despite uncertainty in the face of fear and mistrust from those they encounter, they remain committed. These first apostles followed a calling that took them throughout the countryside where they witnessed the son of God in action. How powerful was his message to keep his followers loyal to the end (on earth) and then to take up his cause of building a flock.
Both of these passages deal with making a choice to reject or accept. The brothers’ chose to reject Joseph and his gifts setting him on a path where only his love of God sustained him. The young fishermen in Galilee made a choice to follow where they saw firsthand the life and miracles of Christ and became committed to continuing his journey building and strengthening the flock. In today’s world we face choices everywhere we look. We see Christians terrorized by radical non-believers. We hear conflicting rhetoric as we search for direction for our nation. We are challenged by segments of our own Anglican Communion. Our choices individually and collectively will determine the future of our flock.
Katharine Pearce / 1
Wed Feb 17
Ps 119:49-72 / Gen. 37:25-36, 1 Cor. 2:1-13, Mark 1:29-45
The reading from Genesis is taken from one of my favorite Bible storiesthanks to Andrew Lloyd Weber - Joseph and his beautiful coat. In this part, one of his brothers convinces the rest not to kill him but rather to sell him to theIshmaelites. Not only does this save Joseph's life but will eventually save their own. Later, they take the coat that they have dipped in an animal's blood to their father Jacob. Jacob tears his clothing and mourns his son. His many other children try to console him and he replies, "I will continue to mourn until I join my son in the grave."
This is how I imagine what if feels like to lose a child. I imagine a deep, dark, and unending pit. Our friend and sister Cameron lost her beloved Edward. Our community gathered around her and offered comfort and she accepted it. We cooked and she ate. We hugged and she hugged back. Grief and loss never really stops but rather is a road with ups and downs. I'm sure that Cam sometimes feels like Jacob but I've seen her filled with gratitude and actually saying that she feels blessed. This is the miracle and mystery of faith.
Paul tells the people of Corinth, “What no eye has seen,what no ear has heard,and what no human mind has conceived”—the things God has prepared for those who love him—these are the things God has revealed to us by his Spirit.We cannot conceive of the magnitude of God's love. It is beyond our human senses to see or hear or understand and yet, it is there.
As Jesus wanders through the countryside in Mark, healing and casting out demons, he is still trying to keep it on the down-low. "Don't tell anyone but go and make offerings to God." He was trying to keep a lid on it because he knew once the word got out, they would come for him. But not even death can stop love. Love never ends. And God's grace and love is offered to us freely.
Carrie Monahan / 1
Thu Feb 18
Ps 50 / Gen. 39:1-23, 1 Cor. 2:14 -3:15, Mark 2:1-12
This Early in Lent we see a theme based on the changes coming about because God is changing his Covenant with Israel and his people. The basis of the change is how God’s people should act. Not with sacrifices and written words but with sincerity, prayer and Thanksgiving with the Spirit of God written on their hearts.
In the Psalm the people are told what they are doing wrong and conclude with, “Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me: to those who go the right way I will show the salvation of God.”
The reading from Genesis continues the story of Joseph as he arrives in Egypt and prospers despite adversity. Joseph succeeded because “the Lord was with him.” The implication being the reason the Lord was with him was Joseph’s sincere love of the Lord in spite of the situations he had been put in.
In Corinthians we are told that we who are with Christ and speak as persons of sincerity and not “peddlers’ of God’s word. We shall become ministers of this New Covenant of the Spirit. The Covenant that came with Jesus makes us ministers of that covenant empowered by the Spirit.
Mark tells us of Jesus healing the paralytic after forgiving his sins. When the scribes doubted his power to forgive Jesus he said that you may know “that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sin and he told the paralytic to walk home. Again we see the coming of the new Covenant.
Remember that Jesus tells us that there are two parts to the Covenant, love your God and your neighbor. This and the reward for following them are clearly seen in theses readings.
Dave Farrar / 1
Fri Feb 19
Ps 40, 54 / Gen. 40:1-23, 1 Cor. 3:16-23, Mark 2:13-22
Genesis 40 is largely about Joseph, a Hebrew slave with an Egyptian owner and how he got into trouble. Despite this trouble (and prison) “the Lord was with him” (see 39:23 and 40:8). He had a gift of interpreting dreams and clues to the origin of that gift are in the next book ( 41:25) When he finds himself in prison with the Chief Butler and the Chief Baker (bakers must have been very important in Pharaoh’s court) they ask him, as fellow prisoners, to interpret their dreams. The Butler’s dream gets a favorable interpretation. The Baker’s dream involves bad times ahead, and bad news for the Baker himself. Although Joseph asks the Butler to speak well of him to Pharaoh, he forgets until later, when Pharaoh has a dream also and Joseph interprets the message of preparation for future. This wins Joseph an appointment as second in command. Joseph was both rescued, and is able to save others through making the necessary precautions suggested by the dream. This is how God’s gift provides for both Joseph and the Egyptians, even if it is by an indirect route.
In the passage from Corinthians we are warned not to be proud of being wise in the world. Or boast of our own leaders wisdom. Everything we have is a gift from God. This is summed up by a later passage, 4:7, by the clear statement: Why do you boast, if everything you have is received as a gift?
To find the theme of God’s gifts in Mark is less obvious. But it you think about it, we can see that the Bridegroom at the wedding, Christ, is our gift. When the Bridegroom is with us, we do not have to fast as older laws would dictate. Jesus has the gift of authority to override the old rules and to forgive sins. And the other analogies of new wine and new cloth point out Marks own theme, that this – the gift of Jesus, is NEW kind of gift, and does not fit into the old context. He is New.
Jim Jobes / 1
Sat Feb 20
Ps 55 / Gen. 41:1-13, 1 Cor. 4:1-7, Mark 2:23—3:6
When I read a story from the Gospels, I often try to imagine what it would be like to be one the characters. In the case of the story from Mark, I am drawn to the unnamed man with the withered hand (from now on, I’ll call him “Joe”). Perhaps I’m curious about Joe because my sister lives with a disability. In contrast to the help available today for people who struggle with impairment, first-century Palestine had no Social Security, Medicaid, assisted living communities, or physical therapy programs.