The Miracle of Life

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Saturday, April 16, Evening – Holy Week Day 6

By Bill Terry

The Miracle of Life

Read: John 10:10b

“…I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

Many years ago when I was caring for children with cancer, one family was unique. The father was a physician, and both parents were very religious. As we tested their child to diagnose him and begin his treatment, there were regular prayers by the parents. Although most children respond well to therapy, when this child began his medications, within 24-48 hours all signs of his large tumor disappeared.

The parents were eager to discuss theologically what had happened. The child went on to complete his therapy with his tumor gone, and he was eventually lost to follow up. I can only remember one other patient having such a dramatic early response.

As we come toward the time of Jesus’ death and resurrection, we should be aware of the miracles that happen in our lives and even of the miracle of life itself. I will let people wiser than I am explain how all of this comes about. I will simply be thankful.

Prayer

Dear Lord, We thank you for the gift of life and are grateful for the gift of your Son. During this Lenten season we will try to focus our lives on remembering Him and His sacrifice for us.

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Holy Saturday

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Saturday, April 16, Morning – Holy Week Day 6

By Ann Reego

Holy Saturday

Read: Matthew 27:62-66

“The next day, the one after Preparation Day, the chief priests and the Pharisees went to Pilate. “Sir,” they said, “we remember that while he was still alive that deceiver said, ‘After three days I will rise again.’ So give the order for the tomb to be made secure until the third day. Otherwise, his disciples may come and steal the body and tell the people that he has been raised from the dead. This last deception will be worse than the first.” “Take a guard,” Pilate answered. “Go, make the tomb as secure as you know how.” So they went and made the tomb secure by putting a seal on the stone and posting the guard.”

My father passed away on Dec. 26 while visiting us for Christmas in Salt Lake City, Utah. I remember being too stunned and shocked to fall asleep easily, but after a good cry to release tension I got some troubled sleep. When I awoke the next day, the sun was shining, the air crisp and cold. But I was hurting. The hole in my heart was painful, and I couldn’t believe what I had witnessed in the hospital the night before. My heart was in as much pain as his was because of the heart attack that took him from us. The next day, Mom and I went through the motions of what had to be done at the funeral home and made arrangements to fly to Dallas. She was scared about how she would live without him after 40+ years. I was simply lost. My father, my rock, my first love, my mentor was gone

I can only imagine how the family, followers and disciples of Jesus felt the “next day”. First, it was the Sabbath and certain rituals had to be observed. Second, I’m sure they were terrified that they would be the next ones arrested. Third, they were without a man that they had become close to and followed for the last three years. He had been their source of strength. They believed in him. Would he come again as he had promised? I’m sure they wanted to believe, but at that point, it was just too painful.

The “powers that be” were scrambling to make sure the disciples did not steal the body and claim that He had risen. They placed guards in front of the tomb and marked it with a seal so that Jesus couldn’t get out. But an earthquake rolled the stone away, and the guards were so afraid that they shook and became like dead men.

Of course we all know what happened. The body was gone and arrayed in glory. The women did not know Him at first and neither did anyone else. But He revealed himself to all of them and they realized that they had been a witness to history.

Then Jesus gave them their instructions:

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20

These Orders Remain for Us Today!

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we thank you for your son. We thank you for relationships we have here that we mourn when we lose them. We pledge to follow your teachings and teach your ways to all people … even to the end of the age. Amen.

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Despair, but also Hope

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Friday, April 15, Evening – Good Friday

By Jeff Cheek

Despair, but also Hope

Read: Lamentations 3:16-24

“He has broken my teeth with gravel; he has trampled me in the dust. I have been deprived of peace; I have forgotten what prosperity is. So I say, ‘My splendor is gone and all that I had hoped from the Lord.’ I remember my affliction and my wandering, the bitterness and the gall. I well remember them, and my soul is downcast within me. Yet this I call to mind and therefore I have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.’”

As Christians observe Lent, it is easy to despair. Here is our Savior, the Son of God, on this relentless journey towards a terrible ending. Imperfect man crucifying our perfect Savior. Jesus endures true sacrifice and real pain inflicted by the world. “My soul is bowed down” or “bereft of peace” can really ring true in dark times. We envision Jesus alone in the wilderness; it is easy to feel alone ourselves.

Through Lent we endeavor to sacrifice as well, to do something that reminds us of His sacrifice. But even then, as we examine our relationship, how could we possibly match that? Jesus is so great, powerful, perfect, and we’re… not. Even in our lamenting we fall short, in our sacrifice we can’t possibly sacrifice enough. It is hard to find inner peace or hope with these thoughts racing through our minds.

However, just like Jeremiah, we can despair in one breath, but in the next have hope. Remember, “The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases”, never. God is with you always; you are never alone. Remember the sacrifice, don’t forget the pain, but don’t lose sight of the ending either. Remember God’s love for you; remember even through sacrifice and pain, God’s love never fails.

Prayer

Lord, thank You for being with us through our dark times. Help us remember that pain and sacrifice will come, but even in those times, Your love never leaves us, not even for a second. May every breath of despair be followed by a breath of hope.

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Sitting in Silence

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Friday, April 15, Morning – Good Friday

Rev. Catherine Nance, Senior Pastor

Sitting in Silence

Read: Psalm 62:1-2

“For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. God alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall never be shaken.”

It is Good Friday.

We focus on darkness. Stillness. Silence.

I am thinking back to last year’s Tenebrae Service held in our nave at noon.

We had just started regathering and there was no singing. There was not a lot of movement.

We did have organ and harp music at a few places in the service, but there was no singing. No unison reading of Psalm 22, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

The service was arranged so that there was not the usual recession of altar and chancel items out of the nave; instead, objects were draped in black at the end. Clergy and acolytes took their time being careful not to pass each other; keeping our distance. It took a little longer. There was more time for silence.

Planning Good Friday services for so many years, I was accustomed to the lump that forms in my throat, the tightness in my chest, and stinging in my eyes as we sing, Were You There, When I Survey the Wondrous Cross, and What Wondrous Love.

Last year, it was different.

There was something powerful as the few of us gathered there sat in silence. Instead of turning in the hymnal to find words or seeking solace in a familiar tune, I was left to focus on the silence. I found myself listening to the words that were spoken instead of moving ahead to the hymn; the sounds of the scripture lingered in my imagination after each reading…

  • the sound of a sword being placed back in its sheath;
  • the difference in sounds between soldiers marching, bystanders scurrying, and disciples stumbling;
  • the creaking of that gate that opened and closed;
  • the sound of hands rubbing together over a fire;
  • the quiet strain of folks leaning in to hear what is being spoken inside;
  • the excited murmuring of a crowd eager to see what is happening
  • the hush of unspoken words

On this Good Friday, I am thinking of an Advent hymn, Let All Mortal Flesh Keep Silence. I invite you to spend time reading the passion narrative aloud and then pausing from time to time to be quiet. Just be quiet. Listen.

Prayer

O God whose voice brought forth creation, may I be quiet today and listen. Help me pay attention to the sounds around me and to listen for you. In the silence of Good Friday, I seek your voice. Amen.

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Towel and Basin People

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Thursday, April 14, Evening – Maundy Thursday

Rick Isbell

Towel and Basin People

Read: John 13:3-5, 12-17

On Maundy Thursday evening one year in the church I served before coming to Church Street, we had a foot washing as part of the service. The clergy conducting the service invited members of the congregation to come down to the front pews, take off their shoes and the clergy members would wash their feet in basins provided. It was a very anxious time for clergy and congregation. Would anyone come down? What reactions would the clergy receive? It was as awkward for the congregation as it was for the disciples around the table that first night. After some anxious moments, about a dozen or more members came down and got their feet washed by the clergy.

When I left that church to come to Church Street, the staff gave me a hand-crafted pitcher and basin which I placed on the window sill behind my desk for all 27 years at Church Street. It was a physical reminder of the Order of Deacon in which I was ordained and what all Christians are called to do.

You and I are called to be towel and basin people. We are called to serve and not to be served. It’s easy to do the things which are easy and for which we receive praise and publicity. It’s harder to discipline ourselves “to get on our knees” and do the unpleasant tasks of Christian discipleship and servanthood. Jesus set an example for us by washing tired and dirty feet. Jesus calls us to do the same in one way or another.

Prayer

O God, help me to follow the example of Jesus to serve others. Show me where and whom you want me to serve. May your Holy Spirit guide and strengthen me as I go with my towel and basin.

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Behold the Light

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Thursday, April 14, Morning – Maundy Thursday

In Honor of Stephen Ministry

Behold the Light

Read from the Gospel of John

“The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. ‘I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.’”

It’s the darkness that gets me. Every year the Maundy Thursday service has touched my heart in unique and powerful ways. The music envelops us in sorrow, and our hearts grow heavier as the service progresses. We grieve seeing the church stripped of grandeur—even the Cross is covered. We ache as the pastors’ vestments are removed. We wince as the lights grow dim, and we mourn in the tolling of the bell. We leave in silence, knowing that if Jesus had not come, our whole world would be dark and hopeless.

But Jesus did come! He came into a world filled with greed and power, a world with little regard for human life, a world in which women and children were property and slavery was normal. He faced a world filled with resentments and violence, a world largely lacking justice, truth, ethics, and compassion. He was rejected by religious leaders who were motivated by self-preservation. In truth, he came into a world much like our own.

But Jesus did come! He lived among the poor and downtrodden. He spoke truth. He healed hearts and souls as well as bodies. He personified love, humility, forgiveness, compassion, generosity—even celebration and joy. Eventually killed by his enemies, Jesus was resurrected by God. And that has made all the difference.

Because of Jesus, our risen Saviour, we have hope even in the hardest and darkest places of our lives. The light of Jesus overcomes the darkness.

Prayer

Father, even as you delivered us from darkness, awaken in us a new determination to model our lives on your beloved son, the Risen Jesus. Help us to walk in the light that he brought.

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The Scarcest Thing

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Wednesday, April 13, Evening – Holy Week Day 3

By Dona Bunch

The Scarcest Thing

Read: Matthew 6:6 NIV

“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.”

I have a sister who has a stack of dog-eared books that she gets out every night: a Bible, a list of names and a devotional. I think that’s what they are because they are so ragged, they’re hard to identify. This is her prayer time. Invariably, she falls asleep within minutes, but if you wake her, she assures you she’s “almost done” and begins again. This process can repeat itself for some time. I often tease her that my life is a mess because she’s never reached my name before falling asleep.

Prayer is one of the three pillars of Lent, along with fasting and almsgiving. On the surface, prayer seems like the easiest of all, but for me it is the toughest by far. I can give up a favorite food. I can give to the poor. But prayer requires two of the scarcest things in our lives: time and silence.

For prayer, we must find time in our busy days to simply stop and pray. It sounds easy, but who has any spare time in their day? Work, kids, schedules, appointments, events, deadlines. We live in a society that equates busyness with accomplishment. We say we want more time, yet we become anxious if our calendars are empty.

Prayer requires not only time, but silence in the presence of God. And silence is the rarest of commodities. We’re surrounded by noise; constantly talking at work and at home, watching others talk on tv and social media, attending group activities like sports or entertainment. Even if we’re alone, we often have our earbuds connected to the latest podcast. Our world does not indulge itself in silence. Yet silence is essential to connecting with God. Not only do we need to feel like God can hear us, but we need to hear God even more. The concept of spending time in silence can seem awkward and a little daunting.

I’ve often felt like a failure at prayer. My desire is there, but I’m often in a hurry and my mind can’t keep still. Yet the thing I try to remember is that it’s OK if we have trouble focusing. My sister has shown me that it’s the effort and dedication, day after day, that matters, even if it’s not always perfect. Prayer can be hard. But if time seems nonexistent and silence is elusive, commit to prayer anyway. Even if you fall asleep, God sees you and hears you. And it’s always OK to begin again.

Prayer

Lord, thank you for your willingness to listen to the concerns of our hearts. Help us seek and find the time for prayer and learn to find you in the silence.

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The Pioneer of Our Faith

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Wednesday, April 13, Morning – Holy Week Day 3

By Rev. Tim Best, Senior Associate Pastor

The Pioneer of Our Faith

Read: Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.”

It is Wednesday. Holy Week builds throughout the week, with services on Thursday and Friday, and decorating and other preparations on Saturday. Come Sunday we will all be dressed in new clothes and filled with excitement and acclamations of resurrection. But today is Wednesday. We are between the palms and the passion. This is not the night of the last supper or even the day of Jesus resting in the tomb. Today is a day to prepare our hearts for what we are about to experience. We are about to remember the brutality of human hearts, the rejection of love incarnate, and the betrayal and suffering of our Lord.

That is the harsh way of looking at the next few days. Yet, Hebrews helps us see Christ’s passion in a different way. Human rejection is met with divine love. Where the powers and principalities reject and harm, God endures and loves. Where Jesus’ followers abandon him out of fear, Christ remains faithful and gathers a community to encourage us in the race set before us in life.

When my sister was a young child she had gone somewhere with my dad and fell asleep on the way home. Our father attempted to carry her inside the house but began to lose his balance on the icy path to the porch. The best thing (to keep him from falling at least) would have been to have dropped my sister on the hard snow and ice and recovered his own balance. That isn’t how love works though. He instinctively fell backwards, knocking the wind out of himself and gaining some bruises in the process. The sudden motions of course woke up my sister.

Jesus has endured suffering and death so that we might not be separated from God’s love. As we journey together in faith in the next few days ask yourself: “How am I seeing in this work of Christ, in his passion, that he is the pioneer of our faith?”

Prayer

Let us prepare our hearts to witness and proclaim the mystery of our faith acted out: Christ has died. Christ is risen. Christ will come again. Amen.

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Weekly Lenten Prayer – April 12, 2022

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Weekly Prayers for the Church Street Family

Week of April 12, 2022

Rev. Jan Buxton Wade

Lord, we watched as you sat astride that lowly donkey, painting a scene that echoed your self-effacing mission on this earth. We may have strewn our jackets down to soften your stony ride; we may have waved our palm branches as enthusiastically as the others; we may even have shouted your name when you passed by. All well and good; yet we confess that our steps became slow as we approached the city gates, and the truth is, many of us still hover near those outer walls. We are fearful to follow too closely, for so much is asked of us. Parades are one thing, but what if there is death on the other side? You will just have to hold us up, Holy Jesus, for our spirits shrivel when we face the specter of pain and uncertainty.

Bless us, Lord, with your courage.

Your journey, Most Humble One, is surely meant to be our journey, despite our reticence. The Father doesn’t desire our company on Sundays only; he wants all that we are at all times. In coming days we will again be mystified by sacred scriptures – those passages that make us ask ourselves if we are true disciples, or if we are merely followers who hang out at a distance, waiting for another celebration. Our wills are weak and our knees wobbly; yet as you have never failed to accompany us in our trials, may we join that faithful band walking with you on your course most grievous.

Bless us, Lord, with your strength.

We admit our failings freely, Gracious One, especially . . . . . . . . . . Wash us clean, we pray, as you so tenderly washed the feet of your disciples that long ago night. And show us how to draw close and wash the feet of those who suffer everywhere – the confused and the grieving; the imprisoned and their captors; the infirm and their caregivers; all who are caught up in humanitarian crises in Yemen, Ukraine, Ethiopia, Afghanistan, S. Sudan and Somalia. You know too well that human pain can cut too deep for words, so pierce us with a burning warmth that we might reach out to all hurting souls and even to our enemies.

Bless us, Lord, with your love.

And receive, we pray, both the needs and the praises offered by your people in our own church community:

  • Gratitude: an infant granddaughter needs no surgery
  • Prayers appreciated: friend in hospice care died peacefully with no pain
  • Grateful for prayers: member’s foot surgery went smoothly
  • One offers praise for healing of family relationships
  • Thanksgiving for a mother’s 96th birthday
  • Prayers appreciated: pain from kidney stone has ceased
  • Family joyfully look forward to a son’s wedding
  • Thanksgiving for one recovered from Covid
  • Gratitude for our music leaders & all devoted choir members
  • Member recovering in NHC, for improvement in Parkinson’s
  • Solace for 3 nieces grieving their mother’s untimely death
  • Prayers please for a mother in rehab
  • Beloved mother with a heart condition, for correct diagnosis
  • Grandmother in comfort care and strength for caregiving daughter
  • Please pray for a home to sell in short order
  • For Russia to end violence and upholding the poor people of Ukraine
  • Continued strength for a mother in cancer treatment
  • Please pray for an employment interview on April 13
  • Improved health for a brother with congestive heart failure
  • Calming anxiety of a member overwhelmed with responsibilities
  • Direction for an aunt who lost her home & business in the recent fires
  • Prayers for anxious couple awaiting news of pregnancy
  • Comfort for cherished husband/father & his grieving family
  • Young wife with cancer, that recent treatment may help her recover
  • An uncle in hospice care – prayers for family
  • Husband’s continued healing from pneumonia
  • An ill mother-in-law and concerned family, for recovery
  • Safe travel to and from NYC
  • 5 friends who are dealing with grave challenges
  • Healing for a nephew in radiation treatment
  • For employment doors to open for a young professional
  • Relative in treatment for ovarian cancer
  • For our 6th graders – discerning & preparing for confirmation
  • Longtime friend with advanced cancer & wisdom for physicians

Yes, Good Lord, we are too much absorbed in the trivial, half-blind to the crucial callings of our neighbors and our world. Please don’t stop nudging us, don’t cease rousing us when we become too comfortable. And as we revisit the shock and sorrow of your own suffering on the cross, may we recommit ourselves to the solemn promises we have made in your name.

Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil, for thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen.

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The Abundant Life

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Daily Lent Devotions from Church Street UMC

Tuesday, April 12, Evening – Holy Week Day 2

By John Eldridge

The Abundant Life

Read: John 10:10b

“…I have come that they might have life and that they might live it more abundantly.”

In 1971, when I was in my early 20’s, my older brother, Joe, was a Methodist Missionary serving a little Methodist Church in Santiago, Chile. It was during this time that the worst that could happen, did happen. My older brother’s wife died. When we met Joe at McGhee Tyson and he got off the plane clutching the urn with his wife’ ashes, I knew he was in trouble. I had been planning an adventure to Chile for a long visit, but now I knew I did not just want to go, I needed to go be with Joe when he returned to his little Methodist Church in Santiago.

Before we left for Chile, however, Joe had to consult with his bosses at the General Board of Global Ministries in New York. It was in that Global Ministries office that I learned a great lesson that continues to serve me well. One of Joe’s bosses wanted to talk to me, ostensibly to discern if I had the metal to assist my brother in Chile as he recovered from his wife’s death.

I started that conversation with something like this: “I thought I would take some time out of my life…” and this person at UMC Global Ministries quickly interrupted me, saying: “Instead of taking time out of your life by joining your brother in Chile, are you not putting something in your life?” And boy, was he correct! I had the adventure of a lifetime. Living in Santiago for more than six months, learning Spanish, helping with the kids at the little Methodist Church, traveling literally all over Latin America, and in the process, providing companionship to my hurting brother. Yes, I put all that in my life.

And so it can be with Lent. Instead of thinking what you can give up for Lent, think instead about what you can add during these weeks. What can you put into your life? Perhaps you can create a more active prayer life, visit the sick or lonely, do daily scripture readings, call friends that you have not had any contact with in a while, achieve greater patience? And the list goes on.

Jesus said: “I have come that they may have life, and that they might live it more abundantly. ”Putting meaningful experiences in your life is the way to living more abundantly. Yes, Lent is the opportunity to give up some things, but it is also an opportunity to put some good practices in your life as well.

Prayer

Help us Lord, to engage with Lent in a way that brings us closer to you, whether that be by adding to or subtracting from life’s regular living.

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