FRIDAY, FIFTH WEEK IN LENT - 2013

Scripture:

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Psalm 51:11,12

Reflection:

Again we are reminded of one of our Lenten themes, that of repentance. When we examine our hearts and find things that shouldn't be there, we go to God and confess our sins to him. When we do this, we can have the assurance that he hears us and forgives us. "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." (1 John 1:9) His forgiveness toward us is sure because of Christ's sacrifice on our behalf.

Then, after being forgiven, we should ask for a clean heart, for all sin begins in a heart that is unclean. The cleaner our hearts, the fewer our sins. We often try to clean up the outside first. We don't do this, or we don't do that, which is okay if we are walking in obedience and are trying to please the Lord, but it does little to purify the heart. The Lord's way is to work from the inside out. As we submit our wills to him, he goes to work cleansing our hearts. When our hearts are clean, all that outward obedience comes so much easier and is just the natural result of staying close to the Lord. Unclean hearts prevent us from staying close to him. It is like we have been cast away from his presence and he has removed his Holy Spirit from us. That is a place we never want to be.

Prayer:

(Today we simply make the words of our Scripture reading our prayer.)

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence, and do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Amen.

FRIDAY, FIRST WEEK OF LENT - 2013

Scripture:

"I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is always before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight..." Psalm 51:3,4a

Reflection:

Psalm 51 is King David's prayer of confession after he is confronted about his adulterous affair with Bathsheba and the ordering of the death of her husband. David's sin was very grievous. Lives were thrown into turmoil and destroyed. People died as a result of David's transgression.

You may sometimes hear people say, "What's wrong with ___________, as long as it doesn't hurt anyone?" Sin almost always hurts others in some way. But we must understand that all sin, whether or not it directly hurts someone, is first and foremost a sin against the holy God. That it offends God is why certain things are wrong. When God's holiness is minimized, the heinousness of sin is downplayed and scoffed at. That is why certain religions and individuals are not concerned about what we might call sin. They don't acknowledge the all-holy God.

Prayer:

Holy Father, may we never lose sight of your holiness. In our pride we tend to want to see only our goodness and want to underestimate the seriousness of our sin. This Lenten season, grant us a greater sense and clearer picture of your holiness. As we are humbled in the light of your holiness, may we confess and forsake our sin, that we may become more like you. Amen.

Devotions? or Devoted?

I have said, "God has not called us to do devotions, but to a devoted life." Now, "doing devotions" might be a part of the devoted life, but it is surely not a substitute for it.

William Law, (1686-1761) in his book, A Serious Call to a Devout and Holy Life, shared similar thoughts. Here a few snippets from one chapter in that book.

"...who does not know, that it is better to be pure and holy than to talk about purity and holiness?"

"...it is better to be holy than to have holy prayers."

"...I do not intend to lessen the true and great value of prayers, either public or private; but only to show [the reader] that they are certainly but a very slender part of devotion, when compared to a devout life."

"For God is to be glorified , holiness is to be practiced, and the spirit of religion is to be the common spirit of every Christian, in every state and condition of life."

Oh, for those of you who are hung up over the word "religion" and are, in the "Christianity-isn't-a-religion-it's-a-relationship" camp, I simply say,
"CHRISTIANITY IS A RELIGION...GET OVER IT!