The Fourth Blessing - Matthew 5:6

       Matthew 5:6 and Psalm 1 are linked in the images they provide in thirsting after the way of God.
Psalm 1 could be translated as:
 "You are on the right road when you do not follow the advice of the wicked, 
or take the path that sinners tread,
    or sit in the seat of scoffers;
2 but their delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and on his law they meditate day and night.
3 they are like trees
    planted by streams of water,
which yield their fruit in its season,
    and their leaves do not wither.
In all that they do, they prosper."

Righteousness, much like the imagery of this particular Psalm, is linked with hearing and walking in the way of God. 

Jesus in Matthew 5:6 is posing an underlying question - are we going to live this way? Are we going to hunger and thirst after righteousness? Are we going to hear and walk in the way of God? And then calls on us to make a decision about what our life will be focused on.

What about you? Would you consider yourself to be on the right path with God? How can you grow in hungering and thirsting after Him?

The Fourth Blessing Devo

May 26th, 2019

Devotional

“The Fourth Blessing’” -

      Matthew 5:6

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Righteousness” - Matthew 5:6

  Sometimes we struggle with the idea of righteousness. We start to substitute in righteous for righteousness, which makes us think of people with are self-righteous. We probably all know folks who act a bit too sure of themselves, a bit too certain or like they are better than those around them. That is not what Jesus is talking about in this particular Beatitude. 

Jesus is not asking for folks to think highly of themselves or to act like they have everything all figured out. Instead, Jesus said blessed are those who hunger and thirst after righteousness, for they will be filled. This is not about us.This is about seeking after the heart of God. Not so we look competent, but so that God is glorified. 

How can you live in a way that glorifies God?

Prayer: God, we thank you that you have given us the opportunity to know you and to grow closer to you. We are even more humbled, O God, that you let us be ambassadors for you and your Kingdom. May we be so close to you heart, Lord, that we cannot help but shine it forth to those we interact with. Amen.  

Tuesday: “Hunger and Thirst” - Matthew 5:6

Sometimes when you are tying on a computer, the computer tries to guess what you are going to say next. Sometimes it guess correctly, other times it does not. What I found interesting, however, in working on this week’s sermon is how many times the computer tried to change “craving” into “craven”.

Much like the difference between self-righteousness and righteousness, so there is a chasm between craving and craven. Craven isn’t a word we hear very much anymore, but its to act cowardly. Yet, how many times when we cave into what we are craving, we aren’t acting with courage. We aren’t seeking after the way of God. 

Sometimes we give into our cravings because it temporarily makes us feel good. Other times, we give in so we can follow the crowd. 

The questions that seem to be underlying this particular Beatitudes how badly do we want righteousness? Do we live our lives in such a way that we give into the cravings of this world, or instead do we deeply desire, yes even crave, the way of God? 

What would it look like to crave the way of God first and foremost in your life?

Prayer: Lord, we confess that sometimes we do not crave you or your ways. We do not seek your righteousness. Instead, we cave into our own desires and put ourselves first, pushing you and your will to the side. Forgive us we pray, and set us back on the right path. Amen. 

Wednesday: “Soul Fainted” - Psalm 107:5-9

So what exactly does it look like to hunger and thirst after God? The Psalmist seems to capture a this into a particular image when he says that their soul fainted within them. 

Sometimes we will say that we are starving, as a matter of speech, but that isn’t what the Psalmist is talking about. He is talking about literally being so hungry that you can feel it deep within your body. Have you ever been so hungry that you could faint? Or so dehydrated that you feel uncomfortable? That is the type of hunger that the psalmist is referring to. 

When we desire God out of that deepest place in our souls, when we yearn for God with this type of vigor, we will find God. God will satisfy us, in the way that Jesus talks about in the Beatitudes, filling us with what we need most - the love of God. 

What are some of the spiritual practices you engage in to grow closer to the heart of God?

Prayer: Lord, let our souls faint for you. Let us desire you more than we desire anyone or anything else, O Lord. Fill us up, O Lord, so that the cup of our spirit overflows with your goodness and grace. Amen. 

Thursday: “Meditate” - Psalm 1

  We are made for relationship with God. In fact, our relationship to God is the most important relationship we have. Yet, sometimes we act as if God is the least important relationship in our life, putting off the work of the spiritual life until we have more time. Or we run to God when circumstances are trying, but turn back to our old habits and schedules when things are going well. This isn’t living from the center of a healthy soul, brothers and sisters. And as a result our spiritual lives become more focused on knowing about God, instead of really knowing God personally. Spiritual practices are tools to help us connect to this first and primary relationship with God, cultivating it. No one else can do the hard work of cultivating your soul for you. No one else can practice spiritual disciplines for you. Its up to you - and flows from the importance you place on your relationship with God. 

Today’s Psalm speaks of one of these spiritual practices - meditation. “Happy are those who...delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on his law day and night.” Meditation is one of those words that has gotten a bad reputation over the year. For some of us we may think of other religious practices when we hear chanting, and become uncomfortable, others may think of those who seem to space out of society. Still others may claim that meditation is only for those who have lots of time to fill. But at its very core, Christians believe that meditation is gaze deeply into God’s word and reflect upon God’s works. Meditation allows us to give God our undivided attention so we can more fully know about God’s nature and see God’s heart for us. 

  What are some of the ways that you spend time with God?

Prayer: Lord, we want to be deeply connected to you. We want to be tethered to you in a way that cannot be broken. Commune with us, we pray. Amen.

Friday: “Seek Ye First” - Matthew 6: 25-33

  One of the first hymns that I remember learning in youth choir was “Seek Ye First”, which is rooted in today’s scripture lesson. Of course, we cannot seek first the Kingdom of God until we have examined our heart and our priorities.

Jesus does this by essentially asking what are you worried about and are you worried about those particular things? He knew that those things we worried about often can distract us from the Kingdom of God because they are where our heart truly lies. We worry about them because we care about them. Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing - unless it becomes a stumbling block in seeking the Kingdom of God. 

How can you seek first the Kingdom of God in your daily life??

Prayer: Lord, sometimes our worries consume us. Sometimes we are so worried that we cannot focus on you. Let us look to you, O Lord, to meet our needs so that we can put our energy and desire into seeking you and your Kingdom first. Amen. 

Sabbath. Study. Serve.

Sabbath, Study, Serve 

Taking the Sermon Into Our Week 

Scripture of the Week: Matthew 5:6

From the Sermon:

Here is Jesus saying that blessed are those who hunger and thirst for ________________.

Righteousness is such a particular thing that Jesus is speaking about - the word he uses literally means ___________________.

The way we think and act and live ___________ from who we are deep within.

The problem emerges when we put so much focus on ____________ that we push God to the side.

When we seek after the righteousness of God, we are doing it for the ______________.

Reflection Questions:

How do you know if you have a hunger for God inside of you?

What does it look like to live a life for God?

What are some of the ways your love for God overflow and impact other people?

Prayer:

Lord, as we hunger and thirst after righteousness, change us we pray. Change us in an unmistakable way, so that we can overflow your love, your grace, and your truth onto those we encounter in a way that changes them as well. In Jesus’s name we pray. Amen. 

The Second Blessing Devo - Matthew 5:4

May 5th, 2019

Devotional

“The Second Blessing” -

      Matthew 5:4

Keep the sermon topic and Biblical text preaching all week by following Pastor Michelle on twitter @tinypastor and reading her sermon blog www.revmichelle.blogspot.com

Monday: “Mourned” - Genesis 37:34

The stage has been set. Joseph’s brothers have done the unthinkable. They intended to kill their brother out of jealousy, but instead they sold him into slavery. But of course, they couldn’t go home and tell their father that. Joseph was his favorite son. So instead, they went home and said that he had been killed by a wild animal in the fields, bringing part of the coat of many colors smeared in blood and animal hair as proof.

And Jacob mourned. 

There were very particular ways that people mourned in Jewish culture during this time, just as there are particular ways that people mourn today. When people were deeply grieved, they tore their garments (some translations say rend their garments) and replace them with sack cloth, sometimes marked themselves with ashes, and mourned. Jacob did this as a sign to the world that he was in mourning for his lost son.

  What are some of our traditions around mourning today?

Prayer: Jesus, all too often, we try to hide our mourning from the world. We want to pretend that everything is fine. That we can get back to life as normal as possible as quickly as possible. Yet, in the scriptures we see examples of deep mourning and grief. Lord, teach us how to grieve again, we pray. Amen. 

Tuesday: “Comfort” - Isaiah 61:1-2

  The prophet Isaiah is traditionally thought to be written in sections, some of which call Israel to repentance and others of which usher them into celebration for freedom anew. Isaiah 61 is found in the celebration section - the time when the people are looking forward to deliverance. What is the one who is going to bring deliverance bringing with him? A spirit to preach good news to the poor. To proclaim liberty to the captives. To bring release to the prisoners. To proclaim the year of the Lord is upon them.

And to bring comfort to those who mourn. 

Part of what comes with the breadth and depth of the freedom and deliverance of God is comfort. Comfort that God provides. Comfort that we are tasked to share with others as followers of Christ. 

There is an old quote about preaching that has been passed around so many times that I do not even know who originally said it. But the quote says that we comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. In other words, one of our primary tasks as the body of Christ is to offer comfort in a variety of ways to those who are suffering, but we also shake up the comfortable. 

How do we offer comfort as the body of Christ? 

Prayer: Lord, we confess that when we are comfortable, we sometimes forget to reach out to those who are in need of comfort. Free us, O Lord, to bring your comfort and love to those in the world who are hurting, we pray. Amen.

Wednesday: “Provide” - Isaiah 61: 3

Isaiah continues on to say that during those days of freedom and deliverance, there will be provision for those who mourn. It doesn’t quite go as far as the popular passage from Revelation read at funerals about how there will be no more crying, no more pain. But Isaiah does say that those who are mourning, those who are deeply grieving in ways similar to Jacob in our passage from Monday this week, will find healing.

They will find life anew. Their ashes, a sign of mourning, will be replaced of garlands, often associated with joy. There will be an oil of gladness, an anointing similar to that of those stepping into new positions and seasons of life. A mantle passed on to them of praise. 

When we are deep in grief, it is so hard to image the newness that this passage presents. It’s hard to believe that there will ever be joy in our lives again. Or we try to rush to this stage, so quickly trying to burry and move past our grief, that we do not take time to fully mourn that which we have lost. 

Think of a time of mourning in your life. How did God start to restore your joy?

Prayer: Lord, thank you for promising us that even in times of grief that you will provide for us. Thank you for being with us through the darkest moments of our life and walking with us. Let us share your power and presence with others hurting in this world, we pray. Amen. 

Thursday: “Blessed” - Matthew 5:4

It is hard to even begin to imagine the blessing in mourning. The blessing in the comfort that we receive from God when we are mourning. Yet, that is what this particular Beatitude promises. 

I think we all know someone who is so advises to pain that they try to cut it off in the first place. They try to root out the people and situations that may cause them pain, but in the long run, they end up trying to cut themselves off from love and being loved. 

There is no such thing as a risk-free life. When we take risks and reach out to others in love, yes, we will mourn someday, but we also get the blessing of the moment.

What do you think a risk-free life would look like? 

Prayer: Lord, keep us from cutting off from one another out of fear of what is to come. Instead, free us to love as you loved, deeply and sharing the hope of the Kingdom of God with those around us. Amen. 

Friday: “Embraced by God” - Matthew 5:4

The Message is a translation of the Bible that tries to put scripture into words that everyday people can understand and connect with. Matthew 5:4 in the Message reads, “You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.”

We have all experienced loss in our life, but part of our hope as Christians is that even in the midst of our loss, we believe that God is with us. That God will not leave us or forsake us. That we can feel the touch of God even in the midst of sorrow. 

It is sometimes hard to put that hope into words. But we trust that God will not only offer us this hope, but enable us to share it with the world through our testimony.

How have you experienced the embrace of God? 

Prayer: Lord, it seems funny to think that there is joy even in the mist of sorrow. But our joy, our hope, our strength is in you, Precious Lord. No matter what we may face. Be with us, we pray, and use us to share your hope and joy with the world. Amen. 

Saturday: Preparing for the Word

You are invited to read and pray this week’s text and topic: “The Third Blessing” - Matthew 5:5

Sabbath. Study. Serve.

Sabbath, Study, Serve 

Taking the Sermon Into Our Week 

Scripture of the Week: Matthew 5:4

From the Sermon:

Up to this point in the Gospel of Matthew, we have been told and clued in on the fact that Jesus is __________ and ________, and yet we find him amongst ordinary people teaching about ordinary things in and extradorinaiy way.

Blessed are those who _________, for they will be ___________.

If we are honest, not many of us would count mourning amongst our ___________.

When our soul struggles, we trust and believe and put our hope in the fact that God _____________.

Reflection Questions:

Have you ever discovered a blessing in the comfort God provides? If so, what was that experience like for you?

What do we discover about Jesus as we mourn?

Prayer:

Precious Lord, we do pray that you take our hand. Take our hand in the midst of our struggles. Take our hand in the midst of our grieving. As we mourn, may we draw close to you, and find your love. Be with us we pray. Amen.