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Lenten Devotionals 2007
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE
17Though the fig tree should not blossom,
nor fruit be on the vines,
the produce of the olive fail
and the fields yield no food,
the flock be cut off from the fold
and there be no herd in the stalls,
18yet I will rejoice in the LORD;
I will take joy in the God of my salvation.
19GOD, the Lord, is my strength;
he makes my feet like the deer’s;
he makes me tread on my high places.
To the choirmaster: with stringed instruments.
*Habakkuk 3.17-19 (ESV)
DEVOTIONAL THOUGHTS
Have you ever felt God was not blessing you? That all your efforts to do right did not matter? That your goodness had not paid off? That God seemed not to care?
Several months ago I felt that way. I recall the day I walked toward my home, and I prayed, "God, I could sure use some help down here. How about giving a little help, okay!" I prayed that same prayer a number of times over many weeks.
Actually, it did not seem to do any good in changing anything for the better. But it gave me a little comfort in affirming I still knew God was near. Now, I realize God was present and wanting to help. I had, however, removed myself from where He had called me to be fully. I had stepped outside God's Shalom - see below.
Still, in the middle of God's will, halfway in, or totally outside, we long to sense God understands our hurt and confusion. And we can be in the middle of God's will and have a painful sense of Divine nonresponse.
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In his book Night, Elie Wiesel tells of a night when several prisoners chose to put God on trial. They determined to try God for the Holocaust. These were men of faith, but it seemed to them their faith had failed them. They asked young Wiesel to witness the proceedings.
The "prosecuting attorney" brought charges. God's people had been torn from their homes, parted from their families, beaten, abused, and burned alive in incinerators. The defense attorney presented a case. But they found God guilty of failing and forsaking his people, maybe even guilty of not existing.
The trial was over, and the mood in the room was somber, dark, and depressing. The men prepared for bed. Only minutes later, when the time came for the Jewish evening prayer, the men knelt and prayed evening prayer.
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Fidelity implies faith. Faith is a conscious choice to trust, even when the Object of our trust does not act in a manner we can understand.
According to Habakkuk's people, God is the giver of Shalom. Shalom, which we translate "peace," is much more. Shalom includes prosperity of people and land. In the opening Scripture, the prophet is saying, "If the Source of blessing withholds blessing, and the flow of Shalom dries up, I will still worship the Shalom Giver as I did before."
Faith is not just for times when God makes sense to us. God, more than not, does not make sense. Yet, does any truly good relationship make sense? Do you make sense? Do I make sense? No, we each are a mystery, and what we do and do not do entails a mystery.
Still, at the heart of covenant is Love. The men above loved both God and their faith. They loved their tradition, also.
Prayer expresses a relationship, a covenant, a tradition, a God. The heart of Prayer is seen, not when things go as we wish, or even justly. We show the heart of prayer when we love God and trust Divine Guidance when life seems to have been unfair and is disappointing to us.
A God Lover keeps praying when the Shalom well dries up. A God Lover keeps faithful to his or her Love, even when the Covenant Maker seems not to be anywhere on the same continent. A God Lover keeps saying prayers even when it seems no answers are being given to the prayers.
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Where is Jesus just before his arrest? Is he trying to run away? Is he mounting a counter-attack? No. He is praying.
32 They went to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and Jesus said, “Sit here while I go and pray.” 33 He took Peter, James, and John with him, and he became deeply troubled and distressed. 34 He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
*Mark 14.32-34 (NLT)
I sat before a friend who is a priest. I asked him about how to pray about an important trial in my life. He replied, "I myself favor nonspecific prayer. To me, that is the best way to pray." Nonspecific prayer is simply praying that God's will be done, trusting that God knows what is needed in each situation.
I, also, find nonspecific prayer very powerful. Such is a humbling way to pray, for we admit we do not know what is best. Yet, such prayer is a very trusting way to pray, for we express our faith that our Father will answer, even if the answer is simply, "I am here for you." Such prayer is loving, for it is a gift to our Love which says, "I love you for who You are, not what I can get out of you."
SPIRITUAL EXERCISE
1) Spend some time in nonspecific prayer. Bring to mind matters of concern, either in audible prayer or meditative visualization. With each one, conclude, "Your will be done."
2) Go into Silence, with eyes closed think about a person who is on your heart and in need of prayer. Visualize Jesus standing beside the person. Look at Jesus, speak to Jesus, asking Jesus that what is best for the person will be done.
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*OneLife Ministries is a ministry of Brian K. Wilcox, of SW Florida. Brian is pastor at Christ Community United Methodist Church, Harbour Heights, FL, and Senior Chaplain for the Charlotte County Sheriff's Office, Punta Gorda, FL.
*Brian welcomes responses to his writings or submission of prayer requests at barukhattah@embarqmail.com .
*Contact the above email to book Brian for Spiritual Direction, retreats, or workshops. You can order his book An Ache for Union at major book dealers.
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