March 21, 2010

Breaking Open The Scriptures

Scriptures for March 21: Isaiah 43:16-21; Psalm 126, Philippians 3:4b-14, John 12:1-8
Songs: Jesus the very Thought of Thee – UMH 172; When I Survey the Wondrous Cross – UMH 298; To Know You More – TFWS 2161

Psalm 126
This is a psalm of celebration of what God has done in the past and what God will do in the future. God’s grace for our lives comes from the Character of God. We can have hope in life because God fulfills his promises. Life has a rhythm – there is ebb and flow, there is sowing and harvest. There are good times, there is redemption. We just have to look at where we are in the cycle of hope and have faith in God.


Philippians
Usually when we are expecting a change in life, we sit and wait for things to be different. Paul is trying to remind us that the change we are waiting for begins today. The present, begins with the presence. In order to fully embrace the future, we have to be willing to accept the fact that things will be different. We find our stability in who we are in Christ, not in who we understand ourselves to be. All of our accomplishments in the past are “dung”. Not worthless, but not useful for us in the future. We do not succeed because of our efforts, we succeed from our grace.

Questions: Where are you in your faith? Where are you in the cycle of faith- are your waiting for God, or are your celebrating God’s redemption? What helps you to trust in God’s presence? How do you deal with change? Do you accept it, or does it throw you off balance? Where is God’s grace in your life? What are you waiting for Christ to change in your life?