clear river

Clear River Daily Bible

Scripture

Leviticus 14:1-57
Mark 6:30-56
Psalm  40:1-10
Proverbs 10:11-12

Reflection 

  "It's hard to remember that Jesus did not come to make us safe, but rather to make us disciples, citizens of God's new age, a kingdom of surprise."—Stanley Hauerwas, Duke University

  The compassion of Jesus is on magnificent display here. There's the powerful statement that Jesus saw the multitudes, noted their lost condition and felt deep compassion for them. There is the amazing demonstration of power in the feeding of the five thousand. Then there is the statement "...and he  intended to pass by them."

Compassion? Jesus sees the struggle his disciples are experiencing, the fear as strong as the waves, the weariness of their arms giving way under the strain of rowing against the storm. The passage even states that he could see they were in "serious trouble!"

And he intended to pass by them.

That statement can get lost amidst the walk on the water, the invitation for Peter to step onto the waves (Matt.14) and the stilling of the storm. It's a statement that, if you think about it, makes you wonder where in the world his compassion went.

It could be that there are times when the  compassionate thing for Jesus to do is to keep an  eye on us while we struggle. 

"All you need to remember is that God will never let you down; he'll never let you be pushed past your limit; he'll always be there to help you come through it." - 1 Cor. 10:13 (The Message)

The inescapable inference is that one, he will  allow you to be pushed or tested and two, there is  a limit he will let you be pushed to. Why? As Stanley Hauerwas said above, God is outfitting us for something greater than our safety, something more profound than simply having a personal "storm sitter." God is about the business of making us like his son and turning us lose to partner with him in his activity in the world. Part of that preparation is the furnace of affliction, temptation, suffering and struggle. There is a facet of Christ-like strength that comes not from munching on manna but wrestling with the waves.

Compassion can be letting you struggle but know this, he never takes his eye off you, he knows the limits, and he is the Master of the waves. 

 

Prayer

Lord, sometimes I wonder about Your compassion. I feel lost and forgotten. I think the waves might take me down. Remind me that in these times to You are not far from me and You even use these moments to chisel at that hardness of my heart and reveal Jesus in me. Thank you Lord. I will trust you. In Jesus name, Amen.

Clear River Daily Bible

Scripture

Leviticus 13:1-59
Mark 6:1-29
Psalm 39:1-13
Proverbs 10:10

Reflection

  “Lent is supposed to be a time when we review our spiritual life, think again about what it means to be a follower of Christ, reset the compass of our discipleship and prepare ourselves to celebrate the Easter festival. But often we just give up biscuits” - Stephen Cottrell, I Thirst, p. 12

Let's take a step away from our usual comments today and let me recommend to you some resources you may want to explore during this Lenten season: 

Journey to the Cross : a very nicely done daily meditation experience. Worth bookmarking and visiting each day.

Pray as You Go: a very cool site from the Jesuits in the UK that provides an audible daily experience of prayer, scripture and music. Listen at your computer or subscribe via itunes and take it with you. 

Sacred Space: from the Irish Jesuits. A slow reflective meditation for each day.

Lutheran Devotionals : An offering from the Lutheran church for reflection.

Daily Lenten Prayer : Bit of a Catholic slant. Beautifully written prayers.

Higher Things: a daily Lenten devotional in pdf format. 

The Upper Room: a Methodist site. This year long daily devotional page follows Lenten themes during the season.

"Get alone with Jesus and either tell Him that you do not want sin to die out in you - or else tell Him that at all costs you want to be identified with His death." --Oswald Chambers 

Prayer

Take a moment in silent prayer. Ask God to reveal your heart to you and help you to walk anew in your first love for Jesus. 

             

 

Clear River Daily Bible

 Scripture

Leviticus 11:1-12:8
Mark 5:21-43
Psalm 38:1-22
Proverbs 10:8-9

Reflection

I'm always intrigued in these gospel passages by what I imagine the response of people might be. Take Jarius for example. This desperate father throws himself at the feet of Jesus begging for him to intervene on behalf of his dying daughter. One can only imagine the depth of his personal fear and agony. Jesus graciously agrees to go and in route has the encounter with the woman suffering from the issue of blood. Her touch and subsequent healing causes the whole parade to stop for an inquiry as to who it is that touched Jesus and then to have some conversation with the woman once she is discovered.

Try to imagine the conflict within Jarius. Desperate to get to his daughter, how must he feel about this woman? Is he happy for her? Perhaps he's angry with her and impatient. How does this woman who has been sick for so long rank above his young daughter who has her whole life in front of her?

Jarius was a synagogue official. This woman would have been considered an outsider, "unclean" because of her medical problem. She would not have been welcomed at the synagogue and her intrusion could hardly be welcomed now. Especially now with the news arriving via messenger that it was to late. His daughter was dead. 

In 1st Corinthians 11, Paul tackles the issue of the communion meal being abused in the church. The poor were being pushed aside while the more well to do were porking out and getting drunk. Paul warns them sternly and then says : "So then, my brethren, when you come together to eat, wait for one another." (v.33)  Waiting is hard when you don't feel the person you're having to wait on is as deserving as you are. My crisis is always the more important one.

Jesus looks us all in the eye, just as He did Jarius, and tells us. "Don't be afraid. Just have faith." There's enough of Jesus to go around. When we wait with the Savior  to care for someone else in spite of our own demanding situation sometimes a resurrection is around the corner.

Prayer

Father help me to stop and notice someone else today who needs a kind word or act. Keep me from rushing past those you would stop for. Help me to be less consumed with what I need from you and more willing to join you in your care for others. In Jesus name, Amen

Clear River Daily Bible

  Scripture

Leviticus 9:7-10:20
Mark 4:26-5:20
Psalm 37:30-40
Proverbs 10:6-7

Reflection from the New Testament 

Why the pigs? It’s a wonderful moment in this demoniac’s life when Jesus releases him from the legion of spirits that have possessed him, but still, why the pigs?

Among the Jews pigs were viewed as unclean animals, not be to be eaten (Leviticus 11:7). So either the people of that area were Jews raising the pigs for sale to Gentiles, or they were not Jewish. If they were Jewish we could speculate that they were playing a little to close to the fire, so to speak, and Jesus was sending them a message. If they were Gentiles then...  well, we don’t know. Either way, it was their livelihood. So one response people have is indignation. After all we’re talking about a couple of thousand pigs. At that time one pig was worth a month’s wages. Just do the math! Jesus may have very well destroyed the economy of the area just to release that man from his torment.  So the short answer to this is that no one really knows for sure. All we do know was that Jesus considered it worth it to set this man free,

(On a side note... would this have been considered sueycide?)

Here’s one interesting thought. The demons asked Jesus not to send them away from the area. This was a place they felt they belonged regardless of who or what they inhabited. The flip side here is that as soon as the townsfolk realized what had happened they wanted this miracle worker to leave the area as soon as possible. Sometimes we’d rather live with the consequences of something wrong than deal with the cost of Jesus setting things right! What’s one crazy old fool as long as we can keep things relatively calm? What’s one small addiction, resentment, grudge or secret? Maybe we’d rather live with it than invite Jesus to help us deal with it? After all, think of the cost!

Prayer

Lord Jesus, I confess that often I'd rather just leave things as they are rather than bring them to you. Give me grace, I pray, to know that you are willing to receive me, heal me and set me right. Deliver me from the insanity of resisting you. In your name I pray, amen.

Clear River Daily Bible

  Scripture

Leviticus 7:28-9:6
Mark 3:31-4:25
Psalm 37:12-29
Proverbs 10:5

Reflection from the New Testament

Later, when Jesus was alone with the twelve disciples...  they asked him what the parables meant.

I have this image in my mind of the disciples all standing around Jesus as he spoke to the crowds gathered. I see them nodding their heads in knowing agreement, occasionally uttering a "mm-hmm", and looking at the crowd with an expression that says "we get this cause hey, we're the disciples!"  When they get Jesus alone they can drop the act and ask him to please explain the meaning of the parables they heard during the sermon. Sure, it's only speculation but can't you just picture it?

I can understand a moment like that. Who wants to look stupid? Over the years I've been in more than one situation where I've worked hard to give the impression of confidence and competancy while internally wondering  "what the heck do I do now?"   

James tells us: "If any of you need wisdom, you should ask God, and it will be given to you. God is generous and won't correct you for asking." - James 1:5 (cev)

In other words, God won't make you feel stupid for needing help. He's not looking to highlight your ignorance, He wants to help you grow in wise living. There's much that happens to us in life that's hard to grapple with or understand the purpose for. Often we keep our "game face" on so others will think we've got a handle on things. That may work for a bit but what we really need is to get alone with Jesus and ask for some insight. Is there something happening in your life that you don't know what to do about? Why not ask your heavenly Father for some wisdom today?

Prayer

Father, I often feel in the dark about events in my life or when it comes to understanding your Word. I pray that Your Holy Spirit would pour wisdom into my thoughts and grant me deeper insight into Your Word and ways. In Jesus name, Amen