Daily Devotions and Podcasts
Prayer: Lord, help me to see You in every part of my day, even in the places I least expect. Open my eyes to Your presence in the ordinary and the extraordinary moments of life. Amen.
The Cathedral of Hope Devotion Ministry began as an answer to Progressive Christians who wanted to start their days with a little insight, observation, or wisdom about the Christian faith from their own point of view. Conservative internet devotions were abundant, but there was not much out there for liberal thinkers. The need was clear.
Being a large church, we had a generous amount of writing talent available and also a large number of congregants with theological training who were not on the pulpit. In the early days of the ministry, most of the writing was done by the clergy, but gradually the majority of the writers emerged from those lay volunteers.
That dynamic is still in place as new authors are always joining in to keep the ideas fresh. It’s a fitting structure for any center of progressive thought. This particular Body of Christ has many voices and each one has a unique and important story to tell.
SCRIPTURE Psalm 25:1-5 (New English Translation) O LORD, I come before you in prayer. My God, I trust in you. Please do not let me be humiliated; do not let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me. Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated. Those who deal in treachery will be thwarted and humiliated. Make me understand your ways, O LORD. Teach me your paths. Guide me into your truth and teach me. For you are the God who delivers me; on you I rely all day long. WORDS OF HOPE “Which One Are You?” It was simply a loving mother and her teenage daughter who were taking a drive to the big city, but it was a trip that would be life changing. They lived in a small, East Texas town, and were driving to Dallas so that the daughter could participate in a group for transgender youth sponsored by Resource Center Dallas. The Resource Center supports LGBTQIA+ people with safe places, friendly faces, supportive programs, healthcare, and housing. The daughter was transgender. Transgender persons are our neighbors, siblings, teachers, athletes, first responders, clergy, physicians, soldiers, artists, laborers and other everyday people whose physical gender differs from their own gender identity and experience. They live, laugh, dream and cry as do most any human. And like most human beings, they long for acceptance, understanding, respect, and to be treated equally and fairly. Bullies and closed-minded people are their greatest threat. Rev. Dr. Walter Brueggemann was a beloved pastor, esteemed Bible scholar, prolific author, and a prophetic voice. He wrote the devotional book, “Celebrating Abundance,” that we read for Advent last year here at Cathedral of Hope. In it he quoted from Psalm 25 and observed that there are three kinds of people: Those who know too much. Those who expect nothing. And those who know what to expect but do not know when. Those who know too much are consumed with shaping the world in their preferred image. For them, things should be according to their narrow norm and in compliance with their religious beliefs. Anyone who looks, thinks, behaves or believes differently than their definition of “normal” is to be stifled, suppressed or, better yet, considered invisible and eliminated. Brueggemann writes: “They know too much and reduce God’s freedom to the timetable of their ideology.” [p. 36] Those who expect nothing are comfortable in their own ideas and affluence. They do not expect the Gospel to be made real and are simply annoyed by those spouting timetables or rigid expectations and requirements for salvation. Then there are those who know what to expect but do not know when. They know from the teachings of Jesus that love of neighbor is the core of the Gospel, and apart from that we cannot truly love God or follow in the path of Christ to bring about a just society (the realm of God). They know this is true, but don’t know when it will be realized. So, this Advent, we live and act with the abundance of God’s Grace, the mercy of God’s love, and the hopeful expectancy that Christ brought into the world. Christmas is coming and it is more than a day to be celebrated, but a reality to model and live into for all the world to see. PRAYER Come, Holy Spirit, and so touch the hearts and lives of both doubters and believers that justice may roll down like waters, and abundant grace might wash away our scarcity of thinking, living, loving and sharing. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Rev. Dr. Gary Kindley Pastoral Psychotherapist drgk.org
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Words of Hope Podcast
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SCRIPTURE Psalm 25:1-5 (New English Translation) O LORD, I come before you in prayer. My God, I trust in you. Please do not let me be humiliated; do not let my enemies triumphantly rejoice over me. Certainly none who rely on you will be humiliated. Those who deal in treachery will be thwarted and humiliated. Make me understand your ways, O LORD. Teach me your paths. Guide me into your truth and teach me. For you are the God who delivers me; on you I rely all day long. WORDS OF HOPE “Which One Are You?” It was simply a loving mother and her teenage daughter who were taking a drive to the big city, but it was a trip that would be life changing. They lived in a small, East Texas town, and were driving to Dallas so that the daughter could participate in a group for transgender youth sponsored by Resource Center Dallas. The Resource Center supports LGBTQIA+ people with safe places, friendly faces, supportive programs, healthcare, and housing. The daughter was transgender. Transgender persons are our neighbors, siblings, teachers, athletes, first responders, clergy, physicians, soldiers, artists, laborers and other everyday people whose physical gender differs from their own gender identity and experience. They live, laugh, dream and cry as do most any human. And like most human beings, they long for acceptance, understanding, respect, and to be treated equally and fairly. Bullies and closed-minded people are their greatest threat. Rev. Dr. Walter Brueggemann was a beloved pastor, esteemed Bible scholar, prolific author, and a prophetic voice. He wrote the devotional book, “Celebrating Abundance,” that we read for Advent last year here at Cathedral of Hope. In it he quoted from Psalm 25 and observed that there are three kinds of people: Those who know too much. Those who expect nothing. And those who know what to expect but do not know when. Those who know too much are consumed with shaping the world in their preferred image. For them, things should be according to their narrow norm and in compliance with their religious beliefs. Anyone who looks, thinks, behaves or believes differently than their definition of “normal” is to be stifled, suppressed or, better yet, considered invisible and eliminated. Brueggemann writes: “They know too much and reduce God’s freedom to the timetable of their ideology.” [p. 36] Those who expect nothing are comfortable in their own ideas and affluence. They do not expect the Gospel to be made real and are simply annoyed by those spouting timetables or rigid expectations and requirements for salvation. Then there are those who know what to expect but do not know when. They know from the teachings of Jesus that love of neighbor is the core of the Gospel, and apart from that we cannot truly love God or follow in the path of Christ to bring about a just society (the realm of God). They know this is true, but don’t know when it will be realized. So, this Advent, we live and act with the abundance of God’s Grace, the mercy of God’s love, and the hopeful expectancy that Christ brought into the world. Christmas is coming and it is more than a day to be celebrated, but a reality to model and live into for all the world to see. PRAYER Come, Holy Spirit, and so touch the hearts and lives of both doubters and believers that justice may roll down like waters, and abundant grace might wash away our scarcity of thinking, living, loving and sharing. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Rev. Dr. Gary Kindley Pastoral Psychotherapist drgk.org
READING “Let every heart prepare him room.” (“Joy to the World”) ļ»æ WORDS OF HOPE When someone dear, someone treasured is coming to visit, excitement leaps in my chest. Memories come unbidden--of times we’ve spent showered in nature’s glory, leaning into intimate conversation and laughter across meals or on road trips or settled into couches while stroking well-loved animals, memories too of faithful companionship in sickness and loss. Waves of gratitude wash the shores of my heart. I stock the fridge with food and clean the house, though anyone who knows me is used to being “rolled” for dog hair before leaving. The scent of balsam and cedar fill the air and bright flowers rest in small vases on bedside tables. Now the waiting begins. The tender- hearted waiting. So how can we prepare—especially in this season of frenzied activity-- for the most treasured guest of all, for the Christ who is born in us? The line from “Joy to the World” gives one direction: Let every heart prepare him room. Thomas Merton would invite us into a contemplative spiritual practice which includes solitude and silence, a “prayer of silence, simplicity, contemplative and meditative unity, a deep personal integration in an attentive, watchful listening of the heart.” In a world where we are deluged by words and images, it can be unsettling at first to release our dependence on this input, but, ultimately, it clears the way for the voice of Love. According to Archbishop Oscar Romero (may his memory be a blessing), a certain kind of inner disposition opens us to Advent birth: to experience our poverty, our need and longing for God. If we are so full—of ourselves and/or the world’s privilege—it is difficult to acknowledge our need and therefore make room for Christ. Isolating self-sufficiency, vanity, and pride all inhibit the holy growth.* Perhaps the simplest way of all to prepare him room is to earnestly call out to him, cry out for him--as people have done for centuries: Come, Lord Jesus, Come—or to sing O Come, O Come, Emmanuel. This spiritual “pedagogy” allows us to slow down enough to ponder what is really important and to settle into who deep down we are called to be—the divine Christ-self to be offered in service to the world. PRAYER God of Advent, make our hearts your Bethlehem. DEVOTION AUTHOR Dr Pat Saxon *(From Romero’s homily for his Advent Mass, December, 1978)
SCRIPTURE ļ»æ Luke 1.75-79 And you, child, will be called the prophet of the Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare God’s ways, to give the people knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. Because of the tender mercy of our God, the dawn from on high will break upon us, to shine upon those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace. WORDS OF HOPE These days, there are multiple passionate reviews, both pro and con, being exchanged about the two-part movie version of the Broadway musical, Wicked. Either way, the story takes us to a place beyond ourselves, visiting another incarnation of the marvelous Land of Oz. I think today’s reading from Luke’s Gospel does the same thing. It is classic lyric material that would be an excellent beginning of a classic Broadway musical. These intro lyrics climax with the all-time hit, the Song of Mary (Luke 1:46-55) as she rejoices about the Advent of her own Holy son, followed by the spectacular refrain of glory from the heavenly host (1:14), and reinforced by the Song of Simeon, that declaration of prophesy fulfilled in the infant Jesus (1:29-32). We’ve heard the Overture in the first Chapter of Luke. In his foreshadowing, the priest Zechariah’s solo praises the imminent birth of the Prophet who will introduce Mary’s son to the world. The Prophet will be Zechariah’s and Elizabeth’s own miracle child: John the Baptist. The operetta’s atmospheric theme is the unconditional love the Creator is about to visit upon the earth through the coming of the Christ, the Redeemer of All. In the 1939 movie on which Wicked is based, as the Wizard of Oz is about to present the testimonial heart to the Tin Man, he defines unconditional love as the work of “Good-deed-doers” an attribute the Tin Man has consistently modeled throughout Dorothy’s perils. Luke’s opus, as do most of the greatest of musicals, teaches us a good lesson and makes us want to be like the story’s most positive characters. Like the Oz epic, do we want to be the Tin Man and his two unique companions who were willing to give their lives to save Dorothy? Are we good deed doers? If we read and meditate on today’s words of Luke, contemplating the “tender mercy of our God”, how can we resist humming Luke’s lyrics by following the example of Jesus, especially in the upcoming season? There is a capacity crowd of our neighbors out there in the real world desperate for good deeds. Our unconditional love in practice can be our joyful overture to their world. PRAYER God of Grace, may we be generous good deed doers of your tender mercy and guides along your winding road to peace. Amen DEVOTION AUTHOR Dan Peeler Order of St. Francis and St. Clare
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