Tuesday - January 28, 2025

SCRIPTURE James 1. 2-4 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. WORDS OF HOPE God’s Kindness It is in the human experience that we often live without knowing all the facts. The future, God’s purpose for our lives, and the choices that we should make are all at times things shrouded in mystery. Yet, without knowing, somehow, we live without this knowledge every day. There are times, however, when our questions and desires for the answers burn within our hearts so much that it consumes our every waking thought. In these moments, it is easy for us to be dissatisfied with God. At times, we would rather relieve the stress of our minds by following the instructions of people who claim to have the answers. With no clear direction or clarity, how could we possibly have peace of mind? Instead of looking for the sun to shine every day, what if we became comfortable when it rains? In a perfect world the weather would never pose any threat. The temperature would always be comfortable and white puffy clouds would offer us plenty of shade. It is a fact that most people thrive on days like this, but when the weather changes unexpectedly and we become inconvenienced by it, we become uncomfortable. We look to God to give us a good weather report but would be uncomfortable if God gave us a bad one. We have not learned how to be comfortable when the forecasts for our lives show us failing, making mistakes, and struggling. God does not give us all the answers, and by not doing so, does us a great kindness. How many of us would enter a competition that we knew was going to be a great struggle with many mistakes made, and that would eventually end in our failure? Most of us would not see the point in entering a race that we had no chance of winning. However, even when we fail, we gain experience, and with experience, knowledge, and with knowledge, understanding, and with understanding we gain the ability to be wise. If God told us everything, then we would avoid hard times, the very times in our lives which builds our character. I would rather not know and struggle, than to know how to avoid the very things which are meant to grow me. PRAYER Creator God, Help us to trust You. Remind us of Your love and of Your desire to prosper us. We do not know the way in which we should go, but we know that You are guiding us to where we should be. Lord, grow our faith. In the fiery trials, we know that You will fashion us into pure gold. Help us to believe when we do not see and to have peace in You, our mighty God. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Jonathon McClellan Order of St. Francis and St. Clare

SCRIPTURE Matthew 5:16 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)  In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your God in heaven. WORDS OF HOPE It is easy to feel helpless in the face of big problems like child abuse or a war, or persistent racial injustice. Our helplessness results in anger and depression. Sometimes it feels like our efforts have been futile and there is nothing we can do. But we must do something if we are to live with ourselves. A song from my childhood, "Brighten the Corner Where You Are" reminds me we can all do something. We can pray, we can ask God to help us recognize opportunities for actions. We can write letters, make phone calls. We can be generous with our smiles. Yes, even a smile can make a difference. I used to be a frustrated, overworked social worker for Child Protective Services. On one especially challenging day, I took the elevator to the basement where our office was located. A young man held the door while I rushed on. He looked me in the eye and his smile was so genuine it drew me out of the dark place my last appointment had brought me. To my surprise he turned out to be my secretary's brother. She introduced us briefly and went to lunch with him while I met with my next appointment. The smile stayed with me, cheered me up, and gave me energy to face the next problem. He never knew his smile would affect the rest of my life. The very next day, my secretary learned her brother had died in an automobile accident. I attended his funeral. I had known him for only a moment. He taught me how important a smile can be. Even during the pandemic, I thought to smile at strangers even behind the mask. My eyes carried the message. PRAYER May we always remember to brighten the corner where we are and never forget that sometimes the smile we give can be a gift that lasts forever. DEVOTION AUTHOR Carole Anne Sarah

SCRIPTURE  Proverbs 27:9 Sweet friendships refresh the soul and awaken our hearts with joy, for good friends are like the anointing oil that yields the fragrant incense of God’s presence. WORDS OF HOPE Today is National Best Friends' Day. What a wonderful day to celebrate! Friends are the most amazing gifts from God! We have a multi-color sign in our backyard that says FRIENDS in big letters! It was a gift from friends. They knew what brings us joy. Going through tough times, God knows that we are weak beings. Though we have faith in God, we need some Earthly beings who give us big hugs that help put us back together when our pieces are beginning to scatter! Those are gifts from God that no money can purchase! When my brain goes out of control, my friend texts or calls me and first says BREATHE! Then she says have you tried this, or I will help you find a solution! She talks me off the brink of losing my mind! She is my prayer warrior, as well. As soon as I text her with a concern, I receive a reply that prayers have been said. Some may talk about fun and shenanigans they have with friends. There are those experiences too. Sport events - especially with Special Olympics athletes - are shared joys we have together. Attending church is our special time together. Our life group of amazing women is a very special treat each week. All those women are amazing friends. And I am blessed to have other friends as well who bless my life in good times and bad. The number of friends who checked on us during my knee surgery and brought food is amazing. Our group of amazing friends who gather for Easter lunch is also the same group of people who gather the Sunday before Thanksgiving and work together to collect and prepare 500 baskets of Thanksgiving meals to be donated to families in need. And it’s the same prayer group who lifts our prayers to God when we have concerns. You may say I can't have that many best friends. These are the BEST people, and God gave them to me and shares them with others and my awesome church and with those who received those 500 Thanksgiving baskets! My cup runneth over with the love of best friends! PRAYER God of perfect gifts, I thank you for the wonderful gift of the amazing friends you have given me. I know how much you love me because of the loving friends in my life. DEVOTION AUTHOR Jan Nunn CoH Volunteer

SCRIPTURE  Psalm 30:4-5 Sing the praises of the Lord, you his faithful people; praise his holy name. For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime; weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. READING Don′t forget where you came from Don't forget what you′re made of The ones who were there When no one else would care Don't be afraid to cry now Even when the world comes crashing in Don′t forget to sing when you win – The chorus of the song “Don’t Forget (Welcome to Wrexham)” WORDS OF HOPE About ten years ago, some friends invited me to a pub early on a Saturday morning to watch an English Premiere League Football match. In this context, football = soccer. The team they root for is known as Arsenal Football Club and they were playing their rivals Tottenham Hotspur. After watching just one match with a raucous and rowdy crowd, I was hooked. I started following Arsenal… and then world football… and then the Champions League… and Major League Soccer in the U.S… and so on. I recruited my spouse to The Arsenal fan base, known as the Gooners, as well. And yes, I’m absolutely thrilled about the World Cup being played in our backyard (anyone have a spare ticket to England vs. Croatia?). Last week, on a Tuesday afternoon, Arsenal fans all over the planet, who number in the hundreds of millions world-wide, sat glued to watching a match between Manchester City and Bournemouth (yes, that Bournemouth, the city of our own Pastor Neil’s birth). If Bournemouth could win or tie City, then Arsenal would be the Premiere League Champions for the first time in 22 years. As the seconds ticked down and we all collectively held our breath, the match finally ended in a tie and our beloved team won the league. For all of us fans, it was a moment of ecstasy. After finished in second place for three years in a row, after so many disappointments and let downs, after getting so close and not winning, the relief was joyous. The song “Don’t Forget (Welcome to Wrexham)” is about the fans of another long-suffering football club in Wales. The song reminds those fans what the writer of Psalm 30 was also singing to the long-suffering people of Israel at the dedication of the temple. Those lyrics? Sing praises. Remember God has been with you. Remember that the Lord shared favor with you during your trials and heard your cries for mercy. See how God turned your wailing into dancing and how grief was turned to joy. Weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning. Don't be afraid to cry now. Even when the world comes crashing in. But don′t forget to sing when you win. Beloveds… there are trials all around us. In our personal lives, in the lives of so many who are suffering, and in our community. Psalm 30 reminds us that weeping may stay for the night, but joy comes in the morning. That it’s okay to cry now that the world is crashing in, but God is already about the business of flipping wailing into dancing and grieving into joy. And when that does happen, don’t forget to sing when we win. PRAYER Lord of both tears and triumph, Thank you for staying with us through every long night of waiting, disappointment, and hope. When the world feels heavy and our hearts are weary, remind us that joy still comes in the morning. Turn our wailing into dancing, our grief into song, and our fear into courage. Teach us to remember where we came from, to celebrate with gratitude when victory comes, and to never forget to sing your praise. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Thomas Riggs

SCRIPTURE  2 Peter 2.17-22 These people are springs without water and mists driven by a storm. Blackest darkness is reserved for them. For they mouth empty, boastful words and, by appealing to the lustful desires of the flesh, they entice people who are just escaping from those who live in error. They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.” If they have escaped the corruption of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and are again entangled in it and are overcome, they are worse off at the end than they were at the beginning. It would have been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than to have known it and then to turn their backs on the sacred command that was passed on to them. Of them the proverbs are true: “A dog returns to its vomit,” and, “A sow that is washed returns to her wallowing in the mud.” WORDS OF HOPE The Apostle Peter, who the Roman Catholics honor as their first Pope, did not sugar coat his evaluations of people who called themselves Christians, but whose words and actions were anything but Christlike. This letter to the early church, written either by Peter or in the spirit of the man Jesus called his Rock, comes across as more of a modern social media rant than the words we would expect from a Holy Apostle. Jesus knew what role each of his disciples would play as he designated each one an apostle and sent them out to spread his message of love and peace. He immediately changed the name of the one called Simon to Peter, which literally meant “the rock”, the foundation of a movement that would change the world with the radically liberal teachings of the Christ. This letter of Peter shows us that Jesus was right in predicting the future of his most trusted followers. In the first and second centuries, as now, there were people who labeled themselves the followers of the Way of the Christ, yet who preached and acted in ways that were anything but Christ-like. He bluntly compares their actions to habits of dogs and sows whose natural habits never change. They have turned their backs on the sacred commandment of love to pursue one of corruption. They do not follow Christ, but worship those who ‘promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves of depravity—for “people are slaves to whatever has mastered them.”’ Today, we have similar Prophets of profit among us, labeling themselves as Christian leaders, holding rallies in the Nation’s Capital; profiteers of hatred and the weapons of war. Their disillusioned followers have lost sight of Prophet of Peace. But the Rock remains solid. The spirit of Peter still stands tall among those of us who thank God daily for the eternal love of Christ that inspires and informs us. May we always have the courage to be the rocks of our time in history, knowing Christ’s truth shall make us (and everybody else) free. PRAYER May we be the springs of your water as our prayers include the people who are slaves to whatever has mastered them as we give thanks for the sustaining love of Christ in our troubled world. Amen DEVOTION AUTHOR Dan Peeler Order of St. Francis and St. Clare