Mother’s Day Prayer

Mother’s Day Prayer | Get Up With God

Standing In The Gap

    “Fed up, God decided to get rid of them— and except for Moses, his chosen, he would have. But Moses stood in the gap and deflected God’s anger, prevented it from destroying them utterly.”   

                                           — Psalm 106:23 (The Message)

    “I looked for someone to stand up for me against all this, to repair the defenses of the city, to take a stand for me and stand in the gap to protect this land so I wouldn’t have to destroy it. I couldn’t find anyone. Not one.”     

—Ezekiel 22:30 (The Message)

     Oh God, how many times are we, your chosen people in this day and age, the very ones you’re waiting for so that we can “stand in the gap” to turn away your anger like Moses did? Like you kept wanting someone to do in Ezekiel’s day, and you never did find someone who would?

     Is this the explanation of how it is that you could “change your mind” in the Old Testament stories? I wonder if in every situation where people faced Your judgment, that it was always your intention to grant mercy to them IF someone would simply “stand in the gap” in order to “turn away your anger.” The judgment is deserved, but you’d rather offer grace and mercy and forgiveness… if someone would just intervene and intercede.

     You judged the people in the desert and they deserved to die...but Moses intervened, he stepped in and pleaded desperately for them… and for his sake, you showed them mercy. You didn’t give them what they really deserved….

      You judged the people in Ezekiel’s day and sent Ezekiel with your message and kept waiting for someone on the receiving end of that message to step in and plead for mercy for your people… and no one did… and so the judgment was carried out.

      Today, the world around us clearly has walked away from your ways. If you’re truly a righteous and just God, then You have to judge us… our people, our land, our nation… You’ve sent your warnings. Is the seeming pause we sense just a God-given chance for us, your chosen people, to “stand in the gap” and plead for our friends and neighbors and relatives? To plead for mercy? To pray for forgiveness?

     O God… we modern American Christians are more likely to condemn those around us than we are to be an advocate for them. We see their sin and think “God’ll get you for that!”

     We are SO wrong! Forgive us O God and change our wicked hearts! Give us the compassion and love of Moses that he felt for his friends and neighbors and relatives. Teach us to stand in the gap!

—from Pastor Dayton’s devotions for the Reynoldsville Men of Promise breakfast, March 21, 2007

Thanksgiving 2010

This is my Thanksgiving letter for 2010 that's being mailed to family and friends of Reynoldsville's First United Methodist Church.

(clicking on the image should take you to a full size view)

Partners!

This was my church newsletter article from july...

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“Whenever Moses held up his hand, Israel prevailed, and whenever he lowered his hand, Amalek prevailed. But Moses’ hands grew weary, so they took a stone and put it under him, and he sat on it, while Aaron and Hur held up his hands, one on one side, and the other on the other side. So his hands were steady until the going down of the sun.”

—Exodus 17:11-12, English Standard Version (ESV)

In Exodus 17:8-14, there is a record of one of the first battles faced by the recently freed Egyptian slaves on their journey to their ancestral homeland: Israel. The Lord tells Moses to send Joshua out with the fighting men to defend the children of Israel (perhaps a million or more people!) Meanwhile, Moses is to go to the top of the nearby mountain that overlooks the plain where the battle is being fought. God’s deal was this: As long as Moses’ hands were raised in blessing over the fighting Israelite warriors, Israel was winning. But Moses’ hands got tired and he had to put them down every few minutes. And that’s when the enemy, the Amalekites, had the upper hand.


So Moses’ brother, Aaron, and his father-in-law, Hur (also called Jethro), got a rock for Moses to sit on and then they literally helped hold his hands up non-stop and, indeed, the Israelites won the battle!


Who was the leader? Moses, yes, and Joshua, too. But Aaron and Hur were just as important, for they enabled the ministry (God’s blessing through Moses’ outstretched arms) to continue. Without those two, the battle would not have been won.


Last March, (2009) a group of six leaders from our congregation joined me near Pittsburgh for a weekend ministry training event called PARTNERS IN MINISTRY. It was based, in part, on this spiritual principle that there are NO unimportant parts of the church’s ministry team. Agreed, the pastor, lay leader, and some committee heads are much more visible, but we firmly believe we cannot do everything that God has called us to do without the help of every single one of the people that God has sent to this church family.


How are you involved in helping our church minister to others? Are you a volunteer on a work team with the trustees or perhaps our NHN (Neighbors Helping Neighbors) mission group or the LINUS Project? Do you work behind the scenes on a committee helping to set up projects and events? Or are you simply one who has the ministry of Aaron and Hur, encouragers and supporters, who literally make all the difference to our ministry team leaders?


That’s one of the key pieces of the whole Partners in Ministry idea. We are ALL in this together. It’s sort of like having a box with all the parts of a beautiful, sleek mountain bike. It does absolutely no good to anyone unless those separate pieces are assembled together. And if, when you’re trying to assemble that bike, you discover there’s one (or two or 20) of the pieces missing, then there is NO WAY that the end product will be a safe, working bicycle.


Friends, we’re a lot like those bicycle pieces: each of us essential for the completion of this congregation’s true purpose of making disciples. But unless we have stepped into our specific ministries (like Moses, Joshua, Aaron, & Hur did), then our task, and our ministry, will never be accomplished. Furthermore, it is in the coming together that we can be ‘assembled’ by our Heavenly Father. Can you be a Christian by yourself? Yes, but like Thomas, you may just miss the moment when Jesus comes, because you’re not “assembled together.”


What is your ministry? How can you serve God along side us?


What excuses keep you from worshipping with us or ministering with us? What needs to happen to fix that?


Encourage. Serve. Assemble. Attend. Bless. Worship.


And see what God will do in us and through us for His glory!

Prayer Request

The doctors informed us yesterday that there was nothing more they could do for my mother at the hospital. So they released her to go home. Visiting nurses and hospice are our connection to the medical community now. The doctor thought we only had a couple hours but so far she has gotten her strength back a little. The cancer in her lung is NOT gone, and the tumors that spread to her brain have been somewhat controlled by the radiation... but it is her heart that's doing her in. Her heart is simply racing most of the time... sort of burning her out. They tried the medicine that they use for that with other people, but then her heart rate started to have 20 to 30 second stops where the EKG was literally a straight line. So she's at home, and she feels better just by being able to get some rest and by having family home. My brother lives close to her and his daughter, her boyfriend, and my brother's granddaughter are all up from Demopolis, Alabama. My sister got in on Thursday from Montgomery, Alabama with her son. Josh and I are hanging out as much as possible... I'm taking vacation for a while in order to be with her as much as I can.

Please pray for a peaceful end and for healing and comfort in our family.

ADVENT 5: Christmas Eve

FIRST UNITED METHODIST CHURCH, Reynoldsville
ADVENT CANDLE LIGHTING LITURGY
December 24, 2007

READ SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 9:6-7



READING: In this prophecy, Isaiah offers hope to the people of Galilee of the Gentiles… for out of them will come a great light shining in the darkness… a Deliverer to free them from oppression. And with those famous words: "For unto us a son is born…" God let them know that the Deliverer would be one of their own… Born into the chosen people of God who would know them and their ways and understand them in their entirety.



But the oppression the Deliverer would set them free from wasn’t just a political system… as evidenced by the names God ascribes to the Deliverer… "He will be called WONDERFUL COUNSELOR… MIGHTY GOD… EVERLASTING FATHER… and PRINCE OF PEACE." They didn’t yet realize it, but God was telling them in advance that this Deliverer would come to rule a kingdom of hearts… and set them free from the oppression of evil… And destroy the power of Satan.



As we light this last candle in our Advent Wreath, the white candle in the center that we call the CHRIST CANDLE, we remember that Jesus came as Deliverer… for them and for us… to deliver them, and us, from the oppression of evil. Thousands of years have passed, and Jesus still offers to deliver people from the effects of sin and evil… if we will allow him.
Let’s make this Christmas complete by inviting Jesus to be our Lord, our Savior, our Friend, and… our Deliverer… Let’s allow Him to reign as King and Lord of our lives.



PRAYER: Lord Jesus, we welcome you to our church, our homes, and our lives. Reign on the thrones of our hearts as our King and Lord. Deliver us from evil and help us to follow you for the rest of our lives. AMEN.

Advent 4

This is the liturgy for our fourth week of Advent Candle Lighting.

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ADVENT 4

SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 9:2

READING: Isaiah offered hope to those who lived in times of spiritual darkness… There was a LIGHT that was coming… and that light would shine forth and pierce the darkness. All in darkness would be able to see the light… even those that actually lived in the midst of great darkness… even the ones that lived in the shadow of death would see the light.

Hope WOULD come!

The light WOULD shine!

HALLELUJAH!!!

As we light this fourth Advent candle, we remember that although Isaiah’s prophecy spoke about Jesus coming some 2000 years ago, it also speaks of His second coming which is yet to happen. And like that first coming, He will come as the light when there is a time of great darkness… and everyone living in darkness will have a chance to see the light… Even those who live in the darkest recesses of the darkest, most grievous shadows of death itself.

Hope IS coming!

The light WILL shine!

HALLELUJAH!!!

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, you said you were the light of the world and then, for those who follow you, you said we also would be light. Lord, as we live our lives we recognize more and more the deepness of the darkness around us. We need to be light like we’ve never been before… sharing the good news that YOU love us and want to save us. But ultimately Lord, it’s YOUR light that we hope for and wait for. You are coming! HALLELUJAH!!! AMEN.

ADVENT 3

This is the third reading for our Advent Candle Lighting.
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SCRIPTURE: Haggai 2:6-7

READING: In today’s Scripture lesson, the prophet Haggai shares God’s warnings about upcoming events for the people of ancient Jerusalem about rebuilding the city and His temple. But almost lost in the midst of this old prophecy is a reference to the Messiah who would one day come and be known as “The Desire Of All Nations.”

This week, as we light our third candle, we notice that it is not purple like the candles of the last two weeks. This time our candle is pink, reminding us of the HOPE and the JOY that we can look forward to in the midst of Messiah’s coming.

Jesus is the very one that All Nations Desire… even though they may not yet be aware of it yet. The peace and hope and joy the world longs for will only come when Jesus Himself comes back.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus, You are the Desire of all nations and we pray that you will help us to be ones that desire you personally. Come quickly, Lord, Come quickly. AMEN.

ADVENT 2

This was the Advent Candle Lighting liturgy from this past Sunday.
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SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 7:14

READING: In this second prophecy about the coming Messiah, the Old Testament prophet, Isaiah, has just delivered God’s message of hope to Judah’s King Ahaz… Judah will NOT be conquered by the enemies that are threatening them. God offers to give King Ahaz a sign that he’ll keep his promise… and says that Ahaz can ask for any sign he wants that God will really deliver His people.

Ahaz has always tried to be non-committal with Isaiah, trying to play it safe, and so he tries that same thing now with God… he refuses to ask for a sign… even though God has commanded him to.

So God picks… The sign will be a virgin who will conceive and then bear a son. And as that child grows, the people will be delivered from their enemies. In Ahaz’s day, there was a partial fulfillment of this. A young woman who was a virgin when Isaiah spoke these words, truly did conceive and bear a son… but it was in the normal way that sons were born. And before that son was grown, the people actually were delivered from their enemies … the two kings that Ahaz had so feared, were dead.

But God also had a deeper message of a longer lasting deliverance in mind when he prophecied to Ahaz through Isaiah: There would be another virgin who would conceive… as a virgin! And her son would not only bring deliverance to His people, but he would actually be the deliverer!

So many times in Scripture, and in our daily lives as well, we think we understand what God means and what He has said. But quite often, we only understand a portion of His word… only a part of His will is truly understood. As we light the second purple candle in our Advent Wreath, we do well to remember the apostle Paul’s words from centuries later, when he wrote "Now I know in part, but then I shall know just as I am known." Only when Christ comes back again, will we finally be able to see the big picture the way God sees it… and has seen it all along.

PRAYER: Father God, we read your word and hear your message, and we think we understand your will and your ways. But just like Ahaz and Isaiah, Paul and the prophets, we only see a part of what you are doing. We don’t understand your ways or what you’re trying to do. Teach us to trust You and Your Holy Spirit as you lead us and guide us… whether it makes sense to us or not. AMEN

ADVENT 1

In our church worship services yesterday, we lit one candle of our Advent Wreath as part of the celebration of the first Sunday of Advent. Here is the devotion I wrote to accompany it. (We are using the New Living Translation for these devotions each week).

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ADVENT CANDLE LIGHTING
First Sunday of Advent

SCRIPTURE: Malachi 4:1-6

READING: In today’s prophecy about the coming of Christ, God promises His people that when Christ comes down in what we now call Christmas, He will deal with the wicked. Also, those who “fear His name” will personally encounter Christ and find that He will also bring healing to their lives… healing for physical ailments, healing for mental illnesses, healing for damaged emotions, and even healing for broken relationships.

Depending on which group of people we choose to associate ourselves with, either the wicked or those who fear His name, determines how we will encounter Christ when He comes.

Part of the promise of God found here in Malachi, is the promise that God will send warnings ahead of time and send a messenger to alert us that it’s almost time for Christ to come. When Christ first came, that messenger was John the Baptist. Today, the warnings are all around us… radio, TV, books, preachers, and the written words of God found in Scripture.

As we light this candle today on the first Sunday of Advent, we remember that He is coming again… and soon! And we will meet Him when he comes… as our conqueror, if we are wicked, or as our healer, if we fear His name and serve Him as His people.

PRAYER: Lord Jesus… You are the Sun of Righteousness and you come to offer us healing, even as you prepare to destroy evil. Help us to be like John the Baptist as we warn our friends and neighbors that You are on Your way… and they get to choose how they’ll meet you. AMEN.

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Here are a couple of websites that I found helpful in explaining more about Advent Wreaths.

http://www.cptryon.org/prayer/adx/adwreath.html

http://www.crivoice.org/cyadvent.html

God's Workman

Lord God, you have placed me in your church. You know how unsuitable I am. Were it not for your guidance I would long since have brought everything to destruction. I wish to give my heart and mouth to your service. I desire to teach your people, and long to be taught your work. Use me as your workman, dear Lord. Do not forsake me; for if I am alone I shall bring all to nought. Amen.

--Dayton Mix (2007) & Martin Luther (early 1500's, as quoted in the April 6th entry of The One Year Book of Personal Prayer, Tyndale, 1991)

Stand In The Gap

Every Wednesday morning there is a group of guys that gather at the local restaurant at 6:00 am for prayer, devotions, and breakfast. The group started after several men had experienced the life-changing Promise Keepers events. They call themselves the Men of Promise and this is the basics of the devotions I did when it was my turn a couple of weeks ago, March 21, 2007

“Fed up, God decided to get rid of them— and except for Moses, his chosen, he would have. But Moses stood in the gap and deflected God’s anger, prevented it from destroying them utterly.”

— Psalm 106:23 (The Message)

“I looked for someone to stand up for me against all this, to repair the defenses of the city, to take a stand for me and stand in the gap to protect this land so I wouldn’t have to destroy it. I couldn’t find anyone. Not one.”

—Ezekiel 22:30 (The Message)

Oh God, how many times are we, your chosen people in this day and age, the very ones you’re waiting for so that we can “stand in the gap” to turn away your anger like Moses did? Like you kept wanting someone to do in Ezekiel’s day, and you never did find someone who would do that?

Is this the explanation of how it is that you could “change your mind” in the Old Testament stories? I wonder if in every situation where people faced Your judgment, that it was always your intention to grant mercy to them IF someone would simply “stand in the gap” in order to “turn away your anger.” The judgment is deserved, but you’d rather offer grace and mercy and forgiveness… if someone would just intervene and intercede.

You judged the people in the desert and they deserved to die...but Moses intervened, he stepped in and pleaded desperately for them… and for his sake, you showed them mercy. You didn’t give them what they really deserved….

You judged the people in Ezekiel’s day and sent Ezekiel with your message and kept waiting for someone on the receiving end of that message to step in and plead for mercy for your people… and no one did… and so the judgment was carried out.

Today, the world around us clearly has walked away from your ways. If you’re truly a righteous and just God, then You have to judge us… our people, our land, our nation… You’ve sent your warnings. Is the seeming pause we sense just a God-given chance for us, your chosen people, to “stand in the gap” and plead for our friends and neighbors and relatives? To plead for mercy? To pray for forgiveness?

O God… we modern American Christians are more likely to condemn those around us than we are to be an advocate for them. We see their sin and think “God’ll get you for that!”

We are SO wrong! Forgive us O God and change our wicked hearts! Give us the compassion and love of Moses that he felt for his friends and neighbors and relatives. Teach us to stand in the gap!

Kudzu

One of my absolute favorite comic strips is KUDZU by Doug Marlette. In it, a teenaged boy in the South named Kudzu, learns about the world around him. There are different characters one might meet in a Southern small town, but my favorite is Rev. Will B. Dunn. Every so often he begins a prayer to the Almighty as "It's me, Lord, Thy Will B. Dunn..." I love it!

Our local newspaper doesn't carry this comic strip, so I subscribe online by email. CLICK HERE TO GO TO THE GO COMICS SITE AND SUBSCRIBE.

This southern pastor is Kudzu's confidante, coachs the church league sports teams, writes an advice-style "Ask the Preacher" column for his local paper, and he preaches, buries, marries, and counsels the variety of people in the town.

In any case, this is today's strip and here are a couple of others that are favorites of mine.

AND THE RESULTS ARE IN...

This has been a remarkable week! God has used his people and the medical establishment to humble me... and bless me.

FIRST, on Friday (12/15) The Rev. Dick Burns, one of our Western PA UM evangelists and one of my personal heroes and mentors in the ministry, stopped into my office to see me and because he wanted to lay hands on me and pray for me. I was so humbled and in awe... He shared words of encouragement, a loving embrace of brother for brother, and, as only Dick can do, he shared laughter with me. What a blessing this man of God is!!!

SECOND, on Sunday (12/17), the Reynoldsville church family here at First UMC surprised and humbled me... and left me speechless all at the same time! (And making a preacher speechless is a pretty amazing feat!)

They presented a handmade prayer shawl to me as a constant reminder of the fact that THEY were praying for ME as I went through the medical uncertainties of my life right now... In fact, the prayer shawl itself had been prayed over before it was presented, that it would be a healing blessing every time I prayed with it. Turns out that this is one of the many ministries here at this church that go on in the background pretty silently... and yet faithfully.

Then, after the service was over, about 50 some people stayed after and waited until I was done shaking hands and stuff and came and got me and asked me to meet them at the altar rail. Led by the retired pastor we have in residence here in Reynoldsville, The Rev. Leo C. Cramer, this group gathered around and laid hands on me and prayed... for God to expose anything hidden as I was about to go for further testing and then planning for expected surgery and possible removal of my kidney if things were as bad as they seemed to be. And then they prayed that God would just bring about healing and surprise everyone.

Finally, it turns out that as I was in Pittsburgh all day today (12/19) for the testing and the consults, they were having a prayer vigil throughout the day here at home. They had divided up the day into half-hour increments and there was at least one person praying for every minute of this day. WOW!!!

THIRD, today, we actually went for the tests and the surgical consult. When all was said and done (and we're talking leaving home at 7:00 am and returning at 9:30 pm) the tests exposed that there wasn't one mass, but rather two. One mass is about 2 centimeters and the other one is about 4-5 centimeters. But, both were diagnosed as cysts... benign cysts is all they are! So the hidden has been exposed and all that had looked to require surgery and removal has either been healed or they made a big mistake to start with!

With this diagnosis, they don't have to do anything! They'll have me redo the tests in six months and then, if the tests are clear, we'll repeat it again in another six months... but that's it!

I probably need a lot of time to completely process all of this... but WOW! What a week!