Monday - April 17, 2023

SCRIPTURE  Philippians 4:11-13 I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation... I can do all this through him who gives me strength. WORDS OF HOPE From the movie of the same name, Melvin Udall, played brilliantly by Jack Nicholson, walks out of his therapy session visibly frustrated. He’s clearly agitated and doesn’t feel like the session helped him. The office is filled with other patients waiting for their turn. In his usual abrasive and socially awkward way and in a moment of cynical honesty, says: “What if this is as good as it gets?” In these frustrating times, we too might feel this raw expression of despair. No matter the effort, we fear that things might not improve. It’s an easy and frequent trap to fall into. I’ve had the privilege of escorting adolescents and young adults into impoverished places to help them see the face of Jesus in the eyes of the poor. Whether that’s soup kitchens in New York City, rural Oklahoma trailer parks after a tornado, or Central American slums in the aftermath of a hurricane, it’s always been my experience that if you want to expose young people to the person of Jesus, take them to the poor and marginalized. There is a fair amount of despair and heartache in those voices and behind those eyes. You can see and feel that despondency in the feeding ministries of Cathedral of Hope. But there is also a great deal of gratitude and gladness. From the family that invited teenagers into their United Nations temporary shelter in Honduras to serve them dinner and sing together to the Appalachian trio of brothers who told hysterical (and sometimes inappropriate!) stories to middle schoolers late into the evening, you find contentment and joy in the hearts of Christians who are in need. They do this because they resonate with the words of Paul in his letter to the church in Philippi: I can do all this through him who gives me strength. It’s easy to feel despondent and fearful right now. And for good reason. It’s heartbreaking to watch as those with so much now grab for so much more. It’s damning to see entire cultures of people being persecuted and harmed. It’s alarming to know that systems that once protected the vulnerable are being disassembled. Melvin Udall may have felt justified in his belief that nothing was going to change and in his sense of hopelessness. But Paul reminds us that whether we are in need or have plenty, whether circumstances are dire or favorable, we have the strength of Christ to carry us through and the promise of grace to carry on to another day. PRAYER Gracious God, we thank you for the beauty of creation, for the gift of life, and the love that surrounds us. In joy and in sorrow, in success and in failure, help us to see your hand at work and to give thanks always. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Thomas Riggs

SCRIPTURE Luke 7.31-35 “To what then will I compare the people of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’… Nevertheless, Wisdom is vindicated by all her children.” WORDS OF HOPE I spent many years of my life as a Minister for Children and as a teacher, conducting art museum children’s workshops and lectures. I have always admired a child’s freshness and eagerness to learn. Jesus famously reminded us that we must have the faith of a child in order to discover the central message of his teachings, but in this passage, he is challenging the people of his generation for being stubborn and childish. Is he contradicting his usual teaching? No, he praises being open and fresh as a child, but denounces adults who act childish, which is the dark side of being childlike. Childish people are never satisfied. They create their own specific rules without sharing them with others and are quick to condemn anyone they judge has having broken them. They refuse to listen, learn, or change and take much pleasure in name-calling, bullying, and ridiculing. They are impossible to please because all that brings them pleasure is criticizing those who can’t possibly live up to the standards that only they are qualified enough to follow. When they break their own standards, and they often do, they are experts at making excuses, including re-defining their own versions of the truth. They are prone to tantrums. It’s helpful to identify the specific group of childish people Jesus was addressing in this particular encounter. He wasn’t talking to a mixed crowd of average people on the street, nor was he condemning the usual list of thieves, women of questionable intensions, or corrupt government bureaucrats that were high on the first century’s list of undesirables. He was speaking to their religious leaders. This short narrative is a typical example of Jesus’ ministry. Throughout the Gospels, Jesus never wastes his time confronting or condemning admitted sinners, but a great deal of his time challenging people who are certain that they were not. Then as now, people who appoint themselves as models of doctrinal perfection inevitably fail miserably and assume the roles of those children on the marketplace, denouncing, ridiculing, and blaming everyone who will still pay them any attention. Jesus, however, does not leave his listeners hopeless. Regardless of the failings of certain self-serving groups, Jesus reflects on the Hebrew Scripture personification of Woman Wisdom, saying that overall, her children will eventually recognize and turn away from the failures of those toxic influencers. Jesus’ steadfast faith in a humankind created in God’s own image never faulters. PRAYER May we have the clarity of a child’s faith as Jesus beacons us to follow as adults the mind- cleansing path of Woman Wisdom. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR  Dan Peeler Order of St. Francis and St. Clare

SCRIPTURE  Luke 12:22-26 He said to his disciples, “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. For life is more than food and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to your span of life? If then you are not able to do so small a thing as that, why do you worry about the rest? WORDS OF HOPE This passage has always been both one of my favorites and one of the most problematic in scripture. I love the reassurance Jesus gives us that we do not need to worry about tomorrow. However, I always wondered if it didn’t give some folks the impression that we can just sit around and God will provide if we do absolutely nothing. If read carefully, it becomes evident that Jesus is not saying “do nothing”. The ravens may not have a storehouse, but they still fly about searching for food. They don’t concern themselves with worrying about what comes after this life. They live in the moment and enjoy God’s grace and bounty. Perhaps that is Jesus’ message, to live in the moment, for today, and not try to store up our days trying to extend our lives or worrying about what will come after this life. As he says, “which of you by worrying can add a single hour to your span of life?” At some point we have to trust God and get on with living. PRAYER May we use our time here wisely and revel in the grace given us by God, and may we live our lives fully. DEVOTION AUTHOR Hardy Haberman

READING  "At the beginning of each day, after we open our eyes to receive the light of that day; as we listen to the sounds that surround us, we must resolve to treat each hour as the rarest of gifts and be grateful for the consciousness that allows us to experience it." (J. McQuiston from his book, Always We Begin Again) WORDS OF HOPE In the morning, as the alarm clock sounds that awful ring, what's your immediate response to it? Do you try to reach the snooze button on the alarm, or do you smile and say, "Good morning"? Well, I bet it's clear how most people react. Generally, how would you react? If your life is built around a fairly routine pattern or you're going through a difficult patch of hardships, it might be difficult to joyfully greet another day with the same old trials and tribulations. Most people either stagger out of bed trying to wipe the cobwebs from their mind, or they jump out of bed with 1000 thoughts about the day's potential activities racing through their mind. Today, let's develop a better way to awaken and greet a new day. As you awake, pause and open your eyes to receive the light of a new day, open your lungs to receive a deep breath of it, and open your life to receive the new opportunities which will come your way. Greet the new day as a special gift from God with unexpected blessings that will come your way. The new day represents the gift of continued life, and that, life itself, is the rarest gift of all! These suggested responses to awakening represent a pattern of mindfulness by which you can welcome a renewed day of life into your experience. But it does require that you be consciously aware of your greeting to enter this new realm of activities and experiences, and willing to encounter somethings new or at least filled with renewed opportunities and human interactions. Let's start each day with enriched mindfulness about the divine gift of life which it offers to us! Good mornings begin the best of days. PRAYER Lord God, help me to quiet my mind and open wide my heart to your wise voice guiding my life this day. May I surrender myself more to your will and share your loving care with all those I meet today. Be it ever so. Amen. DEVOTION AUTHOR Donald (Luke) Day Order of St. Francis and St. Clare

SCRIPTURE Acts 17. 5-7 But the Temple religious leaders were jealous, and…attacked the house of Jason, seeking to bring [Paul and his companions] out to the crowd. And when they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also, and Jason has received them, and they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king; Jesus.” WORDS OF HOPE Whenever you meet someone new who has the same name as someone you admire, does an image of that earlier person immediately come to mind? In this narrative from Acts 17, we meet a person with an unusual name for the Bible: Jason. This was certainly not an unusual name in the first century world of the Apostle Paul, but it was inspired by a Greek, not a Hebrew hero. Jason’s fame centered on the quest for the Golden Fleece and afterward many Greek babies shared that name. But the Jason of this Acts story was referred to by Paul as his "countryman" which meant fellow Jew, and he lived up to his Greek "hero’s quest " name through his actions on behalf of the infant Christian community.  Jason was an early follower of "the Way" of Jesus, since that is how the early church defined themselves. He demonstrated his faith by providing shelter and protection for Paul and his companions in their mission travels and by suffering the torture and fines of the oppressive Roman Empire. He was a victim of a culture of state-religion rule, the law recognizing only Caesar as both Emperor and God. This biblical Jason's heroic defiance was reminiscent of his Greek namesake's unwavering faith to his deity, in his case, the goddess Hera. The Jason of Acts never lost his faith, both in this story and in other mentions within the letters of Paul. Early extra-biblical writings continued to follow Jason’s mission, as he underwent continued harassment and imprisonment by Rome, but finally ended his career by becoming a powerful Bishop of the infant church. I have known several Jasons in my life and each of them has shared the same sort of goals and determination as their Greek and Hebrew namesakes. Though there is nothing magical about our names, a review of their origins can be a source of inspiration. We are usually named after admirable people. I was of course named after the Prophet Daniel. What was the origin of your name? Even if our namesake is not one we might admire, we always have the opportunity every day to make ours a name future generations will remember. PRAYER God, of many names, may our own names, either by birth or ones we have chosen, forever honor you. Thank you for Jesus, the name we most admire, and whose way we will always follow. In Your Spirit, Amen DEVOTION AUTHOR Dan Peeler Order of St. Francis and St. Clare