Fourth Monday of Lent: Lent 2014

Lenten Devotional

Luke 8-9

I was missing a few days due to other requirements, but today's reading is full of two fascinating teachings on the church.  They revolve around the twelve disciples and there teaching.  The first revolves around the practical teachings of the disciples.  

The twelve are given an opportunity to practice all they have been taught by being sent out in pairs.  This is just as important form us today.  The twelve are given specific instructions as to how to conduct themselves as they travel.  

"he gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal the sick. He told them: “Take nothing for the journey—no staff, no bag, no bread, no money, no extra shirt. Whatever house you enter, stay there until you leave that town. If people do not welcome you, leave their town and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.”  So they set out and went from village to village, proclaiming the good news and healing people everywhere."

This is a practical way for all people being trained to follow Jesus.  We need to give them a mentor who has spent time already deep in Jesus' teaching and walking his ways.  Then the mentor guides and leads the newer followers of Jesus in the ways of Jesus teaching and giving opportunities to practical in real ways.  This is a training system still used in the building and construction trades today.   

The second moment is when they were sitting after the first experience and the twelve were asked about what they believed about Jesus.  The list of what others believe is long, but Peter comes up with an astonishing statement.  He declares that Jesus is the messiah, the son of God.  This is a point of drastic change for the life of the twelve disciples and the work of Jesus.  From this point all the Gospels take a turn towards what we know to be the culmination of Jesus' mission and life.

This same question is asked of us.  What do you say about me?  There are still people today who will give all the multiple answers given in Jesus' time.  We are asked the question of Jesus' reality in our life as the foundation of how we will live and work.  The question is simple, but the implications are profound.

Survival Kit

Last post was about my sermon for that coming Sunday. I am exceedingly grateful for all the comments I received for that week. There were some great ideas, most of which did get worked into the sermon one way or another. One idea that I am starting to flesh out for upcoming week is built around an idea from the last post.

One friend gave me a great sugestion for a sermon and I am working it into a whole series. Currently on the Discovery Channel (one of my favorite channels to watch) is a whole mess of survival shows. There are shows demonstrating how an individual can survive, a married couple, two friends, and how to learn from other cultures how to survive. In all these shows, the goal is entertainment and a little education. They want to show some techniques you can use to survive if you are lost in the wilderness. I find it a little more of an entertainment on most of the shows. But he little nuggets we can take away are helpful and may just save lives.

These shows do demonstrate on the basic level that people need certain knowledge and skills to survive. They also show that you need certian equipment no matter what the situation. Some of the skills they need to know are what types of wild vegetation is edible (not all is safe to eat). Also, there are basic skills need to secure a shelter to protect you from the rain and the sun. The equipment you carry can be just as important as anything else. These are demonstration in the shows and in many real life situations we see on the news.

All of this comes to where I would love to have you help and thoughts. What are some skills, knowledge and tools we as Christians need to have for a survival kit? It is fairly easy to look in the internet or a couple of good books to find what type of items one needs for a wilderness survival. But II will admit that it is not as easy for the Christian kit. Take some time, think about what is essential to the faith and would be need in any situation. You can also make some parallels between what is in your own emergency survival kit ans what it might be for a follower of Jesus. Feel free to be creative. I am looking forward to the conversation.