Why is this week different? (Thursday)

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I forget stuff–where I put my keys, something from the grocery store, an unfinished chore. Like my dad used to say, “I don’t have a memory, I have a forgettery.”

 

 

We are forgetful people. God established the Passover celebration so his people would remember the slaves’ exodus from Egypt. And it works–centuries later the story is still fresh, thanks to the words, the tastes and the family traditions. Holy Week is also an exercise in remembering. Not just the “Do this in remembrance . . . ” (Luke 22:19) of the Communion service, but the prayer, betrayal, rejection, pain, waiting and overwhelming joy.

Are you remembering?bless soul pic

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Why is this week different? (Wednesday)

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Luke 22:8
Jesus said to Peter and John, “Go and prepare the Passover meal for us to eat.”

 

Gotta admire Jesus’ commitment to the traditions of his faith. Of course, this celebration of the Passover transformed the Old Testament (old promise) into the New Testament (new promise).

How about you? Is tradition a rut? Or is it the path to transformation?bless soul pic

 

 

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Why is this week different? (Tuesday)

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Jesus–a study in contrasts:

 

 

Most people, if they thought someone was out to kill them, would lay low. Jesus entered Jerusalem to the crowd’s Hosanna cries. Next day, he made a scene in the center of town. But the guy who noisily disrupted Temple profiteering spoke not one word about the sham that was his trial. He cursed a fig tree and blessed those who cursed him.

Isaiah 53:5 (CEV)
. . . by taking our punishment,
he made us completely well.

God’s plan . . . counter-intuitive? Cleverly crafted? Definitely different!bless soul pic

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Why is this week different? (Monday)

thought

 

It’s Holy Week. Holy, as in sacred, set apart, consecrated. How do you honor Holy Week?

 

 

  • Chocolate, bunnies and eggs
  • Extra church services
  • I work, just like every other week 

The last week of Jesus’ earthly life was filled with drama. It has all the elements of a comic-book adventure. But God wrote it, and it is a pivotal chapter in a bigger saga—God’s plan for humankind. 

Imagine your life absent the events celebrated by Holy Week . . . no hope of heaven, no forgiveness of sin and no power of the Holy Spirit.

What a difference this week makes!bless soul pic

 

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Word Power (Friday)

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Jesus is “the Word.”

 

 

John 1:1,14 (NIV)
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God . . . The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.

Ephesians 1:18-20
. . . know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead.

The power that raised Christ from the dead–the greatest Word power ever–for us. Can you feel it?bless soul pic

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Word Power (Thursday)

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Prayer . . . a conversation with God, usually via words. Sometimes God and I communicate visually: somebody’s face pops up in my head, along with the impression that I should pray for that individual (and we’re back to words); or I make a simple hand motion (like pressing two fingers tightly together while thinking–in words–about someone’s marriage).

My whole relationship with God is language-based. “God created mankind in his own image” (Genesis 1:27-NIV). Do you suppose in God’s image includes the use of words?bless soul pic

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Word Power (Wednesday)

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Continuing with Seeing Voices by Oliver Sacks:

“What is naming for? It has to do, surely, with the primal power of words, to define, to enumerate, to allow mastery and manipulation; to move from the realm of objects and images to the world of concepts and names.”

 

Genesis 2:19
Now out of the ground the Lord God had formed every beast of the field and every bird of the heavens and brought them to the man to see what he would call them. And whatever the man called every living creature, that was its name.

Naming, sorting, organizing–the first job. Now my job (thank you, Lord, for Excel). Is it your job, too?bless soul pic

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Word Power (Tuesday)

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I’m reading Oliver Sacks’ Seeing Voices. It’s a fascinating look into communication, deafness and the power of words. He reminds us that we think with words.  Words connect us to past and future, to far-off places, even to the land of make-believe. Without language we would be disconnected and solitary. He writes:

“. . . our capacities for language, for thought, for communication, and culture . . are a gift–the most wonderful of gifts . . .”

Think about this today as you listen, talk, read and text. Are you grateful for the gift of words?bless soul pic

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Word Power (Monday)

thought

 

Words matter. I try hard to use the right words. It aggravates me when others don’t–as in:

 

 

  • Access to health insurance versus access to health care
  • Income (what is earned) versus wealth (what is owned)
  • Natural versus good  (think about it; poison ivy is natural and nasty)

Proverbs 25:11 (CEV)
The right word
at the right time
is like precious gold
set in silver.

Where and how do you find the right word?bless soul pic

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Remember the Sabbath (Friday)

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Albert Schweitzer (1875 – 1965)—theologian, musician, writer, missionary and physician—weighs in on the Sabbath:

 

 

“Do not let Sunday be taken from you If your soul has no Sunday, it becomes an orphan.”

Remember the Sabbath. Surround your soul with family.bless soul pic

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