The quiet wait

Have you ever had to wait? You know something is changing. You're not able to read the outcome of what's coming. You hope it will be good, but the past is still with you - and you're not sure you're going to be able to negotiate the future.

The Saturday between Good Friday and Easter has become an annual day of reflection. Today I look out my office window at a forest of bare branches among the evergreens. Inside those trunks, life starts to stir. The cool nights and warming days trigger sap to move and buds to swell and open.

A few plants are early adapters. The Japanese maples have begun to unfurl; the witch hazel is setting out leaves after dropping its blooms; the sword fern fiddles are peeking out of last year's growth. But the big oaks, maples, and alders? They look deader than dead while their new energy accumulates.

Are you a quick sprout-er or does it take you a while to leaf out?

How do you negotiate the "between" day or days - when what's coming may not be confirmed but the past is too uncomfortable to hold onto? When you're being propelled into the future, whether by choice or circumstances?

1. Remind yourself that God knows the past, present, and future. He's able to help you into - and beyond - tomorrow. Be intentional in asking and listening for His help and counsel. For Jesus' disciples, hope had been crucified. The Messiah was dead. In contrast, God knew the glorious resurrection, the unanticipated wonder of Easter, coming in the morning!
2. Transition is a process. Give yourself grace as you explore, fail, reinvent yourself, and become more than you are today. Like the disciples, you may huddle behind a door in fear. Or you may be like the women, doing the chores of grieving to move on.
3. Let the past rest. You can't change yesterday. Resolve to move ahead with who you are and what you know. Yet don't let the limitations of the past determine the rest of your life.
4. Let the day unfold. Wait and watch. Transition is uncertain, scary, wonderful, awful, delightful, painful, healing, and many other experiences. Emphasize the emotions, actions, and attitudes that will move you forward.
5. Get a coach or mentor while you're negotiating change. Mentors show you what they've done. Coaches help you figure out what you want and how to get there. (NOTE: I have some "free" hours available for phone-coaching. Please contact me if you're interested in being coached. Your benefit: coaching. Mine: hours toward certification.) Trusted friends and family can also help you see where you are and where you're going.
6. Take steps toward the future. There are big and small steps in any change. Sometimes it means journal-ing dreams and hopes; sometimes it means making a phone call or sending an email; sometimes it means moving to another job, a new neighborhood, or another city. However, don't just blindly move. In a rafting metaphor, you have some control of the process: get your paddles and safety gear in the boat and make sure it's in good repair. Be purposeful about pointing the raft into the stream, and then let the current help get you there.
7. Evaluate whether you're moving in a good direction. Change course if you need to. Jesus' disciples spent listening to the risen Christ. The experience of Pentecost empowered them with resources and possibilities beyond their wildest imagination. If they had said, "We've never done this before. It's more comfortable not to think about what God's calling us to do," most of us (2000 years later) would never have known about Jesus.
8. The future is better than the past. God has taught you through family, friends, school, experience. What you know is important. Who you become serves and changes the world around you. Whether one or many are affected, fulfilling your destiny and following your passion is your choice. GO FOR IT!

What transitions have you negotiated? What about the new place surprised you, either in the moment or in retrospect?

Read more:
*You shall eat your bread to the full, and live securely in your land. Leviticus 26:5 NLT

*And taking the five loaves and the two fish, Jesus looked up to heaven, and blessed and broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. And all ate and were filled. Luke 9:16-17 NLT

*Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 

Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. Ephesians 6:10-18 NIV

Moravian Prayer: Jesus, may we recognize you in the miracles of daily life: bread shared; a helping hand; a welcoming embrace. Feed us with your Spirit, so we will be inspired and willing to work toward your just and compassionate realm. Amen. 

Lent Day 40: Grateful

Early on Good Friday morning, I tune in to the YouVersion reader to hear Mark 14-15. Each year, believers read the Story, think about God's love, and say thank you for the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross.

This year it's particularly meaningful to me. I listen and imagine Jesus' Friday, which includes:

• a feast with friends
• warning those expecting promotion and political wins about hardships and sorrow ahead
• fervent prayer to endure and stay the course, if there is no other route forward
• rousing sleeping followers, who fade away instead of supporting you
• betrayal by an insider ... then watching trusted friends melt away
• healing someone who's coming to take you away
• looking a best friend in the eye after he swears up and down that he's never had anything to do with you
• hearing a mob scream for your blood
• a politically-rigged trial results in a death sentence
• humiliation by religious leadership, mockery with a purple robe and thorn crown; then being struck, beaten, beard yanked out, spit upon by foreign oppressors
• needing a stranger's help to carry your load
• 3 hours of excruciating physical pain on the cross, while your mother and supportive women watch and cry
• being shamed in public, knowing that shame will be applied to your family and friends
• calling out the Psalms to focus on God's plan instead of your human desires
• letting go of human desires and life itself, to do the work of God - the work that God could do only through you

I am in tears when the reading finishes. What amazing love! What a sense of mission!

What parts of Easter speak loudest to you? What in your Passion week readings brought you to a grateful pause?

Read more:
*Psalm 40:9-17; Esther 8:1-9:17; Romans 10:1-13

*When you said, "Seek My face," my heart said to you, "Your face, O Lord, I shall seek." Psalm 27:8 (NASB)

*Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up,  that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in thename of God’s one and only Son. John 3:14-18 NIV

*Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple robe. And Pilate said to them, “Behold the Man!” John 19:5 (NKJV)

Moravian Prayer: We look at the cross, O Christ, and see your abandoned, broken, suffering face – looking upon us only with love. May we deeply feel your gaze, making us more acutely aware of the pain in our world and your love for all. Amen.

Lent Day 39: Easter weekend

Had a great day today. I finished up a week of coach training and spent the evening at a garden workshop, creating a terrarium (birthday gift from our kids). Ahead lies the awe-inspiring Easter weekend.

The next few days encompass one of the highlights of the Christian year. Oh the wonder of God being broken for us ... so that we can be made whole. In some parts of the world, people will harm themselves on Good Friday, as though Christ's pain was not enough for God. Some of us will fast and pray in remembrance of the sacrifice made on our behalf.

Then we'll have a day of reflection on Saturday. The quiet day. The day of waiting. The day to pause and consider how everything changes because of

Easter morning.

Hallelujah for the cross. And God be glorified in the resurrection. He makes all things new.

Hope you take time to ponder what was done for you. Who you are in God's eyes. Valued. Beloved. Cared for. Sought after. Washed whiter than snow. Given a new beginning in Christ. Holy. Acceptable to God.

I'm so grateful for Easter. What are some of your best memories about the celebration?

Read more:
*[Watchword for Maundy Thursday] He has gained renown by his wonderful deeds; the Lord is gracious and merciful. Psalm 111:4 NLT

*My righteousness is near, my salvation has gone forth, and my arms will judge the peoples. Isaiah 51:5 (NASB)

*Jesus said to the disciples, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.” Luke 22:15 NLT

*[Jesus said:]  “As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete. My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command." John 15:9-14 NIV

Moravian Prayer: Teacher, friend, and Lord, as we gather in our own upper rooms today, we know that your love is sure, though your way is not easy. Renew and nourish our bodies and spirits to be your people. Amen.

Lent Day 38: Almost there

At this point in Passion week, Jesus knows he's headed for the cross. He has another day. What will he tell his disciples? How will he say good-bye and see you again? What kind of organization will he set up so his followers stay on track in the Kingdom of God?

The final chapters of John summarize the interactions between Jesus and his disciples. How tender he is! How grace-filled. Even Judas seems to have the chance to change his course ... until he commits to betrayal.

There's no frantic micromanagement in Jesus' last days before the cross. No: "Let's get this perfect, guys! We're making history here, so let me make sure everything is A-1 for the Passover performance. Hey, you sit there. ... Hmmm, I think we should have a blue towel, not the one the host brought..." (You get the picture.)

Sometimes we fuss over details because the outcome and the moment is so special. What if we took Jesus cue of being fully present, reviewing what we know about God (His life-giving grace and goodness), while preparing others for challenges and difficulties. Jesus acknowledged (warned of) failure, abandonment, and broken trust. But he didn't attack or demean Peter or Judas or the disciples. After all, he was going to the cross for their brokenness and weaknesses, alongside everyone else's.

When I'm tempted to huff and puff, to stress out, and to juggle details so I can control the presentation, I need to remember the "in-the-moment, with-you-always" Jesus. Eating. Drinking. Communing. Teaching. Loving. Praying.

• with death on the horizon
• with the cross at the end of the path
• with the pretense of "all is well" by those around him
• with his reputation about to shatter through accusations by hateful leaders

 "For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross," wrote an early Christian (Hebr. 12:2).

What joy would help you to endure what is before you this week? This season? This year?

Read more:
*If the godly give in to the wicked, it's like polluting a fountain or muddying a spring. Proverbs 25:26 NLT

*The mighty one, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. Psalm 50:1 NLT

*Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. Isaiah 40:28-31 NIV

*See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking. Hebrews 12:25 NLT

Moravian Prayer: God of light, promise, and hope, may we hear your voice calling us again, as if for the first time. May the stories of this holy week dare us to take part anew in the unfolding drama of your love. Amen.

Lent Day 35: Thankful for endings

You probably have deadlines looming. Something that you can't wait to finish. I'm there too.

Jesus walked into Holy Week determined to stay on task. He did not abandon his followers, knowing the hardest obstacle was on the horizon.

Imagine knowing that by week's end you will have been killed in a horrible way, disgraced by the manner of death, and deserted by those in whom you've invested your life. Would you have the stamina to give your best teaching, show love most deeply, and graciously give your betrayer an opportunity to repent before exposing your knowledge of his intentions?

This Tuesday, thinking of Good Friday  and the wonderful Easter celebrations ahead, I can hardly fathom God's love for us. His determination to offer us––as his betrayers and antagonists––the chance for reconciliation staggers me to my knees in worship.

What hard thing has God called you to, for which you need his patience, self-control, and perseverance today?

Read more:
*Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and proclaim to her that her hard service has been completed, that her sin has been paid for. Isaiah 40:2 (NIV)

*I call upon God, and the Lord will save me. Psalm 55:16

*Your eternal word, O LORD, stands firm in heaven. Your regulations remain true to this day, for everything serves your plans. Psalm 119:89, 91

*On God we have set our hope that he will rescue us again. 2 Corinthians 1:10

*Christ himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness. 1 Peter 2:24

Moravian Prayer: God of the ages, you have been faithful. We confess our faithlessness. As we call upon you today, we know that you have rescued us. You are our hope. Thank you for your grace and love today and every day.

We are so grateful that our debts have been released through the grace of your son, Jesus Chr-ist. May we strive to pay forward the grace and love you have given us. In his name. Amen.