Psalm 141 - Great Vespers

"May my prayer  be set before you like incense; may the lifting up of my hands be like the evening sacrifice." (Psalm 141:1 NIV)

In years past (it's been quite some time) I was able to worship with the Society of St. John at the Holy Transfiguration Skete in the Keweenaw Peninsula, at the Saturday evening Vesper's Service. I now live about two hours away, so it has been quite awhile. The sounds within the sanctuary so reminded me of the Holy Spirit present with us: the waves of Lake Superior crashing at the shore just outside the monastery, the wind blowing through the open windows above, even the rustle of the monks clothing as they moved about the sanctuary.

But, more than that, I love the liturgy of the Great Vespers and greatly appreciated being able to participate in Worship at the monastery. At the monastery there is no accompaniment to the chanting - just voices - praying and praising God. My favorite is: "Let my prayer rise like incense before you; the lifting up of my hands as an evening offering." I miss it so much, I attempted, a couple of years ago, to actually use a Vesper's Service at Zion during Lent at our Wednesday evening service. It did not go over. Not Lutheran enough, I was told :)  Although, some enjoyed it, others in the congregation really did not appreciate letting our prayers rise up like incense even though we did not use incense. It's just something they are not use to. It was unfamiliar.

So this morning, I am remembering that place of prayer and peace, the Holy Transfiguration Skete and thanking God for the gift of having had the opportunity to Worship in that place, with those servants of the LORD.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Psalm 104 - Playing With Leviathan

Wolf Point, Keweenaw - a calmer day

Well there is that Leviathan...  I have never been able to include Leviathan in a sermon.  Eighteen years of preaching and somehow I've never managed it. During Worship as we have sung this Psalm, I have thought: "Missed another opportunity!" 

The awesomeness of God's creating activities and His playing with Leviathan according to this psalm, reminds me of my first kayak trip on Lake Superior.  So this morning, I'm going to take the opportunity to share a story with you. 

It was a 4-day journey from Big Bay to Marquette with a group of clergy. Big Bay is only about 25 to 30 miles from Marquette, so it wasn't going to be a hard paddle. Except... 3 out of the 4 days we were paddling in small craft warnings.  Now, them were some waves! Leviathan was mentioned more than once!  We had to actually paddle quite a ways from the shoreline where the waves were more rolling and we could ride them.  The closer to shore, the more threatening the water.  It was actually pretty awesome!  I remember Pr. Peter Vorhes riding the waves in front of me, singing hymns!  Now that was really awesome!  Especially, since he has such a fantastic voice.  "O Lord, my God, when I in awesome wonder consider all the works thy hands hath made..."

Was it scary!  I hate to admit it, but it was not.  The wind and rain and waves were so great that it took all of my concentration to ride the waves much like a surfer would do.  There was no time to be afraid.  At one point, there was a long narrow peninsula we had to go around.  Not far from the end of this peninsula was a small rock island.  To get around this peninsula and the island, where the wave action was pretty fierce, we would have had to paddle a long ways out... So, we chose to go between the little rocky island and the peninsula point, where the waves were bouncing off the island and crashing into the waves as they had bounced back from the little island.  It was wild in there. We went through two by two.  It only took about 5 minutes to get through - a ride of a life-time.  Pr. Peter was only a couple yards away from me, but there were moments when he and his kayak disappeared from my sight completely as huge waves came up between us.  I still cannot help but smile.  When we made it through to slightly calmer seas; Pr. Peter, smiling, yelled at me through the storm, "let's do it, again!"

Playing with Leviathan...

There's my story. That was a long time ago, when I was much younger. My young paddling partner of today is not really into getting wet for no good reason and she would probably insist on staying home if I suggested that we should go and play with Leviathan. The sturgeon make her nervous enough.

That reminds me of another story... when my own children were young, I tried to get them to go canoeing with me on the New River in NC. I told them I was going to try to photograph some alligators.  I realized then that is not the way to try to get someone to go paddling with you... Alligators and Leviathan should usually be left out of the big picture...

Please, read all of Psalm 104! Meditate on His Glory and the awesome work of creation that He has done.  And, I'm really not recommending playing with Leviathan.  That really is something that should be left for God alone.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Bless the Lord, O my soul!

O Lord my God, You are very great:

You are clothed with honor and majesty,
This great and wide sea,
In which are innumerable teeming things,
Living things both small and great.
There the ships sail about;
There is that Leviathan
Which You have made to play there.

Bless the Lord, O my soul!
Praise the Lord!  (Psalm 104:1, 25-26 NIV)

Footnotes:

1. Psalm 104:18 Or rock hyrax (compare Leviticus 11:5)

 

Psalm 93 - The Seas Lift their Voice

I live on a bay off of Lake Superior.  I have never lived more than an hour away from either Lake Superior or the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean.  Most of my adulthood has been spent living within fifteen or so minutes from a great body of water.  But, even an hour away, I always had at least a creek running some place near the house where I could go and sit and pray. 

The water, for me, is a huge reminder of creation and re-creation.

Of creation:
"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters." (Genesis 1:1,2 NIV)

"And God said, “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.” And it was so.  God called the dry ground “land,” and the gathered waters he called “seas.” And God saw that it was good." (Genesis 1:9,10)

And... of re-creation:
^"Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”

Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”" (John 3:3-8)

Water is a reminder of God's power.  Never underestimate the power of the Great Lakes. Never undestimate the power of the ocean.  Yet, the power of these waters can't even begin to compare with the power of God.  Remember how God delivered Israel from bondage to Egypt.  The waters of the Red Sea swallowed up Pharoah's Army, even as the waters separated so that the Israelites could walk on dry land to their freedom and to the promised land.  There is only One who can perform a feat like this.  There is only One who can subude the waters in this manner.  That One is God, the LORD God who, robed in majesty and armed with strength, established the world and reigns over it. 

Even the seas listen to God and they lift up their voice to the One who is mightier than they.

God's Peace - Pr. J

Job 42 - Without God, I Cannot Pray

What an awesome ending of grace and mercy.  Job repents and receives renewed life!  He is blessed even more now, than before.

Job's friends too, are forgiven, after Job prays for them. The LORD tells them that Job will pray for them and God will forgive them.  Job does and the LORD does. Isn't that interesting?  Is this, "pray for his friends," a command to Job? Or... does God know, in advance, that Job will do this for them?  It does bring about some questions regarding prayer.  Actually, a question I was given the answer to many years ago. 

About 10 years ago, I took a sabbatical to practice the discipline of prayer.  I kayaked from the mouth of the Huron River to Ontonagon, MI.  The purpose was to study the life of Bishop Frederick Baraga, the first Bishop to the Marquette Diocese and missionary to the Native Americans. He was an ardent prayer, rising early, much as Martin Luther and many other evangelists that left huge footprints on the earth in regards to mission work.  Waking up early to spend large amounts of time in disciplined prayer didn't work so well.  At least, not in the way I had hoped for.  I had hoped to be able to discipline myself for prayer at specific hours with specific purposes.  What I found instead was that I would pray for the people whose homes I paddles by.  I would talk to God spontaneously; not with requests, but just random conversations, and out of boredom with myself, I prayed the catechism over and over.  But, the main thing I learned about prayer, for myself, out on the water was: But, for the grace of God, I cannot pray. 

Just as somehow, God inspires or commands or whatever He has done that has Job praying for those friends who persecuted him, the Holy Spirit inspires us to pray.  The Holy Spirit prays through us.  It is not our work.  It is a work, it is a gift of God.  But, for the grace of God, we cannot even pray.

May the LORD, teach us to pray.

God's Peace - Pr. J

 

Esther 6 - More Ego!

Haman's ego really busted him, now!  That gallows he put up for Mordecai doesn't look like it's going to be used.   Instead, Haman is going to make sure that Mordecai is honored.  This Jew is certainly going to be Haman's undoing.  All does not go well for thoe man who would persecute the people of God.  Playing games with God's people, I'm think is probably something we should all try to avoid.

I am going to try to do some manipulating of my own.  My granddaughter, Cassie, and I are leaving tomorrow to spend a few days kayaking and camping before school starts.  Here's the problem:  I've committed to reading one or two chapters and writing a blog daily so that those who are reading the Bible from cover to cover will not have any interruptions and there is no internet on Lake Superior!  So I will write them in advance and try to schedule them so they don't show up 'till the day...

God's Peace - Pr. J