Daily Lectionary: Need we say more?

Morning Ps. 104, 149
Gen. 6:9–22
Heb. 4:1–13
John 2:13–22
Evening Ps. 138, 98

Children do not always easily sit still. As it is my ambition to introduce reading and literature into the lives of my children and grandchildren, it has long been my custom to take advantage of the natural sedentarity of meal times in order to read to them.* Each morning now, after reading to him from the Bible, I read Chaim Potok to my sixteen-year-old son while he slumps sleepily over his Cheerios. I mean to follow The Chosen with Leo Tolstoy's Childhood, Boyhood, Youth. When I first read Tolstoy in college I thought, "How does he know me?!" It was exhilarating. For the last 30 years I have been having an immeasurably more profound version of the same experience almost every day reading God's word, which, as we are reminded in today's text, "is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart." (Hebrews 4:12) Anyone who reads the Bible expecting to meet there the Holy Spirit, the Surgeon who wields this terrifyingly tender scalpel, can attest to the veracity of that claim.

Let us not say more about the Bible than it says about itself. It's claims are more than enough (2 Timothy 3:16). We needn't add to them and we do so at our peril. (Revelations 22:18-19)

* This is a relatively mild form of child abuse, but it does have its consequences: there is a young woman in Lisbon, a banker, who can even today be spotted making her way about the medieval streets with her nose in a book, an idiosyncrasy that warms her daddy's heart.

Daily Lectionary: If God Were Portuguese

Baptism of the Lord
Morning Ps. 104, 150
Gen. 1:1—2:3
Eph. 1:3–14
John 1:29–34
Evening Ps. 29

Today's text explains why it is so conducive to one's spiritual well-being to surf at the close of day (Genesis 1:1b). (I specify the close of day, not only because sunset upon the water is such healing balm, but also because by then most of the bikinis are gone. Let's face it, fellas, a Christian man has no business whatsoever at the beach while the bikinis are out, unless he happens to be blind.)

Notice, too, that God, Who is Spirit, in designing a vehicle for the conveyance of His image, hit first upon fish and birds (Genesis 1:20-22), which bear in their movement a certain resemblance to the movement of the wind, as does He (John 3:8). What on earth persuaded Him He might be better represented by a lumpy, plodding, mudball like man? Maybe He just had too much time on His hands: another day remaining in the work week. So rather than leaving good alone and taking a two-day weekend, He over-engineered. Had God been Portuguese, this never would have happened, and we'd spend our days frolicking among the waves or upon the wind.

John says the one (God) who sent him to baptize with water told him Jesus would baptize with the Holy Spirit (John 1:33). If you have been united with Christ in baptism (Romans 6:3-5) you may expect that God, who knows how to give good gifts to His kids, will cause you to be filled continually with His Holy Spirit if you ask (Luke 11:13, John 7:38). Our days should be characterized by the pouring forth of Life from us. When they are it is impossible to be disappointed (Romans 10:11).

Daily Lectionary: "Mister, can you tell me the way to Daily Bread?"

Morning Ps. 46 or 97, 149
Deut. 8:1–3
Col. 1:1–14
John 6:30–33, 48–51
Evening Ps. 27, 93, or 114

A Christian without God's word in mind is like an automobile with its wheels out of alignment: you may get where you're going but the stress on the vehicle will be much greater, and the liklihood of running off the road vastly increased. Reading Psalm 46 first thing in the morning gets your wheels in alignment: even if all hell breaks loose today, you needn't fear. You may remain confident under all circumstances.

Having had your wheels aligned, how will you set your GPS? Towards what destination should you direct yourself today? The City of Security? The little hamlet of Self-Esteem? The Tricities of Money, Sex & Power? Of course, it's up to you. However, Jesus warns that those destinations will, upon arrival, reveal themselves to be illusury, unreal, and that when you look for lodging you'll be obliged to sleep in the street. "So what are we to do?" the apostles ask (John 6:28). Jesus' response echoes things He's said elsewhere: "Faith is a full-time job." (John 6:29, Matthew 6:33).

Don't make the mistake I made of missing Psalm 27 before bed. There could be no better way to orient your dreams.

Daily Lectionary: Human Nature

Morning Psalms 72, 148
Evening Psalms 100, 67
Isaiah 49:1-7
Revelation 21:22-27
Matthew 12:14-21

"Well, whatever you do, you may not eat your vegatables," we'd say to our kids at dinner when they were little. Naturally, before the words were out of our mouths the vegatables had usually disappeared into theirs. As everyone knows, the fastest way to get anyone to do anything is to tell them they mustn't.

Why did Jesus tell people not to talk about Him? Over and over in the gospels, Jesus tells people not to tell anyone what he's up to (Matthew 12:16) and the next thing you know everyone in town has heard and Jesus can't spit without drawing a multitude. No one knows human nature better than He. (John 2:24-25) Was He teasing?