Just when we believe that hope is lost, a door opens. Just when we think that we will not be forgiven, word arrives. Just when we feel the end is near, life begins again. Psalm 133 celebrates the goodness to be found when adversaries determine to reconcile differences.
Assurance
How very good and pleasant it is when we see God in one another despite narrow hearts and tightened minds.
These quick moments delight as surely as a loved one’s gaze renews . . . as ever a child’s breath blesses her mother’s cheek.
The Lord’s happily granted gift of forgiveness heals all . . . despite our reluctance to respond to God’s love.
The Lord’s freely given gift of life affirms divinity in each . . . despite our reluctance to believe in God’s promise.
Visit the Spiritual Courage post on this blog by entering the words into the blog search bar, and consider the consequence of a severe repentance. What consequences await us when we gather courage to do what we know must be done?
Footnotes tell us that the watching tree in verse 11 refers to the almond tree; “the first to bloom in the springtime as though it had not slept. The Hebrew name contains a play on words with ‘I am watching’.” The opening lines here tell us of Jeremiah’s office as prophet. We are given his credentials, so that we might hear and heed the words here offered, so that we might not be afraid, so that we might remember to turn to God in times of turmoil, and so that we might shun the false idols that offer themselves in place of God.
Jeremiah protests that he is too young to serve God as prophet but the Lord says to him: Have no fear . . . because I am with you to deliver you . . . It is I this day who have made you a fortified city, a pillar of iron, a wall of brass . . . they will fight against you, but not prevail over you, for I am with you to deliver you.
These are words of warning to a people who had turned away from Yahweh and back to the Baalgods. They are also words of encouragement to us. History tells us that the oracles predicted here by Jeremiah unfolded as truth; therefore, the opening words of this prophecy can serve to comfort us as we struggle to understand our role as followers of Christ. God’s words through Jeremiah are meant to console us while we remain thewatching trees that remind others of the hope Christ brings, of the trust we must place in God, and of the danger in worshiping false and feeble gods.
I remember the devotion of your youth, the Lord tells us, Sacred to the Lord was Israel, the first fruits of the harvest; should anyone presume to partake of them, evil would befall him, says the Lord. As watching trees, we must have our eyes and hearts open to those who would deceive us, we must announce with a flurry of white blossoming the advent of a time of renewal and rebirth so those who have strayed may yet return. And we need not have any fear about our work of watching, for with God all things are possible. God always delivers the faithful.
When storms destroy all that we hold sacred, there is yet hope.
When trials sap our courage, there is yet strength.
When betrayals blind us to the possibility of a love that knows no bounds, there is yet God.
When suffering swallows our days, there is a place to go and there is something to be done. We are called to be watching treesthat announce the hope of the human race. We are created to be watching trees that trust only their maker. We come to fruition as watching trees that offer first fruits back to God and produce good fruit in due season.
We are called by our creator to witness as we watch and wait. When pain and sorrow take over, or in gladness and celebration, let us keep watch as if we have not slept, let us be the first to burst into flower and witness to the hint of spring. And while we wait on the Lord, let us offer our work to the God who made us, God who delivers us, and God who loves us.
No matter our circumstances, sorrow or joy, let us take up our task as watching trees and announce the goodness of God.
Adapted from a reflection written on June 12, 2010.
Let me thank you, Lord, for bringing me the strength to re-think my words before I said something foolish.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you, God, for sending me wisdom to avoid offending someone with my opinion.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you, Jesus, for encouraging me when I received terrible news the other day.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you, Holy Spirit, for pulling me up when I was at the end of my resources.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you, Mary, Mother of God, for your gentle, nurturing presence in my life.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you, Lord, for world in which I find myself, for the people in my life, and for the many times you have protected and lead me on my journey.
The works of God are all of them good.
Let me thank you for your gifts of salvation and redemption, for your Word of promise that I treasure and share.
Let me put down roots, let me open up my petals, let me praise you, let me bless you . . . let me thank you, Lord.
Now there were shepherds in that region, living in the fields and keeping the night watch over their flock.
We become so weary with the daily earning of our bread that we are too exhausted to keep the night watch. Our blessing is that the Good Shepherd never flags and he endures when we falter. And this Good Shepherd who keeps a constant watch will awaken us so that we might rise to hear the words of Good News that bring healing, peace and light to the world.
Esteban Murillo: Adoration of the Shepherds
God says: Do not stretch yourselves beyond your strength. Rely on me for power that is eternal. Do not ask too much of your mind. Ask me for wisdom that has always been and always will be. Do not tax your spirit more than it can endure. Call on my Spirit to dwell in you and to bring you peace. If you are able, keep the Night Watch with me. When darkness falls and you have lost your way, settle into the night with the sheep you are tending . . . and know that I am with you. If you are too tired to stay awake, ask for my help . . . and I will keep the Watch. And I will awaken you with the Good News that you will want to share with others.
When we spend energy that we do not have we endanger not only the body and mind but the soul as well. When we find that we falter and cannot stand, we need only call on the one who always endures.
For beautiful prayers at night that strengthen the body, mind and soul when we find ourselves wakeful and uneasy, dip into Phyllis Tickle’s NIGHT OFFICES: PRAYERS FOR THE HOURS FROM SUNSET TO SUNRISE, Oxford University Press, 2006.
I am weary with crying out; my throat is parched. My eyes have failed, looking for my God. More numerous than the hairs of my head are those who hate me without cause. Too many for my strength are my treacherous enemies. Must I now restore what I did not steal?
When life’s extremes weigh us down and wear us out there is only one place to go for restoration. When too many lies evil and too much denial tax us beyond our reserves there is only one path to take for transformation. When all roads close, when too much is asked of us there is only one person who understands our experience of extremes.
God says: I never intend for you to go beyond your limits; pushing you too far is a sure sentence of death. Your voice has disappeared from too much crying, your eyes are weary from so much looking. You are outnumbered and overdrawn. You are beyond weary; you are spent. When your body fails and your mental powers ebb, place your heart in my hands. I will not let you vanish into dust. I will champion you against your foes. I will restore even that which has been taken from you.
Also visit the Noontime reflection Without Cause by entering the words into the blog search bar.
When God spoke to me I grew strong and said, “Speak, my Lord, for you have strengthened me”.
We look for strength through artificial means: drugs, food, exercise, power. And all the while we hold in our hands enough strength to live eternally, enough strength to forgive ceaselessly, enough strength to love everlastingly.
God says: You may find this difficult to believe but I truly live in you. You may wonder how or why but you need not spend much time worrying over those details. Many of you worry that you do not deserve my time and devotion; but you do. You must remember to value yourself as much as I value you. Many of you assume that you deserve my favor and love and you see yourself as fully content; you have forgotten how to listen to me and to others. You must remember to measure yourself a bit so that you listen more than you speak. I have given you great spiritual strength. Believe in this as you believe in me. And consider each day . . . how you spend this precious gift.
Jesus said to them: If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, “Move from here to there,” and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you”. (Matthew 17:20)
Enter the word strength in the blog search bar and explore God’s gift of your strength to you.
In a time of pandemic, we look for assurance. In a time of unrest, we look for security. In a time of confusion, we look for safety. At all times, we drop our fear and remember that God is with us always.
Fear not, beloved, you are safe; take courage and be strong.
The words fear notappear frequently in scripture; God is constantly comforting us even when we are too distraught to listen for the calm, quiet voice.
The expression do not be afraid peppers our sacred writings; God is forever calming us even when we are too anxious to know God’s presence.
The phrase I am always with you is one we see and hear frequently in our sacred texts; God is always reassuring us even when we are too frightened to believe that we are held safely in God’s hands.
God says: You worry about situations and people over which you have little influence and no control. I only ask that you adjust your own vision. I will worry about all that you see is unjust in the world. I even take care of people and circumstances you know nothing about. I understand that there are days and nights when it seems that I have stepped away from my creation and that I have ceased tending to your world; but this is an illusion that comes from blinkered vision. When you rest in me you rest in safety. When you work with me you have courage. When you believe in me and all that I do you gather strength. Fear not. You are safe. Take courage. Be strong. You are loved. You are mine. I treasure you in every moment of your existence.
Enter the word safeor fearor courageinto the blog search bar and reflect on your own perception of God’s presence in your life.
We have ample opportunity to listen to wise words; yet we seem to go our own way – thinking that we know better. Wisdom has been with us since creation; yet we ignore her when we need her most.
Wisdom has much to offer: Straight words, prudence, knowledge and discretion, instruction that is more valuable than gold, silver, or jewels. Wisdom loves those who seek her. Wisdom is strength, righteousness and justice. Wisdom calls out to those who have ears to hear . . .
And now my children, listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. Happy is the one who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord; but those who miss me injure themselves; and all who hate me love death.
In today’s Gospel (John 6:30-35) the people ask Jesus to give them a sign so that they may believe. I am astounded . . . and yet, do I not do they same? The people in today’s reading walk with Jesus, they shake the same dust from their clothes that also powders Jesus’ feet and face, they experience miracles at Jesus’ hands . . . and yet they ask for a sign that they might believe.
Wisdom offers her ample generosity . . . yet we ask for more. Or worse still, we decide that we know better.
Wisdom has been with God since the creation. She has dwelt with God from the beginning and she will be with God through the infinity of God’s time and through the enormity of God’s space. Why do we ask for a sign . . . when the sign lives within us? Why do we ask for wisdom . . . when wisdom has dwelt with us from our inception?
Adapted from a reflection written on May 10, 2011.
This is good news! Commentary tells us that we should read this citation along with Chapter 1: The Exhortation to Rebuild the Temple. After the destruction and capture and exile by the Babylonians, the Jewish people were finally allowed to return in groups to Judah, but they had a good deal of trouble in rebuilding their temple and themselves. We can read about this in Ezraand Nehemiah.
The Samaritansin the northern part of the former Jewish territory who had intermingled with non-Jews have become the enemies of Jews returning to their home in the southern region of Judah. These Samaritans now block the way home for the returning exiles. In a time of return from deportation when we might imagine a new joy rising from the hearts of the Israelites, it is instead corruption and idol worship that they experience. In a time when physical and emotional fatigue from the return journey sap the strength of God’s people, they are called to dig deep into their inner selves to find the energy to rebuild. Yet despite the energy they expend in their struggle to return to their Jerusalem home, the faithful find the wherewithal to rebuild. They rely on their custom of maintaining contact with Yahweh through exile. They are an exhausted people who return from the north and yet here the prophet Haggai entreats the people to rebuild what was lost and he promises that there will be immediate joy. We might feel tired just thinking of the turmoil, disappointment and suffering they experience. We also might feel their hope, animation and sense of fulfillment.
This is a story that inspires.
Some of this prophecy (in particular the portion of chapter 2 just before today’s reading) takes the form of a “torah” or instruction given by a priest and so it carries particular significance. We are reminded that we are nothing if not first thought and then created by God. We are exhorted to re-build the old temple and to rebuild ourselves. We are reminded that God will fill us with the persistence and fortitude to answer this call. We are told that there is one to come who will shepherd his sheep in their return to an old home in a new spirit.
As we near the end of this Eastertide in the midst of pandemic, we have journeyed for two months of celebration in the most unusual of ways. We experience both the death of a hope and the birth of a new way of living, and throughout these weeks, we have always had the intimate presence of the resurrected Christ who arrives as fulfillment of all the prophets have predicted. Jesus is the new temple, and we are the building blocks. He is the promise, and we are the beneficiaries. He is the blessing, and we are the blessed. As we return from our own personal exiles, may we live up to this promise. And so we pray . . .
Dear and gracious Lord, you have called us back from our time of exile. You have offered us transformation and new life. You have filled us with new energy and new strength. May we live up to the potential we embody. May we learn to be true, living stones in your temple. And may we experience the joy of your immediate blessing. Amen.
Adapted from a Noontime first written on May 17, 2007.
Sincere Repentance – A Reprise
![Projectjanetsuecarole 008[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/projectjanetsuecarole-0081.jpg?w=300)
![6508036-md[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/6508036-md1.jpg?w=300)
![restoration_449x3181[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/restoration_449x31811.jpg?w=300)
![lord_is_my_strength_psalm_73_26_poster-p228906538671377196tdcp_400[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/lord_is_my_strength_psalm_73_26_poster-p228906538671377196tdcp_4001.jpg?w=300)
![ngods[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/ngods1.jpg?w=300)
![Planets_wallpapers_117[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/planets_wallpapers_1171.jpg?w=300)
![hamikdash21[1]](https://thenoontimes.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/hamikdash211.jpg?w=300)
The Noontimes 