good grief

A comment right out of Charlie Brown.

Just two months after the death of my son, I am feeling and recognizing “good grief.”  Please understand, missing him is a deep ache.  But it is so good to have the sure confidence that we will be together again.  My pastors, family, and friends continue giving their compassion, touch, and prayers which bring relief.

Whatever the sorrow or loss, it is the start of coping, resolving, finding answers, accepting powerlessness, trusting God, finding hope, that gets you through the night and into the day.

Isn’t all suffering the growth cell that develops form, shape, growth, and resolution?  Indulging in memories at unexpected moments?  It hurts and feels good simultaneously.  It is good grief.

Today is Good Friday.  It brings us more “Good Grief.”  How crushing the torture, suffering, and death of our savior.  How transforming Christ’s resurrection and living presence!  Romans 8:18 says that our present suffering is not to be compared to our future eternity with Christ.

His suffering rewarded Him.  Our suffering rewards us.  And in the suffering is our best selves.  It is “Good grief.” And He comes and suffers again, with us.

³  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, ⁴  who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. ⁵ For as we share abundantly in Christ’s sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too. (2 Corinthians 1: 3-5, English Standard Version)

by Margaret Stone

psalm 103

¹ Praise the LORD, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
² Praise the LORD, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
³ who forgives all your sins
and heals all your diseases,
⁴ who redeems your life from the pit
and crowns you with love and compassion,
⁵ who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

⁶ The LORD works righteousness
and justice for all the oppressed.

⁷ He made known his ways to Moses,
his deeds to the people of Israel:
⁸ The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in love.
⁹ He will not always accuse,
nor will he harbor his anger forever;
¹⁰ he does not treat us as our sins deserve
or repay us according to our iniquities.
¹¹ For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
so great is his love for those who fear him;
¹² as far as the east is from the west,
so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

¹³ As a father has compassion on his children,
so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;
¹⁴ for he knows how we are formed,
he remembers that we are dust.
¹⁵ The life of mortals is like grass,
they flourish like a flower of the field;
¹⁶ the wind blows over it and it is gone,
and its place remembers it no more.
¹⁷ But from everlasting to everlasting
the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
and his righteousness with their children’s children—
¹⁸ with those who keep his covenant
and remember to obey his precepts.

¹⁹ The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
and his kingdom rules over all.

²⁰ Praise the LORD, you his angels,
you mighty ones who do his bidding,
who obey his word.
²¹ Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
you his servants who do his will.
²² Praise the LORD, all his works
everywhere in his dominion.

Praise the LORD, my soul.

New International Version

praise and prayer

^63:7 I will tell of the kindnesses of the LORD,
the deeds for which he is to be praised,
according to all the LORD has done for us—
yes, the many good things
he has done for Israel,
according to his compassion and many kindnesses.
⁸ He said, “Surely they are my people,
children who will be true to me”;
and so he became their Savior.
⁹ In all their distress he too was distressed,
and the angel of his presence saved them.
In his love and mercy he redeemed them;
he lifted them up and carried them
all the days of old.
¹⁰ Yet they rebelled
and grieved his Holy Spirit.
So he turned and became their enemy
and he himself fought against them.

^64:1 Oh, that you would rend the heavens and come down,
that the mountains would tremble before you!
² As when fire sets twigs ablaze
and causes water to boil,
come down to make your name known to your enemies
and cause the nations to quake before you!
³ For when you did awesome things that we did not expect,
you came down, and the mountains trembled before you.
⁴ Since ancient times no one has heard,
no ear has perceived,
no eye has seen any God besides you,
who acts on behalf of those who wait for him.
⁵ You come to the help of those who gladly do right,
who remember your ways.
But when we continued to sin against them,
you were angry.
How then can we be saved?
⁶ All of us have become like one who is unclean,
and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags;
we all shrivel up like a leaf,
and like the wind our sins sweep us away.
⁷ No one calls on your name
or strives to lay hold of you;
for you have hidden your face from us
and have given us over to our sins.

⁸ Yet you, LORD, are our Father.
We are the clay, you are the potter;
we are all the work of your hand.
⁹ Do not be angry beyond measure, LORD;
do not remember our sins forever.
Oh, look on us, we pray,
for we are all your people.

Isaiah 63:7-10, 64:1-9 New International Version

a clean heart

Have mercy on me, O God,
according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
blot out my transgressions.
²  Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
and cleanse me from my sin!
³  For I know my transgressions,
and my sin is ever before me.
⁴  Against you, you only, have I sinned
and done what is evil in your sight,
so that you may be justified in your words
and blameless in your judgement.
⁵ Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity,
and in sin did my mother conceive me.
⁶ Behold, you delight in truth in the inward being,
and you teach me wisdom in the secret heart.
⁷ Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
⁸ Let me hear joy and gladness;
let the bones that you have broken rejoice.
⁹  Hide your face from my sins,
and blot out all my iniquities.
¹⁰  Create in me a clean heart, O God,
and renew a right spirit within me.
¹¹  Cast me not away from your presence,
and take not your Holy Spirit from me.
¹² Restore to me the joy of your salvation,
and uphold me with a willing spirit.
¹³ Then I will teach transgressors your ways,
and sinners will return to you.
¹⁴ Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God,
O God of my salvation,
and my tongue will sing aloud of your righteousness.
¹⁵ O Lord, open my lips,
and my mouth will declare your praise.
¹⁶  For you will not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it;
you will not be pleased with a burnt offering.
¹⁷ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit;
a broken and contrite heart, O God, you will not despise.

Psalm 51: 1-17, English Standard Version Anglicized (ESVUK)

thanksgiving and prayer

³ We ought always to thank God for you, brothers and sisters, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love all of you have for one another is increasing. ⁴ Therefore, among God’s churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.

¹¹ With this in mind, we constantly pray for you, that our God may make you worthy of his calling, and that by his power he may bring to fruition your every desire for goodness and your every deed prompted by faith. ¹² We pray this so that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.

from 2 Thessalonians 1, New International Version

psalm 19

A psalm of David.

¹ The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
² Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.
³ They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
⁴ Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.
⁵ It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
⁶ It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is deprived of its warmth.

⁷ The law of the LORD is perfect,
refreshing the soul.
The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
⁸ The precepts of the LORD are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the LORD are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
⁹ The fear of the LORD is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the LORD are firm,
and all of them are righteous.

¹⁰ They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
¹¹ By them your servant is warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
¹² But who can discern their own errors?
Forgive my hidden faults.
¹³ Keep your servant also from willful sins;
may they not rule over me.
Then I will be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.

¹⁴ May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.

New International Version

psalm 121

A Song of Ascents

¹ I will lift up my eyes to the hills—
From whence comes my help?
² My help comes from the LORD,
Who made heaven and earth.

³ He will not allow your foot to be moved;
He who keeps you will not slumber.
⁴ Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

⁵ The LORD is your keeper;
The LORD is your shade at your right hand.
⁶ The sun shall not strike you by day,
Nor the moon by night.

⁷ The LORD shall preserve you from all evil;
He shall preserve your soul.
⁸ The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
From this time forth, and even forevermore.

New King James Version (NKJV)

a faithful God

Great is Thy faithfulness, O God my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with Thee;
Thou changest not, Thy compassions, they fail not;
As Thou hast been, Thou forever will be.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To Thy great faithfulness, mercy and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!

Great is Thy faithfulness!
Great is Thy faithfulness!
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed Thy hand hath provided;
Great is Thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!

by Thomas O. Chisholm
Public Domain

you are here

As a treat to myself this pre-Christmas week, I bought some dark chocolate to keep in my car and share with nobody but myself. Today on my way home from work, seeking a little indulgence, I unwrapped a Dove chocolate, popped it in my mouth, and looked for which of the magical Dove “promises” was printed on the inside of the wrapper. Instead of something sweet and pithy, like chocolate being the best way to a person’s heart, or smiles being contagious, what I read was a little more pointed.

“You are exactly where you are supposed to be.”

What?

That’s kind of a big observation for piece of chocolate. I immediately had questions.  I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, in what way? Alone, in my car, scarfing down empty calories? In my job? In my community? In my church? No further answers came from my little aluminum fortuneteller.

This quickly got under my skin, as I’ve been feeling antsy lately to make some changes. Was this a sign? Am I supposed to stay right where I am? Was God trying to tell me something via chocolate? Certainly the Dove company isn’t entitled to pass on such a weighty observation on their own. How would they know if I’m where I’m supposed to be?

Then I stopped to consider if these words of wisdom could possibly be true, for me or for anyone who might have unwrapped this particular candy. AM I where I’m supposed to be? Are YOU exactly where you’re supposed to be? And furthermore, if something changes tomorrow, would I still be where I’m supposed to be, even if it’s in a different place? Maybe the point is that we  treat each day as if we have a special calling to be there, right where we are, making a difference and having significance in whatever our roles are in that place and time.

On the flip side, what happens if I don’t think I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be? What if I long to be somewhere else or in some different situation? Do I lose the capacity to be totally present right where I am, and do I miss opportunities to bless and be blessed?

This week I’ve been thinking about the Christmas story, and sweet, trusting Mary — pregnant and far away from home, giving birth to a baby, apparently among animals. I wonder if she had moments of doubting whether she was where she was supposed to be. And yet, after a visit from the shepherds, the account says “Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart.” Her situation couldn’t have felt comfortably picture-perfect by any stretch, but she was present in the moment, absorbing the wonder of the reality around her.

I’m guessing that can only happen when you believe you’re exactly where you’re supposed to be, whether it’s in a stable In Bethlehem, or in Iowa in the winter, or wherever life finds you today… or tomorrow.

by Angie Schmitt

psalm 100

A psalm. For giving grateful praise.

¹ Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth.
² Worship the LORD with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
³ Know that the LORD is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his;
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.

⁴ Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
⁵ For the LORD is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.

New International Version