Stay Hydrated!

 “...my soul thirsts for you.” (Psalm 63:1)

As a chaplain in a community of people where many are at high risk of serious complications from COVID, I am required to wear a mask when interacting with the people I serve. While I don’t love it, neither do I mind wearing the mask. Except when they serve liver and onions for lunch. Then I’m sorry I have to wear a mask because I’m confronted with my own bad breath.

One thing I have discovered is that I get thirsty when I wear a mask all day. I think it’s because I drink less water throughout the day. So at the end of the day, I find myself parched. I feel like I have to gulp down a couple of glasses of water.

Aaaah, so refreshing! It’s amazing how good water tastes when I’m thirsty.

Humans can survive a long time without food. But water, not so much. Water, it seems, is critical for our survival. Things get out of balance in our body quickly when we don’t drink enough water. Lack of water affects our kidneys, our heart, our muscles. 

I used to roll my eyes at people who carried around their water bottles and constantly refilled them throughout the day. Not anymore. 

Stay hydrated. It’s really important.

Thirst is a good metaphor for what happens to the soul. I’m not the first person to think so. My good friend David said it a long time ago: 

O God, you are my God, I seek you,
    my soul thirsts for you;
my flesh faints for you,
    as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

(Psalm 63:1)

I don’t know about you, but I find that my daily quiet times are like going to a well and drinking water that refreshes and renews my spirit. Conversely, on days when I skip my quiet time or neglect my prayer life, I feel out of sorts. My spirit is off-kilter a bit. At the end of such days, I realize that I have failed to tend to the most basic need of my soul: I have neglected my relationship with God.

The human soul is restless, longing to be filled. People are thirsty. Some look to quench their thirst by pursuing wealth, or by consolidating power, or by engaging in charitable work, or some other way. But there is only one way to quench the thirst of our soul. Rather, there is only one Person who can quench the thirst of our soul: Jesus.

To a woman who was thirsty because of circumstances in her life – some of her own choosing, some of which were imposed upon her by her culture and world – Jesus said, “Those who drink of the water I give them will never be thirsty. The water that I give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” (John 4:14)

I agree with Jesus. That shouldn’t surprise you. Apart from Jesus, my soul never finds satisfaction for its thirst. When I turn to Jesus in faith, when I follow Jesus as my Lord, my soul is full. 

I do take issue with Jesus on one thing, though. Once I have drunk of the water that he gives to me, I find myself wanting more and more. So in that regard I remain thirsty.

Only, now I know where I can find the well that never dries up.

Stay hydrated, my friends!

How to Become a Better Person

 “...if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Philippians 4:8)

I find so many beautiful things to photograph in nature. Flowers, butterflies, birds, sunrises and sunsets, landscapes, wildlife… The list is endless. There is beauty to be found everywhere; you just have to look for it. And have your camera handy.

There is something inherently beautiful about, well, beauty. I think our hearts are wired to appreciate and pursue beautiful things. And it starts by looking for beauty. Keeping our eyes open, ready to encounter goodness and beauty.

The same principle applies to our spiritual life. Our hearts are naturally stirred by good and praiseworthy things. But we have to be intentional about seeking such things. A joyful, godly life is something that we have to cultivate intentionally. That’s why Paul ends his letter to the church in Philippi with this exhortation: 

“Finally, beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”

(Philippians 4:8)

People often say things like, “Think happy thoughts.” And it’s not just a trite saying. I think it’s based on a real principle that our hearts follow our thoughts. Happy thoughts exercise our happy muscles (No, silly, we don’t really have “happy muscles” – it’s just a metaphor). People who think happy thoughts become happier people. Or, to put it another way, to be a happy person requires the intentional cultivation of happiness.

I don’t know of anybody who, deep down in their being, doesn’t want to be someone who is honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy. Those traits are something that everyone appreciates, because those traits are part of the image of God with which God endows every human being. But being that kind of person doesn’t just happen. It starts by focusing our thoughts, which will then orient our hearts.

A little nerdy lesson in New Testament Greek: Verbs in the present tense usually have a sense of continuous action. So when Paul says for us to “think about these things,” what he is saying is “think about these things, and keep on thinking about these things. Don’t stop thinking about these things. Not ever.”

And when we do that – when we think about honorable, just, pure, pleasing, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy things – then our hearts follow our thoughts. And we become all of those things.

How can we change the direction of the negative and divisive world in which we live? 

Well, what do you think?

Stay on the Path

 “...ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it...” (Jeremiah 6:16)

I love to hike. Whether it is in the rugged mountain terrain or along the soft, sandy soil of the coastlands, or anywhere in between, I love to be on the trail. On any given weekend you are likely to find me putting on my walking shoes and getting outdoors. I am always searching for public lands, state parks, national parks, wildlife refuges, and other places where I can go.

I have found that, when hiking, it is good to stay on the trail. The trail is the path that has been cleared by countless soles of the souls that have gone before me (did you get the play on words – I’m pretty clever, right?). Long ago, when the park or refuge or other public place was being designed, somebody went to a lot of trouble to clear out a path for people to hike. The route was set up with safety and beautiful views in mind. And so we don’t get lost. It is good to stay on the trail.

One time I veered off of the path, and it didn’t turn out well. You can read about it by clicking on this link.

I have a T-shirt that I bought to commemorate one of my more rigorous hikes in Colorado. It has a picture of Hallett Peak, and underneath it is an inscription of a Bible verse: “Stand by the roads and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is, and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.” It is from Jeremiah 6:16. The inscription is a gentle reminder to live our lives in the way that God has set forth for us.

One day I decided to look up the verse in the Bible. (It’s always good to look up Bible verses that people quote so you can get an idea of the context in which they are found. Context adds meaning.) I discovered that the quote on the T-shirt didn’t include the whole verse. For right after the part that talks about finding rest for your souls, God says this: “But they said, ‘We will not walk in it.’”

Whoa! Suddenly a verse that was a gentle reminder that I should walk on the path that God has made for me now has a bit of a darker side to it. In its context, the verse really is a rebuke to rebellious people.

I think it’s a healthy thing, not only to realize that God’s way is the way of life, but also that there is a downside in choosing not to walk in that way. It is a reminder, not only that the ancient, eternal path that God has cleared for us is the path that guides us safely through life and leads us to experiences of God’s glory and grace, but also that when we choose not to walk that path, we forfeit the abundant life that God offers us.

And so when I put on my T-shirt and look at that verse once again, I whisper two prayers. First, I give thanks that God has provided me with a way that leads to life and to the renewal of my soul. And then I remember the end of the verse, and I pray, “Lord, let it not be said of me that I have refused to walk in your way.”

"All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness"

- Psalm 25:10 

Staying on the path is always good advice, not only because the path will lead us through the wilderness and to our final destination, but also because veering off of the path can be dangerous.

“All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness,” said David, “for those who keep his covenant and testimonies.” (Psalm 25:10) And he’s right. Give it a try, and you will experience confirmation of that truth.

If all the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, why would we want to choose any other way?

Seeking Our Daily Bread

 “Give us this day our daily bread.” (Matthew 6:11)

One of the things that we absolutely had to make sure we brought with us when we moved from North Carolina back to South Carolina was our bluebird house. In fact, the very first load from our storage unit to our new house included the bluebird house, which I promptly set up in our yard.

For the first couple of years when we were in North Carolina, we had no birds use the birdhouse in our backyard. But in 2020 and 2021 we had at least three families nest, hatch, and fledge from the house: two chickadee families, and one bluebird family. We loved watching the birds take up residence, carrying grass clippings and other nesting material. Then we would wait patiently for signs that the eggs had hatched. We would notice much more frequent trips to and fro by the mother bird, as well as more frequent visits from the father bird in the case of the bluebirds. The mother birds would be carrying seeds or bugs in their beaks (or mealworms that Carol had placed on nearby feeders).

Every once in a while we were fortunate enough to see a tiny head from one of the chicks peek out from the birdhouse, obviously waiting for its next meal. On even more rare occasions, I was able to get a picture of the baby bird. In the nest, the baby birds look only to the mother to for nourishment. They depend wholly on their mother to give them what they need to live.

"Bless the Lord... who satisfies your desires with good things."

(Psalm 103:1, 5) 

Where do you turn for what you need to live? On what or Whom do you depend for life itself? In the middle of the prayer that Jesus taught us to pray we find the simple petition, “Give us this day our daily bread.” That simple petition is the acknowledgment that we depend on God. When we pray that petition, we are asking God for the physical and spiritual resources we need in order to live.

That simple petition, “Give us this day our daily bread,” refocuses our heart. It reminds us that we have a good and loving God who provides us with what we need and who nourishes us, body and soul. To pray that petition is to affirm that God is the object of our faith and trust in our pursuit of health and well-being and happiness and satisfaction.

The psalmist urges us, “Bless the Lord, O my soul; all that is within me, bless his holy name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits – ...who satisfies your desires with good things.” (Psalm 103:1-2, 5) To pray, “Give us this day our daily bread,” is to recognize that it is God to whom we look to satisfy the desires of our hearts. 

And because God is good and loving and compassionate, then we expect that God will answer us by satisfying our desires with good things.

And that is a good thing.

Praying the Greatest Commandment

 “Of all the commandments, which is the most important one?” (Mark 12:28)

A Daily Prayer of Dedication

Good morning, God.

Today I will love you with all my heart 

   and with all my soul 

      and with all my mind 

         and with all my strength – 

not just because you have commanded me to do so,

   but also because that is the desire of my heart.

I will love you with my whole being

   because you have first loved me

      unconditionally,

      everlastingly,

      passionately,

      uniquely.

I will love you with my whole being

   because you have loved me with your whole being,

      emptying yourself of the privileges of deity

      and becoming a servant

      and offering yourself as a sacrifice for my sins.

I will love you with my whole being

   because apart from you there is no life – 

for you alone are

   the way

      and the truth

         and the life.

And so, good and loving God – 

   gracious and compassionate,

   abounding in steadfast love – 

I will love you with my whole being today.

For if I do not love you with all my heart

   and with all my soul

      and with all my mind

         and with all my strength,

then I will not truly live today the abundant life

   that you offer to me.

If I do not love you with my whole being, 

   the flowers will be less brilliant,

   the mountains will be less majestic,

   the ocean will be less impressive,

   the song of the birds will be less melodious,

   the sun will shine less brightly.

If I do not love you with my whole being today,

   then my life today will be diminished.

If I do not love you with my whole being, O Lord,

   my love for my family and

   my love for my friends and

   my love for my neighbor

      will fall short of love’s potential.

Today I will love you with all my heart

   and with all my soul

      and with all my mind

         and with all my strength,

for only then will all other things

   find their fulfillment.

And only then can I be truly alive.

Amen.

New and Improved

 “See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare…” (Isaiah 42:9)

So, my wife and I are butterfly farmers. Purely amateur, mind you – we don’t have USDA certification or anything like that. But over the past three years we have released over 200 monarch butterflies, and about 75 black swallowtail butterflies. And so we consider ourselves farmers of sorts.

The overall process of attracting the mother butterflies, nurturing the caterpillars, providing them with a space to form their chrysalises, and then releasing the newly-emerged butterflies takes several weeks from start to finish (even longer in the case of some of the black swallowtails, which sometimes remain in their chrysalis through the winter, emerging when the warm weather of spring returns).

Over the years, I have taken countless photos (surprise!), and have even managed to capture the process of the caterpillars pupating into a chrysalis, as well as the moment they emerge. IMO, it’s really cool. You can watch the videos by clicking on this link and this link.

It is an amazing thing to consider the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly. Even though the DNA of the caterpillar is identical to the DNA of the butterfly that emerges from the chrysalis, nobody would ever claim that the caterpillar and the butterfly are identical. Indeed, the butterfly is completely new and different from the caterpillar. The butterfly can never go back to being a caterpillar.

When I consider the amazing transformation that results in the creation of a butterfly, I can’t help but being reminded that our God is all about the business of making all things new. God is all about redemption and renewal.

“...new things I declare”

“See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare,” says the Lord (Isaiah 42:9). You and I may be prone to letting the past drag us down. Our failures haunt us. We dwell on the things that have wounded us. We let our regrets weigh us down. It’s understandable that we are like this, because in a sense the past is the only reality that we know – the future hasn’t been defined yet.

Only, we do have a future. God has a wonderful plan for us. God doesn’t dwell on our past like we do. Indeed, God sees not what we have done or been, but what we will become by the transforming power of his grace and love. “I know the plans I have for you,” to quote an overly-quoted verse of the Bible, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you a hope and a future” (that’s Jeremiah 29:11, but you probably already knew that). 

By the grace of God, you and I do not have to let the past weigh us down. We are no longer defined by the mistakes we have made and the ways that we have fallen short; we are defined by the infinite steadfast love of God which never ceases, a love that declares to us, “whoever is in Christ is a new creation – the old has gone, and the new has come”! (2 Corinthians 5:17)

It might just be me, but I happen to think that, even though the caterpillar looks pretty cool, the butterfly that emerges from the chrysalis is infinitely more amazing and beautiful. 

If God will do that with a caterpillar, just think of what God will do with you and me.

True Delight

 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4)

Photography not only affords me the opportunity to capture the beauty of the world around me, but it also enables me to go back again and again as I look at the (thousands of) photos stored on my devices to revisit the glory I experienced in the moment. And often as I look at the pictures, I see things I didn’t notice before.

Something moves within me when I behold the beauty and majesty of creation, whether it be on the grand scale of a Rocky Mountain sunrise or a tiny ladybug crawling on a plant. I find myself captivated by the level of detail and the interplay of colors. My heart is flooded with awe and wonder – peace, even – and I want more. More beauty. More more glory. More peace. 

It makes me wonder, where do I turn to satisfy the desires of my heart? As much as my heart is enthralled by the splendor of creation, as soon as I look away the feeling goes away. 

Where can I turn for true fulfillment?

“Delight yourself in the Lord,” said King David, “and he will give you the desires of your heart.” (Psalm 37:4) There you have it. Delight yourself in the Lord. Find joy, happiness, meaning, purpose by turning to God. 

And it’s true. There is a radical reorientation that takes place when we delight in the Lord. When we turn to God as the source of our happiness, then the objects of our desires will change. The pursuit of things like wealth, popularity, worldly success will be transformed into the desire to love the Lord with all our being, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. When we delight in the Lord – when we turn to God in our pursuit of happiness and meaning – then our selfish desires and vain conceits will melt away, to be replaced with compassion, mercy, grace, and love. 

When we delight in the Lord, then the desires of our heart will be satisfied because the desires of our heart are now defined by our relationship with God. When we delight in the Lord, we find ourselves wanting the things that God wants for us.

Mind you, I’m still filled awe and wonder in the things I capture through the lens of my camera. But now, instead of the fleeting experience of the stirring in my heart at the beauty of creation, now I find myself filled with joy at the experience of witnessing the glory of the Creator. And that is much more fulfilling.

Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Wash Away My Sins

 “Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalm 51:2)

Have I told you that spring is my favorite season of the year? Trick question. It’s true, I love the beauty of the flowers, and I am enthralled as I watch nature awaken from its winter slumber.

But there’s one thing about spring of which I am not a big fan. It kinda grosses me out. It’s the pollen. Between the pine trees, the flowering shrubs, and all the other plants erupting in full bloom, pollen is everywhere. It coats every outdoor surface. When you rub up against something, you come away with a yellow smudge on your clothes. 

I didn't want to shame anybody
by taking a picture of their car,
so I used this meme instead.
Totally accurate depiction.

Cars are especially vulnerable to the pollen. Well, and our noses, too.

Even when I open the door to the car, the pollen has found its way inside, on top of the wheel well. 

It’s everywhere, I tell you. Everywhere.

Thank God for the March rains and April showers, though. Not only do they bring the May flowers, but they also wash the pollen off of everything. After a good shower you will find streams of yellow-streaked runoff carrying the pollen away, and psychedelic pools of water with swirls of pollen floating in them. And just like that, the pollen is gone. Until it comes again. But for a moment, at least, everything is clean.

"For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me."

(Psalm 51:3) 

Whenever I see the spring pollen, I can’t help but think about the pervasive nature of our sin. It’s probably because I’m a Presbyterian, and we are sort of fixated on sin. Sin is everywhere, both personally and collectively. I know a lot of people don’t like to talk about sin, because it sounds preachy. But believe me, sin is real. And it finds its way into every aspect of our lives. Presbyterians, who love to throw around big words, call the thoroughgoing nature of sin “total depravity.” Because simply saying that we are sinners isn't enough.

Sin is everywhere. And here’s the deal: You and I can’t get rid of it, at least not by ourselves. We need help. We need a bath. Or maybe a power wash.

One of my favorite people of the Bible is David. A lot of people like David because he threw a rock at a giant and killed him. I like David because he bares his heart before God. And because he wrote a ton of psalms, he also bares his heart before us. “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me… Indeed, I was born guilty, a sinner when my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:3,5) 

David was a very self-aware person. He knew that on his own he could not escape his sinfulness. The solution to his sin had to come from outside of himself. And so he turned to God:

“Have mercy on me, O God, according to your steadfast love; according to your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.” (Psalm 51:1, 2)

“Purge me with hyssop (whatever that is – probably some kind of supersoap), and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.” (Psalm 51:7)

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a right and new spirit within me.” (Psalm 51:10)

In an act of profound faith, David sought what he needed – forgiveness, cleansing from his sin – from God. Because David knew that God is gracious and compassionate, and that God is about the business of forgiving us and renewing us. 

A few hundred years later, one of Jesus’ disciples would offer this assurance: “If we confess our sin, God is faithful and just, and will forgive our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9) There’s that word again – cleanse. God washes our sins away, even better than the spring rains wash away the pollen.

I don’t know about you, but I always feel much better after taking a shower.

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, O God, and cleanse me from my sin.

Decently and In Order

 “Then I will send rain on your land in its season both autumn and spring rains, so that you may gather in your grain, new wine, and olive oil.” (Deuteronomy 11:14)

Have I told you that I love spring? That’s a trick question – I just wanted to see if you read yesterday’s devotion. While spring may be my favorite season for reasons aforementioned, the truth is I find plenty of things to love about all the seasons. 

Spring has flowers galore. And the gators start to emerge from their winter sleep.

Summer has its long days. Also, lots of gators basking in the sun.

Autumn has the change in colors (at least in some parts of the world). And the occasional gator.

Winter has snow (at least in some parts of the world). And where I live, gators.

Wait a minute – Is it the seasons, or the gators, that I like?!

Seriously, I love the fact that God has given us four seasons. I love the fact that God has given us 365 days in a year. I love the fact that God has given us 24 hours in the day. I love the fact that God has given us 60 minutes in the hour…

I love the fact that God designed our world with structure and order. By so doing, God has given us humans something to work with – some predictability, some patterns that we can discover and understand.

"...fill the earth, and subdue it..." 

   (Genesis 1:28) 

You see, way back at the creation of the world, when God created human beings, God gave humans a purpose, a mandate even: “God bless them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves along the ground.’” (Genesis 1:28) Can you imagine how challenging that mandate would be if there were no order or discernible pattern to the world? 

Can you imagine what it would be like to plan crops if there were no way to predict when it would be warm, and when it would be freezing cold? 

Or what if you wanted to plan for wedding pictures at sunset – can you imagine how difficult that would be if we had no idea as to when the sun would rise and set on any given day? 

Or if God hadn’t put the human body together in such an intricate design that is also very possible to learn about its inner workings, can you imagine how difficult (impossible, even) medical science would be? 

Or how would you ever plan for a club soccer tournament for your teenagers if you didn’t even know which day was Sunday (sorry, I had to get in one of my pet peeves…)? 

Thanks be to God that God created the world with patterns and a sense of order so that we humans could, in fact, have something with which we can work!

In good Presbyterian fashion, God created the world decently and in order. Thank God for the four seasons of the year, and for the predictable rising and setting of the sun, and for the revolution of the earth around the sun, and for every other way that God has put us in a world of order and predictability.

Oh, and also for gators.

Abundantly Alive

 “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade.” (1 Peter 1:3-4)

Yesterday was the first day of spring. Spring, I think, is my favorite season. Bushes, shrubs, and trees erupt in an amazing display of color as their flowers come to full bloom. The bright green of the delicate new leaves on the trees contrasts beautifully against the cloudless blue skies on a cool spring morning. 

Birds are aflutter with activity, building nests and feeding their young. 

In the early spring, you can even enjoy the outdoors without worrying about mosquitos. That, in itself, is reason enough to move spring to the top of the list!

The contrast between the colorful and abundant new life of spring and the drab gray of winter is so very dramatic. It’s one way that God lets us know that death is not the final word, but life. 

I think one reason I love spring so much is because the move from the dead and dormant winter to the lively and vibrant spring is very much akin to what happens in my heart with Jesus. Jesus enlivens me. Jesus fills me with joy and meaning and purpose. Jesus motivates me to share his beauty and majesty with the world in which I live.

“We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:4)

 

When I see the azaleas covered in pink and white and red, adorning the landscape with their loveliness, I remember that Jesus has so transformed my own heart, and inspires me to live in such a way as to manifest his grace and mercy.

When I see the birds feeding their young, I remember that Jesus nurtures me with his love, and I am stirred to share his love with all whom I encounter, especially the helpless and vulnerable ones.

When I see the bees and butterflies flitting about from flower to flower, I remember that Jesus has called me, not to hoard his goodness, compassion, and love, but to spread it about liberally and unconditionally.

The beauty and glory of spring – especially on the heels of the dreary and dismal cold and gray of winter – fill me with gratitude that God is about the business of making us alive. 

Truly, abundantly alive.