God Is Here - Talk about POWERFUL!

God of power and might, bless and protect the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

"and the power..." (Matthew 6:13 KJV).

Power. Who do you think of when you see that word? Or should I ask, what do you think of when you think of power? My first thoughts this morning were of influence and change, and I thought of protection and strength. And I thought of my parents and how they were and still are, powerful people in my life and my life's development. But when we pray to God, and say to God, "Thine is the Kingdom and the power," we're associating and respecting and worshipping the power that God has. God is creator. God is redeemer. God is sustainer. There is nothing stronger than the power of God. God's power is on display everyday if we're just open to it, and if you need a reminder just go back to the pages of the Bible and read there what is said about God. God made all things, loves all things, and blesses all things. God provides guidance, strength, comfort, peace, and protection. All through God's power. God is called "the Mighty One," and God is represented by the bow in the sky; not a soft rainbow, but for the ancient Jew, the symbol of the mightiest weapon known at that time. And God is also shown as the One who can and will renew all things.

If you pause and think about your life and some of the most interesting challenges and opportunities facing you, God's power is within reach to do all of the above. Presence is power. Remember the story told of the children in a kindergarten talking about how powerful their dads were? One said his dad was a banker and had control of a lot of money. The other said her dad was a doctor and could save lives. The third said that her dad was an important elected official and could do powerful things with his vote. The last, whose Dad was spending the day as one of the parent helpers said, "My Dad is here!" Yes, our Dad is right here, right now.

PRAYER: Awesome God, for all things under Your power I stand amazed. For Your presence with me right now, I am blessed. In Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

P.S. Prayers for the congregation of Oak Park UMC in Corpus Christi, whose buildings suffered major damage through a fire. Thank God no one was injured or harmed, but a lot of work remains to be done and we're trusting God to bless them up out of the ashes.

Who Is Your King?

God of all time, help this dear reader keep Your pace in their life; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our conversation about The Lord's Prayer continues with "For Thine is the kingdom..." (Matthew 6:13 KJV).

An interesting point about this part of the prayer, most modern versions do not contain the traditional closings. Some years ago, scholars determined that this part was added by some zealous believers meaning that this part of the prayer was not what Jesus said. It was not too long ago that another group of scholars got together and determined that of the whole prayer, that probably Jesus may have said, "Our Father," and nothing else. The prayer, it is believed ended with yesterday's phrase, "but deliever us from evil." That would make for an abrupt ending to a beautiful prayer and song. During the days I have been meditating and writing about Jesus' prayer I have been hearing both on my computer and in my head, different versions of that beautiful song based completely on the prayer. This ending, I believe, is what gives it a musical highpoint. Listen to Il Divo's version of it online either through YouTube or on playlist dot com. You'll see what I mean. So then, what does this part of the prayer say to you? To me it says we acknowledge that there is indeed a kingdom of God and it is here already. To end the prayer with this ending means to say to God, You're the One in charge, all that I have prayed up to now is a worship of You and a trust that I have in You. I humble myself before You and make myself a royal subject of Your Kingdom. You are my King and I will serve You.

If nothing else this attitude of submission and subservience to God is what is needed in our lives. We seek so much for ourselves and see it in others, but this says in a right spirit, it is all about You, loving God, not me. May it be so in our lives that we put things into perspective about who we are and Whose we are.

PRAYER: Loving God, I know that Yours is indeed the Kingdom and I pray that I might truly be a part of it today and all days. May I seek to serve You with the right spirit in my heart and mind. Let me seek to bring others to know and love You. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

When Evil Comes Knocking

Loving God of relationship, grant that the relationship between You and this dear reader be blessed beyond measure today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our study of The Lord's Prayer continues with "But deliver us from evil." (Matthew 6: 13 KJV).

Our God is a God of protection. Jesus knew this and asked for it in this model prayer. Jesus, being human and sensitive to human needs, knew the draw and presence of evil in this world. Evil takes many forms and some of them even sometimes appear to be attractive and desireable for one's wellbeing. Take revenge, for example. Earlier in the prayer Jesus prayed about our needing to forgive those who have harmed us or trespassed against us, but evil is that which also says, when you get the chance, take it and use it for all its worth! Evil is taking care of one's selfish needs, be they emotional, mental, physical, or spiritual regardless of the cost or harm against someone else. Evil is clearly un-Christian. Jesus knew that we need to pray to be wide-awake and aware of evil that seems too good to be true for us; a daily walk with God will let you know it probably is not good.

Where does evil knock on your life? Your heart? Your brain? Your stomach? Other areas of your body? Jesus has the answer: Prayerfully ask God to be delivered from the things that we know can harm or hurt, destroy, and ultimately kill us and/or others.

PRAYER: Loving God, I pray for Your stronger grip on my hand and life today. Let me know when evil is knocking in a suave, inviting way in my life, and deliver me from it. I ask this for me and for those whom I love. In Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name I pray, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

Don't Let Go!

Lord of all days, may the gratitude of time spent with You be in the heart of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our conversation and study of Jesus' prayer continues with "And lead us not into temptation," (Matthew 6:13a KJV)

In the 60's, a television comedian would don female clothing for a character he played named Geraldine and would proclaim, "The devil made me do it!" Laughter would follow and all would know what a great scapegoat we have in the devil and his wiles. Geraldine was probably the result of something a preacher may have preached on Adam's classic, "I was okay until you gave me that woman!" You and I have our scapegoats and it is so much easier to blame someone else for the temptations that come our way. This part of the prayer seems to read in that way; "Lord, please don't lead me down the wrong path!" But it doesn't mean that. It means as we walk with God, we trust God. We trust that if we let God do the leading, God's way will not take us to temptation. It is us that sometimes tugs a bit harder or we want to let go of God's hand completely. Once our children learned to walk and to talk, their favorite expression was, "Walk!" And that meant "Put me down and let me explore on my own!" The other night our two year-old grandson said that very thing in the fine China department of one of the stores. Uh, let's hold hands was Grandpa's response. Not what he wanted to hear.

Temptation is out there. The funny take on this part of the prayer is, "I do a pretty good job of finding temptation on my own, " which for all of us is true. But as Jesus prayed this, He meant, "I'm trust You to be with me at all times, especially when temptation comes my way." When it comes let our minds turn to God and the things of God and temptation will not have the same pull and attraction that it once had.

PRAYER: Loving God, hold my hand and let me not lead You; You do the leading. Hear me as I pray and let me hear as I pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever." Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

Let It Go

Loving God, may today be a day of true worship in the life and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our study of Jesus' prayer continues with "As we forgive those who trespass against us..." (Matthew 6:12b).

We tend to make our personal space sacred. We also tend to call that little space our comfort zone. One time in one of my churches, I was preaching about that and to demonstrate how little this space really is I asked folks to stand (a good way to keep them from falling asleep!) and to put their arms outside their hips as if they were gunslingers in an old Western movie. I then asked them to rotate their arms to the right and then the left, drawing an imaginary circle. I asked them to do it again and a little faster so they could see that circle around them. One man, a Winter Texan (those who come to Texas in the winter months to enjoy their retirement in the sun) did it so much he didn't want to stop. "Sir, that's enough. Thank you." My sermon was about our reluctance to let others into our sacred space. That sacred space is not just physical, it is also emotional and pyschological. It is also spiritual. When others invade through a sin or action or unkind word towards us, they wound us and sometimes that wound is deep. It takes a long time for us to forgive that trespass.

Jesus prayed this prayer in the affirmative. Our English version says "As we forgive;" no where have I found a version that says, "If," or "If we want to." It was prayed in the way it was meant, we will forgive those who have done something against us. Forgiveness was a common theme for Jesus and His ministry. In the Sermon on the Mount, one of the blessings comes to those who can show mercy. Another time in discussing forgiveness Peter thought he was way head of the game by asking if he should forgive seven times; Jesus responded by saying it was not seven, but seventy times seven. Some of Jesus' parables were about forgiveness. Jesus knew the release and freedom that is ours when we just let go and try to leave the memory of that hurt in the past. Someone once said that not forgiving someone is like drinking poison ourselve and expecting the other person to die. It doesn't work like that. Once we release the hurt and pain by saying, "I forgive you," we ourselves receive the blessing of being set free from carrying that burden any longer.

PRAYER: Loving God, I realize that love placed in my heart is big enough and strong enough to let go of pain and hurt that others may have placed there. I ask that I be set free from all things negative that I have carried around by forgiving whoever has crossed into my space in a hurtful way. I truly understand that to forgive is to live. May I also continue to understand more deeply the power in this prayer of Jesus, my Lord, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever." Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

A NEW LEASE ON LIFE!

God of the weak and weary, bless and restore to full strength the areas of need in the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our study of The Lord's Prayer continues with "And forgive us our trespasses..." (Matthew 6:12a)

When we first moved to Houston we lived in an old two-story house that had been made into a quadplex of apartments. It was an old wooden home and we did not have many neighbors. But what has stayed with me all these years is that directly across the street from us was a solitary home sitting on an entire city block. It had a beautifully manicured lawn, no fence, but plenty of signs that said, "No Trespassing!" It was emphasized at every possible corner of the lot. The owners were an elderly couple and we simply knew them as Mr. & Mrs. No Trespassing. They were not friendly and the only ventures outside of their home was to pick up stray wrappers, beer and soda bottles and any other littering that ocurred on their property. They never said hello nor hi, and kept to themselves. The temptation for those of us who walked everywhere was to cut across their property to save time and distance, but we never did. We respected their wanting no one to traspass against them.

The two key words in this part of the prayer are the words, forgive and trespasses. I would add that in the King James Version of the Bible and others, the word is debt. Jesus' understanding was that God grants us forgiveness of our sins. God removes the burden of guilt and pain whenever we confess that we have done something against God or against someone else. Forgiveness is a powerful word and it is a powerful thing. It is a relief. It is a second breath. It is a huge sigh of relief. It is, in all respects, a new lease on life. The second is that which acknowledges that we have gone into areas of others' lives that we should not have tread. We've stepped "on the grass" looking for a short cut or to save us some distance. We know it was wrong and we now confess that we should not have done what we did. It should be a genuine and sincere form of confession.

It begins with our being honest with ourselves and with God. We know when we have been on someone else's property or area of privacy and that we should not have been there. And when we tell God that we no longer want to live with that burden, God is faithful and just to remove it. We no longer have to carry it on our shoulders or backs and we can continue our journey with God.

PRAYER: Loving God, truly forgive me for doing and going where You and I know that I shouldn't. Grant me the peace of release from that guilt and pain, and let this day be the day of new beginnings with a new attitude of respect for You, myself, and others. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

THANK GOD FOR OUR FOOD

God of all people, bless and protect this dear reader this day; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our study of The Lord's Prayer continues with "Give us this day our daily bread..." (Matthew 6: 11 KJV).

Here in Texas and perhaps in your place, in the mid-60s, there were burger joints that would sell 10 hamburgers for one dollar. And this particulare place in my new hometown of Corpus Christi, for an additional dollar you could get a gallon of root beer. It was a great deal and a way for my Mom to feed five children, her Dad, and herself. Now, those of you with good memories or sharp minds will remember or determine that those ten burgers were about the size of a good chocolate chip cookie. And while I thought we were having fun, having driven from Kingsville to Corpus Christi, the truth was we were on a tight budget. And the competition between three growing boys was on who could eat the fastest to get an additional burger. That usually meant befriending the oldest of our two sisters who was a finicky eater. "You going to eat the rest of that? If not, I call it!" God provided for our daily bread. And while we had a scare only one time that I remember, and I've shared that in this devotional postings some time ago, it was just that my Dad was working overtime and was late coming home. While the hours worked their way away from 6 o'clock the time my Dad usually got home, my Mom started to worry about her husband's wellbeing and about not having any food in the pantry. It was the kindness and thoughtfulness of our only neighor, who herself had a bunch of kids, who brought up the last item she had, a can of Spagetti-Ohs. Mixing it with about six cans of water, that was our supper.

Jesus knew of God's faithfulness in providing sustenance for the day. He himself had to endure the greatest and first of all temptations, that of feeding Himself while very hungry. Hunger has driven throughout history many a man and woman, to beg, borrow, or steal, just to provide either for themselves or for their children. It was the thought of food that drive the Prodigal home to his daddy. Hunger does affect us and no one should go hungry. And in His greatest teachings, Jesus told US that we should provide for those who are hungry and thirsty, and when we do, we're providing it for Him. James teaches that while we do care for the soul of all, we cannot ignore the needs of the body (James 2:15-16). Jesus knew that God is the source of all good gifts and if we claim to be children of God, then we too, embrace the care and feeding of our brothers and sisters.

During this time of our Lenten Journey, some have been denying some physical food in order to focus more on the spiritual and it is precisely because we know of the power of God to bless us and remind us of what we truly need to march forward and upward.

PRAYER: Loving God, thank You for the bread You provide to us this day. Help me today to more fully realize that I too, must be one who provides for others. The world is my neighbor and I must take responsibility to help feed all who might be hungry. Forgive me for taking the plate placed in front of me for granted. It comes from Your love and provision. Thank you. I pray this prayer in Christ Jesus' powerful and precious name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

SEEKING GOD'S WILL

Loving God, bless and protect the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Friends, yesterday found me traveling to Dallas on an early morning flight and I did not return home until 10 p.m., thus my not writing ConCafe. I appreciate your understanding.

We look now to those words that follow in Jesus' Prayer, "Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10b KJV).

This prayer of Jesus is a prayer of relationship. And as is true of any relationship, trust is essential. To pray these words about God's will is to say, God, You know best and Your guidance for my life is what I need. C. S. Lewis wrote that "heaven is full of those who have prayed, 'Thy will be done,' and hell is full of those who have prayed, 'My will be done.'" Jesus knew that in Heaven, God's will is always done. As God so wishes, so it gets done. On earth we always have a choice to choose to follow God or ourselves or even the bidding of others. Jesus desired the perfectness of Heaven to come to the earth, more importantly into the lives and hearts of those who desire to follow Him. To teach this as a model of prayer is to realize that Jesus knew the reality of Heaven as well as the reality of earth, and given the choice to choose between the two, Jesus chose Heaven. And so should we. The other day as we awaited a lunch order, the young woman preparing it was listening to her friend ask her about a tale of onions. She asked the woman attending to us a question and she didn't know the answer and then asked us. "Is it true that if you're cutting onions and you cry, that you're a jealous person?" I told her I hadn't heard that about onions, but I did know that jealousy was the result of insecurity. "Trust should be the basis of your relationship." She went on to say that she was in her third marriage and she didn't know if she should trust her present husband because husbands one and two had not been faithful. I told her to leave husbands one and two where they were and to begin to trust this new one otherwise soon we'd be hearing about husband number four. God's perfect will is to desire the best for us.

Are all things the will of God? No. Sometimes the consequences of our actions lead us to places and results God did not desire for us. As an example, a noted preacher lost his son to drunk driving. One of his parishioners said, "It was God's will," thinking that would comfort the pastor. The pastor replied, "No ma'am, it was not God's will for my son to go and get drunk nor was it God's will to drive while drunk. The accident was the result of my son's actions and decisions." To seek God's will means a prayerful, trust relationship that asks God, "What would You have me do? How would you have me live?"

PRAYER: Loving God, I desire Your will for my life. I am tempted to go this way and that, but I desire Your way. Help me trust as I pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever." Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

Citizens of the Most High

Awesome God of wonder, bless and protect the life and journey of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our conversation about The Lord's Prayer Continues with this part, "Thy Kingdom come..." (Matthew 6:10 KJV).

One of my professors of Old Testament said over and again, "We who don't live in monarchies can never understand the place a king holds in the life of his subjects." I don't know about you, but I am thankful I don't live in one. I enjoy reading about the "fun" our English "cousins" have with their queen. In our lifetime she has been the queen and it doesn't seem like Charles will get to be king. I know this just upsets you to no end! But let's talk about God's kingdom. It was established and it is run by God. As in early earthly kingdoms, the king has absolute rule, for the king has charge over the wellbeing and lives of his subjects. Those who are subjects have pledged their loyalty to the crown, for they know that their king has their best interests (or should have) at heart. For Jesus, there was no question about the idea of a kingdom, for Jesus knew the goodness and blessing of God as should we. In the prayer we are in a way, pledging our loyalty to God, we have approached God as Father, we recognize and worship God's Name as holy, and now we are hoping that God's kingdom would come in us. A question that troubles many an American is to ask if we are Americans first or Christians first. Many say Americans. Take away America and where does that leave us? When time ends and the earth is not like it was as the Bible says, where will America or Americans be? We are citizens of Heaven, subjects of God's kingdom, the one that will never end nor be displaced. It is not a geographical location nor one set by boundaries; it lies within those hearts who invite it and receive for their lives.

This does not mean we don't pay taxes here and now, nor does it mean the laws of the earth or city do not apply to us. Keep reading the Bible, there's sections in there about that too, but receive the good news, we are children of the King! The King who desires the best for your life now and in the hereafter.

PRAYER: Loving God, may the realization that I am Yours and invited to live with you stay with me and in my heart as I pray, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever." Amen.


Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

GOD'S NAME IS SACRED!

God of incredible, unexpected blessings, pour out Your presence and blessing on the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our conversation and study of The Lord's Prayer continues: "Hallowed by Thy name." (Matthew 6:9) KJV.

I've shared before about how important it is to know someone's name before you call on them, especially if you're in the sales field. This is one thing that was drilled into us when I worked for the marketing arm of Ma Bell so many years ago. Once you have a number and a name to go with that number, especially the name of the one who makes purchasing decisions, you've got half the work done. To know the name of God works the same way. Moses understood this, especially after God sends him to go call on Pharoah. "Whom shall I say is sending me?" or "What is your name?" Here's how that encounter reads in The Bible:

13 But Moses said to God, "If I come to the Israelites and say to them, "The God of your ancestors has sent me to you,' and they ask me, "What is his name?' what shall I say to them?" 14 God said to Moses, "I am who I am." He said further, "Thus you shall say to the Israelites, "I am has sent me to you.' "

God's name is sacred. Jesus knew this too. The Jews still will not say the name of God and even in English will write G-d to keep the sacredness of that name. We know that "I am" is "YHWH" with vowels, "Yahweh," but some use a less secular, respectful name of "Jehovah." To pray with God, we acknowledge what we were taught, God's name is holy. "Hallowed" is a name we don't use much in everyday life. We hear about it when describing a famous university or college as in "these halls are hallowed." But to pray it and mean it is to show that we humble ourselves in knowing that as we pray we are connected to the most holy of holies, whose name matters but not as much as the knowledge of the love behind that name. It pains me to hear God's name in vain or in the increasingly more common curse word, as an adjective in a sentence where it should not even be placed. It is disrespectful and profane. We are trying to bring the holiness of God into the muck and mire in which we find ourselves to even consider using God's name. "Keep it real" we hear it said, no, "Keep it holy."

God is with you even in times and troubles and places where you don't want to find yourself; remember the prayer of Jesus - enter into the holiness of God as you pray it and receive the blessing that comes from this powerful prayer.

PRAYER: Lord God, forgive me for those times that I have joined in thinking or saying things that were not meant to be said and for sometimes using Your name in vain. I honor You and our relationship as I pray the prayer, "Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever." Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

ART IN HEAVEN IS THE BEST!

Lord God, this is Your Day, be glorified in it and may Your glory shine through the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray,amen.

We continue our conversation about The Lord's Prayer with this text, "which art in heaven..." (Matthew 6:9) KJV.

Let me tell you, God's art in Heaven is all masterpieces, but the greatest there are us; for we were all magnificently designed and created by God! I know, this is not the "art" in this passage, but I still affirm and believe that first statement. The "art" here is a verb stating a place, a wonderful place where God can be found. Many modern versions simply say, "in heaven." Jesus knew Heaven as a place, and our belief is that Jesus helped create it and from there He came and to there He returned. Heaven is a residence, a dwelling place not fully understood until John the disciple had his vision of it in Revelation, 21:18 where he describes the city as being "pure gold." A word picture of a place too marvelous to describe. The drawing card of Heaven is not the material or spiritual things that it may or may not be built on, it is that there is the eternal city of God found now, with God being the greatest to seek and find.

Our prayer life should reflect the hope and faith we have in a better place, a reminder that with God with us, whatever we may be facing or enduring now is only temporal and should not discourage us. Our longing should be God, a continuation of the declaration that Jesus made in our study from yesterday, "Our Father."

PRAYER: Loving God, as I pray, I seek You. Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

OUR FATHER

Loving God, bless and protect the life and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our Lenten Journey should be all about prayer and Jesus' Prayer is what we call The Lord's Prayer and that is what we'll study for a few days.

Our text comes from Matthew 6:9 "Pray then in this way: Our Father..."

It matters not the version of Bible you use, this prayer always begins with these two words, "Our Father." And there is no better place to start nor thing in common, than to acknowledge the relationship that we should have in our prayers with God. Jesus knew God as Father and called God, "Abba," an endearment form similiar, but not quite, to our "Daddy." And it's also a term of recognition of respect and affection. While many here on earth have not had anything close to a perfect father, in God, Jesus knew that we do have a perfect Father and in our prayer should pray in that way. Prayer is all about relationship. And trust and respect is the starting point. And as I mentioned above it is also a uniting point, though you and I have different earthly fathers, in God we have a common father. Our relationship with God should allow for our time of sharing and enjoyment that only is possible in prayer. Jesus connected with God in all of His prayers. Jesus knew God's heart and so in times of prayers opened His heart to God.

Let your relationship with God begin with each of your prayers. In God we have a loving parent we trust and need.

PRAYER: Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed by Thy Name, Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespassess as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver from evil; for Thine is the Kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

WHAT'S CIRCLING YOUR CAMP?

Loving God of all days, may this be a special day in the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Psalm 121: 1 I lift up my eyes to the hills— from where will my help come? 2 My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. 3 He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. 4 He who keeps Israel will 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 will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. 8 The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in from this time on and forevermore. (NRSV)

This Psalm became more powerful to me when I read somewhere that David probably wrote this psalm during a battle campaign. In David's day the enemies would encamp nearby and enjoy a sort of truce or cease-fire during the evening and then in the morning they would assemble to wage the day's battle. I chuckle as I write remembering the old cartoon of the sheepdog and the wolf punching the same time clock as they "went to work." You can imagine how you would feel if you knew that your enemy was on the hills surrounding your camp. In earlier days I would read the Psalm and think David thought his help came from the hills, it does not. His help, as does yours and mine, comes from the Lord, the Creator of all things. David's faith was anchored in knowing that God is an ever-vigilant protector, knowing all areas and especially all areas of weakness - nothing can come against us and prevail! And when it is all said and done, the Lord continues to keep us.

What's circling your camp this morning? Fear of a deadline or due date? A showdown with a loved one? God knows your life and the places where you need the most help. Just ask!

PRAYER: Loving God, as I start this day and the day's challenges and chores, help me remember that I am not alone; You are with me; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

DISCIPLESHIP NOT DISTANCE!

Gracious God, grant Your grace to the life and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Genesis 12: 1 God told Abram: "Leave your country, your family, and your father's home for a land that I will show you. 2 I'll make you a great nation and bless you. I'll make you famous; you'll be a blessing. 3 I'll bless those who bless you; those who curse you I'll curse. All the families of the Earth will be blessed through you." 4 So Abram left just as God said, and Lot left with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran. (The Message)

I hated leaving the familiar. For over twelve years I had known only one house, my house; one street, my street, one creek, my creek, one railroad tracks, my railroad tracks; one store, my store, one church, my church; and on and on. Yet, the economy in my hometown made it necessary for us to move. And you and I know people who have never left precisely for the same reason, they love the familiar. When I left my hometown I also left behind family and friends. I was glad to be reunited with my Dad who had been living apart from us for six months, but sad because my grandmother and aunts and uncles and cousins were staying behind. I was too young to use the telephone to make long distance calls and not yet skilled enough to write a letter; how would I stay in touch? The same holds true for Abram. God comes to him and tells him to leave his country, his family and his father's house to go to a land that God will show you. That would have been enough for many to have said, "Let me ask for a reconsideration..." The promise was great, Abram would be made into a nation blessed by God. Abram would be made famous and be a blessing to others. In fact, God continued, those who bless you will be blessed and those who curse you will be cursed. And get this, all the people of the Earth will be blessed through you, Abram. And Abram obeyed.

How about you? Sometimes we don't even want to get up out of our pew or chair in worship for a time of greeting or passing the peace. We can't fathom the idea of walking across the room to speak to someone we hardly know or have already judged as not worthy of our company; how could God use us in that state of mind? Our spiritual journey during this time of prayer and fasting should speak to our obedience to God and how ready we are to be born anew with a spiritual perspective and a willingness to trust and obey God. How about you? Are you ready to journey based on discipleship not by distance?

PRAYER: Loving God, forgive me the times I have not been willing to listen nor obey You. As You speak to me about obedience , let me hear and receive based on my discipleship and not to judge by distance. Help me realize as we leave home or family or the familiar, we're still always in Your presence and how can that be an unfamiliar place with You by our side? I ask and pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

TRUST AND OBEY FOR THERE'S NO BETTER WAY

God of peace and all nature, comfort, bless and protect the people of Japan during this crisis. Bless and protect this dear reader too; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Romans 4: 13 That famous promise God gave Abraham - that he and his children would possess the earth - was not given because of something Abraham did or would do. It was based on God's decision to put everything together for him, which Abraham then entered when he believed. 14 If those who get what God gives them only get it by doing everything they are told to do and filling out all the right forms properly signed, that eliminates personal trust completely and turns the promise into an ironclad contract! That's not a holy promise; that's a business deal. 15 A contract drawn up by a hard-nosed lawyer and with plenty of fine print only makes sure that you will never be able to collect. But if there is no contract in the first place, simply a promise - and God's promise at that - you can't break it. 16 This is why the fulfillment of God's promise depends entirely on trusting God and his way, and then simply embracing him and what he does. God's promise arrives as pure gift. That's the only way everyone can be sure to get in on it, those who keep the religious traditions and those who have never heard of them. For Abraham is father of us all. He is not our racial father - that's reading the story backwards. He is our faith father. 17 We call Abraham "father" not because he got God's attention by living like a saint, but because God made something out of Abraham when he was a nobody. Isn't that what we've always read in Scripture, God saying to Abraham, "I set you up as father of many peoples"? Abraham was first named "father" and then became a father because he dared to trust God to do what only God could do: raise the dead to life, with a word make something out of nothing. (The Message)

Entering by believing and trusting brought an eternal promise to Abraham. It was not by having kept a contract. Marriage is an expression of that belief and trust; love brings two together, trust and a hope for a great future together gets them to the altar and the blessings of a wonderful life together are theirs. Those who see marriage as an arrangement or something binding only by law miss the whole point and find themselves miserable. The Bible speaks of the final marriage in Revelation and the courtship began with Abraham's faith. Guess what, we're in that courtship too! God sought you out, wooed you, and through faith you have entered into that blessing and you're enjoying daily blessings of love, joy, peace, etc., because of faith not because of what you did or signed a contract to do. Abraham's example of trusting should be a model for our trust as well. Abraham also had faith not by what promised but simply because God sought him out.

Do you not think that you're worth being sought by God? You are. Not by what you've done or even in spite of what we've done that doesn't measure up, simply because God loves you and me.

PRAYER: Loving God, I need to hear of Your love always. Speak to me now gentle words of grace and peace. Let me seek to be Yours by trusting and believing. I pray this in Christ Jesus' powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

LEARNING TO TRUST GOD

O God of amazing grace, bless and protect this dear reader in all they face today; in Christ Jesus, amen.

Our text for today comes from Romans 4: 1 So how do we fit what we know of Abraham, our first father in the faith, into this new way of looking at things? 2 If Abraham, by what he did for God, got God to approve him, he could certainly have taken credit for it. But the story we're given is a God-story, not an Abraham-story. 3 What we read in Scripture is, "Abraham entered into what God was doing for him, and that was the turning point. He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own." 4 If you're a hard worker and do a good job, you deserve your pay; we don't call your wages a gift. 5 But if you see that the job is too big for you, that it's something only God can do, and you trust him to do it - you could never do it for yourself no matter how hard and long you worked - well, that trusting-him-to-do-it is what gets you set right with God, by God. Sheer gift. (The Message)

I love experiencing again the joys of childhood in my grandchildren. It seems just like yesterday I was holding them newborn and totally dependent on their moms and dads. I saw them learn to crawl and then crawl fast. Their first steps were either witnessed live or through the magic of the Internet. But what I chuckle at is that point where they don't want to be carried any more. Either grunting or saying, "Down!" they make themselves clear about wanting to walk on their own. It's usually in a store where being "down" they can grab and hold things. And this passage is about those days we're just like kids. We think we can do all things on our own. Comparing our situation with Abraham, Paul sets us straight; we must depend on God. Abraham is the Father of Faith because he knew to trust God to lead him to parts unknown. In the same way, we must learn to trust and follow God. I love verse five, "trusting him-t0-do-it is what gets you set right with God, by God. Sheer gift." So, this journey of faith during Lent is a journey and a gift of trust.

You can still run. But it'll be under God's watchful and loving eye.

PRAYER: Lord, as I journey not only through Lent, but life, many have been the times that I have believed I could do it on my own and I know that is not the case. Help me to trust you to help me in all things. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

NICK AT NIGHT MADE RIGHT

Blessed Savior, bring Your comfort, joy, and peace to this dear reader in all they may face today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from John 3: 1 There was a man of the Pharisee sect, Nicodemus, a prominent leader among the Jews. 2 Late one night he visited Jesus and said, "Rabbi, we all know you're a teacher straight from God. No one could do all the God-pointing, God-revealing acts you do if God weren't in on it." 3 Jesus said, "You're absolutely right. Take it from me: Unless a person is born from above, it's not possible to see what I'm pointing to - to God's kingdom." 4 "How can anyone," said Nicodemus, "be born who has already been born and grown up? You can't re-enter your mother's womb and be born again. What are you saying with this 'born-from-above' talk?" 5 Jesus said, "You're not listening. Let me say it again. Unless a person submits to this original creation - the 'wind hovering over the water' creation, the invisible moving the visible, a baptism into a new life - it's not possible to enter God's kingdom. 6 When you look at a baby, it's just that: a body you can look at and touch. But the person who takes shape within is formed by something you can't see and touch - the Spirit - and becomes a living spirit. 7 "So don't be so surprised when I tell you that you have to be 'born from above' - out of this world, so to speak. 8 You know well enough how the wind blows this way and that. You hear it rustling through the trees, but you have no idea where it comes from or where it's headed next. That's the way it is with everyone 'born from above' by the wind of God, the Spirit of God." 9 Nicodemus asked, "What do you mean by this? How does this happen?" 10 Jesus said, "You're a respected teacher of Israel and you don't know these basics? 11 Listen carefully. I'm speaking sober truth to you. I speak only of what I know by experience; I give witness only to what I have seen with my own eyes. There is nothing secondhand here, no hearsay. Yet instead of facing the evidence and accepting it, you procrastinate with questions. 12 If I tell you things that are plain as the hand before your face and you don't believe me, what use is there in telling you of things you can't see, the things of God? 13 "No one has ever gone up into the presence of God except the One who came down from that Presence, the Son of Man. 14 In the same way that Moses lifted the serpent in the desert so people could have something to see and then believe, it is necessary for the Son of Man to be lifted up - 15 and everyone who looks up to him, trusting and expectant, will gain a real life, eternal life. 16 "This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. 17 God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. (The Message)

I was watching what I thought was a comedy special by a favorite comedian of mine. At the start of what is known as his "routine," he said something about how something had touched him the last time he had been invited to present something with a famous pastor and how he knew he had to change. This routine was actually a Christian presentation in this comedian's attempt to do more than an hour of comedy without cussing. When you come up against Truth, you change. Or at least you wonder about what in you has to change for the better. Such was the case with Nick, a respected leader of a very religious group who came up against the Truth in Jesus. Nick seeks Jesus out at an hour when he believes he will not be seen and makes his questions to Jesus after declaring that he, Nick, knows that Jesus has come directly from God. Jesus, in this famous exchange reveals several powerful truths about life and especially the Christian life. 1) You must be born anew or "from above." In other words, your attitude takes on new heights when you realize there is a deeper, loftier way to see things, and that is in a God-way. This new birth means your allowing God's Holy Spirit to come into your life and guide you. 2) You gain a better life when you realize that all that God has done and is doing through Jesus Christ has been for your own good. 3) When you realize how much God loves you, you understand that love is neverending; it does not end with your death, quite the opposite the deeper realizations of that love come at the point of our departure from earth. That darkness of night brought to Nick the brightness of the light of God.

Such is the purpose of our daily journey with Christ, especially in a setting such as Lent. We focus on the spiritual, nourishing ourselves in the spiritual, and the blessings are not just spiritual but physical as well. As we prepare our hearts and minds to come to the point of Good Friday, we know how much and how deeply God loves us, so that the passion and pain of Jesus on that cross was to show us that love and pay the price for our sinfulness.

PRAYER: Loving and amazing God, bring the fullness of your light and love to my heart right now. Help me appreciate and understand better that love You have for me. Help my attitude be a heavenly one seeing beyond what the world can show. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

GREAT TO BE ALIVE ON THIS LORD'S DAY!

Our text for today comes from 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 & 6:1-10: 20 We're Christ's representatives. God uses us to persuade men and women to drop their differences and enter into God's work of making things right between them. We're speaking for Christ himself now: Become friends with God; he's already a friend with you. 21 How? you say. In Christ. God put the wrong on him who never did anything wrong, so we could be put right with God. 1 Companions as we are in this work with you, we beg you, please don't squander one bit of this marvelous life God has given us. 2 God reminds us, I heard your call in the nick of time; The day you needed me, I was there to help. 3 Don't put it off; don't frustrate God's work by showing up late, throwing a question mark over everything we're doing. 4 Our work as God's servants gets validated - or not - in the details. People are watching us as we stay at our post, alertly, unswervingly . . . in hard times, tough times, bad times; 5 when we're beaten up, jailed, and mobbed; working hard, working late, working without eating; 6 with pure heart, clear head, steady hand; in gentleness, holiness, and honest love; 7 when we're telling the truth, and when God's showing his power; when we're doing our best setting things right; 8 when we're praised, and when we're blamed; slandered, and honored; true to our word, though distrusted; 9 ignored by the world, but recognized by God; terrifically alive, though rumored to be dead; beaten within an inch of our lives, but refusing to die; 10 immersed in tears, yet always filled with deep joy; living on handouts, yet enriching many; having nothing, having it all. (The Message)

Life is too precious to spend it angry; yet, somewhere, and it's probably close, there is a person awaking for church or choosing to stay away from worship because she or he is angry at the pastor or one of his/her brothers/sisters in church. The decision that person will make about worship today hurts her or him only and if not careful, in an ultimate sort of way. Paul knew plenty of that kind of people and he asks the question, How can we be representatives of the greatest love the world has ever seen when we don't even love each other? How can we be co-workers for good when we're trying our best to do harm to each other? If we are truly "companions" of the Lord's we will seek ways to be loving towards each other and working to reach those who have not yet heard or accepted God's love for them.

How will you spend this day? In worship, joyful to be alive and among God's people or angry that sometime ago, you were not selected or saluted or your style of singing was not chosen, or, or, or, or, or....

PRAYER: Loving God, I am thankful to be alive and to enjoy what always is a blessing to join voices, hands, hearts with my brothers and sisters in Your worship. I pray for those mentioned above and for me when I am just like them. Life is too precious to spend it mad at one another. There's more important work to be done! Help me do it! Forgive me and help me go on; in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name I pray, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

SOAKED IN GOD'S LAUNDRY

Our Lenten Journey continues with a reading and reflection from Psalm 51: 1 Generous in love - God, give grace! Huge in mercy - wipe out my bad record. 2 Scrub away my guilt, soak out my sins in your laundry. 3 I know how bad I've been; my sins are staring me down. 4 You're the One I've violated, and you've seen it all, seen the full extent of my evil. You have all the facts before you; whatever you decide about me is fair. 5 I've been out of step with you for a long time, in the wrong since before I was born. 6 What you're after is truth from the inside out. Enter me, then; conceive a new, true life. 7 Soak me in your laundry and I'll come out clean, scrub me and I'll have a snow-white life. 8 Tune me in to foot-tapping songs, set these once-broken bones to dancing. 9 Don't look too close for blemishes, give me a clean bill of health. 10 God, make a fresh start in me, shape a Genesis week from the chaos of my life. 11 Don't throw me out with the trash, or fail to breathe holiness in me. 12 Bring me back from gray exile, put a fresh wind in my sails! 13 Give me a job teaching rebels your ways so the lost can find their way home. 14 Commute my death sentence, God, my salvation God, and I'll sing anthems to your life-giving ways. 15 Unbutton my lips, dear God; I'll let loose with your praise. 16 Going through the motions doesn't please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. 17 I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don't for a moment escape God's notice. (The Message)

There's nothing worse than spilling something on a nice garment. My ties usually end up with more designer touches than when they left the store. My white dress shirts usually have a record of my noon time meals. Don't laugh, I'm not the only one! Or am I? The modern version of the Psalmist's reflections on God's love and action speak to us during our Lenten journey. The wages of sin is death we are taught in the Bible, and the why of Jesus' dying on the cross is precisely because of our sinfulness. Lent is a time when we can reflect not only on God's great love, but on our wickedness and sinfulness. We are called to humble ourselves before God to confess to God those times we chose for ourselves selfishly and wrongfully. Lent is a time to get right with God.

PRAYER: Loving God, I, like many of my garments, stand before you in need of a good soaking in Your laundry. May the stains and smears of sin be washed away and may my soul be made sparkling clean before You. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

HAVING A FRESH START

Lenten Journey Meditations: Psalm 32

(The Message version)1 Count yourself lucky, how happy you must be - you get a
fresh start, your slate's wiped clean. 2 Count yourself lucky - God holds
nothing against you and you're holding nothing back from him. 3 When I kept it
all inside, my bones turned to powder, my words became daylong groans. 4 The
pressure never let up; all the juices of my life dried up. 5 Then I let it all
out; I said, "I'll make a clean breast of my failures to God." Suddenly the
pressure was gone - my guilt dissolved, my sin disappeared. 6 These things add
up. Every one of us needs to pray; when all hell breaks loose and the dam bursts
we'll be on high ground, untouched. 7 God's my island hideaway, keeps danger far
from the shore, throws garlands of hosannas around my neck. 8 Let me give you
some good advice; I'm looking you in the eye and giving it to you straight: 9
"Don't be ornery like a horse or mule that needs bit and bridle to stay on
track." 10 God-defiers are always in trouble; God-affirmers find themselves
loved every time they turn around. 11 Celebrate God. Sing together - everyone!
All you honest hearts, raise the roof!

The awesomeness of the Lenten Journey is that we can confess our sins and
receive pardon for them. The Psalmist was aware of this and in this modern
translation puts it in language that really should spark our hearts. We always
have that freedom and option to confess our sins and the option of holding and
hiding them within; the results are just as he writes. I'll take freedom any
day! Carrying around the burden of guilt and shame is too much to bear.

PRAYER: Loving God, as I journey today, let it be wiht You and let it be a time
of sharing openly and lovingly about what I have done and how sorry I am for
those things. I hope to be made right with You during this journey of Lent.
Thank you for freedom and forgiveness. In Christ Jesus' precious and powerful
name I pray, amen.

Have a blessed and great day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

STAYING ON COURSE, OF COURSE!

God of our Lenten Journey, strengthen and bless this dear reader as they walk along with You today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Genesis 2:15-17 and 3:1-7: 15 God took the Man and set him down in the Garden of Eden to work the ground and keep it in order. 16 God commanded the Man, "You can eat from any tree in the garden, 17 except from the Tree-of-Knowledge-of-Good-and-Evil. Don't eat from it. The moment you eat from that tree, you're dead." 3:1 The serpent was clever, more clever than any wild animal God had made. He spoke to the Woman: "Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?" 2 The Woman said to the serpent, "Not at all. We can eat from the trees in the garden. 3 It's only about the tree in the middle of the garden that God said, 'Don't eat from it; don't even touch it or you'll die.'" 4 The serpent told the Woman, "You won't die. 5 God knows that the moment you eat from that tree, you'll see what's really going on. You'll be just like God, knowing everything, ranging all the way from good to evil." 6 When the Woman saw that the tree looked like good eating and realized what she would get out of it - she'd know everything! - she took and ate the fruit and then gave some to her husband, and he ate. 7 Immediately the two of them did "see what's really going on" - saw themselves naked! They sewed fig leaves together as makeshift clothes for themselves. (The Message)

The comedian said, "How can you be tempted by an apple? Cover in caramel and then get back to me!" Was it fruit that tempted Eve and Adam? No. It was the invitation to try something that might make them as smart or smarter than God. What tempted them was their freedom to disobey, for that is what scholars call "original sin." What tempts you? Certainly not fruit, right? Our Lenten Journey as a spiritual one will be filled with temptations. Those who have given up chocolates will suddenly see more chocolates and those more gorgeous and tempting than before! Those who have given up sodas will find a thirst for one, and so on. Temptation is an invitation to disobey and stray. It takes many forms and ways and all it takes from us is a simple yes or okay, just this once. God's command to the man and woman was a simple, positive one: "You can eat from any tree in the garden;" the tempter turned it around and asked, "Do I understand that God told you not to eat from any tree in the garden?" It does say that this serpent is more subtle or clever than any wild animal; it did turn things around in just the right way that it tempted the humans into rationalizing their actions.

As temptation comes your way remember why you've chosen not to do the things you know not to do. Sin, after all, is "missing the mark," or getting off-course. God wants us, especially as we prepare for Easter to stay on course and to hit the mark set before us.

PRAYER: Loving God, as I journey on this day, let me stay on-course with Your lead and guidance. As temptation presents itself let me find in You strength to resist and to stay strong. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

ASH WEDNESDAY 2011

Eternal God, grant this dear reader strength for the journey that starts today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today, Ash Wednesday, comes from Matthew 6:1 "Be especially careful when you are trying to be good so that you don't make a performance out of it. It might be good theater, but the God who made you won't be applauding. 2 "When you do something for someone else, don't call attention to yourself. You've seen them in action, I'm sure - 'playactors' I call them - treating prayer meeting and street corner alike as a stage, acting compassionate as long as someone is watching, playing to the crowds. They get applause, true, but that's all they get. 3 When you help someone out, don't think about how it looks. 4 Just do it - quietly and unobtrusively. That is the way your God, who conceived you in love, working behind the scenes, helps you out. 5 "And when you come before God, don't turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God sits in a box seat? 6 "Here's what I want you to do: Find a quiet, secluded place so you won't be tempted to role-play before God. Just be there as simply and honestly as you can manage. The focus will shift from you to God, and you will begin to sense his grace. 16 "When you practice some appetite-denying discipline to better concentrate on God, don't make a production out of it. It might turn you into a small-time celebrity but it won't make you a saint. 17 If you 'go into training' inwardly, act normal outwardly. Shampoo and comb your hair, brush your teeth, wash your face. 18 God doesn't require attention-getting devices. He won't overlook what you are doing; he'll reward you well. A Life of God-Worship 19 "Don't hoard treasure down here where it gets eaten by moths and corroded by rust or - worse! - stolen by burglars. 20 Stockpile treasure in heaven, where it's safe from moth and rust and burglars. 21 It's obvious, isn't it? The place where your treasure is, is the place you will most want to be, and end up being. (The Message)

"Hey, you've got mud on your forehead! Did you know that?" Such was the annual taunt on the schoolground between myself, a Protestant and my friends who were Catholic. I belonged to a church that in those days did not observe Ash Wednesday nor talked about Lent. I did not know that my Catholic friends would get up early and attend mass where their priest had placed ashes on their forehead as a symbol of this day. Being of elementary school age my friends did not have the deeper meaning of what this time of spiritual journeying with God and fasting were all about. "It ain't mud, it just means I can't have candy for the next forty days." What, what? I remember asking and thinking, my gosh, what sort of punishment is that? That same day I found out another friend had given up Cokes, another meat of any kind, one had given up television. I could not grasp why.

Fasting can take place in many ways, and as was mentioned yesterday, it is a way to turn our attention towards the spiritual to grow closer to God and to better understand that which Jesus went through to die for our sins and to be resurrected on Easter Sunday. It would be years later when I was already in ministry that I attended a worship service where the pastor said we would ahve an Ash Wednesday service and instead of ashes, he used oil to anoint our heads in keeping with the above verse (See another version like Revised Standard or New Revised Standard for that interpretation). He did a great job of explaining this journey of forty days of Lent. (Lent, by the way, was the Teutonic word for "spring." In Spanish it is cuaresma from the Latin quadresima, meaning forty or the fortieth day). Many give up something to symbolize their understanding of sacrifice, but as I shared yesterday, if we do not take up something spiritual in its place, we may miss the whole point of this time. By the way the Sundays during this time of Lent do not count as part of the forty days, but as days of normality, some call them "mothering Sundays." This time is a time for deeper and more regular prayer, Bible reading and study, worship participation and the like. May each day serve as a day in which we truly reflect that where God wants and needs us to be sometimes is at least forty days distance from where we find ourselves now.

PRAYER: Blessed God, thank You for this day. As I start this journey of a deeper and closer walk with Thee, may I learn more about Your love and grace. Keep me mindful of that which Your Son, Jesus suffered and did for my sake. May each day of this journey draw me to a better understanding and celebration of Resurrection. I pray this in Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

JESUS, THE SECOND (AND HE GOT IT RIGHT!) ADAM

God of all journeys, journey with this dear reader today and all days; bless and protect them, enrich their lives. In Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Romans 5: 12 You know the story of how Adam landed us in the dilemma we're in - first sin, then death, and no one exempt from either sin or death. 13 That sin disturbed relations with God in everything and everyone, but the extent of the disturbance was not clear until God spelled it out in detail to Moses. So death, this huge abyss separating us from God, dominated the landscape from Adam to Moses. 14 Even those who didn't sin precisely as Adam did by disobeying a specific command of God still had to experience this termination of life, this separation from God. But Adam, who got us into this, also points ahead to the One who will get us out of it. 15 Yet the rescuing gift is not exactly parallel to the death-dealing sin. If one man's sin put crowds of people at the dead-end abyss of separation from God, just think what God's gift poured through one man, Jesus Christ, will do! 16 There's no comparison between that death-dealing sin and this generous, life-giving gift. The verdict on that one sin was the death sentence; the verdict on the many sins that followed was this wonderful life sentence. 17 If death got the upper hand through one man's wrongdoing, can you imagine the breathtaking recovery life makes, sovereign life, in those who grasp with both hands this wildly extravagant life-gift, this grand setting-everything-right, that the one man Jesus Christ provides? 18 Here it is in a nutshell: Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life! 19 One man said no to God and put many people in the wrong; one man said yes to God and put many in the right. (The Message)

Poor Adam. All alone for a time, then God brought in all those animals, birds, fish and expected him to name them all. All the while God is having fun with him, trying to see if Mister Innocent can find in this zoo a perfect mate. Duh, of course not! So, poor Adam goes under for a rib removal and from that rib God fashioned the woman. Now, poor Adam is not all alone. He's got a partner in crime. Did I just say that? Yes, partner in crime. Adam disobeyed God and until Jesus showed up, beared the brunt of life, sin, and death. Paul gives quite the treatise on this theologically, but sets it right when he says that in Jesus, look at verse 18: "Just as one person did it wrong and got us in all this trouble with sin and death, another person did it right and got us out of it. But more than just getting us out of trouble, he got us into life!"

Lent will be a time when we reflect on the right of God through Jesus and the wrong we ourselves have gotten into during this time since last year. Lent is a time when we say to God and to ourselves, "We need You and we need Your love and forgiveness." Though, we can't blame Adam, we have to take responsibility for our own actions. But unlike Adam, we have Jesus to clear away that sin and make us right with God and with ourselves. Our journey through Lent is to take us into life!

PRAYER: Loving God, we ask that as we begin Lent tomorrow I might find in You the grace and peace and forgiveness that I need to face life. I'm thankful that I know how the story ends and that through Jesus we find forgiveness of our sins. Let me be a blessing to You and to others; in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name I pray, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord!

Eradio Valverde

GIVING UP?

God of love and mercy, bless and protect the life and needs of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Matthew 4: 1 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. 2 He fasted forty days and forty nights, and afterwards he was famished. 3 The tempter came and said to him, "If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread." 4 But he answered, "It is written, "One does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.' " 5 Then the devil took him to the holy city and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, 6 saying to him, "If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down; for it is written, "He will command his angels concerning you,' and "On their hands they will bear you up, so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.' " 7 Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, "Do not put the Lord your God to the test.' " 8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor; 9 and he said to him, "All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me." 10 Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! for it is written, "Worship the Lord your God, and serve only him.' " 11 Then the devil left him, and suddenly angels came and waited on him.

When we know something major is coming in our lives we prepare for it. If we know we're having houseguests we clean the house. If we know we need to get our taxes (ugh) ready, we prepare for it. If we are presenting a speech or presentation, we get ready. And it was no different for Jesus. At the start of His public ministry, Our Lord went into the desert to prepare for the three years of ministry that He would share with the world. Matthew in his gospel says that his purpose was to be tempted by the devil; that is more of what happened during Jesus' time of prayer and preparation. Jesus followed an ancient model of fasting, setting aside a physical nourishment to fully be blessed and nourished spiritually. It is our belief that for forty days and forty nights, Jesus did not eat a single thing. At the end of that time of preparation was when the tempter paid Jesus a visit. The tempter hits Jesus in the most vulnerable spots at this point in his life, namely physical hunger. The area where Jesus was is surrounded with rocks that look like the bread of that place and time. "Turn these rocks into bread to prove you are the son of God," came the temptation. The tempter knew the power that Jesus had, but he did not know that Jesus was ready for him and anything. "One does not live by bread alone, but by the very words of God," comes Our Lord's reply for that was precisely what Jesus had done in that time of preparation; setting aside food for the stomach and replacing it with food for His soul. The second temptation was to test His trust of God. "If you are really the Son of God throw yourself down from this high place, for you know the scriptures say that God's angels will protect you." This second temptation is one that comes more frequently to us all, our asking, where is God while I'm facing this? Can I really trust God? Jesus replies,"You shouldn't put God to the test," meaning that faith is not about proving what we believe, but going forward with that belief knowing that God is with us. The third test was that of acceptance, "If you will bow down and worship me, all these kingdoms and splendors will be yours." It's our being asked, what would you do to receive acceptance or power or money? Would you sell out your soul for these things, by renouncing God and accepting in God's place, the devil? Jesus replies again that our worship should be only directed towards God.

This coming Wednesday is Ash Wednesday. Most churches will observe this day with a special worship and will invite people to begin a 40-day journey of spiritual preparation in order to more deeply understand and appreciate Easter and what that day means to the Christian faith. Many will "fast" in some way. Some will not give up entire meals, but will give up something special or meaningful to them, such as chocolate, candy, sodas, meat, television, etc. What is also expected is that instead of those things "given up," one would "take up" a spiritual replacement for them. If you skip a meal, spent the same amount of time reading the Bible or a Christian book so that what was given up physically is met with a spiritual thing. That's true fasting. It's never easy to go through this time of Lent, which is what the 40 days are called, but God is with us and helps us in our journey. Make this time be all about God.

PRAYER: Loving God, as I go through this day, keep me mindful of the things that truly matter for me in my daily and spiritual walk with You. Let me not give in easily to the temptations of this life; keep me on the right path. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

TELL OF GOD'S GLORY!

Loving God of the ages, make today count as a special day in the life of this dear reader; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Psalm 2: 1 Why the big noise, nations? Why the mean plots, peoples? 2 Earth-leaders push for position, Demagogues and delegates meet for summit talks, The God-deniers, the Messiah-defiers: 3 "Let's get free of God! Cast loose from Messiah!" 4 Heaven-throned God breaks out laughing. At first he's amused at their presumption; 5 Then he gets good and angry. Furiously, he shuts them up: 6 "Don't you know there's a King in Zion? A coronation banquet Is spread for him on the holy summit." 7 Let me tell you what God said next. He said, "You're my son, And today is your birthday. 8 What do you want? Name it: Nations as a present? continents as a prize? 9 You can command them all to dance for you, Or throw them out with tomorrow's trash." 10 So, rebel-kings, use your heads; Upstart-judges, learn your lesson: 11 Worship God in adoring embrace, 12 Kiss Messiah! Your very lives are in danger, you know; His anger is about to explode, But if you make a run for God - you won't regret it! (The Message)

The theme this week has been on Jesus' Transfiguration, the event on the mountain that revealed the Glory of God to the disciples and, in turn, to us. This is a prophetic word written hundreds of years before the actual event. David has heard God speak of those points where humanity thinks it is just fine, thank you, without God or God's help. This modern version makes it seem as if it was ripped from today's headlines. The cause or reason may be different, but sometimes the underlying motivation for some is the same; where is God? Is there a God? If there is a God, why does God allow suffering to happen? In case you happen to at times wonder the same thing; God is everywhere, yes, there is a God, and it is not God that causes our suffering or the suffering of others, we do or natural disasters happen, etc. God has revealed Glory, love, justice, and peace through Jesus. Jesus came to call us to run towards God not away from Him. In all things we should acknowledge God and God's work in our lives and we will be blessed and comforted.

Yes, there are times and situations where we seem alone or heartbroken beyond repair, but even in those times God has been with us and is with us even now. Our job is to tell others the same and to work for the good of our brothers and sisters.

PRAYER: Loving God, let my run in life be towards You, not away from You. Be merciful to the ones undergoing events or situations where they are hurting and thinking they are alone. Help me to be one of your messengers of hope and peace. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

HOW LONG WOULD YOU WAIT FOR GOD?

Loving God of all days, bless and protect the needs and life of this dear reader today and all days; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from Exodus 24:12 God said to Moses, "Climb higher up the mountain and wait there for me; I'll give you tablets of stone, the teachings and commandments that I've written to instruct them." 13 So Moses got up, accompanied by Joshua his aide. And Moses climbed up the mountain of God. 14 He told the elders of Israel, "Wait for us here until we return to you. You have Aaron and Hur with you; if there are any problems, go to them." 15 Then Moses climbed the mountain. The Cloud covered the mountain. 16 The Glory of God settled over Mount Sinai. The Cloud covered it for six days. On the seventh day he called out of the Cloud to Moses. 17 In the view of the Israelites below, the Glory of God looked like a raging fire at the top of the mountain. 18 Moses entered the middle of the Cloud and climbed the mountain. Moses was on the mountain forty days and forty nights. (The Message)

How long would you wait for God? You could easily say, "We live in a fast-paced society, we're used to getting what we want instantly? We're the microwave generation - we can make water boil within seconds! We want instant on applicances and entertainments devices! We want people to pick up on the first or second ring! We send and receive emails in nanoseconds. Who can wait for anything, let alone God?" Sadly, when we pray we also not only expect God to do what we tell God to do, but to do it right away. The old poster said, "LORD, I want patience and I want it now!" So, true, so sad. Imagine being Moses, called by God to climb the mountain to wait for God. God had not let Moses down. Moses climbed the mountain as told, and The Cloud covered the mountain for six days. It was on the seventh day that God called to Moses. Could you have waited a week after being called? Then once God's glory was revealed, Moses spent forty days and nights with God.

It's interesting now how the computer world is talking and selling The Cloud as the newest and greatest thing. As Christians we have had The Cloud for thousands of years. It is the reassuring knowledge of the presence of God in our lives. While we may not see it as did the people of God, there are reminders and signs along the way of our lives that God walks with us. And through Christ Jesus we have seen the glory of the Lord. If we worship with open eyes, minds, and spirits every Sunday, Glory will be revealed to us. If we do a loving kindness to someone, we will also see the glory of God. And it will serve to encourage us and strengthen us in our journey with God.

PRAYER: Loving God at times I forget about Your presence near me. At times I pray and feel like my prayers are not answered. At times I act like I don't belong to You. Let me put that back where it belongs and let me live my life in a way tha blesses You and Yours. I pray this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

A FAITH THAT ENDURES

Loving God bless and protect this dear reader in whatever they may need and face today; in Christ Jesus I pray, amen.

Our text for today comes from 2 Peter 1:16 We weren't, you know, just wishing on a star when we laid the facts out before you regarding the powerful return of our Master, Jesus Christ. We were there for the preview! We saw it with our own eyes: 17 Jesus resplendent with light from God the Father as the voice of Majestic Glory spoke: "This is my Son, marked by my love, focus of all my delight." 18 We were there on the holy mountain with him. We heard the voice out of heaven with our very own ears. 19 We couldn't be more sure of what we saw and heard - God's glory, God's voice. The prophetic Word was confirmed to us. You'll do well to keep focusing on it. It's the one light you have in a dark time as you wait for daybreak and the rising of the Morning Star in your hearts. 20 The main thing to keep in mind here is that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of private opinion. 21 And why? Because it's not something concocted in the human heart. Prophecy resulted when the Holy Spirit prompted men and women to speak God's Word. (The Message)

On what do we base our faith? If it's good feelings and a sense that everything is going our way, then that won't last forever. If it's based on logical thought and sound reasoning, again, that won't satisfy us for a long time. We base it on the last part of the question, faith. The author of Hebrews says, " Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." It is our saying to ourselves that we are convinced and assured that regardless of external circumstances, we have a faith in a living God. In this passage Peter is sharing what he saw and heard at the event we studied yesterday, The Transfiguration. Peter received this as a preview of that which was to come. He saw and heard God's glory and God's voice. All that they had been taught and all that they had read and studied from their scripture, fulfilled in Jesus. A realization that scriptural prophecy comes from the moving of God's Holy Spirit in men and women who are called to speak God's Word.

Whatever doubts or trials that may come your way, will pass away. God's Word says you and your faith will endure forever.

PRAYER: Loving God, continue to move among us and use us to shared Your Word with those who have not yet received or believed. I ask for wisdom, courage and the timing to share in a way that blesses others. Lead to the life that is a kingdom life. I ask this in Christ Jesus' precious and powerful name, amen.

Have a great and blessed day in the Lord.

Eradio Valverde

P.S. Prayer Request: Here in Texas many schoolchildren and their teachers are going through the TAKS test for writing and reading. These include grades 4, 7 and 10 for writing and grades 9 for reading. This is a stressful day for all, pray that God's comfort and peace be with them!