Fast

So we fasted and petitioned our God for this, and he listened to our entreaty. Ezra 8: 23 NRSV

I don't do much fasting, yet it is all over the Bible - Old Testament, New Testament even for those of you who have an Apocrypha in the middle of your Bible. Fasting is a part of prayer, grieving, humility, and repentance. Fasting somehow seems to connect to God's ears in ways regular communication may be lacking. So, why don't I fast?

Part of the reason has been when I have tried to fast I just end up in a bad mood: a BAAAD mood. Dr. Jeckyl, Mr. Hyde kind of bad mood. So, I have a tendency to say no to complete fasting. I might give up a certain type of food for a period of time but that is not true fasting.

I have had some success with complete fasting: mainly if I am by myself. Put me in a regular daily schedule, and everyone around had better take cover! The one exception is Sunday mornings. I actually do well on those days. But I do look forward to lunch!

There are a group of us at my church who are praying through Acts and plan on fasting on Pentecost Sunday from dawn to dusk. One of the suggestions is that we don't wait until then - we need to "practice" our fasting. One idea that I have is to stretch out my own Sunday morning fasts until I can cope with a whole day. I also plan on drinking lots of water with a bit of lemon juice throughout that time.

But the biggest keys evident in this scripture seems to me the petition part to God. Fasting is not to be done just for the sake of giving up food. Fasting is part of an entreaty to God. Fasting should be an extension of my prayers, like kneeling or bowing my head. I need to be combining my prayers and my fasting. I think that is the key.

God, if you lead us to fast, help us to remain in constant prayer to you. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Copyright 2010 Amelia G. Sims

Easily Discouraged

Then the people of the land discouraged the people of Judah, and made them afraid to build.... Ezra 4:4 NRSV

We are easily discouraged.

We make plans, start working, and truly have a hope and a prayer.

Then along comes the nay-sayers, the doubtful, the discouraging, the jealous and the down-right mean.

We begin to doubt.

We begin to be discouraged.

We begin to complain, make excuses, abandon our plans and just give up.

It really doesn't take much to put us off course, especially when we have been charged with something that is a challenge to accomplish.

We may even wonder what happened to God from the time we embraced our mission to when we became lost and confused.

God is still there. God still desires us to do God's work.

We are the ones who have let fear be our guide.

In the end, we discover that it is easier to give into fear than fight and stick with the plan given to us by God.

We need God's courage and determination in order to do what God is asking of us.

Give us this courage and determination always, God! We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

The Lord Stirred Him Up

In the first year of the King Cyrus of Persia, in order that the word of the Lord by the mouth of Jeremiah might be accomplished, the Lord stirred up the spirit of King Cyrus of Persia so that he sent a herald throughout all his kingdom, and also in a written edict declared: "Thus says King Cyrus of Persia: the Lord, the God of heaven, has given me all the kingdoms of the earth, and he has charged me to build him a house at Jerusalem in Judah."  Ezra 1: 1-2 NRSV

God stirs up the spirit of the King of Persia to rebuild Jerusalem. God has used an enemy of God's people to carry out the punishment to the unfaithful of Israel. Now God uses another enemy to bring the people back and rebuild the city of Jerusalem. King Cyrus is not a good person nor does he a worship the one true God. In fact, he is probably trying to pacify all the people under him in order to keep the peace. However, this scripture reminds us that God can use anyone, even our enemies, to carry out God's justice and mercy.

Quickly think of one person whom you consider to be your enemy. What would you do or think if that person did something to benefit Christians around the world? Or even if that person did something that helped you and your church? Would you be able to see God's hand in this? Or would you tend to mistrust that person?

I would have a really hard time trusting. I might be able to see God's hand at work but I still would be very wary of placing my confidence in what that enemy had done. Yet, God works through even the most unlikely in order for God's will to be done. I need to remember that always.

God, we trust you but it is all those other people out there who we distrust. Help us to discern when you are working for good in the world even through those whom we consider to be our enemies. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Copyright 2010 Amelia G. Sims