Archives: Watchword

A bit of scripture, short meditations and stories, prayers, news and maybe a touch of humor.

Big, Bigger, Biggest

WATCHWORD:

10 This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. 11 For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. 12 In those days when you pray, I will listen. 13 If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. 14 I will be found by you,” says the Lord.” Jeremiah 29:10-14a

“I love all who love me. Those who search will surely find me.” Proverbs 8:17

“Look! I stand at the door and knock. If you hear my voice and open the door, I will come in, and we will share a meal together as friends.” Revelation 3:20 Continue reading

Brand New

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

WATCHWORD:

4 May he grant your heart’s desires and make all your plans succeed. Psalm 20:4

23 Let the Spirit renew your thoughts and attitudes. 24 Put on your new nature, created to be like God—truly righteous and holy. Ephesians 4:23-24

22 The faithful love of the Lord never ends!  His mercies never cease. 23 Great is his faithfulness;
his mercies begin afresh each morning. 24 I say to myself, “The Lord is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!” Lamentations 3:22-24

6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. Philippians 4:6 Continue reading

Better than Best

New Years Eve

WATCHWORD:

17 Now Jesse said to his son David, “Take this ephah of roasted grain and these ten loaves of bread for your brothers and hurry to their camp. 18 Take along these ten cheeses to the commander of their unit. See how your brothers are and bring back some assurance from them. 19 They are with Saul and all the men of Israel in the Valley of Elah, fighting against the Philistines.” 29 “Now what have I done?” said David. “Can’t I even speak?” 30 He then turned away to someone else and brought up the same matter, and the men answered him as before. 31 What David said was overheard and reported to Saul, and Saul sent for him.32 David said to Saul, “Let no one lose heart on account of this Philistine; your servant will go and fight him.” […]  40 Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in his hand, approached the Philistine. 48 As the Philistine moved closer to attack him, David ran quickly toward the battle line. 49 Reaching into his bag and taking out a stone, he slung it and struck the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank into his forehead, and he fell face-down on the ground, dead. 1 Samuel 17:17-19, 29-32,40,48-49 Continue reading

Mark His Words

WATCHWORD:

1 This is the Good News about Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God It began 2 just as the prophet Isaiah had written:“Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way. 3 He is a voice shouting in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord’s coming! Clear the road for him!’” 4 This messenger was John the Baptist. He was in the wilderness and preached that people should be baptized to show that they had repented of their sins and turned to God to be forgiven. 5 All of Judea, including all the people of Jerusalem, went out to see and hear John. And when they confessed their sins, he baptized them in the Jordan River.6 His clothes were woven from coarse camel hair, and he wore a leather belt around his waist. For food, he ate locusts and wild honey.7 John announced: “Someone is coming soon who is greater than I am—so much greater that I’m not even worthy to stoop down like a slave and untie the straps of his sandals.8 I baptize you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit!”  Mark 1:1-8 Continue reading

Simeon and Our Lord

WATCHWORD:

15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your fellow Israelites. You must listen to him.16  For this is what you asked of the Lord your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the Lord our God nor see this great fire anymore, or we will die.” 17  The Lord said to me: “What they say is good. 18  I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I commanded him. 19  I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name. Deuteronomy 18:15–19

1 Then this message came to me from the Lord: 2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds, the leaders of Israel. Give them this message from the Sovereign Lord: What sorrow awaits you shepherds who feed yourselves instead of your flocks. Shouldn’t shepherds feed their sheep? […]  11 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I myself will search and find my sheep. 12 I will be like a shepherd looking for his scattered flock. I will find my sheep and rescue them from all the places where they were scattered on that dark and cloudy day. 13 I will bring them back home to their own land of Israel from among the peoples and nations. I will feed them on the mountains of Israel and by the rivers and in all the places where people live. 14 Yes, I will give them good pastureland on the high hills of Israel. There they will lie down in pleasant places and feed in the lush pastures of the hills. 15 I myself will tend my sheep and give them a place to lie down in peace, says the Sovereign Lord. 16 I will search for my lost ones who strayed away, and I will bring them safely home again. I will bandage the injured and strengthen the weak. But I will destroy those who are fat and powerful. I will feed them, yes—feed them justice!  Ezekiel 34:1-2, 11-16

14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep. John 10:14-15 Continue reading

Come to Me, All You…

WATCHWORD:

28 Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.” Matthew 11:28-30

5 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 6 “Speak to the people of Israel, When a man or woman commits any of the sins that people commit by breaking faith with the Lord, and that person realizes his guilt, 7 he shall confess his sin that he has committed. And he shall make full restitution for his wrong, adding a fifth to it and giving it to him to whom he did the wrong. 8 But if the man has no next of kin to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for wrong shall go to the Lord.  Numbers 5:5-8 Continue reading

Blessed to Give

Fourth Sunday of Advent

WATCHWORD:

This is my last gift to you, this example of a way of life: a life of hard work, a life of helping the weak, a life that echoes every day those words of Jesus our King, who said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.” Acts 20:35

 

Meditation:

Blessed to Give

It is more blessed to give than to receive.  That’s an expression we’ve all heard, and sometimes we actually practice. Certainly we take great joy in giving gifts especially to people we know personally or people we know have specific needs. But human nature, being what it is, feels like it is more fun to receive. If you don’t believe that, and if you’re near kids at Christmas time and see their excitement as they open gifts, well then, you’ll change your mind. From an early age, kids can tell you how many presents under the tree have their names on them. If they’re very young children, they think they should get to unwrap every gift, and sometimes it’s just plain fun to watch.

That attitude of the child carries over into adolescence where there’s a little voice inside that says ‘am I getting as much as the others. So when Jesus tells us that there is a greater blessing in giving than in receiving, he’s introducing a new behavior in our lives, he’s leading us to be more like his Father – who in his great generosity gave his only son to the world so we would be reconciled to him. If we can learn to be generous, we position ourselves to receive from God a greater blessing than anything we’re capable of giving. It takes faith to believe that, but this invitation to cultivate a heart of generosity always leads down a path of great blessings. Try it, you might like it, and it could become a habit. God bless. Amen.

(Meditation inspired by Allen Jackson in his book Lead with Faith at Christmas)

 

How Do We Repay the Great Gifts We Received?

I recalled with great fondness a group at the close of a powerful weekend, talking about  ‘what’s next?’, what do we do with the graces the Lord has given us?. Then, someone started singing…

I, the Lord of sea and sky
I have heard my people cry
All who dwell in dark and sin
My hand will save

I, who made the stars of night
I will make their darkness bright
Who will bear my light to them?
Whom shall I send?

Here I am, Lord. Is it I, Lord?
I have heard you calling in the night
I will go, Lord, if you lead me
I will hold your people in my heart

Here I am Lord, as You lead me. Amen.

 

Closing Prayer:

Heavenly Father, You have lavished Your Grace on us, promising us all sufficiency. Give us the grace to give cheerfully.Turn our resources of time, talents and finances into encouraging gifts for those You want to help. In Jesus Name, Amen.

 

Jesus, the Church, and You

WATCHWORD:

  18 As Jesus was walking beside the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon called Peter and his brother Andrew. They were casting a net into the lake, for they were fishermen. 19 “Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.” 20 At once they left their nets and followed him. 21 Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, 22 and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him. Matthew 4:18-22 Continue reading

Deep Dark December

Third Sunday of Advent

WATCHWORD:

2 John the Baptist, who was in prison, heard about all the things the Messiah was doing. So he sent his disciples to ask Jesus,3 “Are you the Messiah we’ve been expecting, or should we keep looking for someone else?” 4 Jesus told them, “Go back to John and tell him what you have heard and seen – 5 the blind see, the lame walk, those with leprosy are cured, the deaf hear, the dead are raised to life, and the Good News is being preached to the poor.” 6 And he added, “God blesses those who do not fall away because of me.” 7 As John’s disciples were leaving, Jesus began talking about him to the crowds. “What kind of man did you go into the wilderness to see? Was he a weak reed, swayed by every breath of wind? 8 Or were you expecting to see a man dressed in expensive clothes? No. 9 Were you looking for a prophet? Yes, and he is more than a prophet. 10 John is the man to whom the Scriptures refer when they say,1 ‘Look, I am sending my messenger ahead of you, and he will prepare your way before you.’ Matthew 11:2-10, Malachi 1:1 Continue reading

Wrapped Gifts

WATCHWORD:

13 I have placed my rainbow in the clouds. It is the sign of my covenant with you and with all the earth.  Genesis 9:13

34 So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other.35 Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. John 13:34-35 Continue reading

Being a Friend

WATCHWORD:

Dear friends, let us continue to love one another, for love comes from God. Anyone who loves is a child of God and knows God. John 4:7

Most important of all, continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude of sins. 1 Peter 4:8

There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13

For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. John 3:16 Continue reading

And Along Came John

WATCHWORD:

The Second Sunday of Advent

3 The voice of him that cried out in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a highway for our God. 4 Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain: 5 And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it. Isaiah 40:3-5

3 And he came into all the country about Jordan, preaching the baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; 4 As it is written in the book of the words of Esaias the prophet, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight. 5 Every valley shall be filled, and every mountain and hill shall be brought low; and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough ways shall be made smooth; 6 And all flesh shall see the salvation of God.  Luke 3:3-6 Continue reading