Advent is a time of preparation for the arrival of Jesus.
Why is it only four weeks of preparation?
What do I do with the other 48 weeks of the year?

The days before Christmas
seem more like a preparation
for partying and gift-giving,
with focus on family get-togethers,
special foods and wrapped packages,
crowding out an honest focus on Jesus
and His mission in coming to earth.
How we slide into idolatry,
the ice of the winter season catching us unaware
until we are put on our backs, looking up.
Then we see Jesus.



* * *

He came ~ Emmanuel.
Emmanuel ~ He is with us.
Yet, He is coming still.

God gave us Jesus.
Jesus lived among us.
And, Jesus is coming again.

While some failed to recognize Him
or did not acknowledge Him
as God’s Son
at the first coming,
His second coming will leave no doubt
about His identity
or the purpose of His coming!

(Am I anticipating His return
or
am I living in such a way that ignores its approach?
Do I long for His coming
or
am I satisfied with things as they are?)

Twila
December 2006

--------------------------------


At Christmastime, we celebrate
the arrival of God's Gift to us,
Jesus .

Many who knew of God's promise
of a Redeemer
and anticipated its fulfillment
did not recognize or embrace Him.
King Herod saw his rule threatened and sought to kill Him.
The priests knew Him as an exposer of their hearts,
criticized Him and manipulated to have Him slain.
One joined His disciples, seeking to work his own agenda.

Some chose to follow Him; they became disciples.
Many were hungry for truth; they listened to His teaching.
Some struggled with physical problems;
they wanted His healing touch.

His mother and Joseph embraced Him
and yet their way was fraught with difficulty:
a pregnancy that could not be explained
or understood in human terms,
a journey of days to pay taxes as she was to give birth,
fleeing to another country, living as refugees
and without the support of family and friends,
returning to their hometown,
a village of which it was said:
"Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?",
and raising a family there,
and then the crucifixion death of Jesus.

That same Jesus was resurrected
and has gone to sit on the right hand of His Father,
having paid in full the debt I owed for my sin.
He now awaits God's direction for His second coming,
when He comes to gather those
who have personally accepted God's gift of forgiveness
through Jesus' sacrificed life.

Some are anticipating Jesus' second coming;
they have prepared and are waiting.
Some ignore the mention of it,
choosing to enjoy life as they know it.

BUT, Jesus will return!
God has promised – and He keeps His promises!

Stay focused on Jesus at Christmastime
and throughout the new year!

Twila
December 2006

MARY SAID “yes”
(Luke 1:38)

Saying “yes” to God is releasing God from the expectation
that He will fulfill my desires
and choosing to cooperate with Him
in what He is doing
in my life and in the world around.
It is choosing (or willing) to be an instrument in the hand of God,
so that
He can do that which would most honor and glorify Him.
It is staying focused daily, and minute by minute,
on Him ~
spending time with Him, experiencing Him,
hearing Him, seeing Him,
allowing Him to provide the day's agenda
by breaking through my ideas and into my plans
with things that may be “life disruptive”, disturbing my emotions,
challenging my thinking,
and frustrating my modus operandi.
BUT, He is God
and His ways are often beyond human knowledge and understanding.
Saying “yes” to God is relinquishing the need
to explain God and His ways to others,
growing in my dependency on Him,
and allowing God to work in me and through me
for His purposes.
Saying “yes” to God is confidently embracing the promises of His “I AM-ness”,
His sufficiency in all situations,
His ability to bring from that which is so incredibly difficult
something that will show His strength, power, and love.
Saying “yes” to God
is providing God the opportunity to move into His rightful position,
rendering me a more useful tool in His hand.

Saying “yes” to God did not insure Mary a life without struggle.
Her “yes” brought with it difficulty from the start ~
an aloneness in her experience that is hard to comprehend,
questions and concerns on the part of her betrothed,
a need to travel via foot into the hill country
to find a barren woman now pregnant for support,
a census that put her on the back of a donkey for 97 miles
during the last week of her pregnancy,
delivering the Promised Child without extended family support,
knowing Herod's wrath that dictated death to all Jewish boys under 2 years old
and fleeing with Joseph and the child to Egypt,
seeing Jesus' ministry arouse the hatred of the Jewish leaders,
watching Him crucified as a criminal.

Jesus' “yes” to God led Him to the Mount of Olives and the hill of Golgotha.
(A "yes" to God has an impact on others' lives!)

To ponder:
In what way(s) has saying “yes” to God made life difficult for you?
Can you see how God has used your “yes” to bring about growth in your life
and impacted the lives of those around you?

Twila Charles Leichty
December 21, 2009

Your life experience has perhaps already convinced you of the fact that
A BABY CHANGES EVERYTHING,
the title of a little book I read several weeks ago.

And, at Christmas time we are reminded that there was one baby,
JESUS,
who, indeed, DID change everything!

The Jewish nation was looking for a king when Jesus was born,
someone who would rescue them from Roman rule.
He was recognized and worshiped by the common people
as well as those from afar,
while the priests who awaited the coming of their Messiah
failed to acknowledge Him as the Son of God
because He challenged their traditions and man-made laws.
They sought His death.

Mary, when she responded to the angel's message
that she would, as a virgin, conceive (through the power of the Holy Spirit)
and give birth to the Son of God, believed.
She agreed to co-operate with God's plan.
It did not mean that her life was easy because of that.
She shared with the one to whom she was betrothed (engaged).
He wrestled with it, until an angel of the Lord confirmed what Mary'd told him.
Except for her elderly Aunt Elisabeth who was pregnant with John the Baptist,
and with whom she spent several months,
she did not tell others of the Gift she carried within.
To do so would likely have resulted in her being stoned,
for who would believe a pregnancy could happen except by the will of man?

Joseph and Mary needed to travel from Nazareth to Bethlehem for a Roman census
right before the child was to be born,
a strenuous 3-day trek of 97 miles, made by foot or riding on a donkey.
The baby was born in an unfamiliar place, without extended family for support.
King Herod, when he learned, from the magi,
that the King of the Jews was born, met with the Jewish priests
to determine the location of His birth.
Learning that it was in Bethlehem and feeling his throne threatened,
King Herod determined to see that the child was killed.
So he issued an order that all baby boys, aged 2 years and under, be killed
in and around Bethlehem.
Joseph, warned in a dream of this plan prior to its issuance,
left the area with Mary and the baby during the night and headed to Egypt,
where they lived until King Herod died.
When they did return to the land of Israel, Joseph thought it best
to settle in a district outside Judea, called Galilee, in the town of Nazareth.

As a child of 12, Jesus talked with the priests in the Temple at Jerusalem
and they were amazed at His knowledge of the Scripture.

Jesus' presence here on earth brought change
into Mary's life, Joseph's life, the Jewish and the Roman worlds,
and it has continued to bring change into the lives of those who seek to follow Him.
When Jesus was baptized and started His public ministry.
He did not fit well the picture people had of a king.
He lived simply.
He related to all people, giving no preferential treatment.
He saw the needs of those around Him and compassionately addressed them.
He called people to follow Him, to learn from Him.
He taught in ways that all could understand His teaching.
He provided answers to people's questions,
answers that stretched their understanding of who He was,
His mission in life,
and how that would all come about.

Some people followed Him because of the miracles He did.
They wanted more – for selfish reasons.
Some people followed Him because they were seeking opportunity to kill Him.
His teaching convicted them and their pride kept them from acknowledging their sin,
so they sought a way to get Him out of the picture,
thinking they could then live as they wanted to.
But some people followed Him because they were hungry spiritually
and sensed, within. that He was the Bread of Life,
that He was The Way,
that He was the Light of the World,
that He, and all that He spoke, was Truth.
And it is these people that truly discovered the truth that
Jesus, the baby born in Bethlehem, changes everything!

As you celebrate the birth of Jesus this Christmas,
remember that the story doesn't stop there.
He took our sin on Himself and was crucified in our place,
so that, by believing in faith
that He did all that was necessary for our salvation
and accepting Him as Savior and Lord of our lives,
we can live, gratefully obedient, worshiping and serving Him forever!

That is JOY in the truest sense of the word,
that is the reason we can sing Joy to the World,
not only at Christmas ~ but throughout the entire year!

Twila Charles Leichty
Christmas 2009

MANNA
(Exodus 16)

The children of Israel left Egypt
(and their slave-status)
behind them
when they crossed Red Sea.
A month and a half later
they were grumbling and complaining
to Moses,
the very one that God had used to rescue them
from the life they were so eager to leave.

Satisfaction and gratitude can be so short lived
as we remember and compare
some bits of past goodness
with some of the present hardship
and open our mouths.

God's response was to provide,
from His abundance,
the food that they would need on a daily basis.
Adequate! Enough!

The Israelites did not know
that the flakes on the ground when the dew disappeared
was God's provision.
They inquired, “Manna?”, meaning “what is it?”
How like us: we tend not to recognize God's provision
when it's delivered in a way we hadn't anticipated.

They gathered the manna.
Some who sought to take more than their need,
discovered that God knew best,
for greed brought maggots and stench
that revealed the disobedient.

When Jesus taught His disciples to pray,
“Give us this day our daily bread,”
He was telling us to ask for what we need
and trust the Father's heart
to give us, from His supply,
not more, not less,
but what is deemed sufficient
and in the manner of His choosing!

Grumbling and complaining
is but revelation of the selfishness within our hearts,
and it stinks in the nostrils of the Heavenly Father.

Twila Charles Leichty
September 2009

DANDELIONS...
are such delightful flowers
with much to teach us.
Their seeds are wind-driven and where they land is “home,”
regardless of the welcome.
They put their root down deep and they stand erect,
their sunny faces always intent on reflecting the color of the sun.
They are resistant to efforts to discourage their growth.
Each dandelion plant produces an abundance of downy seeds
ready for “planting” when released to the wind.

Happy birthday and enjoy the new year attached to it!

Twila Charles Leichty
July 2009
---------------------------

I have no need to check the weather forecast
so that I can plan how to dress for the day
when I'm with you.
I know that, whatever the weather, it will be okay.
If the sun is shining, we'll soak up the warmth
and rest in the shade.
If it's raining, we'll splash through the puddles
and laugh.
If it's snowing, we'll shovel the walks together,
build a snow man,
and marvel at God ongoing creative work.
We'll do with what the weather does
and be happy.
I can count on you, no matter what the weather.
And that feels so good, my friend!

It's your birthday,
another time when I can remind you
that you are one of God's special gifts to me.
I'm so very happy that He introduced us,
allowed us the time on this earth together
and provides us the bridges we need
to stay connected now!

Know you are loved!

Twila Charles Leichty
May 2009

-------------

An anniversary is something to celebrate!

When Jesus came to earth so many years ago,
He showed mankind that He was not afraid
to get dirty.
He walked the same dusty roads
that others traveled.
He related to the same kind of people
that we encounter everyday.
He had desires that were not met
because His deeper desire
was to honor and glorify the Father.

We sometimes tire of life’s responsibilities
and long for changes
that would make us more comfortable,
emotionally, relationally, physically,
and yet God, in His wisdom,
has not given us what we want.
Instead, He has promised to walk with us
through the everyday difficult.
He has promised us His strength
as we lean on Him and desire that
God get the glory.

As you continue to walk through life together,
I pray that you will continue to focus
on the fact that you do not walk alone,
individually or as a couple.
Seek always to do what is God-honoring.
Live with grace and compassion.

Twila
December 28, 2007

Today is Mother's Day.
It is a day of honoring those who have given us life.

Sometimes those who have given birth to us
are also those who have nurtured us,
encouraging our growth and ongoing development,
both physical and spiritual.
They have been women who have viewed parenthood as a calling,
a ministry that they embraced.
They took their responsibility seriously,
and giving physical birth was only the start
of a lifelong nurturing relationship.
For them we are grateful.

Sometimes those who have given us physical birth
have given us all that it was within their power to give us.
While we may have been unplanned in their lives,
we were in God's heart from the beginning of time
and He was present at the time of our conception,
knowing how He would continue
to provide nurturing and support throughout our lives.
Those were things we could not see.
We may have felt alone, abandoned, unwanted and unloved.
Yet God saw those He had called and ordained to minister to us,
“mothering us” with His love in our life journeys,
whether we were accepting or rejecting of it at the time.

Regardless of our experiences with our mother
(or mothers ~ be they birth, foster, or adoptive).
God has assured us that His watchful eye sees all.
“Though (even if) my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will receive me.
Teach me your way, O Lord;
lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors,
(whether they be people, circumstances, or feelings.)”
(parentheses my added thoughts)
Psalm 27:10
What He has provided or is in the process of providing
we are to thank Him for.
“give thanks in all circumstances...”
I Thessalonians 5:18
We can trust that what He says is so,
even when we feel as we do
and our eyesight has not yet seen His answer.
“Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness?
Not at all! Let God be true, and every man a liar.”
Romans 3:3

* * * * *

Sometimes Mother's Day is a day of joy,
a day of recalling the fulfillment of a desire to give birth to a child
and the enjoyment of watching that child grow through the years.

Sometimes it is a day of sadness amidst the celebration of motherhood,
as feelings of longing and unfulfilled desire boil to the surface.
Perhaps our parenting of a child has been delayed,
seems totally beyond our power to bring about,
has been cut short,
or has not produced the fruit we prayed for and so much longed to see.

While there may be clothing designated as “one size fits all”,
“Mother's Day” is not a garment that all women wear comfortably.
Emotions color Mother's Day so differently for each of us.

So, whether you presently identify with Eve, Sarah or Elisabeth,
Rebekah, Leah or Rachel,
Mordecai's wife,
the woman seeking Solomon's judgment
on who was the rightful mother of the infant,
Mary,
Lois or Eunice,
know that you are not alone.
We are one of many throughout history.
Experiences in mothering are as varied as there are mothers.
We have all been daughters of a mother.
We have all learned from our mother ~
about parenting, life, and relationships.
Some things we treasure and seek to build upon.
Some things we acknowledge as painfu
in relationship with our mothers
but know we need to forgive,
recognizing that mothers are human and make mistakes,
or they may have been motivated by their own pain
to make unwise choices.
Yes, we have had – or will have – the need to ask forgiveness
from those we parent as well.

This is Mother's Day.
Whether you have mothered or are mothering a child biologically yours,
your child by adoption,
a child of your child's, a grandchild,
the child of an extended family member,
or a foster child,
this day is a day of acknowledging
that you are contributing to the life of the next generation
through a 24/7 ministry of love.
And it is a day that we all acknowledge our mother's role in our making!

Twila Charles Leichty
May 10, 2009

ISAIAH

Chapter 9
Hope on the horizon

The choices of God's people brought darkness and distress upon them.
But God reveals that there would be something to look forward to.
Into that great darkness and hopelessness,
there would be a dawning of a great light.
Bondages would be broken, oppression would end.
A child would be born from among them
who would govern with justice and righteousness.
His kingdom would have no end.
This would be accomplished by the Lord Almighty.

From the leaders of the people to those they led,
all had succumbed to pride and the arrogance of the heart.
None were innocent.
They did not stop to reconsider their ways;
they did not choose to return to the God they had abandoned.
Despite the devastation, they determined to rebuild.
They had great ideas.
While God had instructed that altars be erected with uncut rocks,
the people decided to use dressed stone in the process of rebuilding,
and they opted to plant cedars to replace the fig trees ~ upgrading, as it were.

So God continued to allow their enemies access.

Wickedness is as fire, consuming all that is around.
It is not selective in its choice of fuel; it uses what is available.
It continued to destroy, both land and relationships.

Twila Charles Leichty
April 2, 2009


* * * * * * * * * *

ISAIAH

Chapter 10

Those who have made unjust laws and issued oppressive decrees
to acquire wealth and power of their own
will be no better than those they have taken advantage of
on the day of reckoning.

The power that God allowed access to His people,
to humble them,
had a growing ambition,
that of seizing Jerusalem as it did the surrounding land.
The very sin that was offensive in His people,
a proud and independent spirit,
focused on its own power and sufficiency,
is addressed by God with the foe:
“Does the ax raise itself above him who swings it,
or the saw boast against him who uses it?”
(verse 10:13a)
Strength was taken from the enemy's hand.
It's victory is time-limited.
It will know the sting of defeat, destruction is in store,
for it's pride, self-reliance, is a stench in God's nostril.
It will not be allowed to continue.

God welcomes back a remnant people,
those who have seen and acknowledged their waywardness,
and reassures them His anger against them will not last forever.
He will come to the side of His people and act in their behalf.
Those who do not honor and worship God will be brought down.

Twila Charles Leichty
April 2, 2009

* *
ISAIAH

Chapter 2

There is a day when God will take His rightful place,
when God will be acknowledged as God alone.
It will be a time when what God says is heard;
His judgments will be considered just.
Differences and difficulties between people and nations will dissolve;
there will be no more war.
All will live in the light of God – in His ways and at peace!

Right now it may seem as though God has walked out on His people,
but look closer.
His people have forsaken Him.
They've followed after the gods of their neighbors.
They've fashioned their own gods.
Their time is spent on what they determine to have value;
they have established their own priorities and ignored His law.
(I wouldn't blame God, were He to walk out on His people.
They are so disloyal, acting in open defiance, being rebellious.
They have forsaken their commitment to Him!)

God will not put up with this forever.
There is coming a day when man will acknowledge that he is man
and that God is God.
God will show Himself greater than man's greatness
by bringing down all that man has worshiped.
Man will run and want to hide.
Man will see the worthlessness of all that He has valued.
God will show Himself strong.
Yes! He will assert Himself and take His rightful place.

Twila Charles Leichty
March 10, 2009

* * * * *

ISAIAH

Chapter 5

God prepared a vineyard.
The soil was cleared of stones and cultivated.
It was planted with the choicest vines.
A watchtower was erected and a winepress was hewn out of stone.
He anticipated a crop of good grapes,
but, alas! he was “rewarded” with bad fruit.
He had done all He could have done.

So, He tore down the hedge that kept out those
who take without the right to do so.
The garden became a wasteland.
The vines were not pruned; briers and thorns took over.
And there was a drought.

What He wanted and what He got were two different things:
instead of justice, there was war,
instead of righteousness, the distress of evil.

The accumulation of material wealth,
the indulgence of self and disregard for the needs of others,
leads to ruin.
His people, forgetting the One who had created them
and provided them with instructions on living
(that would yield good fruit),
chose to find a way of their own.

Their waywardness was destined to take them into exile.
By choosing not to follow Jehovah,
they were choosing to follow the god of their own making,
one that would lead them further and further away from the blessings
He wanted to bestow upon them.
They were choosing their thinking and logic,
their preferences and feelings as guides in behavior.
Their judgments were producing the odor of decay
and the stench reached God's nostrils!

The judgment of God was visited on His people.
Their self-indulgence, disobedient and rebellious ways,
tore down the walls of God's protection
and provided their enemies easy access.
Their ways led them into captivity.
The light that God had given was but dimly seen;
They were captives by their own choosing.

Twila Charles Leichty
3-25-09

* * * * * *

ISAIAH

Chapter 6
Commissioned by God


When he saw the fullness of God
His righteousness, His glory,
Isaiah was overwhelmed with his own sinfulness.
And he saw himself among a nation
of those who had closed their eyes to seeing God's truth,
their ears from understanding.
Their hearts were calloused
because their wills had not been trained to obey.
He recognized his uncleanness and his acknowledgment of it
released the atoning work of God.
God was seeking a prophet.
He sought a man who, rightly, knew himself,
who acknowledged and worshiped The Holy One of Israel,
and was willing to be used by God
in the delivery of His message to His people.
His response: “Here am I. Send me!”
showed the willingness of a grateful heart,
for he had experienced God's mercy.

The message was not an easy one:
He was to tell them there was a difference
between hearing and understanding,
between seeing and perceiving.
It was a heart condition that could have been corrected,
had they submitted their hearts and wills to Him.
Time had run out; the sentence had been decided.
And Isaiah was to continue speaking this message
until the cities, houses, and fields were ruined and ravished
and the people taken captive to another land.
But, just as mighty trees leave stumps when they are cut down,
they would not be totally uprooted and die.
A small number of His people would remain as “seed.”

Twila Charles Leichty
3-26-09

DISABILITIES revisited

Blind ~ an inability to see what is.
We are all blind until we see the truth.

Lame ~ an inability to walk without a limp.
We are all lame until we walk in love.

Deaf ~ an inability to hear what others say.
We are all deaf until we hear God's voice.

Mute ~ an inability to speak words clearly.
We are all mute until we experience a loosing of the tongue
to speak helpful and encouraging words to others.

Twila Charles Leichty
April 1, 2009

~ SCARS ~
The result of His atoning work

“He was pierced for our transgressions,
He was crushed for our iniquities;
the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him,
and by His wounds we are healed.”
Isaiah 53: 5

Jesus took the punishment we deserved
for our willful disobedience.

His body was badly bruised;
His flesh was cut and torn from the scourging.
Wounds were inflicted by the spear in His side
and the nails in His hands and feet.

Scars are evidence that wounding has occurred, that one has been hurt.
They bear a message.

When Thomas saw the scars, he was able to believe;
He knew and acknowledged that the One before him was indeed Jesus.
“My Lord and my God!”
(John 20:28)
Scars convinced when words were cast aside.

God provides what He knows we need.
(What we stubbornly insist on may be something different.)

To ponder:
Have you “seen” Jesus' scars?
How did He “show” them to you?
Has that made a difference in your life...your mission?

Has another ever “worn” scars you've inflicted?
What have you thought and felt? How has that impacted your life?

Twila Charles Leichty
April 1, 2009

ISAIAH

Chapter 7

God does not want His people to align themselves with those about them.
He knew their tendency to absorb the values, thinking and behaviors of others.
They wandered so quickly from His way.
Yet the king, because of fear, was seeking coalition with others.
Isaiah, God's messenger, reassured the king that within a relatively short time
the powers he feared would be powerless.
He was to stand firm in his faith ~ or he would not stand at all.
Whether the king refused to acknowledge Isaiah as God's messenger
or if he was simply stubborn and wanted to do as he wanted to do (or both),
he would find that God had revealed truth in the years to follow.
God would work through the Assyrians to humble His people.
Their land would be plundered.
Yet, despite this, there would be those who were faithful to their God,
and these would know His provision amidst the devastation.

Twila Charles Leichty
April 1, 2009




ISAIAH

Chapter 8

As God released His enemies to reveal the truth of His word,
God encouraged Isaiah to stand firm,
not to go with the people's thinking and course of action.
He was to continue to stand strong in his faith,
to continue to follow, without fear.
His trust in God Almighty would be rewarded.
He would be protected, sheltered from ruin.
He and his family would dwell securely in Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, as those things God said would be, were happening,
the people who had followed their king would find themselves starving,
would lash out against their ruler (and God),
and consult other sources they credited as knowledgeable,
but the light of truth was no longer available to them.

Twila Charles Leichty
April 1, 2009

PILATE and BARABBAS

While the Chief High Priest (and the Sanhedrin)
was charging Jesus with blasphemy,
they sought to enlist the help of the Roman governor, Pilate,
in seeking a death penalty
by saying that Jesus was the self-proclaimed King of the Jews.
Perhaps this would cause Pilate to see Him as a threat to his own position.

Because Jesus made no defense when questioned,
Roman law dictated that Pilate would have to pronounce against Him.

Tradition was that on special occasions a prisoner would be released.
This was the time of Passover,
and the crowd that gathered asked Pilate if he was going to do
as his custom was.
Seeing this as an opportunity to release Jesus,
Pilate asked whether they wanted to request Jesus' release.
He knew that it was “out of envy
that the chief priests has handed Jesus over to him.”
(NIV Mark 15:10)

But the chief priests prevailed upon the crowd,
and they requested the release of Barabbas,
convicted of involvement in an insurrection likely against the Roman rule.

The crowd, in reply to Pilate's question of what he should do with Jesus,
unanimously cried “Crucify Him!”
Pilate's question: “”Why? What crime has He committed?”
went unanswered, except for another chorus of “Crucify Him!”

The death sentence procured, Jesus was handed over to be crucified
and Barabbas was released.

The meaning of Barabbas is “Abba's son”.

To ponder:
The Roman governor provided a way for Jesus' release,
but the chief priests prevailed upon the crowd
for Barabbas' release and Jesus' crucifixion.
Thus, Jesus was sentenced to die by His own people
and the Roman governor handed Him over to be crucified.
We are all, Jew and Gentile alike, guilty of Jesus' death on the cross.
The one and only Abba's Son, Jesus, died
so that we could be released from the penalty of our sin;
God provided us with the opportunity to become
“Abba's sons and daughters.”

I wonder if Barabbas recognized and acknowledged his rightful death penalty.
I wonder if he sought to know the One Who died in his place.
And I wonder how he lived the rest of his life.

Twila Charles Leichty, L29

ISAIAH

Chapter 3

God is “emptying” His city, the country in which His people are living,
of the basic necessities and all that they have depended on.
Children, those without knowledge and wisdom, will be in charge.
Confusion and chaos will at the controls.
This is what the people have “earned” through their rebelliousness.
Their defiance, their refusal to acknowledge me,
their choice to be self-directing and meet their needs in ways
that were in opposition to God's directives
has brought them into court.
God is judge and judges first those in positions of authority.
Their lack of God-directed leadership
has allowed His people to wander further and further from Him and His ways.
His people are as prostitutes,
attiring themselves with the things the world has offered as desirable,
seeking to draw others into relationship
devoid of any true value and with only transitory commitment.
Consequences will be visited upon her.

But, those who have sought to worship God and follow His ways
He reassures of His ongoing blessing.


* * * *

ISAIAH

Chapter 4

War will claim many men.
Women will seek to identify themselves through relationship,
while still remaining independent.
God's people, those who have survived, will be cleansed.
God will make His presence known among them,
be their light in the darkness,
shelter them from the heat of the day,
and be their refuge in the storms.

Twila Charles Leichty
03-25-09

* * * * *

ISAIAH

Chapter 5

God prepared a vineyard.
The soil was cleared of stones and cultivated.
It was planted with the choicest vines.
A watchtower was erected and a winepress was hewn out of stone.
He anticipated a crop of good grapes,
but, alas! he was “rewarded” with bad fruit.
He had done all He could have done.

So, He tore down the hedge that kept out those who take without the right to do so.
The garden became a wasteland.
The vines were not pruned; briers and thorns took over.
And there was a drought.

What He wanted and what He got were two different things:
instead of justice, there was war,
instead of righteousness, the distress of evil.

The accumulation of material wealth,
the indulgence of self and disregard for the needs of others,
leads to ruin.
His people, forgetting the One who had created them
and provided them with instructions on living
(that would yield good fruit),
chose to find a way of their own.

Their waywardness was destined to take them into exile.
By choosing not to follow Jehovah,
they were choosing to follow the god of their own making,
one that would lead them further and further away from the blessings
He wanted to bestow upon them.
They were choosing their thinking and logic,
their preferences and feelings as guides in behavior.
Their judgments were producing the odor of decay
and the stench reached God's nostrils!

The judgment of God was visited on His people.
Their self-indulgence, disobedient and rebellious ways,
tore down the walls of God's protection
and provided their enemies easy access.
Their ways led them into captivity.
The light that God had given was but dimly seen;
They were captives by their own choosing.

Twila Charles Leichty
3-25-09

PRESENT IN THE PRESENT

Jesus was present in the present,
whether He was healing a blind beggar,
speaking truth to a rich young ruler,
cleansing the temple,
revealing heart motives to the Pharisees,
answering questions designed to trap Him,
watching those who were depositing their gifts in the treasury,
defending the act of a grateful heart,
eating a meal with his disciples,
knowing His betrayer was there
and had already struck an agreement with the priests,
listening to Peter's declaration of faithfulness,
struggling to align His will with the Father's in the Garden
while His disciples slept,
standing before the Sanhedrin,
hearing the cries of “Crucify Him!” and “We want Barabbas”,
or enduring the weight of our sin and the shame of the cross
until He breathed His last.

Being present in the present was a gift to those about Him.
He involved in the present,
letting go of what had been without regret
and
without dread of what was yet to be.

He had the simple trust of a child in His Father,
a confidence that God Almighty is the great “I AM,”
sufficient in strength to meet all of His needs,
aware of, and unintimidated by, all that was, is, and will be,
and capable of bringing it all together
in a way that will bring Him honor and glory
when the whole story is known.

To ponder:
Because living in the present is such a gift to those around us,
we should learn the “how to” of doing it.
It is choosing not to focus on what was or yet may be;
it is not wishing to be elsewhere or in a different time frame.
To live fully in the present, one must embrace what is.
By issuing a directive to ourselves that
God is Who He says that He is,
and reminding ourselves of His past faithfulness,
we can live with confidence in the present.

Twila Charles Leichty - L30

ISAIAH

Chapter 1

God's children, those He created and chose to be His children,
those He taught and nurtured, watched over and protected,
have turned their back on Him and His ways.
Even animals express a greater loyalty to the one who has cared for them.
They know where home is.
But God's children gave no thought to the One who has had their good
as the focal point of His watchful care over them,
His instruction to them.
They had done their own thing
and, by so doing, had encouraged others to do so as well,
building a kingdom of self-focused interests
and amassing a burden of tremendous guilt.
They had been punished, but their waywardness persisted.
Their lives were a wreck.
They had cast aside all that they were taught,
had abandoned everything of value.
They were on their way to total destruction.
Yet they continued with the practice of making sacrifices.
It was what they were used to doing.
But their words and actions in worship were empty,
contradicting their everyday behaviors.
It was without purpose or meaning; it was tradition.
It failed to bring with it an acknowledgement of their wrong-doing,
repentance and a commitment to follow God's law,
His instructions that would give life.
God was tired of what He saw and heard.

Yet He continued to reach out and plead with His children.
He presented another invitation for them to repent.
Willing obedience to His ways could yet change their course.
Their refusal and on-going rebellion would, however, seal their fate.
God was through with protecting them from the consequences of their waywardness.

Still God knew that there were those of His children,
though few in number,
who were sincere in their worship.
He is a righteous God and the released consequences
would separate those who were truly penitent, repentant,
and willing to commit to obedience
from those whose hearts were hardened through their rebelliousness.
And they would be known as His faithful children,
restored to their rightful position with Him.

Twila Charles Leichty
March 7, 2009

THE TRUTH

Standing before the Sanhedrin,
Jesus knew the Jewish supreme court was convened for one purpose,
to find cause to put Him to death.
They sought testimony from witnesses
and found that their testimonies did not agree.
(Jewish law held that if the testimony of witnesses did not agree, the charges were invalid.
...”but one witness is not sufficient testimony against a person for the death penalty.” Numbers 35:30b)
Jesus was silent. He had no cause to speak.
He was listening and waiting for His Father's direction.
And that time came, when the High Priest asked:
“Are you the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One?”
“I am,” replied Jesus.
“And you will see the Son of Man
sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One
and coming on the clouds of heaven.”
(Mark 14:62)
Jesus spoke truth and, thus, supplied the testimony they sought,
that which they would use to think Him deserving of death.
Blasphemy was the charge.
They had already determined in their hearts
that He was not the Messiah
so Jesus' claim that He was, indeed, the Messiah
provided them with “proof” of blasphemy.

Yes, Jesus spoke truth.
But ruth did not bring His release.
It “incriminated” Him before the Sanhedrin
and he was judged deserving of death.
Jesus knew the high priests, elders, and teachers of the law
did not acknowledge His identity as the Son of God
though angels had proclaimed it,
and others accepted it.
Jesus knew they were seeing what they wanted to see,
but He told them that they would someday see
and know the truth of who He is -
when He comes to claim those who are His!

To ponder:
When truth goes against what others choose to believe,
it can sometimes lead to “death encounters.”
The truth that Jesus spoke earned Him a sentence of death,
but it would give us the opportunity to embrace
the release from our sin-bought captivity
that His death provided.

Twila Charles Leichty – L27

-------------------------------------------


The chief priests also, mocking among themselves with the scribes, said,
“He saved others; Himself He cannot save.”
Mark 15:31

Jesus was on a search and rescue mission during His ministry on earth.
He wanted to save as many people as He could from the destructive force of sin.
He did what He could.
He touched those with leprosy, those shoved out of the larger community,
confined to live only among others with their same condition and healed them,
allowing them to return and live among family and friends once more.
He brought sight to blinded eyes,
and people saw what had previously been unknown to them.
He opened the ears of the deaf
so that they could discern the truth that he taught.
He made the lame to walk again and breathed into the dead the breath of life.

He did not come to save Himself.
He came to save any and all who recognized their need for a Savior.

He walked and talked with people, making Himself accessible to mankind.
He was God's Word, incarnate, Truth.
He challenged the thinking and practices of man,
showing the limits of human reasoning and revealing heart motives.
He answered questions, both those that were verbalized
and those that had not yet found words.
Those who sincerely wanted to be found and rescued,
who recognized that He could do for them
what they could not do for themselves,
accessed His saving power!

To ponder:
Sometimes God doesn't do something we think He should do.
Concluding that God cannot do something because He does not do it
is but evidence that we don't see or know the whole story!

Twila Charles Leichty - L28

ORPHAN ~ BELOVED CHILD

A child whose parent dies is an orphan,
but there are children
whose parents have relinquished the parental roles
of protecting and nurturing
those entrusted to their care
in order to address a personally-assigned agenda.
To be "orphaned" while a parent is still present
in the child's world
brings with it a conflict not easily resolved.

Children tend to determine their value and worth
by the way others relate to them,
the input of those who have given them life.
Their hearts are loyal.
Experiences are interpreted
in ways that "make sense" to their limited worldview.

Being helpless in the world
where power resides with those who are bigger and stronger
provides no hope.
Some give up, becoming victims.
Others seek explanations that allow them to continue on
in their fight to survive.
One may conclude that if he tries harder,
he may win the parent back into the God-appointed role.
Another may conclude that she is defective
and seek to "hide" what she deems unacceptable to the parent.
Still others may retaliate and angrily challenge
any and all present in their world to a duel,
trying to feel some sense of control
or to redistribute their pain
in an effort to make it more manageable.
And the list goes on…

But the Bible provides a different hope in Psalm 27:10:
”Though my father and mother forsake me,
the Lord will receive me.”
It speaks of receptive arms outstretched,
a heart that extends a warm welcome
to a child, of any age, left to weather the storms of life
without the protective and nurturing presence of an earthly parent
who's absconded from his role to pursue a different goal.

God will not force His way into any child's world.
He waits, inviting the abandoned ones into His embrace,
eager to hear a response like that in Psalm 27:11a:
“Teach me your way, O Lord…”
He is a teacher, and there is much to learn.
Moving from one family system to another
means learning new ways of relating.
It is risking to trust, accepting a new identity,
letting go of self-protective behaviors.
It seems a daunting task,
the move from orphan to a beloved child!

Twila Jean Charles
February 26, 2008

JOSEPH of Arimethea
risked to approach Pilate for Jesus' body
the afternoon of His crucifixion.
Pilate was surprised that Jesus had already died
and asked for confirmation.
The centurion that had witnessed Jesus' final breath
acknowledged that Jesus had indeed died,
and Pilate consented to Joseph's request.
Joseph bought linen in which to wrap Jesus' body,
took the body from the cross, wound the linen cloth tightly around it,
then placed it in a tomb cut out of rock.
He rolled a stone against the entrance of the tomb.
It was a way of showing his love.

The Sabbath had begun and Jesus' followers rested
(as Jesus was now doing).
When the Sabbath was over, Mary Magdalene,
Mary the mother of James, and Salome, bought spices
so that they might go to the tomb as the sun was rising
to anoint Jesus' body.
They wondered who would move the large stone
that covered the entrance
but discovered that it was already rolled aside
and the body of their Jesus was not there.
Their bodies were immobilized, their minds running rapidly,
searching for explanation.
Then they saw an angel and heard him
addressing their concerns, answering their unspoken questions:
he sought to quiet their fears,
he acknowledged Who they were looking for (their crucified Lord),
confirmed His earlier presence and present absence
(He was risen!),
and told them to “go, tell His disciples and Peter”
that He was going ahead of them and would meet them in Galilee
(as He had promised).
Their bodies now trembling and their minds bewildered,
they left the scene, saying nothing to anyone,
until Mary Magdalene located the mourning disciples
and delivered the message of His resurrection.
They did not believe what she told them.
Even when Jesus appeared to two of them personally
as they were walking in the countryside
and they believed,
the other disciples did not.
Then, Jesus appeared to all eleven of them as they were eating,
rebuked them for their lack of faith and stubborn refusal to believe
those who had seen Him after His resurrection.

To ponder:
Who in this account do you most closely identify with?
When we, who have known and loved Jesus,
live in ways that deny or cast doubt on His presence and power,
what is it that Jesus would say to us?

Twila Charles Leichty

PEOPLE-PLEASING PILATE
and the
PRINCE OF PEACE

Pilate was a governor commissioned by Rome,
and his primary responsibilities were to maintain peace
and collect taxes in Judea.
Pilate was amazed during Jesus' trial
that Jesus made no answer when wrongly accused.
(If Jesus made no defense, Roman law demanded that Pilate pronounce against Him.)
note under Mk. 15:4 in Archaeological Study Bible
When asked by the crowd to do for them according to his tradition,
of releasing a prisoner of their choosing,
Pilate thought they may be asking for release of Jesus,
since he knew that it was for reason of envy
that the chief priests handed Jesus over to him.
But the crowd responded to the stirring of the chief priests
and sought Barabbas' release.
Then, in an effort to satisfy the crowd, the verdict was delivered.
Pilate released Barabbas. Jesus was flogged and handed over to be crucified.

To Ponder:
Jesus, the Prince of Peace, does not seek to please man,
but seeks to reconcile man to God.
When man is reconciled to God, there is a peace within.
That is the kind of peace that Jesus knew
throughout these dark days.
It has an anchoring, stabilizing influence.

Twila Charles Leichty L-24

THE CRUCIFIXION

Jesus was hanging on the cross.
Those who were passing by shook their heads and hurled insults at Him.
The chief priests and teachers of the law mocked Him among themselves.
“He saved others, but He can't save Himself!
Let this Christ, this King of Israel, come down now from the cross,
that we may see and believe.”
Those crucified with Him also heaped insults on Him.

What people saw was reason for the derision.
It was what they did not see, however, that held the truth
they so much needed to see:
He could have come down from the cross;
He could have saved Himself.
The nails weren't holding Him to that cross.
It was not He that needed the saving.
He chose to stay on the cross.
People were seeing what they believed.
The chief priests had seen much in Jesus' years of ministry
and still had chosen not to believe.

To ponder:
Our responses reflect more on what we believe than what truth is.
Are my beliefs in line with truth?
What is it that I am seeing?
Am I open to seeing truth,
when it does not agree with what I've always believed?

Twila Charles Leichty

-------------------------------------------

JESUS
crucified, dead and buried (asleep), resurrected

On Thursday night, Jesus prepared Himself to be the sacrificial Lamb,
when He went to Gethsemane,
honestly wrestling with His will and the Father's will,
then choosing submission, out of love and obedience,
to taking the sin of the world upon Himself
and allowing His life's blood to cover the door posts of our hearts,
a sign that we are His.
He “paid-in-full” the debt we had incurred by our sin.

When that payment was made,
the curtain of the temple was torn in two by God Himself,
from top to bottom.
Jesus Christ became our High Priest,
taking His blood directly into the Holy Sanctuary in heaven
and placing it on the mercy seat.

Yes! Jesus was mortal, subject to all that man is.
God breathed life into Him just as God breathed life into each one of us.
And, the Bible says that “with a loud cry, Jesus breathed His last.”
Mark 15: 37
And then He slept. His earthly work was done.
Yes, He rested on the Sabbath, keeping the command of God,
just as man was instructed to do.
And, God restored life to Him.
Jesus was resurrected after the Sabbath, to continue His work,
showing Himself to those who believed in Him,
and to whom He would give the great commission:
...“Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.”
Mark 16:15

Twila Charles Leichty

Read MARK 14: 43-72 and 15:1-15

Jesus knew the people in His life space:
He knew His disciples – their hearts,
their intentions, their weariness, their fear and self-protective behaviors,
and yet He loved them;
He knew Judas – the one who had traveled with Him and His other disciples,
whose interest in following Jesus had shifted
because of his own selfish interests,
and yet He loved him;
He knew the chief priests, teachers of the law, and elders –
those whose righteous toes He stepped on
as He traveled the circuit in ministry,
those who were jealous of Jesus' following and seeking His death,
and yet He loved them;
He knew the crowd that would be stirred and urged to chant “Crucify Him!” -
and yet He loved them;
He knew Pilate – who sought to find a way of releasing Jesus,
then sought to satisfy the crowd by releasing Barabbas
and handing Jesus over to be crucified,
and yet He loved him;
He knew Peter – who would curse and swear,
repeatedly denying that He knew Jesus,
and yet He loved him.
He knew the soldiers – who struck Him and spit on Him,
mocked Him by bowing before Him and calling Him “King of the Jews”,
and yet He loved them.

Jesus knew people ~ and He loved them,
irregardless of their status in the world,
in spite of who they were and what they did.
While He knew them and loved them, not all of them knew themselves.

But, Jesus said to His captors: “Am I leading a rebellion,
that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me?
Mark 14: 48,49

While He knew them and loved them, not all of them knew Jesus.
Some thought He was the kind of person who would fight back in some way.
They were ready with swords, clubs, and false witnesses.

Yes, God loved them. The Bible tells us so:
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son
that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish
but have everlasting life.
For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world
but that the world, through Him, should be saved.
John 3:16,17
And Jesus prayed His consent:
“Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what You will.”
Mark 14:36b

That's LOVE!

Twila Charles Leichty

GETHSEMANE

The word Gethsemane means “olive press.”
An olive press is a pit wherein there is a millstone.
After the pits have been removed,
the olives are put into the press
and the millstone is used to press the oil from them.

Jesus went with His disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane
which was on the Mount of Olives.
He had to spend some time with His Father.
He asked His disciples to wait and keep watch
while He went further and He poured out His heart to God,
wrestling with what He knew was ahead of Him.

Feeling the weight of His upcoming encounters
with the arresting officers, guards,
the chief priests, elders and teachers of the law,
the Jewish crowd, the high priest, and Pilate,
before singularly shouldering the sin of the world,
He agonizingly asked His Father for some other way.
But obedience, borne out of love, brought Him to the place
of relinquishing His will to that of His Father's.
He got up from His knees, returned to His disciples and found them sleeping,
something that underscored His aloneness in the press!

To ponder:
I wonder how often the “oil of joy” promised by God
is delivered to us through “olive press experiences”,
those times when we feel as though we are being crushed,
when we relinquish our will and submit to God's will.

Isaiah 61:3
To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion,
to give unto them beauty for ashes,
the oil of joy for mourning,
the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness;
that they might be called trees of righteousness,
the planting of the LORD,
that he might be glorified.


Twila Charles Leichty, L -14

“You will all fall away,” Jesus told them...
Peter declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”
...”I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, today – yes, tonight -
before the rooster crows twice,
you yourself will disown me three times.”
But Peter insisted emphatically, “ Even if I have to die with you,
I will never disown you.” And all the others said the same...
...Then everyone deserted him and fled.
MARK 14: 27a, 29-31, 50

We all like to think of ourselves as strong and loyal.
We want to be; we intend to be.
But we are human. We get scared.
We run. We hide.
Sometimes we fail miserably at the things we want so much to do well in.

Jesus knew that He spoke truth.
He knew that He would be walking this final part of His earthly journey
alone,
without the company of those who'd traveled with Him
for the past thee and one half years.
He knew they would give in to their fear.
He knew they would discover soon enough how weak they were,
how wrong their statements had been.

He needed time to pray, time with His Heavenly Father.
He headed toward Gethsemane,
a garden on the Mount of Olives, a place they'd frequented before.

It was late, but communicating with the One who knew
all that He was facing was needful.
His disciples were left to wait and watch
while He went further, wrestling with His will and that of His Father's.

Upon His return, He found the disciples sleeping
and awakened them to witness the arrival of the arresting officers
sent by the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders.
Judas identified Jesus with the prearranged signal of a kiss.
Shortly thereafter, Jesus was abandoned by those
with whom He'd shared the bread and the cup
during the evening meal.

To ponder:
What commitment have you made with full intention of keeping it,
only to discover you were not the person you'd hoped to have been?

Twila Charles Leichty, L-13

Read MARK 14:1-11

It was a gift for the Lord.
Other people were present when she delivered it.
They talked to one another about the wasteful use of money.
Then they rebuked her harshly.

But Jesus, the receiver of the gift, interrupted them.
There were things He knew that they had no way of knowing.
He knew that her gift was prompted by a heart
that had searched for some way to express the gratitude she felt,
her devotion to the One she was now honoring.
He knew that He would soon be crucified,
that those who were condemning Him here and now
were only part of the larger crowd that would cry,
“Crucify Him!”

He knew the coins that would be handed over by the chief priests,
payment to Judas for a kiss of betrayal;
He knew that the nard spilled from the alabaster jar upon his head that day
was an extravagantly expensive, imported perfume,
a gift not unlike the gift He would be giving
when His blood would be spilled upon the ground in the days to come
the price tag for forgiveness of our sin.

He knew there would be many people who would consider
the freely offered gift of His life's blood a waste,
and He knew they would condemn those who realized
the cost of that divine gift,
gratefully and joyously accept it,
and consider nothing too great a sacrifice
in expressing their love and devotion in return.

Yes, Jesus saw far, far more than what was happening
in the home of Simon the Leper that day!

Twila Charles Leichty - L20

~ EASTER ~

JESUS made possible
what was impossible.
He replaced defeat with victory,
evidencing for all time
that the hopelessness we feel
in our present situations
is but the result of
not seeing the complete picture.
Our hopelessness
simply provides God
with the quietness and space
through which He will bring into our lives
an unanticipated blessing,
amazing us (and the world around)
with His presence, power, and love.

May you revel in the beauty of EASTER.
Use this day to reflect on God's past faithfulness
and grow in the confidence
that He who brings the changes
is Himself changeless
throughout all time.
Enjoy this day
and all that it means in your life!

Twila Jean Charles - 2006

VALENTINE DAY

Love is a commitment
to look out for the best interest
of the one loved,
to give sacrificially and one’s best
to the relationship.

God demonstrated His committed love
when Jesus entered our world,
experiencing life as a man,
relating to us in our brokenness,
so that He could provide us
with the costliest gift of all time,
His death in our place,
His life’s blood as payment-in-full
for the opportunity we now have
of accessing
a forever relationship with God,
something we forfeited
by our willful ways.

My love has been a less committed love.
It’s reeked of selfishness when I’ve
not consulted Him about my dreams,
complained about His modus operandi,
questioned His timing,
insisted on my way,
failed to express my gratitude,
shirked my responsibility to share Jesus
with those in need,
not sought to spend time with Him
or learn from Him…

I wonder why
He continues to pursue
a relationship with one so fickle,
so distracted by other promises
of things that do not satisfy.
I wonder why my response to Him
falls so short of total embrace,
full-hearted surrender,
and
loving obedience?

It’s His faithfulness, not mine,
that provides me with
another opportunity
to take His hand and say “I do”
to His invitation
of a forever relationship.

Twila Jean Charles - February 2006

Freed by Jesus
from the debt that threatened to confine me
to an eternity of separation
from my Creator.
Freedom – a gift,
not license to do what I want
but a commission to serve:
to have a heart that beats with His,
to have the mind of Christ,
to be His mouth, His hands and feet.
Twila Jean Charles - 2004

The Passover

The celebration of Passover
was a time for remembering the “freedom train” experience of the Israelites,
God's mighty deliverance of His people from Egyptian bondage,
and the lamb's blood on each door post
that kept them safe the night the firstborn was slain.
It was also a time of anticipating the coming of the promised Messiah,
the sacrificial Lamb of God, whose life's blood
would take away the sin of the world.

This Passover that Jesus arranged to eat with His disciples
would later be known as The Last Supper,
for it was the last time that Jesus and His disciples
would share a meal together before His death.
Jesus knew that.
During the meal, He took bread, gave thanks and broke it,
then shared it, letting them know that it was His body.
He also took the cup, gave thanks, and offered it to them.
They all drank from it.
He said it was the blood of the covenant that was poured out for many.
They sang a hymn; then they went out into the night,
to the Mount of Olives.

Jesus was traveling a very different road that night
from the road He was paving for His disciples and the rest of the world.
What would take Him to death would bring life to the rest of us.
He walked it because of His love and out of obedience to His Father.

Twila Jean Charles - 2004
L - 13

“When evening came, Jesus arrived with the Twelve.
While they were reclining at the table eating, He said,
'I tell you the truth,
one of you will betray Me– one who is eating with Me.'
They were saddened, and one by one they said to Him,
'Surely not I?'”
MARK 14:17-19

I wonder how we would have handled things had we known
we were to be betrayed by one who was sitting at our table.
Jesus felt no need to name the betrayer-to-be.
He allowed him to reveal himself.
It might have been easy for the disciples to look around,
to see whether they could identify the disciple about whom Jesus spoke,
but they did not.
I wonder what made the the disciples respond individually with “Surely not I?”

We struggle to understand both why and how Judas did what he did.
But, when honest, we know ourselves to have made decisions
that have led us away from the God we serve.

We hide many things from ourselves.
We like to see ourselves as self-aware, honest, and loyal to our God,
and yet, sometimes self has a way of showing up,
perhaps unwanted but present.

Healthy self-examination is good,
but a God-examination is best,
for He sees into the heart.

We all need to pray with the psalmist:
Search me, O God, and know my heart;
test me and know my anxious thoughts.
See if there is any offensive way in me,
and lead me in the way everlasting.
Psalm 139:23


Twila Charles Leichty - L12

Read Mark 12:28-31

One of the teachers of the law,
noticing that Jesus had given them (those who asked a previous question) a good answer,
asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the MOST IMPORTANT?”

There were ten commandments given the children of God.
They were presented in a prioritized manner
when God wrote them on the tablets of stone for Moses to deliver.
Acknowledging God as God alone,
that there is but one God
is written first.
Obeying and worshiping Him is our duty.

Knowing Him intimately implies not only factual knowledge of who He is,
but experiencing Him in relationship by spending time with Him,
listening to Him through His Word, choosing (willing) to do what He says,
placing our confidence and trust in Him and all that He says.
Honoring Him means de-throning anything that compromises His position in my life,
for He is a jealous God; He shares His place with no one and nothing.
He is God and, as God, has a right to command what He does.
His commands are good.
They keep us in our rightful position with Him and with each other.

So important is the relationship between God and us that He commands us
to rest and use the Sabbath to focus on Him, remembering all that He has done.
He knew that we would forget, that other things would crowd into the space
He alone was to occupy in our lives.
And He knew that unless the relationship between God and each of us was right,
our relationships with others would be flawed.

When we have learned and follow the this commandment,
we will find the fruit of the Spirit growing in our lives,
necessary if our relationships with others
are to grow in healthy, God-honoring ways.

“Well said, Teacher.”
That was the conclusion and response of the teacher of the law
who posed the question:
“You are right in saying that God is one and there is no other but Him.
To love Him with all your heart,
with all your understanding and with all your strength,
and to love your neighbor as yourself
is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Jesus then responded with: “You are not far from the kingdom of God.”
MARK 12:32-34

Why do you think Jesus made that statement?

Twila Charles Leichty – L10

---------------------------------------------------

Jesus was an observer, a people watcher.
The Bible tells us so.
As Jesus taught, He said, “Watch out for the teachers of the law.
They like to walk around in flowing robes and be greeted in the marketplace,
and have the most important seats in the synagogue
and the places of honor at banquets.
They devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers...”
Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put
and watched the crowd putting their offerings into the temple treasury.
Many rich people threw in large amounts.
But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins,
worth only a fraction of a penny.”
MARK 12:38-42

Jesus taught many things.
He taught us that we can learn many things about people by watching what they do,
that attitudes and motives can be discerned through repeated behaviors.
He taught us also to look at the whole picture, not to judge a behavior alone.
He taught us to be careful, wise in our observations, not hasty in our conclusions.

Integrity is not determined by external behaviors
but by how well the external behaviors match the attitudes and motives within.

Teachers do not always speak truth.
A generous person does not always give the most money.
A person who prays publicly is not always sincere.
The best-dressed person is not always beautiful on the inside.

To ponder:
When have you misjudged a person,
later delightfully discovering a real pearl hidden within a broken shell?
Or when have you embraced someone as a friend,
only to discover you'd been used as the means to another's selfish end?

Twila Charles Leichty – L11