Picture the Bible Reflection for April 30, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at “The Annunciation.”  You can read the story here:  https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201%3A26-56&version=NIV
 
Mary’s song is referred to as The Magnificat.  When I think of her sharing these words, I imagine her dancing around with such elation.  She has accepted the will of God and focuses not on any potential negative that she will encounter, but only the positive. We can look at her words and think about what they may say about different things like war, immigration, poverty, disease, hunger, homelessness, racism and so forth. Let’s use poverty as a focus to think about what her words may say about it.
 
“My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant.” 
God does not discriminate from the rich or the poor, he favours good people.
 
“Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name. His mercy is for those who fear him from generation to generation.” 
I like to consider replacing the word ‘fear’ with love or faithful to or committed to.  Imagine all the people of the world experiencing the mercy of God, especially when life is challenging.  If the mercy of God is for those who are impoverished, then they will receive what they need. I think it’s also a call for us who have more than enough, to carry mercy in our hearts and share with others.
 
“He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts.”
I’m not really sure I know anyone who think they have everything figured out, who does not have compassion in their hearts and a willingness to share.  But hear, I think it’s a warning for those who may be of that mindset – to be humble as circumstances can change in a heartbeat.
 
“He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly; he has filled the hungry with good things, and set the rich away empty.”
Sometimes, the simplest and poorest way of life can make us the richest in a variety of ways. And sometimes the richest can be the poorest in different areas of life. Maybe it’s in having ‘real people’ surround you verses ‘yes people’ surround you. Maybe the poorest people are richer because they have more time with family whereas the richer people are poorer because they are focused on work, by choice. What could you define as riches the lives of impoverished people?
 
“He has helped his servant Israel, in remembrance of his mercy, according to the promise he made to our ancestors, to Abraham and to his descendants forever.”
God promised to love the people then and that promise lives on for eternity.
 
If you could focus on something your soul could glorify God for, what might that be?  And could you choose something different each day?
 
Here’s a version of “The Magificat” by Koine Music: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqeY7JQ4rAg
 
Let us pray:
Glorious and wondrous God, we thank you for the most amazing things you give to us in our lives. Help us to find ways in which we are rich in our lives, not financially, but in other ways.  Help us to remember that you made promises to those long before us and that those promises are still made for us today. No matter what life throws at us, you are there for us to carry us and guide us through to the other side.  Help us to remain faithful and committed to you, being mindful that it also means we have to be committed and faithful to helping to bring your kingdom here on earth, to all people in all places. Give us strength, curiosity, courage and creativity to make that happen.  Be with us today and all our days. Amen.

Picture the Bible Reflection for April 26, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at “The Annunciation” where Mary is told she is going to have a baby and that the baby would be the Messiah.  You can read the story here:  https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%201%3A26-56&version=NIV
 
Let’s think about our human nature within this story.  Someone comes to you and says something that you would never expect to hear.  Something completely impossible and unimaginable.  For Mary, it’s being told she would give birth to a son, who is the Messiah.  Through verses 26-38, the angel Gabriel and Mary had this conversation.  First, she’s visited by an angel. Second, the angel says she is highly favoured. Third, you’re going to have a baby. Fourth, Elizabeth will have a baby too. (I wonder how long the conversation lasted or if it was as simple and brief as it is written.)
 
Have you ever been told something and it’s just so big or too much that you have a roller coaster of emotions within it?  I like Mary’s resolve in verse 38.  “I am the Lord’s servant. May your word to me be fulfilled.”  What if that was our response to any surprising news?  Even the bad stuff?  I know when I hear something, a new idea or bad news or something… it often just plants a seed. My natural reaction is resistance and doubt.  Often it will take a few hours or a few days (or even longer) for me to come around to the reality as my mind, body, soul, and faith need a little time to process it and grapple with what is. I wonder if I took hold of Mary’s kind of resolve immediately, if my processing may be sped up.  I don’t know, but I’m willing to try it out. The next time someone tells me something that I feel myself resisting, I’ll hold onto the words “I am the Lord’s servant” and may your words enter my heart so that God’s will shall be fulfilled.
 
A song for us today is “Your Will be Done” posted by CityAlight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nLXXephYRI
 
Will you pray with me?
O Holy One, Mystery Divine, we give thanks for the great mystery of life. We give you thanks for the ability to connect with and love others. We give you thanks for the opportunities laid before us, even when some difficult decisions may need to be made within them.  Help us, O God, to see your will or to be open to your will.  Help us to let go of our own human nature when are scared or hesitant, when we resist or when we are confused.  May we find purpose in the trials, in the celebrations, in the opportunities, and throughout all our journey of life – no matter how long or short that timeline is.  May we be surrounded by angels who remind us that we are yours, loved and called.  Be with us this day and all our days, within your mercy and grace we pray. Amen.  

Picture the Bible Reflection for April 23, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at a bit of Isaiah.  You can read the about it here:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+6%3A1-8%3B+11%3A1-10&version=NIV
 
I wonder about sin. I wonder what you think sin is.  What kind of examples would you give if someone was to ask?  I used to think that sin was about doing things that are wrong, like crimes or harming others.  Over time it evolved to understanding that sin is anything that distances me from my relationship with God.  For example, if I think of the ten commandments and pick out one, like “thou shalt not steal”, I look at the ripple effects.  If I stole something from a store, it would cause the store owner and employees hardships. It would possibly cause a ripple effect in the community.  But first and foremost, if I was okay to steal something, what would it do to my relationship with God? Could God trust me to do good?  Could God trust me to be in community with others? I saw an image that reflected this as humans and it said “Trust, loyalty, respect. Destroy one, you lose all three.”  How true that is for us.  And yet, no matter what, God continues to have hope for us. God continues to forgive us. God continues to love us and encourage us and call us.
 
The hardest part about sin may be in the forgiveness, maybe mostly in forgiving ourselves and moving beyond it.  I wonder if there’s a sin you’ve experienced and if you still hold onto guilt for it.  If so, I wonder what it will take for you to move beyond it?  How nice would it be for a seraphim to fly around, take a hot coal and touch our mouths and say “see, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”  What if you simply heard within your heart that you are forgiven? Today, can you hear God saying those words to you?  For sometimes guilt can be the only thing that holds us back from doing amazing things…
 
I discovered this beautiful song, “Be Forgiven” by Jackie Francois that I hope you’ll enjoy.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cdaunfXCE9k 
 
Today’s prayer:
God, you call us to amazing things and we give thanks for each day that comes our way.  Help us to put ourselves aside, including any guilt, any history, any obstacles that are holding us back from doing the amazing things you want us to do.  Give us what we need this day to let go of all of those.  Thank you for Jesus, whose love and compassion, grace and mercy shows us that we are yours and that you will be there waiting for our return if we stray.  Thank you for all of what you do for us, give to us, and forgive us for. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Picture the Bible Reflection for April 19, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at a bit of Isaiah.  You can read the about it here:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Isaiah+6%3A1-8%3B+11%3A1-10&version=NIV
 
Today I want us to think about the first part (Isaiah 6:1-8), Isaiah’s Commission.  Here he describes his encounter with the divine.  It sounds quite involved, actually. He sees God, seated on a throne, like a great king. Seraphim having 6 wings each, covering faces, feet, and helping them to fly as they called out to each other.  There was some shaking in the temple and it filled with smoke.  He confesses to them that he is imperfect and living among people who are also imperfect.  And then one of the seraphim took a live coal, touching his lips with it and saying all is forgiven.  God asks him, who shall I send? Isaiah replies, send me.
 
Some understand that to be called means you must be ready already.  .  That you must have be whole and pure and know what you’re doing.  The human default of comparing ourselves to others can really hold us back.  The reality is that God calls people who are not quite ready and who are imperfect all the time.  God walks and guides them through, putting people and experiences in their path to help them learn and grow and do what needs to be done.  I think God chooses to call us, as human as we are, because we can relate, we can engage, and mostly because we are imperfect. That we need diverse leaders for a diverse world.
 
My wondering today is simple.  Have you ever not lived out a call because you felt unprepared or imperfect? Have you ever felt a call and saw it through?  Are you being called to something in this very moment?
 
What I love about these reflections is that I get to search out songs I never knew existed.  Here’s a song called “Perfectly Imperfect” by April Kry.  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5y5CNjsUJXw
 
Let us pray:
Creator of all things that are good, be with us this week as we live out our lives as perfectly imperfect as we are.  Help us to find security and confidence in ourselves, no matter what we’re doing and no matter what moods come our way.  Help us to keep you at the centre of our lives, wondering how we can bring about your kingdom here and now.  Help us to be cheerleaders to others, especially to those who are really down on themselves… even if that it us.  Strengthen us and keep us in your loving embrace this day and all our days to come. Amen.

Picture the Bible Reflection for April 12, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at Babylon as found in Jeremiah 52:28-34 and Psalm 137.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah+52%3A28-34%2C+Psalm+137&version=NIV
 
Jeremiah was one of the prophets who shared God’s word with the Israelites.  He warned them that they would be attacked and captured.  Sure enough, King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon did just that and they were to go to Babylon. 
 
As I think about what it would be like to be captured, having to travel in a slow manner to a place you don’t want to go, where you could look back and see your home, I can imagine the hearts of the people.  I can feel their emotions as I read Psalm 137.  Sometimes, this is what it feels like for me as we live through the pandemic.  We know what we have had to move away from.  It makes us sad, maybe even angry. We long for normal to return.
 
But as God did not forget them, God does not forget us.  Fortunately, we are not in the same context and situation and so we can still be creative and do good in this world.  We can look at the past, present and future and see where our hearts are called and what we can do when ‘our exile’ is over.
 
As I take this week to focus on gratitude, I encourage you to join me.  Write a Psalm (like Psalm 151) by inserting your own words in the blanks below.
 
     Praise the Lord!
     Praise God in ________________
     Praise God for _______________
     Praise God because of ________
     Praise God with _____________
     Praise God with _____________
     Praise God with _____________
     Let everything that breathes praise the Lord! Praise the Lord!
 
 
In this video, Jason Silver puts Psalm 137 into a song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lqYIMLH5NMI
 
A prayer for us today:
God of all, some stories in the Bible are hard to read maybe even hard to understand.  But we thank you for the stories of those who lived before us, who endured hardships and other experiences like we still do to this day.  Help us to hear your voice in the prophets of our time, to heed warnings, to stay vigilant, and to do good as long as we have breath.  Help us to remember to praise you each day, gifting us with blessings that we can share with others.  Be within us and around us as we live for you.  Amen.

Picture the Bible reflection for April 09, 2021
 
This week we’re looking at the story of David being anointed as found in 1 Samuel 16:1-13.  You can read it here: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+samuel+16%3A1-13&version=NIV
 
Before this reading, King Saul was king of Israel.  Over time, Saul’s heart became impure and his decisions weren’t in line with God’s commands. A new king was needed.
 
David is the youngest son of Jesse of Bethlehem. It is said he was young when Samuel anointed him. Scholars say likely anywhere between the age of 8 and 15.  And he would later be anointed as king at the age of about 30.  David would be known to fight Goliath, being a soldier, a shepherd, a powerful king, a musician and a writer. 
 
We may encounter many young people in our lifetime.  Some of these youngsters stand out.  There may be something special about them, like how they talk, how they live out their lives, what their passions are, how they are in crowds or with people, etc.   Some young leaders throughout our time include Ruby Bridges, Anne Frank and Louis Braille.  I wonder what names come to mind for you as you think of young people who live out their callings to big things.  I wonder who you might anoint today if you were to name a young person who is being called into leadership. 
 
The video I share today is based on one of the Psalms David wrote, Psalm 100.  Linnea Good created this song and she performs it here.  Here is “Make a Joyful Noise”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=H5hoeObqNGc&feature=emb_logo
 
Let us pray:
O God of all, you call us to lead at different times and different phases of life.  Help us to search out leadership qualities as we live out our lives in the world and to encourage those who have that spark of leadership within them.  Help us to be role models and leaders in your world as we do our best to continue to bring your kingdom here on earth.  Be within us and around us all our days. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.