Pastor Angie's In-Spire-ations February 2018
If I had to choose a favorite Psalm, it would be Psalm 139. Sometimes I read it aloud to God as a prayer. It’s beautiful expression of love…our love for God and the depth of God’s love for us. It was hard to wrap my mind around the early arrival of Ash Wednesday, on Valentine’s Day of all days, but the more I considered this, the more perfect it seemed.
Ash Wednesday is the day we begin a journey of self-reflection and bringing before God all that is within us that has the potential to create division between us, God, and others as we prepare for the resurrection morning of Easter.
In the January newsletter, Pastor Chris shared John Wesley’s prayer. I want to continue on with a little more Wesleyan history. John Wesley met with students, including his brother, Charles, at Lincoln College at Oxford University. They prayed, read Scripture, and reflected upon Christian works. The meetings were meant to shape their Christian lives inside and out. They reflected inwardly, but they also went into their world in service to the poor, by visiting those in prison and loving their neighbors. We are about to enter into Lent and I want to invite you to step back in time with me to those Wesleyan practices.
In the course of their reflection, they asked 21 questions. Interestingly enough, these questions can be grouped into categories about our relationship with God, self and others. That should sound familiar to anyone who has studied When Helping Hurts.
Relationship with God: an Upward Focus
Is Jesus Real to me?
Am I enjoying prayer?
Do I insist upon doing something about which my conscience is uneasy?
Did the Bible live in me today?
Did I disobey God in anything?
Do I pray about the money I spend?
Do I give time for the Bible to speak to me every day?
Relationship with Self: An Inward Focus
Am I proud?
Am I defeated in any part of my life?
Do I go to bed on time and get up on time?
Do I grumble and complain constantly?
Am I a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits?
How do I spend my spare time?
Am I self-conscious, self-pitying, or self-justifying?
Relationship with Others: an Outward Focus
Do I thank God that I am not like others?
Am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I am? In other words, am I a hypocrite?
Do I confidently pass on to others what was told to me in confidence?
Am I jealous, impure, critical, irritable, touchy, or distrustful?
Am I honest in all my actions and words, or do I exaggerate?
Is there anyone whom I fear, dislike, disown, criticize, hold resentment toward, or disregard?
When did I last speak to someone about my faith?
Please join me on Ash Wednesday, February 14th at 6:30 p.m. in the Gathering Hall, to begin our journey into Lent together. Psalm 139: 23-24 says, “Look deep into my heart, God, and find out everything I am thinking. Don’t let me follow evil ways, but lead me in the way time has proven true.”