Carol Snyder

Why?

What an interesting turn of events in (Matthew 26)! We have been on a journey through all of Matthew learning about Jesus’ miracles, his teachings through parables, how he shows the disciples to fish for men …. And now we come to the messy part, The End. When Jesus had finished these teachings, he said to his disciples, ²“As you know, the Passover is two days away—and the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified.” What do you think the disciples thought? Fear had to strike through each of them. What do you think Jesus was thinking? Did you stop while reading and think about it from his perspective? He knew what was coming. He knew exactly what path God had chosen for him. He kept going and fulfilled what was prophesied.

In today’s chapter, we are reminded of Judas’ betrayal. Drama. He wasn’t in it for the long haul. He wasn’t a good friend. He wanted the money. We all know people like this. It’s all about them; it’s all about getting ahead. He was working his own plan behind the scenes and ruined “a good thing” Jesus and the disciples had going. They were preaching God’s word and gaining followers along the way. Judas rained on the parade. Or did he? Jesus knew what was going to happen and that Judas was going to betray him.

Before the plot really thickens, the disciples celebrate together with Jesus. He gives them very strict instructions on how to prepare for the Festival of the Unleavened Bread. The Last Supper. When all were gathered, Jesus breaks bread for the feast participants. We all have seen many images of the table where bread was broken together. In these pictures, it is hard to determine if they are having a good time and relaxing together? Are they happy to be with friends in an upper chamber away from the crowds that sometimes surround them? They can just be themselves and enjoy their own company. We are lead to believe that is not what was happening. Judas and Jesus most likely were not relaxing. Then, the dinner abruptly ends with these statements:

²¹And while they were eating, he said, “Truly I tell you, one of you will betray me.”

²²They were very sad and began to say to him one after the other, “Surely you don’t mean me, Lord?”

²³Jesus replied, “The one who has dipped his hand into the bowl with me will betray me. ²⁴The Son of Man will go just as it is written about him. But woe to that man who betrays the Son of Man! It would be better for him if he had not been born.”

²⁵Then Judas, the one who would betray him, said, “Surely you don’t mean me, Rabbi?”Jesus answered, “You have said so.”

This scene seems surreal. Jesus knows what is happening. Others do not. They sing a hymn together and go to the Mount of Olives. Peter confronts him. He is fearful. Jesus admits to being sorrowful. He needs time away and retreats further to Gethsemane to pray. At this point, we have to think Jesus knows what is about to happen to him but may be asking the “Why?” question. Why me, why now, I know it’s your will, but can we change this plan? “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” No, God’s plan is outlined. He asks for the disciples to stand watch and instead they sleep. Jesus is irritated with them, but while they have been told of what will happen to him, do they really know it’s about to unfold? He goes back to pray a second time. They sleep. He goes back to pray a third time and again they sleep!

Jesus awakes them from their sleep. “The betrayer is here!” Soldiers arrive. They take Jesus away. The disciples must be saying “Why?”. What is happening? Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. They see him hauled away. I picture myself asking the “Why?” question. I would find this turn of events to be surreal too! Yet, it was written and was being fulfilled.

What can we learn from this chapter? A few takeaways for me. “Why?” – we don’t always know what God has in store for us or why he closes some doors and opens others. Do we pay attention to the open doors or are we like Judas and only interested in the prize? What if you were given a chance to dine with your friends and family before you passed away? Do you treat these types of feasts with friends as a chance to relax and enjoy? We do not know what is coming next for us, right? That is hard to think about, but it is true.

Take each day with family and friends as a gift and pay attention to all that is happening or you may miss something important. Take the opportunity to have good conversation or you may find yourself like Peter. Jesus was hauled away, Peter denied him three times, and then the cock crowed. Peter most likely wished he had those last hours back as he might have acted differently. If we ponder “Why?” for too long, we may miss what’s right in front of us.

Pray. Pray once, twice, three times as Jesus did.

I look forward to the next few chapters, which take this story from The End to The Beginning!

Seeing is Believing? – Faith

Today’s reading: Matthew 12

As we have been looking at Matthew in more depth this month, I now have a new appreciation for all the “short stories” woven into this book in the Bible. We start with the Birth of Jesus, the beautiful story of the Wise Men, moving on to his baptism, to how Jesus dealt with temptation, to life lessons on how to Fast, to his healing, to teaching us “the Golden Rule”, to building our house on the Rock, and on to all the miracles. What an interesting collection of stories! These writings bring together how to live our lives, with examples of Jesus’ daily works, displaying his journey of growth and how he dealt with the stress of that time. Think of all he had to do each day: he prayed, he formed and worked with his team to continue to promote his message and vision, he sometimes fasted, sometimes ate at others’ homes, he gave hope to others, he healed many, he helped people through difficult times, and he preached so that people could live Christian lives. He must really have needed the Sabbath for his own personal rest. It is truly a reflection of what we sometimes experience throughout our hectic weeks. Do we stay as committed as he did? We can try, we may fail, we confess our sins, and then we try again. It is part of keeping and continuing to build our faith and the faith of others. Just as he rested, he also gives us the chance to rest, reflect and recover on the Sabbath. Do we take advantage of that time?

As you have been reading along through Matthew, have you had a short story or two that impact you the most or resonate with something you needed to hear that day? I know that “Do Not Be Anxious” in Matthew 6 helped me as we started back into the new year of work. “Come To Me and I Will Give You Rest” in Matthew 11 also helps on days where life wears me out juggling work and kids. Just spend a minute reading the headlines back through all the chapters we have covered this far. It is an interesting view, and I know I will go back to Matthew down the road because there are so many relevant stories and messages.

So why did I choose the title “Seeing is Believing?” We all have heard the phrase “well, I’ll believe that when I see it.” In Matthew Chapters 8, 9 and 12 this week, Jesus’ many miracles are recounted. If you count, there are 15 miracles so far which demonstrate how he helped or healed others. Lepers, the Centurion, Calming the Storm, Demons, Blind men, mute, Jonah. So many examples! Yet people did not always believe. They doubted saying, “Can this be the Son of David?” ²⁴But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beezelbul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons.” Matthew 12:23-24. However, he knows their thoughts and retorts “¹Therefore I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.” He knows some doubt by not seeing but he pumps up those people who have faith without seeing. They believe. Do we believe without seeing all those miracles such as the withered hand? Yes, we have faith! Can we have complete faith in his plan for us? I think it’s harder some days than others. And God knows that. He sends Jesus with all kinds of guidance on how to deal with life’s daily challenges and temptations, he shows his goodness through the miracles, and he even helps us deal with anxiety, giving us a way to rest our weary thoughts by giving them up to him. I can rest easier knowing he is there and all I have to do is stay in tune with my faith and rest on the Sabbath. I have to continue to this faith journey and believe without seeing.

Prayer: The Lord’s Prayer (Matthew 6)

Unity

How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

Unity; noun, plural unities.

the state of being one; oneness.
a whole or totality as combining all its parts into one.
the state or fact of being united or combined into one, as of the parts of a whole; unification.
absence of diversity; unvaried or uniform character.
oneness of mind, feeling, etc., as among a number of persons; concord, harmony, or agreement.
(in literature and art) a relation of all the parts or elements of a work constituting a harmonious whole and producing a single general effect.
Mathematics.

a. the number one; a quantity regarded as one
b. identity

I am back writing for Jennifer this week. She left me with such an easy yet powerful word “Unity”. Unity is a word understood by most everyone throughout the world. Unity exists everywhere around us and we may not even recognize it or appreciate it. We are unified in our Bible Journal network. We are unified in our church congregations. You could take each one of these definitions above and write a chapter on it. You can also google unity and find many examples, including the name of a Church, a video game development, symbols and pictures of hands, a name of a college, a health insurance company and the list goes on.

When writing this post, two thoughts popped into my mind immediately: how we unite every day and then how as a world we unite in response to a crisis or disaster.

Last Sunday, the Pantagraph was filled with photos of sporting events. My oldest son made the front page in a crowd of NCHS foot supporters, cheering on the team to advance to the next round of playoffs. There were pictures on the subsequent pages of UHigh winning the soccer state title, and I smiled as we picked out players we knew, all united for one reason: to win the state title as a team. There were pictures of random people disappointed by the Cubs loss on Saturday and also fans cheering on the Cubs to victory. Whether it was fans coming together “as of the parts of a whole; unification” to cheer their team to victory of whether it was the actual teammates, working as “the state of being one; oneness” toward victory, people were united. How fun to rally with others to win, “…constituting a harmonious whole”. How important to rely on others and unite when you fail or when life doesn’t go your way.

How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

If you are not an avid sports fan, we can all think about others ways people come together: Marching Band, Spanish Club, Student Council, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, small groups at church, bridge group, Book Club, a cooking club, a French class, Operation Christian Child, Lutheran World Relief, all ways we unite in common bonds. We find a common purpose that brings us together.

The second thought I had was around crisis and disaster. Unfortunately, during this Hurricane season, we did see part of the world impacted. Hurricane Matthew was bearing down on the US, and promised to cause significant damage with wind and water. We saw people on the news working together to prepare. The state of Florida was on high alert. South Carolinians were told to evacuate. The strike wasn’t as bad as expected and loved ones could reunite here in the US. However, in other parts of the world such as Antilles, Bahamas, St. Lucia and Haiti, significant damage occurred. People united to rescue others, to help those in despair and to begin the process of rebuilding.

Just in October alone;

An earthquake hit India
A Flash Flood in Indonesia killed one and damaged multiple homes
A Landslide in Columbia killed seven
Torrential Rain killed eleven in Egypt.

These nations and people throughout the world were struck with fear, with panic and ultimately with disaster. Yet, these moments of crisis bring people together as a nation: “oneness of mind, feeling, etc., as among a number of persons; concord, harmony, or agreement.”

How good and pleasant it is when God’s people live together in unity! (Psalm 133:1)

As the election approaches, we need unity within our country. Whether you follow politics or not, there is no dodging the division of the nation over the Presidential candidates. Whatever the outcome, our new President will have the difficult task of finding a platform on which to unite our divided country.

As we move about our daily lives on Wednesday, let us remember the need for unity. We can be unified in God’s word. We can be stewards of God’s word in our thoughts and in our deeds. Let us unite and come together as one nation.

2 Kings 18; Philemon 1; Hosea 11; Psalms 132–134

Thanksgiving

Time to give thanks message Some fall leaves and black and white alarm clock and beige gift tag with text A Time to give thanks

Today’s Reading: 2 Kings 10; 2 Timothy 1; Hosea 2; Psalm 119:97–120

Happy to be a guest writer again for my good friend Jennifer! When I read the passages for today, I knew right away I did not want to write about Ahab’s family being killed. I was not sure what to pluck out of Hosea 2 either. Something more uplifting was needed after a long week! As we are approaching November, the “Thanksgiving” headline in 2 Timothy caught my attention as we always have lots to be thankful for each day. November gives us the opportunity to reflect on all we have been given in our daily lives, not in terms of the usual Thanksgiving Day prayer of family, friends, health, happiness, freedom….more in terms of what God has given to us to help us live our daily lives. In the readings related to Thanksgiving, three separate verses jumped out at me.

2 Timothy 1:

⁷For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

⁹He has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time…

¹³What you heard from me, keep as the pattern of sound teaching, with faith and love in Christ Jesus. ¹⁴Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you—guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us.

From time to time through this year of our Bible Journal journey, I send one of the daily write ups to one of my boys (ages, 17, 15, and 13) if I think it speaks to something they are experiencing. This week, I took a different tact and asked them to read these three verses. What do they mean to them? Are they able to be thankful for what they have been given from God? Are they taking on the responsibility each day? Here were their short answer responses:

When I read these verses together, they make me think of being modest and content. I think this because of what the Spirit God gave us, makes us. In the first verse it talks about the Spirit God making us powerful and able to love, but it also mentions self-discipline. Power and love are two very important things/traits that if used wrongly, can do major harm. By adding self-discipline into our making, the Lord provides us with not just having these two strong powers, but he provides us with a third trait that is a very important: self-discipline. Self-discipline provides us with being able to stay content in times of despair and it provides us with being modest in times of great achievement. Self-discipline helps us not go over the edge when given the traits of power and love.
To me, this means that God gave us the ability to have power, love, and self-discipline. He has also saved us and called us to an eternal and holy life in heaven, and there is nothing we can do to make God hate us, for he is loving. It also says to me that there is a little bit of the Holy Spirit inside of us all, and that should mean the world to us.
These verses all talk about the amazing spirit God has given us. We should take this blessing and spread/show it to others in the world. God has given us this gift, and we are meant to use it to follow him and to love him. We are meant to hold onto this gift as well because it defines us and keeps us close to God.

Interesting to read how teenagers translate God’s word in their lives. To me, I hear God giving us Power, Love, and Self-Discipline. He gives us these traits to use wisely. I hear him reminding us that we need to focus on listening to the Holy Spirit within ourselves to help us lead a Christian life. Even when we don’t, we can be saved through his Grace. What a wonderful gift!

Do we think about using the power of the Holy Spirit each day? Are we thankful that God leads us through in thought, word and deed? As we enter the month of thankfulness, let us recognize God’s power, love and self-discipline he has given us along with his Eternal Grace.

Do you have the fortitude to follow?

Bible Stories: Illustration of Samson and Delilah

Today’s reading: Judges 13; Acts 17; Jeremiah 26; Mark 12

fortitude: noun. Courage in pain or adversity. Synonyms include courage, bravery, endurance, resilience

Following along in the book of Judges, we continue to read about various groups or clans: the Ammonites, the Ephraimites, the Gildeadites, the Israelites, the Zebulunites, the Baals, the Ashtoreths and more. At times, all these names are confusing (we almost need a family tree or an org structure to keep track!) Some of these clans follow God’s plan demonstrating their fortitude and some “do evil”. Some are patient for a very long time, but then fall away from his word as we read about on Wednesday this week in Judges 10:

¹¹The Lord replied, “When the Egyptians, the Amorites, the Ammonites, the Philistines, ¹²the Sidonians, the Amalekites and the Maonites^[^c^] oppressed you and you cried to me for help, did I not save you from their hands? ¹³But you have forsaken me and served other gods, so I will no longer save you. ¹⁴Go and cry out to the gods you have chosen. Let them save you when you are in trouble!”

In this passage, God clearly says I saved you but yet again you have gone astray. Then, on Thursday, we read about God helping Israel in overtaking the Ammonites. God supported those who believed. Can you imagine back in that time how hard it might have been to fight for your land? Can put yourself in their shoes? How about Paul and his time in jail? How about the story yesterday of seventy years of captivity? Yet these people listened and followed God’s direction. They demonstrated great fortitude.

Today in Judges 13, we read about Samson. We know the story of Samson and Delilah and his famous hair. I personally did not remember hearing about his parents. It sounded a lot like Mary and Joseph before Jesus’s birth. The angel appeared to Samson’s mother, a women from the Danites, and said:

³…“You are barren and childless, but you are going to become pregnant and give birth to a son. ⁴Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean. ⁵You will become pregnant and have a son whose head is never to be touched by a razor because the boy is to be a Nazirite, dedicated to God from the womb. He will take the lead in delivering Israel from the hands of the Philistines.”

Wow. Whoa. Unbelievable. Whatever describes your vision of an angel appearing and telling her she will bare a child. She believed! Then, the angel appears again to Manoah to tell him the same thing (just in case he doesn’t believe her?). They bow down, humbled by what the Lord has said. They want to do everything right so that this miracle can be performed. They even want to know how to raise Samson and start to ask for more help. They are true believers and want an exact plan for this child’s future. We too want an exact plan for our children, but God doesn’t always clearly lay out that plan, nor did he for how Samson would eventually change once he was confronted with the evil Delilah. But, Manoah and his wife believed. They did exactly what they were told.

I thought to myself as I have been following along in Judges, if they could do it, so can we, right? It’s not the easy. We have many distractions. We have many forces working against us. We have evil we see in the world and question the path forward. We don’t have “angels” appearing at our doorstep on a daily basis to tell us exactly what we are supposed to do in tough situation. We “hope” that things will work out instead of trusting in God. He does have our path forward and does try to guide us along the way.

Fast forward to today and the troubling situations we read, hear about and even experience. From Orlando to Munich, people are going astray. They are making bad decisions; they are “do(ing) evil”. Yet, God asks each of us to follow his path. Isn’t it hard sometimes? How do we stay the course each day? How do we help others who might want to give up?

Throughout this past year, God has give us numerous examples in our bible journals and our daily readings to set examples for how he wants us to carry out his word. He gives us the Ten Commandments, he demonstrates his word through parables such as our verses in Mark Chapter 12 today, and he performed many miracles from healing to feeding of the 4,000 and the 5,000 as we have read about through our bible journal. He shows us compassion when we go astray. All we need to do is follow and believe.

Let us pray together: Dear Lord, please grant us the fortitude to fight the good fight. Let us not go astray from your word and your teachings. Help us to see our path forward and stay strong, knowing you are with us along the journey.

Extra credit: Samson and the “Hall of Faith”. I refreshed myself on the story of Samson and Delilah by reading through these heroes in the “Hall of Faith”. Take a peak and think about the fortitude these heroes demonstrated:

http://christianity.about.com/od/biblefactsandlists/tp/Hebrews-11-Heroes-Of-Faith.01.htm