Lenten devotions 2008

Sun, 10 Feb 2008

FEB. 11 - INTO NEW BIRTH
By Ross Peterson-Veatch, director of curriculum, teaching and faculty development for the Center for Intercultural Teaching and Learning

THIS WEEK'S THEME: Into new birth

DEVOTIONAL:
Let the Spirit meddle in your life…

What is Lent for? As a child I grew up thinking that it was the season in the church year when people didn't eat chocolate, or gave up coffee, or promised not to use any swear words for forty days. It was about sacrifice, about denying myself something that I liked or something that I was comfortable with – and I believed that if I did that, God would reward me somehow. But some years ago, I came to see Lent not as a season of sacrifice or atonement, but as the place in my year where God calls me to open myself up to possibility. Not just imagine what life would be like without coffee, but to feel how life is different without it. It is that time in the year when God requires me not merely to imagine how I can be different, but to try on being different -- and realize that it won't kill me.

This week's theme, "into new birth," and the Scriptures you will read hold strong promise as a set of key moments in our struggles to emerge "out of the depths" into the light of God. In the first scripture for this week's theme, the 75-year-old Abram hears God say "go from your country." In the second, the psalmist assures us of God's protection, saying, "The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in." In the last two, the writers deliver a clear message -- that acts of charity and obedience to God's calls to action are not enough; faith is required for our lives to be righteous. "Out of the depths," then, means that the journey from rebellion to obedience is not about doing what we're told. It's about finding God's voice deep within, hearing, believing and acting on our belief -- not in exchange for some reward -- but in faith that God will see us through.

In our first campus chapel of the new year, our campus pastor Bob Yoder prayed that we might let the spirit "meddle" in our lives. I believe Lent is our season to open ourselves to that possibility. May it be so.
Posted at 18:23 #



Disclaimer:
The views and beliefs expressed in the devotional piece prepared by each individual reflect their own spiritual growth journey and thoughts, and while created in a campus environment that encourages thoughtful questions and reflection on biblical Scripture and contemporary Christian themes, do not necessarily represent the official institutional positions of Goshen College or Mennonite Church USA.