But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” And when he had said these things, as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.” The little boy looked up at the great big tree along the trail and he wanted to climb it. What did he think about as he stood there looking up at it? Finally after some coaxing from his grandfather, he moved on down the trail.
I wonder, on this day of Ascension, if the disciples felt like the little boy looking up in amazement at that great big tree as they watched Jesus move out of their sight. Their wondering was stopped by a question and a promise. Jesus had given them a task so why were they looking up? After a short while, it would be time for them to follow the path from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. But they wouldn’t go in their own power for they would have the power of the Holy Spirit. They would also go with this wonderful promise - Jesus would return one day. We have that same task, power, and promise. We are to be witness to the saving love of Christ. Sometimes, like that little boy, we stand in amazement at the task before us. But we also have the promise, Jesus will come again. And so we move on down the trail with the power of the Holy Spirit leading the way. Prayer Lord Jesus Christ, Give us courage as we set out to be your witnesses. Give us joy as we think of your return. Keep us close to you through the leading of the Holy Spirit. Amen
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And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” I have no idea what kind of flower this is. It is about knee high and grows along the road to my house. It could be some kind of thistle or other kind of weed. If you drive by it you might not even notice it. I only noticed because I was on my daily walk.
After the disciples watched Jesus ascend into heaven they went back to Jerusalem as he instructed - and waited. They didn’t know exactly what they were waiting on. They would have days ahead where they would have to make hard decisions about the way to follow Jesus. They would have to listen and let the Holy Spirit lead them to discern if someone or some practice was a weed that needed to be pulled up or a flower that needed to be watered and fed. They would have to walk slow and seek the Holy Spirit’s direction. We must also look at the things that are growing in our lives. Are they weeds or flowers? Slow down and spend time in God’s word. Wait on the Lord and listen for the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Prayer Holy Father, Son and Spirit We wait for you to show us how best to serve you. Show us what things are weeds in our lives that need to be removed and what things are beautiful flowers that need to be nourished. Amen The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. I left the camper with only my camera and started up the path to the lake. The sun was up but just barely and since it rained during the night a light mist lay over the lake. It was so quiet and still.
It is hard to find quiet in our noisy world. We must make a conscious effort to shut out the noise of the world and listen for the voice of the Good Shepherd. He knows our name, knows us better than we do ourselves, and he is calling us. We will only hear his call when we are quiet and listen. He will go ahead of us for he knows the best way to go. Prayer Good Shepherd, Quiet my soul and open my ears to hear you calling. Thank you for calling me by name. I want to always follow where you lead. Forgive me when I go my own way and pull me back to your fold. Amen He restores my soul. In the Appalachian mountains where I live, there are mountain tops that have mostly grasses and a few trees called balds. On the mountain top the wind can be strong so the trees tend to be shorter than usual, many times these are rhododendrons or other evergreens. You have to climb to get to the top of a bald but once you are there you can rest from the uphill climb and look out over the mountains and valleys. The balds are places of great beauty, especially in the early summer when the rhododendrons are in bloom.
Living a full life means there will be times when we will have to walk uphill. If we are following the Good Shepherd we can be assured that the uphill path we are walking will lead us to a clear and level place. The path will not be easy, but we will be able to truly rest because we know we have taken the right path. We will know that the work we have done will be used to help others and glorify God. We will be able to look out over the mountains and valleys and see the path God has for us to follow. Prayer Great Shepherd, Open our eyes to the path you have for us to follow. Give us the strength to climb uphill and restore our soul as we look out over your beauty. Amen The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. This is the image that comes to mind when I hear this familiar psalm - a beautiful green pasture with shade trees surrounded by a fence. What we can sometimes overlook in the familiarity of this psalm is how it starts - the Lord is my shepherd. To say we have a shepherd means that we are following someone. We are not going our own way, we are going the way the shepherd wants us to go. We are trusting that the shepherd is taking us to the best place even when it doesn’t seem like the way we are going will ever get to green pastures and still waters. We are trusting the shepherd to provide what we need to survive instead of going off and looking for it on our own. We must learn that the assurances of this psalm only come when we are willing to be led.
Prayer Good Shepherd, I forget sometimes that the only way to green pastures and still waters is to follow your lead. Teach me to trust that you will give me everything I need to walk with you. Amen For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end. The Blue Ridge Parkway is an amazing road that will take you high up into the mountains. There are look-offs and trails that give you the feeling of being on top of the world. Along the Parkway, there are mile maker posts each mile of the way and with a guide book you can know when you get to a place where there is a trail that will give you a special view.
Sometimes our journey in life is like traveling on the Blue Ridge Parkway. We know where to stop and which trails to take to get the best mountain top views. Sometimes in our lives we can’t seem to find a mile marker and we have no idea where we are going. At those times we can look to our God who made the mountains and trust him to guide us to the mountain top where we can see his beauty. Prayer God My Guide, When I seem to not know which way to go, show me your way. Guide my feet to where I can see your beauty and show me how to follow you. Amen |
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Soli Deo Gloria,
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan
1 Corinthians 10:31
© 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 Karen Milligan