Devotional

Knowing God And Knowing Yourself  Are Intimately Linked Together Submitted to Red Rock News Jan 15, 2025 Rev. Dona Johnson |January 19, 2025 Christian spiritual directors often get asked questions like these: “Who am I?” What is my purpose? Why am I here? Regardless of age, race or religion, we have all pondered these questions from time to time. In fact of all God’s creatures, we are the only ones that have the capacity to grapple with such soul-searching questions.       Aristotle said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” St. Augustine after his conversion strived to know himself. He prayed, “Lord Jesus, let me know myself and know you, and desire nothing save only you.” He came to realize that knowing God and knowing himself were intimately linked together. Augustine learned that he needed to have a truthful idea, of who he was, both his strengths and weaknesses and also his blind spots.       For people who journey in the way of Jesus, it is vitally important to take the time to explore who you are. Self-knowledge does not mean you are self-absorbed nor narcissistic, it means you are aware or reflective of your thoughts, actions and attitudes. You can grow in self-awareness, when you are able to sit still before God, not talking, but listening and asking God to scan your life. It is about getting real about your fears, anxieties, joys, thanksgivings, and your sin. All of life is a reflection of our beliefs, attitudes, habits (good ones and bad ones) and our fears and taking into account how all these things shape our perception of God, ourselves and others.Through prayerful meditation, God brings us into our true self, which is the way of Jesus Christ—love, gentleness, confession and forgiveness.  This is the way of love. When we are working out of our false self, our hyper-sensitive egos produce forcefulness, self determination and an aggressiveness to have things our way and take advantage of our privilege over others.      We all have self-concepts of ourselves that may not be reliable. In many cases, if not explored restricts us from living a spacious life of freedom and acceptance of who we are. C.S. Lewis said, “The more we let God take us over, the more truly ourselves we become – because He made us. He invented us. He invented all the different people that you and I were intended to be. . .It is when I turn to Christ, when I give up myself to His personality, that I first begin to have a real personality of my own.” Thus, we were created and belong to God.      In the Gospel of John 8:31-32, Jesus says to the Jews who believed his message, “If you hold to my teachings, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Paul also states, “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom” (2 Cor 3:17). When we come to trust God’s love for us, when we live into his teachings. No its not easy, but life goes better for us. It not only brings a new quality of life, but it also gives us an interior freedom – that no matter the circumstances, God’s love casts out all fear (1 Jn 4:18). Rather than live restricted in our own sinfulness, shame and guilt, God’s love releases us from the weight of sin, so we can live into the largeness of God’s promises and the unforced rhythms of his grace.      Learning to love ourselves correctly is often a slow process. “What often blocks the action of God’s grace in our lives,” says Jacques Philippe, “is less our sins and failings, than it is accepting our own weaknesses. The most important thing in our lives is not so much what we can do as it is leaving room for what God can do. The great secret of all spiritual formation and growth is learning to let God act—let God love you. The person God loves with the tenderness of a Father, the person he wants to touch and transform with his love, is not the person we’d have liked to be or ought to be. It’s the person you are.” Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |January 19, 2025

Out Of The Waters Of Baptism  You Are Called God’s Beloved Submitted to Red Rock News Jan 10, 2025 Rev. Dona Johnson |January 13, 2025        All four Gospels, even though they may  differ stylistically, tell the story of Jesus’ baptism by  John the Baptist. This fact in itself indicates that it  is a very important mile marker in Jesus’ spiritual  life, as it remains so in the life of every Christian.  Baptism is a Christian sacrament in almost all  denominations. The Latin word sacramentum which meant “oath” was applied to Baptism in  connection with it’s establishing of a “new  covenant” between a human being and God. Now,  different Christian faith traditions emphasize the  different ways people are baptized. Some  denominations emphasize the person being  baptized must be submerged under water, while  being able to make that decision for themselves— commonly called adult baptism. While other  denominations believe that God’s grace is imparted  to the infant through baptism and confirmed at the  age of twelve through the pouring water over the  head of the child or adult being baptized. But  whether you were baptized as an infant or adult,  whether you were baptized with a little water or a  lot, what all baptisms have in common is Jesus.  Jesus was baptized and so we who follow Jesus are  also baptized. By faith, a Christian is baptized in the  name of God the Father, Jesus the Son and the  Holy Spirit—the Trinity. Their names are written in  the palms of God’s hand (Isa 49:16).          Since God chooses us and not the other way  around, God gives us the faith to come to the  waters of baptism (Eph 1:4-6), and that is the true  mystery of the faith. Baptism also brings many  gifts. First, baptism is an entrance into the body of  Christ, the Church. Secondly, it gives the baptized  the gift of eternal life through the forgiveness of  sin. Thirdly, the Holy Spirit is poured out upon the  baptized imparting spiritual gifts to be used in  building the Kingdom on earth, enabling one to  understand the scriptures, live them out through  fidelity to Jesus Christ and sincere desire to love all people.          Many people are perplexed by why Jesus  who was co-equal to the Father, one without sin  would ask to be baptized by John the lesser. And  this is a great question because the answer reveals   the mystery of Jesus. As the poor, the broken, the  sick and hurting people gathered on the shores to  be baptized by John, Jesus wades into the same  water and takes his place beside them. This is an  amazing moment. Jesus, creator of the universe  openly and without hesitation and unashamed,  stands shoulder to shoulder with sinners. He did  not identify with the pious and smug religious  leaders. No, he identified with the weak, those who  were plagued with fear and anxiety. What other  gods would do this?          As Jesus went down below the waters of  the Jordan, “…as he was praying, heaven was  opened and the Holy Spirit descended on him in  bodily form like a dove. And a voice came from  heaven: “You are my Son, whom I love; with you I  am well pleased” (Luke 3:21-22). In that moment,  God affirmed the divine love and goodness he had  for his Son. God also claims and affirms us as his  sons and daughters in our baptisms. In baptism,  the church declares what has always been true,  that each of us belong to God, and only to God.          In our Western culture, there are many  malignant forces that try to name and claim us. But  through our baptism, God claims us as his own. We  don’t belong to our illnesses, successes or failures.  We don’t belong to our sinful pasts, the hurts and  traumas we have endured. We don’t belong to our  poor choices. And our souls don’t belong to the  advertising moguls of popular culture. We belong  to the God its that simple and yet that profound!  In the name of Jesus who claims us. Amen.  Rev. Dona Johnson |January 13, 2025

Each Of Us Have A Wide-Open Space  Only God Can Fill Submitted to Red Rock News Jan 2, 2025 “He stood me up on a wide-open field; I stood there saved” Psalm 18:19, The Message Rev. Dona Johnson |January 5, 2025 As we step into a new year, we must learn, says Henri Nouwen, “To live each day, each hour, yes, each minute as a new beginning.” Imagine living each day with a day full of promises, a day of second chances, pregnant with new ways to live life, new friends and new adventures. Whatever lies ahead for us in the new year, Christians know that God holds their future. They also know that God’s promise of protection for his people is limitless and can take many forms. Thus, we move into the new year unafraid, for God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love and of sound mind (2 Tim: 17). Whether we find ourselves low in a valley or high on a mountaintop, God has given us courage to actively engage and not retreat from our convictions. Rev. Jacques Philippe, retreat leader and member of the Community of the Beatitudes in France states, “We were not created to lead drab, narrow or constricted lives, but to live in the wide-open spaces.” Christians especially are called to take countless risks, we are not to avoid suffering, but we are called to meet God in the wide-open spaces where salvation waits for us.       David in Psalm 18:2, expresses a beautiful prayer of gratitude for deliverance and victory. David characterizes God’s care for him as a rock that cannot moved, as a fortress, a place of safety where the enemy and evil cannot penetrate, as a shield of protection that comes between us and those who want to harm us and a horn of salvation, a symbol of God’s power and might. David then describes that while hardship and enemies surround him, God’s love brings him out into a spacious (wide-open) place, and he stands there saved, not defeated (18:19).        Spiritually speaking, if we know God is for us, what do we really have to fear (Ro 8:31)? How often do we constrict our lives for fear of the unknown, for fear of failing, for fear that if we confront some truth about ourselves, it might be too painful and open up a can of worms? For many of us the real harm is not outside but inside us – many addictions, relational issues and illnesses have their source in unexplored hurts and unresolved conflict. Chuck DeGroat, a psychologist and pastor believes this may be the year you find out who you really are. Like David, it may be the year that God rescues you from all that constricts you, the false identities and false sense of independence, and place us in a wide-open space where you can see things more clearly—our souls long to be free of our blind spots.Maybe you’ve been living a life of luxury and security, never venturing out beyond the fringe of your comfort zone where things are unpredictable and unfamiliar.             Maybe you’ve been living your entire life through someone else’s successes or expectations, and you suddenly realize you’ve not truthfully lived your life to the fullest. Maybe rather than resist your hardship, you will consent and open yourself to it—welcome it, it’s an amazing teacher. Maybe this year you will find out who God really is—a God who frees you and does not constrict you, a God who leads you away from the crowed path of ego and self-will that leads to stress and strife and instead leads you on the narrow path of Jesus whose grace offers freedom.       What wide-open space will God call you to explore this year? What fear does he want you to confront in order that you might be free of it? What clarity of purpose and clearness in the direction God is calling you to go? Despite the most difficult situations that restrain and restrict our freedom, each person has deep inside a place of freedom, a wide-open space that only God can fill, and no external power can take it away, because God himself is the source. May your new year be blessed with wide-open spaces filled with the spacious grace and favor of God. Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |January 5, 2025

God’s Love Dwells in Us Excerpt from Red Rock News – December 27th, 2024 Rev. Dona Johnson |December 29, 2024 The first words of the Gospel of John 1:1-14 are a text used during the Christmas season. And for good reason. John’s opening proclamation lays the foundation for who Jesus is. John begins his account of Jesus with these words: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1).       John wrote his gospel for everyone—both Jews and non-Jews. As one of Jesus’ 12 disciples, John writes with a great deal of credibility and was an eyewitness to the life and times of Jesus. Brennan Manning once said, “If John were to be asked, “What is your primary identity in life?’ he would not reply, “I am a disciple, an apostle, an evangelist, an author of one of the four gospels,” but rather, “I am the one Jesus loves.” Yes, John was both a disciple and apostle. Yes, he was one of the four evangelists. He also wrote 3 of the epistles and Revelation. But, if Manning is right and I think he is, John would want none of that on his tombstone, Instead, chisel the epitaph: “Here lies the body of the one Jesus loved.”       The “one who Jesus loves”—when you think about it is a profound declaration. Are you feeling loved today? Did you wake up this morning with the joy of Jesus’ love in your heart? When you looked in the mirror this morning, did you say to yourself, “I am the one Jesus loved.” When you look into the faces of others, say, “Here is the one Jesus loves.”       That is truly who I am. And that is who you are. We are not so much defined by what we do but who we are loved by. And God loves us. Jesus loves us so deeply that at times it is very difficult for us to grasp. Why? Probably because we’ve never experienced this type of love before. Deep and abiding love may scare us away. Maybe we don’t love ourselves, maybe our critical voice talks over the goodness and giftedness of God’s love within us. Maybe we have attachment issues with God’s love, and everytime we try to get close to him, or get close to others we sabotage our efforts. Maybe we’re afraid if we trust God, he will somehow abandon us like our parents did or other people who betrayed us. Some of us in order to feel connected to God stay in our heads with God and only intellectualize his promises. His promises thus, never reach our hearts. And thus, live in between doubt and love—not fully at peace, restless.       But, to know in your heart that you are without a doubt loved with great affection by the very God who created the universe, is something marvelous to encounter. It is life-changing.      If you want to know what real love looks like, look no further than the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus. If you want to know who God is, look at Jesus. Jesus reveals the true character of God— one of love, mercy and forgiveness. John declares the Word was God. He was not saying Jesus is identical with God, he was saying that Jesus was so perfectly the same as God in mind, heart and in being that in Jesus we see perfectly what God is like.      John continues with words also found in Genesis “light” (1:4). Again in verse 1:9, John picks up the theme of Christ being light. “The true light that gives light to every man was coming into the world.” What this means for Christians is that they don’t walk blindly in this world but God lights a path ahead of them, and he removes the darkness of sin and death from their lives. Thus, life in Christ is lived on a higher plane because of his unfailing and eternal love for them. Christians are no longer crushed by the weight of the law but we are saved by God’s love, his grace through faith in Jesus (Eph 2:8). For no Christian can perfectly live out the law.      Jesus, a new creation is not brought about by some unknown being but through the very Word of God. And that is how God reveals himself to mankind through his Word. When a person speaks words, it reveals what that person is thinking, his or her character and beliefs. So, the Word of God are God’s thoughts uttered out loud, a window into his purpose, personality and divine nature. Thus, the knowledge of God that the Word brings is not merely information to debate or pontificate—it is Life. In order for God’s power to be made known, on the cross and the empty tomb, God entered time in the birth of Jesus, and that is still the miracle we proclaim today—God’s Word became flesh, in the Christ child to dwell intimately, to love, walk with and to suffer with his people. Among all the world’s wealth and treasures, this is the greatest gift anyone can be given—God loves you. Merry Christmas! Rev. Dona Johnson |December 29, 2024

Christmas Is A Celebration Of God’s Love  For All Humanity  Taken from a Red Rock News Article December 20th, 2024 Rev. Dona Johnson |December 22, 2024 In the Gospel of Luke Chapter 2 we are given the miraculous story of Jesus’ birth, a celebration of God’s love for Israel and, indeed, for all humanity. The biblical account of Jesus’ birth is the announcement of God’s divine plan of a redemption for a world that had been and still is saturated with the sin of power, greed and lust. New Testament professor Joel Green of Asbury Theological Seminary makes the point that Luke is concerned with the balance of power. The Roman Empire through countless conquests and plunder, and through heavy taxation of a conquered people, experienced a time of great peace and prosperity. Luke historically frames Chapter 2 by introducing Octavian Ceasar Augustus whom Roman citizens recognized as their savior, more god than human, and who brought peace to the world (Luke 2:1-3).       So, it is no coincidence that in the midst of this peaceful and yet imbalance of power and corrupt system, Jesus is now presented as the Savior, Lord and redeemer of the world, not Augustus. Through God becoming flesh in the birth of Jesus, people’s hearts were anticipating the coming of God who would bring an end to political dominance and social oppression. This socio-political reversal is at the heart of salvation and Mary makes mention of this reversal in her song about God’s justice and love for his people, “His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty (Luke 1:50-54).       Green continues, “At the birth of Jesus, Luke’s social world was defined around power and privilege made visible in religious purity, family heritage, land ownership, vocation, ethnicity, gender, education and age.” Much like today, there were political, social, and religious structures in place. Where the majority of the population were peasants, this also included those people considered expendable, unclean and degraded. So, the angel’s announcement of the supernatural birth of Jesus, the one who could rescue and save the people who were on the far fringes of the ruling class this was more than astonishing good news!      God brought this good news to the shepherd’s first. By God bypassing the Emperor and going directly to the shepherds, this in itself was a powerful sign that those with power and privilege were already being brought down, while the lowly are lifted up (Luke 1:52).        An angel of the Lord, appeared to the shepherds living in the field. The angel said to them, “Do not be afraid; for see—I bring you good news of great joy for all the people.: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:8-11). The shepherds were peasants located at the bottom rung of the scale of privilege and power. They were unclean and could not observe all the meticulous handwashing rules and rituals. It was to simple men in the fields that God’s message of redemption came first.      The birth of Jesus leaves many of us still pondering how the God of the universe chose to enter this world. The rough, edgy, raw simplicity of the birth of Jesus is a telling reminder that God’s ways are not man’s ways. In fact they are reversed or better yet inverted. The world’s system we construct and have a part in such as our economy, politics, celebrity status and even religious barriers, God’s love, grace and mercy come’s to deconstruct. Christmas is about God’s love for the sinner, his mercy for the suffering and his compassion on the marginalized, and his desire to redeem the entire human family from sin. God’s amazing grace will always be a profound mystery we accept by faith. Merry Christmas everyone!Prayer: Jesus, Son of the one true and living God open my heart even wider than it is right now to the mystery of who you are. Show me your ways and help me to reverse course in the things that don’t bring your Light and Life in my relationships with others and all creation. Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |December 22, 2024

Jesus Is A Companion To The  Marginalized Rev. Dona Johnson |December 15, 2024 In this 3rd Sunday of Advent, we find John the Baptist in  prison. His proclamation of Jesus as the ‘Lamb of God  who takes away the sin of the world’ got him into big  trouble with religious authorities. Now things are not  going well for the prophet. His disciples come to his cell  to inform him that they have seen Jesus in the region.  But John has his doubts. Some discredit John’s faith  because he doubts. But who wouldn’t have doubts? Stuck deep in a prison cell with the narrow walls closing  in on him. In the midst of this cruel punishment, his  heart is shaken. John had no way of knowing if this was  the man he baptized (Luke 7:18-35).         There were many imposters in those days who  claimed they were the messiah. Wanting in the worst  way to know who this man was, John sends two of his  disciples to ask Jesus who he is. But Jesus never directly  answers their question. Instead, Jesus says, “Go back  and report to John what you have seen and heard: The  blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have  leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised,  and the good news is proclaimed to the poor.23 Blessed  is anyone who does not stumble on account of me” (Luke 7:22-23).         Most Christians, unfortunately, do not recognize the significance of Christ’s answer. Thus, it is  not a surprise that John asked this question through his  disciples. And the answer he got from the Lord was to  have an enlightening and healing effect on his intellect,  for if blind see, dead are resurrected etc. then it is clear  that this Messiah is even greater than any political  messiah can be, and if greater, then He is the true  Messiah and not anybody lesser; and if this true Messiah does not promote an earthly political agenda  (John 18:36), then one has no other choice than to  change their mind about the essence of the  Messiahship, and understand that the Kingdom which  the true Messiah is bringing is not a visible one but a  spiritual one (Luke 17:20).        This was a complicated political situation: as is  always the case when the Empire reigns. Israel is  plagued by social inequity, by vast disparities between  the few with wealth and power and the many who are  poor and destitute. There was abusive taxation on the  poor and paranoia about being arrested for the slightest  infraction. In the grand expanse of the Roman Empire,  the Jewish people are but a small and politically  inconsequential group, trying to hold onto their unique  culture and customs while avoiding the disapproving  gaze of those who rule over them.        In answering John’s question, Jesus now expands his messianic identity to include healing and  restoration. The Messiah comes not as conquering king  lording it over on the poor and have-nots. But Jesus  identifies with the people who have been marginalized  by a corrupt system. The true Messiah is not one who  sits in royal luxury, in a palace being served by slaves.  No, Jesus comes as a companion to sit with sinners and  tax collectors. In a great reversal, the Messiah empties  himself of all titles and importance and becomes a  slave, a servant to those who are suffering from sin and  abuse (Col 2:5-11). Jesus explains that he and John are  being condemned for their failure to fit into a  fraudulent system and play the games of the religious  elite. Both John and Jesus were scandalized for refusing  to be aligned with a world system that had grown  corrupt at every level. In the eyes of the system, the  marginalized population were of little value and  expendable.         Since the death and resurrection of Jesus, you  might say Christians have been in a long season of  advent—waiting and watching for the signs of the  second coming and reign of Jesus Christ. As we look out  at the overwhelming corruption in our own world, we  know all too well that we are need of a Savior.        A good question for all of is is: how do our blind  spots make us complicit to the marginalized? In what  ways are our convictions about how God should work in  the world wrong and lead others discouraged — with  God, with others, and/or with ourselves? What type of  messiah are we looking for? A messiah that thinks, talks and behaves like us, or a God who sets up a system  unlike any we know, a system of radical forgiveness,  grace and mercy. Thanks be to God that Jesus Christ is  the one who is a friend and companion to sinners! For  that is good news for all of us!  Rev. Dona Johnson |December 15, 2024

God Gives Us Courage To Face Our Fears Submitted to Red Rock News for 12/13/24 Rev. Dona Johnson |December 8, 2024 With the angel Gabriel’s announcement to Mary that  she, a virgin would conceive a child something  unthinkable, (Luke 1:30-33), with God’s message to  Joseph to not divorce Mary in order to carry out God’s  plan (Matt. 1:20), and with God’s announcement to the  shepherds their long-awaited Savior had been born (Luke 2:8-9), while all of these announcements brought great joy and celebration, they also brought much fear  and panic. In fact, when God approached these chosen  people, his first words to them were “Don’t be afraid”  or “Fear not.” God first calms, reassures and comforts  the people he calls. For who would not be frightened if  he or she were confronted by a God or a heavenly  being?         Fear is a human emotion. Fear is both real or  imagined. Fear begins with those nagging questions that  start out like this: “what if this happens,” or “what if  that happens.” It is the “what ifs” that trip us up. Fear  has a way of building on itself until it immobilizes us  from moving forward. When God calls us to do  something, there is always some amount of fear mixed  with joy and excitement. Many times God calls us into  the very places we fear the most. He also calls us to  speak what we fear speaking, to forgive, and build  relationships with those we dread the most. And why  does God do this? God wants us to grow in faith. To rely  on his power and not simply our own willpower. He also wants us to be free of fear. Naming our fears frees us to  live not frightened of the “what ifs” or distressed over  what we feel is an inconceivable or insurmountable  task. As Jesus said, “With God all things are possible” (Matt. 19:26).          Chris Hall, theologian and author of Desert  Spirituality believes our fears are overcome with  courage. He recalls a time when he was invited to fly to  Bangkok to meet with World Vision, but when he  arrived at the gate, he became so overwhelmed with anxiety that he could not muster up the courage to  board the plane. Hall was too embarrassed to tell  anyone about his fear of flying. He informed his provost  that he did not make the flight. He revealed openly his  fear of flying. Imagine a professional confessing this  fear. What happened next, well, the university and  World Vision got together and paid for Hall to take a  fear of flying class. He discovered his greatest fear was  air turbulence. The pilot teaching the class told him,  “When turbulence occurs it’s not about the airplane,  the airplane can handle it. It’s about the turbulence  inside you.” With further digging, Chris Hall discovered  that his fear of flying was connected to the deep-seeded  fear and horror that struck him as ayoung ma when his  father and mother filed for divorce. The pilot was right!  It wasn’t about the plane at all. The next year, Hall was  called to fly to the Philippines to give another  presentation. Now he peacefully sleeps when flying.        The season of Christmas is about God becoming  flesh to dwell with us, to walk with us, quell the fears  that weigh us down and give us courage to face them.  Our world is weary with fear. Some of us have a fear of  dying or becoming ill. Some of us fear speaking in  public, being alone or abandoned. Some of us fear the  shameful parts of our lives, the sins we’ve committed  and string of broken relationships we’ve left behind.  Some us fear we are not good enough. While others  fear being vulnerable and being judged for their  weaknesses. Too, there are people who fear God and  fear the church. And yes, there are still many of us who  fear flying–aerophobia. The Cleveland Clinic estimates  25 million people have a fear of flying.        What fear(s) do you need to release to God? A  good spiritual practice used to overcome fear, is to  simply pray your fear out loud. Give your fear to God.  Be open. Be honest. Ask God to give you the courage to  overcome your fear. There is so much freedom to be  gained when we face our fears. God can take any one of  our fears and give us his peace in the midst of our  turbulence. In Jesus’ birth, God reaches down and gives us a heart of courage to face them. Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |December 8, 2024

Advent: Preparing for Jesus’ Return  Submitted to Red Rock News for 12/6/24 Rev. Dona Johnson |December 1, 2024 At the beginning of every Advent season, the four weeks before Christmas Day, we are told about a man who suddenly without warning comes out of the backcountry, the wilderness announcing the prophetic news that the Messiah was about to enter the world. This man was John the Baptist. He was a raw sort of burley man who wore a camel hair coat and ate locusts and honey. For many, this news was perplexing and at best somewhat skeptical. For others it was the hope they had been long been waiting for.       For about a thousand years, from Moses to Malachi, God spoke to his people by sending them prophets. After Malachi there was a 450-year prophetic silence, a silence that was finally broken with the first prophet of the New Testament period, John the Baptist.       The prophet was chosen and called by God to deliver a message many did not want to hear— repent of your sin. “The voice of one crying out in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord; make his paths straight” (Luke 3:3-4)?       At this time the society had grown secure, prosperous and luxurious, yet in imminent danger of perishing from hidden, festering disease; and a religious community which was fused to hopeless perversion and yet still contained the germs or a possible regeneration. Alfred Edersheim author of The Life and Times of Jesus suggests, in the Roman world, there had grown a great need for a savior. With a population of about 2 million, a good half of the people were enslaved in poverty and inflicted with mass cruelty and oppression, while the other half engaged in demonstrative corruption. Religion, philosophy and society had run through every stage into despair. There was a hyper indulgence in astrology, magic, oracles and divination of all sorts of gods (idols).  As society’s aspirations increasingly turned inward, interests in self-achievement and with the hyper-indulgence of every passion, atheism and despair increased. Does anything here sound familiar?       Luke who was a historian, liked to lay out his gospel of the life and times of Jesus Christ in great detail and in chronological order. Like tells us that John the Baptist’s announcement of a new messiah was in the fifteenth reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, Herod was ruler of the region of Galilee while the priesthood consisted of Annas and Caiaphas (Luke 3:1-2). Because of Luke’s detailed account, scholars believe this would date John’s ministry 28 to 29 A.D. This makes sense, because Luke speaks of Christ being about thirty years old at the time of his baptism and the start of his public ministry.      John proclaims a baptism of repentance that leads to release from sins. Release (Greek aphesis) is the same word that Jesus uses twice in Luke 4:18 to describe his mission: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me … to proclaim release to the captives and … to let the oppressed go free … ” The release or forgiveness that follows repentance does not undo the consequence of past sins, but it does unbind people from them.      So if were to invite John the Baptist into our living rooms today, what message would he have for us? The prophet might say to us, “Be extremely attentive. Don’t despair. Yes, it’s been a long time. It’s been 2000 years since Jesus’ life, death and resurrection, but don’t be fooled. Don’t give up waiting. Don’t harden your heart with the ways of this world—greed, power and self-centeredness. Stay the course. Christ with all power and glory will come again, he will appear in our neighborhoods unexpectedly and suddenly to set everything right, to bring justice and mercy, to take what is crooked and corrupt in this life, to take our pain and suffering and redeem it for good. God will restore what is broken and make it whole again.”      In the meantime, we are to live in the world but not of the world. We are to live a life of true confession, repentance and forgiveness. We are to be spiritually responsible with our faith—living it out in genuine and authentic ways. John’s voice still echoes and penetrates our culture today— prepare your hearts. Make room for the Messiah— He is coming again to rebuild, redeem and restore his Kingdom. Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |December 1, 2024

Part 5 of the series ‘Desert Spirituality’  Gratitude Begets Gratitude Submitted to Red Rock News for 11/29/24 Rev. Dona Johnson |November 24, 2024 Are you feeling grateful this Thanksgiving? If so, what are you grateful for? Henri Nouwen suggests gratitude is the most fruitful way of deepening your consciousness that you are not an “accident,” but a divine choice. “It is important to realize how often we have had chances to be grateful and have not used them. When someone is kind to us, when an event turns out well, when a problem is solved, a relationship restored, a wound healed, there are very concrete reasons to offer thanks: be it with words, with flowers, with a text, a card, a phone call, or just a gesture of affection. . . ”Every time we decide to be grateful it will be easier to see new things to be grateful for.        Gratitude is one of the identifying virtues for any follower of Jesus Christ. An enemy of gratefulness focusing on what we don’t have. Better said, living a life of lack. Maybe someone or something in your life is not meeting your expectations. So, rather than focus on the goodness in a person or situation, we become obsessed with what we feel is lacking, and that morphs into feelings ungrateful and resentment—a vicious cycle.        Sometimes we can become so focused on what we think is wrong around us that we lose sight of God’s blessings. We develop an attitude that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence that stymies a life of gratitude. We become less grateful and thus less gracious and this leads to complaining. This can happen without our ever realizing it. Who wants to be around a person who complains all the time and a person who is not gracious? Gratitude is the opposite of resentment, in Latin it means gratia, favor. Gratitude is not an occasional ‘thanks be to God,’ but the way of the heart, a heart turned towards God’s favor.  Gratefulness takes away our fatigue and the apathy we often feel when we become distracted with discontent. Much of the discontent we feel towards others flows out of the dissatisfaction we have with ourselves.        But moving away from resentment requires moving toward something that is life-giving, and that something is gratitude. Gratitude looks towards the future, towards what could be and sees new possibilities. What are some of the little things you are grateful for? Maybe it’s having that first cup of hot coffee in the morning. What about a beloved friend who is always there to support you? What about the breathtaking view of the mountains out your window? What about thanking God that you have eyes to see, ears to hear, legs to move and hands to grasp?       Gratitude…goes beyond the “mine” and “thine” and claims the truth that all of life is a pure gift, a gift from God to be cherished in ourselves and in others. In the end “gratitude” is a choice we make.Jesus modeled gratefulness perfectly! He continually, raised his head and eyes upward thanking his heavenly Father, whether it was multiplying a few loaves of bread and fish to feed 5000 people (Matt. 14:19), or breaking bread with the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Luke24:30), or the miracle of raising Lazarus from the dead (John 11:41). Again, before Jesus was to be arrested and crucified, Jesus gave holy communion to his disciples at the meal of the Passover—the Last Supper. He lifted the bread and cup towards heaven and gave thanks (Matt. 26:27). In fact, in many congregations, every Sunday, holy communion is celebrated at the climax of each worship service. It is called the Great Thanksgiving—because it is “great,” it is God’s amazing grace penetrating the human heart in the bread and the cup. It is a foretaste of the gloriously feast to come for all God’s people.       So, as image bearers of Jesus, on this weekend before Thanksgiving, wherever you are in life and in whatever situation you find yourself, reach out to someone and share something of yourself with others— be kind, be generous and look for the goodness of God in others. Celebrate life, the living. You have a Savior, Christ the Lord who adores you. And in him, you have more than you could ever imagine. Remember, gratitude begets gratitude, just as love begets love. May boundless blessings of God fill your heart with gratitude! Rev. Dona Johnson |November 24, 2024

Part 4 of the series ‘Desert Spirituality’: The spiritual practice of proximity  overpowers greed  Submitted to the Red Rock News for 11/22/24 Rev. Dona Johnson |November 17, 2024 Greed is a vice that distorts the natural desires that, when unchecked, lead to significant personal and communal harm writes author Rebecca DeYoung. Greed deals with the compulsive consumption of material wealth. A good example, you may have a huge nest egg of financial investments stored away, but there is always this nagging voice that says, “Oh if I could have just a little bit more.” We accumulate because of an underlying insecurity. We fear that we will run out of money before leave this world. And this is surely a legitimate fear. And yet the more we have seems to create more anxiety and dissatisfaction, a vicious cycle.       Henri Nouwen makes an interesting point; the two main enemies of the spiritual life are anger and greed. “Greed and anger are brother and sister of the false self—the self we fabricate by the compulsions of an unredeemed world.” Maybe deep down, we are angry because we are not the people we want to be. So we keep accumulating more of just about everything in hopes that we will quell the unspoken dissatisfaction we have with ourselves. Nouwen continues, “Anger paralyzes a generous heart.”       So what do we do with this dilemma? Turning to Scripture, it’s surprising to learn that out of Jesus’ 38 parables, in 16 of them he mentions money and possessions more than faith and prayer (Matt. 18:23-25; 25:14-30; Mark 10:17-30…). Why? He knew all too well the weakness of the human heart. We want eternity but we also want the worldly benefits of what money can buy for us right now! But Jesus’ concern was not about our having money per se, but our obsession with it. And to be overly focused on money endangers our spiritual lives.       If greed is the vice, then generosity is its virtue. Generosity is a fruit of the spiritual life. Christians among all people, are called to be over-the-top generous with their money and possessions towards the church, other Christians and all who suffer. Looking back centuries ago, several of the early church fathers who fled the distractions of ecclesiastical life, made pilgrimages to the desert to be closer with God. They intentionally took vows of poverty, lived meagerly to get away from the earthly compulsions of greed, money and living a false Christian witness. St. Basil the Great came out of his desert experience after twenty years so transformed by the voice of the God, that he vowed to use his life, his God-given natural abilities and resources to help the suffering, to care for the orphans and widows. In 386 A.D. he built one of the first hospitals. He also went on to build orphanages and homes for the elderly.      Chris Hall, author of the video series “Desert Spirituality” asks: If Basil were to sit with us in our living rooms right now, what advice or spiritual practice might he suggest that we undertake to become more generous? I believe he would suggest the spiritual practice of ‘proximity.’ Proximity, to be close to and not distant from people who suffer. In other words, to be so deeply moved by the suffering of others that you feel it in your bones. It opens your heart and opens your purse strings. When you truly take in the suffering and poverty of people, animals and creation, you can’t help but give, and give generously. When you understand that their suffering by the grace of God is not yours—it moves you to radical action. Reformer Martin Luther was on point when he said, “People go through three conversions: The conversion of their head, their heart, and their pocketbook. Unfortunately, not all at the same time.”      Thanksgiving is almost upon us. What is the Lord asking you to see that you are not seeing? Each of us can become a more generous person, holding what we possess lightly. The result of which is freedom— freedom from the sin of our own greed and abundance for others.Prayer: Heavenly Father, you are so extremely generous, you hold nothing back. Lord make me a generous person, if there is any greed within me, cleanse me and make me whole. Amen. Rev. Dona Johnson |November 17, 2024