Lenten Reflection - Day 40: by Marie Buss

READING: Mark 14: 12-31

Sometimes it's hard to be faithful disciples. As hard as we try and as much as we believe, sometimes we still mess up. It's amazing to believe that Jesus still loves us. Jesus ate meals with sinners all through his ministry, but can you imagine sitting down to your last meal knowing the person sitting next to you would betray you that very day? What about going through your last day of freedom having your best friends telling you they got your back and would be with you every step of the way knowing full well that you would end up on your own?

There's a song out there by Ray Botlz titled "Does He still feel the Nails." Although I'm not THE disciple who turned Jesus over to be crucified, and I'm not THE disciple Jesus said would deny him three times before the sun rose, sometimes I'm the disciple who makes a bad decision or doesn't voice my beliefs. That's when I think of this song and the lyrics "Does he still feel the nails, every time I fail" it straightens me out a little. With this kind of guilt on our consciences, it is so wonderful to know we have such a freedom of forgiveness and know that no matter what we did or did not do that week, we can still count being invited to have supper with our Savior.

Dear God¸ thank you for your Son and for the forgiveness that came with his death and resurrection. We stumble sometimes and we know that it hurts you to see us act this way. Help us to live as Jesus taught us. Amen

Lenten Reflection - Day 39: by Clara Oostenbrink

READING: Mark 14: 1-9

My spiritual story was not an epiphany, but rather a journey of growth and understanding. Born and raised in a Christian home, I always believed and loved God; but somehow felt that there was something missing. Perhaps it was the “warm and fuzzy feeling” that so many Christians have. In my youth, I didn’t have the opportunity to develop my faith through SS or Bible study due to the lack of teachers.

When on my own for the very first time, I felt I couldn’t do it alone and needed God’s help. I started reading the Bible, not fully understanding what I was reading, but this faded over time. A new friend asked me one day if I had ever invited Jesus into my heart. I was surprised and confess, even a bit offended, as I considered this a very private matter between God and myself. I had never heard about this, and didn’t think it was necessary, as I considered myself already a long time Christian. When I realized that she was serious, she then asked me if I wanted to do it then. I was sure I had nothing to loose, so, we prayed and I received Jesus in my heart.

As time went by, I became very involved in Church, yet my search continued, until 15 years later, when someone shared BSF (Bible Study Fellowship) with me. She stated that “It was the best thing she had ever done for herself”.

BSF is an in depth, Interdenominational Bible Study, it requires daily study. Almost 400 ladies meet studying one book of the Bible per year. The Bible became alive for me! It has given me a greater understanding of God’s will and allowed me to develop a personal relationship with Him by getting to know Jesus Christ in all of His fullness. I have now great happiness and inner peace, and have finally developed that” fuzzy feeling” by building a personal relationship with the Lord, through studying His Word. Today, I can say that “BSF is the best thing I ever did for myself”. I realize also the importance of inviting Him into my heart; not only had I everything to gain, but also so much to loose. I have a passion to serve Him and receive great joy in spreading the Good News.

My husband, Johan, has also joined the BSF men’s group, and spiritually we are now on the same wave length. What a Blessing!

Lenten Reflection - Day 38: by Johan Oostenbrink

READING: Philippians 2: 5-11

I grew up in Holland, in a large family where Bible reading was custom at meal times and going to church was a must, even twice a day, when I was a kid. I would define faith in my earlier life as: starting to believe in God on my own and being more conscious of the fact that God had a personal interest in me and purpose for me. This awareness started to develop when I was probably 14 years old or so.

During the years following I questioned many things, for example what the future would hold for me, and I was thinking of noble causes for which God could use me. How would I fit in his plan and how would I get there. Through the course of high school and college, these questions never got clearly answered so I let life run its course, and accepted whatever would come my way. This led me to serving 2 years in the “Peace Corps” in Cameroon, and spending another 3 1/2 years in Brazil. I didn’t worry much during those years, though I was curious what the future would hold. Until one day in Brazil, when I decided to quit working on farms, a job in the irrigation field became reality. There was excitement, thankfulness and a lot of change in my life. I was growing up fast and found Clara, my wife, and we ended up in California a few years later and eventually moved to Florida.

I have worked many years for the same company in different fields, but ended up in sales 9 years ago, living in Florida and working in the Great Lakes area! It comes with a busy schedule and ‘pressure’ to reach sales goals.

About this same time I joined BSF Bible Study. It has greatly helped me to apply the Bible to my life, guide my life and keep it balanced between work, family and time devoted to church. I used to travel on Mondays, but since BSF was on Monday night, I would now leave on Tuesday and there was little interference with my work. BSF has two objectives: for a person to develop a closer relationship with God, and to help out in your local church, which led me to teaching a Sunday school class. As Lutherans we believe in the priesthood of all believers and I see the need to be part of that. In my travels there are also many opportunities to share my ‘faith’ with others.

I would say that ‘faith’ today is based on trust and obedience. I came across the following verse today, while preparing for Sunday school, which applies to my life though I am a sinner like anybody else. “Continue to work out your salvation because it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose” (Philippians 2:13).

Lenten Reflection - Day 37: Viviana Rey-Palmer

READING: Psalm 31: 9-16

But I trust in you, O Lord;
I say, “You are my God.”
My times are in your hand;
deliver me from the hand of my
enemies and persecutors.
Let your face shine upon your
servant;
Save me in your steadfast love.
Psalm 31; 14-16

Why do I not question God’s existence? I stand back and I evaluate my body. I contemplate
-how perfect my hands grasp;
-how perfectly my legs walk;
-how perfect my rational thought process is.
And I know God is. I live my life everyday with a strong faith in God; and as a result there is no single moment that stands out.

Lenten Reflection - Day 36: by Shirley Evans

READING: Isaiah 50: 4-9a

“The Sovereign Lord has given me an instructed tongue,
to know the word that sustains the weary….”

As I’ve grown in the Word of God, I’ve been taught to be direct in prayer, to ask for something specifically, not to be general (although that’s OK too). So this is a prayer story and a faith story.

Throughout our lives together, my husband and I were sailors – sailing small boats in lakes and oceans near where we lived. We sailed small Corps of Engineers lakes in the Midwest, the Great Lakes, the Atlantic, the Caribbean, the Gulf of Mexico and enjoyed our weekends and vacations on the water. When it came time to quit sailing, we needed to sell our boat – one we loved and used for many years. It had often become our home away from home on long distance cruises.

We listed the boat with a boat broker and anxiously hoped for a quick sale. Our days of waiting turned into weeks and then into months. During this time my husband’s health continued to decline. My anxiety increased as time passed.

One morning as I drove to work, I said a prayer asking that the boat sell soon – thus making my life less complicated as Carnot’s health worsened. (Is that a specific enough prayer, Lord?)
That same morning in the middle of a meeting at work, I got a phone call and briefly left the meeting. The broker had an offer, close to our asking price, and the boat was sold!

I felt like the Holy 2x4 had hit me – it’s that submission thing that Pastor Nathan is telling us. Why hadn’t I prayed for help before? Why is it that we are surprised when He answers our prayers?
…”it is the Sovereign Lord who helps me.” (Is. 50:9a)

Lenten Reflection - Day 35: by Troy & Angela Goetz

READING: John 12: 20-33

“Why don’t we pray together for God to bring us a baby?” When my husband spoke these words, I knew our faith was real. These words took both of us by surprise since neither of us was very religious. We had been trying to have a baby for some time. I thought for sure I was being punished by God because of sins from the past.

Troy always believed, yet didn’t feel a need to attend Church. He felt it was more casual, he knew the basics. I wasn’t sure I believed, and felt going to church would help me get there. Once we started going, we both felt this peace, this wholeness that we hadn’t felt before. Suddenly it became o.k. to talk about God and this even brought us closer. So when Troy asked me to pray with him for the first time in our 13 years together, we both knew what faith truly felt like. We didn’t know what we were missing until we came to know God and each other in this way.

I no longer think I was being punished, but brought to have a relationship with God that I couldn’t imagine before this time in our lives. As for that prayer, it was answered and we have beautiful baby Christopher. We like to consider him our little ‘miracle of faith’.

Lenten Reflection - Day 34: by Renee Rose

READING: Hebrews 5: 5-10

The two words that came to me when I read this verse and other readings related to it, were responsibility and obedience. When first thinking of these words I would describe myself as a highly responsible individual. I would also say that I was fairly obedient as a teenager and even in my adult life I am moderately to highly obedient. Until writing this I never thought about this further, but as I wrote this I found myself asking how I would apply these two words to my faith. The bottom line is I fall short. I am sure that we can all identify areas that we fall short in our responsibilities and obedience in life, but perhaps especially in our faith. Perhaps like me you are struggling with the conflict between responsibility to your life and responsibility to your faith and making it grow. Where do the two meet or do they? What do I know for sure? Christ is with me and I have known that all my life. I have never questioned that. I also know that he is pushing me to make the next move but why am I holding back?

Christ I pray that you give us the strength to be obedient and responsible in our faith and give us the strength to make the next move. Amen.