Lent is a time of reflection, soul-searching and taking stock of our lives. For thousands of years, religious people have made journeys of the heart as a way of gaining perspective and insight. In early Christianity these journeys were often into the wilderness (desert). During this Lenten season we are using the image of a pilgrimage or journey to guide us in our Lenten reflections and thoughts. 

Following the path God intends is not always easy. Sometimes our family or friends discourage us from following what we know to be the path God intends for us. Sometimes we encounter other obstacles — problems of one kind or another that can discourage us from following God’s intended path. At such times it is difficult to continue on our journey. We can even wind up questioning whether we are truly hearing God’s call for our lives.

These kinds of moments feel a lot like driving down the road only to see a sign “road closed ahead.” The difference is normally when the road is closed there are detour signs to guide us around. When family or friends are the detour, however, we aren’t so likely to easily discover detour signs!

At such a time, Scripture can be a help to us in finding our way. So can talking with a mature Christian friend. No matter what help we may seek, however, when we know the path God intends and we encounter obstacles we need to find a way around. We need to discover the detour that will keep us on the path God intends. We need to continue our journey with God despite the obstacles we discover in our path.

Lent is a time of reflection, soul-searching and taking stock of our lives. For thousands of years, religious people have made journeys of the heart as a way of gaining perspective and insight. In early Christianity these journeys were often into the wilderness (desert). During this Lenten season we are using the image of a pilgrimage or journey to guide us in our Lenten reflections and thoughts. 

In Luke 4:1-2 we read that Jesus went into the wilderness. Like many spiritual leaders of his day, this was both a journey and a time to dig deep into his soul. We are told that He went into the wilderness after his baptism and there in the wilderness He was tempted. In that wilderness, Jesus had the opportunity to reflect upon God’s intended path for his life and on his true self.However, it isn’t just Jesus or early Christians, who find themselves in a wilderness. Granted, we are not likely to withdraw to the desert; but we often can find ourselves wandering in our own wilderness, looking for our true selves. We too can face temptations to stray from the path God intends for our lives. 

At times such wilderness places, such wandering, such temptation, may leave us feeling like all is lost. Yet the good news of the gospel is that Jesus himself has been to such places. The good news is that “all who wander are not lost.” The good news is that in the wandering we may find our true selves.

For it was there, in the wilderness faced with temptations, that Jesus affirmed his calling and his true self. It was there, in the wilderness, that Jesus committed himself yet again to walking the path God had laid out for him.  

Today is Transfiguration Sunday. It is the day we recall how Jesus was transfigured on the mountain — how the glory of God which was his was revealed to the disciples who were there with him. 

Yet if Transfiguration Sunday is only about the revealing of Jesus’ glory, it has little to do with us. Oh, it is appropriate for us to worship and revere Jesus — and the transfiguration is clear evidence of that. But Paul insists the transfiguration of Jesus shows us something much more personal than simply Jesus’ divine glory.

Paul says the revelation of Jesus’ divine glory shows us something about what God wants us to be like. That’s not to say we become divine. Rather it is to say that just as God’s glory lived in Jesus, the glory of God is to live in us through the Holy Spirit. 

This is what it means for us as Christians to be transformed into the image of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 3:18). It means that unlike Moses, whose face alone reflected God’s glory, our entire life is to reflect God’s glory. God’s glory is to be seen in all we do, all we say, all we are. To put it simply, we are to become more and more like Christ — the one who doesn’t just reflect God’s glory, as Moses did, but embodies God’s glory. 

In life we all seek to move from one kind of glory to another. So, what kind of glory are you seeking? The glory of this world or the glory that comes from being formed into the image of Christ?

Many years ago, Charles Schulz suggested happiness is a warm puppy. More recently Lisa Swerling has written a book called Happiness Is… which lists “500 things to be happy about.”

Our society has a lot of ideas about what will make a person happy — and we do a lot of serious chasing after happiness. Even our Declaration of Independence places a premium on happiness, listing “the pursuit of happiness” as one of the inalienable rights of all persons.

Yet what does the Bible say constitutes happiness? What does Jesus say? When we look at the Beatitudes, whether in Matthew’s version (Matthew 5:1-12) or Luke’s version (Luke 6:20-26), we are likely to respond, “That’s happiness? You have to be kidding!”

The fact is much of what Scripture says constitutes happiness doesn’t sound all that appealing to us — poverty, mourning, persecution. Yet there is a real wisdom — and a real happiness — in those things. The happiness comes from living a life that is in sync with God’s will and ways — a life that knows we are dependent upon God. That it isn’t wealth, or the comforts of this life, or the amusements so many pursue which brings truly lasting happiness. That the “pursuit of happiness” in those things will ultimately not lead to happiness but disappointment.

Scripture invites us to choose another way. To pursue the true happiness that comes when we depend upon God. To learn to put our trust in God. To rely upon the one who made us and all that is — and who loves and cares for our true happiness more than we could possibly imagine. 

When adversity strikes us we may look to find support in any one of a number of different ways. Sometimes we turn to family and friends for support and assistance. We may turn to professionals to provide us with guidance and coping skills. We may turn to our own wits, stamina, gumption and inventiveness to get us out of the situation. We may even turn to all of these.

However, there is one resource we can turn to in every situation of adversity — God. Over and over in Scripture we are told that God is “our refuge and our strength.” We are reminded of God’s faithfulness to us and God’s love for us. We are given vivid images of God’s care and provision for all of his creation — including us.

Consider for a moment Jesus’ reminder that not a sparrow dies without God knowing about it; and the fact we are much more important than sparrows. Or that even the hairs of our heads are numbered. Such images remind us beyond all doubt of God’s interest in our lives and our well-being.

Or consider the fact that Jesus came and lived among us as one of us. As Paul puts it in Philippians, Jesus came among us, becoming poor for our sakes in order that we might become rich through him. What more proof of God’s loving care for us could we ask than his love for us in Jesus?

If God loves us this much and is this faithful in his love for us, we can surely turn to God in any time of adversity trusting that we can safely lean upon Him. God is the one we can safely lean upon that no matter what is happening in our lives. He will always care for us. 

Most of us wish, at least occasionally, God would speak to us. We may feel that ways especially when we are in doubt about a decision. At such times we are likely to wish God would simply tell us what to do.

At other times we really DON’T want God to speak to us. It may be we know we are doing something that is “questionable” or we feel God would be speaking to us with disappointment and/or judgment. 

The fact is, however, that few of us hear God speaking to us as Moses did. We don’t hear voices coming from burning bushes (or anywhere else), instead we are more likely to struggle to hear God at all. Of course, sometimes we hear God through creation. The beauty of creation can speak to us of God’s love and power.

While many of us struggle to hear God speak, some of us, at least once, in our lives may experience a profound sense of God actually talking us. But more often we have, at best, vague feelings of what God is saying. 

I wonder sometimes if that is because we aren’t taking time to listen. If we have gotten so wrapped up in our telling God what we want and feel we need that we aren’t quiet enough to hear God’s still, small voice. Over the years I’ve found that to be true in my life. I have to consciously decide I am going to be quiet and listen for God’s voice. I have to be willing to WAIT for God to speak because God seldom talks to me as soon as I become quiet. In fact, I may have to spend a lot of time and many periods of time in silence before I hear God speaking to me. Yet, when God does, what God says to me has always been something worth the wait.

It’s easy to compare ourselves to others and come up with long lists of things we can’t do — or can’t do as well as someone else we know. It can be a lot harder to look at ourselves and honestly acknowledge the things we can do — and do well. 

Yet that is what we are called to do. We are called to look for the spiritual gifts God has given us, not to make a long list of the gifts we haven’t received. When we do that, we discover that each one of us has something we can contribute.

Granted, some of us have gifts that “stand out” while some have gifts that are more “in the background.” But each and every one of us has at least one gift. And despite the differences in how “visible” the exercising of our gift may be, the truth is each and every gift is valuable. Each and every gift is needed for this church to fulfill the ministry and mission God has given it.

So, what is your gift? How might you use it to help build up the ministry and mission of the congregation? If those questions sound a bit like the questions asked by a career counselor — they are in some ways! God invites us to explore the gifts He has given us and discover the ways we can use them to build up the church, to strengthen our ministry and mission.

The fact is, the pastor doesn’t have all the gifts the church needs. No pastor can “do it all.” All pastors have not only strengths but also weaknesses. It takes the whole congregation — every member — to enable us to be and do all God calls us to be and do. 

So, what’s your gift? How might you use it to help build up the ministry and mission of this congregation?

J. B. Phillips wrote a popular book entitled Is Your God Too Small? Another more recent book is entitled Is Your God Big Enough? I find myself pondering these two questions as I consider the anxieties and fears of many Christians these days. 

Is your God too small? Is your God so small He is unable to handle the trends and realities of the world in which we live? Is your God too small to ensure the continued existence of the Christian faith, no matter what may be the current political and cultural trends?

Is your God big enough? Is your God big enough to keep you safe, even in a world that to you may at times seem hostile? Is your God big enough to ensure you are able to be faithful, no matter what conditions may prevail in our world?

It seems to me one of the challenges that faces us as Christians in America at this time is believing in a God who is big enough. A God who is big enough to redeem and save — no matter what else may be going on in the world. A God who is big enough He is in control of history, no matter what may seem to be the current cultural or political trends. A God who is with us every step of the way and will enable us to remain faithful even as we pass through the difficult times.

Is your God too small? Is your God too small to be the one who is the redeemer of the world? Is your God big enough? Is your God big enough that He is able to redeem all of history? What size is your God? 

Epiphany. Such a strange word. In our world we tend to think of it as something that just comes to us — a flash of insight that comes out of the blue. 

Yet in Scripture, in the language of the Church, epiphany is about the revelation of God. It is about humans coming to see God, such as when Moses saw God in the burning bush. Within the church Epiphany is God showing himself to us. 

Today is called “Epiphany.” It is the last Sunday in the Christmas season and it is the Sunday we celebrate the coming of the magi (astrologers) to worship the Christ child. It is the day we remember the revelation of God’s grace offered to everyone — even Gentile astrologers. Even you and me.

And it is a day for us to reflect on to whom and where God might be revealing himself today. Epiphany is a day to recognize the broadness of God’s grace — a grace that reached out beyond the boundaries of God’s chosen people in the Old Testament (the Jews) to include Gentiles (all non-Jews), despite the barriers the Jews raised against this. A grace that still reaches out beyond all the barriers and boundaries we might erect. A grace that includes everyone — even our enemy!

As we celebrate Epiphany — God revealing himself to us — let us also take the time to consider the question, “To whom might God be revealing himself today? Who might be today’s magi, the unexpected ones who have come to see the wonder of God’s work of grace among us this day?”