Brooke Holt

Psalm 32:8-9: “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule, without understanding, which must be curbed with bit and bridle, or it will not stay near you.”

The Lord promises to lead us in his ways. Just as an earthly father longs to teach his children, to guide them into maturity and to protect them along the way, so the heavenly Father longs to do the same for us. The God of the universe cares enough to direct our steps.

Just as earthly children often resist the guidance of their fathers, we can resist the guidance of our heavenly Father. In this passage, the Lord warns us not to be like the horse or mule. These can be stubborn animals that naturally resist training. The bit and bridle are used to curb these animals, to keep them close to their owner.

How does the Lord need to curb you? How do you move away from him? Can you take some time today to honestly assess your life to see if there is rebellion to the leading of the Lord?

The heavenly Father loves you more than any earthly father ever could. His guidance will lead you into his abundant life. Will you surrender to his guidance today?

Psalm 32:3-4: “For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of summer.”

Since Adam and Eve, we have seen that sin makes people want to run and hide from God. We want to cover our sin and pretend that it is not there. God sees. We know what we have done. Denial does more harm than good as the weight of our sin and guilt can feel crushing to us.

Our merciful God offers us another way. His invitation is for us to confess our sins, to ask for forgiveness, and then to receive his grace. His forgiveness restores and heals us.

How do you deal with your sin? Do you run and hide and thus waste away under the burden of your sin, or do you move into the forgiveness of the Lord? No matter what you have done, the Lord is there with open arms ready to receive you, ready to forgive you, ready to heal you.

May we run into his arms of love this Lenten season! Oh God, give us grace to see our sin, the ability to confess it and turn from it, so that we can be set free to glorify you.  

Psalm 32:1-2: “Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.”

We are the blessed ones who have their sins forgiven and covered. Jesus’ blood washes us clean so that the Lord can find no iniquity in us. Instead of iniquity, he sees the righteousness of Christ.

God sees us through Jesus – what a gift! Now, we have the calling to live like Jesus. In order to live like Jesus, we have to constantly pray that he would create in us a spirit with no deceit. This is to safeguard ourselves from the deception of the enemy and the sinful desires of our flesh.

The Lenten season is the ideal time to learn to deny our flesh, to ask God to search our hearts and minds for any deceit, and to allow him to work a new purity within us.

Oh Lord, we thank you for the covering of Jesus and his righteousness. Create in us clean hearts and right spirits, spirits without any deceit.

Genesis 3: 1: “Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, ‘Did God say, “You shall not eat from any tree in the garden?”’”

So much temptation in our lives begins with questioning God: Did he really say…? Is he really good? Is he truly for me? There is an enemy of our souls. That enemy would love to convince us that God’s Word is not trustworthy and true. He plants doubts. We have the choice of how to interact with those doubts. We can take them to God’s Word to see if they line up with his truth, or we can entertain them and choose our way, the enemy’s way, over God’s way.

One way leads to life and the other to death. While Adam and Eve’s sin led to physical death, our sin leads to spiritual death. Sin separates us from the presence of God and keeps us from experiencing God’s best for us.

The good news is that God made a way for Adam and Eve. He provided covering for their sin even though their relationship with him completely changed. He provides the covering for our sin through the blood of Jesus Christ. Because of Jesus, we will never be cast out of his presence; however, we can still miss his best plan for us when we choose to doubt and not obey.

If you experience this questioning of God, you are human. The important thing to consider is what you will do in that time of questioning. Will you honor God, check his Word, and choose to submit to him, or will you allow the enemy to take you off track, out of his good plan and purpose for you?

This Lent, let’s ask God to help us recognize the lies and choose his truth.

Psalm 103:11-14: “For as the heavens are high above the earth, so is his mercy great upon those who fear him. As far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our sins from us.”

Why are we called to see our sin, lament our sin and to repent of it? Because sin keeps us from God’s very best for us. His desire is to see us set free from the sin. With repentance comes restoration. With restoration comes freedom. We are no longer bound to the sin that held us. In God’s mercy, when you confess your sin to him and ask for his forgiveness, he removes that sin from you, as far as the east is from the west.

That is the love of God, the mercy of God, the grace of God. Do you choose to embrace this forgiveness of the Lord? Do you choose to live free from your sin or do you continue to remind yourself of what you have done or of who you think you are?

Read the next words of this Psalm: “As a father cares for his children, so does the Lord care for those who fear him. For he himself knows how we are made; he remembers that we are dust” (103:13-14). The Lord knows why you do what you do. He has incredible compassion for you. He sent his Son so that you can be forgiven and free.

Father, thank you for the amazing gifts you have given us in your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. Forgive us when we deny those gifts and help us, through your Holy Spirit, to fully receive the forgiveness, healing, and freedom that come through him. Amen.

Isaiah 58:6-9: “Is not this the fast that I choose; to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house: when you see the naked, to cover them, and not to hide yourself from your own kin? Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up quickly; your vindicator shall go before you, the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer; you shall cry for help, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’”

During these 40 days of Lent, we can start focusing on the outward demonstrations of our faith. In this passage from the book of Isaiah, the Lord emphasizes that he is not focused on just fasting for fasting’s sake. He wants the fasting, the praying, the meditating to result in a change of heart. This change of heart will be manifested in how we care for his people. Lent is supposed to be a time of introspection; however, we cannot stay in that place. The introspection is to lead to transformation of our characters and our behaviors. With that transformation, we are to serve those in need; to work for justice; to see people healed and set free, to do the work that Jesus did when he dwelt among us.

When we move into the Lord’s work, we will know his presence and help. How do you see your spiritual disciplines resulting in work for the Kingdom?

Joel 2:12-13: “Yet even now, says the Lord, return to me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; rend your hearts and not your clothing. Return to the Lord, your God, for he is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love.”

As we enter into the 40 days of Lent, we are called to remember Christ’s journey to the cross as well as the 40 days he spent fasting in the wilderness. Just as Joel spoke to the Israelites, so the Lord speaks to us today. He calls us to a time of fasting and repentance. While this process is never the most comfortable or enjoyable, it is a process that leads to forgiveness, to healing, and to restoration to the Lord.

In the wilderness, in his ministry, and especially in his death, Jesus denied the desires of the flesh in order to submit to the desires of his Father. That is our calling as well.

Are fasting and repenting part of your Lenten experience? How can you implement these practices even more so that you can move even deeper into the love, forgiveness and healing of the Lord?

Ash Wednesday

The Collect: “Almighty and everlasting God, you hate nothing you have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of you, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”

After committing his grievous sin with Bathsheba, David prays to the Lord to create a new and contrite heart within him. Like David, we all fall short of the glory of God, we all sin, and we all need the Lord to soften our hearts, to make them new and holy before him. How will you use the 40 days of Lent to allow the Lord to do this work in your heart?

“We did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we had been eyewitnesses of his majesty. For he received honor and glory from God the Father when that voice was conveyed to him by the Majestic Glory, saying, ‘This is my Son, my Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.’ We ourselves heard this voice come from heaven, while we were with him on the holy mountain.” 2 Peter 1:16-21

Peter writes about his experience with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. He longs for his readers to understand what he saw with his own eyes and heard with his own ears. Jesus was glorified in the presence of Peter, James, and John. Not only did they see his glory, but the Father affirmed that Jesus was truly the Son of God, the promised deliverer of his people.

Jesus, as the Son of God, changes everything! After Pentecost, Peter’s mission was to spread the good news about Jesus. His life and work radically changed. Just as Jesus had spoken to Peter, his life became about fishing for men instead of fish.

Do you understand the good news of Jesus Christ? Has it radically changed you like it did Peter? How do you spread this good news? How has it changed your work, your relationships, your life?

Matthew 17:1-9

“Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. Then Peter said to Jesus, ‘Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!’”

Jesus knows his time with the disciples is short. He has tried to prepare them for his betrayal, death and resurrection. They struggle to understand the things that are about to happen.

Jesus gives them this gift of revelation. Up on the mountain, Peter, James, and John behold Jesus in his glory. It is a life-changing experience for all of them. To confirm their vision of Jesus in his glory, the Lord speaks to affirm his Beloved Son.

All four of the Gospel writers confirm Jesus’ transfiguration. This experience was not just for them but for us. They beheld his glory; now, we are called to do the same.

How do you behold the glory of the Lord?