Genesis 4:7

“Did you not sin, even though you brought it rightly, but did not divide it rightly? Be still; his recourse shall be to you; and you shall rule over him.”

Personal Challenge…

I have always thought, deep down in my heart, that Cain got a raw deal in this part of Genesis. He gave of the first fruit of his labor just like Abel did. So why wasn’t his offering accepted? A little deeper digging shows that God loved Cain just as much as He did Abel. He praised Cain for bringing his gift rightly. But He did question the motive of Cain’s heart (did not divide it rightly). It was not that his offering was bad, but his heart was. God told him to be still, to control his emotions, and to repent and then he would be right with God. God even told him that his younger brother would be subject to him. But that was not good enough and through his choice he chose to sin even more. How often does God point out to me my sinful heart and yet I refuse to listen to Him? Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.

John 20:29

Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Encouraging Words…

If I am learning to do anything as I dive deeper into my Eastern Orthodox understanding it is to view things, life, the world, my faith through different eyes. We have become so much like our good friend here, Doubting Thomas. We live in the “Age of Reason” where we must look at everything through the eyes of logic and if we cannot prove something it does not exist. Everything we do or think runs through this filter. People in the time of Christ did not have this filter. It was easier to accept miracles and other supernatural events because they knew that there was a greater realm surrounding us that we could not touch, see, hear, or smell. Eastern Orthodoxy still views God and His creation this way. And I am so blessed to be one who has not seen and yet has believed.

Mark 2:27-28

And He said to them, “The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath. Therefore the Son of Man is also Lord of the Sabbath.”

Encouraging Words…

Why did Jesus, the Son of God, a member of the Holy Trinity, come to earth as a human being and to later be put to death on the cross as an innocent, sinless man? To pay the price for our sins and unrighteousness? Not so much so. The early church fathers taught that Jesus came to defeat death. The death that entered into God’s perfect creation through the free will choice of Adam and Ever to defy God. Yes there is so much more to this, but Jesus came, died, and was resurrected to release the grip that death had on His creation. He set everything back to the way that it was meant to be. This verse gives a little peek into that. Jesus tells us that even the Sabbath day of rest was created for man to enjoy, not for it to be a burden on us. He even set this back on its proper course. Praise be to God for the work that He has done.

Genesis 3:8

Then they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden that afternoon, and Adam and his wife hid themselves within the tree in the middle of the garden from the presence of the Lord God.

Personal Challenge…

For all the times that I have read this passage I never got the essence of this verse. Here Adam and Eve have broken the only rule that God gave them. They have sinned. And when God comes to hang out with them like He has so many times before, where do they hide? Right there in the middle of the very tree that they were not supposed to eat from. How many times have I tried to hide from God in the middle of the very sin that I am running away from God for? As if God cannot see me there. Whether it be the sin of pride, lust for the things of the world, idolatry, or whatever. What I really need to be doing is running away from that place of false protection and to my Lord God with repentance and seeking forgiveness. Lord Jesus Chist, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.

Proverbs 3:11-12

My son, do not despise the instruction of the Lord,
Neither grow weary under His reproof.
For whom the Lord loves He instructs,
And chastises every son He receives.

Encouraging Words…

Parenting! It is such a blessed opportunity in life and yet one filled with challenges and heartaches. I can remember those times that I had to discipline and reprove my children and would often be in silent tears after doing so. This is just a small glimmer of the heart of God. He loves me as His own child and in that love He too disciplines, reproves, and instructs me. My role in this is to be obedient, to not despise this instruction, and to cherish the love that He has for me.

Psalm 120:1-4 (121:1-4 LXX)
I lifted my eyes to the mountains; From where shall my help come?
My help comes from the Lord,
Who made heaven and earth.
Let not your foot be moved;
Neither let Him who keeps you slumber.
Behold, He who keeps Israel
Shall neither slumber nor sleep.

Encouraging Words…

God is good and according to Genesis He created us in His image. According to our early church fathers this means that we too are good. By the very nature of God, our nature is good. It is my choices, the exercising of my free will that I sin and become separated from God. Through that same free will I can choose to not sin and remain close to Him. And to ensure this He has sent His Helper to be there with me in those choices.

Proverbs 1:20-21a
Wisdom sings in the streets;
She moves boldly in the squares.
She preaches on high city walls
And sits at the gates of lords.

Encouraging Words…

The early church fathers taught that Christ was the Wisdom of God personified. Here the psalmist informs us that Wisdom, God’s Wisdom, is everywhere to be found, it is ever present. However, as we read on we are told that we must humbly hold on to righteousness in order to receive this Wisdom.

Genesis 1:5b, 8b, 13, 19, 23, 31b

…and there was evening and morning, one day.

Encouraging Words…

Today is the first full day of Lent and where do the scripture readings take us? Back to our beginnings. In Genesis, the beginning of creation…our existence. In Proverbs, the beginning of our journey into wisdom. In Isaiah, the beginning of a prophetic representation of our redeeming salvation through the coming of our King. Yesterday I was listening to a story on NPR talking about where scientists have still not figured out why we sleep. There are no real answers according to them. A lot of guesses, but no answers. And here in Genesis we see that after every phase of creation process God saw that it was good…”and there was evening and morning, one day.” We sleep because God made His creation so that it would rest. But that is not good enough for the scientists. It is not good enough to put our trust, my trust, in God and accept that He knows more and that there is this great mystery around me. One that I do not have to understand, because understanding it doesn’t make it any different, but one that exercises my faith. A faith that grows as I trust my God more and more.

Matthew 6:14-15

“For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Personal Challenge…

Today we celebrated “Forgiveness Sunday” at our church. In the Orthodox Church this has been done for hundreds or years. We take the opportunity to walk up to each person at the service and ask for their forgiveness of anything that we might have done to them throughout the year. And their response is, “May God forgive us all.” It is both humbling and freeing at the same time. Tomorrow we start our season of Lent (yes, our calendar is different than the western one) and this is a wonderful way to begin this season…seeking and offering forgiveness. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me!

Psalm 91:14-16 (90:14-16)