Author: Maria Barroso

“At present we see indistinctly, as in a mirror, but then face to face. At present I know partially; then I shall know fully, as I am fully known.”

1 Corinthians 13:12 (NAB)

My mother was talented in so many areas. She was an excellent seamstress, a water color artist and very gifted in the craft of embroidery. She once made me a beautiful tapestry embroidered picture which I still have in a frame. As I looked at it one day, I thought of the well known metaphor of the tapestry. 

The backside of an embroidered work of tapestry appears as a cluster of multi colored threads that make no sense. No picture can be seen from looking at the back of a tapestry, but from the front, it is a beautiful work of art. In the same way, we cannot make sense out of the illnesses, losses and tragedies that we experience, but one day, we will see the front side of the tapestry of our lives. 

People of faith trust that there is a design to the sorrows and trials woven throughout our lifetime, like the threads in a tapestry. Research has proven that those who have faith in God, trusting in him as a Master designer, have better outcomes to medical treatment, and live longer and healthier lives.

Jesus never promised a trouble free existence, but He assured us that He will lift and lighten our burdens, when we come into Him. 

(Matthew 11:28-30)

I said something like this once to a lady who had lost her husband, without knowing her faith outlook. She asked, “How is losing someone I loved lifting my burden?” 

I started to explain my point, but then decided to simply acknowledge her suffering, and make a point of telling her that God loves her and that I would pray for her. 

After our conversation she thanked me for the kind words, but I realized how much harder life is for someone living without faith in God. 

The tapestry metaphor doesn’t only apply to those who have lost a loved one, it refers to any loss that is confusing or hard to understand. It can refer to the loss of a relationship, loss of health, or anything in life that puzzles us and leaves us with unanswered questions. 

Without faith and hope in God, no one could survive the sorrow that a loss can cause. The tapestry reminds us that people of faith trust in a Supreme Designer, even when we can’t see the front side of His design. For now it looks like a mass of jumbled threads or a blurry reflection in a mirror, but we believe that God is the designer of the tapestry in each person’s life. He takes our losses and turns them around for the good of our eternal souls.

If we look at the backside of the tapestry of Jesus’ life on earth, most unbelievers would say that He was an innocent victim of injustice, torture and murder through a political system that needed to be overthrown. He definitely was a lamb led to the slaughter, but the front side of His life’s tapestry reveals a completed and beautiful work of salvation. 

In Jesus, we see the love and mercy of God, who never stops weaving opportunities for each of us to draw nearer to Him during our lifetime. The backside view looks like a mess and a tragedy, but there is a front side view to every story. 

Let’s anchor our faith in the Chief Designer, who knows how to weave a beautiful work through His choice of colors and threads in our tapestry. We may not always like the color of thread He chooses, but He knows how it will all work in the end, and His perfect design will benefit our souls for eternity. At present we know only partially, but one day we will know fully. 

Lord, help us to trust that the tangled threads we see now, will one day reveal the front side of your perfect design in the tapestries of our lives. Amen

My mother’s handiwork-she told me that the boy in the picture is Jesus 

“Though you have not seen him, you love him; and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy, for you are receiving the end result of your faith, the salvation of your souls.”

1 Peter 1:8-9 (NIV)

Peter speaks of loving and believing in the God we cannot see, which results in the joy and salvation of our souls. In all other relationships, we use a physical sign of assurance, such as hand holding, which is a gesture of affection, protection, guidance, and comfort. It’s an expression of love and support between parents, children, lovers and friends, and it crosses all ethnic and cultural boundaries. 

Jesus made it very clear that He loved little children, and told us if we want to get to heaven, we would have to become like one of them. A young child is totally reliant and trusting in their parents for all things. There is a spiritual place of childlike reliance, trust and humility, that Jesus invites us all to.

Trusting Him without seeing Him, can be difficult under pressure. Peter tells us that loving Him without seeing Him, brings inexpressible joy. As much as we all believe and desire this, problems come along, drag us down, and we forget that Jesus is with us, extending His hand to us. It requires a childlike reliance and trust to believe what we cannot see. We need to find that childlike heart within us.

I still remember a dream that I had at the age of five. The memory of this dream has stayed with me, and it still helps me find my childlike heart during the most challenging and stressful trials. I dreamed someone took hold of my right hand and walked me out of my burning school building. I was led peacefully through the halls, around corners and safely outside the door. When I looked up, Jesus was next to me, holding my right hand. It was a divine life lesson through a vivid and realistic dream.

Life resembles a burning school at times, when we walk through fiery trials, not knowing what’s around the next corner, but as we trust Jesus with childlike faith, He holds our hand and guides us to safety.

Our  “school of life” is not to make us scholars, but saints. Jesus is the one holding our hand. He never promised to put out all the fires in our lives, but He knows where the all the fire exits are, and He will peacefully lead us out, if we keep our hand in His.

Lord, give us childlike hearts, trusting you in all our ways. As we keep our hand in yours, lead us and give us inexpressible joy and perfect peace. Amen

(Matthew 6:9-13)

Jesus gave us the Lord’s Prayer to pray, but also to use as a template for all prayer. In breaking down one line at a time, maybe we can better understand what He is teaching us:

      Our Father who art in heaven;

God is the King of the universe and yet He wants us to address Him as Father, because we are sons and daughters, not subjects or servants. He has a beloved son, but He wants to be our Father as well. A child doesn’t need to earn His father’s love with good deeds. A natural father loves his children from the day they were born, before they could do anything right or wrong. God also loved us first, before we even knew of Him. 

     Hallowed be Thy name;

The name of God is to be hallowed, which means to treat it as sacred and holy, because He is sacred and holy. I love the contrast of the first and second line in this prayer. He is our loving intimate father but He is also the most high, sacred and holiest God. We are loved by a holy God who also wants His children to be holy, as His Spirit searches and purifies our hearts.

     Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven;

This line reminds us that there is more to come and our life in this world is not all there is. God has a coming kingdom, and until that kingdom comes, He desires that we let His will be done in our lives. In all that we pray and ask for, our wishes and desires are still yielded to His will, saying as Jesus said, “Thy will be done.” We can say it because God always knows what’s best for us and we trust in His perfect will.

      Give us this day our daily bread;

Bread is nourishment, and for us it is both physical and spiritually nourishing. Jesus is our daily bread of spiritual nourishment. Everyone is on a quest for nourishment, but sometimes we look for it in all the wrong places. We look for it through relationships or things we can buy, but Jesus called Himself the living bread of heaven. Jesus is our daily bread and no other bread satisfies the soul and spirit as He does.

      Forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; 

We are reminded that forgiveness needs to be a two way street. Here is the biggest challenge in the entire Lord’s prayer. Every statement in this prayer is one that Jesus talked about regularly. He reminded us many times about forgiving others, through his parables. If we want to be forgiven, He says we must forgive others. There’s an old Irish proverb “We bury the hatchet but mark the spot.” Forgiveness is easier if we have a short term memory, and forget where all the hatchets are buried. 

       Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.

The previous parts of the Lord’s Prayer pertain to things which we  can take control of, by lining our will up with God’s. We seek His daily nourishment, we allow ourselves to be loved and fathered by Him, and we forgive our enemies, but this last line is a plea for divine help. It’s asking for what only God can do, in keeping us from all evil. He is our good shepherd, who delivers us from evil. An old testament title for God is “El Gibor,” which translates from Hebrew to, “God, our hero.”

Jesus saves the best line for last, in the conclusion to this prayer, that God is our true hero, who delivers us from all evil.  After the many times we have all experienced His deliverance from evil, it’s easy to finally say, 

“To Him be the kingdom, the power and the glory, now and forever.”

Amen

“When the soldiers crucified Jesus, they took his clothes, dividing them into four shares, one for each of them, with the undergarment remaining. This garment was seamless, woven in one piece from top to bottom. “Let’s not tear it,” they said to one another. “Let’s decide by lot who will get it.”

John 19:23-24 (NIV)

I think there may be a deeper meaning to that remaining fifth undergarment of Jesus, which was not torn and deliberately gambled for. The prophesy in Psalm 22, that men would divide up the Messiah’s garments and cast lots for His clothes is not something that could be staged just to appear to fulfill a prophetic scripture. Roman soldiers had no knowledge or interest in Hebrew messianic prophecies, and they didn’t know that they were doing what was prophesied a millennium earlier. 

John’s gospel confirms that the four soldiers, who were at the foot of the cross, said to one another, regarding that fifth garment, “Let’s not tear it, but decide by lot who will get it.” 

A skeptic could say that everything written in Psalm 22, might have been written from David’s own personal experiences, but some lines are too specific, especially verse 18, which says,

“They divide my clothes among them

  and cast lots for my garment.” 

That psalm foretold details of the crucifixion, inspired by the Holy Spirit.

There were five pieces of clothing, but only four soldiers, so they divided His clothes among them, and cast lots for the remaining fifth piece of clothing.

That fifth garment was a one piece seamless tunic, typically worn as an undergarment by temple priests since the time of Aaron, the brother of Moses. The priests who wore it, interceded for their people, as they offered a sacrificed lamb upon the altar. 

Traditionally, this tunic was woven by the priest’s own mother. I can just imagine Mary watching in horror, as the soldiers gambled for the hand made priestly tunic, woven by her, as her son hung on the cross. 

The Mosaic instructions for the care of this tunic undergarment was that it must never be torn. Not knowing anything about those Mosaic rules, the Roman soldiers cast lots for it, to avoid tearing it. 

The fifth garment would have been worn by Jesus when He healed the sick, raised the dead, and cast out demons. He wore it at the feeding of the 5,000, while walking on the water, and on top of the mount of transfiguration. He wore it at the last supper, while telling His disciples that He is the sacrificed Passover lamb. 

The day finally came when His tunic was stripped off of Him and treated as a common piece of clothing to gamble for. The soldiers cast lots to see who gets the tunic, but they were ignorant that the one who wore it, was dying for them. 

Such disregard for the sacred, is no different 2,000 years later. Some of the most sacred truths of the Christian faith, are still treated irreverently by our current culture. All that is highly regarded by God, is often treated in low regard by the world’s standards. 

During my college days, I went to a pub that was frequented by many college students. One night the owner was celebrating along with his patrons, and he began pouring wine in everyone’ glass, while mimicking the words used when serving communion. I was not religious back then, but I was a still shocked, knowing it was inappropriate to mock something as sacred as communion. 

People often do sacrilegious things in total ignorance, just like the Roman soldiers who gambled and cast lots for that priestly tunic. They handled that fifth garment in a common and unholy way, although it was worn by the holy, incarnate Son of Almighty God. 

As sacred blood flowed from the foot of the cross for them, they casually gambled, playing a game to win the fifth garment.

I know from my own experience that God has incredible mercy towards the ignorance of all people. His grace reaches far beyond the foolishness of our hearts. The fifth garment is a reminder of how grace and mercy overcomes all ignorance. “Where sin increased, grace increased all the more.”  (Romans 5:20)

Sin and mockery of what is sacred, grieves God, but He has the heart of a Father, like the father of the prodigal, and He patiently waits for us to come back home to the truth. He gives people time to discover who Jesus really is, and His kindness leads all to repentance. 

(Romans 2:4)

God is not like people, who are quick to judge and condemn. He has a Father’s heart and responds with mercy instead of what we may deserve. 

The fifth garment reminds us of the patience, mercy and grace of God. Jesus was stripped of His priestly garment, to become our sacrificed lamb. “For by one sacrifice, He has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.” (Hebrews 10:14)

Lord, we have all mishandled your fifth garment at some time in our lives, but you are a loving Father, who patiently draws our childlike hearts back to you. Thank you for your mercy and grace that is greater than all of our sins. Amen

“You are all fair, my love;
 there is no flaw in you.”

Song of Solomon 4:7 (RSV)

The Song of Solomon was written around 965 B.C. by King Solomon but it seems to correlate with a New Testament chapter known as the “love chapter.” The love chapter is 1st Corinthians 13, and it’s read at all Christian marriage ceremonies. 

The love chapter describes the perfect love of God, as we are encouraged to emulate it. It fits with the Song of Solomon, because it describes love as that which “bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things.” 

Bears, believes, hopes and endures, sounds like a rock solid commitment of devotion, even if everything around us appears to be crumbling. Since God loves us with this kind of devotion, it also pleases Him when we seek to do the same.

Both Jewish and Christian traditions across the centuries have adopted “allegorical” interpretations of the Song of Solomon, which has been read to portray the mutual love between the Lord and his people.

Christians have interpreted the Song of Solomon as the union between Christ and His bride, the Church. Jewish theologians view it as a picture of the ideal Israel, flawless, chosen and cherished by God. Both are beautiful insights into these sacred scriptures.

From the Christian perspective, the Song of Solomon, is Christ telling His bride, the church, that we are cherished and flawless in His eyes.

When Jesus looks at us, He knows us throughout, and sees the good and the bad, but it is His love for us that sees beyond our flaws. He is the one who cherishes us, who believes all things, bears all things and hopes all things. 

While we all know we have flaws, most of us don’t realize how much God loves us as we are, even before being cleansed and forgiven.

There are people who believe in God, but have doubts that He loves them. Some people were raised to believe that they are only lovable when they are good, or doing good things, but God loves us as we are, not because we are deserving. He doesn’t reserve or hold back His love from us, until we say we’re sorry. That is contrary to the truth of His word, which says, 

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

(Romans 5:8)

While we were sinners, God had passionate, relentless and unconditional love for us, long before we were remorseful or sorry for our sin. It is the love and kindness of God, that leads us to repentance in the first place.

Once we respond to the one who loves our soul, He shapes and develops us later. His Holy Spirit continually regenerates us during our life long journey of faith. If we try to see people through the same lens, that God is still transforming them, we can love better, by believing, bearing and enduring all things.

Through the Song of Solomon, we identify Jesus as the only one who loves us this perfectly, and cherishes us beyond our flaws. 

The truth that Satan keeps hidden from many well meaning Christians, is that God knows our gifts, sees our potential, and if Jesus is for us, nothing can succeed against us. 

Even if we give up on ourselves, become deeply discouraged, and are filled with doubt, God never stops believing in us, because in His eyes, we are cherished as His fair and flawless bride.

Lord, we surrender both our gifts and our flaws to you, and we ask that you shape and develop the beauty and talents that you have placed within each of us. Help us love one another as you have loved us. Amen

“The twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp and they were holding golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of God’s people.”

Revelation 5:8 (NIV)

It’s good to have an occasional glimpse of heaven to meditate on. 

Each of the twenty four elders in heaven are holding a golden bowl filled with prayers, our prayers. In their other hand, they are holding a harp, and then they all bow down before the Lamb, who is Jesus. 

These twenty four elders probably consist of the twelve apostles plus the twelve sons of Jacob, who are the twelve tribes of Israel. As they hold these golden bowls, they bow down before the High Priest of Heaven, who is Jesus. The entire image confirms the idea that worship goes hand in hand with prayer. 

This image of heaven describes a vivid combination of sights, scents and sounds. All of our senses are stimulated in heaven. There will be golden bowls to see, fragrant incense to smell and harp music to listen to. These elders hold our prayers within their bowls, and present them to Jesus, who told us to pray, asking anything in His name.

While we face times of adversity in our lives, it can be a struggle to believe that God still hears our prayers. John’s vision of heaven revealed that God not only hears us, but He values our prayers enough to put them in golden bowls, which are then lit up to become a fragrant incense, permeating heaven.

There are no boundaries of time or space in heaven, so our prayers are ever present before Him. We may forget what we asked for a year or two ago, but Heaven never forgets. Every prayer we pray, endures in His eternal presence through the smoke of fragrant incense. He answers us in due time, according to His plan and purpose. Whatever we ask for in Jesus’ name, carries the aroma of Christ with it, all the way to God’s throne. (2 Corinthians 2:15)

Knowing this, we put our hope and faith in God, through Jesus, and offer Him praise along with every petition. 

He loves us for who we are, and not for what we do. Therefore, we praise Him for who He is, even before He does what we ask. 

David knew this truth and he offered praise to God with every petition, as we can see by reading his Psalms. I find it is very therapeutic to praise God for who He is, even before He answers our prayers. 

Since my son’s motorcycle accident in September of 2023, after being in a coma for two weeks, he has been awake and moving ever since, but still isn’t responding cohesively to any questions. There is no doubt that he has a long road of recovery ahead. 

God has really kept me in peace, and I attribute that peace to living in a state of constant praise. Praise is truly the secret to inner peace. When people ask me how I stay calm through all that has happened, I  believe it’s because of praise. Not a day goes by that I don’t listen to christian contemporary praise and worship music. Each day I say something that praises Jesus, even if it’s only telling Him I love Him.

A situation may be really bad, but  God is really good. When we keep that in mind, and His praise is on our lips, He keeps us in perfect peace. There is something supernatural and amazing that happens deep within us, when we live in an attitude of praise. 

I know my son is receiving good medical care, but my hope is founded on more than the field of medicine. I believe in those golden bowls in heaven, filled with prayer requests, and that is the vision I keep before me. I thank each one of you for the prayers you have added to those bowls. 

God is good, and whatever His plan is, He considers every single prayer that is offered up to Him. He collects our prayers in golden bowls, which are then lit with fire, spreading a fragrant incense of our petitions, all throughout heaven. That image alone deems Him worthy of praise. 

Lord, we praise you and thank you that all of our prayers come before you as fragrant incense in golden bowls. We believe that you will hear, smell and answer all that is asked in  the holy name of Jesus. Amen

“He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
yet he opened not his mouth;
like a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is dumb,
so he opened not his mouth.”

Isaiah 53:7 (RSV)

Isaiah described a suffering, silent Messiah. Jesus always spoke boldly and was not afraid to tell the truth. There is a time for speaking out, as when He turned over the tables of the money changers in the temple, or answered back to the religious authorities who constantly accused Him.

Beginning with His arrest, and the start of His suffering, we see a silent, suffering Jesus, as He became Isaiah’s silent lamb, led to the slaughter. In His passion, He became the oppressed one, who did not open His mouth, except for a few potent phrases. The few words that Jesus did speak during this time, are noteworthy for meditation. 

His arrest began with the kiss of betrayal from a friend, but afterward, Jesus clearly indicated that no one is taking His life, but that He is laying it down for all of us. 

He said, “Do you think that I cannot call upon my Father and he will not provide me at this moment with more than twelve legions of angels?” Then He went on to say, “How would the scriptures be fulfilled which say that it must come to pass in this way?” 

(Matthew 26:53-54)

Jesus was fulfilling scripture and He knew that everything that was happening was flowing according to God’s salvation plan and purpose. He asserted His authority of being fully God and fully human, yet He emptied Himself of His authority, in obedience to His Father, and out of love for all mankind. 

It’s the mystery of the ages, but all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hidden in Christ. 

He fulfilled over 300 messianic prophecies written and foretold throughout scripture. God’s purpose and plan was fulfilled in Jesus, down to the timing and the details. 

Jesus barely answered Pilate, when questioned. He basically ignored Herod, and was silent during the ridicule and mockery of His scourging. When He carried His cross, He did it silently, but His silence was powerful, and we can be sure that He was praying for His enemies, just as He taught us to do. 

The last words of Jesus are worthy to meditate on during our periods of adversity. He asked God to forgive His enemies, and then He forgave the thief next to Him, assuring him entry into heaven. 

When he cried out from the cross, asking why His Father had forsaken Him, He was quoting from Psalm 22, which is a psalm packed with Messianic prophecies. Jesus knew He fulfilled every one, down to the details of pierced hands and feet, and the casting of lots for His garments.

Another one of the final phrases of Jesus was in assigning John to care for His own mother, Mary. In this statement Jesus shared His emotional human connection to His mother, entrusting her care to John. 

Then He reminds us of His humanity in saying He was thirsty, as He felt great pain, hunger and thirst, showing us that He understands all of our physical, emotional and spiritual needs.

He commended His Spirit to God, His Father, which everyone must do in their final moments. His last words, “It is finished,” were the words that said the most. Jesus completed the sacrifice for us on the cross. As both the lamb of God and our high priest, He now lives to continually intercede for us. 

Three days later, the silence of His own death ended by His resurrection power, which promises us healing and eternal life.

We can all think of a situation where we knew we were carrying a cross, and maybe we still are. Meditating on the final words of Jesus, brings a mysterious peace to our silence, and He becomes more real, as if He is walking right beside us, because He is. We can trust and surrender everything to Him, which makes us  more aware of His Presence, and we might even hear Him whisper, 

“Trust in Me, I’ve got this.”

Lord, thank you for walking beside us in our silence. Let your words from the cross remain in our hearts, and give us grace, comfort and peace through your resurrection power. Amen

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any one hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and eat with him, and he with me.”

Revelation 3:20 (RSV)

The Passover holiday memorializes the Israelites’ exodus from slavery, which is also called the Feast of Unleavened bread. Jesus celebrated a Passover Seder feast every year of His life. At His last Passover, which was spent with His twelve disciples, He told them He would not drink the Passover cup of wine again until they drink it together in His kingdom. Every feast, holiday and ceremony established by God, is a foretaste and hint of our life to come in heaven. 

Throughout generations, unleavened bread or Matzo is eaten for the week of Passover. It’s a reminder that God’s people left in great haste from Egypt to journey to the promised land. During their journey in the wilderness, God sustained His people with bread from heaven, called Manna. It was a supernatural nourishment provided by God, for forty years, until they arrived in the promised land. 

God still supernaturally sustains His people today, for the same purpose: To bring us to the promised land of heaven. 

Manna was a foretaste of the living bread, who came later from heaven. Jesus called Himself the bread of life, saying, “If any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever.” 

(John 6:51)

Jesus is our living bread, who gives us supernatural sustenance throughout this life, in order to lead us all to heaven. 

Since the 11th century, an interesting Passover tradition was added. An extra place setting was made at the table for the prophet Elijah, who is believed to attend every Passover Seder in spirit, until the Messiah comes. The front door of the home is to be left open during the Passover Seder as a symbol of invitation to Elijah’s entrance. 

The mystical tradition of leaving the door open as an invitation, reminds us of Jesus saying that He stands at the door and knocks, waiting for us to open the door and invite Him in to dine with us. 

I’m sure Elijah handed over his place setting and the open door to Jesus, long ago.

Another Seder tradition is to break off a piece of matzo, wrap it in a linen napkin, and then bury it in a hiding place in the home. The child who finds it later receives a reward.

In the deep mysteries of God’s wisdom, this Passover tradition also points to Jesus, the bread of heaven, and lamb of God, who was sacrificed for us. Jesus died, was wrapped in burial linen and then placed in the hiding place of a tomb. All who find and believe in Him, are promised the reward of eternal life. 

We can go another step further and invite Jesus to be our guest beyond the Passover table, but at every table of our lives. We set a place for Him first at the table of our heart, then at the table of our family. 

We invite Him to the table of our mental and physical health needs, our job concerns, financial obligations, and at the table of our personal pain, grief and sorrow. 

Jesus sits at the table with us when we have stressful decisions to make or when we receive a difficult phone call. He is seated next to us when we are going through something so intense that the best we can do is to whisper His name, because we are too sick, weak or discouraged to pray. He is sitting at every table of our life, if we open the door and invite Him to enter in.

The feast of unleavened bread, that celebrates freedom from bondage, is fulfilled in the form of living bread, in  the gift of Jesus’ Presence.

He frees us from all bondage and a day is coming when we will be invited to a heavenly Passover Feast, where He prepares a place setting for us at His table. 

Jesus, Lamb of God, we invite you to every table in our life, and thank you for the wondrous mysteries of the Passover Feast and the place you are preparing for us at your table in heaven. Amen

“As the Father loves me, so I also love you. Remain in my love.”

John 15:9 (NIV)

These are such simple words, spoken by Jesus. He tells us to remain in His love, as if we have the option to remain in it or to depart from it. We always have the option to walk away from God, since He gave us free will, but it won’t change the fact that God’s love is unconditional, and He never changes. In this verse, Jesus tells us to remain in His love, which puts the burden of action on our part.

In first reading this scripture, it seemed too simple to develop into a meditation. As happens with all scripture, if we read and then pause to pray and listen, the Spirit brings a new insight that we didn’t realize before. 

The Lord said through Jeremiah, “Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.” 

(Jeremiah 33:3)

Maybe the Lord has more to tell us through simple words of scripture, if we call and ask Him to tell us something new. 

The word “remaining” in His love is what stood out to me. God’s word is living and active, so when we ask Him to teach us something new, the Holy Spirit will bring new life to His words as Jeremiah said, by revealing the unsearchable things we didn’t know. Someone once said that God’s phone number is Jeremiah 33:3. 

So, while reading scripture, let’s give Him a call and ask Him to show us things we didn’t know before. 

Monks in monasteries developed a technique, long ago, in reading scripture. When they read, it isn’t treated as texts to be studied, but as the living and active word of God. 

“Lectio Divina” is a method of treating scripture as if it’s alive, pausing to meditate on it, and praying for insight, as the Holy Spirit brings words to life in a new way. It’s really just doing what Jeremiah 33:3 said to do. 

I’ve started practicing this method and some verses took on new meaning to me, since Lectio Divina simply helps us pause and listen to the Holy Spirit.

I wondered what Jesus intended by telling us to remain in His love. A little Greek lesson can also help give new life to a scripture. The Greek word for “remain” is “menos” which means to abide or dwell-as a home base. In other words, remaining in His love, is not a visit, it’s our home base with Jesus. We cannot be at home with Him if we keep thinking He’s some place far away from us. 

Although God never changes, we do, which is why Jesus asks us to remain in Him. Anytime we get caught up in worries and uncertainty, due to some hardship, we tend to live like Jesus is far away, and we momentarily depart from being at home in His love. Remaining in Him is not something we do passively, it’s an action of constantly bringing ourselves back home, to the place of knowing He loves us and is with us. 

I got carried away worrying about something one day, and the Spirit reminded me of the meaning of “remaining” in His love. I realized that worry and uncertainty can cause us to depart from that home base, until we pause and listen to Him. So, I took the action of bringing myself back home, saying, I’m going to trust Jesus in this matter, then once again, I remained in His love. 

Jesus stands before us every day, calling out to us, with outstretched arms, asking, “Will you remain in My love?”

Lord, thank you for your unchanging love for us. Help us to pause and listen to your Spirit, who is always showing us new things, so that we keep taking action to faithfully remain in your love. Amen

“Miriam and Aaron began to talk against Moses because of his Cushite wife, for he had married a Cushite. “Has the Lord spoken only through Moses?” they asked. “Hasn’t he also spoken through us?” And the Lord heard this.” Now Moses was a very humble man, more humble than anyone else on the face of the earth.” 

Numbers 12:1-3 (NIV)

Although the book of Numbers dates back to 1440-1400 B.C, it is considered the best preserved of the first five books of the Old Testament. Jesus read the book of Numbers, since He once mentioned the bronze serpent story in the 21st chapter of that book.  (John 3:14)

Every good Jewish boy in Jesus’ day, would have been familiar with the stories from the book of Numbers. Under the leadership of Moses, there were healings of poisonous snakebites by gazing at a bronze serpent on a pole, and a story about water gushing out of a rock, when no other water was around. The book of Numbers follows the most important event in Moses’ ministry; receiving the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai, which is the pride of Judaism, even to this day.

Pride, however, was not something that Moses was familiar with. That same book of Numbers tells us that Moses was the “most humble man on the face of the earth.” Despite his humility, people tried his patience and he had his share of anxieties, in leading a large group of complainers to the promised land. There were power struggles and some were even trying to replace Moses, but he kept doing what was best for the people, not himself. Studying Moses gives insight into the scriptural perspective of humility.

The book of Numbers tells us that the same Spirit that was upon Moses as a leader, was also given to the 70 elders chosen among the tribes, to assist him, after his laying on of hands. Those elders are described as “men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain.”

The choice of elders sounded good, so Moses laid hands on them and the Spirit came upon them. It sounds like an Old Testament version of Pentecost. 

Joshua, Moses’ closest friend, who stood by him long before the selection of the 70 elders, had an issue with two of those elders. With his own prejudice against those two men, he thought that they shouldn’t receive the Spirit, and he urged Moses to exclude them. Moses told Joshua there is nothing to be jealous of, and that he hoped that all people would receive the Spirit. 

A special trait about Moses’ humility was in wanting the best for all the people. He didn’t pre-judge those who God anointed to help him, and neither was he prone to favor an elite few. He never even regarded himself as someone more special than the rest, but regarded all the people as part of the family of the tribes of God’s chosen people.

Moses’ brother Aaron and his sister, Miriam, eventually rose up against him as well. They questioned their brother’s leadership, insinuating that they could lead the people better, but the real reason that Aaron and Miriam were critical of him, was their prejudice towards his wife.

Moses took a wife from the land of Cush, which is present day Ethiopia. She was not from any of the tribes of Israel, and of a totally different race. The Cushites were dark skinned people, not Semites. So, besides questioning his calling as a leader, in truth, his siblings were critical of him for choosing a Cushite wife. 

The way Moses reacts to all these prejudices and criticisms is key to why he is called the most humble man on the face of the earth. When someone complained against him, he didn’t argue to defend his honor, nor did he ask God to punish his enemies. He kept doing what was right, and then asked God for mercy, interceding for his enemies in prayer. 

Moses’ prayer to the Lord was,

“Pardon the iniquity of this people, I pray, according to the greatness of Your mercy, just as You have forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.”  (Numbers 14:19)

Most leaders of that period in Moses’ position, would condemn or remove all who were against him. Moses, instead, sought the welfare of the people and prayed for them. His selfless spirit, had no concern for his own popularity, honor or dignity. He had the spirit of a humble shepherd, interceding for his flock.

Moses probably hoped his chosen people would behave like people who were chosen, and lead the rest of the world to faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Moses responded to criticism as Jesus told us to do, if we were in that situation, saying “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:44-45)

Anyone who has ever been in a leadership role, whether in church or in a place of employment, and has been criticized for doing the right thing, can relate to Moses. Those who have been criticized for their choice of a marriage partner, and suffered disapproval by friends or family, can also relate to Moses. 

Despite being misunderstood, Moses’ response is always in line with Jesus’ teachings and New Testament standards. Paul’s advice to every believer, not only leaders, actually sounds like something Moses would have wrote:

“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.”

(Philippians 2:3-4)

Lord, thank you for Moses’ example as a leader, who was ahead of his time. Give us the wisdom and humility to pray and intercede for those we lead, and to also be supportive toward those who lead us. Amen