Daily Devotional

After working in childcare for the last 18 years, I often get questions from parents and caregivers about discipline and how to help their children. Oftentimes, it’s along the lines of my child wanting to do X, but I know as a parent that isn’t the right choice for them, i.e., a child not wanting to sit in their car seat or wanting them to wear a jacket when it is cold outside. The first thing we usually talk about is how, as a parent, it is our job to keep our children out of harm’s way, help them learn, and how we best do that for each child. Sometimes, like sitting in a car seat, these are non-negotiable choices, and the child must sit in one to be safe. Then there are things like wearing a jacket when it’s cold that I like to advise parents that this an excellent opportunity to practice Natural Consequences.

During the season of Lent, giving something up is a common practice, but I generally like to add something into my life to help me become more focused on God. This year, I’ve decided to add something simple, but I think it will help me to stay focused on the purpose of this practice, and that is the love that Jesus has for me.

For the past four years, my sister has been living with and battling stage IV breast cancer. Cancer is an awful disease, and learning that someone close to you has cancer is a sobering experience.

My husband, George, and I fast during Lent. We follow his family’s tradition, the Orthodox Christian Great Lent Fast. The Great Lent is the longest and most intensive fasting period in the Orthodox Church, lasting for 40 days before Easter. During this time, Orthodox Christians abstain from meat, dairy, and wine. The act of fasting is often misunderstood. It tends to be mischaracterized as a form of deprivation. But we know that Lent is not a season of deprivation.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.

John 3:16-17

Rejoice, ye pure in heart;
rejoice, give thanks, and sing;
your glorious banner wave on high,
the cross of Christ your King.

A few days after our youngest son, Park, had just turned 7, strep throat triggered an autoimmune illness that wreaked havoc on him. We were facing so much uncertainty, and I had been instructed that I needed to control things and to navigate and encourage his body to heal. During our long drive to a specialist downtown, I was running through my fears, doubts, and questions for the doctor when I heard Park’s little voice singing a song that offered words that we both so desperately needed to hear.

Have you ever asked yourself, “Now what do I do?”

On my first Easter as a pastor, I planned for an Easter Sunrise Service at the church I was serving. It was a small rural church where I served part-time while I also worked as a physical therapist and started seminary coursework. I was so excited to plan the Sunrise Service. I had always enjoyed the early morning service when I was growing up. I was eager for the congregation to witness the sunrise together. I wanted to ensure that we didn’t miss it, so the service was scheduled early – really early. In fact, way too early – for when I came to the closing song, it was still pitch black outside. We sang an extra song or two, but the sun was clearly a long way off, so we all moved to the Fellowship Hall for breakfast together. Finally, about halfway through our early breakfast, the sky started to lighten, and we were able to move outside and watch the sunrise.

Throughout the Bible, great stories of faith are accompanied by acts of fasting. When Jonah brings the word of the Lord to the people of Nineveh and called them to repent, the people of Nineveh responded by fasting and prayer. Just after being baptized, and before Jesus begins his public ministry, Jesus is led into the wilderness, by the Holy Spirit, so that he could fast for forty days. As Jesus’ disciples began their ministry the devoted themselves to practices such as prayer and fasting.