Unbind him, and let him go!

Meditation on John 11 (selected verses)

March 15, 2015

     

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, ‘Lord, he whom you love is ill.’ But when Jesus heard it, he said, ‘This illness does not lead to death; rather it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’ Accordingly, though Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, after having heard that Lazarus was ill, he stayed two days longer in the place where he was…

    When Jesus arrived in Bethany, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days.  Bethany was near Jerusalem, some two miles away, and many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to console them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said to her, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ She said to him, ‘Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.’

      When she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary, and told her privately, ‘The Teacher is here and is calling for you.’ And when she heard it, she got up quickly and went to him. Now Jesus had not yet come to the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. The Jews who were with her in the house, consoling her, saw Mary get up quickly and go out. They followed her because they thought that she was going to the tomb to weep there. When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, ‘Where have you laid him?’ They said to him, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus began to weep. So the Jews said, ‘See how he loved him!’ But some of them said, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?’

     Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, ‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.’ Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed, you would see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upwards and said, ‘Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.’ When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out!’ The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth, and his face wrapped in a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’

***

      Last Sunday in our confirmation class, we talked about eternal life--and what it means to be “saved.” We discussed some really important questions, such as who will be saved? What about Christians who fall away from the faith? Does God want everyone to be saved? Is there really a heaven--and a hell? If so, what are they like?

      I told the students that the Bible says that human beings need to be saved or rescued because of the first sin in the Garden of Eden. That first sin long ago brought evil and death into the world, corruption into God’s good Creation. Humanity would be stained by this sin and separated from God, until God sent His Son so that we might be freed from sin and reconciled with Him. Jesus took the punishment that we deserved when he died on the cross. Now we have the promise of new, abundant and everlasting life with Him.

       Yes, God desires all people to be saved. John 3:16 tells us that God so loved the WHOLE world that he gave his one and only Son, Jesus Christ, so that all who believe on him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. We don’t know if all people will become believers, but we don’t judge others. God has shown extraordinary grace and mercy to us. He calls us to do the same--to love our neighbors. We are lights to the world, messengers of the Good News, bearers of Christ's peace, builders of Christ’s Kingdom.

     I asked the students what they believe about heaven and hell. Heaven is a place where we are with God forever. Where we can finally see him face to face. And there is singing. And feasting. And joy as we worship the Lord. And there is love--more than we have ever experienced. And we are with the ones we love. No more worry, fear, suffering or pain. Hell is more difficult to talk about. We know it is a place of pain and suffering, “weeping” and “gnashing of teeth.” If we choose not to believe on the Lord Jesus and spend eternity with God in heaven, then we choose to spend eternity separated from God. This would be more horrible than we can imagine--to never again be in the presence of God’s light and love.

     Then, there was another good question. Why did Jesus raise people from the dead? “Oh, you mean Lazarus,” I said. So the glory and power of God would be seen and the true identity of Jesus would be known. And more people would come to believe. 

***

     “I am the resurrection and the life,” Jesus says in John 11:25 to his dear friend Martha, whose brother Lazarus, had died 4 days before. “Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

     Martha and her sister Mary are grieved that the Lord has taken so long to respond to their summons. They believe that if Jesus had been there sooner, Lazarus would not have died. They had faith for the miracles they had seen Jesus do. He opened the eyes of a blind man. He commanded a paralyzed man to take up his mat and walk--and he did. He healed the son of a royal official, a child who was “at the point of death.” All of these people were still alive! They could not imagine that Jesus could bring to life what was already dead.

      But Jesus will do this--after Martha confesses her faith. She says to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.” Yet even with her confession, Martha protests when Jesus, at the tomb, cries out, “Take away the stone!” Martha says, “‘Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days.’” The smell of the decomposing body has persuaded her that it is too late for a miracle.

    Jesus prays, then, in his grief, thanking God for always hearing his prayers. He asks for the miracle not for selfish reasons--because he is grieving his friend. He seeks God’s glory and asks that those who are gathered would come to believe that God sent him.

    When Lazarus comes out at Jesus’ shout, his hands and feet are still wrapped with the strips of cloth he wore when they laid him in the tomb. Jesus says, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

    Reading this passage this week, I questioned why the Lord would command that the stone be removed from the tomb, and why, when he brought Lazarus back to life, he would command others to remove the strips of cloth? Couldn’t Jesus have performed this miracle without any help? The answer is, “Of course.” With God, all things are possible. So there must be a reason for both. When I think of the stone being removed from the tomb, I think of the scene of Christ’s empty tomb--don’t you? I think we are meant to imagine this scene. When Mary and the others arrive, the stone has been rolled away. The whole account of the raising of Lazarus points to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ--and reminds us of His promise that we, too, will be raised with Him!

     When Christ commands the crowd to remove the cloth, doesn’t his words sound like a call to ministry, a commissioning? Friends, Christ doesn’t need our help! He can save the world without us! But he invites us all to be partners with Him in His life-giving, reconciling work when he says, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

    This passage, like others that tell of Christ’s miracles, emphasizes the importance of faith. Like Martha, we say we believe in Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world. But then we decide that it’s too late for a miracle--so we don’t even ask for one! We struggle with unbelief and hopelessness when faced with an obstacle or trial in our lives. And yet God gives us trials to lead us back to him, to reveal his glory and power, and strengthen our faith! We are so quick to withdraw in fear, dissolve into tears, slide into self-pity, or let loose angry words rather than seek the Lord in prayer. Didn’t Jesus model this for us when he is greatly distressed at Lazarus’s tomb?

     Sisters and brothers, we can trust the one, the only One, who can bring back to life what was already dead! The one who promises new and abundant life to all who believe on Him!

    The raising of Lazarus would lead many of the Jewish people who witnessed the miracle to become believers in Jesus the Messiah that day. But others would tell the Pharisees, who feared that more Jews would come to believe in Jesus. And the Romans would come and destroy them all.

      From that day on, they planned to put Jesus to death.

     

Let us pray.

Lord God, like Jesus at Lazarus’ tomb, we offer up to you our thanks and praise. Thank you for always hearing our prayers and for desiring all people to come to know you through belief on your Son. Thank you for your salvation, for the promise of new life as we learn to trust in you every day, no matter what obstacle, sadness, or trial lies ahead. Thank you for giving up your only Son, Lord, so that we might have new, abundant and everlasting life. Teach us to pray, Lord, rather than dissolve into tears, hopelessness, self-pity or anger. Stir us to anticipate your miracles and to be grateful for your extraordinary grace and mercy and ready to extend that grace to others. Forgive us for our lack of faith, while at the same time, like Martha, we confess our belief in Jesus the Messiah. Strengthen us to be obedient and walk as your Spirit leads, as we draw nearer and nearer to the cross--remembering when Jesus suffered, bled, and died for our sins, enduring the punishment that we deserve. And Lord we pray for our confirmation students. May they be lights to the world that you so love, messengers of the Good News, builders of Your Church and Your Kingdom. In Christ we pray. Amen. 

     

“The Meditation of My Heart”

Meditation on Psalm 19

March 8, 2015

The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard;
yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In the heavens he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy, and like a strong man runs its course with joy.
Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them; and nothing is hidden from its heat.

The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the Lord are sure,
making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
the commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes;  the fear of the Lord is pure, enduring for ever; the ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey,
and drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. But who can detect their errors? Clear me from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also from the insolent; do not let them have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.

***

   The first time I visited rural, Southwestern Minnesota, I was amazed at how big the sky looked, especially compared to the view I was used to, living out East in a metropolitan area.  We saw only a little bit of the sky as a backdrop for the tall buildings and highways, rolling hills and thick forests. Out here, where the farmland goes on and on, the sky also goes on and on, with very few trees or man-made structures to block the view.

     You don’t experience the full impact of the big sky unless you are standing outside. Sure, you can see the sky from the window of your home or car. But it’s not the same as being outside, is it?  Especially at night. You don’t get a full view of the stars overhead unless you are actually out in the night air. And you might not even notice the sky, if you are thinking about something else. You can take the big sky for granted when your mind is too busy worrying about your troubles and when you are trying to come up with solutions to your problems all by yourself. The sky might as well be small!

    I can’t look up at the sky here, day or night, and not think of the Lord. Can you? How could you not believe in God when you see the sky? I can’t understand how people can be atheists. Human beings can design impressive buildings, bridges and roads. Talented artists can paint scenes and portraits that take your breath away.

   But only God can make a sky!

***

    The writer of Psalm 19 also appreciates the beauty of the sky or the “heavens” as he calls it. The beginning of this psalm is all about what the “heavens” or the sky tells us about the Lord. There is no question in the psalmist’s mind, thousands of years ago when he was composing these verses, that there is only one Creator. He is also the one True God. The Jewish religion was different than all the other religions of the world in that believers did not make gods or idols of the Creation. Jewish people didn’t worship, for example, the Sun God as others did; they saw and appreciated the sun, as the psalmist does, and they praised the Lord God, Creator of all. Our God doesn’t just create and move on to the next project. The One True God of Israel creates so that he can have an intimate relationship with human beings. He created us so that He would have someone to love and enjoy--and so that we would love and enjoy Him.

    The psalmist says that all of Creation that is not human and has no capacity for speech nevertheless points to and praises its maker. The sky or the “heavens are telling of the glory of God.” And the “firmament”--the land--“proclaims (God’s) handiwork.” The earth declares that God is the one who has made it all!

   The middle of this Psalm speaks of the law, decrees, precepts, ordinances, and the commandment of the Lord. He is talking about all of Scripture, God’s Holy Word, and not just the 10 Commandments or the other laws of Moses. The Psalmist encourages us to meditate on God’s word--put it into our hearts and minds and think on it each day.

       Here are some reasons why.

      “The law of the Lord is perfect.” It revives the soul! Do you need wisdom? “The decrees of the Lord are sure; making wise the simple.” If you want to find happiness, the “precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart.” If you want to see things as they really are, “the commandment of the Lord is clear, enlightening the eyes.” If you want to be in right relationship with God, His Word will restore unto you the “fear” or awe of the Lord that is “pure.” Do you want something that really lasts? God’s Word endures “forever,” while everything else in this world will pass away.

     If you are looking for truth and searching for righteousness, search no farther than the Bible. For the “ordinances of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.” If you are distracted by the things of this world and are longing for what your wealthy neighbor has, here is something of lasting value, a treasure that will never perish. God’s Word, is “more to be desired…than gold, even much fine gold.”

    If you are tempted by sweets and other food that isn’t healthy for your body, hunger instead for God’s Word, which is “sweeter also than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb.” But just as important as filling us with joy, satisfying our hunger, providing a treasure of lasting value, and revealing truth and righteousness, the Bible does something more for us. It shows us how we should live and warns us how we must not live.

      If we didn’t have the 10 Commandments, we wouldn’t know right from wrong, and we would make evil, destructive choices. If we didn’t have the Beatitudes, we would think selfishness, power, wealth and arrogance are all good, and being poor, humble, meek and persecuted are bad. Without the gospels, we wouldn’t have the words of Jesus telling us to love one another as he loves us--and to forgive one another as our heavenly Father forgives us. Without the NT letters, we wouldn’t know that love is kind, patient and gentle and that if we have all the other spiritual gifts, but not love, then we have nothing!

     God’s Word helps us see our faults, even those that are hidden from us. It’s easy for us to overlook our sins when we take our eyes off the Lord. His Word draws us back to him, but doesn’t tear us down or discourage us. It builds us up! For the more we understand ourselves, and how weak and flawed we are, the more we appreciate how strong, gracious, loving, and merciful God is! If we didn’t have God’s Word, we couldn’t be reconciled with Him; we would not have new and everlasting life through His Son. We wouldn’t know how the Lord rescued us, how he suffered and died on a cross so we might be forgiven of all our sins.

      Verse 14 may be the most important verse of this psalm.  After the writer describes how all Creation declares God’s glory, and then tells us the wonder of God’s Word, he prays, “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.” What he teaches us by this verse is that God cares about what we say and think! Careless words and selfish, negative thoughts matter because they matter to God.  What we say and are meditating on need to be “acceptable” to the Lord. Pleasing to Him. And the only way they may be acceptable or pleasing is if we ask the Lord for help.

     In this final verse, we hear who God is to the psalmist. He is our “rock”--always faithful, never changing. Strong, powerful, and steady. He is our “redeemer.” God is the one who can save us. The only One!

***

     Already in this season of Lent, though it is the holiest time of the year, I have often been lost in my own thoughts and worries. Being inside so much, it is easy to miss the glory of God in Creation. I am longing for spring to finally be here so that I may be out walking under the amazing big sky thinking about and praising my Maker and hearing all Creation declare His glory.

     Sometimes our thoughts and feelings--“the meditation of our hearts” as the psalmist says, are not pleasing to the Lord. And they aren’t healthy for us. We can get so engrossed in our lives, routines and problems, that we stop thinking about and meditating on God’s Word. We look away from the one who can heal us, the one who is our hope and help. It is as if a dark cloud slips in front of the sun. We forget that he alone is our Lord, our Rock and Redeemer. We lose our joy.

    You who are weighed down by heavy thoughts and struggling just to get through every day, let us pray for you! You don’t have to struggle alone. The Lord wants to remove your heavy burdens and reveal the beauty of His Creation. He is with you and He wants you to know the wonder and healing power of His Word that endures forever, though the things of this world pass away. Only the Lord can revive your soul and restore your joy. As a people united in Christ, we will seek God’s wisdom, truth and righteousness together. Let us surrender ourselves to Him, so that we might be changed. So that the meditation of our hearts is truly acceptable to Him. Our Lord. Our Rock. Our Redeemer.

Let us pray.

Holy One, thank you for the beauty of your Creation, for the big sky and land that goes on and on. Thank you for the peace that your Creation, which declares your glory, brings us. Forgive us, Lord, when we have failed to notice or appreciate the beauty of your world and given you thanks. Thank you, also, for your Word, that endures forever and revives our souls, brings wisdom and joy, and shows us how to walk in righteousness and truth. Thank you for being gentle and gracious with us, for showing us the error of our ways, but at the same time, assuring us of your forgiveness and your steadfast love. Father, lift from us all the burdens we may be struggling under. Remove the cloud that has slipped for some in front of the sun. Heal us. Transform and renew us by your Spirit. And may the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you. O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Amen.

“Did God Really Say That?”

Meditation on Genesis 3:1-7

March 4, 2015

     Now the serpent was the shrewdest of all the wild beasts of the field which the LORD God had made. He said to the woman: 'Did God really say: You shall not eat of any tree of the garden?' The woman replied to the serpent: 'We may eat of the fruit of the other trees of the garden; 3 It is only about fruit of the tree in the middle of the garden that God said: ‘You shall not eat of it nor touch it, lest you die.' 4 And the serpent said to the woman: 'You are not going to die; 5 for God knows that as soon as you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.' 6 When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was desirable as a source of wisdom, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both of them were opened and they perceived that they were naked. Then, they sewed together fig-leaves and made themselves loincloths.

***

      If I were reading Genesis for the very first time tonight, you know what I would probably say when I got to this passage? Why is this woman talking to a snake??  She has a loving husband and her loving God. She has all of Creation to enjoy. And she’s talking to a snake. If I were in the Garden, I would not be alone with a snake very long. I would be running away from it, screaming, “Help! Snake!!”

       And where’s Adam while all this is happening? Where’s God? Why is the woman separated from them? Did she walk away from them? Why on earth would she listen to a snake?! It seems to me that the Lord could have done better with his instructions when he placed the man and the woman in the Garden to live. He only told them about not eating the fruit from the one tree. Just think how the story might have been different if God had said, “Oh, and another thing. Don’t talk to the snake! Don’t even make eye contact. If you see him coming, go the other way.”

        The snake is smart. The NRSV uses the word “crafty.” “He was more crafty than any other wild animal that the Lord had made.” And no, he wasn’t really a snake like we know them today. This serpent had legs. Are you wondering if it was the devil? No, though we might like the story better if it were the devil. We like to blame him for tempting us to sin, rather than take responsibility for our actions. You know, “the devil made me do it.” But, no, this isn’t the devil; this is just a wild beast in the Garden who, for some reason, wants to stir up trouble between human beings and God. Why? Is he jealous?

      Humans have a special relationship with their Creator, from the beginning. In Genesis 1, God creates man and woman in his image. And he blesses them! No other creature receives such a blessing. Then, God gives His Creation to His beloved human to take care of it for Him. In Gen. 1:28, God told the man to “subdue” the Creation and “have dominion over” all of the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, every living thing that moves upon the earth.

     We can only guess at the serpent’s motives and feelings. One thing is clear. He isn’t happy with the way things are. He isn’t content. He wants to make trouble between God and human beings. So he asks the woman, “Did God say, ‘You shall not eat from any tree in the garden?’” Notice that he doesn’t ask, “Did God tell you not to eat from one tree in the garden?” He says “any tree in the garden,” which, of course God didn’t say.

      This stirs the woman to answer--because the serpent got it wrong. But he did this intentionally. He is crafty. He chooses his words carefully to lure the woman into his trap. “No,” she corrects him. “We can eat the fruit from all the trees in the garden--except for the one tree in the middle.” She adds that they can’t even touch the fruit on that tree --or they will die. Now, did God really say that? No. She got it wrong, too. But then, she hadn’t been created, yet, when God told the man not to eat the fruit from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. What God actually said was, “For in the day that you eat of it, you shall die.” Then the serpent tells the woman, essentially, that God had lied to them. “You will not die,” he says, “for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” The conversation ends there. The woman doesn’t answer the snake, but you know she’s thinking about what he said because of what happens next.    

       Which brings us back to my first question. Why was she talking to the snake at all? Why does she choose to listen to him? Something must have already been wrong inside of her. Instead of telling the Lord about the conversation she had with the snake and asking Him, “Is this true?” or “Why did the serpent say these things to me?” she chose to trust the serpent and distrust the Lord. How amazing is that?! And yet, you think what a human thing to do! She’s living in God’s paradise with her perfect mate, has all the food she could want, never has to work a day in her life. She has no trouble. No pain, and she’s not content. She wants something more.

     Friends, we are still like that! God has provided for all our needs--and we are truly blessed. He is with us in all of our suffering. He uses all things for good in our life. Yet, we are not content-- not under all circumstances, as the apostle Paul urges us to be. When things are going well, and when they aren’t. When life is truly a struggle. For all of us have struggles in our lives.

     The good news is that we have what we need to overcome temptation. We have God’s Word. We have His Spirit to reveal God’s will and empower us to obey. And we have our church and the entire Body of Christ to teach and encourage us and hold us accountable to walk in His loving, peaceful ways.

      But sometimes, we will still choose to do the wrong thing, because that’s what we do. To rebel is human. We are still in desperate need of God’s mercy and grace every day! Though we are being transformed into new creatures in Christ, God’s not done with us, yet. We still struggle with sin and temptation in this fallen world.  It’s always about what we want. What gives us pleasure. And we don’t want anyone to tell us what we can and cannot have or can and cannot do. Not even God! We want to be the god of own lives, just like the woman in the garden!

     She can’t take her eyes off the fruit she isn’t allowed to eat. The one thing she cannot have is what she wants. She can almost taste how delicious she imagines the fruit to be. But it isn’t just about eating; it’s about power, wanting to be better and smarter than she is. Verse 6 says, “So when the woman saw that the tree was ‘good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise,” so she took the fruit, ate some, and gave some to her husband. Did he know his wife was talking with the serpent? We don’t know. Why didn’t he stop her from taking the fruit? Why did he also eat the fruit, when God had told him not to? Perhaps it was enough to watch his wife enjoying the fruit in front of him. He wanted to experience the same pleasure.  Perhaps the man, too, didn’t trust that when God had said “no,” to them, it was for their own good.

      And, “then their eyes were opened.” Understanding dawned. They knew good and evil, because they had done what was evil in His sight. They had disobeyed the Lord. “They knew they were naked” and attempted to cover themselves, to hide their guilt from God, as if anyone can do that! What a sharp contrast this is to the end of Genesis 2, when God first created the man and then the woman, and they were both naked “and not ashamed.”

        One sin, one act of rebellion, destroys their intimate relationship with the Lord. It was the beginning of a whole new way of life. Now they would have to work hard and struggle to survive. They would have suffering and pain. It was the beginning of their mortality; they would now not live forever in the beautiful Garden with the Lord; they would taste death. It was just like God had said.

 

Let us pray.

Loving God, you created us in your image and blessed us with all of Creation. You longed to have a loving relationship with us, and we were ungrateful and selfish. We rejected you. We chose sin and death over paradise. But you knew we do that, Lord. And you mercifully already had a plan to restore to wholeness what was broken that day in the Garden, when the woman and the man pursued their own desires rather than obey your commands. Thank you for sacrificing Jesus, your only Son, to pay the penalty we could not pay for all our sins--the sins of yesterday, today and tomorrow. Help us to listen to only your voice. Give us wisdom to see evil for what it is and to always choose what is good. Forgive us when have chosen, still, in our lives, to listen to other voices, rather than only yours, and have sought to please ourselves or other human beings, rather than seeking to please only you. Forgive us for thinking that our sin doesn’t matter and for taking your salvation for granted. Humble and convict us, Lord, when we are straying from the right path. Strengthen us walk only in your will, striving to obey and never questioning what we might not understand. Thank you for the promise of your everlasting paradise, life in your heavenly garden, that awaits all who believe on Your Son, our Savior, Redeemer and Lord. Help us to trust in that promise, living in faith, hope, joy and contentment until that day. In Him we pray. Amen.