Grace and Peace to all who will receive this late missive. Half of the month is over, vacations are possibly ending, and school is about ready to begin, again. So then…How are you, really? Looking back over these last 7 months…How are you… really? It’s been a tough year for many of us. We have had to celebrate the life of people we love as we commended them to God and resurrection. The love of God that we believe we receive in the Holy Spirit, has been stretched to include being covid free and still able to do what we call, normal things. But as we look around us, when we watch the news or even answer the phone, we have been bombarded with repetitive news of hate, anger, accusation and another death. Truth has lost power to multiple forms of Un-truth.

The supremacy of the Lie has overshadowed the Truth that Shall Set you Free. How we respond to this reminds me of this scripture Proverbs 18:21, “Life and death are in the POWER of the Tongue”. In so many ways we relinquish or ignite our power by what we say. What we do or don’t do is always preceded by a decision. Either way, to do or not, to believe or not, to act for or against or not. To walk by faith into the unknown or not. To love and forgive or not. To believe that ALL things are possible with God or not, will be reflected by our willingness to LOVE, no matter what. Look at us! That’s what God has ordained and empowered us to do and become. Forgive those who despitefully use us, as we are forgiven for our own are venal prayers. I know how difficult it is to forgive over and over. I also know that there is Peace that supersedes our own free will and energizes our hearts to desire to please God.     

I share with you Martin E. Marty, Lutheran Pastor and prolific writer, on the daily gift of new life from1 Corinthians 13:12-13 The Message Bible:

12 We don’t yet see things clearly. We’re squinting in a fog, peering through a mist. But it won’t be long before the weather clears and the sun shines bright! We’ll see it all then, see it all as clearly as God sees us, knowing him directly just as he knows us! 13 But for right now, until that completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation: Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

 Lovyamuchly, Pr. Orinda 

https://www.christianitytoday.com/history/issues/issue-86/luther-daily-gift-of-new-life.html