"My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions." – Daniel 6:22

God’s favor is a funny thing. While He “adds no sorrow to it,” (Prov. 10:22), other people often do. Like Joseph, Daniel’s exceptional ability and excellence is attributed to the “excellent spirit” within him. His gift, like in the stories of Abel, Isaac, and Joseph before him, also attracts negative attention from the envious people surrounding him. It’s right before the king plans to “put him over the whole kingdom,” (6:3) that a plan is hatched to take care of the “exceptional” one for good. His enemies can’t catch him doing anything bad, so they will legally redefine “good” as “bad,” and catch him red-handed in the act. No one, not even Daniel’s friend, the king, sees it coming. Through the whole ordeal, Daniel is strangely quiet, “like a lamb led to slaughter,” (Is. 53:7). The only action of Daniel in the whole story is to simply do what he, and many faithful Israelites before and after him had always done: to face east, kneel, and pray the shema: “Hear O Israel, the LORD is our God, the LORD alone…”

The poet-king, David, claimed that the real lions weren’t the ones waiting in the pit, but those who reject peace and scheme against “those who are quiet in the land,” (Ps. 35:20). Daniel silently confronted both, not with words, but with action. He does what is right and quietly accepts the consequences, perhaps praying the words of Psalm 35 himself as he went down into death, only to be raised up to life. Consequently, the trap set for him snared the ones who set it (35:7-8). In the age of outrage, perhaps the miraculous remains hidden in the quiet place, where lambs find a table prepared for them in the presence of their jaw-dropped enemies (Ps. 23).

Reflection:

• How can you remain faithful in the face of challenges?
• Where do you need God’s protection in your life?
• How does this story inspire courage and trust?

• Art: Daniel’s Answer to the King by Briton Riviere – Manchester Art Gallery, https://web.archive.org/web/20200609161444/https://manchesterartgallery.org/media/200/270/GMIII_MCAG_1937_123.1200×1200.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=136770729
• Songs:
  • “Breathe Miracles” – Red Rocks Worship
  • “Another in the Fire” – Hillsong UNITED

 "But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion for him." – Luke 15:20

A lost son, rejecting His generous Father is a well-worn theme in the Old Testament, and Jesus’ brilliant repurposing of the trope was just as shocking, if not as explicit as Isaiah’s wake-up call. What is easily overlooked by us would have been excruciatingly obvious to the listener–Jesus told the parable of the prodigal son in response to criticism that he was welcoming, accepting, eating with, and thereby identifying with “sinners,” (15:2). The obvious “sinner” in Jesus’ story was the younger son, who blatantly rebelled and had no regard for his generous Father. However, the less obvious prodigal (the surprising punchline of Jesus’ story) was the older brother who, though geographically near to His Father, was a foreigner to His generosity. While indirectly true that God’s forgiveness extends even to the “worst” of us, Jesus’ story begs the question that lies at the heart of his parable: which is worse, the insolent abuse of God’s generosity that drives a person to rock-bottom, or the malignant cancer of self-righteousness that is impossible to self-diagnose and, if not generously and aggressively confronted, progresses to the terminal conclusion, “Away from me, I never knew you,” (Matthew 7:23)?

American rapper, Lecrae, grew up in South Houston, immersed in drugs and gang culture, until an encounter with Jesus. He walked away from dealing, partying, and identifying as “Crazy ‘Crae¹,” and began to embrace God’s call on his life, as well as his musical gift. Many years later, after starting a successful label and becoming an icon of “Christian rap,” Lecrae began to make waves in popular Christian and Christian music culture when he decided to begin releasing his albums under mainstream labels and collaborate with other artists, some of whom were not professing Christians. As he began to speak up about his own personal experiences with racism, the backlash increased, and he experienced increasingly vocal rejection by the same sub-culture that had previously made up a large segment of his support and fanbase. The volume would still intensify, as he would see videos of people burning his music, and even receive death threats from the most extreme.² Ultimately, the rejection would push him further up and into the arms of Jesus, the one who first welcomed him when he was an “outsider” to the family of God.

The irony of Jesus’ parable is that Israel was both prodigal sons simultaneously. They had squandered their inheritance from YHWH, the holy city had become a “prostitute” (Is. 1:21), and they were painting over their rebellion with pious “observance” of the law and festivals commanded by God. Jesus had arrived with his story to remove the make-up and invite both prodigal sons into the Father’s house. May we be given grace to miraculously accept his invitation, and offer that invitation to others who are just as undeserving as we are.

Reflection:

• Where do you need to return to God in your life?
• How can you reflect His grace to others?
• What does this story teach you about His love?

• Art: The Return of the Prodigal Son by Rembrandt, 1662–1669 (Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg) – 5QFIEhic3owZ-A — Google Arts & Culture, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=22353933
• Songs:
  • “You Keep On Getting Better” – Maverick City;
  • “Jireh” – Maverick City;
  • “King of Kings” – Hillsong Worship

1. https://www.complex.com/music/a/complex/interview-lecrae ↩︎
2. https://goodgritmag.com/blogs/news/rejecting-labels-lecrae-goes-mainstream ↩︎

"But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, 'Lord, save me!'" – Matthew 14:30

Hudson Taylor (1832-1905) took a courageous step of faith when he set out to share the gospel with the peoples of inland China. He made a daring decision to do what few other missionaries and mission boards were doing at the time–to embrace the culture, language, customs, and normal dress of the people he was serving, operating ecumenically within the Protestant tradition, and cheerfully working alongside people from all classes, genders, and ethnicities. In the face of numerous difficulties, including the death of multiple children, violent persecution, and even attack from fellow British missionaries and organizations for his deviation from European cultural norms, Taylor’s life incarnated Peter’s cry, “Lord, save me! (14:30). In February of 1860 he wrote a letter to his sister, saying:

“If I had a thousand pounds China should have it—if I had a thousand lives, China should have them. No! Not China, but Christ. Can we do too much for Him? Can we do enough for such a precious Saviour?”¹

Historian Ruth Tucker described the effect of his radical faith and method:

“No other missionary in the nineteen centuries since the Apostle Paul has had a wider vision and has carried out a more systematized plan of evangelizing a broad geographical area than Hudson Taylor.”²

Jesus’ ministry tour of the cities of Galilee runs thematically parallel to Joshua’s (Hebrew, “Yeshua”) conquest of the Land of Canaan. Israel was to enter the Land and trust YHWH to drive out the nations ahead of them, never “losing sight” of YHWH’s instructions, and obeying them carefully (Deut. 7-8). However, like Peter, Israel’s eyes were captivated by the “wind and the waves,” (14:30). Those raging nations would become the chaotic currents of exile and captivity that would “rise up to [Israel’s] neck,” (Ps. 69, 124). Yet, if our God is anything, He is first a Creator, then a Savior of His creation. Peter’s cry runs counter to majority Israel, who preferred the strength of the “mighty waters” (Ps. 144) to the extended hand of their Savior. But Peter, in his reckless trust and stumbling attempt to follow, lets out the characteristic cry of God’s faithful remnant. He would later use the prophet Joel’s words to describe God’s faithfulness to this multi-ethnic remnant, newly-filled with His Spirit: “Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Joel 2:32, Acts 2:21). May we also recklessly dare to believe God’s word to us, follow as quickly as our failing feet will carry us, and not hesitate to cry out for salvation when we notice our attention drift away from the Savior.

Reflection:

• What step of faith is Jesus calling you to take?
• How can you keep your focus on Him amid life’s storms?
• How does this story inspire trust in His power?

• Art: Jesus walking on water, Armenian manuscript. By Daniel of Uranc – Donabédian, Patrick (1987) (in French) Les arts arméniens, Paris: Mazenod, p. 295 ISBN: 2850880175., Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=98280871
• Songs:
  • “Oceans” – Hillsong
  • “Faithful Now” – Vertical Worship
  • “I Will Trust” – Red Rocks Worship

1. Broomhall, Alfred (1983). Hudson Taylor and China’s Open Century: If I had A Thousand Lives. London: Hodder and Stoughton, accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson_Taylor ↩︎
2. Tucker, Ruth (1983). From Jerusalem to Irian Jaya: A Biographical History of Christian Missions. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. ISBN 0-310-23937-0, accessed at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hudson_Taylor ↩︎

"Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give them will never thirst." – John 4:13-14

(Trigger Warning: description of violence and rape from the Old Testament)

Location, location, location. Our stories and identities are unavoidably tied to locations. Sychar (or Shechem) of Samaria provides the setting for this scandalous story of Jesus having an unchaperoned conversation with a woman by a well. And she’s not just any woman–she’s a Samaritan, the object of such deep ethnic hatred that Jews “will not use the same cups or bowls that Samaritans use.” It’s also not just any well–it’s the well Jacob built nearly two thousand years before, right before a severe ethnic divide erupted in his own day. Interestingly enough, this ethnic divide was also connected to a woman caught between men trying to use her.

After their sister, Dinah, is raped by a Caananite prince, two of Jacob’s twelve sons take advantage of the situation to build their own wealth (Genesis 34). They offer to let the prince marry their sister, but require him and the whole city to be circumcised. While all the men in the city are painfully recovering, the two brothers, armed with swords, enter the city and murder every male, taking all of the women, children, and belongings for themselves. Their father, Jacob, (who never did anything about the rape in the first place) selfishly complains that his sons have made him “a stench” to all the peoples around who would hear about the carnage. Where Jacob was supposed to be God’s vessel of blessing and unity to the neighboring people, there was now only violence and hatred.

It was still happening in Jesus’ day, but now they were called “Samaritans.” It is at the very same well, the same traumatic location where the violence and racism began that Jesus brings Israel back to, this time in order to heal. The woman asks if he is greater than their father, Jacob, “who built the well,” (and incidentally doesn’t seem all that great). Jesus responds, claiming his “living water” does what Jacob’s water cannot–gives lasting and eternal life like Eden’s river and tree, whose “leaves are for the healing of the nations,” (Rev. 22:2). He removes the “dividing wall,” (Eph. 2:14), crosses over and offers this living water to Israel’s enemy, specifically a woman who likely has much reason to mistrust men. May God accomplish the miracle of bringing “siblings to dwell together in unity,” (Ps. 133) in our own time and place!

Reflection:

• What areas of your life need the living water Jesus offers?
• How can you share His transformative love with others?
• How does this story encourage you to embrace His grace?

• Art: Samaritan woman at the well 1651 by Gervais Drouet, photo by Didier Descouens – Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=65152015
• Songs:
  • “Come to the River” – Housefires

"The Lord said to Gideon, 'With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands.'" – Judges 7:7

We struggle with weakness. It’s never on the list of values at any successful organization or corporation. It’s not popular to share on a social bio, doesn’t fit on a resumé, could ruin a first date, and, frankly, is no fun to talk about. Yet, it repeatedly seems to be one of the few requirements for Israelite warfare as far as God is concerned. God’s slashing of Gideon’s recruitment numbers comes in a long line of stories and laws that provide plenty of precedence–YHWH likes Israel nearly demilitarized, and even gives Gideon the reason: weakness means more dependence on Him.

It’s easy to dog on Gideon. He’s timid, can’t trust multiple supernatural encounters with God, was barely convinced by God’s patient performance of repeated miracles at his personal request, and needed a custom dream/interpretation mentioning him by name to finally move forward with what God told him to do. Not to mention, at the moment of victory, he starts taking credit for the miracle alongside YHWH. The apostle Paul also seems to have been easy to dog on. He was well-aware of it, and of Israel’s consistent pattern of rejecting weakness throughout the biblical story. Unlike Gideon, Paul refused to hide or downplay his, claiming that weakness is really strength–it’s where God’s strength is perfected and put on display. Perhaps the miracle is to embrace weakness. May we be a people strong in God, considering whatever other gains we have “to be worthless” (Philippians 3:8) so we can faithfully steward His miracle.

Reflection:

• What battles in your life feel overwhelming?
• How can you trust God to bring victory despite limited resources?
• What does Gideon’s story teach you about God’s strength in your weakness?

• Art: Gideon’s Call, 1860 woodcut by Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld – Die Bibel in Bildern, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5485339
• Songs:
  • “Fighting for Me” – Riley Clemmons
  • “Surrounded (Fight My Battles)” – Upperroom
  • “Same God” – Brandon Lake & Elevation Worship

"About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them." – Acts 16:25

Jesus gave his followers the very clear warning: any confrontation with the systems of this world and spiritual darkness would result in vicious backlash by the only weapons the darkness knows how to blindly piece together while fumbling around without any light: violence, pain, and death. Jesus’ instructions were very simple, if not audacious. When this happens, sing. Rejoice. This is the same way the powers always responded to those grouchy heroes of old, the prophets who preceded us (Matt. 5:11-12), and, with all due joviality, it never works–God’s purposes and plans keep rolling forward!

Like the best twists in our favorite movies, Paul and Silas didn’t “end up” in prison–they were sent there. They were sent there to sing. They were strategically placed to give the Truth melodic and lyrical wings, creating a contagious hunger for God potent enough to keep every prisoner from making a beeline for the pulverized front entrance. And the stunt was not a breakout–it was a break-in. There was a jailer and his family, jailed by the prevailing religio-political climate of Rome, in desperate need of rescue by their compassionate Heavenly Father. May we not be so focused on the problems we find ourselves in that we fail to notice the true nature of our mission. And may we rejoice in knowing that where we are was always part of the plan.

Reflection:

• How can you worship God in challenging situations?
• What “prison” in your life needs to be surrendered to Him?
• How does this story encourage you to trust God’s timing?

• Art: The Mamertine Prison in Rome, with an altar commemorating the imprisonment of Saints Peter and Paul there, by Chris 73 – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6310364
• Songs:
  • “Raise a Hallelujah” – Bethel Music
  • “Something Has to Break” – Red Rocks Worship