Author: Erin Newton

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Be With Me — Readers’ Choice

Scripture Focus: Psalm 34.18
18 The Lord is close to the brokenhearted
     and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Originally published on October 11, 2023, based on readings from Psalm 34.18.

Readers’ Choice is here: There’s still time to tell us about your favorite, most meaningful posts of the year. If you shared it with someone, or it helped you, let us know via email, direct message, or filling out the linked form.

Music Week: Many choices from readers were ones having to do with music. Some were inspired by a song or hymn, some simply included music as part of the reflection experience. This week, we pray the Holy Spirit’s tune echoes in your heart and that he guides you into Truth as you listen again to these earthly tunes.

Readers’ Choice posts are selected by our readers:
Russell, Japan — Thanks for sharing this.
MJ, AZ — I am currently in the years of limping along in the journey of anticipated grief…I needed your words today and will keep this post to reference as I move forward on this path. Thank you for sharing this encouragement today.

Reflection: Be With Me — Readers’ Choice
By Erin Newton

In the kingdom of the heavens, no suffering is unknown;
 each tear that falls is holy, each breaking heart a throne.
 There is a song of beauty on every weeping eye —
 for there is One who loves me: His heart, it breaks with mine

These words, which bring me to tears every time, are from the song “Little Things with Great Love” by Porter’s Gate.

At the end of this summer, just a few weeks ago, my mother died. For six years, I limped along this journey of anticipated grief, knowing that her cancer was incurable. I became accustomed to sadness. It was simply a part of my life.

Many of us carry the weight of grief, pain, suffering, trauma—all sorts of sadness—with us every day. Instead of a passing feeling, it becomes a state of being. Grief is an unwelcome guest that lingers too long and too close.

Psalm 34 speaks of deliverance from fear and salvation from troubles. It was the plea of my anguished heart. I like to avoid sadness. Bottling up emotions, avoiding all sad movies, and never lingering too long on tragic events—this was my way of living.

Now I have learned that we get to grieve deeply because we have loved deeply. The weight of our sadness reflects the hope of a beautiful life that has been tragically altered.

What is never mentioned in the psalm is the absence of trouble. It is not praising God for a carefree life. As much as I want to escape heartache, suffering is part of living.

But we are not alone. God is near to the brokenhearted, the completely broken and crushed soul.

In the last days of my mom’s life, I would step out of the car and take a deep breath. I had to go in there and sit by her bed, counting breaths as they labored and slowed. I knew I had to go inside. There was no choice. “Dear Lord, can you go in there with me?” And he did.

I have known the depths of pain, but I have felt the strength of God’s presence. My mom could hear songs “like a choir” and felt an unseen hand rest upon her shoulder. God is near to us.

If there is any way I could talk to my mom now, I’d let her know I’m doing okay. Because I’ll never be alone.

Music: “Little Things with Great Love,” by Porter’s Gate

From John: The Divine Hours prayers will return in October. This month we will pray one scripture passage or verse each week.

Prayer:
Come, let us sing for joy to the Lord; let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation.
Let us come before him with thanksgiving and extol him with music and song.
For the Lord is the great God, the great King above all gods.
 — Psalm 95.1-3


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 37 (Listen 3:25)
1 Corinthians 13 (Listen 2:23)

Read more about In the Face of Grief
None of Christ’s followers had to leave their sorrow behind for Jesus to come to them.

In the Face of Grief

Read more about The Grace of Holding Space
What is most needed in these times is a willingness to simply “hold space” for another.

The Grace of Holding Space
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Rahab’s Story — Readers’ Choice

Scripture Focus: Matthew 1.1, 5a
1 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:

5 Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab…

Joshua 6.25
25 But Joshua spared Rahab the prostitute, with her family and all who belonged to her, because she hid the men Joshua had sent as spies to Jericho—and she lives among the Israelites to this day.

Originally published on December 12, 2023, based on readings from Matthew 1 and Joshua 6.

Readers’ Choice is here: There’s still time to tell us about your favorite, most meaningful posts of the year. If you shared it with someone, or it helped you, let us know via email, direct message, or filling out the linked form.

Advent in September: Several of the choices from readers were from last year, during Advent. We are putting these posts together in this first week of Readers’ Choice. We pray as Summer winds down that the spirit of Christmas has continued in your heart and that these posts will help you look forward to anticipate the coming seasons.

Readers’ Choice posts are selected by our readers:
Barbara, TN — Hallelujah!
Michele, CO — I imagine she [Rahab] must have declared, like Ruth, your God will be my God. And Salmon must have decided that her past was behind her. Imagine that!

Reflection: Rahab’s Story — Readers’ Choice
By Erin Newton

These are the matriarchs of Jesus: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Mary. This is Rahab’s story.

Who was this Rahab, the great-great-great-(and so on) grandmother of Jesus? Her identity is somewhat muddled. (Have no fear, she is not the mythic dragon from Job, Psalms, or Isaiah.)

She is likely the woman you remember from Joshua, whose name is rarely said without her epithet, “the prostitute.” How shameful that we demote her to one identity, because she is, in fact, a matriarch of Jesus.

Rahab the prostitute matriarch, like Tamar, was not a member of the Abrahamic family. She did not escape slavery from Egypt nor cross the Red Sea with the multitudes. She was a Canaanite.

Her business was one of pleasure, not love as we dream of it. She used her body in a culture that was more than willing to pay for it. Her job was scandalous and disgraceful to the covenant people encroaching on the borders of Canaan. She is an unlikely character in God’s story of redemption.

The stories of God saving his people reached her ears in Jericho. Stories of wonder and power, stories that herald the supremacy of God. I imagine how she compared the stories to the pathetic notion of her Ba’al killed and trapped by the god of death. Rahab heard and believed in this true God.

By faith, she hid the spies who swore an oath to spare her family. She risked her life to save people who would condemn her land, her friends, her culture, and her job. All because she knew God was coming to her.

The sign of mercy would be the scarlet cord draped from her window. The grandchildren of the people who spread the lamb’s blood across their doorposts would recognize this same sign of faith letting judgment pass safely over her house.

And so she lived among the Israelites. Her old ways would be reformed. Her past would become a testimony. Her future would bear the One whose blood would wash away all sin.

Yes, she was a prostitute.

But she is a matriarch of Jesus. Rahab, the disgraceful member of the enemy nation, is chosen and honored as one of five women named in Jesus’s family. She is not defined by her occupation or nationality.

In the love of Jesus belong the foreigners and the shamed. In the love of Jesus, we are renamed. 

From John: The Divine Hours prayers will return in October. This month we will pray one scripture passage or verse each week.

Prayer:
The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. — John 1.14


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 29 (Listen 5:44)
1 Corinthians 6 (Listen 3:03)

Read more about Becoming Part of the Promise
Rahab asks to be accepted by this powerful God who is not only in the heavens but active upon the Earth.

Becoming Part of the Promise

Readers’ Choice is here!
This month, we are thankful to share your favorite posts from the past year. There’s still time to tell us your faves via email, direct message, or the linked form, so we can repost them.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

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What Makes a King?

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 22:15-17
15 “Does it make you a king
     to have more and more cedar?
 Did not your father have food and drink?
     He did what was right and just,
     so all went well with him.
 16 He defended the cause of the poor and needy,
     and so all went well.
 Is that not what it means to know me?”
     declares the Lord.
 17 “But your eyes and your heart
     are set only on dishonest gain,
 on shedding innocent blood
     and on oppression and extortion.”

Reflection: What Makes a King?
By Erin Newton

Money can get things done. Wealth is usually indicative of power. But does having more really make someone a king?

God criticizes Jehoahaz (Shallum) king of Judah for his blatant pursuit of wealth while ignoring the poor and needy. He did not build this wealth in ways that were honorable or right; God calls it “dishonest gain” and “extortion.” This leader used the oppression and dismissal of others to enrich himself.

Jehoahaz is compared to his father Josiah, who is recorded as the king who initiated reforms and religious purification. Josiah defended the cause of the poor and needy.

Both men were made king in the same way—through bloodline. Judah operated under a monarchist government. They didn’t just use wealth to gain their place of authority. There was no bribing of officials or the community to “gain their votes.” So why does God ask if “having more cedar” made Jehoahaz a king?

There are leaders and there are Leaders, the trick is knowing the difference.

Jehoahaz and the dozen or more men before him inherited the leadership of Judah. While there are stories of kingship being granted to younger sons due to death, deception, or divine appointment, Judah followed the general rule that the eldest son became king. But not all kings were the same.

The two books of Kings reveal the ebb and flow of morality in the royal lineage. They were all kings in the same sense, but God does not view them equally.

What makes a king a king? God says kings are those who defend the cause of the poor and the needy. Is that not what it means to know me? True kings are those who know God. Their lives, their efforts, their causes, where they put their money, all these things reveal who is truly a king after God’s heart.

Most of us do not live under monarchies, but all of us are subject to some form of authority, whether it is civil government or church leadership. Some of us are the leaders in organizations, churches, institutions, or departments.

What makes a leader a leader? Knowing God. Knowing that is put into action.

Let us beware of those who pursue personal gains and assume that tenacity is the mark of leadership. Let us beware of our own proclivities to ignore the needs of others when our greed tempts us otherwise. 

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting
With my whole heart I seek you; let me not stray from your commandments. — Psalm 119.10

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 22 (Listen 5:07)
2 Thessalonians 2 (Listen 2:32)

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Tell us your favorite posts from the past year via email, direct message, or the linked form and we’ll repost them in September.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

Read more about Wealth is a Dangerous Tool
Take James’s words to heart…Let them inspire humility and respectful fear. If wealth is a tool, it is a dangerous one

Wealth is a Dangerous Tool
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The Wall or the Wrecking Ball

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 15:19–20
19 Therefore this is what the Lord says:
“If you repent, I will restore you
     that you may serve me;
 if you utter worthy, not worthless, words,
     you will be my spokesman.
 Let this people turn to you,
     but you must not turn to them.
 20 I will make you a wall to this people,
     a fortified wall of bronze;
 they will fight against you
     but will not overcome you,
 for I am with you
     to rescue and save you,”
 declares the Lord.

Reflection: The Wall or the Wrecking Ball
By Erin Newton

Standing up for what you believe in conjures up images of stalwart protesters in a line. But it could be the minority vote in the church or the quivering voice that steps up to the microphone during a denominational meeting saying, “What we’ve done is wrong.”

After hearing the vivid reality of Judah’s inevitable destruction, Jeremiah interrupts. “Lord, you understand…Remember me…Care for me.” Despite the clear declaration of judgment—undoubtedly their sinfulness demanded it—Jeremiah leans into the mercy of God.

Jeremiah is our “weeping prophet” no less. But he is steadfast in his confidence that God is not only just but also merciful.

God responds through his trusted merciful and compassionate character. As long as Jeremiah seeks truth by speaking worthy words (funnily, God is clear that they are not worthless words), then God would make him a wall.

A wall?! What a strange image. God doesn’t say here he will make Jeremiah a likable hero. He isn’t making him a shade-giving tree or fruit-bearing vine. He will be a wall.

Walls keep people out of where they might want to go. To the person, walls are obstacles. They are always “in our way.” Walls tend to get graffitied and pushed on. (To be clear, walls built by humans to segregate or harm other humans are the worst of walls. But this is a divinely built, metaphorical “wall.”)

As a wall, Jeremiah would stand against his peers as they pushed against him, trying to make him crumble. They might even try to force their words, their ideas, on him in hopes he would move aside so they could carry on their sinful ways. They were headed on a path (to destruction) and Jeremiah as a wall was meant to keep them from advancing.

God doesn’t sugarcoat what it will be like for the prophet. It will be hard.

We might fantasize what it would be like to stand up for what we believe in. Will we be the unlikely superhero or star of a biography? The reality is that we are likely to be pushed against, tempted to cave in to peers, and join Jeremiah in lamenting for our world.

In a very real way, we may find ourselves not as the wall standing for God’s truth but as the wrecking ball, trying to tear down our fellow brother or sister.

Are you standing for truth or actively tearing down?

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting
I restrain my feet from every evil way, that I may keep your word. — Psalm 119.101

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 15 (Listen 3:49)
Galatians 6 (Listen 2:18)

Read more about Readers’ Choice
Readers’ Choice starts in September, so it’s time to share your favorite posts of the year. Tell us your faves via email, direct message, or the linked form.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

Read more about Jeremiah, the Unpatriotic Prophet
Christians who see deeply into the problems of their country will often feel pressured not to speak about it for fear of being “unpatriotic” or “disrespectful.”

Jeremiah, the Unpatriotic Prophet
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Having vs. Knowing God’s Word

Scripture Focus: Jeremiah 8:7-8
7 Even the stork in the sky
     knows her appointed seasons,
 and the dove, the swift and the thrush
     observe the time of their migration.
 But my people do not know
     the requirements of the Lord.
8 How can you say, “We are wise,
     for we have the law of the Lord,”
 when actually the lying pen of the scribes
     has handled it falsely?

Reflection: Having vs. Knowing God’s Word
By Erin Newton

How many times a day do we read a post or article claiming to be really telling you the truth? But wait! They have the real answer!

We are a culture that is bent on convincing others that everything has been a lie, and the only solution is to trust this person who has this special knowledge. Even now, why should you believe what I’m typing?

What does it mean to be wise? How can we know if truth and wisdom have been handled falsely?

During Jeremiah’s time, the people spouted their confidence: “We are wise. We have the law. Isn’t that enough?” What they didn’t say is that they were sorry or had done wrong. They said, “Peace,” as if everything was fine. But in that time, things were anything but fine. They were anything but innocent. They had anything but wisdom.

God heralded his judgment: “They clung to deceitfulness; they trusted their own ways…like a charging horse going into battle.” They might have had the word of God, but they did not know its requirements (v. 7). We know from other texts that the people deprived the poor, acted unjustly, worshiped other gods, and felt no shame in the midst of it all.

When the community was hurting, the religious leaders would “dress the wound of my people as though it were not serious” (v. 11). Yes, they had the word of God but their handling of it was a lie.

How can we, today, avoid this egregious error? How do we know if those who say they have the right answer are actually wise people?

The proud statement that they had the law is important. They possessed the law. They probably read it from time to time. They might even have it out for people to see. But did they even know what it required?

Having and knowing are different things. You can possess a Bible, but it makes no difference if you don’t know what’s in it. You can display the Ten Commandments in a public building, but does anyone know what they require?

What they really needed, and we need, is one step further: doing. And I think that is how we know if someone is handling truth wisely—they have truth, know truth, and do truth. It must be all three.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Refrain for the Morning Lessons
The earth, O Lord, is full of your love; instruct me in your statutes. — Psalm 119.64


– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Summertime by Phyllis Tickle.


​Today’s Readings
Jeremiah 8 (Listen 3:52)
James 4 (Listen 2:25)

Read more about Readers’ Choice
We love hearing your favorite posts of the year. Tell us your faves via email, direct message, or the linked form. We’ll repost them in September for Readers’ Choice.

https://forms.gle/9vyYwVxa1kZZn7AKA

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