Fast-Forward

Links for today’s readings:

Read: Genesis 11 Listen: (3:47), Read: John 10 Listen: (4:44)

Links for this weekend’s readings:

Read:  Genesis 12 Listen: (2:51), Read: John 11 Listen: (6:37)
Read:  Genesis 13 Listen: (2:16), Read: John 12 Listen: (6:26)

Scripture Focus: Genesis 11.10, 26, 31-32

10 This is the account of Shem’s family line.
Two years after the flood, when Shem was 100 years old, he became the father of Arphaxad. 11 And after he became the father of Arphaxad, Shem lived 500 years and had other sons and daughters.

26 After Terah had lived 70 years, he became the father of Abram, Nahor and Haran.

31 Terah took his son Abram, his grandson Lot son of Haran, and his daughter-in-law Sarai, the wife of his son Abram, and together they set out from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. But when they came to Harran, they settled there.
32 Terah lived 205 years, and he died in Harran.

Reflection: Fast-Forward

By John Tillman

Genealogies in scripture are nicknamed “begats” because of the following format, although not every genealogy section follows it precisely: “So and so, begat so and so, who begat so and so…”

Many who attempt to read the Bible through, falter and fail amidst the “begats.” Some find them confusing, with unpronounceable names. Some find them boring.

Our boredom is ironic because, from a certain perspective, the story goes fastest in the begats. They are the biblical authors’ “fast-forward” button. Generations are compressed into a few lines. As they flash by, sometimes the images are dark or violent. Sometimes we see great progress.

Have you seen videos online in which an artist shows a painting or drawing from each year over many years? Beginning with childish crayon scratches, their work develops. They change tools. They abandon crayons for colored pencils, then drop color for high-contrast, black and white. They go through a charcoal phase, a pastel phase, and settle on paints. But they don’t just change tools. They change styles and inspirations. They go from cartoons to anime, film stars, religious icons, copies of famous paintings, and self portraits. Sometimes the art gets dark and broody. Sometimes it’s cute pets and loved ones. Sometimes it turns violent or extreme. These videos show patience and dedication.

The “begats” sections teach me that God is patient on a scale I can’t easily understand. He gives generation after generation the chance to walk humbly, to love mercy, and to do justice. Over and over, each generation fails. Some repeat old mistakes. Some overreact to the errors of the past. Some invent new ways to “go wrong.” God is more merciful than I am.

God is working on a generational time-scale but he’s also working in you and me. If he is patient over generations, he will be patient with us.

What do your faith and spiritual practices look like now? What works do your faith produce in keeping with righteousness? Childish crayon drawings or copies of the old masters? Cartoons? Caricatures? Portraits? Are you repeating old mistakes? Stuck in a sinful rut?

Don’t give up. Keep drawing. God is patient to develop your eyes to see, ears to hear, feet to walk, and hands to do good works. He is dedicated to bringing his work to completion in you, in this generation, and all the ones to follow.

God sees our progress in fast-forward.

Divine Hours Prayer: The Greeting

O God, you know my foolishness, and my faults are not hidden from you. — Psalm 69.6

– From The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Listen to: Urban Legends and Good Shepherds

You may have been wounded by a foolish or wicked shepherd. But you can still be healed by Jesus, the good shepherd.

Read The Bible With Us

Don’t get blown off course or swamped by cultural storms. Immerse in the Bible with us at a sustainable, two-year pace.

https://mailchi.mp/theparkforum/m-f-daily-email-devotional

Cultivation Means Tending

Matthew 10.6-7
Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, proclaim this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven has come near.’

Reflection: Cultivation Means Tending
By John Tillman

Cultivation begins with destruction, but continues with tenderness and care. On cultivated ground, the soil density, moisture, depth, and chemical balance is carefully controlled. Seeds are planted. Young plants are carefully spaced and precisely watered.

Cultivation creates an environment for growth that is unnatural—that is supernatural. We remove threatening plants. We destroy harmful insects. We take measures to keep out damaging wildlife. We use technology to mitigate weather extremes. When the soil and the environment are ready, we tenderly introduce the seed.

Studying agriculture is fascinating. So many of the plants we eat today, that we think of as “natural” are cultivated. For example, Native American peoples cultivated natural grasses over centuries, creating maize and the corn we know today.

A similar history is found with wine and grapes, with apples, and many other plants. We cultivate, strengthen, protect, and grow the seed. Across the history of the world, peoples have adapted their calendars, lifestyles, and cultures to the needs of their main crop. We care for the seed and the seed changes us.

The seed we care for, and the seed that changes us, is the gospel. The gospel is a seed from the first garden, the garden of Eden. The seed of the woman, Jesus himself, is our salvation and we plant this seed in our own hearts. When we cultivate our faith, we must carefully plant and nurture the early growth of gospel teaching so that it grows strong, healthy, and productive.

This seed changes us more than we change it. We begin by tenderly caring for our young faith, protecting it from difficulties. When it has grown strong, it tenderly protects us, sheltering and supporting us through difficult times and famines of life.

It is for this reason that we work to encourage deepening the roots of our faith through intellectually honest and challenging devotionals and by studying the best writings of ancient and modern Christian thinkers, pastors, and authors.

We must tenderly care for faith as it grows. This is true of our own faith and the faith of others.

Whose faith are you tending? What seeds of the gospel are you planting? How are you adapting the rhythm of your life to tend the seed? How are you creating a supernatural environment around you to prepare the ground for the seed of the gospel?

Prayer: The Request for Presence
Teach me your way, O Lord, and I will walk in your truth; knit my heart to you that I may fear your Name. — Psalm 86:11

– Prayer from The Divine Hours: Prayers for Autumn and Wintertime by Phyllis Tickle.

Prayers from The Divine Hours available online and in print.

Today’s Readings
Genesis 11 (Listen – 3:47)
Matthew 10 (Listen – 5:07)

Additional Reading
Read More about Forging Faith :: Throwback Thursday
This is one of the most difficult teachings of Christianity: you are not yet perfect and must be shaped.

Read More about Resisting in Faith
Daniel lived undefiled, resisted the whims of an evil government, and influenced the course of an empire through simple faith and regular practice of spiritual disciplines.

How far will you travel in God’s Word this year?
On January 1st we restarted our two year Bible reading plan in Genesis and the Gospel of Matthew. Join us on the journey. We read the Old Testament over two years and the New Testament and Psalms each year.

Read with us at a sustainable pace. Subscribe and invite friends to join you using this link.

Where will a journey through the Bible take your faith in the coming year? Jesus calls each of us, saying, “Follow me.”