5 Minute Read

Love Your Neighbor (Psalm 126)

(5 Minute Read)

Read Psalm 126:

A song of ascents.
When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion,
    we were like those who dreamed.
Our mouths were filled with laughter,
    our tongues with songs of joy.
Then it was said among the nations,
    “The Lord has done great things for them.”
The Lord has done great things for us,
    and we are filled with joy.
Restore our fortunes, Lord,
    like streams in the Negev.
Those who sow with tears
    will reap with songs of joy.
Those who go out weeping,
    carrying seed to sow,
will return with songs of joy,
    carrying sheaves with them.

This is one of the traveling songs that Israel sang as they returned from exile—and that they then sang every year as they made their pilgrimage to Jerusalem. They sang to remember the deliverance that God had achieved for them, beyond their wildest dreams. But Israel never stayed  independent for very long. They lived perpetually under the thumb of another nation. Even when they were physically at home, they were not free. So the second half of this song calls for God to restore them again. They pray that they would not return home empty-handed, that God would use their sorrow and suffering to bring forth a harvest of joy. This is the prayer and promise that Jesus ultimately fulfills, as Zechariah prays at the beginning of Luke’s gospel:

“[God] has raised up a mighty savior for us
    in the house of his servant David,
 as he spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old,
    that we would be saved from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us.
Thus he has shown the mercy promised to our ancestors,
    and has remembered his holy covenant,
the oath that he swore to our ancestor Abraham,
    to grant us that we, being rescued from the hands of our enemies,
might serve him without fear, in holiness and righteousness
    before him all our days."

When we pray Psalm 126, we celebrate this deliverance and pray for it to be made real in the lives of those who suffer in oppression and exile. Pray for the displaced strangers of our world:

  • for refugees who have been forced from their home by war and oppression
  • for the homeless who live in a different daily reality
  • for the mentally ill who are strangers to their loved ones and even within their own minds
  • for the church-less who have walked away from, been hurt by, or never known the community of believers

Pray that their sowing in sorrow would spring up to a harvest of joy. Pray that Christ and his Church would welcome and care for them, giving them a home and family.

Questions or discussion? Click here to comment.

Tomorrow on the Daily Connection: Who Is My Neighbor (Operation Christmas Child)

About the Author

Nick Chambers is the Director of Spiritual Formation at Calvary UMC

Love Your Neighbor (Jeremiah)

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(5 minute read)

Read Jeremiah 7:1–7:

This is the word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord: “Stand at the gate of the Lord’s house and there proclaim this message:
“‘Hear the word of the Lord, all you people of Judah who come through these gates to worship the Lord. This is what the Lord Almighty, the God of Israel, says: Reform your ways and your actions, and I will let you live in this place. Do not trust in deceptive words and say, “This is the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord, the temple of the Lord!” If you really change your ways and your actions and deal with each other justly, if you do not oppress the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow and do not shed innocent blood in this place, and if you do not follow other gods to your own harm, then I will let you live in this place, in the land I gave your ancestors for ever and ever.

One of the most consistent clarion calls of all the prophets is to care for the powerless. Here in Jeremiah, God actually makes his presence among his people contingent on whether or not they practice justice and eliminate oppression. He calls us to replace severity with mercy, shrewdness with generosity, security with risk, apathy with compassion, and fear with hospitality.

This call is so essential to the heart of Christianity that James tells us this: "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world” (James 1:27). These two things are not as separate as they may seem. In fact, if our impulse toward holiness leads us to withdraw from the task of caring for others in need, we fail on both fronts. Purity is not a matter of personal piety; it is a social matter of justice and peace. In a world of war and oppression, the people of who bear God’s image are commissioned to communicate an entirely new socio-political reality on earth. While the world operates on power and privilege, the people of God are always and everywhere called to care for the foreigner, the fatherless, and the widow. This is what it means “to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” This is not something extra appended onto “the real gospel" of “saving souls.” Our care for the poor and powerless is the very condition of God’s presence among us.

The prophets constantly wrap up Israel’s idolatry and rebellion against God with the their failure to establish justice and peace in their society. When we reject our neighbor, we reject God—and vice versa. To teach us this, God himself became poor and powerless, so that maybe we could finally learn to see him looking back at us in the faces of refugees, social outcasts, the homeless, addicts, and orphans. God arrives at the margins—not to pull the outcasts in but to call out the safe, secure, and “normal."

Questions or discussion? Click here to comment.

Tomorrow on the Daily Connection: Who Is My Neighbor?

About the Author

Nick Chambers is the Director of Spiritual Formation at Calvary UMC

Who Is My Neighbor? (Home Sweet Home Ministries)

(5 minute read)

Where can we see Calvary folks teaching art, remodeling rooms, teaching job skills, and being a shopper?  These, as well as many other opportunities to serve are at Home Sweet Home Ministries right here in town.  According to their website,

“Home Sweet Home Ministries has been serving the homeless and hungry with Christ's love in Bloomington, Illinois since 1917. We provide case management and other supportive services to the homeless such as shelter, hot meals, clothing and toiletries, and children's programming. Our goal is to help people find independence, restore their hope and share the love of Jesus Christ with them.”

Calvary has a special relationship with Home Sweet Home Ministries (HSHM), providing not only financial support, but also the opportunities for people to serve there in a variety of ways.  Here are some of the stories from our Calvary family who see their neighbors at HSHM.

From Eric Hoss:

“My personal mission at Home Sweet Home mission is to provide career and job interview services. I help clients learn how to research job options, write a resume, and have the interview skills to land the job. I have many rewarding experiences where someone homeless is able to secure a job and become independent.”

Eric and his wife, Terri, will be participating in HSHM’s “Night in a Car” Fundraiser on Friday, February 3, at Trinity Lutheran Church in Bloomington.  Stop by and see them if you read this by then!

From Anne Powell:

I volunteered at HSHM in response to a plea Amanda Nesby sent out a year and a half ago.  Can you believe it, they were looking for a shopper!  A hard (not) job, but somebody has to do it!
Every Thursday morning, I go to the mission to pick up the shopping list and the big blue van.  I wish we had a picture of it because it is striking with pictures of fruits and vegetables and the words, Bread for Life Co-Op.  Co-Op.  Not pantry.  Because HSHM works to provide a "hand up," not a "hand-out."  That's what I like about this place; they allow people to build self esteem at a time in their lives when they may have lost their pride.
Anyway, back to my job.  All I really do is go to Sam's and Walmart and spend the Mission's money.  I have a friend who volunteers with me.  We shop and bring the food back and put it away.  Not hard at all, but we're always told we're appreciated.  And every week, we see that the local homeless are well fed.  In the time we've done this job, we've also seen shelter residents move to jobs first within the shelter and later, in the community.  And in the halls of the Mission, we see hope.
I have limited experience with the Co-Op, but it's an amazing place.  It's set up like a grocery store and shoppers, who have volunteered to "pay" for their purchases, make their own choices rather than just picking up a box.  Food comes from the Midwest Food Bank and food donations from local stores and gardeners.  [Editorial comment:  Last year, Calvary donated over 2 tons of fresh produce from our Community Garden to the Food Co-Op and HSHM’s kitchen.]  
At some point, I'd like to be more "hands on" and work directly with residents, possibly teaching sewing.  But for now, I fill a need and it really isn't a hard job.  If anyone else is interested, I know there are frequent pick-ups at various local stores and the volunteer coordinator is always looking for help.

From Fred Nimke and Richard Nielsen:

Fred Nimke and Richard Nielsen are currently replacing the ceilings in one of the rooms reserved for veterans.  The  materials were donated by the VFW and it’s a great connection since Richard is a veteran and Fred is a carpenter.  Previously, Fred worked in Home Sweet Home’s Mission Mart to put up special walls to hold shelves.  He also built a shed last year for their garden at the warehouse.  When asked why Fred likes to serve at HSHM he said, “Because that’s what I’m called you to.”

From Joe Landon:

Joe teaches art classes at HSHM every Thursday and has been doing so for several years.  Joe shares his God-given talent so that others can discover theirs!

Mary Ann Pullin, CEO of HSHM said,

“The thing I love most about Home Sweet Home Ministries is that you can come here with your God-given gifts and find a place to be a neighbor to others. This applies to service recipients, volunteers, and employees.”

Want to serve?  Call the church and we’ll set you up to be blessed as you are a blessing to others.