Come

"Come! Let's sing for joy to the Lord Jehovah!" Psalm 95:1.

Yes! We shout praises to you, O Lord, the Rock who saves us! We come to you with thanksgiving. We sing songs to you! You are the Great King above all gods! You own the deepest places on earth. You own the highest mountain tops. You own the seas because you made them! You created dry land with your own hands! We bow down and worship you. We kneel in your presence, O God, because you made us. And we are the sheep of your pastures, we are the sheep you tend with your own hand!

We join in together with a brother or sister today in the joy of our great God! And, together, we give joyful thanks for his Son, Jesus, who joined us all to himself.

Elijah

"Why does the Scripture say the Son of Man will suffer much?" Mark 9:12.

Jesus asked that. Just before that, his three apostles asked him why the scribes said Elijah had to come before Messiah. Just before that, they had been discussing privately what rising from death meant. Just before that, Jesus had told them the Son of Man would rise from the dead. Just before that, Jesus told them not to tell anybody what they had seen. And just before that, they had seen Jesus with Moses and Elijah. But Jesus answered their question that Elijah had come already, but people violated him, too. Just like the Scriptures had said. But Why?

We meet with a brother or sister today recognizing sin's violence. And, together, we give sorrowful thanks that Jesus became the lamb sacrificed violently for our sin.

Transfixed

"Let's make three shrines," Mark 9:5.

So. What do you do when you're terrified? Terrified. (Not merely stirred by, but) terrified by an overwhelming spiritual experience? When, transfixed, you see Jesus, Moses, and Elijah blazing bright, talking together? Well, first order of business: contain the divine terror. Build a box to tame it. In fact, let's put up three booths. (In our ignorance.) One each for Jesus, Moses, Elijah. Yeah. Appease the deity. (But to no avail. Can't be done.) The divine terror overshadows all to thunder out its irrepressible voice: Hear him! This is my Son! The beloved One!

Hearing Jesus, we visit with a brother or sister today on our knees. And, together, we yield our very selves, heart, soul, and strength, God's temple on earth.

Until

"There are some standing here who will not taste death," Mark 9:1.

Now, that's some headline! But clearly, the sentence doesn't stop there. A clause follows. The adverbial clause (O man! not middle school grammar all over again!) explains something about the time for these folks who don't die. In fact, it kind of undoes the not dying part. But it gives a timely milestone these folks will live to see before they die. So. What's the milestone? This: The kingdom of God having come in power. They'll see it. Who'll see it? Some people standing there 2000 years ago when Jesus said so.

We, too, having been born anew into the kingdom of God, meet with a brother or sister today. And, together, we give thanks in confident hope of a share in Jesus' eternally saving work.

Crazy

"What would a man give in trade for his life?" Mark 8:37.

What a crazy question! But there's sort of two parts to it. How much money would a person pay in order to keep on living, if they could? The other way to consider the question: If a person could trade their life for anything else, what would it be? (The absurdity, of course, is exemplified by all that wealth in the pyramids buried alongside the pickled pharaohs - wouldn't they trade it all in order to live?) Anyway. Here's Jesus' answer: Trade personal will for following Jesus to death. He will give his life in exchange for that.

We visit with a brother or sister today encouraging each other to turn from the adultery and sin of our generation. And, shouldering our crosses together, we walk thankfully in the footsteps of Jesus, our Lord.

Prevailed

"Peter took Jesus aside and started to scold him," Mark 8:32.

When did you last scold Jesus for something he said? It's kind of weird to think about, isn't it? Sometimes we think how grand it would be to have been there at the time with Jesus and to see all the wonders he did and to have all that convincing proof of him being the Christ of God right in front of our eyes and we'd never have any doubt about it! But we know. We know. Deep in our own souls, we know. We'd do just like they did. We'd still want Jesus to do what we want him to do rather than what the Father wanted. But he was always about his Father's will. Not ours. Not Satan's.

We get together with a brother or sister today thankful that Jesus always turned his will over to God. And, chastened together, we praise God that his will prevailed over ours.

Triumph

"The skies praise your wonders, O Lord Jehovah," Psalm 89:5.

Yes, Lord! In the meeting of your holy ones, the skies praise your loyalty! No one in the sky equals you. No heavenly being is like you. Yes! When all the courts of sky beings meet, it is you they fear. You are far more frightening than all of them! You are powerful! The seas obey you. You crush monsters of the deep. You own the skies, the earth. And your loyalty, Lord, your faithfulness surrounds you. Love. Truth. Love and truth announce your advent. You are the shine of the humans who find strength in you. Bless you forever!

As we visit with a brother or sister today, we triumph in the might of our God. And, together, we praise him for the surpassing wonder of Christ's redemption.

Christ

"You are the Christ," Mark 8:29.

Those four words say it all. Mark's summary of Peter's speech. Those four words mean what Luke reports as: The Christ of God. And what Matthew reports as: You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And what John records as: You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world. (But here worded by Martha). The Christ. The Messiah. The Anointed. The Son of God. The Specially Chosen One, but for what purpose? Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world. The atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world.

Having been redeemed by the blood of the lamb, we meet a brother or sister today confessing anew Jesus as God's Christ. And, together, we offer thanks.

After

"Who do you say I am?" Mark 8:29.

The biggest question ever asked. His query comes after Jesus taught like nobody ever taught before. After he announced Good News. After he exorcised demons from helpless people. After he brought sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf. After he resurrected people to life. After he fed thousands from a backpack of food. After religious experts accused him as demonic. After they dismissed him a lunatic. After they decided to destroy him. After yet others knelt before him in awe.

We meet with a brother or sister today convicted that Jesus is the Christ. And, confessing faith together, we also give thanks to God for receiving such simple trust worthy of his salvation.

Trees

"Do you see anything?" Mark 8:23.

Jesus heals. Period. Do the miracles work? Of course they do! Jesus never asks. Except for this time. Yeah. Jesus asked. And, no, it didn't work - the blind guy sees trees walking. Now the event becomes a two-part healing project. So (again) Jesus laid hands on the fellow's eyes, looked intently, restored health, and the fellow was seeing clearly. Now, how did Jesus get this wrong? Maybe he used the wrong magical formula? Or maybe. Maybe it was a deliberate miracle intentional as a parable. His dim followers needed a second continuing work to see clearly just who they were following.

Recognizing Jesus as the Christ, Son of the living God, we visit with a brother or sister today. And, together, we praise God for patiently restoring to us insight and understanding.

Perceive

"Don't you understand yet?" Mark 8:21.

We humans get worried about material stuff all the time. Worry about the bills. About winter coats. About physical health. About all sorts of stuff. But Jesus worries about the spirit. The heart. The soul. He says watch out! Don't get hard-hearted. Open the eyes of your soul. Use your ears to hear the Spirit. Use your mind to perceive. Remember! The Lord makes bread out of nothing. Rather, worry about matters of the spiritual kingdom. Get it!

As we come to understand, we meet with a brother or sister today to share God's bounty. And, together, we offer thanks that he lifts our spirits up into the heavens.

Sigh

"He sighed deeply in his spirit," Mark 8:12.

Sometimes Jesus sighed as he looked up into the sky for God's help to heal somebody. Kind of like our own sighs when we long for Home. Sometimes he sighed like when our words fail us out of our depth, and the Spirit steps between us and God with sighs beyond words. These sighs tell about deep, internal feelings so hard to express in words. And sometimes. Sometimes Jesus sighed in utter frustration with religious experts arguing about the validity of his astounding miracles.

We meet with a brother or sister today in the faith of Jesus, the Christ of God. And, together, we sigh in thanksgiving to God for having put up with our former disbelief.