Posts for Lent

Throughout the Season of Lent please go to www.meanderingabout.com for a devotional and activity for each of these 40 days. Enjoy.

Isaiah 58:1-12 and Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

Isaiah 58:1-12

[1]   Shout out, do not hold back!  
          Lift up your voice like a trumpet!  
     Announce to my people their rebellion,  
          to the house of Jacob their sins.  
[2]   Yet day after day they seek me  
          and delight to know my ways,  
     as if they were a nation that practiced righteousness  
          and did not forsake the ordinance of their God;  
     they ask of me righteous judgments,  
          they delight to draw near to God.  
[3]   "Why do we fast, but you do not see?  
          Why humble ourselves, but you do not notice?"  
     Look, you serve your own interest on your fast day,  
          and oppress all your workers.  
[4]   Look, you fast only to quarrel and to fight  
          and to strike with a wicked fist.  
     Such fasting as you do today  
          will not make your voice heard on high.  
[5]   Is such the fast that I choose,  
          a day to humble oneself?  
     Is it to bow down the head like a bulrush,  
          and to lie in sackcloth and ashes?  
     Will you call this a fast,  
          a day acceptable to the LORD?

[6]   Is not this the fast that I choose:  
          to loose the bonds of injustice,  
          to undo the thongs of the yoke,  
     to let the oppressed go free,  
          and to break every yoke?  
[7]   Is it not to share your bread with the hungry,  
          and bring the homeless poor into your house;  
     when you see the naked, to cover them,  
          and not to hide yourself from your own kin?  
[8]   Then your light shall break forth like the dawn,  
          and your healing shall spring up quickly;  
     your vindicator shall go before you,  
          the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.  
[9]   Then you shall call, and the LORD will answer;  
          you shall cry for help, and he will say, Here I am.

     If you remove the yoke from among you,  
          the pointing of the finger, the speaking of evil,  
[10]  if you offer your food to the hungry  
          and satisfy the needs of the afflicted,  
     then your light shall rise in the darkness  
          and your gloom be like the noonday.  
[11]  The LORD will guide you continually,  
          and satisfy your needs in parched places,  
          and make your bones strong;  
     and you shall be like a watered garden,  
          like a spring of water,  
          whose waters never fail.  
[12]  Your ancient ruins shall be rebuilt;  
          you shall raise up the foundations of many generations;  
     you shall be called the repairer of the breach,  
          the restorer of streets to live in.

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Matthew 6:1-6, 16-21

[1]"Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

[2]"So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. [3]But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, [4]so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

[5]"And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. [6]But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

[16]"And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. [17]But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, [18]so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

[19]"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; [20]but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. [21]For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Proverbs 30:1-4, 24-33 and Psalm 102

Proverbs 30:1-4, 24-33

[1]The words of Agur son of Jakeh. An oracle.
Thus says the man: I am weary, O God,
I am weary, O God. How can I prevail?
[2]Surely I am too stupid to be human;
I do not have human understanding.
[3]I have not learned wisdom,
nor have I knowledge of the holy ones.
[4]Who has ascended to heaven and come down?
Who has gathered the wind in the hollow of the hand?
Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment?
Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is the person's name?
And what is the name of the person's child?
Surely you know!

[24]Four things on earth are small,
yet they are exceedingly wise:
[25]the ants are a people without strength,
yet they provide their food in the summer;
[26]the badgers are a people without power,
yet they make their homes in the rocks;
[27]the locusts have no king,
yet all of them march in rank;
[28]the lizard can be grasped in the hand,
yet it is found in kings' palaces.

[29]Three things are stately in their stride;
four are stately in their gait:
[30]the lion, which is mightiest among wild animals
and does not turn back before any;
[31]the strutting rooster, the he-goat,
and a king striding before his people.

[32]If you have been foolish, exalting yourself,
or if you have been devising evil,
put your hand on your mouth.
[33]For as pressing milk produces curds,
and pressing the nose produces blood,
so pressing anger produces strife.

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Psalm 102

[1]   Hear my prayer, O LORD;  

          let my cry come to you.  

[2]   Do not hide your face from me  

          in the day of my distress.  

     Incline your ear to me;  

          answer me speedily in the day when I call.

[3]   For my days pass away like smoke,  

          and my bones burn like a furnace.  

[4]   My heart is stricken and withered like grass;  

          I am too wasted to eat my bread.  

[5]   Because of my loud groaning  

          my bones cling to my skin.  

[6]   I am like an owl of the wilderness,  

          like a little owl of the waste places.  

[7]   I lie awake;  

          I am like a lonely bird on the housetop.  

[8]   All day long my enemies taunt me;  

          those who deride me use my name for a curse.  

[9]   For I eat ashes like bread,  

          and mingle tears with my drink,  

[10]  because of your indignation and anger;  

          for you have lifted me up and thrown me aside.  

[11]  My days are like an evening shadow;  

          I wither away like grass.

[12]  But you, O LORD, are enthroned forever;  

          your name endures to all generations.  

[13]  You will rise up and have compassion on Zion,  

          for it is time to favor it;  

          the appointed time has come.  

[14]  For your servants hold its stones dear,  

          and have pity on its dust.  

[15]  The nations will fear the name of the LORD,  

          and all the kings of the earth your glory.  

[16]  For the LORD will build up Zion;  

          he will appear in his glory.  

[17]  He will regard the prayer of the destitute,  

          and will not despise their prayer.  

[18]  Let this be recorded for a generation to come,  

          so that a people yet unborn may praise the LORD:  

[19]  that he looked down from his holy height,  

          from heaven the LORD looked at the earth,  

[20]  to hear the groans of the prisoners,  

          to set free those who were doomed to die;  

[21]  so that the name of the LORD may be declared in Zion,  

          and his praise in Jerusalem,  

[22]  when peoples gather together,  

          and kingdoms, to worship the LORD.

[23]  He has broken my strength in midcourse;  

          he has shortened my days.  

[24]  "O my God," I say, "do not take me away  

          at the mid-point of my life,  

     you whose years endure  

          throughout all generations."

[25]  Long ago you laid the foundation of the earth,  

          and the heavens are the work of your hands.  

[26]  They will perish, but you endure;  

          they will all wear out like a garment.  

     You change them like clothing, and they pass away;  

[27]       but you are the same, and your years have no end.  

[28]  The children of your servants shall live secure;  

          their offspring shall be established in your presence.

Proverbs 27:1-6, 10-12 and Philippians 2:1-13

Proverbs 27:1-6, 10-12

[1]Do not boast about tomorrow,
for you do not know what a day may bring.
[2]Let another praise you, and not your own mouth —
a stranger, and not your own lips.
[3]A stone is heavy, and sand is weighty,
but a fool's provocation is heavier than both.
[4]Wrath is cruel, anger is overwhelming,
but who is able to stand before jealousy?
[5]Better is open rebuke
than hidden love.
[6]Well meant are the wounds a friend inflicts,
but profuse are the kisses of an enemy.

[10]Do not forsake your friend or the friend of your parent;
do not go to the house of your kindred in the day of your calamity.
Better is a neighbor who is nearby
than kindred who are far away.
[11]Be wise, my child, and make my heart glad,
so that I may answer whoever reproaches me.
[12]The clever see danger and hide;
but the simple go on, and suffer for it.

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Philippians 2:1-13

[1]If then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love, any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, [2]make my joy
complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. [3]Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. [4]Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. [5]Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, [6]who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, [7]but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, [8]he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death — even death on a cross. [9]Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, [10]so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, [11]and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

[12]Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; [13]for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.

Proverbs 8:1-21 and Psalm 88

Proverbs 8:1-21

[1]Does not wisdom call, and does not understanding raise her voice? [2] On the heights, beside the way, at the crossroads she takes her stand; [3] beside the gates in front of the town, at the entrance of the portals she cries out: [4] "To you, O people, I call, and my cry is to all that live. [5] O simple ones, learn prudence; acquire intelligence, you who lack it. [6] Hear, for I will speak noble things, and from my lips will come what is right; [7] for my mouth will utter truth; wickedness is an abomination to my lips. [8] All the words of my mouth are righteous; there is nothing twisted or crooked in them. [9] They are all straight to one who understands and right to those who find knowledge. [10] Take my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold; [11] for wisdom is better than jewels, and all that you may desire cannot compare with her. [12] I, wisdom, live with prudence, and I attain knowledge and discretion. [13] The fear of the LORD is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. [14] I have good advice and sound wisdom; I have insight, I have strength. [15] By me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; [16] by me rulers rule, and nobles, all who govern rightly. [17] I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. [18] Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and prosperity. [19] My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. [20] I walk in the way of righteousness, along the paths of justice, [21] endowing with wealth those who love me, and filling their treasuries. 

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Psalm 88

[1]   O LORD, God of my salvation,   
    when, at night, I cry out in your presence,   
[2]   let my prayer come before you;   
         incline your ear to my cry.

[3]   For my soul is full of troubles,   
         and my life draws near to Sheol.   
[4]   I am counted among those who go down to the Pit;   
         I am like those who have no help,   
[5]   like those forsaken among the dead,   
         like the slain that lie in the grave,   
    like those whom you remember no more,   
         for they are cut off from your hand.   
[6]   You have put me in the depths of the Pit,   
         in the regions dark and deep.   
[7]   Your wrath lies heavy upon me,   
         and you overwhelm me with all your waves.               Selah

[8]   You have caused my companions to shun me;   
         you have made me a thing of horror to them.   
    I am shut in so that I cannot escape;   
[9]        my eye grows dim through sorrow.   
    Every day I call on you, O LORD;   
         I spread out my hands to you.   
[10]  Do you work wonders for the dead?   
         Do the shades rise up to praise you?                                
 Selah   
[11]  Is your steadfast love declared in the grave,   
         or your faithfulness in Abaddon?   
[12]  Are your wonders known in the darkness,   
         or your saving help in the land of forgetfulness?

[13]  But I, O LORD, cry out to you;   
         in the morning my prayer comes before you.   
[14]  O LORD, why do you cast me off?   
         Why do you hide your face from me?   
[15]  Wretched and close to death from my youth up,   
         I suffer your terrors; I am desperate.   
[16]  Your wrath has swept over me;   
         your dread assaults destroy me.   
[17]  They surround me like a flood all day long;   
         from all sides they close in on me.   
[18]  You have caused friend and neighbor to shun me;   
         my companions are in darkness.

  

Proverbs 7:1-27 and Psalm 143

Proverbs 7:1-27

[1]My child, keep my words and store up my commandments with you; [2]keep my commandments and live, keep my teachings as the apple of your eye; [3]bind them on your fingers, write them on the tablet of your heart. [4]Say to wisdom, "You are my sister", and call insight your intimate friend, [5]that they may keep you from the loose woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words.

[6]For at the window of my house I looked out through my lattice, [7]and I saw among the simple ones, I observed among the youths, a young man without sense, [8]passing along the street near her corner, taking the road to her house [9]in the twilight, in the evening, at the time of night and darkness.

[10]Then a woman comes towards him, decked out like a prostitute, wily of heart. [11]She is loud and wayward; her feet do not stay at home; [12]now in the street, now in the squares, and at every corner she lies in wait. [13]She seizes him and kisses him, and with impudent face she says to him: [14]"I had to offer sacrifices, and today I have paid my vows; [15]so now I have come out to meet you, to seek you eagerly, and I have found you! [16]I have decked my couch with coverings, coloured spreads of Egyptian linen; [17]I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and cinnamon. [18]Come, let us take our fill of love until morning; let us delight ourselves with love. [19]For my husband is not at home; he has gone on a long journey. [20]He took a bag of money with him; he will not come home until full moon."

[21]With much seductive speech she persuades him; with her smooth talk she compels him. [22]Right away he follows her, and goes like an ox to the slaughter, or bounds like a stag towards the trap [23]until an arrow pierces its entrails. He is like a bird rushing into a snare, not knowing that it will cost him his life.

[24]And now, my children, listen to me, and be attentive to the words of my mouth. [25]Do not let your hearts turn aside to her ways; do not stray into her paths. [26]for many are those she has laid low, and numerous are her victims. [27]Her house is the way to Sheol, going down to the chambers of death.

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Psalm 143

[1]   Hear my prayer, O LORD;  
          give ear to my supplications in your faithfulness;  
          answer me in your righteousness.  
[2]   Do not enter into judgment with your servant,  
          for no one living is righteous before you.

[3]   For the enemy has pursued me,  
          crushing my life to the ground,  
          making me sit in darkness like those long dead.  
[4]   Therefore my spirit faints within me;  
          my heart within me is appalled.

[5]   I remember the days of old,  
          I think about all your deeds,  
          I meditate on the works of your hands.  
[6]   I stretch out my hands to you;  
          my soul thirsts for you like a parched land.                  
Selah

[7]   Answer me quickly, O LORD;  
          my spirit fails.  
     Do not hide your face from me,  
          or I shall be like those who go down to the Pit.  
[8]   Let me hear of your steadfast love in the morning,  
          for in you I put my trust.  
     Teach me the way I should go,  
          for to you I lift up my soul.

[9]   Save me, O LORD, from my enemies;  
          I have fled to you for refuge.  
[10]  Teach me to do your will,  
          for you are my God.  
     Let your good spirit lead me  
          on a level path.

[11]  For your name's sake, O LORD, preserve my life.  
          In your righteousness bring me out of trouble.  
[12]  In your steadfast love cut off my enemies,  
          and destroy all my adversaries,  
          for I am your servant.

Proverbs 6:1-19 and Psalm 65

Proverbs 6:1-19

[1]My child, if you have given your pledge to your neighbor, if you have bound yourself to another, [2] you are snared by the utterance of your lips, caught by the words of your mouth. [3] So do this, my child, and save yourself, for you have come into your neighbor's power: go, hurry, and plead with your neighbor. [4] Give your eyes no sleep and your eyelids no slumber; [5] save yourself like a gazelle from the hunter, like a bird from the hand of the fowler.

[6] Go to the ant, you lazybones; consider its ways, and be wise. [7] Without having any chief or officer or ruler, [8] it prepares its food in summer, and gathers its sustenance in harvest. [9] How long will you lie there, O lazybones? When will you rise from your sleep? [10] A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, [11] and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want, like an armed warrior.

[12] A scoundrel and a villain goes around with crooked speech, [13] winking the eyes, shuffling the feet, pointing the fingers, [14] with perverted mind devising evil, continually sowing discord; [15] on such a one calamity will descend suddenly; in a moment, damage beyond repair.

[16] There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: [17] haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, [18] a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that hurry to run to evil, [19] a lying witness who testifies falsely, and one who sows discord in a family.

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Psalm 65

[1]   Praise is due to you,  
          O God, in Zion;  
     and to you shall vows be performed,  
[2]        O you who answer prayer!  
     To you all flesh shall come.  
[3]   When deeds of iniquity overwhelm us,  
          you forgive our transgressions.  
[4]   Happy are those whom you choose and bring near  
          to live in your courts.  
     We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,  
          your holy temple.

[5]   By awesome deeds you answer us with deliverance,  
          O God of our salvation;  
     you are the hope of all the ends of the earth  
          and of the farthest seas.  
[6]   By your strength you established the mountains;  
          you are girded with might.  
[7]   You silence the roaring of the seas,  
          the roaring of their waves,  
          the tumult of the peoples.  
[8]   Those who live at earth's farthest bounds are awed by your signs;  
          you make the gateways of the morning and the evening shout for joy.

[9]   You visit the earth and water it,  
          you greatly enrich it;  
     the river of God is full of water;  
          you provide the people with grain,  
          for so you have prepared it.  
[10]  You water its furrows abundantly,  
          settling its ridges,  
     softening it with showers,  
          and blessing its growth.  
[11]  You crown the year with your bounty;  
          your wagon tracks overflow with richness.  
[12]  The pastures of the wilderness overflow,  
          the hills gird themselves with joy,  
[13]  the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,  
          the valleys deck themselves with grain,  
          they shout and sing together for joy.