From the Desrt to Calvary

From the desert to Calvary: A Lenten Devotional

Foreword

Each year the Christian calendar calls us to a forty day period of preparation known as Lent. In this season we journey with Christ from his temptation in the desert, through his Passion and crucifixion, to that most glorious day of his resurrection, Easter Sunday. It is a season of penance, prayer, and introspection. During these 40 days and the six Sundays in Lent, many Christians begin a renewed focus on spiritual practices as they contemplate exactly what Christ went through for each one of us.
This year, members of our congregation have shared some of their reflections on the daily lectionary passages for the Lenten season. The devotionals reflect the way God is speaking to them as individuals in this place and time. You will notice some differences in the way each of us approaches and responds to Scripture, but that is only natural. God has blessed me and the writers have done so as well. I’ve been moved by the faith that shines through in these works.
During the Lenten season, the devotionals will be distributed weekly in church on Sunday. They will also be available daily online at the church’s website. You can access them at the following URL: http://1stbgmo.presbychurch.org/devotionals.html.
We hope and pray, as you read their encounters with God through Scripture, that some thing resonates with you in your walk of faith. The Session and I pray that this is a Spirit filled season for each of you. May God’s Word find fertile ground in your life.

Rev Andrew O'Dowd

All devotional materials ©2005 by First Presbyterian Church, 205 W. Centennial St., Bowling Green, MO 63334.
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible.

February 9, 2005 Ash Wednesday Psalm 51

Psalm 51:10 “Create a clean heart in me, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.”

Alcoholics Anonymous has, over the years, been instrumental in helping many people conquer or at least control their addiction to alcohol. The “12 Steps” which form the bedrock of the success of AA have been adopted, with great success, by groups coping with other addictive behaviors as well. We owe a lot to those unnamed individuals who modeled the rebirth that AA requires of participants each day of their sobriety.
There are many touch points between the 12 Steps and Christianity. Most of the similarities can be seen in the earlier steps. For example the first step; “Admitting we are powerless to that which controls us.” For an alcoholic that is their drinking. For Christians it is our sinning. We are powerless to avoid sin on our own, just as an alcoholic is powerless to give up their addiction without some external mediator.
Every time I read Psalm 51 I am reminded how powerless we are in our sin. Martin Luther came to realize that he was never without sin in his life. He would enter the confessional, spend hours making his confession, leave, and then return minutes later when he recalled more sins. The same is true of each of us, we are never without sin.
Except for one thing, God in an act of astounding mercy and grace chose to grant forgiveness. He elected to send his Son to bear the punishment we deserve for our sin. And God gave each one of us the ability to choose right from wrong. In other words, God gave us a chance to create, with His help, a clean heart within us. An opportunity for us to wipe the slate clean and begin life anew, forgiven of our sin. We, like the alcoholic in AA, must begin with the abandonment of any pretenses concerning our lives. In fact, the best state for us to know and experience what God has done for us is when we are at our lowest, in the deepest depths of remorse and contrition. It is then, that we recognize exactly what God’s forgiveness is about and know how great a gift it is.
But that clean state is not something we can ignore. The creation of a right spirit within us is not a one time event. Our changed state requires constant maintenance and attention. We must each and every day battle our tendency to sin. And like the alcoholic, the best support system we have is the community of sinners in the same state we are, the Church.
I wonder sometimes, would life be different in the church if we were to claim our role as the support system for those around us. And at the same time, how would our lives change if we utilized the church as our own support system. In Acts 2, near the end of the chapter, we find the phrase; “and the disciples shared as each had a need.” Perhaps that sharing was not just material but the support and openness of knowing that we all need help to succeed in God’s world.

Almighty God, help me to recognize the people in my life and the support they provide. Create in me, not just a clean heart, but a contrite soul that knows how close I am to sinning anew with each breath. Strengthen me to serve you this day. Amen.

Contributed by Rev. Andy O’Dowd