Lenten Devotional 2021 - Pittsburgh Theological Seminary
Lenten Devotional 2021We hope you’ll follow along daily, be deepened in your faiththrough this year’s ministry of our graduates, and prepare yourheart to celebrate at Easter the new life that Jesus Christ madepossible for all.Use this devotional resource in the way that best enhances yourLenten thoughts and practices:»»»»»Read a printed copy.Read and listen online. Visit www.pts.edu/devotional.Receive daily e-mails. Go to www.pts.edu/e-mail, click“Devotionals.”Follow along on Facebook and Twitter.Download our free Android or Apple app. Visit thestore and search for “Devotions - Advent & Lent.”
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2021The Rev. Paul Leone ’90SCRIPTUREJonah 3:1-4:111 The word of the LORD came to Jonah a second time,saying, 2 “Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, andproclaim to it the message that I tell you.” 3 So Jonah set outand went to Nineveh, according to the word of the LORD.Now Nineveh was an exceedingly large city, a three days’walk across. 4 Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’swalk. And he cried out, “Forty days more, and Nineveh shallbe overthrown!” 5 And the people of Nineveh believed God;they proclaimed a fast, and everyone, great and small, put onsackcloth. 6 When the news reached the king of Nineveh, herose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself withsackcloth, and sat in ashes. 7 Then he had a proclamationmade in Nineveh: “By the decree of the king and his nobles:No human being or animal, no herd or flock, shall tasteanything. They shall not feed, nor shall they drink water.8 Human beings and animals shall be covered with sackcloth,and they shall cry mightily to God. All shall turn from theirevil ways and from the violence that is in their hands. 9 Whoknows? God may relent and change his mind; he may turnfrom his fierce anger, so that we do not perish.” 10 WhenGod saw what they did, how they turned from their evilways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he hadsaid he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.4:1 But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he becameangry. 2 He prayed to the LORD and said, “O LORD! Isnot this what I said while I was still in my own country?That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knewthat you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger,and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent frompunishing. 3 And now, O LORD, please take my life from me,for it is better for me to die than to live.” 4 And the LORDsaid, “Is it right for you to be angry?” 5 Then Jonah went outof the city and sat down east of the city, and made a boothfor himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to seewhat would become of the city. 6 The LORD God appointeda bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade overhis head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was veryhappy about the bush. 7 But when dawn came up the nextday, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so thatit withered. 8 When the sun rose, God prepared a sultryeast wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah sothat he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, “It isbetter for me to die than to live.” 9 But God said to Jonah,“Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?” And he said,“Yes, angry enough to die.” 10 Then the LORD said, “Youare concerned about the bush, for which you did not laborand which you did not grow; it came into being in a nightand perished in a night. 11 And should I not be concernedabout Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than2 Lent Devotional 2021a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not knowtheir right hand from their left, and also many animals?”DEVOTIONAL“The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying,‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it themessage that I tell you.’” I am writing this reflection whilepracticing social distancing, wearing a mask in public, andchurches worship virtually in response to a virus that hasliterally sickened to death this globe.Concurrently, a pandemic of another sort has shaken thiscountry to its core—a disease unveiled by a video of a dyingblack man gasping for air. In angry response, a collective“Jonah” (protestors and demonstrators) has taken tothe streets of Nineveh (think Minneapolis and beyond)proclaiming a message: “I can’t breathe,” “Get your knee offour necks,” “No justice, no peace.”“Jonah began to go into the city, going a day’s walk.And he cried out, ‘Forty days more, and Nineveh shall beoverthrown!’” Day after day the voice of the people inour city streets has grown larger and louder. The sin andwickedness they rail against? Racism, discrimination, andpolice brutality.God’s message through Jonah stirred the hearts and minds ofthe people of Nineveh. “They proclaimed a fast and everyone,great and small, put on sackcloth.” Even the King of Ninevehrose from his throne, removed his robe, covered himself withsackcloth, and sat in ashes. What is our country doing? WillGod’s message through the collective street voice stir thehearts and minds of national, state, and local government?Will our leaders heed the prophetic word “to do justice,and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?”(Micah 6:8). Will this commitment infiltrate the decisions,policies, and reform desperately needed?Further, what are we as individual Christians doing? Todayis Ash Wednesday, the first day of 40 in this season of Lent,which takes its name from the imposition of ashes on theforeheads of worshipers as a sign of human sin and mortality.Are we sincere when we pray, with the psalmist, “Createin me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spiritwithin me” (Ps. 51:10). Do we take seriously both parts ofJesus’ call to “Repent, and believe in the good news” (Mark1:15)?I heard a black man telling his children they are in danger,not because of anything they have done, but because of thecolor of their skin. He said, “The skin is the sin.” Let all of usremember—we are dust, and to dust we shall return (Gen.3:19b).
PRAYERDEVOTIONAL“Breathe on us, breath of God, fill us with life anew, that wemay love what thou dost love, and do what thou wouldstdo.” Amen.“For my days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn like afurnace . . . I wither away like grass” (vv. 3, 11b). When timedoes its job well, what tends to be left behind are our bones.THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 18, 2021The Rev. Rebecca Dix ’15/’16SCRIPTUREPsalm 1021 Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you. 2 Do nothide your face from me in the day of my distress. Incline yourear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call. 3 Formy days pass away like smoke, and my bones burn likea furnace. 4 My heart is stricken and withered like grass;I am too wasted to eat my bread. 5 Because of my loudgroaning my bones cling to my skin. 6 I am like an owl ofthe wilderness, like a little owl of the waste places. 7 I lieawake; I am like a lonely bird on the housetop. 8 All day longmy enemies taunt me; those who deride me use my namefor a curse. 9 For I eat ashes like bread, and mingle tearswith my drink, 10 because of your indignation and anger;for you have lifted me up and thrown me aside. 11 My daysare like an evening shadow; I wither away like grass. 12 Butyou, O LORD, are enthroned forever; your name endures toall generations. 13 You will rise up and have compassion onZion, for it is time to favor it; the appointed time has come.14 For your servants hold its stones dear, and have pity onits dust. 15 The nations will fear the name of the LORD, andall the kings of the earth your glory. 16 For the LORD willbuild up Zion; he will appear in his glory. 17 He will regardthe prayer of the destitute, and will not despise their prayer.18 Let this be recorded for a generation to come, so that apeople yet unborn may praise the LORD: 19 that he lookeddown from his holy height, from heaven the LORD looked atthe earth, 20 to hear the groans of the prisoners, to set freethose who were doomed to die; 21 so that the name of theLORD may be declared in Zion, and his praise in Jerusalem,22 when peoples gather together, and kingdoms, to worshipthe LORD. 23 He has broken my strength in midcourse;he has shortened my days. 24 “O my God,” I say, “do nottake me away at the mid-point of my life, you whose yearsendure throughout all generations.” 25 Long ago you laidthe foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the workof your hands. 26 They will perish, but you endure; they willall wear out like a garment. You change them like clothing,and they pass away; 27 but you are the same, and youryears have no end. 28 The children of your servants shall livesecure; their offspring shall be established in your presence.We place a lot of trust in bones. They house and protectmany vital organs. They provide structure, support, andenable mobility. If a house is solid and trustworthy to weathertempests and time, we say it has “good bones.” And in anumber of cultures and civilizations, bones were dependedon for tools, crafts, agriculture, and medicine. Bones haveplayed a vital role in our current existence and also in learningabout where we have been as a human species.Yet as formidable and important as they seem, even bonesare not permanent. Bones ache and break. They burn. Oneday they hold us upright, the next they pull us down. Back tothe earth. Back to the dust. Back to the beginning.Even our bones will perish and pass away. So during thisLenten season, place your trust in something that hasweathered all time. Place your trust in the One who laid thefoundation of the earth.PRAYERGod who hears the groans from our weary hearts and whoknows the worn aches of our bones, whose name enduresto all generations, hear our prayers. Walk with us as ourdays lengthen like evening shadows, and fix our sight on youalone. In Christ’s name we pray. Amen.FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2021The Rev. John Culp ’98SCRIPTUREDeuteronomy 7:12-1612 If you heed these ordinances, by diligently observing them,the LORD your God will maintain with you the covenantloyalty that he swore to your ancestors; 13 he will love you,bless you, and multiply you; he will bless the fruit of yourwomb and the fruit of your ground, your grain and your wineand your oil, the increase of your cattle and the issue of yourflock, in the land that he swore to your ancestors to give you.14 You shall be the most blessed of peoples, with neithersterility nor barrenness among you or your livestock. 15 TheLORD will turn away from you every illness; all the dreaddiseases of Egypt that you experienced, he will not inflict onyou, but he will lay them on all who hate you. 16 You shalldevour all the peoples that the LORD your God is giving overto you, showing them no pity; you shall not serve their gods,for that would be a snare to you.Pittsburgh Theological Seminary www.pts.edu
DEVOTIONALSATURDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 2021“That’s not fair!” Most of us probably said it a time or two—or 20—to our parents when we were small. Some of us tendto feel that way on a regular basis through most of our lives.We may even be inclined to make the accusation againstGod.The Rev. Jeanine Haven ’00These lines from Deuteronomy 7 give us ammunition forthat charge, don’t they? Along with many other verses fromthe Old Testament, they paint for us a picture of a deitywho showers blessings on his people Israel—routinely atthe expense of innumerable Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites,Perizzites, and an unfortunate army of assorted other “ites.”17 If you say to yourself, “These nations are more numerousthan I; how can I dispossess them?” 18 do not be afraidof them. Just remember what the LORD your God did toPharaoh and to all Egypt, 19 the great trials that your eyessaw, the signs and wonders, the mighty hand and theoutstretched arm by which the LORD your God brought youout. The LORD your God will do the same to all the peoplesof whom you are afraid. 20 Moreover, the LORD your Godwill send the pestilence against them, until even the survivorsand the fugitives are destroyed. 21 Have no dread of them,for the LORD your God, who is present with you, is a greatand awesome God. 22 The LORD your God will clear awaythese nations before you little by little; you will not be able tomake a quick end of them, otherwise the wild animals wouldbecome too numerous for you. 23 But the LORD your Godwill give them over to you, and throw them into great panic,until they are destroyed. 24 He will hand their kings over toyou and you shall blot out their name from under heaven;no one will be able to stand against you, until you havedestroyed them. 25 The images of their gods you shall burnwith fire. Do not covet the silver or the gold that is on themand take it for yourself, because you could be ensnared by it;for it is abhorrent to the LORD your God. 26 Do not bring anabhorrent thing into your house, or you will be set apart fordestruction like it. You must utterly detest and abhor it, for itis set apart for destruction.But that decidedly—outrageously!—unequal treatment isof course baked into the cake of what it means to be God’schosen people. It’s his recurring pattern: Isaac, not Ishmael;Jacob, not Esau; David, not Eliab or Abinadab or Shammah.And to magnify His “unfair” preference, the Lord stubbornlycontinued to bless the children of Abraham (droughts,plagues, and victorious oppressive enemies notwithstanding),even through their wearying, seemingly incessant rebellionand rejection of his rule over them. “. . . heed theseordinances . . .”? Not even close!If Lent teaches us anything, it should surely be that time andagain we are those maddeningly disobedient, ungratefulchildren of Abraham. We can’t even lay claim to the familytie, most of us, on the basis of blood. At least not our own.And if we’re ever inclined to shake a fist heavenward, railingagainst divine injustice (isn’t that at least most of us, fromtime to time?), we do well to remember also that the lastthing any of us should ever demand from God is justice. MarkTwain may have been a skeptic, even an unbeliever. But hesurely got this much right: “If heaven went by merit insteadof grace, your dog would get in and you would not.”May these days of somber preparation send each of us to ourknees in genuine confession and sincere repentance. Maythey send us to the cross, where we can rejoice that Godgives us infinitely better than justice. He gives us mercy. Hegives us Christ.PRAYERGracious God, how amazing is the love in which you haveprovided a Savior for us in your beloved Son! Thank you, dearLord! Please give us the further grace to glorify you in thesedays of Lent by growing ever more into his image. Send usto our neighbors near and far with the message of hope youhave given us in Jesus. We ask it in his glorious name. Amen.SCRIPTUREDeuteronomy 7:17-26DEVOTIONALIt is so easy to get caught up in the “big picture” ofDeuteronomy 7:17-26 and to read it as a message of divineretribution. But sometimes in exploring specific verses, wediscover what they may be saying to us today. So here, let’sconsider Deuteronomy 7:22: “The LORD your God will clearaway these nations before you little by little; you will not beable to make a quick end of them, otherwise the wild animalswould become too numerous for you.”Yes, it’s easy to discount this verse as being simply aboutGod’s plan for his people in entering Canaan and thereforenot applicable to life in the 21st century. But consider the factthat God tells the Hebrews not to try entering all at once,rather, little by little. And note the divine reminder that Godwill be present as they travel on this great new adventure—present to give guidance, strength, and encouragement everystep along the way.Now, think of all the times you have witnessed God’s helpingsomeone little by little. The determined infant who keeps4 Lent Devotional 2021
stumbling and finally, triumphantly, takes a first step! Thecancer patient learning he’s in remission after going throughrounds of treatments and multiple “clean” tests.When we have a “life event” that initially seemsoverwhelming, if we take it one step at a time we have thepotential to get through it successfully. We just need toremember that God is with us in each little step along theway!PRAYERGod of grace and love, help us to realize that it is okay tolean on you. When we feel overwhelmed by life’s obstacles,remind us of your presence as we explore each new day littleby little. We thank you Lord for your loving support! Amen.SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2021The Rev. Mark Gaskill ’03SCRIPTURE1 Corinthians 1:18-3118 For the message about the cross is foolishness to thosewho are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is thepower of God. 19 For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdomof the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I willthwart.” 20 Where is the one who is wise? Where is thescribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God madefoolish the wisdom of the world? 21 For since, in the wisdomof God, the world did not know God through wisdom,God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation,to save those who believe. 22 For Jews demand signs andGreeks desire wisdom, 23 but we proclaim Christ crucified, astumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, 24 butto those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christthe power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 For God’sfoolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weaknessis stronger than human strength. 26 Consider your own call,brothers and sisters: not many of you were wise by humanstandards, not many were powerful, not many were of noblebirth. 27 But God chose what is foolish in the world to shamethe wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame thestrong; 28 God chose what is low and despised in the world,things that are not, to reduce to nothing things that are,29 so that no one might boast in the presence of God. 30 Heis the source of your life in Christ Jesus, who became for uswisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification andredemption, 31 in order that, as it is written, “Let the onewho boasts, boast in the Lord.”DEVOTIONALThis passage is a terrible sales pitch. I will paraphrase a fewof the highlights: “The cross is a ridiculous way to save theworld,” “God picks stuff that doesn’t make sense to anyone,Jew or Greek,” “Oh, and all of us who follow Jesus, we’repretty much just a bunch of losers—that’s how we know thisis really God working in us.”The reality today is that churches are failing. Some of usare failing numerically; declining attendance, membership,and commitment can be plotted on gloomy graphs and direcharts. In that scenario, we think we have to find a bettersales pitch, so we try (too hard) to be something other thanwhat we are. Others may be growing numerically but failingspiritually. They have abandoned the message of the cross tosome degree in favor of something that seems less foolishto the comfortable and the privileged, and there they havefound a market niche.It is difficult for the human ego to accept the terms Christoffers us. Paul was no exception; he had to do it the hardway. He fought with himself and with others to keep focusedon the reality that he was not the one who was responsiblefor doing the saving—God had to do it.How do you “sell” your church? Do you tell people howridiculous you are? Do you admit that you can’t do anythingthat’s good on your own? Do you confess that you are asinner, for real, and that some of your sins are pretty bad?False humility will not avail in this world—people are tooused to being lied to and sold scams. The only place to beright now, if we want to live, is with God’s foolishness, whichis wiser that human wisdom, and God’s weakness, which isstronger than human strength.PRAYERHelp us, Holy God, for we want so badly to be wise andstrong. We spend so much time and energy seeking toproject positivity and success. It is exhausting. We need to bevulnerable, but we just can’t seem to trust that it will work.Teach us what it means to offer our broken hearts to you.Bind up the wounds we c
DEVOTIONAL “The word of the Lord came to Jonah a second time, saying, ‘Get up, go to Nineveh, that great city, and proclaim to it the message that I tell you.’” I am writing this reflection while practicing social distancing, wearing a mask in public, and churches worship virtually in response to a virus that has
Welcome to the third annual Lenten Devotional! It is always a treat to read the entries that members of our parish offer for our Lenten Devotional. By creating this devotional we gather around scripture as a community to reflect on where Jesus is leading us this Lenten season. This booklet has been created to serve as a companion to our parish
2020 Lenten Devotional Each Lenten season, Pittsburgh Theological Seminary offers a daily devotional guide to the faith community. Quiet yourself during Lent by reflecting on God's word and prepare your heart to celebrate at Easter the new life he made possible for all. Printed copies of the devotional guide will be available in the Jane Ward
Lenten Devotional 2022. 2 Lent Devotional 2022 WEDNESDAY, MARCH 2, 2022 Dr. Wendy Farone '21, MAPS Student SCRIPTURE Luke 18:9-14 9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:
As you prepare for the Lenten season, we hope that you’ll find these reflections by Pittsburgh Theological Seminary faculty scholars to be helpful. Perhaps these sermons will inspire your own message, lead to a small group Bible study, or simply bring you c
2021 Lenten Devotional These scriptures, themes, and prayers were sourced . Lent is a time of reflection on what . Thursday, February 18, 2021 Greeting Others With Peace In Spite of Divisions “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” — Matthew 5:9
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Activities 1. Lenten Crown of Thorns 2. Lenten Calendar 3. Lenten Sacrifice Jar 4. Bury the Alleluia 5. Stations of the Cross craft or coloring pages 6. Lenten Bible Study for Children – The Life of Jesus 7. Make a Paschal Candle 8. Cover up all statues, crucifixes, holy images with purple
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