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The Wild Places Bible Guide – Introduction

Lent at Reservoir

Each year during the pre-Easter season of Lent, we’ve become accustomed to exploring a section of Scripture together. You can check out past daily bible guides here if you’re interested. This year, we’re going to explore the concept of wilderness and exile, and our series will be called The Wild Places. Our Sunday sermons will also explore this from 3/10-4/14, so you’re invited to read/listen to those as well.

The Wild Places: Introduction

By choice or by circumstance, we sometimes find ourselves in times and in places, in circumstances and in seasons, where we are out of our element, beyond our resources, and out of control. Let’s call these the wild places.

Sometimes a journey into the wild places is deliberate. We swim in the ocean, we trek into the woods, we travel outside our comfort zone. We know these can be times of profound learning and encounter, opportunities to discover something new about ourselves, our neighbor, our world, even the divine. Other times we end up in wilds we’d never wish for. A loved one dies, a relationship or venture fails, a dream goes unfulfilled, disaster or chaos strike. These can be times that make or break us, that shape us or undo us, or both.

In the Bible’s treasure of metaphors, these places are often connected to the place and experience of wilderness. People end up in the wilderness of nature and praise God for all they see and discover there. People, and whole nations and cultures, are also driven into the wilderness and need to come to grips with their greatest fears and most crippling habits. But again and again, these wild places are times and spaces of profound learning and discovery and formation.

This year, we hope that the Lenten¹ season will be for us all a profound time of learning and discovery and formation. This year’s Bible guide won’t examine a single, contiguous section of scripture as we so often do (Revelation last year, Romans three years ago) but will be more of a thematic survey.

Each weekday we’ll present you with a different passage, in the Common English Bible translation. On weekends, you can catch up on a missed day, review a favorite passage, or skip the guide all together.

Points of Interest — a handful of comments, which include literary or historical notes as well as impressions, thoughts, questions, and reactions. These aren’t meant to be exhaustive or authoritative, but simply to give you some more perspective to work with as you ponder the passage yourself. We try to name things you hadn’t noticed but wish you had, as well as give voice to some of the questions and observations you did have but weren’t sure what to do with.

A Direction for Prayer — there will also be a prompt for prayer that you can use. These invitations focus on the prayers for others we encourage you to try during this season:

For your friends and family: Consider some of your favorite people, people you interact with on a regular basis, who don’t seem to have much of a direct connection to God, but for whom you are very much rooting. What does this passage have to say to them, or to you about them?

For your church or city: How can we apply the passage corporately as a faith community?

Spiritual Exercise — each week, there will a different daily spiritual exercise to try, inspired by the week’s passages. Or what does this passage say about or to our entire city?

We hope Lent will be a season of spiritual formation for us – of engaging spiritual practice that increases our health and encourages the flourishing of the life of God in and through us. If you would like to engage in fasting or increased generosity, these are two traditions of spiritual formation that have been traditionally helpful during this season. See the March 3rd sermon on spiritual formation for more. Meanwhile, we’ll be encouraging the spiritual practices of Scripture reading and prayer in community. Attend our Sunday services and join a community group for the season if you’re able. You could also find a friend to touch base with on your own if you like. May your Lent be a place of warm encounter with God and with others, and may it be a time of rich learning, discovery, and formation.

¹Lent is from an Old English word meaning “spring”. It’s used to refer to the 6-week period before Easter Sunday. For centuries, Jesus followers have marked this period of anticipation for Easter through prayer, fasting, and giving. In past years, we’ve called this season the 40 Days of Faith. We’re putting that title aside for two reasons. One, it’s our own in-house jargon that isn’t familiar to those outside our church. “Lent” is part of our faith tradition and is still a familiar (if misunderstood) season in our broader culture. The other reason is that the 40 Days of Faith featured an encouragement to people to ask God for a big desire or need. Many individuals have experienced dramatic answers to their prayers over the years. But for others, this practice has been confusing or wearisome. Anybody is able to ask God for their heart’s desire in any time or season. This year, though, we’ll encourage that practice for those who are interested during our Advent season, the time before Christmas when we traditionally connect some of our deepest longings with Jesus’ presence with us and our longing for Jesus to come again.

River of the Water of Life – Revelation Bible Guide Day 29

Previously in Revelation

²⁷But nothing unclean will enter it, nor anyone who practices abomination or falsehood, but only those who are written in the Lamb’s book of life.

Day 29 – 6th Thursday

Revelation 22:1-7

Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb ²through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. ³Nothing accursed will be found there any more. But the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; ⁴they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. ⁵And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign forever and ever.

⁶And he said to me, “These words are trustworthy and true, for the Lord, the God of the spirits of the prophets, has sent his angel to show his servants what must soon take place.”

⁷“See, I am coming soon! Blessed is the one who keeps the words of the prophecy of this book.”

Points of Interest

- “the river of the water of life” – It turns out that the spring in this city becomes a whole river that is born in the very person of God. Jews long had a hopeful vision of good and beautiful things being born in their largest city of Jerusalem, symbolized by a river flowing out from Jerusalem. This hope was something of a literal impossibility for this dry, elevated location. Now, with God living in the great city that is the whole new heaven and earth, the dream comes true. All that is inside of God flows to all of us.
- “the tree of life” – This is evocative of the garden of Eden as well as several other moments in the Old Testament. Here, though, there are twelve different fruits and its’ found on both sides of the river. So it’s not so much a tree that God has planted as a whole orchard. I’ve watched a friend of mine plant and tend to a small orchard, meant to nourish its owners with delightful fruit. It is such a gift, and one that takes such immense planning and work and care. All that is the case here, but the produce isn’t just apples or peaches but abundant, many-varied fruit, and medicinal leaves that heal us all. So beautiful.
- “his servants will worship” – The word for servants is literally slaves. Scholars estimate that around one third of the population of the Roman empire were slaves, so all of John’s first audience were either slaves or slave-owners or knew one of the two. The word is used here but for the opposite of its reality. The slaves have a couple of slave-like qualities still – they are marked by God on their foreheads, a sign of belonging but of ownership as well; and they worship God. But they also are welcome at the throne and the reign with God forever, so they are co-rulers, not slaves at all. I think this indicates a radical and liberating shift in the human experience.
- “they will see his face” – The new heaven and earth experience is less that of a worker or slave and more of a trusting child or intimate lover. Metaphors of children of God and bride of Christ are used to indicate the trust and openness and immediacy of seeing God face to face.
- “These words are trustworthy and true” – As John starts to wrap up, he rephrases many of his opening statements, including an assurance of his complex letter’s authenticity and reliability.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, as Easter approaches, and Revelation climaxes with its vision of a new heaven and a new earth, we’ll look to cultivate hope. Take some time and use your imagination to cultivate hope. Picture yourself walking alongside the river of the water of life, sampling the orchard’s abundant fruit, applying the balm from their leaves to any inner or outer wounds. What does this feel like? Take your time. Now picture yourself face to face with God, who is full of light. What do you experience? What do you do or say? What does God have to say to you? What expression is on God’s face?

A Direction for Prayer

Pray for people and groups you are aware of who are most wounded, most oppressed or outcast or hurt. Ask Jesus to grow the orchard of fruit and healing in their lives. Ask Jesus to flow toward them the river of life that begins in God’s self. Pray for God’s presence and healing for them.

The Bible Guide

This blog post is part of a Lenten journey through the book of Revelation. Every year during the season of Lent, we take a focused look at a portion of Scripture as part of our communal spiritual practice. This year, we are exploring what it means to be Children of God in a Fractured World, with Revelation as our lens. On Sundays, we’re exploring this with our sermons; on weekdays, we’re doing so with our bible guide. The bible guide series starts here.

New Heaven, New Earth – Revelation Bible Guide Day 27

Previously in Revelation

This is the second death, the lake of fire; ¹⁵and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Day 27 – 6th Tuesday

Revelation 21:1-8

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more. ²And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. ³And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,

“See, the home of God is among mortals.
He will dwell with them;
they will be his peoples,
and God himself will be with them;
⁴he will wipe every tear from their eyes.
Death will be no more;
mourning and crying and pain will be no more,
for the first things have passed away.”

⁵And the one who was seated on the throne said, “See, I am making all things new.” Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.” ⁶Then he said to me, “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. To the thirsty I will give water as a gift from the spring of the water of life. ⁷Those who conquer will inherit these things, and I will be their God and they will be my children. ⁸But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the polluted, the murderers, the fornicators, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and all liars, their place will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death.”

Points of Interest

- “heaven” – Heaven in both 1^st century Hebrew and Greek didn’t mean “where you might go after you die.” It meant both the skies – the actual place birds fly and clouds appear – and the “invisible realm of God invading us.” Heaven is “the metaphor that tells us that there is far more here than meets the eye.” So it is both future and present tense. “Calling the word heaven a metaphor does not make it less real; it simply recognizes that it is a reality inaccessible at this point to any of our five senses.” (Peterson, Reversed Thunder, 169)
- “a new heaven and a new earth” – In ancient cosmology, “heaven and earth” are shorthand for all reality – the earth, the skies, realms visible and invisible. Jesus isn’t replacing material reality with an immaterial heaven, but remaking everywhere and everything in creation.
- “the sea was no more” – For ancient Jews, the sea represented chaos and turbulence. No sea in Jesus’ new heaven and new earth meant for them peace, order, and harmony – nothing to fear. This is part of the present work Jesus has begun and will complete in the future.
- “the holy city… prepared as a bride adorned for her husband” – We’ll talk more about the city tomorrow, but for now, we note John’s mixed metaphors. What Jesus is doing amongst people that love Jesus is like building a new city and is also like preparing a bride to marry him.
- “the home of God… He will dwell with them” – God’s presence is what is most new about this heaven and earth. God’s presence is the source of the comfort, the presence that removes death, and the force that is driving away danger. The noun “home” and the verb “dwell” are the same here, both meaning “tent” or “tabernacle.” Jews, before they built a temple, set up a tent for God to live in, as a symbol that God travelled and lived with them. Jesus is making this symbol real now.
- “See I am making all things new” – This is parallel to the opening “new heaven and new earth” statement. There are narrow teachings on the good news of Jesus that say it is only about forgiving sins or avoiding punishment. Revelation, as with other places in the New Testament, has a really expansive version of the good news, that Jesus is renewing all things – from work to politics to real estate to ecology to our own emotional and psychological experience of life.
- “It is done” – As future tense and unaccomplished as this vision sounds to us, God is confident that it is finished. This experience has begun and will not be stopped.
- “To the thirsty” – Evocative of Isaiah 55’s prophecy and Jesus’ own words about being living water that deeply satisfies, John’s image of a spring of living water evokes refreshment, satisfaction, and delight.
- “Those who conquer” – This has been the goal since the opening letters to the churches in Chapters 2 and 3, that people and communities not give up on persevering in faith, even in the face of all of life’s challenges and grief. Mama and Papa God is here unseen, and has a great inheritance for us, the children.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, as Easter approaches, and Revelation climaxes with its vision of a new heaven and a new earth, we’ll look to cultivate hope. What have you experienced so far of the new heaven and the new earth? Any ways you’ve experienced comfort or satisfaction or protection from God? However small or large that is, what does it mean to you that there is infinitely more where that came from? Ask God to grow your hope that the best of your experience of God and the best of your experience of life is yet to come.

A Direction for Prayer

Pray for your six, that they will experience more of God’s comfort in sorrow and greater hope that Jesus is making all things new. Ask that Jesus will encourage each of them today in the particular place where they are most tired and discouraged of the reality they see and know.

The Bible Guide

The Book of Life – Revelation Bible Guide Day 26

Previously in Revelation

²¹And the rest were killed by the sword of the rider on the horse, the sword that came from his mouth; and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Day 26 – 6th Monday

Revelation 20:1-15

Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. ²He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the Devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, ³and threw him into the pit, and locked and sealed it over him, so that he would deceive the nations no more, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be let out for a little while.

⁴Then I saw thrones, and those seated on them were given authority to judge. I also saw the souls of those who had been beheaded for their testimony to Jesus and for the word of God. They had not worshiped the beast or its image and had not received its mark on their foreheads or their hands. They came to life and reigned with Christ a thousand years. ⁵(The rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended.) This is the first resurrection. ⁶Blessed and holy are those who share in the first resurrection. Over these the second death has no power, but they will be priests of God and of Christ, and they will reign with him a thousand years.

⁷When the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison ⁸and will come out to deceive the nations at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, in order to gather them for battle; they are as numerous as the sands of the sea. ⁹They marched up over the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from heaven and consumed them. ¹⁰And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur, where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

¹¹Then I saw a great white throne and the one who sat on it; the earth and the heaven fled from his presence, and no place was found for them. ¹²And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, the book of life. And the dead were judged according to their works, as recorded in the books. ¹³And the sea gave up the dead that were in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and all were judged according to what they had done. ¹⁴Then Death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. This is the second death, the lake of fire; ¹⁵and anyone whose name was not found written in the book of life was thrown into the lake of fire.

Points of Interest

- “the key to the bottomless pit” – I’m thinking of the scene in The Princess Bride when our hero wakes to discover he’s in the Pit of Despair. He’s told, “Don’t even think about trying to escape.” This time, though, God’s imprisoning the lying, accusing force behind all evil. Why the temporary release later, I have no idea.
- “a thousand years” – This length of time is repeated six times. It’s the only mention in the Bible, and it seems that this mysterious period of the flourishing of Christ and the resurrected martyrs is meant to be a really long time. Yet, despite the brief and obscure mention, this millennium has been the subject of great debate. Postmillenialists believe Jesus will return to earth after these thousand years, which for early Americans led to optimism and social progress, but also religious imperialism. Premillenialists read this passage most literally and believe Christ returns to earth before a great thousand year reign. This view has generally produced a more pessimistic view of human culture. Amillenialism reads this all symbolically, to likely be a very long time between Jesus’ resurrection and eventual return, a time in which Christ and his followers live and reign, even if unseen to most of us. I have an opinion, but mainly I recommend that you don’t care. It’s a minor point that doesn’t impact the main point of the text – Christ will return and will destroy evil.
- “Gog and Magog” – A reference from the prophet Ezekiel, here recast as human entities in the service of evil.
- “thrown into the lake” – The destruction of evil may sound unkind or violent, but it is necessary. Yale theologian Miroslav Volf has written, “Absolute hospitality would … enthrone violence precisely under the guise of nonviolence because it would leave the violators unchanged and the consequences of violence unremedied.” Exclusion is a last resort, but is a mercy.
- “earth and heaven fled” – Earth and heaven stands for everything. One impulse when people see God is to be overwhelmed and want to hide. People feel exposed in light of the stunning and perfect otherness of God – this happened occasionally with Jesus. But here there is no hiding place. All will see and confront their Maker.
- “books were opened… another book… the book of life” – There are two sets of books in this metaphorical moment at the end of human history, it seems – one book of people’s deeds, and one where God registers life. People are judged by their works, but if they are written into the book of life, they are preserved and live eternally regardless.
- “Death and Hades” – This reminds me of the Monty Python scene where the body collector calls, “Bring out your dead.” Here they are called out of all imaginable places for judgment. The “people” singled out for suffering, though, aren’t people at all, but the great enemies of humans, personified. Death and Hell are destroyed forever. The God of Life also becomes the destroyer of death. So while the judgment is rightly sobering, I believe it is most fundamentally a place of mercy and protection, rather than punishment.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, as Easter approaches, and Revelation climaxes with its vision of a new heaven and a new earth, we’ll look to cultivate hope. What hope does it give you that God is fiercely determined to wipe out death and evil? What realities of life or history do you look forward to seeing destroyed?

A Direction for Prayer

Think of the humans or groups you have heard of that strike you as most violent or evil, today’s Gog and Magog, to your mind. Pray that God will have mercy on the people – writing them into the book of life – while healing them of the evil cancer that must die.

The Bible Guide

A Robe Dipped in Blood – Revelation Bible Guide Day 25

Previously in Revelation

¹⁰Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your comrades who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Day 25 – 5th Friday

Revelation 19:11-21

¹¹Then I saw heaven opened, and there was a white horse! Its rider is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. ¹²His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems; and he has a name inscribed that no one knows but himself. ¹³He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is called The Word of God. ¹⁴And the armies of heaven, wearing fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. ¹⁵From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron; he will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. ¹⁶On his robe and on his thigh he has a name inscribed, “King of kings and Lord of lords.”

¹⁷Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly in midheaven, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, ¹⁸to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of the mighty, the flesh of horses and their riders—flesh of all, both free and slave, both small and great.” ¹⁹Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against the rider on the horse and against his army. ²⁰And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed in its presence the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. ²¹And the rest were killed by the sword of the rider on the horse, the sword that came from his mouth; and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Points of Interest

- “Then I saw” – Revelation moves to a close with a final series of seven visions, each beginning with these words.
- “Faithful and True” – Revelation’s first white horse (Chapter 6) was the first of four that represented some of the worst trials of human history, such as military conquest. This time around it is Jesus on the horse. If John has encouraged one thing most in the house churches he wrote to, it has been faithfulness – don’t fall prey to Rome’s propaganda, and don’t be intimidated by their violence. Stick with Jesus. Live your life of faith and all it calls you to. Jesus, John says, was the model of faith in his life in Palestine, and is faithful to people and faithful to his purposes in history as well.
- “clothed in a robe dipped in blood” – Like the four horsemen, Jesus is presented as a warrior as well, but an unusual one – his robe is bloody before he’s even met an enemy. We’ll remember this is also the slaughtered Lamb. His robe is stained with his own blood, no one else’s.
- “the armies of heaven, wearing fine linen” – No one wears fine linen into battle. Jesus’ armies are not dressed for war but dressed as Jesus’ followers are, for a wedding feast.
- “From his mouth comes a sharp sword” – Warrior/Lamb/Groom Jesus also has an odd weapon: a sword protruding from his mouth. Jesus accomplishes things through speech, not violence. His name, after all (at least the one in this passage that isn’t a secret) is “The Word of God.”
- “will rule them with a rod of iron” – This is another reference to the Bible’s second psalm, one of the first century’s more popular Messianic passages of the Old Testament, that roused hopes that God would send a human leader to rule in God’s name.
- “will tread the wine press of the fury of the wrath of God” – Revelation has used this imagery before, back in Chapter 14’s seven angels of judgment. This paragraph has been working references to Isaiah 63, one of the Old Testament’s sections most associated with Jewish thought about of the end of history, the end of the world as they would know it. In that section of Isaiah, the narrative is oscillating between vengeance and redemption, violence and mercy, as if Isaiah isn’t quite sure how things will go. Here Revelation uses the symbolism of vengeance and warfare, but without any violence. It’s possible that Jesus will speak a change in history into being with a word, end evil without violence, consummate God’s Kingdom without war.
- “the birds that fly in midheaven” – vultures, and other birds that feast on carrion
- “gather for the great supper” – I hope this isn’t the wedding supper! The birds are feasting on the flesh of people and animals of warfare. We can guess this is symbolic because just about all of Revelation is – that’s its genre – and because there hasn’t even been a war in this chapter. It’s an image of poetic justice and the end of the terrors of war.
- “the beast was captured” – Human empire’s rulers resist Jesus, as they will, but between vs. 29 and 30, the anticipated battle ends awfully quickly. In fact, it never occurs.
- “These two men were thrown alive into the lake of fire” – The violent imagery of Revelation 14 is again summoned, into this scene that reframes symbolic imagery of warfare. The message is that human evil and violence is eliminated, even if John strongly implies that Jesus – stained with his own blood, armed only with his word – will never use the technology of warfare to do the trick.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, in light of the judgment on all human systems that resist God and God’s good and humane ways on earth, we consider the command to, “Come out” and turn away from the evil baked into human societies, our own included. Today, remember any ways that you have perpetrated or cheered for violence, in your own words or actions or in cheering on your nation’s armies or any other violence. Consider that Jesus is opposed to violence in all forms, and will bring it to an end. Ask God what coming out of violence looks like.

A Direction for Prayer

Odds are that if you’re praying regularly for six people, at least one has perpetrated verbal or physical violence – likely covered up, perhaps cloaked under regret or shame – and at least one has been subject to verbal or physical violence as an adult or child. Perhaps without knowing which ones you are praying for, pray for God’s work in their lives of repentance and healing.

The Bible Guide

The Marriage of the Lamb – Revelation Bible Guide Day 24

Previously in Revelation

²⁴And in you was found the blood of prophets and of saints,
and of all who have been slaughtered on earth.”

Day 24 – 5th Thursday

Revelation 19:1-10

After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,

“Hallelujah!
Salvation and glory and power to our God,
² for his judgments are true and just;
he has judged the great whore
who corrupted the earth with her fornication,
and he has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

³Once more they said,

“Hallelujah!
The smoke goes up from her forever and ever.”

⁴And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who is seated on the throne, saying,

“Amen. Hallelujah!”

⁵And from the throne came a voice saying,

“Praise our God,
all you his servants,
and all who fear him,
small and great.”

⁶Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of mighty thunderpeals, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
⁷Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his bride has made herself ready;
⁸to her it has been granted to be clothed
with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

⁹And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are true words of God.” ¹⁰Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your comrades who hold the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Points of Interest

“the loud voice of a great multitude” – So begins the seventh and final of Revelation’s worship scenes, this one on the tail end of Babylon’s funeral.
“Hallelujah” – A Hebrew expression of praise, that means Praise Yahweh – the likely Hebrew pronunciation of the name of God (“I am”) first revealed to Moses at the burning bush.
“he has avenged on her the blood of his servants” – The singers are celebrating Babylon’s destruction, consumed by its own violence. They’re not bitter or vengeful; they are relieved that their blood or that of any other servants of God will be shed.
“like the sound of many waters” – The voice of the victory choir sounds like the voice of Jesus in the first chapter. To follow Jesus is to become more and more like Jesus and at the same time more and more like our true selves.
“for the marriage of the Lamb has come” – The unity of Jesus’ people with Jesus is so close, it’s given the metaphor or marriage. The Lamb who was slaughtered and became a shepherd as well is now ready to live happily ever after with the faithful people who love Jesus.
“his bride has made herself ready” – There are four women in Revelation. The first and third are Jezebel, from chapter 2, and the prostitute of Chapters 17-18. One is a historical reference, one a generalized one for people of societies that have lost their way and seek to lead other people away from God and away from what is good and true and beautiful. The second the sun-clothed woman from Chapter 12 who gives birth to Jesus. This is Jesus’ mom, Mary, or maybe a Mother-earth like personification of all humanity. The final woman is what all of us can become – loved by, united with Jesus.
“the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints” – We all know how carefully brides prepare and dress up for their wedding day. The bride of Christ is here called “the saints,” God’s holy ones, and gets dressed in righteous deeds. If you grew up religious, you might have over-specific associations with those words “holy” and “righteous.” Sorry if that is distracting. In the context of Revelation, it’s in contrast to the bad deeds of Rome or any other empire, past or future. It’s resisting the lying, greedy, violent ways of empire and living truthfully, honestly, and peaceably. It’s resisting the marketing propaganda and false worship and exploitation of empire and worshipping the God who cares for us in the incomplete, vulnerable, needy state we find ourselves in this life.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, in light of the judgment on all human systems that resist God and God’s good and humane ways on earth, we consider the command to, “Come out” and turn away from the evil baked into human societies, our own included. Today, consider how you have believed the lies of marketing propaganda and hoped that consumer goods would satisfy you. Invite Jesus if you like, to help you make peace with your emptiness and to look forward to your future fulfillment when you are one with Jesus.

A Direction for Prayer

Pray that God would lead your church to more and more righteous deeds – acts of love and beauty and truth that show the world what Jesus looks like and prepare members of your church for their destiny as part of the “bride of Christ.”

The Bible Guide

Flashes of Lightning, Peals of Thunder – Revelation Bible Guide Day 21

Previously in Revelation

⁸and the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were ended.

Day 21 – 5th Monday

Revelation 16:1-21

Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, “Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of he wrath of God.”

²So the first angel went and poured his bowl on the earth, and a foul and painful sore came on those who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped its image.

³The second angel poured his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing in the sea died.

⁴The third angel poured his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. ⁵And I heard the angel of the waters say,

“You are just, O Holy One, who are and were,
for you have judged these things;
⁶because they shed the blood of saints and prophets,
you have given them blood to drink.
It is what they deserve!”

⁷And I heard the altar respond,

“Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty,
your judgments are true and just!”

⁸The fourth angel poured his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch people with fire; ⁹they were scorched by the fierce heat, but they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues, and they did not repent and give him glory.

¹⁰The fifth angel poured his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness; people gnawed their tongues in agony, ¹¹and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and sores, and they did not repent of their deeds.

¹²The sixth angel poured his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up in order to prepare the way for the kings from the east. ¹³And I saw three foul spirits like frogs coming from the mouth of the dragon, from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophet. ¹⁴These are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. ¹⁵(“See, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and is clothed, not going about naked and exposed to shame.”) ¹⁶And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Harmagedon.

¹⁷The seventh angel poured his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” ¹⁸And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a violent earthquake, such as had not occurred since people were upon the earth, so violent was that earthquake. ¹⁹The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. God remembered great Babylon and gave her the wine-cup of the fury of his wrath. ²⁰And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found; ²¹and huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, dropped from heaven on people, until they cursed God for the plague of the hail, so fearful was that plague.

Points of Interest

“seven angels” – They’re back. In the long middle section of Revelation, we’ve had seven seals, then seven trumpets, now seven bowls. The bowl plagues aren’t entirely new – they’re at least in part a recapitulation of the material covered with the trumpets.
“seven bowls of the wrath of God” – There are at least three ways of understanding the wrath of God generally, and so these bowls in particular. The harshest read is that people are basically awful and deserving of whatever hellish punishments God can dream up. God’s angry with you, so Jesus chooses you to rescue you from that anger or… good luck! You can maybe tell I’m less sympathetic to that understanding. A second read is that much as God loves people, God sees clearly the great evil and injustice that humans and human systems perpetuate. God punishes people and societies sooner or later, and those that don’t turn away from their evil and seek forgiveness will be punished eternally. That hatred of evil and resultant punishment is the wrath of God. This is also a very common perspective, and I think a reasonable view: the one I most used to hold. Increasingly, I’m inclined toward a third perspective that’s also been held by many Christians. That is that the wrath of God is a metaphor for the consequences we bring upon ourselves when we turn from God and choose evil. God isn’t angry per se, but has designed a universe in which evil catches up and turns back on us eventually. We reap what we sow. Regardless, the point of this chapter – and of the idea of God’s judgment in general – is that God will judge unrepentant evil. It’s God’s job always, not people’s, and it is good news that evil can’t endlessly harm and destroy without consequence.
“every living thing in the sea died” – Each of these seven judgments are against various crimes of human empire, and the judgment is often inherent to the crime. Humans exploit each other and exploit the earth, and so despoil the earth. Stretches of sea where nothing can live are not hard to imagine.
“You are just…. It is what they deserved.” – At the center of this chapter, a witness – personified as “the angel of the waters” proclaims God’s absolute justice. However we understand God’s judgment, no fair observer will consider it to be biased or harsh.
“did not repent of their deeds” – As we saw in Chapter 9, punishment does not seem to be effective as motivating people to turn around. Judgment is a consequence of evil and a means of stopping it, not a tool for change.
“who go … to assemble them for battle” – Late in the bowls, as with the trumpets, things get funky. A drought creates conditions for war, as droughts often do, and demonic frogs make things worse with their propaganda. Helpful to remember that people who stir leaders up to war are in the service of evil.
“Harmagedon” – This word, spelled differently, has become famous, attached to what I consider a bad interpretation of this book. Some readers have understood this chapter – and the whole middle section of Revelation – as predicting the events that lead up to a catastrophic end of the world. In this reading, Armageddon is the place of the last great, bloody battle. However, scholars can’t agree on where this place is or what it means, or even how to spell it. Best as we can tell, it represents a place where earth’s leaders destroy themselves, either in a war that ends an empire, or perhaps in all war.
“Flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder” – This is the stock language of theophany, the dramatic appearance of God. As we’ll see over the next two chapters, John assures his readers that God will make sure all human empires that exploit and harm – Rome included – will come to an end.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, in light of the judgment on all human systems that resist God and God’s good and humane ways on earth, we consider the command to, “Come out” and turn away from the evil baked into human societies, our own included. Today, ask God to reveal some aspect of violence or injustice in your nation, your city, or your ethnicity that you participate in through your actions or thinking. Ask God for ideas on how to turn away from that and for the courage to do so.

A Direction for Prayer

Pray for your six, that any who have had exposure to a harsh or arbitrary view of God’s justice will find hope that God is motivated not to hurt or harm but to bring an end to that kind of behavior.

The Bible Guide

A Voice from Heaven – Revelation Bible Guide Day 19

Previously in Revelation

¹⁸This calls for wisdom: let anyone with understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. Its number is six hundred sixty-six.

Day 19 – 4th Thursday

Revelation 14:1-20

Then I looked, and there was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion! And with him were one hundred forty-four thousand who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ²And I heard a voice from heaven like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder; the voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, ³and they sing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the one hundred forty-four thousand who have been redeemed from the earth. ⁴It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins; these follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They have been redeemed from humankind as first fruits for God and the Lamb, ⁵and in their mouth no lie was found; they are blameless.

⁶Then I saw another angel flying in midheaven, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth—to every nation and tribe and language and people. ⁷He said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment has come; and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

⁸Then another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great! She has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”

⁹Then another angel, a third, followed them, crying with a loud voice, “Those who worship the beast and its image, and receive a mark on their foreheads or on their hands, ¹⁰they will also drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured unmixed into the cup of his anger, and they will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. ¹¹And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image and for anyone who receives the mark of its name.”

¹²Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and hold fast to the faith of Jesus.

¹³And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who from now on die in the Lord.” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “they will rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them.”

¹⁴Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like the Son of Man, with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand! ¹⁵Another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to the one who sat on the cloud, “Use your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.” ¹⁶So the one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped.

¹⁷Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. ¹⁸Then another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over fire, and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Use your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.” ¹⁹So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the vintage of the earth, and he threw it into the great wine press of the wrath of God. ²⁰And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the wine press, as high as a horse’s bridle, for a distance of about two hundred miles.

Points of Interest

“the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion” – The fifth of Revelation’s seven worship scenes begins with the Lamb atop Jerusalem’s mountain. In John’s spiritual tradition, this is tantamount to saying Jesus is standing up as King of the world.
“a voice from heaven like the sound of many waters” – Jesus’ beautiful and powerful voice is mingled with the songs of the people Jesus has redeemed. While some people have been busy buying into Empire, Jesus has been buying into the songs and freedom of people.
“they are virgins” – As with just about everything in Revelation, reading this literally doesn’t do service to the text. Sexual purity is used extensively in the Bible and in apocalyptic literature as a symbol for devotion to God. The worshippers aren’t buying the lying seduction of Empire, be it the gods of Rome or the promises of Western consumer capitalism.
“another angel” – The rest of the chapter is structured around seven messengers of God – three angels, a Christ-like figure on a cloud, and then three more angels.
“the hour of his judgment has come” – The message of the angels is judgment. I’d like to suggest we read these symbols of judgment less as punishment, and more as truth telling and exposure. Revelation’s purpose isn’t to threaten but to literally reveal how God is with us and how God sees things. From God’s perspective, the promises of civic religion – peace and victory for Rome, life and liberty and happiness in our time – are bankrupt. They lead us away from God’s “springs of water” and into “the wine of wrath,” away from health and toward that which intoxicates us but leaves us worse off.
“fire and sulfur” – If you’ve ever wondered where the expression “fire and brimstone” comes from, this is the spot. Brimstone is sulfur, a long and slow-burning, nasty smelling rock. John’s vivid language is polemical, meant to scare people out of compromise.
“Blessed are the dead who from now on die in the Lord” – There’s a note of comfort in this passage, that people who hold to the faith of Jesus and die – whether naturally or through violence – will rest with God and be gathered to God in the metaphorical grain harvest of vs. 14-16.
“the great winepress of the wrath of God” – The grain harvest is followed by a grape harvest, which is less comforting. John didn’t invent the phrase “blood as high as a horse” but borrowed it from common use in apocalyptic literature, to evoke the violence that comes to the enemies of God who live by violence themselves. It’s ironic that in American history, the phrase “grapes of wrath” borrowed from this passage came to be used in the “Battle Hymn of the Republic” to threaten the violence America’s armies would do to our enemies, as if a violent God is on the side of our country. This is the language and behavior of the dragon or the best, not of God’s Kingdom.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, we’ll respond to the idea of judgment by practicing critique and truth telling – noticing places in our own contemporary American consumer empire that overpromise, lie, or do violence. Ask God if there are places in your life where you have seen God as on your side, or the side of your country and group, and cheered on harm to your enemy. Seek God’s forgiveness and a faith and mindset free of this pollution.

A Direction for Prayer

For your six, that they would have the perspective to notice false promises they have believed in. Ask God for their redemption and freedom.

The Bible Guide

The Image of the Beast – Revelation Bible Guide Day 18

Previously in Revelation

¹⁷Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus.

Day 18 – 4th Wednesday

Revelation 12:18-13:18

¹⁸Then the dragon took his stand on the sand of the seashore.

13 ¹And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads; and on its horns were ten diadems, and on its heads were blasphemous names. ²And the beast that I saw was like a leopard, its feet were like a bear’s, and its mouth was like a lion’s mouth. And the dragon gave it his power and his throne and great authority. ³One of its heads seemed to have received a death-blow, but its mortal wound had been healed. In amazement the whole earth followed the beast. ⁴They worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?”

⁵The beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. ⁶It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. ⁷Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. It was given authority over every tribe and people and language and nation, ⁸and all the inhabitants of the earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slaughtered.

⁹Let anyone who has an ear listen:

¹⁰If you are to be taken captive,
into captivity you go;
if you kill with the sword,
with the sword you must be killed.

Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints.

¹¹Then I saw another beast that rose out of the earth; it had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. ¹²It exercises all the authority of the first beast on its behalf, and it makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound had been healed. ¹³It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in the sight of all; ¹⁴and by the signs that it is allowed to perform on behalf of the beast, it deceives the inhabitants of earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that had been wounded by the sword and yet lived; ¹⁵and it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast so that the image of the beast could even speak and cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be killed. ¹⁶Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, ¹⁷so that no one can buy or sell who does not have the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. ¹⁸This calls for wisdom: let anyone with understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a person. Its number is six hundred sixty-six.

Points of Interest

“I saw a beast” – Great: the devil dragon has friends. Announcing the rise of the sea beast and the land beast! In a chapter full of parody, we have a demonic trinity.
“a beast rising out of the sea” – This looks a lot like Asia’s experience of Rome, rising out of the Mediterranean in their powerful ships. They had known seven Roman emperors (seven crowned heads). John unmasks these powers as selfish, exploitative liars.
“They worshipped the dragon” – And yet people buy the lies of empire. When they weren’t being crushed by Rome’s armies, the world celebrated the peace and victory of Rome. Did you know that much of the world reads this material in Revelation and doesn’t think of Rome but of us? Over the past century, the United States has been the dominant force in the world: economically, culturally, in politics and in military force. Our calling card has been freedom, democracy, and prosperity, but that hasn’t consistently been people’s experience of our power, to put it mildly. Much of the world has a love-hate relationship with America. That’s always how it is with power and wealth – we think we want it and we worship it but the costs to our lives and our souls are high.
“It was allowed to make war on the saints” – Empire’s war against the innocent powerless is part of its demonic liturgy. In Rome, think crucifixions and brutal lion attacks against Christians. In all times and places, think of public executions and the loud cheers for death of the enemy in war.
“If you are taken captive…” At the heart of the chapter, we get a grim statement of karma and a grim call to endurance. Worship empire and you’ll be its prisoner. Be empire, and you’ll die by your own violence. Trust Jesus, endure, and have faith. There’s a better way.
“another beast that rose out of the earth” – The land beast in John’s context probably represents local collaborators with Rome. West Asian political and economic powers were eager to welcome and kiss up to their Roman colonizers, even building large temples to Rome’s gods to curry favor.
“two horns like a lamb” – The collaborators with empire are a parody of the true faith. They look a little like the Lamb, when they’re really more like the dragon. I think of how often our churches sell out – looking or talking like communities of faith in Jesus when what we most prize is the wealth and security and approval of power.
“It deceives the inhabitants of the earth” – Empire that opposes God’s way on earth does so through propaganda – promising much, working occasional wonders, but largely not delivering on its promises.
“the image of the beast” – Roman coins had the faces of their emperors on them. You couldn’t participate in their economy without participating in their empire. Same for us? If you think the United States is immoral or violent or sham-religious while actually godless, do you really stop buying all consumer goods that hurt the environment or hurt global workers? Do you stop paying taxes? It’s not easy to disentangle from our collective sins!
“Its number is six hundred sixty-six” – Ah, one of Revelation’s infamous symbols that’s made its way into our superstitions. In John’s world, this is a number of ultimate imperfection. One less than a perfect seven, magnified by three. It also, through some complicated numerology, may be code for Emperor Nero, who had been the first Roman emperor to scapegoat and slaughter followers of Jesus.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, we’ll respond to the idea of judgment by practicing critique and truth telling – noticing places in our own contemporary American consumer empire that overpromise, lie, or do violence. Reflect on places where your use of money is tied to larger injustices. Ask God were you might have freedom to lower your participation in economic injustice or propaganda.

A Direction for Prayer

Pray for some of the largest companies or industries you can think of in your country or region. Pray that their activity and marketing will be more beneficial for residents of the earth, less exploitative or unjust, and more truthful.

The Bible Guide

A Great Red Dragon – Revelation Bible Guide Day 17

Previously in Revelation

¹⁹Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple; and there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

Day 17 – 4th Tuesday

Revelation 12:1-17

A great portent appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. ²She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pangs, in the agony of giving birth. ³Then another portent appeared in heaven: a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. ⁴His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. Then the dragon stood before the woman who was about to bear a child, so that he might devour her child as soon as it was born. ⁵And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. But her child was snatched away and taken to God and to his throne; ⁶and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, so that there she can be nourished for one thousand two hundred sixty days.

⁷And war broke out in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, ⁸but they were defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. ⁹The great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.

¹⁰Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, proclaiming,

“Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Messiah,
for the accuser of our comrades has been thrown down,
who accuses them day and night before our God.
¹¹But they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,
for they did not cling to life even in the face of death.
¹²Rejoice then, you heavens
and those who dwell in them!
But woe to the earth and the sea,
for the devil has come down to you
with great wrath,
because he knows that his time is short!”

¹³So when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. ¹⁴But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle, so that she could fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to her place where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. ¹⁵Then from his mouth the serpent poured water like a river after the woman, to sweep her away with the flood. ¹⁶But the earth came to the help of the woman; it opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. ¹⁷Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and went off to make war on the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus.

Points of Interest

“a woman clothed with the sun” – Have you seen Mother, the Darren Aronofsky/Jennifer Lawrence horror movie? This scene reminds me of that film. An innocent woman is pregnant, and everything in her world conspires to ruin her idyllic life and destroy her baby. It’s an old symbolic story, as John’s writing here evokes the ancient story of Isis and other Egyptian and Greek myths told in first century Western Asia.
“a great red dragon” – In John’s retelling of the myth, the woman and her baby are up against an impossibly powerful and evil force. This is David and Goliath, this is itty bitty house churches trying to pursue faith under the watch of a hostile Roman Empire, this is baby Jesus at the mercy of a cruel world, hell-bent on wealth and power and rarely kind to innocent, vulnerable love and truth.
“rule all the nations with a rod of iron” – Almost every time you read something strange in Revelation, it’s because John is living in a literary, symbolic universe that you don’t know about. That’s both the challenge and the delight of this odd book. Here John is quoting Psalm 2, which had become famous by John’s time as speaking to a human leader who’d double as God’s leader on earth: God’s Messiah, or in Greek, the Christ. So John says this vulnerable human, protected by God and born to rule the earth, is Jesus.
“the great dragon .. who is called the Devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world” – In Revelation’s universe, the world a battlefield. In one corner, the mighty forces of human Empire, who rule through violent force and deceptive propaganda. The spiritual force behind that is called Satan. In the other corner is the beauty and wisdom and goodness of God – immensely powerful but visible on earth only through a Christ born as a baby and crucified like a lamb, and through communities gathered in Jesus’ name that struggle to live faithfully, rather than getting caught up in the world’s ways of greed, violence, and false worship of money and sex and security.
“Now have come the salvation and power” – John’s witness is to say that though the odds look bad, God’s way of love works. Resurrection follows death. The crucified Jesus looked like a symbol of defeat but was in fact a victory. The ancient church called this “Christus victor” – Christ in his death defeated the power of evil, submitting to it only to defeat it in resurrection, liberating his followers from fear.
“Then the dragon was angry” – This is John’s serious realism within his symbolic universe. Just because Jesus wins doesn’t mean a life of faith will be easy. We live in a hostile world, where humility and love and kindness get crushed sometimes. John encourages us: hold on, it’s temporary.

Spiritual Exercise

This week, we’ll respond to the idea of judgment by practicing critique and truth telling – noticing places in our own contemporary American consumer empire that overpromise, lie, or do violence. Think of a force in our society that uses power and violence to oppose good for the vulnerable. Pray for Jesus’ help for the vulnerable in this scenario.

A Direction for Prayer

For your six, that God will help them be alert to the stakes of the times we live in and give them the opportunity to serve God’s purposes in our generation. Pray for their protection from evil and harm as well.