There has been much discussion through the years about Paul's "thorn in the flesh" mentioned in 2 Corinthians 12:7-10. Personally, I've decided that the problem was Jews following him around (see Acts 25:24), harassing him, making charges against him, and demanding his death much as Paul did to others before he became a follower of Jesus.  What great irony that provides.
  Paul describes the thorn as "an angel of Satan, to beat me, to keep me from being too elated" over the revelations he had from God. Obviously then, the thorn in the flesh is not from God.  Paul admits that he asked God three times to remove it.  But God assured him that he was strong enough to handle it.  So Paul accepts it and goes on to say, "I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and constraints . . . ."  We can imagine how Paul might respond, in weakness, to insults and persecutions, even heckling, while he is trying to preach.  The types of things being said about him are listed by Paul in Acts 25: 7-8, when Paul is defending himself before Festus in Caesarea.  "On Paul's arrival in court the Jews from Jerusalem gathered around, hurling many serious accusations which they couldn't prove.  Paul denied the charges: 'I am not guilty,' he said.  'I have not opposed Jewish laws or desecrated the Temple or rebelled against the Roman government.'"  These are three serious charges.  And it is the  harassment, heckling, false accusations and being followed from town-to-town that I think comprise Paul's thorn in the flesh.
  For Reflection:  It may be that we find people hindering us in our work or our ministry.  We may have one or more people whom we consider to be our thorn in the flesh.  If so, have we asked God to remove them, as Paul did?  If not, this may be the next option.  But if we have done so, and God has not seen fit to remove them, have we found God's grace to be sufficient?
  Let us pray.  God, my Father, I thank you whether you remove my thorn in the flesh or not.  I know that in all cases your grace is sufficient. Like Paul, I work toward being content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions and constraints when they come about through preaching the Good News.

  Moses lived an unusual life.  Before he knew anything of what was happening to him, his mother made a life-altering decision for him by placing him in a basket and putting it in the water where Pharaoh's daughter might see it.  The Princess could easily have agreed with her father's decree and had baby Moses killed.  But she didn't.  Later, when she took him to the palace to be raised in the royal household, Pharaoh could have had him killed.  But he didn't.
  So many unlikely events came together in Mose's life to make him the man he became.  Raised as  Egyptian royalty, he became a murderer, a shepherd, a messenger, deliverer and leader.  To the Egyptians he was a Hebrew, to the Hebrews he was Egyptian.  A man without a country, he was a foreigner to all.  In fact, he named his first child "foreigner".  
  Having fled Egypt for the desert, he learned to be a Hebrew shepherd in Midian under the guidance of his father-in-law Jethro, a priest.  He would have stayed there with his family and his flocks, but God had other plans.  God had plans to use his royal Egyptian education, his Hebrew slave roots, the passion of the murderer and the compassion of the shepherd. God used all of Moses's life experiences to make him into the leader that he was.  Not your typical career path.  (For more details, read Exodus 2-3.)
  For Reflection:  What experiences in my life have particularly made me into the person I am?  Where do I see God's hand in my life?
  Let us pray.  Father, I hadn't thought about the varied experiences of my life being put at your service.  I thought they were just odd things that happened to me, some good, some bad, some I liked, some I regretted.  However, I offer them to you now, as I offer myself to you, to use them as you will, and to help me become the very best that I can be in serving you.

  Often I have heard preaching on the story of the woman at the well (John 4:4-42) which portrays the woman as basically a “bad” person.  A lot of assumptions are made in order to reach this assessment of her, and I’d like to propose some different assumptions.
  The woman, unfortunately we don’t know her name, comes to draw water at noon time.  According to the practices of women of the day, this was not normal.  Ordinarily women would draw water in the morning.  All the women would be there about the same time before the heat of the day would set in, and we can imagine a bit of a confab, catching up with each other on what’s been happening in their lives.  
  One theory about why this woman draws water at noon is that she is not welcome there at the same time as the other women (based on the fact, we learn later, that she has had five husbands and is now with a man who is not her husband).  There are other possibilities though.  Perhaps she was attending a sick person that morning and had to wait until one of the other women relieved her before she could go to the well.  Perhaps she herself was not feeling well.  Or, perhaps, she was late because she had a divine appointment to meet her Savior that day.
  While she visits with Jesus (alone!) he witnesses to her and then asks her to get her husband and bring him back.  Here is where we find out, from Jesus, that she has had 5 husbands and the man she is currently with is not her husband.  Is she a “bad” woman or a “fallen” woman because she has had 5 husbands?  Not necessarily.  Possibly one or two of those husbands died and the others divorced her.  Even if all five of them divorced her, we don’t know why.  But we do know that five men thought enough of her to marry her.  There could be any number of reasons for a husband to put her aside, and one possibility is that she was infertile, something for which she would not be at fault.
  What we can say definitely is that she has known love, rejection and loss.  So Jesus is once again ministering to someone who is hurting, and he has thoughtfully chosen to do this while his disciples were away and he could speak with her privately.  
   Even though Jesus has told her everything she has ever done (v. 29), presumably both the good and the bad in her life, she doesn’t feel chastised or denigrated. Instead she is energized.  So when the disciples return, the woman leaves her water jar to go back to town.  That’s one excited woman who abandons her water jar at the well.  She goes in to the village like a town crier and the people listen to her; then they follow her out to hear Jesus.  If she were a disreputable woman, the people probably would not have listened to her or followed her out to hear Jesus.    
  Again, I don’t believe this woman was an outcast or a “bad” person who drew water at noon because she was not welcome by the other women.  I believe she was a hurting woman who had a divine appointment with Jesus, a man who proved to her that he was at least a prophet and possibly the Messiah.  Yes, she is with a man now who is not her husband, but we don't know the circumstances that led to that decision.
  In the closing of the story, we learn that many Samaritans of that town believed because of the woman’s testimony; and many more believed because of Jesus’ own words.
  So, this woman, a Samaritan, not a Jew, married 5 times, hurt and rejected, became an evangelist to her town even before the disciples were able to recognize that Samaritans deserved to be evangelized.  Jesus often chose the most unlikely people.  What a divine appointment they had that day.
  For Reflection: Have I judged someone whose story I really don't know?  Have I failed to recognize people who are hurting?
  Let us pray.  Jesus, give me eyes to see people the way you see them.  Give me patience to listen to their stories. Help me to recognize who they can be, not just who they have been.  I need to remember that all are called to your kingdom.

  Lord    Many people come to Washington, DC, every four years for the inauguration of the President.  They don't attend the concert.  They don't have tickets to the swearing in.  They don't line the parade route.  When asked, they are not pro-Republican or pro-Democrat.  They are pro-Jesus and they are here to pray. Some come before the election and are back again before the inauguration. Others just come once. They may be here a few days or a week.
  You may find them walking around the White House, the Capitol, or the Supreme Court buildings, heads bowed, arms raised. These people don't make the news.  What they do is not exciting or glamorous.  Instead they are often they are cold and wet, even bedraggled.
  Paul spoke of this very type of prayer in his exhortation to Timothy (! Timothy 2:1-4).  We should note that we are to pray for our leaders.  We are not to pray against them nor at them.  Our prayers should not be a veiled message of what we think they should do.  We are to pray "intercessions and thanksgivings" for them.  Why?  So that we "may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and dignity", and because God wants "everyone to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth."
  Whether we are called to pray in DC or to pray from where we are, let us remember to pray for our leaders, for their salvation and for them to know the truth.  Let us do so with thanksgiving no matter how we voted.
  For Reflection:  If our new year's resolutions have fallen by the wayside, perhaps a good resolution would be to pray for one member of government each day.
  Let us pray.  Lord Jesus, I thank you for all of our elected leaders at the federal, state and local level.  If they don't know you, I ask that you send someone to tell them about you and to introduce them to the good news of salvation.  I thank you for their hard work, their giving of themselves, their time, their lives.  Grant them wisdom to govern as you yourself would.  Help them to enact just laws and to keep our land at peace.
  I also thank you, Jesus, for those who have been upholding our government in prayer for many years.  Give them the strength and determination to continue.

  Katrina, 9/11, the Challenger explosion, Kennedy's death.  These are some events in recent US history by which people in the States date things.  Every generation, every country has their own seminal event.  No doubt for Cubans now an important date will be "the year Castro died."  For refugees, it's "before we left our home."
  Isaiah was using such a reference when he said, "In the year that King Uzziah died."  Everyone to whom he was speaking knew when that was.  It was a precise date, not once upon a time.  And it told the people that it was a period of transition.  One king had died; another ascended to the throne.  Change was in the wind.
  In the States we find ourselves in this same position as we approach a new year and the inauguration of a new President.  It is the "last year of Obama"; "the first year of Trump."  As important as the President of the U.S. is in world affairs, as Christians we do not place our faith in him.  He is not worthy of our faith; only God is.  Presidents can be used by God, nevertheless we don't put our trust in them.  We put our trust in God.  And though we hope that each President will do a better job than the last, our hope is not in them.  Our hope is in God alone.  He alone is our Savior.  He alone is worthy of our faith, our trust, our hope.
  Let us pray.  Father, you alone are worthy.  You alone deserve our faith, our hope, our trust. Jesus, you are our Savior, you are our King.
  We ask you again, over and over, to bless our country, to give wisdom to our leaders, to lead us in ways of righteousness.

  Many of us, at one time or another, have heard our mother say to our father, when we were in deep trouble, "Do you want to know what your child did today?"  With that one pronoun she disowns us.  We can't sink much lower in her eyes.  We are definitely on her (bad) list today.  It is time to hide from the wrath to come.
  It's the same situation in Exodus 32:7 - 14.  God is disowning his people.  He says to Moses, "Go down at once to your people, whom you brought out of the land of Egypt."  They are no longer His people, whom He brought out of Egypt.  No.  Now they belong to Moses because after all God has done for them, they have created an idol for themselves and claimed it as their God.  He even goes on to say, "Let me destroy them and then I will make you a great nation."  Whoa.
  Moses, smart man that he is, picks up on this.  He quickly reminds God that they are His people; He brought them out of Egypt; and He promised to make the descendants of Abraham into a great nation.  He's not going back on his word, is He?
  And so God relents of the threatened punishment, so rightly deserved.  Once again, God shows mercy in the face of gross disobedience.  He keeps faith with a faithless people.
  For Reflection:  Is there reason to disown us?  Do we remember what God has done for us?  Can we recall the promises He has made to us that have yet to be fulfilled?  Are we able to count how many times God has shown us mercy?  

  We have seen so far that Nabal refused hospitality to David and his men and he refused to consult others about his decision.  What else might we learn from this story recounted in 1 Samuel 25?
  Nabal refused to even recognize David.  In verse 10, Nabal says, "David who?  Never heard of him."  Well, everyone had heard of David.  People knew that David had been anointed as King and that King Saul was hunting him to kill him to prevent him from becoming king. People knew that David had killed Goliath.  In fact, Abigail (v 28) acknowledges that David will become king and cleverly reminds him of his victory over Goliath (v 29).  There is no way that Nabal didn't know who David was.
  One thing in Nabal's favor is that he has married a woman who is both beautiful and intelligent.  Actually, Abigail is the heroine of this story.  With disaster for her entire household immanent (v 22), she takes action.  She gathers bread and wine, sheep and grain, figs and raisins on a donkey train and sets out for David's camp.  She doesn't hesitate.  She leaves quickly and meets David on his way to wipe out her household.  David is determined to have his vengeance.
  When Abigail meets David on the path, she throws herself face-down at his feet and takes the blame for what her husband has done.  Abigail, who comes riding on a donkey, with bread and wine, lamb and fruit, brings peace.  She takes the blame, the sin of her husband (the refusal of hospitality, of food and drink and just payment for David's protection) on herself.
  Abigail, not David, is the Jesus figure in this story.  She is the one riding on a donkey, providing bread and wine, and taking all the responsibility for what went wrong on her shoulders.  She is the princess of peace, if you will, offering a way out for David, a way for him to save face and not take vengeance into his own hands.  It is the right of God alone to take vengeance (v 26).
  For Reflection:  Jesus comes to us offering peace, and everything else we need.  He offers to take the blame for what others have done to us.  Will we accept his gifts?  Will we lay down our weapons no matter what was done to us and let him take the blame?  Will we put not only our sins but also the sins of others against us onto the cross with him?  Can we say, "That's enough. I'm done seeking revenge. It is finished."
  Let us pray.  Jesus, I've been seeking revenge for a long time.  I've wanted to hear an apology.  I've wanted to see them punished for what they did to me.  But I see now that I have to let it go.  I'm giving the hurt to you.  You do with them whatever you think is right.
  Jesus, I need healing for all the bad things that have happened in my life.  Please meet me on the path at Calvary and heal me.

  In looking again at 1 Samuel 25, we see that Nabal acted rashly toward David's emissaries.  The account doesn't tell us that Nabal consulted any of his men about the truth of the men's claims that they had been guarding his shepherds through the winter.  Had he consulted his shepherds, they would have told him the truth of the matter. So, not only does Nabal send them away without basic hospitality (about which he could have consulted his wife Abigail), but also without verifying their claims (about which he could have consulted his shepherds).
  In response, David too acts rashly.  He is immediately incensed at Nabal's refusal and has his men take up their swords with the intent of marching to Carmel and slaying all of Nabal's men. The record does not show that David stopped to pray or to consult anyone about the appropriate response. No,  David sets out to take vengeance against not just Nabal but  all the men belonging with Nabal.
  For Reflection:  Do I consult others before I make important decisions?  Do I ask God for wisdom?  Have I taken vengeance into my own hands?
  Let us pray.  Jesus, you are the seat of all wisdom.  You know everything.  You know people's hearts, including the hearts of those who have harmed me.  It was not right for me to take vengeance into my own hands.  I repent of doing that.  I ask your forgiveness and the forgiveness of those whom I hurt.

 Have you read 1 Samuel 25 lately?  Me neither, until someone suggested it this week.  It is part of the saga of David before he becomes king.  In this episode, David and his men have spent the winter near Carmel during which time they protected the sheepherders of a man named Nabal.  When time came for shearing the sheep, a time of festival, David sent some of his men to Nabal to ask for hospitality for him and his men.  But Nabal, a wicked and surly man, refuses.
  David's men return to him and give him the message.  David is incensed and determines to slaughter all of Nabal's men.  Meanwhile, Nabal's shepherds go to his wife Abigail and report what has happened, urging her to do something to avoid war.
  While David and his men are marching toward Carmel, here comes Abigail, riding on a donkey, bringing bread and wine, raisins and figs, along with lamb meat and grain.  They meet in a valley and Abigail is able to turn aside David's wrath by apologizing and making reparation for the refusal of hospitality by her husband.  Abigail's quick action averted war and saved the lives of many.
  Abigail returned home to find her husband drunk from the party.  So she waited until the next morning to tell him what she had done.
  For Reflection:  There are many things we can learn from this story, but let us begin with the first item: refusal of hospitality.  Hospitality was extremely important in the Hebrew world. Particularly in a desert region, which this was, one was never to refuse the basics of food, drink and lodging. Yet Nabal did, even though he was rich and David and his men had been protecting Nabal's men all winter. Do we identify with Nabal or with David?  
  Is there anyone to whom we have refused hospitality?  Why?  Can this be remedied?  
  We may not want to welcome a stranger into our home today, but do we look out for the lost and the homeless?  Are we kind to those who need to see a friendly, smiling face?  Have we failed to return a favor or pay it forward?  God calls us to peace and hospitality.
  Let us pray.  Jesus, sometimes I identify with Nabal.  Why should I share more of my hard-earned resources with others?  There have also been times when I've refused a family member entry to my home.  I'd like to be more like Abigail and find a way to bring peace.  I know you don't want me to be at odds with anyone.  Show me a way through.  Show me the way to stop the war, make amends and bring peace to the family.  Help me to be hospitable.

 
  The third thing I think we can definitely know that God stands for is that he always wants what is best for us.  How could we call him a loving God if he didn't want what was best for us?  No matter how many times the Hebrew people strayed, God loved them and called them back to him.  Even when he punished them it was so that they would repent and return to him (see Jeremiah 29:11; 31:3).  Loving parents correct their children when they are wrong; we can expect no less from God, the perfect parent. Unlike our human parents, he makes no mistakes in dealing with us.  We can trust that what he does is absolutely the best for us.
  Yet, many people with whom I pray seem to be afraid to approach God, to listen to God.  They are afraid that he will criticize, scold or condemn.  The overwhelming evidence of the New Testament, though, is that he will be gentle.  Take the case of the woman accused of adultery (John 8:1-11).  Though she was guilty, Jesus did not condemn her.  He simply said, Go and sin no more.  Or the woman at the well (John 4).  This woman had not led an exemplary life.  But Jesus' conversation with her, wherein he "told her everything she ever did", did not leave her condemned or chastised.  Rather she was energized and went exclaiming to the whole town to come and see.
  I repeat:  Jesus wants what is best for us because he loves us.  It is a truth we can surely stand on with him.  We need not fear spending time with him, or talking with him, or listening to him, because God is love (1 John 4:7-12).  He has our best interests at heart.
  For Reflection:  Have we been avoiding time with God out of fear of what he might say?
 Let us pray.  Lord Jesus, we take courage from your interactions with the women in the Scriptures.  We need not fear you, nor doubt you, nor mistrust you. You love us.  You always want what is best for us.