Today’s message was written by Rev. Dr. Roger Kunkel, founder of Dial Hope.

“God so loved the world that he gave…” begins the most familiar statement in Scripture. Giving is how love expresses itself. Giving is to love what eating is to hunger.  The test of love is that it gives even when there is no expectation of a return. Ann Lamott wrote of an eight-year-old boy who had a younger sister dying of leukemia. He was told that without a blood transfusion she would die. His parents asked if they could test his blood to see if it was compatible with his sister. He said sure. They tested, and it was a match. Then they asked if he would give his sister a pint of his own blood, that it could be her only chance of living. He said he would have to think about it overnight. The next day he told his parents he was willing to donate the blood. They took him to the hospital; he was put on a gurney beside his six-year-old sister. Both were hooked up to IVs. A nurse took a pint of blood from the boy, which was given to his sister. The boy lay in silence as the blood that would save his sister dripped from the IV until the doctor came over to see how he was doing. Then the boy opened his eyes and asked, “How soon until I start to die?” Love is never so fully love as when it gives — even when there is no expectation of a return.

Let us pray: Loving How Great Thou Art! Your love to us in Jesus Christ is beyond our wildest imagination. Thank you for the rainbow covenant of your unconditional love and for walking with us each step of life’s way. Now hear our myopia, our hesitation, our pride that we may learn to love with no expectation of return… like the little boy who thought he was going to die when he gave a pint of blood to his sister. May the gentle breath of your spirit renew every part of our being that we may become more like Jesus, in whose spirit we pray.  Amen.

Football coach, Chuck Noll once said, “The nice thing about football is that you have a scoreboard to show how you’ve done. In other things in life, you don’t. At least, not one you can see.”

We like to keep score, don’t we? We like to know how we measure up, know where we stand. And that is important to a certain extent. To grow and learn and expand our horizons, it is good to set goals that can be measured.

On the other hand, measuring ourselves against other people is usually not good. And keeping score of other people’s wrongs is deadly to our spiritual formation.

Jesus once told a parable about two men – one a Pharisee and the other tax collector. The Pharisee prayed, “God I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of my income.” But, the tax collector prayed, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!”

About the tax collector, Jesus remarked, “I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other…”

You see, the Pharisee was keeping score of his goodness and other people’s faults. This kind of scorekeeping distanced him not only from other people but also from God.

Today, may you remember that God loves you deeply. There is nothing you can do to earn God’s love or forgiveness or grace. There is no competition here. It is a sheer gift!

Let us pray: Loving God, we acknowledge that it is easy to find fault with those around us. It is easy to find fault with ourselves. This day, help us to put away the scorecard, to accept your love and grace, and to share it. Amen.

Today’s message was written by my friend, Rev. Andy Odom.

Then Jesus came from Galilee to John at the Jordan, to be baptized by him. (Matthew 3:13)

One of the curiosities about Jesus being baptized by John in the Jordan is why Jesus needed to be baptized at all. The baptism John was preaching about was one of repentance and forgiveness of sins. People were coming to him to be washed clean and start anew, much like Delmar in “O Brother Where Art Thou?” who rises out of the river and declares, “Well that’s it boys! I’ve been redeemed. It’s the straight and narrow from here on out.” So why would Jesus need this? From what does the Son of God need redeeming? Even John asks that question in the verses that follow. “I should be baptized by you,” he says.

The answer to this curiosity comes in Jesus’ reply to John, “Let it be so now, for it is proper for us in this way to fulfill all righteousness.” Jesus gets baptized not because he needs it, but because we do, and the whole of Jesus’ life is one huge act of God’s solidarity. As one commentary notes, “Matthew’s account of Jesus’ baptism is presented as a righteous act of solidarity with those to whom and for whom he has come.” In other words, this is just one more piece of evidence that God became one of us, fully and completely. In Jesus Christ, God was born like us, grew like us, got tired like we do, felt pain like we do, needed to bathe like we do, laughed, cried, got frustrated, rejoiced, and was baptized just like us. He faced tension and ridicule and death. In every way shape and form, God became flesh and bone and lived among us. Now that is a God who really cares.

Let us pray: As we face the trials and tribulations of life, O God, we are grateful that you walk with us. Grant us the strength, the courage, and the faith to live the full and abundant life that you offer; through Jesus Christ. Amen.

There is a story about an old Cherokee who one evening told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, “My son, the battle is between two “wolves” inside us all. One is Evil. It is anger, envy, jealousy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, worry, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego. The other is Good. It is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, humor, generosity, truth, compassion and faith.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather: “Which wolf wins?”

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.”

In his letter to the Philippians, the Apostle Paul wrote, “Finally beloved, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is pleasing, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence and if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things… And the God of peace will be with you.”

Like the old Cherokee, Paul knew that as human beings we struggle with our emotions, our thoughts, and our actions.  Both remind us that through daily practice we develop the ones that thrive in our lives.

Our prayer today was written by the late Rev. Roger Kunkel, founder of Dial Hope. Let us pray: Lord, slow us down. Teach us to stop and listen and focus. Help us to center our lives in you, our Lord and Savior. For this day is a day unlike any other that has ever been, filled with the promise of flowers that have never before bloomed, thoughts that have never been thought, friends that have never been met, prayers that have never been uttered. Grant that we shall not miss it, but shall be alert in all our being to the wonder of it. Fill our hearts with praise and exuberance. Help us to stand on tiptoe to stretch our faith with possibilities of new beginnings. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

I read recently that the great Italian conductor Arturo Toscanini was legendary for his fits of rage. The librarian of one of Toscanini’s orchestras was particularly vexed by the maestro’s habit of throwing valuable musical scores at the musicians when angry. Watching closely, the librarian observed that Toscanini’s first act when enraged was to take his baton in both hands and try to break it. If the baton snapped, Toscanini usually calmed down and rehearsal continued. If the baton did not break, he began hurling scores. The librarian’s solution? He made sure the conductor had a generous supply of flimsy batons on hand for rehearsal!  (Today in the Word, February 1991, p. 22.)

Anger can be so dangerous. But, it is also a God-given emotion. There were times when Jesus got angry – especially when confronted with injustice. The question for us is how are we going to handle our anger? If we fly off the handle in a fit of rage, we usually end up making serious mistakes.  On the other hand, if we can channel it into solutions, it can be a powerful ally.

Today, I pray that when you get angry, you would delay responding. Breathe deeply. Remove yourself from the situation. Consider the source of your anger, and give yourself time to think about how you might channel that energy into a positive solution.

The apostle Paul wrote, “Be angry, but do not sin… Do not let the sun go down on your anger.”

Let us pray: Loving God, you know us. You know how sometimes we get angry over silly even insignificant things; and, how we sometimes fail to be outraged by the true injustice we see all around us. Rest your hand upon us and heal of us of these faults. Help us constrain our tempers, and channel them into solutions – that your will, mercy, justice, and grace would be done. We ask in Jesus’ name. Amen.