From Everlasting to Everlasting
Joe Albright

From Everlasting to Everlasting

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Years ago, I remember one of my daughters asking me, “Daddy, what was here before God?” I answered, “Honey, God has always been here, and God will always be here.” “How is that possible?” she replied. “Hmmm. The truth is, I don’t know.”

It is difficult to get our minds around the concept of eternity.

Dutch American Author, Hendrick Wilen Van Loon once wrote, “High up in the North, in the land called Svithjod, there stands a rock. It is 100 miles high and 100 miles wide. Once every 1000 years, a little bird comes to this rock to sharpen its beak. When the rock has thus been worn away, then a single day of eternity will have gone by.”

Psalm 90:1-4 offers this prayer:

Lord, you have been our dwelling place
in all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.

Let us pray: Loving God, we thank you that our very lives rest in your hands. From this day throughout all eternity, we belong to you. Grant us a sense of your peace – knowing that you are love, and that love never ends. Amen.

God Will Sustain
Joe Albright

God Will Sustain

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Psalm 55 begins, “Give ear to my prayer, O God; do not hide yourself from my supplication. Attend to me and answer me. I am troubled in my complaint.”

Then, in verse 17 the song continues, “But I call upon God and the Lord will save me. Evening and morning and at noon I utter my complaint and moan, and God will hear my voice.”

These are moving and powerful words that must have come from someone who was experiencing great difficulty in his or her life. I can only imagine the kind of heartbreak or tragedy or need that would prompt this kind of prayer. Yet in the midst of it all, there seems to be an unshakable faith that God will respond. God will hear. God will save.

My prayer is that you and I would approach God with the same unshakable confidence. While God may not answer us when and how we would like, the witness of the people of faith across the generations is that we can trust that God will hear our heartbreak, our needs, our complaint and that God will respond.

The Psalm leaves us with this promise in verse 22, “Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you…”

May it be so.

Let us pray: Loving God, today we hand you our burdens. And we trust that in your own time, in your own way, you will redeem us, heal us, and empower us to live and serve anew. Amen.

The Gift of Those We Love
Joe Albright

The Gift of Those We Love

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There’s a story about a young dating couple who went camping together one cold fall night. When they went to bed that night, she was sleeping on a cot and he was on the floor in a sleeping bag. Just after they turned out the lantern, the girlfriend leaned over and said, “Honey, it sure is cold in here.” The young man got up in the freezing cold, ran out to the car, and grabbed an extra blanket. Just as soon as he got back in his sleeping bag, the girl leaned over and said, “I’m sorry, I’m still cold.” So the guy got up in the cold once again and ran back out to the car. He grabbed another blanket, threw it on her, and jumped back under his covers. Once again for a third time, the girl whispered, “I just can’t get warm, honey.” So the young man leaned over and asked, “Hey, do you want to pretend like we’re married? Just tonight. We’re way out here in the middle of nowhere and no one will ever know.” The girl thought about it, then said, “Sure, just tonight.” So the boy responded, “Okay then, get up and get your dang blanket!”

Isn’t that the way it is sometimes? We get so familiar with each other, with people we love, that we take them for granted. And we forget…. We forget how important they are to us. We forget they may not be with us forever.

Today, may you and I remember the precious gift that God has given us in our loved ones. May we remember the gift we have in family and deer friends. And may our love for them ever be clear.

Let us pray: O God of Hope, we thank you for the people in our lives who are closest to us – perhaps a child, a spouse, a parent, or a friend. What a gift you have given us! Today we pray especially for them, and we lift them to your care. Help us to cherish them, and to see your love in them. May we never take them for granted, but instead may we appreciate each moment with them – even the difficult moments. Through Jesus Christ. Amen.

Just Enough Turbulence
Roger Kunkel

Just Enough Turbulence

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

George Bernard Shaw called Beethoven, “the most turbulent spirit that ever found expression in pure sound. The power of the Ninth Symphony is the turbulent joy of humanity.” Of course, when turbulence runs our lives, everything becomes chaotic and crazy. But that isn’t the fault of turbulence. We humans are to blame. To be sure, the only people without problems, concerns, and turbulence are in the cemetery!

The knack in life is to keep enough turbulence to be expansive without being inundated by it. As Nietzsche wisely commented, “We must have enough chaos in our lives to give birth to dancing stars.”

This reminds me of Henry David Thoreau. When his mother found him still awake in bed as a young child she asked, “Why, Henry dear, why don’t you go to sleep?” “Mother,” said he, “I have been looking through the stars to see if I couldn’t see God behind them.”

Let us pray: O God, we are thankful that you do not give us all we ask but only what we need. May we be wise as foxes and innocent as lambs, so that we can live in this world and remain effective without losing our dream of love, faithfulness, and joy. So often we complain that you ask more of us than we can manage. Then, an ageless Down Syndrome child beams up at us in the supermarket, a homeless mother, fighting for her kids, looks clear-eyed at us and talks trustingly of you and her future. Some irrepressible Samaritan shows up to sign us up as innkeepers. So we learn again that what’s up to us is not everything, but only the most we can do is to make grace real to others, to help justice roll down like waters, and peace flow like a river, and beauty spring out of ugliness, and hope to take wing like an eagle. Loving God, how great Thou art! In Jesus’ Spirit, we pray. Amen.

Psalm 46
Joe Albright

Psalm 46

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One of my favorite Psalms is Psalm 46. This Psalm has been read for centuries by people during times of great need or crisis. We read this Psalm in our church the night of 9/11/2001. We read it again at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic – as our church was about to close. Most recently I read it in light of the terrorist attacks in Israel, and the ensuing response.

Today, I invite you to hear the Psalm again as a simple message of hope and trust. Psalm 46 will serve as both our message and prayer.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.

Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change, though the mountains shake in the heart of the sea; though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble with its tumult.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of the city; it shall not be moved; God will help it when the morning dawns. The nations are in an uproar, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Come, behold the works of the Lord… He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow, and shatters the spear; he burns the shields with fire.

“Be still, and know that I am God! I am exalted among the nations, I am exalted in the earth.”

The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge.

Amen.

For You…
Joe Albright

For You…

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The letter to the Philippians is one of Paul’s warmest letters. It was also one of his most joy-filled. It is written to a group of people he knew and loved. What is so amazing is that he wrote it from prison, and even as he wrote it, he was facing capital charges. He knew very well he might be martyred for his faith.

When I think about Paul in his situation, I can imagine at that stage in his life and ministry, after all he had endured, years of imprisonment, being shipwrecked, stoned, beaten… he had to feel worn out. He had to be tired. I imagine he thought about going home to be with Jesus… I imagine he longed to experience that “eternal weight of glory beyond all measure” that he had so beautifully written about.

And in chapter 2, verse 21, he writes, “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain.”

But it’s almost as if he is having an argument within himself because then he adds, “I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better… But…” he continues, “to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you…” For you… Then he adds, “Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith…”

In other words, Paul’s whole motivation to live, his whole motivation to keep on keeping on is his desire to serve others.

No doubt, love is a powerful motivator. So is the need to give, to serve, to make a difference. The truth is, at every stage of life, we all have something to offer others. We all can find ways to give and serve.

Our faith teaches us that Jesus shows us the very heart of God. If this is true, then we see clearly that we worship a God who gives it all away. We worship a God who is love… We worship a God who walks side by side with those who suffer…those in need.

If we are created in the image of such a God, it’s no wonder we find great meaning, joy, and hope in our giving.

Let us pray: Gracious God, we thank you that even in our brokenness, you still seek to work through us. We pray today, especially for those who feel they are carrying the weight of the world on their shoulders. Be near to them. Be near to us. Amen.

What I Gave I Have
Roger Kunkel

What I Gave I Have

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

Listen to this profound epitaph found on an English gravestone: “What I kept, I lost. What I spent, I had. What I gave, I have.”

Friend of Dial Hope, as you well know, the art of keeping isn’t all bad. There will always be secrets to keep, treasures to store, memories to hold tightly. But some of us keep compulsively; we keep, keep, keep. We are hoarders. Although we keep actual objects, we lose the joy of possession. In spending, we no longer withhold or hide something.

This epitaph closes by reminding us that when we leave life, we only have what we gave and shared in love and trust. And this is one of life’s most difficult lessons to learn. Yet learn it you must, if you want a full life. When our lives come to the end, we will realize that we are the sum of our gifts – gifts of joy, gifts of time, gifts of dissent, gifts of comfort – all our gifts. We are not the sum of our possessions. We are not the sum of our accomplishments. We are finally the sum of our gifts. The persons I most respect are givers and not takers. Let’s hear it for generosity and gratitude.

Let us pray: Extravagant God, you have given the ultimate gift, the gift of your Son, Jesus Christ. We thank you for the gift of friendship with Jesus. Now help us to embrace each day as a gift, something sacred and special; a day to play with children, visit an older person, hug a friend; a day to do something generous and kind. Surprise us now with your joy and grace in unexpected places. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Seeds that We Water
Joe Albright

The Seeds that We Water

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Over the past two days, I reflected on the question of war and our Christian response.

Personally, I am more and more aware that the seeds of anger, hate and violence are in every human heart… Those seeds have always been there… since the dawn of civilization… since Cain and Abel… And while you and I have very little influence over the geo-political situations like Israel and Palestine, Russia and Ukraine, we do have influence over whether or not we tend to those seeds in our own hearts.

There is no doubt those larger conflicts, the violence and brutality of those wars are born out the greed and grasping, hatred, and anger – long nurtured in the hearts of individuals. Those seeds when they are nurtured, have an insidious way of spreading to whole communities and even to nations… And the more it spreads, the more it builds, the harder it is to stop.

I’m also aware that we have come dangerously close in our own nation. Politically we are very divided. And the anger rhetoric and the hate have not much abated. And it raises the question for us, what seeds are we watering?

On the other side of this, I also think about the examples of people who did not nurture these seeds… people who instead nurtured the seeds of forgiveness, compassion, and love… I think about people like Nelson Mandela.

I think about Victor Frankel. He wrote about how those who survived the concentration camps without letting it tear out their souls, were those who managed to maintain a modicum of human compassion in the midst of the experience, those who managed to love and show concern even at times the prison guards themselves.

Closer to home, I think about a man I knew whose daughter was shot and killed by her own husband. And I remember how he refused to live with anger or bitterness in his heart. I think about the compassion you could see in his eyes, the generosity of his spirit, the faith and hope he held on to…

There is, no doubt, for much of the conflict in the larger world, there is not much we can do to make an impact. But we can pray – even for our enemies. And we can tend to our own souls. We can water the seeds of love, forgiveness, and compassion in our own lives.

Let us pray: Jesus, you are the Prince of Peace, and you have promised to one day bring peace on earth. May that peace begin right here, right now, in each of our hearts. Amen.

The Teachings of Christ
Joe Albright

The Teachings of Christ

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A few weeks ago, I sat captivated listening to Bob Gamble speak about life in Ukraine, Bob is a Presbyterian missionary who founded This Child Here, a ministry that works with children and youth on the streets in that country. More recently, in the face of the war, his ministry has shifted to help care for women and children who have fled from the more active war zones. He shared with us that war has progressed closer and closer – even now into the city where he lives. In fact, he shared a video of himself alongside the program director huddled in a closet as a Russian drone stuck 100 yards away… It sent chills up my spine…

I really can’t imagine what it would be like to live in a country that had been invaded by a foreign power. I can’t imagine what it would be like to live with that kind of fear – with a drone strike app on your phone and sirens prevalent throughout the day…

I often think about the Ukrainians fighting for a way of life… a way of life not unlike our own – a way of life that allows for a basic level of comfort and the freedom to live and work as you want. I think about them fighting for their families…

Yesterday, I reflected on the situation in the Middle East, and on our Christian response. I do realize that it’s much easier to reflect from an outside perspective. What if I was personally affected?

I know what Jesus said: To love our enemies and to pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:38-45). In my heart of hearts, I know Jesus is on to something. But if the Ukraine were my homeland… I don’t think I’d be turning the other cheek… If one of my daughters had been kidnapped or killed by Hamas, I can’t imagine I would feel any iota of love in my heart…

At the same time, I have given my life to following Christ. If that is true, then his teaching must hold something for me…And so, as I look at our war-torn world… the violence and brutality around us, at the same time I look also to the teachings of Christ.

I do personally believe that there are times when tough love is necessary. Times when evil builds a head of steam and has to be confronted; times when violent or abusive action has to be stopped. But I also know that if we allow hate or fear to drive us – if we allow anger or animosity to get the best of us – it will take our souls and even our humanity.

Let us pray: We struggle, O God, with the violence and heartbreak we see all around us. We want to respond. We want to help. And we want those who harm the innocent to be brought to justice. We pray for your Spirit to move in a mighty way.

In the Midst of War
Joe Albright

In the Midst of War

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Over the past several weeks, the news has been filled with the brutality of war in Gaza. All of this in the wake of the horror of the Hamas terrorist attack on innocent civilians – teenagers and children… It is hard to imagine that kind of cold-hearted hatred… It drags up memories of 9/11… And it raises the question: What brings a person or a group of people to that point of savagery? It’s heartbreaking.

What is a person of faith to say on such a day as this? Where is God in the midst of such atrocities?

I do know this, at the heart of our Christian faith stands the cross. We worship a God who suffers alongside us… who in Christ, on that cross, is forever with us in our suffering. God is with those who hold out on the front lines – in refugee camps and in war zones. God is with the mother holding her child in the ICU. God is with the lonely, the hungry, the heartbroken. If the cross shows us nothing else, it shows us that God is with those who suffer.

What is our response then to be? Well, our response is to give to those in need, and to pray… to pray for those who have lost loved ones, pray for the protection of aide workers and innocent civilians, pray for the world leaders for wisdom and guidance, and to pray even for those whom we may see as enemies.

To that end, please pray with me:

Loving and gracious God, our hearts are heavy, burdened by the turmoil and suffering that we witness in our world, and the profound challenges faced by so many. We remember today the people of Gaza and Israel, who have witnessed the brutality of war, most recently in the wake of a heart-wrenching terrorist attack on innocent civilians. Our hearts ache at the cold-hearted hatred that leads to such violence, and we pray for those who are caught in the midst of it. We ask your protection over aide workers, medical personnel, and others seeking to help. We pray for Hamas – for a softening of hearts – for a bending of wills. We pray for justice… and we pray for peace. Grant us peace in our own souls as well, Lord. In Jesus’ name. Amen.