Loading more...
Journey with Us During Holy Week
They took palm branches and went out to meet him, shouting, “Hosanna!” “Blessed is he who Read More
Rachel G. Hackenberg | Read Psalm 130:1-8
Disciplines is available in a variety of formats: print, digital, and print/digital combo packages. A digital subscription includes access to author bios, the ability to comment, and audio lectio.
Sign Up TodayIn moments of hubris and daydream, I long to create a solution to the weights and strains and sins of the world, or at least a reasonable fix to the weights of my own worries, stresses, and shortcomings. But the psalmist requires me to confess the truth: “If sin and...
I am wonderfully made by you, O God, but I am not a god. I confess that I cannot live by my own strength and cannot rescue my own soul from sin and sorrow. Amen.
Ezekiel sets the stage for the readings this week. In a vision, the prophet sees a seemingly hopeless situation, yet God restores flesh to the bones and brings them back to life by breathing into them. The psalmist calls out to God from the depths of devastation and waits confidently for God’s redemption. Paul plays off the double meaning of the Greek word pneuma: “breath” and “spirit.” Just as Ezekiel’s dry bones are brought back through the breath of God, so are we raised through the Spirit of God. The Lazarus story provides a bookend resurrection story for the week. Here Jesus demonstrates in the physical realm the spiritual realities described in the other passages. These resurrection stories point us toward Jesus’ resurrection and ultimately the promise of our own.
Read Ezekiel 37:1-14. When have you heard from God directly or through others in times of devastation? How did you respond?
Read Psalm 130. How can you listen for signs of hope and look for God’s voice?
Read Romans 8:6-11. What helps you remember that you cannot save yourself and to put your trust in God?
Read John 11:1-45. When have you been disappointed in God’s timing or response? What would be different now if God had met your expectations then?
Respond by posting a prayer.
“My wife and I are encouraged to know that we are a part of the universal body of Christ, which not only meditates together but also prays for one another. I pray that the Lord will continue to bless this ministry and everyone who works tirelessly to bring this treasure of meditations to us.” Give to the International Editions of The Upper Room, and make a global impact.
