“This is how you are to pray,” Christ said: “Our Father in heaven.” This new person, born again, restored to God by grace, says first of all “Father” because this one has now become an heir. So any who have believed in his name and have become children of God ought now to begin to offer thanks and to declare themselves God’s children, when they speak of God as their Father in heaven.

How indulgent it is of the Lord, what exuberance of condescension and goodness toward us, to permit us when praying in God’s presence to address ourselves to God as Father—a name which none of us would have dared to reach in prayer, had he himself [Christ] not allowed us to pray. We should therefore recollect and feel  that, when we call God a Father, we ought to act like children of God, and if it comforts us to regard him as our Father, let us so act that he may be comforted in us. Let us conduct ourselves as temples of God, and God will remain in us.

—Cyprian, Bishop and Martyr of Carthage, On the Lord’s Prayer

How marvelous the power of the cross; how great beyond all telling the glory of the passion: here is the judgment-seat of the Lord, the condemnation of the world, the supremacy of Christ. [The] cross is the source of all blessings, the cause of all graces. Through the cross the faithful receive strength from weakness, glory from dishonor, life from death. God’s compassion for us is all the more wonderful because Christ died, not for the righteous or the holy but for the wicked and the sinful.

—Leo the Great, Sermon 8 for the Lord’s Passion

From Anglican Mainstream.

Again this week we are challenged by the idea of temptation but this time in the story of Joseph [in Genesis 39]. His story reminds us that contrary to popular opinion temptation does not build character. Our ability to overcome temptation does not build character nor does it build will power. It is Godly character that stands this test and we need to be mindful of that in this story.

I enjoy the daily Lenten devotions it publishes. Check them out.

From Fox News.

Two teachers’ performance of a dirty dance at a Canadian high school rally has led to their suspension without pay, The Globe and Mail reported. After footage of the graphic lap dance was posted online, the Winnipeg School Division launched an investigation into the incident at Churchill High School. The video, “Two Teachers, One Chair,” features physical education instructor Chrystie Fitchner and an unidentified male teacher in a sexually explicit routine that had students turn from laughter to disbelief.

Read it all.

As a former high school teacher and college professor, I can only shake my head in sad amazement. We are such a profoundly broken people. I feel compassion for these two misguided souls and hope God will help them come to their senses so that they can start to rebuild their lives.

From Fox News:

The “Big Man Upstairs” is getting accolades from mental health specialists who say they are finding that a belief in God plays a positive role in the treatment of anxiety and depression, the Washington Times reports. University of Toronto psychologists reported last year that “believing in God can help block anxiety and minimize stress,” their research showcasing “distinct brain differences” between believers and nonbelievers. A new study released Wednesday by Rush University Medical Center in Chicago took the idea a step further. In patients diagnosed with clinical depression, “belief in a concerned God can improve response to medical treatment,” said the new research, which has been published in the Journal of Clinical Psychology. The operative term here is “caring,” the researchers said. “The study found that those with strong beliefs in a personal and concerned God were more likely to experience an improvement.”

The Big Man Upstairs??? Give me a break. Despite the use of this goofy phrase, as one who suffered from both anxiety and depression at one time, I can say “Amen” to this. I know it has certainly helped me weather the storm of my parents’ deaths as well as my father-in-law’s.  Read it all.

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments, for, “Who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?” But we have the mind of Christ.

—1 Corinthians 2:14-16 (TNIV)

Here Paul makes it clear that our faith is a gift from God himself. This passage also can serve as a self-diagnostic of sorts. Consider the cross of Christ. Does it make sense to you or does it seem like some superstitious nonsense? Where do your ultimate loyalties lie? How  you answer depends, in part, on your worldview. But it also depends on whether you have the Spirit indwelling you.

Such tests are necessary, of course, because of the non-intrusive nature of the Spirit. He is so gentle with us, so unwilling to violate our core personalities, that his Presence is often hard to detect without conscious effort. I think that is how it should be because none of us want to be little automatons or robots. To rob people of their freedom to choose is to rob us of an integral part of our humanity.

Of course, those of us who are blessed to have the Spirit living in us and teaching us do not have the license to become all haughty and puffed up with spiritual pride (nah, nah, nah boo-boo; I’ve got the Spirit and you don’t). The Spirit’s indwelling us has nothing to do with our worthiness or intrinsic moral character. It has everything to do with God’s gracious sovereignty. If anything, the Spirit’s indwelling us should make us fall to our knees in wonder and humility because none of us deserves to be blessed with his Presence.

As you attempt to observe a holy Lent this season, think on these things. Your ability to observe a holy Lent as well as any new insights you glean, are the product of the effort you exert powered by God’s very Spirit himself. What a wondrous gift. What a gracious God!

For the serpent [Satan], seeking a way to enter, clearly sought the door of pride, when he declared, “You shall be as gods,” That is why it is written, “Pride is the beginning of all sin,” and “The beginning of pride of man is to fall away from God.”

—Augustine, On Nature and Grace 29.33

From Yahoo News.

LONDON (Reuters) – Digital dumping is on the rise, according to a survey, with growing numbers of people preferring to use email and social networking Web sites to break up with their partners. Over one third of 2,000 people polled (34 percent) said they had ended a relationship by email, 13 percent had changed their status on Facebook without telling their partners and six percent had released the news unilaterally on Twitter. By contrast, only two percent had broken up via a mobile phone text. The rest had split up the old-fashioned way by face-to-face conversation (38 percent) and by telephone (eight percent). “Digital Dumping will soon take over when it comes to ending a relationship,” said Sean Wood, Marketing Manager for DateTheUk dating service for whom the survey was carried out. “It’s often easier, quicker and avoids any misunderstandings.”

I am a big fan of technology and believe that humans can use it properly to augment and enhance relationships, at least at a superficial level. But here is a classic misuse/abuse of technology to insulate us from embarrassment or to help us avoid unpleasant situations that we do not wish to face head-on.

I note with interest the comment above from Sean Wood about “digital dumping.” Easier? Avoids misunderstandings? Really? Sounds like an excuse to avoid taking responsibility for our own actions. Ending a relationship is hard enough. Adding insult to injury by doing it indirectly in a digital environment is frankly inexcusable and cowardly. Then again, I have no strong opinions on this matter.

From the AP. What a great hero.

LITTLETON, Colo. – The gunman was walking through a middle school parking lot and taking shots at students with a hunting rifle as terrified teenagers ran for their lives. He had just wounded two students and seemed ready to unleash more violence when a math teacher named David Benke sprung into action.

Read it all.

A fascinating perspective on the process of sanctification (the process of becoming like Christ). Check it out.

I think one of the most spiritually dangerous practices today is encouraging people—in small groups or in front of the church or even in print—to talk about how God has transformed them. They are told to explain how they used to have a bad temper or a problem with porn or were stingy or had one bad habit or another—and through prayer, effort, and grace, they have been changed. The formal glory all goes to God, of course, but the focus unfortunately is often on the self—on how I have been changed.

What’s interesting about the classic biblical testimony—Paul’s conversion (Acts 9)—is that it spends little space on transformation as such and a lot of space on what happened: an encounter with the gracious and resurrected Lord. When Paul repeats his testimony (Acts 22 and 26), his speech assumes a transformation—from persecuting Christians to proclaiming the Christian gospel—but does not focus on it as such. He does not say, “Look at how I’ve been transformed by the grace of God!” He is simply explaining why he now preaches in the name of Christ. The narrative structure of his story is his transformation, but the real subject of his story is Jesus Christ.

Has this been your experience?

Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Simon and his companions went to look for him, and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.” So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

—Mark 1:35-39 (TNIV)

Here we see a key to Jesus’ power: his prayer life. Being fully human, our Lord had to engage in the discipline of prayer to help him discern God’s will, jut like the rest of us must. I also love the dynamic of this story. Here we have Peter and his companions searching for Jesus. When they find him, they exclaim that, “Everyone is looking for you!” Indeed. Anyone who has ever gotten a taste of our Lord wants more. After all, he is life and who does not want life?

Sadly, though, there are some who are blinded to Jesus and consequently do not look for him. In this season of Lent, ask yourself if you are looking for Jesus (even if you have already found him). If you are not, ask yourself why. Examine your life to see if you are truly happy or if there is something in you (or your life) that is missing. Take a chance and ask Jesus to show you what that is. If you have a Christian friend you trust, ask him or her to help you in this endeavor.

Likewise, if your pursuit of Christ is only part time or half-hearted, ask yourself why. Examine yourself honestly to discover what in you is holding you back and then ask our Lord to help you rid yourself of those things so that you can grow in your relationship with him. After all, what relationship ever grows when one or both parties are only half-hearted about it?

If you are seeking Jesus with all that you are and have, and growing in your relationship with him, give thanks to Jesus for this grace and ask him to help you to continue to grow in grace.