“Delight Yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the Desires of Your Heart” Psalm 37:4

This Psalm speaks to us about many important things. The first command in Psalm 37 is “do not fret”. This command is followed by “trust in the Lord.” Both surround the theme of “Delight Yourself in the Lord”. We know that as part of the Christian walk, we have to put aside our worries and focus on the reason that we are here – we are called by God to be witnesses to His word. We have to put our complete trust in Him so that we can live life with a clean heart and mind. Trusting in God will enable us to hear the still small voice while we serve the church and each other.

Today is my 50th birthday! WOW! I can hardly believe it! Fifty years of “delighting”! I have to reflect on my past, because my life has been shaped and formed from the people of this church since I entered the doors of Clarendon UMC as a four year old. Cecil and Trudy have known me since my pre-school days. I have in my office a “Certificate of Promotion” promoting me from Kindergarten to Elementary I Sunday School – signed by Cecil Corry! Thank you for promoting me!

I was an 11 year old girl when Reilly Lewis came to town! I sang in his choir for years. During those “weird” teen-age years, Reilly had an abundance of time to spend with us kids. When I needed someone to talk to, Reilly would honestly spend hours talking with me on the phone, helping me to keep my head on straight. When I was 16, Denny Edelbrock came to Clarendon and was my high school Sunday School teacher and choir director! Denny, too, had an abundance of time to spend with us kids, and he also spent hours talking with me on the phone. These two gentlemen may never fully understand the impact they had on me as a young girl. They have shaped me and influenced my life for the better – how grateful I am!!

What a delight to be here on Staff at Clarendon! It was the desire of my heart as a teenager to wake up in the morning, go to work, and go to work at Clarendon UMC! What a delight to have my daughters raised here also, to be influenced and shaped by many of the same people who were in my life as a child.

So – always delight, always trust, focus on being a witness to the Word, and God will give you the desires of your heart. Trudy told me recently, “we’re not through raising you yet”. Here’s to the next 50 years – with more delighting on the way!!

Diane Smith

I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; at night, I stretched out untiring hands and my soul refused to be comforted . . . Then, I thought, “To this I will appeal: the years of the right hand of the Most High. I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember Your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all Your works and consider all Your mighty deeds.” –Psalm 77:1-2; 10-12

While 40 year-old Sonia Flury was trapped under the rubble of the Haitian earthquake, she tried to comfort her 20 year-old daughter, who had been trapped next to her. She also sang to God and prayed constantly. She told God, “I know You will never leave me . . . If it is Your will for me to die, send Your angels to come get me and receive me into Your Kingdom, but if Your will is for me to stay alive, keep me alive so I can testify to the miracles You’ve performed in my life.” After four days in the darkness, Sonia’s daughter passed away. The next day, rescuers extracted Sonia from the ruins.

If anyone has a right to lose faith, one would think it is someone like Sonia. The people of Haiti have endured desperate poverty, raging hurricanes, civil war, and now, The Earthquake. Their schools, hospitals, and homes are devastated. Those who still have homes often refuse to sleep in them, fearing that an aftershock will cause the buildings to collapse on them. Everyone has lost someone they knew; many, their dearest loved ones.

And yet, they still cry out in faith. Sonya says that she does not know where she will go because her home has been destroyed, but she is sure, “God will help me.”

Thank you, Father God, that I am safe today and have more than I need. Please bless those who are less fortunate than I, and please be with me if ever I am buried under rubble, literal or figurative. Keep my faith strong and my heart pure. Help me to meditate on Your works and consider all Your mighty deeds. Help me to be courageous enough to say, “Your will, not mine, be done.” Amen.

Bryan Schille

1 John 7-12; Lev 19:18; Ps 97:10; Matt 19:19

As I prepared to write for this collection of devotionals, I found myself caught up in the usual gross commercialization of a holiday which had its beginning in the early days of Christianity. In this case profiteering is on the theme of romantic love.

Saint Valentine was a priest in Rome during the reign of Emperor Claudius II. The story of what happened in those days is quite murky (as in Murky Men?). A version which has gained wide acceptance, has it that Valentine was martyred for failing to obey an edict of Claudius, to stop performing marriages of young couples. Claudius was intent on conscripting single young men for service in his army, for he believed that married men did not make good soldiers. Despite the order, Valentine persisted in conducting marriage ceremonies. He was jailed and put to death on February 14, 269 A.D.

Today, the United States Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately one billion Valentines are sent each year worldwide.

Jesus teaches us to “Love thy neighbor as thyself”, which clearly includes genuine romantic love. This is second only to “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.”

O God, help us to understand that the love within us is your presence within us, and that to share that love is what you would have us do.

Cecil Corry

My understanding of this story is that it intends to dramatically illustrate the degree to which the grace of God extends to everyone. No one is excluded. No one is beyond the helping hand of God. Mark 5:1-20

For me, this story is about the grace of God and nothing else. Everything else in the story is extraneous.

A brief summary: Jesus, a good and pious Jew, intentionally goes into a gentile area to heal an outcast. The poor guy helped by Jesus was not only an outcast from the Jews, as were all gentiles, but this guy was an outcast from the gentiles as well. He was an outcast of outcasts.

In this story, we see Jesus intentionally going into a religiously forbidden area for no apparent reason except to minister. In going into this gentile territory, Jesus became ritually unclean… something pious Jews scrupulously avoided because cleansing oneself ritually was a pain and took a long time. In getting near a gentile, Jesus became ritually unclean to a second degree. Then, if becoming ritually unclean in two different ways was not enough, Jesus messes with someone believed to be demon possessed. All three of Jesus’ individual “offenses” made him unclean. Together, the accumulative effect is he is so unclean it is beyond reason and imagination. To be cleansed for these “offenses” would take a lot of time and during his cleansing efforts, he would be excluded from being with pious Jews.

To help someone considered totally hopeless and dangerous, Jesus is willing to go against the religious beliefs of his peers; he is willing to be ostracized from “good people” and he is willing to pay the price of having to “jump through the hoops” to get back into his normal life.

Jesus goes the extra thousand miles to help this poor outcast who is isolated from everyone and living without hope. But, he is not an outcast to Jesus. In this story, we see that no one is beyond God’s love and help!

Much of my work in Honduras is about helping folks see the grace in this story rather than the demons.

God, help me to better realize and accept the enormity of your grace.

Rev. Glen Evans, former pastor of CUMC
now serving as a missionary in Honduras.
glenevans@artforhumanity.org

“Save me, O God; for the waters are come in unto my soul.” Psalm 69:1 KJV

Everyone has fear: Fear of spiders, fear of heights, fear of darkness. If I had to think of my fear, it would be fear of drowning. Of all the ways one might die, that would be the worst for me.

I have never been a great swimmer. I took lessons as a child growing up in Texas. There was one public swimming pool in my town and I remember my mother taking me for lessons during the hot, sticky days at the beginning of each summer. But, somehow, I never really got the hang of it. I can dog paddle pretty well but run out of steam and panic when swimming the length of the pool. I never actually had to be pulled from the water by one of the suntanned teenagers that stood ready on the sides. But, the fear was there.

Once as a grownup we were at the ocean (which adds a whole new dimension to the fear….with waves crashing, undertow lurking, sharks circling, my imagination churning). My son, around 10, and I were out playing fairly close to shore when a wave crashed over me, knocking me down, turning me over and leaving me confused and scared. The sand stung my skin. My eyes burned with the salty water. Every cavity in my head was flushed out with water, leaving me flailing, sputtering, coughing, trying to find which way was up. Jon stood, waist deep nearby, asking, “Are you alright, Mom?”

My life feels like that sometimes. I feel like David in this Psalm, “the waters are coming into my soul.” Sinking in the mire of worry, overcome with the flood of doubt, I am drowning. I can’t seem to find my way. The fear is palpable.

But I know when I call out my Lifeguard will save me. Jesus will come to me, and pull me out of whatever situation I am in, and will bring me safely to shore. I never have to doubt that he is guarding my life even when I don’t call on him. Just as the lifeguard sits atop his stand, poised ready to dive in with eyes peeled to all the swimmers, Jesus watches vigilantly and waits for my call of “Save me.”

Father, I thank you for watching over me, for pulling me out of the floods that overwhelm and bringing me safely to shore. You are my help in present danger. Amen

Jane Dixon

Since my youth, O God, you have taught me, and to this day I declare your marvelous deeds. Even when I am old and gray, do not forsake me, O God, till I declare your power to the next generation, your might to all who are to come. Psalm 71:17 -18

To us, the 71st Psalm tells the story of growing with God. Growing up has challenges (learning to ride a bike, starting middle school, those bad hair days of high school) – and then there are the additional challenges that relationships bring. Relationships with God are no different, and perhaps even more challenging. God often makes us face the difficult situations we would prefer to ignore, “Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter,” and he provides salvation as well, “you will restore my life again.” (Psalm 71:20).

Today, as we celebrate our 10th wedding anniversary, we are reflecting about how we have grown together and with God over the past 10 years. We feel blessed, we feel grateful, and we also know our work is not done. We look forwarding to growing old(er) with each other, our family and friends, and with God.

Dear God: Thank you for being with us through all the challenges of growing. Please be patient with us when we resist growing closer to you. We sing praise to you and promise to declare your power to the next generation so that they will also grow together with you.

Jennifer Weber and Justin Moore

That one is like a man building a house, who dug deeply and laid the foundation on rock; when a flood arose, the river burst against that house but could not shake it, because it had been well built. Luke 6:48

Today, Mom would have been 95 years old. My mother was of good Norwegian stock. Having come to the US in her early twenties, she married and raised three boys in Arlington. She was a great mother. She made many of our clothes as young boys (like little sailor outfits for our trip to Norway to meet her family in 1950). She never missed one of her three son’s baseball games. And wow, could she cook (especially the magic she did with leftovers!).

Mom and Dad had a wonderful life (particularly in their retirement years, having traveled mainly in their motor home) for more than a decade. They experienced many fabulous things having toured all over the US. When Dad died, Mom’s life was less wonderful.

After several years of living alone, she came to live with us – she was 88. We had built an addition to our home which included tying a separate building to ours – Mom’s house. This new home gave Mom the ability to live the last five years of her life in a loving and caring family environment. Before she moved in we’d have many conversations and planning sessions with her.

Over the years, she’d describe her trips to Norway, visits with family, and special times as “marvelous.” Cathy loved her Norwegian accent; and most especially, how her voice would lilt with that word. So, as we developed our plans for her space, we’d put it to the “marvelous” test – marvelous sky lights, marvelous bathroom, and marvelous garden views. We all were happy to have provided her that “marvelous” life as we also shared our marvelous Clarendon UMC family with her. She loved it too.

Thank you God: For mother’s life and for the honor of being able to serve her. We miss her deeply; but know that you hold her in the palm of your hand, blessing her marvelous spirit.

Ed Betts

Psalm 91: 6-7
(In Memory of our soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq)

Alarms sound
Gunshots fire
Screams of innocent people fill the air
Sweat pours down my face,
From running, from fear, from hate
The salty taste fills my mouth
I see my own men down and crying out in pain
Trucks moving in every direction
Some bring others out of the devastating scenery
and others to blow up the enemies in front of me
Blood on my arms and legs on the ground
Dust swarming overhead
I clutch my rifle
My heart pounding even harder
I pray every night that my opponent surrenders
Praying not to have a repeated day the next
Praying that everything comes to an end
I fight for my reasons to defend,
But the mental pain and agony is unbearable

Psalm 91:6-7
You will not fear the terror of the night,
Or the arrow that flies by day;
Or the pestilence that stalks in darkness,
Or the destruction that wastes at noonday.
A thousand may fall at your side,
Ten thousand at your right hand,
But it will not come near you.

Gabrielle Hansford

To me, the Diaspora is a most cherished treasure of Judaism and Christianity. To know and to feel a community of love, family, tradition, and religion that is worldwide and thousands of years old are things that do not happen accidentally. Although we may have been born many miles away from Arlington, we all have been part of the Clarendon UMC community before we became involved in this congregation.

I am grateful for many who encouraged, supported, and prayed for me over the years, beginning with Elma & John Minno and Nan & Larry Manning, the Tarpley sisters, Barbara & Fred Gilbert, and Courtney and Betty Lou Sheffield. Most recently, the women’s ministry (UMW) and study groups have reminded me of two great Hebrew women – Naomi & Ruth. The Book of Ruth 1:1-16 said, following the deaths of Naomi’s husband and two sons:

… with her two daughters-in-law she left the place where she had been living, and took the road home to Judah. Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, “Go back, both of you, to your mothers’ homes. May the Lord keep faith with you, as you have kept faith with the dead and with me;” … Ruth clung to her… “Do not urge me to go back and desert you”, Ruth answered. “Where you go, I will go, and where you stay, I will stay, Your people shall be my people, and your God my God. Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. I swear a solemn oath before the Lord your God: nothing but death shall divide us.”

Amazingly, our Monday evening gatherings have brought us into a new family, and we are mini-Naomis and Ruths. We are joined together by faith, not blood, and in our support of one another, through prayer face-to-face, or with prayer-buddies from afar. What strength and glory have come from this 21st century example of “Your God shall be my God”! I think back to those who have left us, & I feel that even death did not divide us… we have the memory of their love and support, and they lived their faith. That is the special legacy of Clarendon United Methodist Church.

Our Father who art in heaven, we thank you for this church that has breathed life into the Judeo-Christian diaspora in so many of its activities, and the people who worship here. We are grateful for those who came before us, for those with whom we worship now, and for the faces of the future of this Church who are new to our world. Amen.

Karen Darner

“O Lord, our Lord, your greatness is seen in all the world!” Psalm 8:1

In the verses from Genesis, Joseph interprets the dreams of the king of Egypt. The king relays his dreams of the seven fat and seven lean cows as well as the seven heads of full grain versus seven heads of thin, scorched grain. Joseph explains to the king that God is telling him there will be seven years of plenty followed by seven years of famine and in the time of famine the seven years of plenty will be forgotten.

How easy it is to forget the good things in life when we encounter bad times. I’ve certainly found that to be true this past year. It was a terrible year in my mind. Times were rough at work; several of my favorite colleagues were terminated because of the economy. That’s the way 2009 started. The first to go was a married father of five who is the primary provider for his family. That was a real blow to everyone’s moral. In the following months it became apparent to my two sisters and me that my elderly parents weren’t really coping well any longer in their home. How proud they were and how they resisted coming to the realization that it was time to move. Sadly, shortly after that Daddy was taken ill and died. What a shock! Mom seemed to accept the event of his death rather remarkably (or so we thought). However, three months later Mom suffered a massive stroke and passed away two days before Christmas.

Oh no, I thought, two years of recession affecting friends and coworkers, tough times at work followed by the deaths of two beloved parents; the seven years of famine have arrived. I found myself wallowing in self pity and doubt. As I read the scripture from Genesis I thought, how true, it really is easy to forget the years of plenty when hard times arrive.

As I’ve worked through the deaths of both parents I’ve come to realize how very fortunate I am to be part of such a wonderful congregation at Clarendon. Your thoughts, prayers, concerns and love have truly sustained me this past year. I would be remiss if I didn’t also mention Rev. Jim van der Wall and his lovely wife Marie. Jim is the pastor of my parents’ church (St. Paul’s United Methodist Church in Wilmington, DE). Jim and Marie were there for us at every step of the way as my parents departed this world and moved on to the next. United Methodists are truly great people!

Dear God, Your greatness is truly seen in all the world. Let us endeavor to love and honor you today and always. Amen.

Judy Yolles