Scotty Williams

Bible

I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your miracles of long ago.

Psalm 77:11

Baldwin

I conceive of my own life as a journey toward something I do not understand, which in the going toward, makes me better.

Blessing

While remembering Jesus’ fast and temptation in the wilderness, we take the time during Lent to remember how we got over. We reflect on all the challenges we have faced in our lives, and the ways we survived them and through to the other side. Sometimes our will and wit have helped to get us over, and other times the grace of God has helped to get us over. During Lent we remember all of these blessed ways, and sit with a wonder and gratitude that their memory invokes.

May we be blessed this Lenten season with awe and grateful hearts as we look back and reflect upon the many things that brought us through.     

As you remember the challenges that you have overcome, listen to this Gospel hymn and rest within its words.

Bible

For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

Jeremiah 29:11

Baldwin

I conceive of God, in fact, as a means of liberation and not a means to control others.

Blessing

During Lent we seek correction for things that stifle our faith, and one of them is misconceptions that we have about God. The worst of these misconceptions, that is often taught in Churches, is that God must somehow harm us in order to make us holy. Of course, what is bad can end up working for our good, but the Lord of host, as Scripture shows, is for and not against us. He is not abusive taking pleasure in our shame, and He does not need suffering to sanctify His people. He is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in love. And He promises that His plans are good with a hope that brightens our future.

May we be blessed this Lenten season with corrected misconceptions, and see our caring Maker more clearly for Who He is.

For those wounded by abusive conceptions of God, here is a beautiful hymn to comfort and encourage you.

Bible

At once the Spirit sent Him out into the wilderness,

Mark 1:12

Baldwin

I, like many a writer before me upon the discovery that his props have all been knocked out from under him, suffered a species of breakdown and was carried off to the mountains of Switzerland.

Thought

Contrary to popular belief, Lent is not a time for holy works. Instead, it is a time for rest from the rigours of spiritual life. Though walking with Jesus brings peace and joy to the believer, there are sacred labours that the walk entails which, despite their beauty, are draining. Therefore, we need a breather from of all the blessed activity, and one breather is Lent where we can sit down with the Saviour. His fast was not a work but a retreat from the work of ministry, and our fasting these six weeks serves the very same purpose. May we use this time to get the rest that we need, and go deeper into the peace and joy that come from walking with Jesus.    

Bible

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.

Psalm 32:8

Baldwin

Be careful what you set your heart upon,’ someone once said to me, ‘for it will surely be yours.

Thought

On the journey of faith there are moments where people lose their bearings, and in these moments they have stop and check the compass guiding them. For some they are guided by their heart and burning passions, and for they are guided by wisdom from the stories others. These things recenter them and help them find direction, and the same is true for practices that are done in the Lenten season. Lent is a time where Christians intentionally stop on the journey of faith and find direction through prayer, Scripture, fasting, and repentance. These things like signs point us onward to a destination, and that is Christ Whose death and resurrection lie ahead of us.

Bible

Open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in your law.

Psalm 119:18

Baldwin

Every society is really governed by hidden laws. by unspoken but profound assumptions on the part of the people, and ours is no exception.

Thought

One of Baldwin’s strengths was seeing ills that others could not, but he also saw a host of joys and worked for others to see them. These joys surround us and are with us each day, but our closeness to them often makes us take them for granted. During Lent we are tempted to focus on the season’s many challenges. Nevertheless, there are joys it presents to us as we make our way to Easter. These things are blessings that are wish us in every season; therefore let us acknowledge and enjoy them with gratitude. As we see the ills, may we look and see the joys.   

Bible

Out of the depths I cry to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.

Psalm 130:1-2

Baldwin

I love to talk to people, all kinds of people, and almost everyone, as I hope we still know, loves a man who loves to listen.

Thought

In times like Lent we are told to listen for the Lord, so we set our hearts on silence that we might hear Him speak. We search for quiet times in quiet spaces with quiet practices, all in the hope of catching His voice and a possible word for our benefit. Yet, as we seek retreat we cannot fully leave the world, and we have to hear its constant noise of busyness and people. We have to tune our ears to the cacophony around us, for in it God is also speaking and has a word for us. May we learn to listen in the quiet and the noise.  

Bible

When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, He asked him, “Do you want to get well?”

John 5:6

Baldwin

Nothing is more desirable than to be released from an affliction, but nothing is more frightening than to be divested of a crutch.

Thought

When Jesus asked the man if he wanted to get better, He was really asking, in Baldwin’s words, “Are you willing to leave your crutches?” Crutches are comforts meant to lift us for a season, but somewhere we rely on them and fail to stand on our own. During Lent we are also asked if we are willing to leave such comforts, from small things like chocolate to big things like coping mechanisms. And when we leave them we will find ourselves made better, and walking the roads of life and faith with the strength and joy of God. Whatever our crutches are, may we lay them down and be healed.

Bible

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.

Luke 10:27

Baldwin

Love does not begin and end the way we seem to think it does. Love is a battle, love is a war; love is a growing up.

Thought

This year the Lenten season begins on Valentine’s Day, and this is very fitting because it is also a season of love. In addition to God and neighbour, there is also the love of self, which many often forget as they follow the greatest commandments. A healthy self-love is essential for physical and spiritual well-being, and during Lent it is encouraged through giving and taking up. We give up harmful things that hold us back, and we take up wholesome things that help us to thrive. As we seek to love God and neighbour through fasting and repentance these forty days, may we not forget to love ourselves.