Category: Resurrection

Easter Day

Ruth Kirk

They will mock him, spit on him, flog him with a whip, and kill him, but after three days he will rise again (Mark 10:34; NLT). 

Look at my hands. Look at my feet. You can see that it’s really me. Touch me and make sure that I am not a ghost, because ghosts don’t have bodies, as you see that I do. As he spoke, he showed them his hands and his feet… They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he ate it as they watched (Luke 24:39-43; NLT). 

Lord,

Easter is when you
Are born again,

Free from all your anguish,
Dread, and pain;

Free to help
Your followers anew:

Jesus, may we love and serve,
Like you.

The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45; NLT). 

As we live in God, our love grows more perfect. So we will not be afraid on the day of judgment, but we can face him with confidence because we live like Jesus here in this world (1 John 4:17; NLT).

References

I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God (John 3:3; NLT).

You exposed yourself to death itself, and allowed yourself to be counted among criminals, while you bore the guilt of many and interceded for sinners (Isaiah 53:12; TIB).

The Lord is the Spirit, and wherever the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (2 Corinthians 3:17; NLT). 

I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever (John 14:16; ESV). 

It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you (John 16:7; ESV). 

The Lord – who is the Spirit – makes us more and more like him as we are changed into his glorious image (2 Corinthians 3:18; NLT).

 

Please teach us

Ruth Kirk

You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are right, because that’s what I am (John 13:13; NLT).

Please teach us
Full repentance, Lord,
For all we’ve done,
And failed to do.
Then we will live
In total freedom
Here, on earth,
Dear Lord, with you.

Please teach us
Full acceptance, Lord,
Of all you give,
And all you take.
Then we will live
Abundantly
In heaven on earth, Lord,
For your sake.

Please teach us
Full assurance, Lord,
That we, like you,
Will rise again.
Then we will live
With thankful hearts,
And bow, rejoicing,
At your name.

God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:10-11; NLT).

I follow you

Ruth Kirk

I had barely begun to pray last Sunday morning when these couplets came to me. They took several hours of concentrated work to put into words.

This happens more and more frequently. The first stage of writing takes so long that by the time it’s finished, I have missed out on the experience of wordless prayer. In fact, there is a constant, seemingly irresolvable tension between my longing to pray, and the drive to express in words what I am given, so it can be shared here.

All I can do is to echo the prophet’s words: “My work seems so useless! I have spent my strength for nothing and to no purpose. Yet I leave it all in the LORD’s hand; I will trust God for my reward” (Isaiah 49:4; NLT).

So now, here is today’s blog:

Calling the crowd to join his disciples, he said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways, take up your cross, and follow me” (Mark 8:34; NLT). 

I follow you, my only Lord:
My guide, my way, and my reward.

I honour you, my Shepherd King:
My strength; the truth to which I cling.

I thirst for you, my living God:
My breath, my life, my staff, my rod.

I trust in you, my light, my love:
My daily bread from heaven above.

I worship you, my Father’s voice:
My resurrection, and my choice.

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying” (John 11:25; NLT).

Choose today whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15; NLT).

 

I look on you

Ruth Kirk

Today’s blog came to me swiftly as I prayed before my icon of Christ yesterday morning:

They will look on the one they pierced (John 19:37; NLT).

I look on you:
The One we pierced –
The God who died,
And rose again.

I look on you:
The One who heals –
Who sets us free
From sin and pain.

I look on you:
The One who hears –
The God who listens
To our prayers.

I look on you:
The One who sees –
Who saves us, helps us,
Guides, and shares.

I will be with you in trouble (Psalm 91:15; TIB).

Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens (Psalm 68:19; NIV).

 

Christ, our Lamb

Ruth Kirk

While I was praying without words, today’s verses simply arose from the silence, though nothing could have been further from my mind than writing a blog.

The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! (John 1:36; NKJV).

Christ, our Lamb,
And Christ, our dove;
Christ, our lion:
You are love;

Christ, our bread,
And Christ, our wine;
Christ, our Word,
And fruitful vine.

Christ, our way,
Our truth, our life;
Christ our Saviour:
You are light;

Christ, our King,
Our staff, our rod;
Our resurrection,
And our God.

“My Lord and my God!” Thomas exclaimed (John 20:28; NLT).

 

You are peace

Ruth Kirk

Seeing this prayer in my mind and heart brought a gentle end to a wonderful time of light, silence and peace last Sunday. Writing and referencing it was a labour of love.

The Lord is peace (Judges 6:24; NLT). 

You are peace, and you are love,
On earth, below, in heaven above.
You are fire, and bread, and wine,
Our narrow way, our living vine.

You are pity, Shepherd King,
You shield us all beneath your wing.
You are Spirit, truth and light,
The resurrection, and the life.

You are Christ, our staff and rod,
So kind, so good, our Lord and God.
Teacher, you forgive and bless,
For you are strength, and tenderness.

Yahweh, Holy Ghost, and Son,
The One in Three, the Three in One,
Our faith, our hope, our soul, our call:
You are God, our All in all.

God will be all in all (1 Corinthians 15:28; TIB).

 

Acceptance

Ruth Kirk

Today’s prayer is the third of four which all arrived together on New Year’s Eve.

I want your will to be done, not mine (Luke 22:42; NLT).

This is how I am, Lord,
I accept it.
I want to do your will,
And not my own.

I want to follow you, Lord,
So I humbly bear my cross;
Like you, I offer thanks
For grief and pain.

This is how I am, Lord,
I embrace it.
I want to do your will,
And to endure.

I want to be like you, Lord,
So I’m walking in your steps:
Like you, I must face death
To rise again.

Those who die in the LORD will live; their bodies will rise again! (Isaiah 26:19; NLT).

Like Jesus

Ruth Kirk

This prayer arrived very early one blessed Sunday morning. I chose it to share with you today after my priest visited me with home communion yesterday:

Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered (Hebrews 5:8; NLT). 

I want your will to be done, not mine (Luke 22:42; NLT).

Like Jesus, I suffer,
Like Jesus, I yield;

Like him, I am wounded,
Like him, I’ll be healed.

Like Jesus, I bear it,
Like Jesus, I cry;

Like him, I submit,
And, like him, I will die.

For he’s my example,
My way, and my shrine;

My Priest and my Saviour,
My bread and my wine.

Like him, I will perish,
Like him, rise again –

So, with Christ as my goal,
I will not live in vain.

Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, always excelling in the Lord’s work, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:58; CSB).

References

Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ and become one with him (Philippians 3:8-9; NLT).

I want to know Christ and experience the mighty power that raised him from the dead. I want to suffer with him, sharing in his death, so that one way or another I will experience the resurrection from the dead! I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us (Philippians 3:10-14; NLT).

I am glad when I suffer for you in my body, for I am participating in the sufferings of Christ that continue for his body, the church (Colossians 1:24; NLT).

I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14; CSB).

 

Christmas

Ruth Kirk

This is how Jesus the Messiah was born (Matthew 1:18; NLT). 

Birth to bliss, and bliss to birth:
Christ, Messiah, here on earth.
Bliss to birth, and birth to bliss:
Now, receiving Mary’s kiss.

Light to dark, and dark to light:
Christ, transfigured, shining bright.
Dark to light, and light to dark:
Now, in anguish, broken heart.

Sweat to blood, and blood to sweat:
Jesus, weeping, facing death.
Blood to sweat, and sweat to blood:
Crucified, his pain is love.

Death to life, and life to death:
Jesus takes his final breath.
Life to death, and death to life:
He comes again, to end all strife.

Christ died once for all time as a sacrifice to take away the sins of many people. He will come again, not to deal with our sins, but to bring salvation to all who are eagerly waiting for him (Hebrews 9:28; NLT).

 

Heal our unbelief

Ruth Kirk

We know that in all things God works for good with those who love him, those whom he has called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28; GNT).

“Have mercy on us and help us, if you can.” “What do you mean, ‘If I can’?” Jesus asked. “Anything is possible if a person believes.” The father instantly cried out, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief!” (Mark 9:22-4; NLT).

Father,
You bring good from bad,
And peace from every fear we have;
Truth from lies, and gain from loss –
Help us to overcome our unbelief.

Father,
You bring light from dark.
For growth from pain, you hit the mark;
Love from hate, and faith from doubt –
Bring gain from all our troubles, Great High Priest. 

Father,
You bring life from death,
And comfort from our final breath;
Hope from grief, and joy from woe –
For resurrection, Lord our God, is sweet.

Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying” (John 11:25; NLT).

He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies (Psalm 103:2-4; NLT).