Daily Devotion for Easter Sunday 2025

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Forty-two

It is fitting to finish this study on Job on Easter as we see that resurrection comes in today's conclusion.

Job is finally vindicated just as he has been asking for throughout the book.  It is interesting that we see Job is responsible for praying for his three friends.  Their fate is in his hands.  I can see them saying to him, "Remember how we came and sat with you in silence for seven days?"

Of course, Job forgives them because Job is a righteous man.

Or it could be that it would be nice to have his friends around so he could rub their noses in his victory for the rest of their lives!  This is written tongue-in-cheek (and doesn't fit with his righteousness) but is funny to think about nonetheless.

Job's fortunes in livestock are restored to twice what he had before.  We assume his boils and sores also heal nicely.

One difficulty for modern readers is the ten replacement children that Job sires.  Job's wife may not have felt that this was such a great blessing at her age (and already birthing ten previously)!

This reminds us that this story is told from a patriarchal lens.  The restoration has more to do with the honor of the head of the household.  The family name and prosperity are secured with these new offspring.  In this culture, the individual is minimized to the point where an ancient reader would be fine with the idea that ten new children are acceptable replacements for the former children.  They are regrettable losses and it is sad to be sure, but what matters is the security of the overall family line.

Another odd thing about this ending is that this is actually the argument that Job's three friends were making all along: the righteous receive earthly blessings while the wicked are punished in the here and now.  If you are blessed materially, you must have God's favor for good behavior.  If you are suffering, you must have done something offensive to God.

The argument that Job (and the theme running throughout the book) is that faith is not always transactional.  Sometimes the wicked get away with their bad deeds (at least at a surface glance) and sometimes people are good but are not necessarily rewarded for it.

We see this new way of thinking through the Easter story.

Judas dies but is not killed by God.  Rather, Judas takes his own life.  

Peter gets off the hook for his denials.

Thomas isn't told to go to the back of the class for his doubting - he receives the same assurance as the other disciples.

The eleven disciples who deserted Jesus are promoted to apostles who will lead the church.

We see grace offered in spite of their failings.  But this doesn't mean that being a disciple is a get-out-of-suffering-free card.  What we find is that our faith helps get us through the difficulties of life.

A resurrection faith is optimistic - we believe that life is ultimately stronger than death and that God will eventually win out.  This seems to be the point of Job.  This would be especially true if we see Job as a metaphor for Judah.  The exile is not permanent, and God's people will have a future.

For a people that are more community-oriented rather than individual-oriented, this is enough.

Prayer for the day:

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.  Amen.

Prayer from the Gloria Patri: Lesser Doxology, 3rd-4th centuries

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Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 40

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Forty, verse fifteen through Chapter Forty-one

This reading is a bit longer, but I thought the verses concerning Behemoth and Leviathan fit together nicely.  Humans were thought to be unable to contend with Behemoth or Leviathan, but they are not mightier than God.  These great monsters would have been among the mythic creatures that dotted the pantheons of the surrounding cultures to Judaism. 

If we can imagine Job representing Judah during the Babylonian exile, then Behemoth and Leviathan may represent the Babylonian empire.

We know that the Babylonians destroyed Jerusalem and the Temple and took the most powerful families back to Babylon.

As many saw the Temple as the place where God lived, its destruction may have caused some to question, "Are the Babylonians mightier than God?"

As we see Behemoth and Leviathan as less than God, this indicates that even the mightiest empires fall in line and show subservience to God.

This is helpful when we feel small in the face of changes we can't control.  Empire today might be political forces at work in the world.  Empire might be economic forces such as market woes.  Empire could be systemic forces that demean certain people.  Empire can seem so large that it may make one feel insignificant.  God reminds us that even empires are finite.  Behemoth and Leviathan are not eternal.

The disciples experienced Empire as well.  Jesus ran into the Roman machine that decided he was not only expendable but detrimental to their well-being as the latest Empire in their time.  The disciples are trying to figure out what comes next.  We know the end of the story, but they are sitting in their grief on this Holy Saturday.  

They will soon discover what we have seen in Job, that God is mightier than any Empire.  

As we finish Lent, we have discovered that God is not as predictable as Job's friends would suggest.  We'll finish the book on Easter as we anticipate an ending for the faithful.

Prayer for the day:

Gracious God, we often find that our problems seem mountainous.  We forget that through faith, Jesus reminds us that we can indeed move mountains.  Help us to see the possibilities more often that the difficulties.  And when the difficulties do arise, may we find that they are insignificant compared to the power we find available in you.  We pray these things in Christ's holy name.  Amen.

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Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 39

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Forty, verses one through fourteen

As we see the humbling of Job, we may find that Job represents humankind in our efforts to put ourselves in the place of God.  This has long been a theme in the Bible and we see it many times over in Genesis with:

• Adam and Eve putting their own will above God's
• Cain playing God with the life of his brother
• The Tower of Babel where the technology of humanity has exceeded their wisdom and allowed them to seek to upstage God.  

This also becomes a lesson in grace versus works as we determine that our "own right hand" will not be able to give us the victory.  Certainly, death always looms large for mortals.

On Good Friday, this may read a little differently if we imagine Jesus in Job's place as he quotes Psalm 22 from the cross:

"My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?"

The Psalm goes on to ask further, " Why are you so far from helping me, from the words of my groaning?  O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer; and by night but find no rest."

Yet, this quote from the cross would also cause a reader who knows the Psalm to remember verse 27 which states, "All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before him."

Jesus hasn't arrived yet.  He must suffer first, just as Job suffered.  They both have expressed the human dilemma of the seeming absence of God.

God seems to put Job (and humanity) in his place in chapter forty as we see him cowed.  But within Christian understanding of the Trinity, God (in Jesus) is the one to experience the absence of God.

On Good Friday, God enters that place on the cross.

Prayer for today:

God, thank you for wrestling with us during all the times we have put ourselves in your place.  And thank you for remaining with us in our time of need - even those times we could not perceive you.  As we remember your suffering on the cross today, may we not abandon you.  Amen.

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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 38

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter, Thirty-nine

God continues to extol the variety of the created order.  We are reminded in Psalm 24:1 that "The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it".  The author of Job includes all of the wildlife in the earth as well as the human beings.

A part of our work as human beings is to act as stewards for all life on earth on behalf of God.  This work was tasked to us at the beginning of Genesis which should emphasize its importance.  Genesis 1:26 states that people shall "have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the air and over the cattle and over all the wild animals of the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.”

As we see Job at the beginning, we are told in 1:3 that he owned "seven thousand sheep, three thousand camels, five hundred yoke of oxen, five hundred donkeys, and very many servants, so that this man was the greatest of all the people of the East."  Wealth would have been gathered in livestock in that day.  Of course, later in the chapter, they are either all killed or stolen.  

Job doesn't speak explicitly about his own stewardship of the domesticated animals under his care, but he does mention his stewardship of the earth in 31:38-40:

"If my land has cried out against me and its furrows have wept together, if I have eaten its yield without payment and caused the death of its owners, let thorns grow instead of wheat and foul weeds instead of barley.”

So, Job does claim to follow God's law concerning stewardship of the land.  It would make sense that he would care for his animals as well.

Sheryl standing in front of the Ceiba Tree in Vieques, Puerto Rico.
  This tree is a little over 300 years old!

As I think about humanity's care for God's creation, I wouldn't be excited to receive our grade from God.  As Sheryl and I enjoy the outdoors and seek to do our part to care for it, I usually find myself picking up trash in some pretty obscure spots.  It's pretty disappointing to find evidence of someone else's laziness.  The recent cuts in environmental guidelines by the United States government are short-sighted and negligent in what God has asked us to do.

On this Maundy Thursday, we remember Peter's predicted denial of Jesus at the Last Supper.  It may be that we are collectively denying the Creator's tasks for us.

As we read this chapter with eyes of faith, we should be able to see the wonder and beauty of all that God has made.  It's important that we understand our role in saving safe spaces for other living things to co-habit this world with us so that the generations to come will also share in the wonder and beauty of all that God has made!

Prayer for the day:

Creating God, as we walk in your world, teach us to tread lightly.  And as we stop and look and listen, may we take joy in the knowledge that we do not inhabit this world by ourselves.  Help us to love what you love.  And may our love spur us to action.  Amen.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 37

Today's reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-eight

Well, God does finally show up again in Job - and for the first time in the prose section.

God comes across with a haughtiness that presents as more aloof than reassuring.  How could God possibly be concerned about your affairs when God is busy tending to the ordering of the universe?

This feel is very different from Jesus' telling us that God knows the number of hairs on our head.

As we are reminded that Job experiences this from a sense of grief, it may feel different to imagine Job coming to this realization about God as a self-discovery rather than God berating him verbally.

We see at the beginning that God answers "Job out of the whirlwind."  This seems counter to how Elijah experiences God on Mount Horeb where he experiences a terrible wind, an earthquake and a raging fire but God was only present afterwards in the sound of sheer silence.

For Job, the whirlwind may have been all of the terrible losses he experienced all at once.  As he moved through denial, anger, bargaining and depression, he may have painfully arrived at acceptance.  Within this acceptance is often a realization that we are not at the center of the universe.

This can be a painful, difficult journey (and some people never get there), but it often leads to greater maturity. 

It may be that out of our pain, we discover God in the vastness of the created order which surrounds us.  And rather than feel smaller and insignificant, as we remember and realize that just as God counts the stars (Pleiades and Orion), God also counts the hairs on our heads. 

How does our faith coincide with the vastness of God in order to provide you connection and meaning rather than the opposite?

Prayer for the day:

Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name throughout the earth! You made your glory higher than heaven!  From the mouths of nursing babies you have laid a strong foundation because of your foes, in order to stop vengeful enemies.  When I look up at your skies, at what your fingers made— the moon and the stars that you set firmly in place— what are human beings that you think about them; what are human beings that you pay attention to them?  You’ve made them only slightly less than divine, crowning them with glory and grandeur. You’ve let them rule over your handiwork, putting everything under their feet— all sheep and all cattle, the wild animals too, the birds in the sky, the fish of the ocean, everything that travels the pathways of the sea.  Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name throughout the earth!  Amen.

Prayer is Psalm 8 from the Common English Bible © 2011 by Common English Bible

Photo by Klemen Vrankar on Unsplash

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 36

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-seven

Elihu continues to "teach" Job about the nature of God.  We move into the natural world as the handiwork of God's domain.  

He easily sees God in the storm and the wind and the rain.  

When God sends the torrential downpours, the animals have no recourse but to hide in their dens.  This gives a strong sense of the sovereignty of God over even the wild beasts.

There was a sense of mystery regarding the natural world that we have lost today.

When Elihu asks in verse 15, "Do you know how God... causes the lightning of his cloud to shine?", Job would not have a response.

Today, a quick google search reveals, "Lightning shines because the massive flow of electrical current during a lightning strike rapidly heats the air to extremely high temperatures, causing the air molecules to become incandescent and emit a bright, blue-white light."

I'm not supporting a return to ignorance, but scientific explanation does take some of the mystery out of the world.  

As a person of faith, I think it is important for us to acknowledge the Creator even as we may see evolution as a tool in the Creator's belt!  But if we see God working with all of the forces in nature or maybe, as a part of these forces, it can restore the sense of awe and wonder.

I know atheists who still find a sense of awe in the universe when the night sky is on full display.  The connection to that sense of vastness for me is one of the ways I see the Divine at work.  

As we see spring unfolding all around us, where can you see God acting as a part of this and take joy from it?  We, too, are a part of the created order and it is good to acknowledge our distant cousins all around us.  I believe that this can be an important spiritual discipline for us to add to our tool belt!

Our prayer was written hundreds of years ago from what would now be modern Turkey.  It could have been written yesterday.

Prayer for the day:

O God, enlarge within us the sense of fellowship with all living things, our siblings the animals to whom you gave the earth as their home in common with us.

We remember with shame that in the past we have exercised the high dominion of humanity with ruthless cruelty so that the voice of the earth, which should have gone up to you in song, has been a groan of travail.  May we realize that they live not for us alone but for themselves and for you, and that they love the sweetness of life.  Amen.

Prayer by Basil the Great, Caesarea of Cappadocia, 4th Century

Photo by John Fowler via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 35

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-six

Elihu definitely ascribes to the sovereignty of God or the idea that God is totally in charge of all the universe.  The difficulty of this stance is that sometimes human beings act in ways that move against God's design.  Other things happen due to accident or simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.  

An Armenian or Wesleyan view of God is that God returns free will to humanity through prevenient grace as a way to allow us to be more than puppets on a string.  This helps explain at least the human activity that is harmful to others: it is a person misusing their free will rather than operating in some greater design that we just don't understand.

Elihu mentions that God doesn't despise anyone - no one is worth the negative emotion - but rather God just eliminates those who aren't playing ball!  We continue to see the same transactional faith stance from Elihu - the good are rewarded and the wicked are punished.  The entire book of Job seems to be a critique of this stance.

I do kind of like the statement that "the godless in heart cherish anger."  And of course, they die in their youth and their lives end in shame.  Does this mean that everyone who is old is sweet and happy?

Of course, we know this isn't true.  One thing that disproves this is that plenty of faithful people cherish anger in their hearts from time to time.  We don't do it on our best days, but there are times...

Maybe what we could take from this is that when we are cherishing anger in our hearts, we are acting as if we were godless.

I believe that this could have been a word to those in exile.  They needed not to give in to the temptation to give up their faith.  They would have had ample reason.  Some today might say that Elihu's speech turns toward a toxic positivity.  It is not kind and a little tone-deaf to the people suffering.  Would the people of God be able to hear it?  

Are we?

On the days that we are having difficulty - the days we are cherishing anger - maybe we can't hear it.  But maybe we need to hold it out there as a high bar to clear.  So that tomorrow, we can get over it.

It feels good on the days we clear it!

With the complexity of all that it means to be human, I recognize that there are days of great faithfulness and there are days of lesser faithfulness and there are days we would rather not remember.  The Christian walk recognizes these as we confess our sins.  And it helps us to have more days where faithfulness is the norm.  I hope that your faith is helping you get over the bar more often.

Prayer for the day:

Lord, we pray not for tranquility, nor that our tribulations may cease; we pray for your spirit and your love, that you grant us strength and grace to overcome adversity; through Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Prayer by Girolamo Savonarola, Italy, 15th Century

Photo by Steven Pisano via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 34

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter 35

Elihu moves into a philosophical question that has to do with our motivations for being good and following God's laws.

It reminds me of an old joke: "My older son has to be bribed to be good, so we pay him $5 a day.  My younger son is a different story.  He's good for nothing."

The question Job asks through Elihu today is "Why be righteous at all?  Why not just be wicked if the result is the same?"

We must remember that this question is being asked through the frustration of so much loss and grief.

Yet, for us it comes down to integrity.

If a person is only doing the right thing to get into heaven, our faith becomes transactional.  So the real question would be, if you found out that heaven didn't exist and you only went to Sheol where everyone goes regardless of behavior, would you still be good?

Elihu reminds us all that being good affects those around you.  It can raise the spirits of a community and make a real difference.  The opposite is equally true.  Bad behavior also affects the people with which you interact.  It can really bring down the lives of others.

So, the idea that we exist in community is why most of these laws were written in the first place.  They help us get along with one another.  They are important for the fabric of society.

As we consider our own call to do the right thing, we might have lots of reasons for following through.  It might be that we are setting an example for children, friends or other family members.  Doing the right thing can positively impact them as well.  But in the end, the more we do the right thing, the more it becomes ingrained in us.  So, this becomes our identity.  We don't want to let ourselves down because we have decided that we are going to be fundamentally good people, even in the face of hardship.

Of course, this is the very subject which opens the Book of Job.  Will he only praise God when things are going his way?

He's not done a lot of praising but at least he hasn't turned to cursing so there is something there.  Who among us could say that we would do any better with all he's faced?

Prayer for the day:

Enlighten our understandings with knowledge of right, and govern our wills by your laws, that no deceit may mislead us, no temptation corrupt us; that we may always endeavor to do good and hinder evil.  Amidst all the hopes and fears of this world, take not your Holy Spirit from us; for the sake of Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Prayer by Samuel Johnson, England, 18th Century

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Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 33

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-four

Elihu continues in his defense of God.  He claims that Job is accusing God of being unjust.  Job does make this claim in a roundabout way.  If one believes that only the guilty would receive the kinds of awful things in this life that Job received, and if Job is truly innocent, then this was an injustice.

What the reader knows is that Job is innocent.  God and the Satan (Accuser) are testing Job's goodness to see if it will stand up to calamity.  So far, he hasn't cursed God yet as the Satan predicted.

But what we see in this work is that a proclamation of innocence doesn't necessarily make God unjust.  It may be that the world operates differently than we supposed.  

Elihu makes the argument that God doesn't need to put people on trial because God knows us thoroughly.  This is a movement toward omnipotence which is new theological ground.

We see the earlier thought (that you can hide from God and that God doesn't know everything) with the story of the Garden of Eden in Genesis.  God calls to Adam asking, "Where are you?"  

We begin to see a movement away from this in the book of Jonah when he runs the opposite direction from God's call but discovers that God is just as powerful outside of the promised land (and even on the seas) as God is at home.  

Elihu makes the argument that both rich and poor answer to God and each one dies.  There is a balancing among human beings in our mortality and one's riches cannot buy them out of Sheol.  But this line of thought could call into question the notion that the rich are wealthy due to God's favor which aligns with the good receive tangible blessings while the evil receive tangible punishments.  So, in a way, Elihu is making Job's argument for him.

Of course, he ends with a refutation of Job.  They can't get past the idea that he must have done something to deserve this and now he is rebelling because Job must be in denial.  Elihu seems to believe that Job is not very self-aware but it really has to do with Elihu's own misconceptions about how God works in the universe.

Sometimes we just know we're right!

Does self-assurance ever lead to conflict in our lives?  How can we remain confident while at the same time leaving room for the idea that we might be incorrect?  Some people continue to double-down on a statement no matter what.  The difficulty is that if it is proven wrong, their fall is that much greater.

Prayer for the day:

God, help us to remain steadfast in our assurances of your grace and love.  May we not move our stance on the forgiveness that we find and offer in Christ.  Let us see that mutual respect is not something from which we will waver.  And as these come from our faith, deepen our faith today.  We pray these things in Jesus' name.  Amen.

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New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 32

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-three

Elihu continues with his brash dialogue, and he doesn't appear to appreciate the irony of his own claim of righteousness which is similar to Job's.

As we are reminded of Job's request for a conversation with God over the injustice of all that has happened to him, Elihu reminds us that God speaks in ways that are not as obvious as speaking with other people.

This may be helpful for any reader of Job who has also asked the question, "Why is this happening to me?"

God may speak to us dimly in our dreams.

God also may speak through rescuing us from certain death.  We know this doesn't happen to everyone and that eventually, our prayers seem to go unanswered as no one lives forever.  But we do know that sometimes people do recover and Elihu relates that this can also be a message from God.

In a way, Elihu may be telling Job, "You are lucky to be alive!"

At this point in his grief, Job may not be feeling it.

Job is more likely to sing the old chorus from Hee Haw:

Gloom, despair, and agony on me
Deep, dark depression, excessive misery
If it weren’t for bad luck, I’d have no luck at all
Gloom, despair, and agony on me

Is it possible that we have blessings or grace touch our lives constantly, but because of other circumstances, it is muted or blunted to our recognition?

Elihu is indicating that this is how God may see Job

It may be more difficult to hear from an impertinent young person who seems to know it all.  But our inability to receive it from this source just might be highlighting our own issues with pride.  Of course, Elihu mentions pride as a sticking point for many of us in verse 17.

Rats!  He's probably right.

Prayer for today:

Lord, help me not to despise or oppose what I do not understand.  Amen.

Prayer by William Penn, Quaker, Pennsylvania colony, 18th Century

“Gloom, Despair, and Agony on Me!” from "Hee-Haw” (1969 -1992).  Lyrics by Bernie Brillstein, Frank Peppiatt and John Aylesworth.  Recorded by Buck Owens and Roy Clark.

Photo by Ansgar Scheffold on Unsplash

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 31

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-two

We have the first appearance of Elihu who is younger than Job and his three friends.  It may be important to note that Elihu was not listed among those who sat with Job for a full week in silence before speaking up.

Elihu has observed decorum and allowed his elders to speak up first.

However, it seems that he has held back as long as he possibly could!

Is this how Job sees Elihu?

His impetuousness reminds me a bit of Mark Twain's quote, "When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years." 

He seems frustrated that Job has had the final word, seemingly to silence his three friends once more.  It could be that they were worn out.  It could be that they had compassion on their friend and refused to argue any longer.  It may be that they were considering Job's point of view.

Elihu believes that Job's friends are not properly standing up for God's defense.  And so, he must speak or he will burst!

What's interesting is that if your worldview is that God will punish the impertinent, why would you feel the need to defend God?  It may be that Elihu desires to become the instrument of God's justice!

Job has lifted up what that justice looks like in the previous chapter - providing aid to the stranger, the naked, the poor, the widow, the orphan, and the foreigner.  Notice that Elihu isn't bursting at the seams to help these as instruments of God's justice!  It may be a lot more desirable to set this arrogant old man in his place (who is still grieving the loss of his children).

Why is it more preferable to argue than to help someone?

This chapter is helpful in that we might ask ourselves, have I been caught up in outrage?  And if so, how is this easier than engaging with my neighbors in need?

Prayer for the day:

All-merciful, tender God, you have given birth to our world, conceiving and bearing all that lives and breathes.  We come to you as your children, aware of our aggression and anger, our drive to dominate and manipulate others.  We ask you to forgive us, and by the gentle touch of your Spirit help us to find a renewed sense of compassion, that we may truly live as your people in service to all.  Amen.

Prayer by Janet Weller, England, 20th Century

Photo by Julian King via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 30

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty-one

Job is going to make sure that we know just how innocent he is by listing all of the various violations that he might see his neighbors doing.  Of course, these are all listed in various places within the law of the Hebrew Bible.

He starts out with two of the 10 Commandments in that he has not coveted (Commandment 10) relationships outside his marriage or followed through with these illicit desires (no adultery, Commandment 7).

When Job speaks of abstaining from falsehood, he is covering Commandment 9 in bearing false witness.  Leviticus 19:35-36a mentions specifically, "“You shall not cheat in measuring length, weight, or quantity.  You shall have honest balances, honest weights" which would also take care of "do not steal (Commandment 8).

It is good to see that he doesn't mistreat his slaves.  Notice, that there is no question on the moral failing of slavery at this juncture.  This seemed so ingrained in society.  Exodus 21:20-21 limits the abuse that one can inflict upon one's slaves - you can beat them, just not to death.  While this seems barbaric, it was forward movement in that for some it would seem ridiculous that slaves would have any rights at all.  This would be a subtle reference that Job did not violate "Thou Shall Not Kill" (Commandment 6).  Notice that we begin to see a turn in thinking in Job 31:15, "Did not he who made me in the womb make them?  And did not one fashion us in the womb?"  This is an onset of egalitarianism for human beings.  As people in Exile, the Hebrews may begin to question status as they used to be self-determining and would now be under foreign domination.

Next, Job adheres to the many laws concerning the care of the poor, the widows and the orphans.  As Job speaks of raising the orphan like a father and caring for the widow from his mother's womb (an exaggerated point), it may be that he's attempting to follow Commandment 5 in honoring his father and mother by mentioning them in terms of respect.

Job then turns to the first Commandment of having no other gods and possibly the second with no graven images, whether they be heavenly bodies or made of gold.

Finally, Job encapsulates the third Commandment by not taking God's name in vain through cursing his enemies.  He welcomes the stranger and the foreigner as God asks us to do in various places within the Law.  One might say that he observes keeping the sabbath (Commandment 4) by not overworking the land and letting it lie fallow every 7th year.

Once again, we can see how Job could represent the totality of God's people in Exile.  While they did miss the mark from time to time, they certainly kept the commandments more than their neighbors who didn't observe them as Law from God.  

The author seems to be asking, where does mercy come into play from God?  If you smite the faithful (even when they mess up), how does this help them to retain their faith?  Job leads us to conclude that maybe the exile wasn't a punishment from God but rather happenstance.  

The difficulty becomes holding one another accountable while recognizing the grace we all need from time to time.

Prayer for the day:

As the rain hides the stars, as the autumn mist hides the hills, as the clouds veil the blue of the sky, so the dark happenings of my lot hide the shining of your face from me.  Yet, if I may hold your hand in the darkness, it is enough.  Since I know that, though I may stumble in my going, you do not fall.  Amen.

Prayer is from a traditional Celtic prayer.

Photo by Levi Meir Clancy on Unsplash

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 29

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Thirty

"Be careful how you treat people on the way up, because you may meet them on the way down."

This anonymous quote looks toward a kindness that should cut through occupation and status and standing.

I recently oversaw a funeral for a man who was known for treating custodians and CEOs equally - both with respect that is due all people.

Mother Teresa treated all classes with dignity.

We have a different understanding of class than they had in Job's day.  It is more fluid today as opposed to being so fixed in Job's time that transcending class seemed absurd.  Class still exists in society today but not with the same boundaries in place that keep people from intermingling.

Job's attitude toward those making fun of him has much to be desired from a supposed righteous person.  He complains that those making fun of him are younger than he is which indicates that age was a status as well and we don't have the same respect for our elders today.

But then Job goes on to denigrate them as inferior in that he wouldn't even have given their fathers jobs as shepherds of his flock.  They are no better than dogs in his opinion.

When it comes to strict classes, God would be above Job by a magnitude much greater than Job is over his tormentors.  But Job doesn't see the irony in his attitude.  Why should God give in to his demands for a hearing?  Would Job have had the same consideration for those he's talking about?

We are very interested in justice when we aren't getting it.  It may not be so pressing when it is lacking in others.  They can either get over it or they are making mountains out of molehills.  The prose of Job is subtle but I believe this has an important lesson for us.

Are there people that I regularly encounter whom I would see as beneath me in status if I were truly honest with myself?  How do I treat them?  Are there subtle differences?  How can I make a discipline of treating the minimum wage earner with equal dignity, pomp and circumstance that I would pay to the wealthy? 

Prayer for the day:

Make us worthy, Lord, to serve our siblings throughout the world who live and die in poverty and hunger.  Give them, through our hands, this day their daily bread, and by our understanding love, give peace and joy.  Amen.

Prayer by Mother Teresa of Calcutta, India, 20th Century

Photo from the Series: Reagan White House Photographs, 1/20/1981 - 1/20/1989. Collection: White House Photographic Collection, 1/20/1981 - 1/20/1989.  Public domain.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 28

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-nine

One of the universal traits of the human condition is nostalgia for the good ol' days.

This is especially true if you were on top and had it all.

Of course, another universalism is that nothing stays the same.

Change becomes inevitable and if nothing else, the human body begins to age as it experiences wear and tear through the years.  

As we look at Job, he is longing for the past when the world was his oyster.  He doesn't list anything negative - it was all good - in contrast to his current predicament.  

Sometimes our monuments are obvious
to everyone but ourselves

When someone today speaks about their own exploits and goes on and on, I start to question their humility.  It may seem to me that they have a need to convince me that they are important.  This can often come from poor self-esteem.  It can also stem from poor self-awareness.

I once heard of a pastor in my conference who confessed to another minister that he didn't always feel the need to pray the prayer of confession in worship.  He was close to retirement and felt that he didn't sin as much as he used to.

Now this is possible and is certainly the goal of United Methodist pastors in sanctification.  But even if I felt this (someday?), I would never say it out loud!  The sin of pride can be confessed if nothing else.

It could be that Job is not quite as innocent as he claims and may be in denial.  Sometimes we have the biggest difficulty in confessing the sins to ourselves.  But true growth can only happen when we are honest about where our sticking points are.

As we continue to see Job as a stand-in for the country of Judah during the exile, it is interesting that the critiques of the prophets for why the people went into exile are the very things that Job says that he used to accomplish on a regular basis.  Sometimes the donor and the recipient see things a little differently.

How can we cultivate greater self-awareness as we move through Lent?

Prayer for the day:

Write deeply upon our minds, O Lord God, the lesson of your holy word, that the pure in heart may perceive you.  Leave us not in the bondage of any sinful inclination.  May we neither deceive ourselves with the thought that we have no sin, nor acquiesce idly in anything of which our conscience accuses us.  Strengthen us by your Holy Spirit to fight the good fight of faith, and grant that no day may pass without its victory; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Prayer by Charles John Vaughan, Church of England, 19th Century

Photo by John Eikleberry via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 27

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-eight

Job seems to give a soliloquy on wisdom in the midst of all that is happening to him.

As we think about wisdom, it seems that one couldn't put a price on it.  Verse 15 states:

"It cannot be gotten for gold, and silver cannot be weighed out as its price."

Certainly, our institutions of higher learning might beg to differ on this adage!

When Job states that "the price of wisdom is above pearls" in verse 18, it reminds me of the parable that Jesus told in Matthew 13:45-46:

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it."

Wisdom, like the kingdom of heaven, is something that one would give up everything to possess.  

We finally get a hint of what Job considers wisdom in the last verse of the chapter where God states:

Sometimes we learn from our mistakes.

‘Truly, the fear of the Lord, that is wisdom; and to depart from evil is understanding.’

As we see what Job has endured, one could say that a part of what this book is getting at is that wisdom can be gained in suffering.  I'm certainly wiser for the difficulties I've had to endure.  Hopefully, these things give us greater empathy for one another rather than greater cynicism.  

The perspective of wisdom may be that we understand that bad times don't endure but that good times don't either.  Both are ephemeral.  We have to celebrate the good while we have them and help each other through the bad when they occur.  Maybe in this we discover the kingdom of heaven.

I like the Black Crowes song called "Wiser Time" whose chorus states:

On a good day, I know it ain't every day

We can part the sea

And on a bad day, I know it ain't every day

Glory beyond our reach

Prayer for the day:

Gracious God, like Solomon before us, we would ask you for wisdom.  But if this means that we must endure hardship to get it, we are not so sure.  And so, when the darkness descends upon us for whatever reason, help us to gain perspective in its midst.  And as we gather greater understanding, we would ask that this be tempered with greater compassion as well.  We pray these things in Jesus' name.  Amen.

Photo by Jake Pierrelee on Unsplash

“Wiser Time” lyrics © 1994 American Recordings LLC

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.  

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 26

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter 27

“Explore thyself. Herein are demanded the eye and the nerve.” ~ Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Job continues in his protestation of his friends' assessment of him by proclaiming his innocence.  His integrity is all that he has left and he will not let it go.

But then he appears to continue in his discourse by singing Bildad's song (or Eliphaz's or Zophar's).

In essence, the wicked will pay for their deeds and will be left childless and poor.  Of course, this is the very thing that has happened to Job who is not evil at all!

This goes to show us how difficult it is to change our way of thinking.  The idea that God rewards the good and punishes the bad is so ingrained that Job repeats all of the very arguments that his three friends have made against him.  

It is very hard to change our opinions - even if the very opposite is happening to us which refutes those very worldviews!  

Human beings are obstinate!  At first, we thought that it was just his friends that were so obtuse, but now we see that it is Job as well.  

James Fowler posited his six Stages of Faith where he lists stage five as Conjunctive Faith. In this stage we may experience a mid-life crisis.  Here, we face the paradoxes of our beliefs such as God punishes the wicked, but I who am innocent am being punished as well.    

Moving into a higher stage of faith can be difficult work and Job's resistance in this chapter highlights our own resistance to change.

The beauty of Job is that it provides a balcony view of inconsistencies regarding belief and reality.  This allows the reader to see it in Job and then to take a step back to examine our own lives.

As we move through Lent, what are areas of your life, faith or belief on which you hold fast?  Have these caused conflict in your relationships or in your own ability to synthesize them with life?

Prayer for the day:

My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going.  I do not see the road ahead of me.  I cannot know for certain where it will end.  Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so.  But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you.  And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing.  I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire.  And I know that if I do this you will lead me by the right road, though I may know nothing about it.  Therefore, will I trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death.  I will not fear, for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone.  Amen.

“The Merton Prayer” from Thoughts in Solitude Copyright © 1956, 1958 by The Abbey of Our Lady of Gethsemani. 

Photo by bill lapp via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 25

Today's Reading: Job, Chapters Twenty-five and Twenty-six

Since these chapters are short, we are combining to help us finish the book within our 40-day Lenten season.  We begin with Bildad's recognition that human beings are fairly inconsequential compared to God.  From a Christian standpoint, we can hear the words of the apostle Paul saying to the Romans in 3:23, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God".  Of course, Paul is making the argument that we are justified in Christ rather than from who we are individually.

But as we hear Job's counter argument, we may see that he's not necessarily refuting Bildad.  God is certainly beyond us.  How can we who are limited and finite, truly have any understanding of God?

But as God is limitless, as we seek to understand the rationale of "why the injustice?", Job seems to be admitting that we may not ever get a satisfactory answer.  But for his point, it means that this doesn't necessarily equate to his being deserving of all that has happened.

This allows us to ask the question, "Who does deserve it?"

If we follow along the line of Paul's thinking, then all of us deserve whatever we get.  But at the very same time, as we begin to understand Paul's position of God's love in Christ, it may be that we can step outside the transactional nature of our own works and see it all as blessing.

What does it mean to contend with the mystery?

What does it mean to find contentment in the everyday wonders and see God's hand at work rather than to only feel an absence?   

We may begin to give people the benefit of the doubt which may be all Job asks of Bildad.

Prayer for the day:

God, help us to see past ourselves, to see past our conditions and to see past our circumstances.  These things often blind us to the wider realities of life.  Give us eyes to see and ears to hear.  And as we take it all in, may we wonder anew at who you are for us.  Amen.

Gif from Unforgiven (1992) directed by Clint Eastwood.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 24

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-four

In this passage, we see a more general complaint by Job of the prosperity of the wicked.  This is a theological exploration more than a part of the narrative as we don't see anyone in Job's circumference that fits these characteristics.

Rather, his friends have tried to label Job as one of the wicked.  He seems to be saying that there are plenty of wicked people who never have any of these kinds of consequences happen to them.  It is very similar to what is expressed in Psalm 73.

In essence, we once again see a plea for justice.  When we are doing the right thing as opposed to someone doing the opposite, we like to find ourselves coming out on top.  And when we see someone actually taking advantage of people in order to get ahead, we would like to see their actions come back to haunt them.

This kind of desire is expressed by William Shakespeare in MacBeth.  In Scene 1 of Act 5, we see Lady MacBeth sleepwalking while she tries in vain to rub the blood off her hands.  Of course, her hands are clean, but she has the guilt of murder on her mind.  We hear her say the famous line, "Out, damned spot! Out, I say!"

If we can't get outright punishment for the wicked, we can at least see that their conscience is bothering them and keeping them miserable.  This has to do with our sense of justice.

As we weigh this with God's mercy, we may discover that we would rather have God smite them.  

But even as Job proclaims his innocence, the question we come to ask is, "Who is totally innocent?"  All of us by living in a larger system take advantage of the resources we have available to us.  This may also mean that others don't have the same advantages.  We pretend that we've earned every advantage we have, but if you are the child of royalty, you are starting with many more resources than if you are the child of a peasant.  

How can we come to understand a mercy even for people that don't deserve it?  It is not too much of a stretch to then translate this to discovering that our own blessings may not have been as "earned" as we like to imagine.  This allows us to begin to understand grace more proficiently.

Prayer for the day:

O God, make us more thankful for what we have received, more content with what we have, and more merciful of other people in need: we ask it for his sake who lived for us in poverty, Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Prayer by Simon H. Baynes, Church of England, 20th Century

Photo by Andrew Valdivia on Unsplash

 

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 23

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-three

As we see Job having a conversation with his friends, he is really having a conversation with other scripture.  Yesterday, we saw commentary on Ezekiel and today seems to pick a bone with Psalm 139.

This Psalm is a wonderful example of God's prevenient grace that reaches to us beyond our wildest expectations.  We see the concept of the omnipresence of God especially in verses 7-8:

Where can I go from your spirit?

    Or where can I flee from your presence?

If I ascend to heaven, you are there;

    if I make my bed in Sheol, you are there.

The cat gets the psalm!

This would have been one of the first places in scripture that would speak of God's presence with us in the afterlife.  It is pastoral in nature and has a very comforting vibe.

The author of Job was undoubtedly aware of this psalm as we see the declaration refuted in Job 22:8-9:

“If I go forward, he is not there;

    or backward, I cannot perceive him;

on the left he hides, and I cannot behold him;

    I turn to the right, but I cannot see him.

The absence of God is something that many people have experienced in suffering.  We see Jesus experience this on the cross as he expresses feeling forsaken.

What is interesting is that Psalm 139 seems to take a retaliatory tone after verse 18.  One wonders if the material starting with verse 19 was a later addition.  

If Job 23 is a commentary on this psalm, it is interesting to note that the wicked and hated enemies from verses 19-24 of the psalm could be seen as Job!  Since God obviously hates Job, we should hate Job too!  Of course, since the reader knows that Job is innocent, it makes this retributive logic seem childish at best.  

Job seems to be calling us to question who we count as an enemy.

Prayer for the day:

O creator and mighty God, you have promised strength for the weak, rest for the laborers, light for the way, grace for the trials, help from above, unfailing sympathy, undying love.  O creator and mighty God, help us to continue in your promise.  Amen.

Photo by fabcom via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

Prayer is traditional from Pakistan

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 22

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-two

Eliphaz speaks about Job’s great wickedness.  This isn’t anything new from the perspective of the other speeches from Job’s friends.  But as we begin to see the list of unhelpful qualities, we can see how Job could easily be seen theologically as a stand-in for the country of Judah.

The prophet Ezekiel has a critique of Judah and gives the ideas that those who transgress will die and those who follow God’s laws will live.  In chapter 18 of his own book, Ezekiel mentions the importance of restoring to the debtor his pledge, giving bread to the hungry and covering the naked with a garment in verse seven.

Interestingly, Eliphaz states in Job 22:6-7:

For you have exacted pledges from your family for no reason

    and stripped the naked of their clothing.

 You have given no water to the weary to drink,

    and you have withheld bread from the hungry.

Within Ezekiel’s understanding, the transgressors of these things will end up in exile.  

And even though Job has remained in his home, it is as if he is in exile in that all of the fruitfulness of his land (including his offspring) is gone.  Even Job’s health is in exile.

Sometimes our theology is in line
with a good dog/bad dog mentality

And the author of Job moves us to see that the character Job’s protestations are that he has done all the things that should afford him life.  And since this hasn’t happened, he wants answers.  The reader can see that the character Job is not really any different theologically from Eliphaz – the difference is that Job knows he should be on track with the blessings he’s received from God.

And as we see Job as a stand-in for Judah, we could see that there may be those within the country who would be asking the same questions.

This may allow us to ask the question, “Is there a way in which we can grow spiritually while in exile?”

Prayer for the day:

God, give us the confidence to believe that you remain with us even in our darkest times.  Remind us that even the beloved suffer from time to time.  Help us to understand that the faithful acts in which we engage do not guarantee us freedom from strife.  And when we forget these truths, be patient with us.  Amen.

Photo by Paul David via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.

New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition. Copyright © 2021 National Council of Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 21

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty-one

Job is refuting the dominant belief of his day that God smites the wicked in the here and now through a number of ways.

In a world where miscarriage seemed mysterious, it was often thought to be God's judgment on a family.  If one was fortunate enough to be a live-stock owner, miscarriages among livestock could also be seen as divine disfavor.

Ethically, a calf might be saying, "Why
am I being punished for the sins of my parents?

Job seems to say that there are wicked people who never experience this as a disincentive for bad behavior whether it be through their loss of livestock or children.

In fact, Job states that even those who scoff at God seem to get away with it.

If we see Job as a stand-in for the country of Judah who was carried away to Babylon in the Exile, we know that there were some within that country that didn't follow as faithfully as they should have.  But there would also have been people who did do the right thing most of the time.  If you looked at the behavior of some of the other countries in the region, it may be that they felt they were getting a raw deal.  

They might very well be asking God, "Why would we lose all that we had while the aggressors who murdered your people seem to increase their holdings?"

Prophets within the day indicated that the injustices toward the widow and the orphan and the outsider by the country as a whole led to the Exile.  

And so, we seem to have a both-and.  

It may be that we find ourselves questioning our own behavior, when we face difficulty.  When things make us move toward better action, one could say that God is utilizing calamity to move us toward holiness.  But at the same time, it's important to note that Job's critique seems to be saying that God doesn't work that way or else you would see it universally applied.

As a pastor, I would never want to blame the victim.  However, I know that sometimes drastic change brings upon self-reflection which may be helpful.

How do I open myself to the possibility of change during suffering while simultaneously seeing God giving me the strength to live through it?

This is a theological movement that Job seems to be nudging God's people toward.  It would speak to a people in exile. 

Prayer for the day:

God, the hosts of evil round us scorn your Christ, assail his ways.  From the fears that long have bound us, free our hearts to faith and praise.  Grant us wisdom, grant us courage for the living of these days, for the living of these days.  Amen.

Prayer by Harry E. Fosdick, "God of Grace and God of Glory", 1930.

Photo by jomango274 via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license. 

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 20

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Twenty

Zophar has a rebuke that Job may not disagree with in today's reading because Job doesn't count himself among the wicked.

This scathing review of the unjust takes the long view.  Basically, the evil people will perish and their deeds will be forgotten.

The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in a speech given on March 25, 1965 (sixty years and a couple of days ago) stated that injustice had become normal in our country.  In order to see some relief, some were asking, "How long will it take?"

And Dr. King began the famous litany of "How long?  Not long."  He stated with a similarity to Zophar's speech that "No lie can live forever" and "You shall reap what you sow."

And then one of my favorite quotes by Dr. King: "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

This is the long view.  It is a hopeful view.  It takes resolve because the injustice doesn't disappear today.  It takes community because we need one another to endure hardships.  But it also takes work on progress toward a goal.  

Dr. King's goal was this: "The only normalcy that we will settle for is the normalcy that recognizes the dignity and worth of all of God’s children."

With Job's situation, we recognize that there is always suffering even in the midst of working toward the goal.  Yes, the wicked will eventually perish but what does that do for the one distressed today?

Zophar is privileged in that he hasn't endured the same calamities that have befallen his friend.  And so, if he doesn't share with his friend who has suffered misfortune, does Zophar become the greedy person that he highlights?  

How do we use the times we are in good circumstances to lift the fortunes of those who are experiencing hard times?

Prayer for the day:

Behold, O Lord God, our strivings after a truer and more abiding order.  Give us visions that bring back a lost glory to the earth, and dreams that foreshadow the better order you have prepared for us.  Scatter every excuse of frailty and unworthiness.  Consecrate us all with a heavenly mission.  Open to us a clearer prospect of our work.  Give us strength according to our day gladly to welcome and gratefully to fulfill this goal, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Prayer by Brooke Foss Westcott, Church of England, 19th Century

Quotes by Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from "How Long?  Not Long."

Photo by Unseen Histories on Unsplash

Daily Devotion for Lent 2025, Day 19

Today's Reading: Job, Chapter Nineteen

What is the nature of piling on?

In American Football, piling on is a 15-yard penalty when the offensive player with the ball is already down and the play has been blown dead and a defender jumps on top of the defenseless player.  This penalty is considered a personal foul because it is unnecessary to the outcome of the game.  It is also dangerous and can cause injury against a player who is in a vulnerable position.  

It likely happens because the defender's blood is worked up and the aggression is difficult to turn off with the blowing of a whistle.  The penalty (and likely yelling from the coach) is a way to train people not to pile on.

Today, Job basically accuses his three friends of piling on.  He's already down with all of the tragedies that have struck.  What good does it do for his friends to berate him?

One of the baser instincts among animals is to attack the wounded.  Predators find wounded prey easier to dispatch and so they may go after them even more aggressively.  Does some of this carry over into social situations?

Job is calling foul and wishes that there was a referee to intervene.  

As we consider the people around us, we may find it easy to pile on - especially if we believe that the person's actions are to blame.

"You should have studied harder."

"I told you that outfit was too suggestive."

"You shouldn't have been late so many times."

"Why did you talk back to your boss?"

Our comments are meant to be instructive so as to prevent more bad consequences.  We are really saying, "You should get in line with the social norms."  

Job is reminding us that these comments may be less than helpful in the moment.  And we don't want to drive someone over the edge.  If we pile on, we could hurt a vulnerable person.  And that may be worth more than 15 yards.

How can we seek to be more empathetic?

Prayer for the day:

God, help me to be patient with the people I know - especially the people for whom I feel responsible.  As I seek to guide, may I do so with humility and compassion.  May the goal of their health and wholeness be my first thought for them.  And may it also be the first and last thing I share.  And please silence me when the things in between are better left unsaid.  Amen.

Photo by Kyle T via Flickr.com.  Used under the Creative Commons license.