Washing Feet

So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him. John 13:4-5 NLT

One of the most overlooked events leading up to Easter is when Jesus washed His disciples’ feet. A few times in my life I have been blessed to be a part of a foot washing ceremony. It has been an amazing experience, but Jesus was not talking just about a ceremony. Foot washing was simply a practical everyday need in the ancient world. People walked everywhere and the dusty streets got everyone’s feet coated with dirt and grime. Washing someone else’s feet would be like us going over to a friend’s house to do their laundry or take out the garbage.

Nepal and India 138 revised

For most of us the challenge is not just the job, but the servant’s place we must take to do it. Because we associate who we are with what we do it is easy to think that we will lose value if we begin to act like servants. But Jesus left us more than a command. He left us His example. The question then is “What is the job God has called me to do?” If He washed feet to show His love how can I do otherwise? We can wash feet, take out the garbage or change diapers all because we trust Him. We can do the small things without getting big heads and show the world, foot by foot and generation by generation the depth and the beauty of the love of God for us!

So he got up from the table, took off his robe, wrapped a towel around his waist, 5 and poured water into a basin. Then he began to wash the disciples’ feet, drying them with the towel he had around him. John 13:4-5 NLT

One of the most overlooked events leading up to Easter is when Jesus washed His disciples’ feet. A few times in my life I have been blessed to be a part of a foot washing ceremony. It has been an amazing experience, but Jesus was not talking just about a ceremony. Foot washing was simply a practical everyday need in the ancient world. People walked everywhere and the dusty streets got everyone’s feet coated with dirt and grime. Washing someone else’s feet would be like us going over to a friend’s house to do their laundry or take out the garbage.

For most of us the challenge is not just the job, but the servant’s place we must take to do it. Because we associate who we are with what we do it is easy to think that we will lose value if we begin to act like servants. But Jesus left us more than a command. He left us His example. The question then is “What is the job God has called me to do?” If He washed feet to show His love how can I do otherwise? We can wash feet, take out the garbage or change diapers all because we trust Him. We can do the small things without getting big heads and show the world, foot by foot and generation by generation the depth and the beauty of the love of God for us!

Daily reading from Easter Reflections

Available in e-book of softcover

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Where is Jesus?

 But Mary stood weeping outside the tomb, and as she wept she stooped to look into the tomb.  And she saw two angels in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had lain, one at the head and one at the feet. They said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?” She said to them, “They have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid him.” Having said this, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but she did not know that it was Jesus. John 20:11-14

When our children were small one of their favorite books was Richard Scarry’s  “Cars and Trucks and Things that Go” On every page of the story were all different kinds of vehicles traveling down busy city streets, highways and country lanes. But no matter what page we were on – we and our boys were always on the look out for a tiny gold colored character named Goldfarb (I was never sure if he was a worm or caterpillar). You never knew where Goldfarb might be. On one page he was hiding in the back of a dump truck and on the next he was sitting with the firemen in a big red fire truck. But no matter where he was we all laughed each time we found him.

While this was a pleasant pastime for us a parents, I have discovered that In a similar but much more serious way we need to look for Jesus along the highways and byways of our lives. In the story book every day looks like fun but real life things can be quite different. Some days Jesus is sleeping in our storm tossed boat and others it seems to us that He is days late in showing up to help. We may even find ourselves in the position of Mary as she wept at the tomb supposing that someone had taken Jesus away. Her sorrow was so overwhelming that when the living resurrected Jesus did come she didn’t recognize Him. She turned and thought, “Oh it’s only the gardener…but maybe he knows something about my Lord!”

Maybe God is showing up as a rather plain looking gardener to you today. Maybe there is soil on his knees from laboring with weeds and planting flowers. Maybe his hands are so cracked and worn from work that we fail to recognize the prints of the nails in His palms. As He walks up quietly behind us we don’t see the wounds on His feet that happened on His journey to find us. But the night is almost past and dawn is just beginning to peak over our horizon. Where is Jesus? He is right at our side ready to call our name. Whenever we are seeking Him with all our hearts His word assures us that He will come up our garden paths ready to be found!

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Lenten Translation Project / Devocionais Para A Quaresma

For those who have followed my blog for sometime you know that I do translation from Portuguese to English at our church. I am not able to professionally translate but having become comfortable with live translation in church I decided to try my hand at translating my Lenten Devotional into Portuguese this year. I am truly thankful for my Pastor, Dr Joliam Sampaio for correcting and rewriting large portions of my first attempt.

The result has been a new adventure for me. If you know of anyone who would enjoy a simple daily reading in the mother language it is available in both E-book and softcover. The soft cover version brings with it the advantage of receiving the E-book version free and free lending is enabled for this.

Para aqueles que seguiram meu blog por algum tempo, você sabe que eu faço tradução do português para o inglês na nossa igreja. Não consigo traduzir profissionalmente, mas decidi tentar minha mão em traduzir o meu Devocionais para a Quaresma em português este ano. Estou realmente agradecido pelo meu Pastor, o Dr. Joliam Sampaio, por corrigir  grandes partes da minha primeira tentativa. Esperou que o resultado seria uma benção em suas vidas

Quando o cirurgião veio ao meu encontro quando eu estava deitado na mesa de operação, eu estava calmo. Embora já tivéssemos falado brevemente quando eu fui examinado em seu consultório na semana anterior, eu confiei nele. Quanto mais devemos confiar em Deus durante os tempos de mudança em nossas vidas? Quando começamos a Quaresma, por que não começar confiar mais em Deus em todas as circunstâncias de nossas vidas?

edição kindle e-book – clique aqui

Reflexões Sobre a Páscoa

livro de capa macia – clique aqui

Reflexões Sobre a Páscoa

Reflections Portuguese