Eugene H. Peterson - Every Step an Arrival: A 90-Day Devotional for Exploring Gods Word

E VERY S TEP AN A RRIVAL

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Message. Copyright by Eugene H. Peterson 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002. Used by permission of NavPress. All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers Inc. Scripture quotations marked ( NIV ) are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version, NIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. Scripture quotations marked ( RSV ) are taken from the Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Hardcover ISBN9781601429735

Ebook ISBN9781601429742

Copyright 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson

Cover design by Kristopher K. Orr

Cover illustration by Alexey Kurbatov

THE MESSAGE logo is a registered trademark of NavPress, The Navigators, Colorado Springs, CO. Absence of in connection with marks of NavPress or other parties does not indicate an absence of registration of those marks.

The author is represented by Alive Literary Agency, Colorado Springs, Colorado, www.aliveliterary.com.

Published in the United States by WaterBrook, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.

W ATER B ROOK and its deer colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Peterson, Eugene H., 1932- author.

Title: Every step an arrival : a 90-day devotional for exploring Gods word / Eugene H. Peterson.

Description: First Edition. | Colorado Springs : WaterBrook, 2018.

Identifiers: LCCN 2018002999| ISBN 9781601429735 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781601429742 (electronic)

Subjects: LCSH: BibleMeditations.

Classification: LCC BS491.5 .P46 2018 | DDC 242/.5dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2018002999

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LETTER TO THE READER

Dear Reader,

Eugene Peterson long loved Denise Levertovs poem Overland to the Islands. The poet conjures up the image of a dog moving intently haphazard, sniffing and dancing over rocks and mud, disdaining nothing his nose registers along the way. But the dog has a trick afoot, which is that he always

keeps moving, changing

pace and approach but

not directionevery step an arrival.

At first glance, the words, thoughts, and phrases weve curated from Eugene Petersons library of sermons may have a very intently haphazard feel. One devotion doesnt logically follow the next, and theres no thematic thread sewn clearly through each entry. Peterson would have said something like, Welcome to the spiritual life. An organized approach is never the goal but rather a wide-eyed curiosity that disdains nothing and is willing to sniff out anything that captures the attention. Living a life with such discipline indeed makes every step an arrival.

We hope youll allow these scriptures and thoughts to take your mind and heart wherever they may go. You never know what the Spirit will use to encourage or challenge or humble or comfort. But dont forget the dogs trickto keep movingbecause it will serve you well over the next ninety days.

Two final things. The devotions lend themselves to shedding light on your life or on Gods nature. Obviously at times these two areas dovetail, but keeping the distinction in mind can be helpful. In addition, each entry is followed by a pause of sortssometimes a question, sometimes a reflection. You could even use the words there to form your own prayer for the day, certainly not as an ending point but rather as a beginning for the arrivals that await you.

Sincerely,

WaterBrook and Multnomah Editorial Team

Denise Levertov, Selected Poems (New York: New Directions, 2002), 7.

DAY 1

The Contrast of Darkness and Light

God created the Heavens and Earthall you see, all you dont see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness. Gods Spirit brooded like a bird above the watery abyss.

God spoke: Light!

And light appeared.

Genesis 1:13

There is significance in the first days creative act: God said, Light! And light appeared. The universe is established with Gods light shining through everything. There is a profound understanding of this in the way in which a day is described in Genesis and subsequently in all Jewish life. There was evening and there was morning, one day (verse 5, RSV ). An odd way to describe a day, but not if you see it as a victory of Gods light. Evening has the sense, in Hebrew, of termination, bringing to a conclusion. A day is described first as the conclusion of the creative work of God, then night, a time of sleep, the incursion of darkness, a threat to the order of creation, a sign of chaos to come. Does night or light have the last word? The answer is in the phrase and there was morning, one day.

Morning in Hebrew has the meaning of penetration. Gods day is not complete until light shines again, penetrating the darkness and dispersing the shadows. The creative action of God is light, which encloses and limits a temporary darkness. All that we see as a threat to Gods creative action is held in check and controlled by his light. The shadows are therenight descends upon lifeand there is that which seems to defy God, to disturb his order and his purpose: sickness, death, trouble, and sorrow. But it does not have the last word: And there was morning, one day.

---

Identify an area of your life in which you need Gods light to penetrate the dimness. Will night or light have the last word? Talk with God about the clarity you seek.

.

DAY 2

The Best Start in Understanding Ourselves

God created human beings;

he created them godlike,

Reflecting Gods nature.

He created them male and female.

God blessed them:

Prosper! Reproduce! Fill Earth! Take charge!

Be responsible for fish in the sea and birds in the air,

for every living thing that moves on the face of Earth.

Genesis 1:2728

When we Christians want to understand ourselves accurately and deeply, we dont put ourselves in front of a mirror. Persons who stand before mirrors are not famous for the accuracy or depth of their self-understanding. Friends can give valuable insight, but each insight is only a fragment of the reality. When we want to sharpen and deepen self-understanding, we look at Adam.

I hope when I pronounce the name Adam you will not think of a nude figure strolling through a semitropical garden with flowers woven through his hair, murmuring small talk with lions and parakeets, and plucking an occasional pomegranate for a snack. No, Adam is you. Adam is the point at which our self-understanding begins. The Bible does not describe the anatomy of Adam; it does not discuss the psychology of Adam; it does not give us the history of Adam. In those respects, Adam is a great mystery. What we get are a few lines that set forth the meaning of Adam. We discover in him the essentials of what it means to be a human being: we are a result of Gods creative work, we are created to be in relation with other people, and we are responsible for the world around us.