WATCHWORD:
‘26-27 Like a thief, the only shame that Israel knows is getting caught. Kings, princes, priests, and prophets—all are alike in this. They call a carved-up wooden post their father, and for their mother they have an idol chiseled out from stone. Yet in time of trouble they cry to me to save them! 28 Why don’t you call on these gods you have made? When danger comes, let them go out and save you if they can! For you have as many gods as there are cities in Judah. Jeremiah 2:27-28
Meditation:
Made to Worship
We are made to worship. Who is worthy of your worship? Who receives your worship? If we follow the trail of where we spend our money and time, we likely arrive at a few things we worship. Where does this trail lead you? Perhaps things show up like entertainment, achievement, technology, clothing or food. Any of these things can become “the forbidden fruit” of our relationship with God.
It is how we use the innovations of our time and the gifts of the Holy Spirit that speaks to whether we are enslaved to them as idols, or a slave to Christ. God is able to use all these tools for his glory, and he has chosen to do it through our hearts that are surrendered to Jesus. The Internet cannot atone for your sins. The credentials you hold do not qualify you for grace. Worship Christ, he alone is worthy.
Two months of isolation, what a gift from God, what a blessed time-out. Is that how you look at it? Early on it was difficult, adjusting to the changes, the separations. But now, what? I believe we are all hungry for human contact, conversations, leaving our homes for a while, maybe out to dinner or a show. And, yet the threat is there, we just don’t know where.
Two days ago, I impulsively made arrangements with my daughter to meet her and two of my grandchildren at Chapel Hill, today, to pay our respects to our departed loved ones: My wife, their mother/grandmother, and my parents. I have made the Memorial Weekend visit over the past years, so it seemed natural. Then, yesterday, in conversation with a neighbor about that trip, I was confronted with the question, ‘Is that wise, Stan?’
Well, what are the risks? Let’s see, my daughter is married to an RN working 12-hour shifts at a local hospital. My granddaughter is married to an ER PA, at an Indianapolis hospital, while my grandson and his partner are also from Indy. What are the risks? After nine weeks of playing it safe, then a question from a friend and common sense kicked in, and I regretfully canceled.
We have all been tempted to break out of this isolation. To reestablish some small sense of normality, or what we remember as being normal. We make decisions based on a variety of factors. It makes me wonder about my tendency to be impulsive, and then that gets tempered with what you might call common sense, which is more like Holy Nudges, the Lord pushing me in the direction of wisdom.
I started this speaking about who or what we worship, and what we value in our lives. We love our families, broadened and extended, our partners. But those people in our lives are not idols that we worship, they are relationships that we value and love dearly, and being apart is not easy. But, God is in His heaven, and our faith and trust in Him is our foundation, is our Rock, and His graces are there if we but listen and feel His touch. This, too, shall pass. God is in charge and God loves us and God’s plan is for our good. Amen.
Bulletin Board:
Ironic – “Father of Traffic Safety” William Eno invented the stop sign, crosswalk, traffic circle, one-way street, and the taxi stand—but never learned how to drive.
Sign of our Times – On a McDonald’s Restaurant: Open 24 Hrs. 10 lb. Ice $1 Add bacon for 39 cents. I’ll have my bacon on the rocks.
Closing Prayer:
Almighty God, We bless you for our lives, we give you praise for your abundant mercy and grace we receive. We thank you for your faithfulness even though we are not that faithful to you. Lord Jesus, we ask you to give us all around peace in our mind, body, soul, and spirit. We want you to heal and remove everything that is causing stress, grief, and sorrow in our lives. Please guide our path through life and make our enemies be at peace with us. Let your peace reign in our family, at our place of work, businesses and everything we lay our hands on. Let your angels of peace go ahead of us when we go out and stay by our side when we return. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
