Today’s Readings: Psalm 26; Genesis 24:1-27; Matthew 27:24-31; Romans 8:31-39; Psalm 44
Coming out of seminary, it’s easy to get so caught up in all of the abstract ideas that you’ve been taught that you lose sight of what’s really important. Thankfully, I had a lesson about keeping things in perspective very early in my ministerial training. The lesson reminded me of the old acronym KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid. I was talking with a woman one day who had had a hard life. Her hardships had started very early in life when she was subjected to a tremendous amount of physical, sexual, and verbal abuse at the hands of her parents. So how did the woman survive? “Well,” she told me, “every time I would hear my father walk down the hall and turn the doorknob to my room, I would start singing to myself the song ‘Jesus Love Me’. No matter how bad the abuse got,” she concluded, “I could get through it as long as I kept my mind on what really mattered. And that song kept me focused on what mattered.” I immediately thought of my conversation with the woman when I read Paul’s words to the Romans; for in that passage Paul said: “None of this [trouble, hard times, hatred, hunger, homelessness, bullying threats, backstabbing, etc] fazes us because Jesus loves us” (Romans 8:37 – The Message). What wonderful words of assurance to pull us through our own tough times. So what is your anchor during the traumatic moments of your life? What is your equivalent of ‘Jesus Love Me’ – the thing that helps you live through the challenges with a sense of hope and purpose for the future? Take a moment and re-connect with that grounding element in your life. Now give thanks for that particular expression of grace that sustains you when all else would fail. Til next time…
Coming out of seminary, it’s easy to get so caught up in all of the abstract ideas that you’ve been taught that you lose sight of what’s really important. Thankfully, I had a lesson about keeping things in perspective very early in my ministerial training. The lesson reminded me of the old acronym KISS: Keep It Simple Stupid. I was talking with a woman one day who had had a hard life. Her hardships had started very early in life when she was subjected to a tremendous amount of physical, sexual, and verbal abuse at the hands of her parents. So how did the woman survive? “Well,” she told me, “every time I would hear my father walk down the hall and turn the doorknob to my room, I would start singing to myself the song ‘Jesus Love Me’. No matter how bad the abuse got,” she concluded, “I could get through it as long as I kept my mind on what really mattered. And that song kept me focused on what mattered.” I immediately thought of my conversation with the woman when I read Paul’s words to the Romans; for in that passage Paul said: “None of this [trouble, hard times, hatred, hunger, homelessness, bullying threats, backstabbing, etc] fazes us because Jesus loves us” (Romans 8:37 – The Message). What wonderful words of assurance to pull us through our own tough times. So what is your anchor during the traumatic moments of your life? What is your equivalent of ‘Jesus Love Me’ – the thing that helps you live through the challenges with a sense of hope and purpose for the future? Take a moment and re-connect with that grounding element in your life. Now give thanks for that particular expression of grace that sustains you when all else would fail. Til next time…
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