Today’s Readings: Psalm 76; Zephaniah 3:1-13; Mark 13:17-23; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-6; Psalm 121
Last Sunday evening, I watched the film “What Would Jesus Buy?” with a group of people from the church I serve. The film showed how consumerism has overtaken Christmas and allowed us to lose sight of what the holiday is really about. The challenge of the central figure in the film – a fictional character named Reverend Billy - was to help others get back to the basics and re-claim the essence of what the holiday is really about. The storyline of the film reminded me a great deal of today’s words from Zephaniah – for in that passage the prophet moved from words of judgment and wrath directed against those who missed the point to words that established a hopeful vision for the re-establishment of a spiritually grounded community. What struck me about the words from Zephaniah was how the prophet raised the notion that sometimes people have to live through difficult times that serve as a type of sorting out process in order to get things back on track. “I’ve gotten rid of your arrogant leaders,” the prophet quotes God as saying. “No more pious strutting on my holy hill.” (Zephaniah 3:11 from The Message). Once that sorting out process occurred, God promised: “I’ll leave a core of people among you who are poor in spirit – what’s left of Israel that’s really Israel. They make their home in God” (Zephaniah 3:12 from The Message). Both the film and the words from Zephaniah challenge me to remember that sometimes – in order to find our way – we have to lose it for awhile. On this Thanksgiving Day, when it’s easy to give thanks for those things in our lives that are obvious sources of joy and celebration, I would ask you to do something much more challenging: stop and give thanks for those difficult times in your life that rocked your world –times when you thought you had lost your way. For often it is through those difficult moments that we are able to recognize the need to be led “home in God” and then arrive there with a newfound sense joy and appreciation. Til next time…
Last Sunday evening, I watched the film “What Would Jesus Buy?” with a group of people from the church I serve. The film showed how consumerism has overtaken Christmas and allowed us to lose sight of what the holiday is really about. The challenge of the central figure in the film – a fictional character named Reverend Billy - was to help others get back to the basics and re-claim the essence of what the holiday is really about. The storyline of the film reminded me a great deal of today’s words from Zephaniah – for in that passage the prophet moved from words of judgment and wrath directed against those who missed the point to words that established a hopeful vision for the re-establishment of a spiritually grounded community. What struck me about the words from Zephaniah was how the prophet raised the notion that sometimes people have to live through difficult times that serve as a type of sorting out process in order to get things back on track. “I’ve gotten rid of your arrogant leaders,” the prophet quotes God as saying. “No more pious strutting on my holy hill.” (Zephaniah 3:11 from The Message). Once that sorting out process occurred, God promised: “I’ll leave a core of people among you who are poor in spirit – what’s left of Israel that’s really Israel. They make their home in God” (Zephaniah 3:12 from The Message). Both the film and the words from Zephaniah challenge me to remember that sometimes – in order to find our way – we have to lose it for awhile. On this Thanksgiving Day, when it’s easy to give thanks for those things in our lives that are obvious sources of joy and celebration, I would ask you to do something much more challenging: stop and give thanks for those difficult times in your life that rocked your world –times when you thought you had lost your way. For often it is through those difficult moments that we are able to recognize the need to be led “home in God” and then arrive there with a newfound sense joy and appreciation. Til next time…
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