Today’s Readings: Psalm 37; Hosea 14:1-9; Matthew 23:1-14; Jude 1-16; Psalm 91
If I were to ask you, “Which invention of the 20th Century has proven most invaluable to you”; I wonder how would you answer? I’ve got an answer that would pop to mind pretty quickly – and it’s probably one you wouldn’t expect. My answer would be Mapquest. You see as a pastor, I spend a whole lot of time in a car traveling from one place to another. In any given day I might go from our church to a denominational meeting to a home visit to a hospital to another home visit to a care center. In order for me to stay on schedule, it’s absolutely essential that I know where I’m going. Mapquest usually gets me there. Over the years, however, I’ve learned about Mapquest is not perfect all the time. I nearly missed a church service once because Mapquest told me to take a right after taking a highway exit when I really should have taken a left. Nevertheless, in this day and age it’s vital to have something that can get you where you need to go. The psalmist knew the important of this truth as well. That’s why he culminated today’s first psalm – Psalm 37 – with these words: “If you want to live well, make sure you understand all of this. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll learn this inside and out. God’s paths get you where you want to go. Right-living people walk them easily; wrong-living people are always tripping and stumbling” (Psalm 37:9 from The Message). The power and simplicity of the psalmist’s statement is that it reminds us God isn’t just another version of Mapquest – for unlike Mapquest, the ways in which God points us are always on the mark. And this season, that’s particularly true as God points us toward that manger in Bethlehem. Today, I give thanks for the One who provides the paths which help us get to where we need to go. I also pray that each of us might have the wisdom and strength to get on those paths. Til next time…
If I were to ask you, “Which invention of the 20th Century has proven most invaluable to you”; I wonder how would you answer? I’ve got an answer that would pop to mind pretty quickly – and it’s probably one you wouldn’t expect. My answer would be Mapquest. You see as a pastor, I spend a whole lot of time in a car traveling from one place to another. In any given day I might go from our church to a denominational meeting to a home visit to a hospital to another home visit to a care center. In order for me to stay on schedule, it’s absolutely essential that I know where I’m going. Mapquest usually gets me there. Over the years, however, I’ve learned about Mapquest is not perfect all the time. I nearly missed a church service once because Mapquest told me to take a right after taking a highway exit when I really should have taken a left. Nevertheless, in this day and age it’s vital to have something that can get you where you need to go. The psalmist knew the important of this truth as well. That’s why he culminated today’s first psalm – Psalm 37 – with these words: “If you want to live well, make sure you understand all of this. If you know what’s good for you, you’ll learn this inside and out. God’s paths get you where you want to go. Right-living people walk them easily; wrong-living people are always tripping and stumbling” (Psalm 37:9 from The Message). The power and simplicity of the psalmist’s statement is that it reminds us God isn’t just another version of Mapquest – for unlike Mapquest, the ways in which God points us are always on the mark. And this season, that’s particularly true as God points us toward that manger in Bethlehem. Today, I give thanks for the One who provides the paths which help us get to where we need to go. I also pray that each of us might have the wisdom and strength to get on those paths. Til next time…
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