Today’s Readings: Psalm 119:1-24; Ezekiel 7:14-27; John 14:21-29; Romans 8:18-25; Psalm 74
Every so often one of the daily readings comes along that seems to be ripped out of today’s newspaper headlines: much like an episode of “Law & Order”. Today’s passage from Ezekiel provides us with one such passage. In the text, Ezekiel describes the extent of the devastation visited upon the people by observing: “They clamor for the prophet to tell them what’s up, but nobody knows anything. Priests don’t have a clue; the elders don’t know what to say. The king holds his head in despair; the prince is devastated. The common people gripped with fear” (Ezekiel 7:26-27 from The Message). That sounds a whole like what has been happening to us for over a year now. Oh, we may not have looked to the prophets to tell us what’s up – but we did look to our trusted economists to predict the depth and duration of the recession. And we might not have consulted a spiritual leader called priest per se – but we did turn to those who present the public face of our faith hoping they would provide words of hope and comfort. And we may not have had the experience of being ruled by a king – but we looked to those who occupied our statehouses in hopes they would get us out of the mess. And what did we find when we looked in those places? Words of cynicism and uncertainty, messages of blame and division, scandals… It’s no wonder that some folks have succumbed to fear and paralysis! Thankfully, we people of faith have another place to look that can provide deeper – more comprehensive insights into our true state of being: God: a God who promises to deal with us not where we should be, but “where [we] are.” The culmination of that promise being that we “will know that [God is] God.” During these tumultuous days, where are you looking for answers. Your financial planner? Your elected officials? Your priests, your pastors, or your elders? Or are you looking someplace else? Are you looking to the One whose roots sink much deeper? Til next time…
Every so often one of the daily readings comes along that seems to be ripped out of today’s newspaper headlines: much like an episode of “Law & Order”. Today’s passage from Ezekiel provides us with one such passage. In the text, Ezekiel describes the extent of the devastation visited upon the people by observing: “They clamor for the prophet to tell them what’s up, but nobody knows anything. Priests don’t have a clue; the elders don’t know what to say. The king holds his head in despair; the prince is devastated. The common people gripped with fear” (Ezekiel 7:26-27 from The Message). That sounds a whole like what has been happening to us for over a year now. Oh, we may not have looked to the prophets to tell us what’s up – but we did look to our trusted economists to predict the depth and duration of the recession. And we might not have consulted a spiritual leader called priest per se – but we did turn to those who present the public face of our faith hoping they would provide words of hope and comfort. And we may not have had the experience of being ruled by a king – but we looked to those who occupied our statehouses in hopes they would get us out of the mess. And what did we find when we looked in those places? Words of cynicism and uncertainty, messages of blame and division, scandals… It’s no wonder that some folks have succumbed to fear and paralysis! Thankfully, we people of faith have another place to look that can provide deeper – more comprehensive insights into our true state of being: God: a God who promises to deal with us not where we should be, but “where [we] are.” The culmination of that promise being that we “will know that [God is] God.” During these tumultuous days, where are you looking for answers. Your financial planner? Your elected officials? Your priests, your pastors, or your elders? Or are you looking someplace else? Are you looking to the One whose roots sink much deeper? Til next time…
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