Comments for January 21,2014

This is the day The Lord has made! Let us rejoice and be glad in it.  We received an email from our friend Sally Holliday this morning. Her husband and our friend died last evening. His brother John died last week. I am saddened and I grieve this loss. Mostly I grieve for Sally. She will miss Ralph greatly.  This life here on earth in the world as we know it is temporary. Ralph has gone on to be in the loving arms of his Father in Heaven. I am blessed by having known and communed with Ralph. With his life, he has made my life richer and more meaningful. Thank you God for Ralph.  Today we read the first 36 verses of Psalm 18. This was written by David. David like many of us is confused regarding our own capabilities. Notice how David speaks of his action being what he David was able to do. And, he talks about the rewards God showers on him for his good behavior. We all know we should be good. And, we want to be rewarded for our good behavior. We even think others should be rewarded for good behavior. Even Pavlov's dog learned behavior that was rewarded. The problem is and thousands of years of experience teach it, we are not able to be good. The best behaved people who have ever lived have some nasty deeds hidden in their closets. With our friends, we have forgiven the bad deeds we know about. In a sense, we have forgiven all their bad deeds...even the ones we don't know about. When one is revealed we might say... Oh! I don't believe that.  Later in Psalm 18, David does give the credit for his good behavior to God. We can do that too. Or can we? Are we able to trust God enough to grant Him the power and wisdom to be responsible for all of creation. Many people seem to believe in a God or, not believe in a God, who is big enough to do it all and more. Can I trust God enough to let Him be God? Or, do I want to make God over into some smaller limited version? Of course, I can only do that in my mind. God is God and none of us individually or collectively can alter the situation. God knows we have tried. Satan at least does it openly and admits his intentions.  Shift gears with me and think more about, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like"... If we didn't have the evil present in the world, how would we be able to understand the contrasting characteristics of right and wrong? Should we be grateful for the sins of our friends, noting that they help us learn more about God and His identity. Perhaps we should just accept our condition. And, be grateful for a loving, merciful Father. We are loved by a God who knows us better than we know ourselves. He loves us more than we can ever know. And, He loves us in our worst condition. He loves us when we are down and out. He loves us when we we can't love ourselves. He wants to grant us mercy and shower us with grace. He sent Jesus to pay the penalty that fulfills the demands of God's justice. He has covered it all. When we decide to wholeheartedly follow Him, He grants us righteousnss.