26th. August. 2020. Daily Devotion.

Faded Flowers

For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. ~ Hebrews 4:12

The grass withers, and the flower fades. But the word of our God stands forever. ~ Isaiah 40:8

I came across these comments on Isaiah 40:8:

There are (and have always been) people who, when they read something in the Bible that disagrees with their own ideas, simply change it. It’s nothing new. Southern slaveholders and European colonialists had a theological jamboree, figuring out how to justify their actions from the pulpit. In the 4th century, Constantine put Christian emblems on his army’s shields and forced millions of people to become “Christians” — now there’s a guy who appreciated irony. People were doing it in 60 A.D. — just read Galatians, or pretty much any of the church epistles. They are missing out on something wonderful.

It is true, that every person who reads the Bible is going to hear things they don’t want to hear — or actually, things that they think they don’t want to hear — and be asked to change both some of their opinions and some of their conduct.

What to make of this? Sometimes the scriptures are unpalatable to us. If so, we need to allow the word to challenge our thinking and our attitudes. This does not mean blindly accepting what we read but considering it in the context of our lives and behaviour. If our conscience is challenged, then we should repent, which means changing and putting things right.  Above all we should seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit to understand what is meant by the word, in its original context if we can, and in the context of our own lives. God’s gracious purpose is that we be Christ-like in our living and our loving, but not dogmatic or fearful.

Prayer to Do Good

If there be some weaker one,
Give me strength to help him on;
If a blinder soul there be
Let me guide him nearer thee.

Make my mortal dreams come true
With the work I fain would do;
Clothe with life the weak intent,
Let me be the thing I meant.

Let me find in Thy employ,
Peace that dearer is than joy;
Out of self to love be led,
And to Heaven acclimated,
Until all things sweet and good
Seem my natural habitude.

John Greenleaf Whittier

O Lord, we call upon You in our time of sorrow,
That You will give us strength and will to bear our heavy
burdens, until we can again feel the warmth and love of
Your divine compassion. Be mindful of us and have mercy
on us while we struggle to understand life’s hardships.

Keep us ever in Your watch, till we can walk again with
light hearts and renewed spirits.
Amen

As smoke is blown away and wax melts in the fire, may racism and oppression disappear before your face, O God.
For international travellers stuck in foreign countries: God, help them return home safely and quickly.
Amen.