Shade Tree Wisdom 3/15/09

Rainy this Sunday, and I can think of nothing better than to write a word or two about events of the day, and the Christian response. Try to answer the question,
“What, if anything, ought we to do?”

The Books of Chronicles in the Bible are written, some think, by Ezra. They open with a list of names, gobs of names, hundreds of names. Some call this one of the most boring sections of the Bible. God has a purpose, and the reason is this. After king David and several later kings, things started to go downhill. Kings forgot the Lord, grew careless in their worship, and Egypt, then Assyria, Babylon, and finally Persia, attached, captured, and took captive many of them. They were in danger of forgetting who they were. Hence the list of names, starting with Adam, Enoch and down to the present, to remind them they were special, God’s chosen people.

So the Chronicler reports the building of the temple in detail, and then, after Solomon finished his prayer of dedication, gives us this promise:
“14 If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” [2 Chron 7,14].

We are the people God calls His children, His sheep, and can do no better than follow that direction; repentance, humility, following His will, and Jesus adds this promise to prayer, “If you ask anything in My Name, He will do it.”

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart, and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will direct your paths.” Prov, 3, 5.6.

“Rejoice in the Lord always, and again I say, rejoice. Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Phil.4, 4-7.

So, let’s begin with thanksgiving for this rain, for our faith, for God’s faithfulness, and God’s ability to be God still. For the psalmist assures, “The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, and His ears are attentive to their cry.” Ps. 34,15 Luther never fails to remind us that “The word of the Lord is true and right”. Ps. 33,4.

GPD 3/15/09