Shade Tree Wisdom 2/13/13

          Today is Ash Wednesday. This begins a time of 40 days during which the Church spends time for reflection on the spiritual things of life. The 40 days of Lent. ..

          For each of us, the time lends itself to an examination of our own life. How do we measure up to the spiritual goal of “Ye shall be holy, even as I, the Lord, your God, am holy?”(Lev.19,2).

          We might look to see whether we are drifting from His holy Word and living by standards that do not really measure up any more. And that is rather easy for us sinners to do, because we do live in the world that, for the greater part, no longer regards God’s Word or Will to be our standards for the way we live, and THAT has a tendency to rub off, and too often we are not even aware of our own drifting!

          When that happens, the end result if a loss of Hope.

          Hope, St. Paul called it one of the essentials of the Christian life.

          Hope lives because of the events to which the 40 days lead, Easter, and the Resurrection of Jesus Christ to become our Living Lord and Savior.

          But why believe that at all any more. The psalmist struggled with this and his reply is:
              “I remember the days of long ago,
               I meditate on all your works, and
               Consider what your hands of done.” Psalm 143,5.

          That’s where His Hope comes from, He simply remembers that God’s Word is true, because our God never lies. He can trust Him.

          It’s the kind, an example is Habakkuk. Here is a prophet who is just as puzzled often by the way things happen as we are. And He dares to question God. Especially when he realizes God is about to use a godless military machine of Babylon to bring God’s judgment on God’s own people.

          The prophet is bewildered and cries that “This doesn’t make sense.”

          Sounds like us, doesn’t it. Not a day passes but there are things that make us say, “This doesn’t make sense.

          But the prophet does more, He waits and listens to God, and turns to prayer, and comes to realize that trusting God is the only real life. So He ends his book with this:
              “Though the fig tree does not bud, and there are no grapes on the vine.
               Though the olive crop fails, and the fields produce no food,
               Though there are no sheep in the pen, and no cattle in the stalls,
               YET I will rejoice in the Lord, I will rejoice in God my Savior.
               The Sovereign Lord is my strength.” (Hab. 3,17-19)

          May the Lenten Day thinking and soul-searching strengthen your faith, and mine, in God, who brings us hope.

GPD 2/13/13