Happy Friday,
Remember your word to your servant, in which you made me hope.
Psalm 119:49
God’s word brings hope, which we need. Always. Some suggest clear thinking leads to despair, “especially now.” No. Not in Christ! Evil loses. We do not need a false optimism, just a clear vision of Christ and His promises.
Scripture Memory: In Psalm 119, David notes that he has “stored up” God’s word in his heart, “that I might not sin against you.” John Wesley parrots David, saying, “I have laid it up in my mind like a choice treasure, to be ready upon all occasions to counsel, quicken or caution me.” Spurgeon also, “There, laid up in my heart, the word has effect.” I could add others, most notably Christ, who counters Satan’s attacks with quotes from Deuteronomy – making it clear that the Word of God (Jesus the logos) had memorized much of the word of God. Why not join them? Scribble a few verses on a 3×5 card and carry it with you today.
Don’t Stop There: Of course, Scripture memory is not the goal. Indeed, it is of little value unless we allow it to lead to right thinking. But right thinking is also not the goal. It is of little value unless it leads to obedience. But neither is obedience the goal. God does not want our joyless compliance. He wants our heart. The reason to memorize Scripture is to shape our heart in ways that direct our life to spill over in worship.
Trust: It’s old news to note that our trust in today’s news is down. Likewise, the reasons are well known: 1) Reporters biases increasingly shape their reporting; 2) Increased competition leads to less ad revenue, which leads to cuts in news budgets; and 3) The 24-hour news cycle (and increased competition) leaves reporters with less time to check sources. To these I would add three that are unique to “Christian news.” 1) Irreligious reporters often do not understand the story; 2) The evangelical world lacks a Pope, making it hard for outsiders to know who to call for insight; and 3) Individuals likely to give the best sound bite often hold the most strident positions.
Without Comment: 1) More Americans died of drug overdoses in the last year than any year before it; 2) The Berlin Wall has now been down longer than it was up; 3) Among young US adults, socialism is as popular as capitalism; meanwhile, among Baby Boomers capitalism is dramatically more popular than socialism: 4) An Emory University study suggests that the more people who attend your wedding, the more likely it is to last.
This Week’s Question: What am I missing? What is the pandemic causing me to overlook? What am I not paying attention to that I otherwise would be?
Silence: Fourteenth century Renaissance scholar, Petrarch – who is credited with coining the term “The Middle Ages” – issued a warning then that seems appropriate now: “Like our stomachs, our minds are hurt more often by overeating than by hunger.”
Coincidence? While prepping for tomorrow’s podcast on the Reformation, I learned that coffee first reached Europe in 1515. 1515! Think about that. Two years later Luther launched the Reformation. I’d always assumed his stein was full of beer. Coffee would explain more. I can’t be the first to make this connection.
Criticism: Leadership today involves criticism in stereo. At least that is what I am telling myself, because, well, I am surrounded by “music.” The list of problems I cannot solve and must simply accept as “tensions I must manage,” is growing. All of this makes the need to embrace and embody the hope of the Gospel that much more important.
Closing Prayer: O God the Holy Spirit, most loving Comforter of the fainthearted, I pray that you will always turn what is evil in me into good and what is good into what is better; turn my mourning into joy, my wandering feet into the right path, my ignorance into knowledge of your truth, my lukewarmness into zeal, my fear into love, all my material good into a spiritual gift, all my earthly desires into heavenly desires, all that is transient into what lasts forever, everything human into what is divine, everything created and finite into that sovereign and immeasurable good, which you yourself are, O my God and Savior. Amen. (Thomas à Kempis – 1380 – 1471)