Today’s Scripture Reading (November
21, 2013): Isaiah 17
Toronto
Mayor Rob Ford is putting both Toronto and Canada on the map. Unfortunately, it
isn’t for doing something good. The Mayor of Canada’s largest city has provided
late night television with a constant stream of jokes for the past couple of weeks.
The charges against the mayor have ranged from alcohol fueled misbehaviour,
drug purchasing and use, and sexual misconduct charges to minor
misappropriation of power charges (like sending aides to change light bulbs in
his house.) And there has been a pattern to the revelations. A charge of misbehaviour
is revealed, Mayor Ford vehemently denies the charge, Ford Explodes with language
unbecoming of his office, Ford threatens to sue former staffers or whoever
happens to be around him at the time, Ford backs off recognizing that he has a
problem, but it isn’t really that bad. He has just had a bad day, or week,
month, or year. He has messed up and will do better in the future. And then the
chorus picks up off stage requesting the Mayor to resign office.
But probably
the one thing that is not being talked about is the job the mayor is doing in
office, (one anonymous Toronto billboard trumpeted a message of support for the
Mayor praising his financial restraint while quoting a bible verse on the bottom of the
sign indicating that it is those without sin that can throw the first stone)
but the sign disappeared from Toronto streets almost as quickly as it went up. With
everything that is going on in Mayor Ford’s life, it seems unlikely that the he
is giving of his best to the citizens of Toronto. Given the charges that are
being leveled against the Mayor, it seems likely that the Mayor has lost focus
on the reason that he is in office in the first place – to lead a city (and in
this case, a major North American center) into the future. The growing evidence
of misbehaviour being brought against the Mayor is just evidence that the Mayor
has lost sight of the basics – of the things that are really important. And the first priority for Ford should be a commitment to get back to the basics of running the city - something that in the past he has done well.
Isaiah
reminds his readers that it is not that a person or a nation has to commit a great
sin in order to be brought down to destruction. It is enough that they lose
their focus on the basics and on the things that are important. In the case of
Damascus, there did not have to be a list of accusers drawing up their charges
against the nation. Late night television did not need to be brought in
chronicling the lack. It was enough that they had lost their focus.
The
uncomfortable truth for Rob Ford is that if he had done his job, he wouldn’t be
nearly as famous as he is. When our focus is right, the world seldom notices
because everything seems to happen at its proper pace. But when we lose our
focus, then the world notices us – but in that case it is not for all of the
positives things we are accomplishing. So it is with that in mind that I hope that
the world never notices you. Keep your focus on God and on the things that you
are placed here for you to accomplish. If David Letterman never realizes that you exist,
then there is a good chance that you have kept your eyes on the prize and remembered
the important things of life.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Isaiah
18
No comments:
Post a Comment