Today’s Scripture Reading (June 30, 2017):
Isaiah 54
Ellen DeGeneres recently (June 2017) tried
an experiment on her talk show testing the honesty of her audience. She told
her audience that they could take one item from a free table in her gift shop
as the talk show host’s gift to her audience. She also set up cameras to
examine what was going to happen next. Apparently, for the most part, the
people who make up Ellen’s audience are relatively
honest people. Most of the audience
faithfully took one item. Nancy, on the other hand, decided to make the most of
her moment, stockpiling freebies to take
home with her. (Did I mention there was a camera?)
Back on the Ellen Show, Ellen decided
to have a conversation with Nancy. After all, maybe she had a hard time
counting to one. Nancy, in her defense, argued that she just wanted to get
something for her sister who couldn’t attend the taping of the show. To which
Ellen replied, "Well, there were a lot of sisters that
couldn't come.” Nancy was then sentenced to sit in “Ellen Jail” and think about
what she had done.
I have no idea how Nancy felt, but if it were me, the embarrassment would have been
overwhelming. And yet we have all been there. We have all suffered embarrassment
and shame because of the actions we have taken. It is part of the process of
maturing, of growing up. There are moments of shame that I remember in my life
that keep from ever repeating certain actions.
I remember distinctly how I felt before
and I don’t want to feel that way again.
But sometimes the accumulated shame in our lives
become debilitating. The weight of the embarrassment that we have suffered
becomes too much for us to bear. And so we check out. We stop trying. We give
up on trying to become something. Our past stands in our way, blocking our future.
God’s promise to the exiles was that, in spite of all
that they had done to bring embarrassment on themselves, he was not going to
put them to shame. In spite of what they had done to bring disgrace on
themselves, he would not humiliate them. They were about to be released from
their prison and given another chance. “Ellen Jail” would no longer have a hold
on them, trapping them in their shame. It was a second chance to learn the
lessons that they had not learned before. Another opportunity to live their
lives in a way that honored both God and themselves. An opportunity to put embarrassment and shame firmly behind them –
and never return to them again.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Daniel 5
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