Today's
Scripture Reading (April 7, 2020): Habakkuk 3
Most of life is a choice. I reject
the fatalistic thought that God has created this world with a set plot, much
like Shakespeare created the plays that he wrote. I don't understand assertions
that somehow all of history has already been written. As a result, all that is
left for us is to play out the drama that is set before us. Whether you are a hero
or villain, it ultimately has nothing to do with you. All you or I can do is
play the part that we have been created to perform. I have heard the theology taught,
but I do not understand how any of this could honor God. He has not created us
as automatons who are unable to make a choice. From the very beginning, he has created
us with the ability to choose. We make choices for or against him, as well as a
myriad of other decisions that we make every day.
Habakkuk finishes a very heartfelt
prayer with a message about a choice. Despite the outward circumstances of his life,
he declares that he will choose to rejoice and be joyful because he knows that
God is present in his life. It is a message that I wish more people sitting in
the pews of our churches could take to heart. Regardless of what might be happening
outside, whether there is an enemy that is preparing to invade or a virus that
is causing havoc within our societies, we have within us the ability to be
positive. We know that whatever the outside situation might be, God is with us.
As Christians, we do not just
celebrate Emmanuel at Christmas time. God is always with us. He is there
through bad health and no employment. He has promised to be with us when
everything around us seems to have been thrown into confusion. God is with us,
always. And we shouldn't need to know anything else to be joyful.
When everything is going wrong,
remember Jesus's words. "And surely I am with you always, to the very end
of the age" (Matthew 28:20). And because of this, we can choose to rejoice.
Tomorrow's
Scripture Reading: Jeremiah 11
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