Today's Scripture Reading (August 26, 2022): Psalm 107
"There are no atheists in foxholes." No one knows where the saying originated. It has
been attributed to various military chaplains or other military officers. President Dwight Eisenhower quoted the words in his
remarks from the White House as part of an American Legion Program on February
7, 1954. But the quote didn't originate with the President. It had been published
with slightly different wording as early as late in the First World War; the
War to End All Wars.
The quote is real, but that doesn't mean the sentiment is true. I am sure there are "foxhole conversions," moments under extreme duress when people commit to God. But it is often a commitment that swiftly evaporates as soon as the moment
of stress has disappeared. But there are others that I am sure
meet that moment of stress without any thought given to God. I
know a man who had been an atheist all of his life, and when that final moment of life came, it was his pride that kept him from accepting God with his last breaths.
He wanted nothing
more than to die as he had lived.
In ancient times it wasn't just war that caused some people to make "foxhole conversions." Danger was present with some very common tasks of
life, especially if you happened to be a sailor or someone
who spent your time on the open seas. Water came to symbolize chaos because the action of
the water seemed so unpredictable. Anyone who spent time on the water had run into an unexpected storm. In ancient times, material and
life loss on the water was more common than anyone wanted to admit. And those
that lived through the storm often began thanking some god for their
deliverance. In those
circumstances, it
was only divine intervention that made any sense.
The Psalmist makes the most
of these "foxhole conversions." He argues that those who have gone out onto the
mighty waters know the power and majesty of God. They have seen what happens on
the waves and have watched
the water's majesty and power. They have experienced the frightful storms that seem to appear at a moment's notice and just as quickly disappear.
So, the Psalmist asks this question; how can anyone who has seen that kind of majesty not
believe in God? We have become so jaded with our knowledge that we
seldom bother to ask those questions. And yet we should. We should be able to
look at the world with the wonder of someone who does not have that kind of
knowledge and, at that moment, see our God's majesty anew once
more.
Today's Scripture Reading: Psalms
111 & 112
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